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| EDITORIAL December 14, 1998 VNN2680 The Nature Of Vaisnava Leadership BY RAGHUNANDAN DAS EDITORIAL, Dec 14 (VNN) — My Dear God Brothers and Sisters Worldwide, I am Raghunandan dasa, disciple of Sridhardev Goswami Maharaja, the Godbrother of Srila Prabhupada. I was in ISKCON from 1979 to 1983, at which time I left to switch to Sridhar Maharajas devotees camp. I was initiated first by Hansadutta dasa as "Radha Govinda dasa", in 1979, given Brahmin too, and I ran temples at times. I was Hansadutta's servant/secretary traveling with him for the first few years of my devotional life. At those times I met most of the then GBC and all the eleven Gurus at the time. I had many dealings with the initial management team of ISKCON that followed Srila Prabhupada's departure back in those times. Later, while in the camp of Sridhara Maharaja in the US and in England, I learned many things about our parent movement, The Gaudiya Math, that I had never learned in ISKCON. I also learned much about general Gaudiya Vaisnavism, and our own Sampradaya, because Sridhara Maharaja was much more revealing and educating about these matters than it seems Srila Prabhupada ever was. So that's my background. So now you know a little bit about where I'm coming from. I am inspired by the recent discussions surrounding the Harikesh Maharaja issue to write something from my heart. I was one of the disciples of another of the original Guru's who went down from their lofty position as our Guru. I suffered through this years ago. It sounds oh so very familiar. The money, the bad dealings with Godbrothers, the bitter feelings afterwards, the excuses, the accusations... and so on. I write because I've healed and I think I have something to say. All of us would do well, in my humble opinion, to ask ourselves why these things could happen in the first generation of followers after Srila Prabhupada, amongst the very disciples he seemed to name as trustworthy or worthy of representing Him (although I realize the mode of representation is highly disputable). Still, I've heard the tape, He did say their names. Without getting into the mental disputes of my last question, simply consider it broadly. Why is that so many terrible things are possible directly from the actions of some of Srila Prabhupada's most trusted disciples? Why is that all "ex" devotees always laugh when I tell the following joke: "ISKCON is like ghee. The impurities rise to the top and become GBC's" Is it because of the truth hidden in the funny statement? That is the way humor works. My point is, their is much stored resentment and mutual understanding that often those at the top in ISKCON are the least sensitive, caring, reliable, and trustworthy devotees. I have to admit, that right from the start in ISKCON, I was shocked by the very mood, attitudes and behaviors of the leaders. When I joined I was in some kind of illusion that because of the lofty religious statements I was reading in the books, that the devotees, especially the leaders, would be purehearted, honest, and really dharmic. I found it to be otherwise. I found the humble devotees not being promoted, and the pushy, arrogant, proud, commanding and often adharmic and dishonest manipulators were being promoted. I noticed that many Sannyasis had that broken nose look, which has long been associated with criminality in the West. It seemed to the young, naive nineteen-year-old me that Srila Prabhupada liked and promoted the Gangsters amongst the devotees, and that this practice was still going on a couple years after his departure. As Hansadutta's servant, I noticed him surrounding himself with such persons, encouraging their devious behaviors, and I soon found out it was similar in other zones with the other big Gurus. I wondered why. I was baffled. I was also hurt and afraid. But then when I found Sridhara Maharaja, I found a Gaudiya Vaisnava Sannyasi who was quite the opposite. He was actually humble, and not interested in money, but was genuinely interested in his disciples experiencing genuine Krishna Bhakti. He taught it, did it, wasn't interested in anything else. He saved my spiritual life in Gaudiya Vaisnavism. Sridhara Maharaja explained that karmis fall down through the three large distractions for the soul, namely Kamini, Kanak, and Pratistha, or "sex, money and fame". Karmis almost all get sex, then some get money, and some get fame. Sannyasis, having left the world, fall down through these backwards. Firstly they get Pratistha or fame, then kanak or money, then at last possibly Kamini, or sex life. These three are the enemies of the servant of the servants. Sannyasis, and Gurus, should act as the servant of the servants. We would not expect the servant of the servants to have better quarters, more money, better everything, than the servants themselves would we? Yet they often do, in such excess that it becomes embarrassing and confusing. Quickly we saw after Srila Prabhupada's disappearance that those in power seized the Pratistha, then the money, and gradually sometimes a woman or more than one. Then worse than those things, they committed atrocities against other devotees of all age and experience levels, even aged Sannyasis in other branches of the Gaudiya Tree. As one of the category of aggressive male devotees, I admit fault to being attracted to the power given to us by Srila Prabhupada. We easily ignored the precautions about humility and instead used every avenue of abuse of our position in scam and misuse. My proposal is this: Since we are freshly and once again witnessing the outcomes of a heretofore undiagnosed disease in our movement, can we not this time look to the real, original, historical source of this syndrome and admit at last it's existence and thus begin to weed it out? I propose that the disease