Author Archives: Dandavats

For the love of wisdom
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Hare KrishnaBy Kripamoya Das

The great logical philosopher Jayatirtha wrote in his book of logic, the Tattvasankhyana Tika: “The independent principle is that which does not depend on any other for its own nature and existence, self-awareness or for becoming an object of knowledge to the selves and for the free and unfettered exercise of its own powers” The philosophical enquiries of the Indian philosophers led them into an area of knowledge which today we would term Theology, the study of theos or God. Although theology is considered today to be a separate discipline from philosophy, one more interested in sectarian religious dogma than scientific examination of the truth, the ancient Indian philosophers saw no such hard distinction. They simply saw that their line of enquiry into the ultimate reality led them to the very reasonable conclusion that there existed an independent reality that had unlimited awareness and volition, and the infinitesimal consciousness of the limitless number of individuals was somehow connected and given sustenance by this one entity.

Celebrating the spirit of togetherness as a Rainbow Nation  through diverse and innovative style – The 30th Durban Festival of Chariots
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Hare KrishnaBy Krsangi Radhe dasi

It has been an amazing festival of spreading Krishna Consciousness through diverse preaching programmes, bringing people together from all walks of life to a spiritual realm. ISKCON Kwa-Zulu Natal (South Africa) hosted the 30th Durban Festival of Chariots over the Easter Weekend (30 March – 2 April).  The four day festival is a flagship event on the Ethekwini Municipality calendar as an event that promotes social cohesion through song, dance, food and discussion. As with previous years, we saw over 150 000 enthusiastic guests enjoy all that was on offer.

Reaffirmation of Ministries and Standing Committees
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Hare KrishnaBy The GBC

GBC Nominations Committee: Members – Bhakti Caitanya Swami (Chairman), Prahladananda Swami, Praghosa Das, Gopal Bhatta Das (Convenor), Tamohara Das, Anuttama Das, Revati Raman Das, Radha Krsna Das, Gauranga Das, Aniruddha Das, Devakinandan Das (MVG), Laxmimoni Dasi, Manohara Das, Kaunteya Das, Tapana Misra Das (Non-voting Executive Member)

ISKCON Deity Worship Ministry Standing Annual Presentation to GBC Body
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Hare KrishnaBy The GBC

Whereas when Deity worship is done properly following the rules of worship and maintaining strict cleanliness and punctuality, the worship is enlivening to devotees; Whereas, it has been seen that in temples where the worship is below the required minimum standard, it is often a result of zonal leadership, temple management, and/or the head pujari not knowing the proper standards of worship; Whereas GBC members and other leaders of ISKCON may not have the time to learn appropriate standards for ISKCON centers; Whereas, the maintenance of public Deity worship in an ISKCON center is the responsibility of the management of that center, under the supervision of that center’s zonal authorities, but ultimately it is the responsibility of the GBC Zonal Secretary and the GBC Body; Whereas Deity worship is one of the five primary angas of bhakti and therefore of primary importance in a sadhaka’s progress in spiritual life; Whereas other primary activities of ISKCON, such as book distribution, have standing annual presentation time to the GBC and discussion on ISKCON Deity worship at our centers is similarly worthy of the GBC Body’s attention and awareness; Resolved: Each year at the AGM in Mayapur, the ISKCON Deity Worship Ministry will be allocated a minimum of 1 hour, at the discretion of the Executive Committee, to present a report of Deity worship in ISKCON, particularly with a focus on Radha-Krsna worship.

