Back To Prabhupada, Issue 18, Winter 2007/8, Editorial
Welcome to Issue 18 of Back to Prabhupada (BTP).
In this issue, on page 12, we highlight how due to the many years of IRM's preaching, one of ISKCON's leading gurus has been influenced and pushed to virtually advocate the same position we are proclaiming. Of course, being Kali-yuga, the Age of Hypocrisy, neither he nor other ISKCON gurus practise what he is preaching, but at least to admit we are correct is a start! This follows on from our revelation in the last issue that the GBC also accept that their guru system is not based on any hard evidence from Srila Prabhupada, but only wishful thinking. So the GBC are moving closer to the acceptance of what we have been preaching, and we can only hope that the practise of it may also one day follow, instead of ISKCON's polices continuing to be hopelessly mired in hypocrisy.
We have continually highlighted how the IRM's challenges and position papers cannot be answered. Indeed, the GBC were actually forced to withdraw their position paper, the very paper which the IRM's The Final Order rebutted. In fact, so impotent have ISKCON's leadership become in the face of our philosophical challenges that they have responded with the only tactic that tyrannies know: violence, censorship and bannings. Thus, every attempt is made to ensure that ISKCON followers do not have access to the IRM's literature, but very little attempt is made to try to answer our arguments.
Srila Prabhupada has stated that those who are members of his Krishna consciousness movement must know its philosophy and be able to answer its challenges:
"So your position is like that, simply if you have a tilaka and a kanthi, that does not mean that you belong to the Krsna consciousness movement. Any cheater can do that. You must know the philosophy. If one challenges, you must reply. Therefore Bhaktivinoda Thakura has sung a song indicating these cheaters. He says, ei oto ek kalir cela. "Here is a servant of Kali." What kind of cela? Na te tilal golai mala." He has got a tilaka and golai mala, bas, that's all." He does not know what is the philosophy. If you do not know the philosophy of Krsna consciousness, if you simply mark your body with tilaka and kanthi, then you are not proper servant, you are not qualified. So tilaka, mala, is necessary. Just like a policeman. A bogus man, if he dresses like a policeman, he is not a policeman. He must know what is the police law, criminal law, who is to be punished, who is not to be punished, what is criminality, what is innocence. All these things he must know."
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, June 4th, 1976)
Similarly, ISKCON today can not even answer the most fundamental question of "who is the Guru?" They are confused as to why they are gurus, how the gurus should be addressed, how they should be worshipped, how they should be regulated, and so on. And they have no document which explains the philosophical basis for their guru system. The only thing they know for sure is: We WANT to be gurus, thank you very much. But such a child-like desire is not philosophy!
Rather, such ignorant guru hoaxers are like the "servants of Kali" mentioned in the passage quoted above. Sure, they may look like members of the Krishna consciousness movement, with their tilaka and neck-beads, but as soon as they have to answer philosophical questions they are exposed as cheaters. Their only response is to resort to name-calling and instead scurry around trying to take BTPs away from devotees! Hardly a philosophical response.
So as Srila Prabhupada explains, a bogus man can dress as a policeman, and he can even hijack the police station. But he is still a cheater, unless he knows all the laws and facts regarding criminality. Similarly, just because a group of people have hijacked Srila Prabhupada's movement and masquerade dressed as, and claiming to be, followers of Srila Prabhupada, does not make them so. Rather, they must be able to answer very fundamental questions regarding the philosophy of Krishna consciousness, such as who is Guru, and why. Their expertise at screaming "this is offensive" and using violence does not prove anything except that they are not real members of the Krishna consciousness movement. It brings to mind the old adage that "better people think you are a fool, than for you to open your mouth and remove all doubt." BTP continues to document in every issue that as soon as the guru hoax advocates try to open their mouths and defend their hoax, they are immediately revealed to be speaking contradictory, false gibberish, thus revealing their status as cheaters, rather than members of the Krishna consciousness movement.
For tilaka and mala they may have, but answers they have none. The IRM, however, have been able to explain their position consistently with reference to Srila Prabhupada's orders.
Please feel free to write to me at the following address if you have any questions, criticisms or comments: irm@iskconirm.com.
Thank you and Hare Krishna.
Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupada,
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