Is there any program uniting the Krsna conscious youth within ISKCON?
Those who travel and meet children of devotees of the first and second generation can easily testify that there is no substantial attempt on the side of the official ISKCON leadership to provide for the younger and youngest generation of devotees ways how to come together and have a solid vision regarding conducting their lives in Krsna Consciousness.
The reality is that most of devotee's children grew up with disillusioned parents, and so they got to hear the worse before even understanding it. The rest of bad news they get from internet.
More intelligent parents who didn’t allow the ISKCON anomalies come into their lives and faithfully followed Srila Prabhupada’s principles, have given their children a hope. Some children, continuing obviously in the devotional line by dint of their service being done in previous life times, didn’t get discouraged either, despite hearing at home daily from their parents what went wrong.
Some took advantage of the deviations they saw to deviate themselves as well.
Everybody has their minute - individual freedom to make their choices.
This text is dedicated to those who didn’t give up and are determined to use any opportunity to glorify Srila Prabhupada in any way they can.
There are those brave preachers amongst senior devotees, who - often unsupported, try to serve the younger generations in various ways by bringing them together and inspiring their already existing initiative to be, as Srila Prabhupada said it, "Krishna-ized".
How do we inspire the younger ones once they come out of the babyhood, where they more or less copy in monkey fashion the behavior of the older ones? How to impress these often innovative, revolutionary youngsters who, like we did, want not to go with the mainstream, floating down into mayas global siege?
That we can learn from Srila Prabhupada as well.
It wasn’t "accidental" that Srila Prabhupada, despite preaching the universally applicable ways to become Krsna conscious, finally ended up to be the leader of those who were mostly in an age of his grandchildren. He could as well stay in some american yoga studio, collect donations from well to do american ladies being their "family guru" and spend the rest of his life economically secured. Instead He directed His preaching to those who were ready to leave behind old established values, and change. Their readiness for a change compensated in Srila Prabhupada’s most merciful eyes their most fallen and deranged status. This readiness to leave the old and embrace the new is the basis of Krsna Consciousness, especially in countries where is no culture and no religious background to rely on.
Nothing changed in this regard. Initiative is the spark which ignites the Krsna conscious fire, and dogmatic institutionalism is the surge water which extinguishes it all. As Srila Prabhupada said, “I was always a freedom lover... until Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja came and explained what real freedom means." THAT kind of freedom has to be fought for, starting with our own life, our own sense control and our own ways to be properly placed, so we have maximum ground under our feet to stand on when maya strikes and tries to knock us over.
How much Srila Prabhupada loved the young ones! Even in the last days being with us in His vapu form, He loved to see small gurukula boys dancing in front of Him in Vrndavana. He hoped that they will be the future warriors, the future examples of a Krsna conscious generation, which will demonstrate in practical ways how to live in Krsna conscious way in any varna and any asrama in the society of today.
From today’s point of view we can realistically ask: What went wrong?
There are here and there small groups of devotees trying to do locally the maximum for their children in order to keep them in Krsna Consciousness. Regarding the youngest ones to organize a small kindergarten in Krsna conscious way, bringing the small children together also for festival events is not that difficult. They have no choice, they simply follow. It entirely depends on the initiative of the parents.
Once children enter the teenage period of their lives, things get far more complicated. Now they want to have a choice. Most children didn’t go to gurukula. Those who did, speaking about the older generation, often carry traumas for their whole life with them.
This text is not aiming to dwell on the horrors some of these children had to go through. There is plenty of documentation in regards for that.
Fortunately things improved, gurukulas are under very strict supervision. That still doesn’t solve the problem that the parents find often no ways to be actively engaged in ISKCON, struggle for survival and herewith have to do the needful to keep up their families alive in somewhat decent way, often in compromised circumstances.
To understand that, some ISKCON leaders would have to get down from their pseudo-intellectual positions and engage at least for a brief period in some work in order to keep their body and soul together, so they can understand the real cost of living.
With children under constant attack via internet and other media, parents often helplessly watch how their offspring stare into various types of screens, searching for company they cannot find elsewhere. There may be not that many, but such children of those parents who taught them well about the glories of Mahamantra and Srila Prabhupada should take it as a challenge to oppose the cheap Kali-yuga propaganda, which aims to make them too passive, consumers and workers for benefit of others.