is in misunderstanding a historical demand upon us in the progressive march of Gaudiya Vaisnavism, mainly in the West, which is clearly under the original initiation of the life of Bhaktivedanta Swami. That historical demand is that we recognize that the life and lila of Bhaktivedanta Swami had certain nuances which must end and be no more after his disappearance. I grant Srila Prabhupada the right and privilege to act as He did during His time. Knowing that it was short, and the job of planting the seed in the West quite large, He did and allowed certain things which are not lastingly useful in the spread of Vaisnavism. Srila Prabhupada promoted men who were active and aggressive. This is one of the things that has to be abandoned. Instead, persons who have a strong "Saturnian" nature have to be promoted. Saturn is more honest, durable, long term, far seeing, than the "Solar-Mars" combo of qualities that Srila Prabhupada utilized so effectively. Saturnian people are more devoted to humility than other persons. We need genuinely humble and sincere monks as our monks. Sannyasis are supposed to be humble souls who have given up their personal life. There should not be any signs of them believing any name and fame about themselves, and there should be no signs of them accepting all the trimmings of being millionaires, and lastly, they should not be flirtatious with the ladies, nor accepting them personally as wives, covert or outward. Only then will we have real leaders, real Sannyasis. Sannyasis should also be learned. They should not be simply persons who collected much money, or were aggressive in some other service, but who lack training in Vaisnava history, Sastra, Vedic Sciences, etc. We must have learned leaders, otherwise we will be lead to where? The real life of "Veda" is one of learning. We are a Veda based movement. We cannot be led properly by the uneducated, even if they are hyper active and gifted with the ability to motivate. For those types, they can only motivate to more mindless activity in stray directions. Honesty is important in this age. In ISKCON, I was appalled by the widespread acceptance of petty crime "on behalf of Krishna". Devotees, when I was in ISKCON, were expert petty thiefs, from things like the "change up" to things like the person to person collect calls to phone booths. When one is a real monk, they are sanctioned to accept donations because they use it in God's services. Any acceptance of this flow of funding for personal pleasures or ego trips is not acceptable. When I was in ISKCON, and I can see it goes on today, there was widespread acceptance of the funds derived from the Holy Process of begging for spiritual service as useable for any and all purposes, from fancy cars for the Guru, to opulent mansions for impressing the masses. Obviously, the paying masses were not intending to help fund the purchase of mansions or fancy cars. We expect our government servants, who rely on our taxes, to drive humble cars, which just get the job done. We should expect the same from Vaisnava Brahmins, the most humble servants of all. To really cure this problem, we have to leave behind much of the conditioning used and taught in the old ISKCON. We have to embrace publicly revealable lives of service, and humility and a secluded mood, like that of real monks. If our books, our ways, and our means were revealable and acceptable to the public who know in general how religious persons should act, then we would be doing the movement a big favor and giving it the immunization from it's own embarrassing past that it needs to go on to success. We have the greatest philosophy. We have the greatest Scriptures. Our Lord is extremely powerful in all ways, and all attractive. We need only properly represent it with humility. Then we won't have these problems. Remember, Srila Prabhupada taught that it takes a cheater to be cheated. If we are able to tolerate cheaters for so long, what does that say about us? I propose that there was something missing in the original installation. I do not blame Srila Prabhupada, even though he was involved. I see that He did an incredibly austere and glorious service, which took immense self sacrifice. However, the "emergency means and methods" he used should be largely abandoned for a more maintainable, honorable, trustworthy and humble mode and attitude. We should take our purity, sincerity and honesty as of utmost importance over collecting of funds or spreading the movement. If we cannot have purity in our ranks and at our top, how can we expect to spread anything good or worthy? It is time to focus inwards rather than outwards. When there is proof that we can generate real devotee leaders, then let them lead. Until then, better focus on making some. At least we should watch for the above mentioned fall down pattern in all current "leaders" and not place large bets on those horses who are clearly running off the track in arrogance, pride, and obvious lack of knowledge of what proper Vaisnava behavior should be. In ISKCON, there is a prevalence of aggression. Let me explain with an example how subtle and powerful is this force. We all know that Bhaktas often preach quite forcefully to their families, friends and guests. This is encouraged and taught. Right from the start, devotees are given a very inflated sense of their spiritual separateness and sanctimony, and they are taught to use this, and to reinforce their mental strength with it. I propose that this is a wrong idea. Right from the start, devotees should instead be taught to be humble, kind, giving, servile. This mood is "Saturnian". They should be taught: "I am small, I am humble, let me be a reflection of the satisfied mood, the greatness, the humility, of my Great Vaisnava Guru lineage". If such a mood is taught, devotees will consider their actions towards