Back to Prabhupada, Issue 23, Spring 2009
By Krishnakant
Over 30 years have elapsed since Srila Prabhupada physically departed from this world. While the IRM has never once shifted its ground that Srila Prabhupada alone is the diksa (initiating) Guru of ISKCON, ISKCON’s GBC (Governing Body Commission) and their followers have had to constantly change their position due to the IRM relentlessly exposing all the flaws and contradictions in the GBC’s arguments. And as we see below, ISKCON’s leadership is just as confused 30 years on as they were in 1978, concocting one fallacious argument after another, and contradicting both themselves and each other in the process.
Were 11 “zonal gurus” appointed?
1980: 11 “zonal gurus” were never appointed
“Actually Prabhupada never appointed any gurus. He appointed eleven ritviks. He never appointed them gurus”.
(HH Tamala Krishna Goswami, Topanga Canyon, 3/12/1980)
2008: 11 “zonal gurus” may have been appointed
“And it may be that our own sampradaya acarya, Srila Prabhupada, did actually intend, in
his last days, to choose eleven gurus for the giving of initiation, one in each continent.”
(HG Kripamoya Das, ISKCON European Council Chairman, The Vaishnava Voice,
24/10/2008)
Was a multi-guru ISKCON society authorized?
2003: Multi-guru society not authorized
“That Srila Prabhupada “personally detailed the procedure for increasing the number of initiating guru[s]” is something we can only wish. Or falsely tell the Society he did.”
(HH Jayadvaita Swami, ISKCON GBC-voted in guru, email to the GBC, 13/12/2003)
2008: Multi-guru society authorized
“Srila Prabhupada gave a very clear structure specifically for ISKCON as a multi-guru society.”
(Anuttama Das, ISKCON Communications Director, ISKCON News Weekly, 25/10/2008)
Srila Prabhupada: Is he your spiritual master?
1990: Devotees need a guru - but it is not Srila Prabhupada
QUESTION: “Can a devotee in need of a guru fully meet this need simply by accepting Srila
Prabhupada as his guru?”
GBC ANSWER: “No, that is not what Srila Prabhupada taught.”
(“Questions and Answers About Reinitiaiton: A paper to offer guidance from the GBC”, 2/3/1990)
2007: Devotees need a guru - it is Srila Prabhupada
“Yes, devotees need a qualified spiritual master, and I will say in ISKCON we have the most
qualified spiritual master who is Srila Prabhupada. […] You need a spiritual master, but who is that spiritual master? It is Srila Prabhupada.”
(HH Bhakti Charu Swami, 1/8/2007)
Is reinitiation required?
2007: Reinitiation not needed
“[...] really I didn’t think that it was doing it justice to the devotees to say that they needed to be reinitiated and I am going to propose that even that terminology, sort of, is dropped at least in official ISKCON circles. The reason I say that the word ‘reinitiation’ is not so suitable is because these devotees, they didn’t do anything that required them to be reinitiated or even for that matter to retake their vows of initiation.”
(HH Sivarama Swami, ISKCON GBC voted-in guru, podcast, 27/9/2007)
2008: Reinitiation required
“I have received the mantra from someone, and then, so I can’t separate the mantra from the person, it is certainly beneficial to have that reinitiation. So therefore that initiation is relevant for practitioners [...] So I think it’s a good practice [...] it really makes for clarity in someone’s spiritual life. You know, when someone asks who is your spiritual master, you know, you can’t sort of .. well, Prabhupada! But not Prabhupada, I am not a ritvik! […] this aspect of his life is missing; unless he is advanced it may seriously impede his Krishna consciousness.”
(HH Sivarama Swami conversation with reinitated disciple, 1/9/2008)
More diksa gurus needed?
2008: We don't need any more diksa gurus
“We need more gurus. Not remote, world-traveling, highly qualified gurus, but locally accessible, less qualified gurus*. Thousands of them […] No wide broadcasting of messages; no generic teaching to anonymous masses; but teaching, guidance, support to named people in a local area.”
(HG Kripamoya Das, The Vaishnava Voice, 4/9/2008)
*Referring to minimally qualified siksa (instructing) gurus, rather than diksa (initiating) gurus.
2009: We need more diksa gurus
“Whereas there is a factual need for more diksa-gurus in ISKCON to accommodate the worldwide preaching.”
(GBC resolution 305, 2009)
Conclusion
Due to unauthorisedly removing Srila Prabhupada as diksa Guru and proprietor of all disciples in ISKCON, the GBC have been forced to concoct one false guru system after another to try and cover up their hoax. And then they have been forced to justify these unauthorised systems with one falsehood after another, as Srila Prabhupada describes:
“That is the way of falsehood. If once you speak something false, then to protect
that falsehood you have to take to so many other falsehoods.”
(Srila Prabhupada Morning Walk, June 2nd, 1975)