There are some amongst devotee's children, who instinctively try to abstain from such traps maya puts in their way, and want to live differently from the "screen watchers” of various kinds. They need all the support they can get. These are the children Srila Prabhupada hoped to see, children who have grown up free of drug, mutual sexual abuse and addiction of any kind, boldly declaring their independence from materialistic propaganda, and the "ISKCON bitterness" of their parents as well.
Seeing such young boys and girls forming their own view upon Krsna Consciousness based on Srila Prabhupada’s instructions is most inspiring.
Such bold young man and women need to support themselves mutually always remembering Srila Prabhupada’s revolutionary spirit in opposition to the massive brainwashing of Kali-yuga residents.
Srila Prabhupada knew: the young ones can do it. Even by no means averse to engage anybody in Krsna Consciousness, He said once: "In order to join the Hare Krsna movement you have to forget whatever you heard.” That’s easy for the young ones and difficult for the older ones.
Srila Prabhupada showed us the way, never complying with the institutional dogmas, always fresh and always innovative to find ways how people can be connected to Krsna without compromising the basic principles. He urged his managers to always keep in mind that everybody is joining voluntarily, giving his heart and his faith. That was specially demonstrated in days where ISKCON had nothing to offer than Srila Prabhupada’s books to distribute, prasadam to relish and streets to go out on hare nama.
There were no titles and posts to strive for, no designations of any kind. This was the luxury I enjoyed when joining this movement, there was nothing else to get as the ecstasy of sankirtan. Who wasn’t engaged in sankirtan had to go home.
Of course, now we know that Srila Prabhupada’s vision was much broader. He wanted to offer to change the entire direction present society is heading for, establish an entirely differently oriented culture, a spiritual culture, and He was aware that to establish a spiritual movement in the material world is most difficult task.
And so again, it’s up to the young ones to achieve some change. Even religious societies who have hardly anything to offer on terms of sound philosophy and final logic, report the great increase of membership once taking care properly for the young ones. As reported from USA, those religious communities which provide for their younger generations forums, where they can meet and associate, besides their own example, they strive most. Why not then Srila Prabhupada’s ISKCON, which has thanks to Srila Prabhupada so much to offer, cannot provide the same? Most children of devotees have hard time to live the life of karmis, and simultaneously cannot find solid identification with what is called the ISKCON of today.
Being 65 years old, I spent most of my life with devotes much younger as myself. That gave me life and that keeps me alive. Regardless how immature they may be, they are alive, and that’s what counts.
Feeling just as if joining Srila Prabhupada’s movement yesterday, I refuse to be classified as “old and mature”, instantly remembering the image of an old and mature cheese. It’s rotten and it’s odor is obnoxious.
And so any time seeing the young ones to take some initiative to become part of what
Srila Prabhupada gave us, gives me immense strength because it is most invigorating. I promised the Supreme Lord and Srila Prabhupada that if any opportunity arises for me to help the younger generation of devotees to strive in some Krsna conscious way, I will use it. Even the care for the older generation of devotees, a dark chapter of ISKCON as well, is important, it’s the young ones who will go on while we leave our bodies, heading hopefully for more suitable destination in order to continue our spiritual progress.
In conclusion I would like to point to my daughter, who is by now 20 years old, is one of those who are trying to stay within Krsna Consciousness despite all obstacles being placed in front of her.
Spending amazing time with her from the day she was born, I felt blessed to have a company of a person who, traveling with me and her mother constantly around Europe and India, showed great affection for Srila Prabhupada, calling Him from the very first day she could speak 'papa'.
Traveling still until today, she has many contacts of many young devotees, and can be of great help, at least as a mentor, to those who feel lack of forums to share their ideas and even grieviences.
Being a man without any ISKCON titles, no disciples and now means of sustenance, I am personally daily surviving on Srila Prabhupada’s mercy in firm faith that "where there is a will, there is a way". And so, if there is no practical support from ISKCON officials (mere words and resolutions will not achieve much change, personal involvement does:-), when there is a will on the side of the younger ones to create communities, nobody can stop them to do so.
Krsna’s blessings are waiting for anybody who may try in this direction. Of that I am certain, as this is the way Krsna conscious movement can be maintained and expanded. Books are there, Srila Prabhupada’s words are there, now more practical examples how to follow are needed.
Let’s learn from Srila Prabhupada who never gave up, and in time where others retreated he attacked by sound preaching and solid management.
If anybody reading this text would like to contact my daughter, here are the options:
e-mail: malini.soulsound@gmail.com
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0NiABssqZzWphTDhVslmqw