others of more consequence than how well they manipulate "karmis". Furthermore, they should be taught: "Never forget, our movement is the last stopping point for the soul. It is a final place, not a jumping off point. Persons approaching here should be interested in being finished with the manipulations, crimes and aggressions of the material realm. Let me not be that way, let me be a trusting humble servant of God, who can show the greatness of this path to others simply by being my humble self, the servant my Guru is teaching me to be". This mood is practically unattractive to the solar and passionate. It sounds like death, but it is the proposition of real Vaisnavism. I propose that all of us examine, why are we in ISKCON if not for this. If we are in ISKCON to be aggressive in any way, we should pause and consider the philosophical basis of our actions, and our presence in a Vaisnava Temple. If the ways of Srila Prabhupada, including the aggressive way of Vaisnavism whereby even beginners are encouraged to take leadership positions, despite being spiritually unqualified and scripturally untrained, are what attracts you, then I propose you stop and think whether these things are what will really establish Vaisnavism in the long term. I propose that the seed is already planted. Vaisnavism will go on now. It will. I know that, despite the presence of ISKCON or not. So now is the time to become a Vaisnava- a real one, a real touchstone. Remember this: The real Vaisnava leader does not want to be one. A real Vaisnava accepts the service because all the other servants thrust it upon Him. This is the enigma of the Srila Prabhupada lila. He approached us. He was aggressive. That was needed, but that is not the norm. The norm is for the real Vaisnava to be anti-recognition. Leadership is a duty demanded of Him, at which time He humbly accepts it. Seeking followers is anti-Vaisnava. ISKCON has always aggressively sought followers. It seems it literally feeds on a constant flow of new souls. Sannyasis and brahmacaris have to be satisfied that their ranks are few. Far and few between are such souls. Most people are Grihastas, and that is God's way. The Sannyasis should not resent this situation. True, they have more intimate, more "fired up" talks with their fellow kind, the other Brahmacaris and Sannyasis. However, they live to serve all- all Vaisnava souls are the servants they are chief servant of. It is so and it should appear like so. I used to be a good paintings selling devotee, as we used that method heavily in Hansadutta's zone. In 1986, while in Navadwip once with Sridhara Maharaja, I proposed to him that he allow me to return to England, to rally his various disciples there, and get a paintings selling campaign going to raise the funds he needed to build a temple in Puri that he dreamed of to some degree. I could have done it. I had the strength, will, determination, and cheap style of macho devotion that made such projects commonly accomplished amongst the elite fired up male crew trained in ISKCON. I was one of those commando types which so easily rise to prominence in the past in our movement (and still to this day?). After just a moments thought, His Holy response was that "you are not pure enough and need to stay in the Dham and take Harinam". This means, simply "stay in Navadwip for some more time and chant Hare Krishna" there. This simple action on His part was a complete eye-opener for me. Our famous "Om ajnana timirandhasya..." verse includes a line whereby it refers to an instrument for removing the cataract from the eye. We understand that the Guru "opens our eyes, with the torch light of knowledge". This is what Sridhara Maharaja did for me at this moment. He showed me that my spiritual life was something He thought about, that mattered to Him, and was by degrees more important to Him than money could be. It's important to know, that even His intimate secretary was enthusiastic about my idea at the time. So Sridhara Maharaja was under the "pressure of the Prabhus" at this time. But that didn't phase Him either. I humbly suggest current Vaisnava Gurus to act in this way. Examine deeply the motivations for your ways of dealing with your dependents. On a practical level, I suggest that devotees be honored by the beginning of serious retirement planning in ISKCON in general, for all members. We should see talks of pension funds, old age homes, health insurance, and things such as this. If I see these things, I think I am seeing the real "servant of the servants" minding their really needed services for their many "Prabhus". In closing, I only wish to ask, please, nobody think that I don't love Srila Prabhupada, because that's not true. I love Srila Prabhupada. I take my Vaisnavism seriously. I work full time in Vedic Astrology Software and have helped spread Vaisnavism through this work. I thank Srila Prabhupad AND HIS DISCIPLES profusely for their tremendous sacrifices in spreading Vaisnavism so that in 1979 the likes of me could walk in to a nice temple and join an already established worldwide movement. I love them all for that. Really, that's true. However, I just recognize the need to move on from much of the moods, ways, means and sayings of those times, to a more mature type of Vaisnavism, which focuses first on doing it, then later on spreading it. It's not so easy to actually be a Vaisnava, and I think we can put all of our attention there. As Sri Caitanya would say, "Krishne matir astu", may our attention be on Krishna. I hope this is well received by the sincere Vaisnava readers. In Peace, Love and Dandavats to the Vaisnavas, Raghunandan das aka Das Goravani das@goravani.com http://www.goravani.com Comment on this Story This story URL: http://www.vnn.org/editorials/ET9812/ET14-2680.html
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