Establishing The ISKCON International Office for the Prevention of Leader Misconduct (PLM Office) as a permanent ISKCON managerial entity
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By The GBC Resolved: 1. The ISKCON International Office for the Prevention of Leader Misconduct (PLM Office) be established as a permanent ISKCON organizational entity subject to review by the GBC Body (as with other Offices and Ministries). The PLM …

Sannyasi Standards and Discipline
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Hare KrishnaBy The GBC

Whereas the GBC law passed as resolution 104 of 1999 “COMPLAINTS ABOUT SANNYASIS” states as follows in its entirety: THAT the GBC Sannyasa Sub-committee shall deal with any complaints against sannyasis. An investigation will be initiated if a majority of the members judges a complaint to merit investigation. Decisions will be made by a majority vote. The GBC Executive Committee shall present the decision to the GBC Body either by correspondence or at the next annual general meeting. A decision of the Sannyasa Sub-committee will be overturned by a majority vote of the GBC Body; otherwise the sub-committee’s decision remains in effect. A sannyasi who does not abide by the decision shall be subjected to penalties according to ISKCON Law. If there are complaints against sannyasis who are also GBC members or gurus, the GBC Executive Committee may decide to deal with them itself; however, in that case the Sannyasa Minister should also participate in the decision-making process.

Dedication of Time to Guru-Related Research
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Hare KrishnaBy the GBC

Whereas the issues of implementation of Vaishnavi diksa-gurus and disciples initiating in the presence of their initiating guru in ISKCON remain unresolved; Whereas there is a critical need for many more devotees to serve as diksa-guru in ISKCON; Whereas there are at least 9 million congregational members in ISKCON; Whereas ISKCON has less than 80 devotees available to give diksa to potentially 9 million people; Whereas if every congregational member sought initiation each ISKCON guru would have to accept approximately 112,500 disciples; Whereas the moratorium on both Vaishnavi and second-generation devotees serving as diksa-guru remains until the GBC concludes its research on guru-tattva in ISKCON; Whereas the GBC Body previously committed to that research and to annually review, until its conclusion, a comprehensive and inclusive understanding that delineates how diksa- and siksa-gurus unitedly work within the framework of ISKCON; Whereas the GBC stated it “is steadfastly dedicated” to accomplish the above; Resolved: The GBC recommits to its statement of 310/2015, and begins by dedicating at least two days at either every Annual General Meeting or Midterm General Meeting to this subject until the relevant aspects of this topic are resolved satisfactorily.

Official Srila Prabhupada Disciple Database
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Hare KrishnaBy the GBC

Whereas the Srila Prabhupada Disciple Database was started in 1995 as part of the Srila Prabhupada Centennial Project under the petal of Uniting Srila Prabhupada’s Family and is based on the “Initiation Name Book” which was compiled by Srila Prabhupada’s secretaries; Whereas Mahamaya-devi dasi (ACBSP) has expanded the approximate 3,900 names from the last version of the initiation name book that she typed in 1977 by compiling through research of Srila Prabhupada’s letters and initiation tapes as well as face-to-face meetings with devotees at festivals and at temples to the current number of approximately 4750 names; Whereas the process of adding names involves thoroughly verifying that the devotee was indeed initiated by Srila Prabhupada (or his authorized representative) while he was personally present (ie. before November 14, 1977); Whereas the process of verification involves consulting with the devotees who got initiated at the same fire sacrifice or who witnessed the ceremony; or using photos that show conclusively when and where the initiation was held; Whereas there are devotees who have taken the online posting of the Srila Prabhupada Disciple Database currently hosted on Krishna.com and used that as a basis of their own online projects, pretending to be authorized or to be the official database, but who accept anyone who claims to be initiated by Srila Prabhupada without using a process of verification and who are thus causing confusion and discrediting the validity of the Srila Prabhupada Disciple Database; Resolved: That the Srila Prabhupada Disciple Database is an authorized GBC project with Mahamaya-devi dasi as the compiler. Access shall be shared with the GBC Secretariat.

ISKCON Ministry for Sannyasa Services Policy Manual
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Hare KrishnaBy the GBC

A sannyasi, in the varnasrama society, is expected to have material and spiritual qualifications even more exalted than those possessed by a brahmana. According to the Bhagavad-gita, a brahmana should possess the following qualities: Peacefulness, self-control, austerity, purity, tolerance, honesty, knowledge, wisdom and religiousness – these are the natural qualities by which the brahmanas work. Bg. 18.42 Therefore, a bona fide sannyasi is expected to possess the above qualities plus others such as renunciation and spiritual wisdom. If an ISKCON sannyasi breaks his vows of celibacy, becomes greedy for money, or displays other anarthas, ISKCON devotees’ faith in the sannyasa asrama is diminished. Therefore, it is a duty of the leadership of ISKCON to correct a sannyasi’s errant behaviour, and when necessary discipline him.

