ISKCON: Even Some Teachers Go Mad, The School Remains

Occasionally, I am asked by ill-tempered ISKCON critics how I can still identify myself with a movement that no longer reflects the purpose given to it by the Founder-Acharya, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.

My response is always formulated by questions, such as the following:

“What other kind of movement should I join?”

No answer.

“Is everybody, globally speaking, who serves under the designation of ISKCON deviated? How do the critics know?”

No answer.

“Am I qualified to start a new movement?”

The answer: No.

“Is there a movement based on a better understanding of God than Srila Prabhupada’s?”

The answer: No.

So what is one to do when being identified with the logo of a society that seems already compromised?

The answer is to remain and persistently use every opportunity to remind oneself and others what the real mood and real mission of the movement of the Founder-Acharya was and still is.

Naturally facing ostracism from the side of the official institutionalized title-carriers and their stupefied followers, one should not allow himself to become discouraged while faithfully following the instructions of the Founder-Acharya.

Everything is precisely defined in Srila Prabhupada’s writings, his recorded words, and his correspondence for all those who want to know.

That the deviators may constitute even the majority of official ISKCON has no meaning, as Srila Prabhupada defined membership in ISKCON as “one who follows the process.”

In a school, one who follows the given curriculum can be considered a bona fide student.

Remembering my school days, changing from communist doctrines to capitalist ones in two different countries, it was more important for me to see what the teachers were doing and not what they were saying.

And so I concluded that all the teachers I encountered were severely damaged individuals of various sorts, and the moment I exited the last school, I forgot them all.

Little did I know that, when joining the Hare Krsna movement, I would one day be forced to make the same choice: appreciating those who reflect the original curriculum given by the Founder-Acharya and rejecting the association of “self-manifested ones” who disregard even the basic rules governing both the teachers and the students.

Any older devotee who has overcome his initial sentimentality and whose power of discrimination has been awakened by Krsna Himself, dwelling within his heart, sooner or later faces the same dilemma: how to stay chaste to the instructions of the Founder, even at the cost of losing friends and leaders.

I was already warned forty years ago by the example of my GBC, a godbrother under whom I served for more than twenty years.

He once shared with us his problem:

“While serving Srila Prabhupada personally, he personally told me what to do and what not to do.

Then he told me I must always cooperate with my godbrothers.

Now, when he is not directly present, I remember what he told me, but how can I cooperate with godbrothers who obviously deviate from the instructions he gave me?”

It was 1986, and my GBC was approached by another disillusioned godbrother who suggested they should start another movement with a selected chief acharya and with him being the main manager.

My GBC, remembering well that exactly the same mistake had destroyed the Gaudiya Math movement, instantly rejected such a proposal and went on, compromising his conscience for a few more years, gradually going insane.

The lesson I personally learned from witnessing these events was the following:

Remain, do not become institutionally compromised, cling to Srila Prabhupada’s lotus feet, associate only with those who feel the same, avoid the institutionally dogmatic ones, and still try to do something tangible within the framework of preaching to the public that Srila Prabhupada entrusted to us, in the form of book distribution, harinama, and prasadam distribution.

And if the public asks what ISKCON is and who ISKCON is, my answer would be that it is stated in Srila Prabhupada’s writings, his words, and his correspondence. Whoever follows the words of the Founder-Acharya is ISKCON. Whoever invents his own mood is ISKCON in name only, not serving the acharya but using him.

Whoever studies the ocean of information given by Srila Prabhupada can be considered a bona fide student, as ISKCON is a school where even the professors are students.

As we see even in the mundane academic sense, professors never stop researching and exploring the subject they are teaching. Whoever in ISKCON stops hearing and only speaks, claiming to be already perfected and on the absolute platform, beyond any need to know or learn more, is a liar, eligible to fall down sooner or later from his prefabricated status of spirituality. Unfortunately, in ISKCON’s history, there are plenty of examples illustrating this illusory path.

All this should give only more impetus to the sincere followers of the Founder-Acharya and his ISKCON to try, despite all the embarrassment, to give the name ISKCON the real glorious meaning Srila Prabhupada demonstrated to us. As he said, “We will have our ISKCON even in the spiritual world.”

For some older devotees, this may be a scary idea. For those who are truly chaste to the meaning of Srila Prabhupada’s ISKCON, it is just another source of inspiration to vigorously preach what Srila Prabhupada gave and oppose the tsunami of deviations that the corrupted ones so eagerly surf.

Drowned by the watered-down, compromised talk of the deviators, they and their leaders will be swept away by time. Those who hold tightly to the rock-like island Srila Prabhupada gave us to stand on will not perish.

Even though seemingly the minority, their quality will prevail, providing shelter for other sincere ones.

After all, on the battlefield of Kuruksetra, the odds were seemingly not in the Pandavas’ favor.

But having Krsna as their leader, in the end it was obvious who remained and who perished.

It is quality, and not quantity, that finally prevails.