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EDITORIAL March 12, 1999 VNN3302 Suing ISKCON BY SRIKANTA DASA EDITORIAL, Mar 12 (VNN) — Dear Pratyatosa Dasa, undoubtedly so many have suffered at the hands of some of the ISKCON leadership and some of the members. But is suing the spiritual master's movement Prabhupada's example? What will you gain? You express a childish thrill that a law firm is considering suing ISKCON. What's the big deal? I could find a dozen firms every day that would consider taking ISKCON's money. Remember, the lawyers usually take about 40% of the "winnings." Four-tenths of the money taken from ISKCON--money given in good faith by innocent people who believe in Lord Chaitanya's mission to spread Krishna consciousness, money collected with great sacrifice and struggle by new bhaktas and bhaktins--would be given to nondevotees, would be spent on cow killing and abortion promotion and otherwise furthering the materialistic cause. Is this what you and the children of ISKCON wish? The molesting is horrible. The individuals who did it should be severely punished. Death would be too good for them. They must be exposed, severely punished, driven out, banished. So should anyone who knew of the crimes and condoned them, covered them, allowed them, lifted not a finger to prevent them. But their crime is not ISKCON's crime. ISKCON's money is Prabhupada's money. It does not belong to the molesters or their cohorts. It is meant for printing books, worshiping Deities, distributing prasadam. It is meant for spreading Krishna consciousness. Even in fighting such a lawsuit, ISKCON will waste millions. Again, it will go to the lawyers, not the children. This would go on for years and years. You would get only a small fraction of what you think. Meanwhile, what preaching and book distribution is going on would likely stop. I appreciate that you want to avenge the harm to the children, and to your child. I do too. But eliminating what's left of ISKCON is not, I think, the legacy you want to leave them. It's not something they would look back on with pride. You would not be using these lawyers; they would be using you. They don't love Krishna. They love taking Laksmi from Krishna. So, don't support an ISKCON organization that you don't believe in. Rather, gather together with other, like-minded devotees, and their children, and bring Krishna consciousness to others in the way you know it was meant to be done. Be the pure example that puts the ISKCON leadership to shame. Help the children regain their purpose, their pride, their self-esteem by helping them help others to find Krishna. Bring them the comfort that can only come from reviving the purest loving relationship, their relationship with Krishna. This alone will bring them, and you, and all of us, real solace. This is the healing, the compensation that our children need. Not some dollars--some "yellow stool." Yes, take the marble down from the temples -- but to print books, not to pay lawyers. As for our children, let us help them find engagement, not as pansies in lawsuits, but as intimate associates of Lord Caitanya in His sankirtana movement. I promise, because Krishna promises, that you will finally find the peace you desire. Your servant, Srikanta dasa Comment on this Story This story URL: http://www.vnn.org/editorials/ET9903/ET12-3302.html
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