Spiritual Advisors Bhagavata Assembly (SABHA)
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Hare KrishnaBy the GBC

Establishing the Spiritual Advisors Bhagavata Assembly, or SABHA, has manifold functions. It aims at strengthening unity among ISKCON’s global spiritual leaders. It facilitates their cooperation, communication and working relation for the progress of Srila Prabhupada’s movement. The SABHA provides checks and balances on the authority of the GBC and course-correction for its decisions. More consultation, more dialogue and more interaction can be conducive to better, wiser and more acceptable decisions.

Minutes Of The Annual General Meeting Sri Mayapur Dham, 2018
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By the GBC

The ISKCON Initiated Devotees Global Database is hereby established; all ISKCON initiating spiritual masters (and others who might be managing databases of departed diksa-gurus) shall share their disciple database with this repository upon request and on a regular basis. The ISKCON Initiated Devotees Global Database will provide a secure platform for storage, collation, information processing and management reporting, and should regularly update the database for meaningful data analysis and data mining. The database shall be owned by the Governing Body Commission and shall not be used for any other purpose without the written authorization of the Governing Body Commission. The ISKCON Initiated Devotees Global Database shall provide all initiating spiritual masters the technical platform and relevant training for effectively maintaining and operating their individual disciples’ database (within the Initiated Devotees Global Database). The Manager of the ISKCON Initiated Devotees Global Database shall develop systems for handling information requests. Caitanya Avatari Das is appointed as the Manager of the ISKCON Initiated Devotees Global Database.

Is the Bhagavad-gita Pessimistic?
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Hare KrishnaBy Chaitanya Charana Dasa

After teaching a university seminar, I was asked questions I had myself raised when I first encountered the philosophy of Krishna consciousness: “Why is the Vedic philosophy so pessimistic? When the world offers both pleasures and pains, why does the Bhagavad-gita call the world a place of misery?” Over my decade and a half of practicing and sharing Krishna consciousness, I have been preparing and refining the answer to these questions. Here’s my short four-point answer: • The Bhagavad-gita is not pessimistic, but realistic; the reality is that the pleasure-pain balance of the world is tilted heavily toward the pain side. • Even if we still consider the Gita philosophy pessimistic, that pessimism is only initial, not final. In its conclusion, the Gita offers a supremely optimistic message. • Even the best worldly optimism pales and fails in front of the longing of our heart, a longing fulfilled only by the vision of reality offered by the Gita. • The Gita doesn’t teach us to reject this world for the spiritual world, but to harmonize this world with the spiritual world.

Confessions of a Prasadam Addict: Maha is as Good as Gold
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Hare KrishnaBy Taru Das

“And when the spiritual master sees the devotees are taking bhagavat prasadam, he is satisfied” – Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur. If there is any other instruction which the devotees of New Vrindaban have taken up more seriously than the one above, I have yet to run across it. In their undaunted endeavors to obtain bhagavat prasadam, devotees have crossed over the difficult ocean of contraptions, locks, chains and booby traps grouped together under the heading of maha cabinets. According to Webster, a maha cabinet is “any device or container, usually a box, a safe, cupboard, or so forth, which is used to preserve maha prasad, i.e., to protect it from being stolen, hidden or ingested from the time of its being lawfully distributed.” A little further on down, mention is made of the fact that as of the present, there are no fool-proof models available.

A FEVER OF SANKIRTANA IN BANGALORE
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Hare Krishna In Bangalore, we had an excellent time. Almost daily we had house programs and Ratha Yatras with good support from the congregation devotees who collected donations for padayatra. Anadi Jagannatha Dasa sponsored a projector for us, saying “It would be great if wherever you go you could show people videos of Padayatra, Srila Prabhupada and ISKCON. Let people know about ISKCON!.”