a little drama without caps

8/6/2019 A LITTLE Drama Without Caps

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HEALING SRILA PRABHUPADAS BODY

Can We Mend the Shattered Fragments of ISKCON? -

A Dialogue Presented to the GBCBy Krsna-devata devi dasi and Shakuntala devi dasi

KD:

In the process of getting here and preparing this speech, Krsna has taught me many lessons. I came

thinking that I would be speaking to the GBC, but this is actually just a title, a stereotype. This title is

what stands in the way of us understanding one another you are GBC members and we are

gurukulies. They are barriers.

I want to speak to you as other members of this society that Srila Prabhupada established. I want

to speak to you as individuals who have invested their whole lives in Srila Prabhupadas movement

and are now seeing it crumble. I dont want to make assumptions, but from what I have heard, I think

that I can safely say that many of you are burnt out, confused as to how to move forward, and

overwhelmed by the quantity and scale of the difficulties and challenges within the movement.

We ask you to please listen to us with the heart that Srila Prabhupada opened. Srila Prabhupadainspired and loved each and every one of you. We ask you to listen remembering that you once

thought it possible to take over the world with Lord Caitanyas merciful potency. We know that you

are not an idealistic group, but we ask you to remember that Krsna Consciousness is idealistic. We

ask you to listen as individuals who are interested in attaining the most deep and sincere love for

Krsna and His devotees. We ask you to please put your personal judgments of us aside and listen to us

as we put our personal and political judgements of you aside.

I am speaking to you because this ISKCON body is my family. I want to make sure that it not

only survives, but also thrives. We all have great love for our spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, and

we must carry out our duty.

SHA:What is our duty? What is the point of spreading the movement, just for the sake of spreading

something? What is the point of building a temple, just to build a big temple? What is the point of

preaching? What are we preaching? What is the point of raising money? To get lots of money? Its not

about absolute truth anymore. Most of us are out of touch with ourselves, and out of touch with

everyone else.

I am disgusted. We were all once willing to do or give anything for the pursuit of a higher

understanding. We stood for something. We were sold out to the Absolute Truth. Now we have just

sold out. We gave our lives, our youthfor what? Just to give up again on the Absolute Truth.

What is the point? Do we still seekabsolute truth? Why chant 16 rounds and follow the four

regs? Why dont we just revel in sense gratification? Why do we put ourselves through this? I thought

it was because this process should put us more in touch with ourselves, not alienate us. Isnt that truth?

KD:

So why are we so alienated? What are we missing in this process? How do we move forward?

There is no... quick fix. It is not about the issues. This is not a problem of legislation How many

resolutions must we write before we realize that this is not a structural problem? We are facing

alienation, and isolation. We dont know each other. As a movement, we no longer have Srila

Prabhupadas living force; his vision. What happened to that revolutionary spirit? What happened to

that vibrant inspiration that swept people up? We are not going to find that in beaurocracy, big

temples or big titles. Just as individuals cannot find happiness in cars, houses, family or their jobs,

ISKCON is going to find no solutions in this way. These things are temporary.

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SHA:

These things are material. These things are nothing to Krsna, if the sincere desire for self-realization is

absent. They are specs of dirt. Temporary money, fame, and buildingsso what? Krsna is pleased by

the devotion within those things. He is inside our hearts, and knows what we feel and knows when we

are not feeling. Have we forgotten the point? and now just go on with the show for the rest of the

world? What is the point?

KD:

This is a spiritual movement so we are not going to find material answers. So we must start asking

spiritual questions again. Who are we? What are we here for?

SHA:

Our movement is far from the vision engulfing people off the street with waves of transcendental love

and devotion. Instead we are objectifying one another more and more, seeing each other as women,

ritviks, gurus, bhaktas, or gurukulies. Instead of coming to the realization that the sadhu, the dog and

the dog eater are all within their hearts, parts and parcels of Krsna. Unfortunately, we are content with

our superficial perceptions of one another. We are also increasingly satisfied with our superficialperceptions of the Absolute Truth. We have become the epitome of licking the outside of the honey

jar. We have been falsely jacking each other up instead of allowing spiritual inspiration to be

evoked from within.

KD:

We are fragmented, disenfranchised, disillusioned and uninspired. As a movement, we do not have

trust in our leaders, nor do we have trust in ourselves. We are slapping each other in the face everyday

on our computer screens. And the Bhagavatam classes we sit through are not addressing our lives;

they do not inspire us. You are all overburdened and dont know the answers any better than the rest

of us. As a movement we are no longer moving. So where do we go from here? How do we all take

responsibility for healing Srila Prabhupadas body?

SHA:

We are all conditioned. Thats a given. This conception is the platform that we start from. Let us

begin to grow beyond this. Let us not be fooled by the costumes that we temporarily wear in this life-

time, let us not see each other as limited to that. Let us go higher. Let us look within and remember

that we are all fallen devotees; we are all blind in different ways. And we all see in different ways. It

is not our individual vision that is powerful but our combined vision that is unstoppable.

KD:

We all have some small spiritual vision, but we are also blind in so many ways. Together we must

find Srila Prabhupadas vision.

SHA:

Ista gosthi is an authentic way to figure out how to work together; how to organically synergize. We

are all here to be instruments for Krsna. We all have our own stories. We have all heard His calling

in different ways. In a sense, you might say that we are all married to each other through our common

love for Krsna and Srila Prabhupada. We must work it out. Divorce is not an option in the Vedic

system. Srila Prabhupada asked that not one drop of the blood that it took to make each devotee be

spilled. We are spilling Srila Prabhupadas blood by pushing people away, burning them out,

discouraging them, silencing them, banning themdisgracing them. Let us put our energy together.

Let us not forget that vision that we all aspire to see.

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KD:

Together let us find the ecstasy of Sri Gaurasundar to melt the hearts of all the conditioned souls,

including ourselves. Lord Caitanyas potency is invoked within gatherings of devotees. Hearing and

chanting together. Let us start now by listening to each other to truly hear. Srila Prabhupada has

given us the model of ista gosti. This is a way of authentic inquiry and spiritual discussion. This is also

our Vaisnava tradition as exemplified by the discussions between Sukadeva Gosvami and Maharaja

Pariksit in the Srimad Bhagavatam; Lord Caitanya and His associates in the Caitanya Caritamrita; and

Krsna and Arjuna in the Bhagavad-gita. Since we are all aspiring devotees, all of our social, political,

emotional and philosophical issues can be solved by the Absolute Truth.

SHA:

For one moment, let us remember, without any material limitations, what is possible for our

movement. What we see in front of us is an external manifestation of our collective desires. Let us

desire to fulfil Srila Prabhupadas vision not our own. Because we only care about ourselves, our

movement is splintering into smaller and smaller fragments. We are destroying Srila Prabhupadas

movement from within by breaking it apart. If we sincerely desire more than this, Krsna promises to

fulfil our desires.

KD:

It is through association that we learn love of God. How can we say that we love Krsna, if we cannot

love His devotees? How many of us truthfully love one another? The challenges that face us are

material blocks, but they are spiritual opportunities. Just as Queen Kunti prayed to always have

material distress so that she could always seek the shelter of Krsna, this is our opportunity, in this

great time of crisis, to put our arms up helplessly for guidance and shelter from the Lord. At this time

of crisis, our titles wont help us; our robes wont help us. Our status, even in this movement, is

merely a temporary costume. We all must admit that we dont have the answers as individuals. When

we are in crisis as individuals, we take shelter in Krsna. So as a movement in crisis, we must pay our

most heartfelt obeisances to Krsna in the heart of each and every individual in this movement.

SHA:

Let us apply this transcendental philosophy to help us transcend these material blocks that prevent us

from working together and being unstoppable.

KD:

Let us stop mistaking inquiry for criticism.

Let us stop shutting people out with fear.

Let us stop gathering in the courtroom and start gathering in the temple room.

Let us stop being a movement that specialises in saving face and political clean-ups, and let us start

being a movement that specialises in sharing love of God.

SHA:

Lets stop moving forward for the sake of moving forward and move upward to higher consciousness.

Lets stop believing in miracles and start relying on them. Now lets start by leaving our titles at the

door and having an ista gosthi.

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