Kṛṣṇacandra Dāsa – Vṛndavan: The case against Bhaktividya pūrṇa Swami is an ongoing case that has yet to be resolved to the satisfaction of the Gurukula alumni and with reference to the due process of ISKCON child protection law, what to speak of justice for the victims of child abuse under Mahārāja’s care when he was the Principal of the Mayapur Gurukula.
Having said that, it is very important to understand that Bhaktividya pūrṇa Swami was not alone in his “failure to act” in a manner befitting a senior devotee in Śrīla Prabhupāda’s ISKCON Society who has the responsibility of the care and protection of children.
The Gurukula in Mayapur is a part of the whole ISKCON Mayapur devotional community, which is comprised of Community Leaders, senior devotees and managed by the GBC; all of whom were aware of the terrible conditions that the children were subjected to under Mahārāja’s leadership and who therefore also “failed to act” responsibly.
It is very important to note that the Mayapur Gurukula system was subordinate to the ISKCON Education Ministry that was at the time headed up by Jagadish and comprised of the various Gurukula Principals and senior educators of ISKCON. It must also be further noted that all of the Gurukulas under the umbrella of the Education Ministry were hotbeds of child abuse and child rape.
It has been clearly evidenced in all schools under the ISKCON Education Ministry whose responsibility was to develop and expand Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Gurukula System, that widespread and heinous abuse and neglect had been perpetrated on our children under the direct managerial responsibility of the respective Principals, who along with the Ministry itself were to blame for this criminal negligence.
There is no requirement for any further evidence that our Gurukula system’s failure is the direct and intentional result of the ISKCON Education Ministry and the GBC whose responsibility it was to make sure that the Gurukula system was developed according the instructions of His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Śrīla Prabhupāda.
The ISKCON education Ministry has been, it seems, hell bent on implementing the Urban orientated Secular Humanistic Government accredited curriculum and syllabus into all of our education centres and simultaneously closing down all our Gurukula (residential) educational facilities.
The people who are behind this campaign are the original Gurukula Principals and Senior Educators like: Jagadish, Bhūrijana Dāsa, Dhanurdhara Swami, Lakṣmi moni Dāsī, Ūrmilā Dāsī, Śeṣa Dāsa and Braja Bihārī Dāsa for starters.
Bhaktividya pūrṇa Swami, although also a principal who ‘failed to act’ to protect the children under his care and who also chose to provide protection for the perpetrators instead, was the only principal who developed an educational system that was Vedic in philosophical orientation.
As the years rolled on the very same ISKCON Educators and Principals rode the storm of the children’s accusations and incriminations against them by establishing and monopolising the ISKCON Child Protective services and promoting themselves as reformers who have the best interest of the children at heart.
By controlling the ‘accountability’ for their Gurukulas and Day Schools, they further developed their conversion plan to encompass all but BBhaktividya pūrṇa Swami’s school. How his Gurukula with its Vedic curriculum withstood their plans to convert all ISKCON schools to the Government Accreditation program is a very interesting topic.
Bhaktividya pūrṇa Swami (with his friends in high places) was able to withstand the pressure that the Ministry was exerting on his Gurukula to convert and he was also somehow able to resist the pressure of the incriminations of child abuse levelled at him by his comrades in the International Child Protection Office and the renamed Ministry for Educational Development. He ended up getting only a slap on the wrist and was made to distance himself from the school’s day to day management and affairs.
Even though he is not the principal in title, he still effectively controls and influences the school ‘remotely’.
This ‘remote control’ system employed by the FISKCON leadership has proven highly effective in controlling events and programs from behind the scenes without being held accountable for any wrongdoings.
However even though Mahārāja has been in remote control of his Gurukula project it has continued to grow and develop over the years, all the while under the constant threat of the recalcitrant Ministry for Educational Development to either convert or be closed down.
Should this Vedic Educational Institution be closed down or converted over to the secular system then the recalcitrant ISKCON Educators would have total victory over Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Vedic Gurukula system that he established and instructed for us to develop for his children and the future of our Vaiṣṇava society.
Mahārāja’s culpability aside, it is unfathomable that we as a society cannot see that it is nothing short of demoniac to convert the Vedic educational philosophy of our society to Government accredited secular system in direct opposition to Śrīla Prabhupāda’s explicit instruction and desire.
It is also very difficult to believe that the ISKCON Educators could ‘pull the wool’ over the eyes of the devotional community and senior members by creating ‘the child abuse problem’ as a diversionary tactic in order to mask their intention and plans to convert Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Gurukula to the Government Schooling system. Don’t forget it was ‘they’ that controlled the Gurukulas not the pedophiles.
Sure Bhaktividya pūrṇa Swami needs to be expelled from ISKCON totally for his heinous and irresponsible behaviour, that had he been reported to the police; he would have (in first world countries) been charged with criminal neglect or dereliction of his duties amongst charges of child physical abuse etc and probably would have seen jail time. In 2nd and 3rd world countries, had he not been protected by the institution, he would probably been flogged by angry parents with the aid of the local police for his heinous activities.
You must not forget if this was the case with every single ex Principal in ISKCON namely Dhanurdhara, Toṣaṇa Kṛṣṇa, Braja Bihārī, Śeṣa, Lakṣmī moni, Ūrmilā etc they too would suffer the exact same fate. If Mahārāja goes then so should they all go for they are all guilty as sin!
But Institutional ISKCON, since Śrīla Prabhupāda left, has always seen itself being above and beyond culpability and accountability and so have always protected the perpetrators of sinful activities and persecuted the victims.
This will continue to occur so long as the devotional community lies in abject apathy and self induced denial of the undeniable fact that the GBC, the Sannyāsa Ashram and the illegal Dīkṣā Gurus of ISKCON are wrecking havoc on the glorious ISKCON society that His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Śrīla Prabhupāda left for us to manage.
However, in order for our Vaiṣṇava Society to comply with the duties that His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Śrīla Prabhupāda has instructed us to do, with regards to the Vedic system of Education, the education system which is being provided by the Bhaktivedanta Academy needs to be supported and protected.
The Ministry for Educational Development needs to be forced to “roll back” its plan to convert all our schools to the Government Accredited system.
If the GBC is to be taken seriously as a spiritual authority in the management of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s ISKCON Society, they need to seriously take note of the work being done by the Bhaktivedanta Academy and how important this is for the future of our Vaiṣṇava Society.
The first and foremost responsibility of the GBC would be to make sure that this system of Vedic Vaiṣṇava education is preserved and protected at all costs. It is not clear what role, if any, that Bhaktividya pūrṇa Swami will play, however, it must be noted that Mahārāja should be included in some way as he is the main force behind the development of this Institution and that should not be lost. However that role must take into consideration his past crimes and neglect and the punishment and censure that have been placed on him to date.
At the very least Mahārāja should be made to renounce his dīkṣā guru role as it is an offence to Śrīla Prabhupāda for any devotee to hold such a position, especially when they are not qualified. He may also have to renounce his sannyāsa ashram for the claims made against him regarding his association with women. It would be most appropriate if he himself had the courage and integrity to offer this as a sacrifice for his behaviour, however as with all the Rubber Stamped gurus and Vāntāśīs of FISKCON they lack the personal integrity and character to do such a noble deed.
It is only when this kind of truthfulness and honesty is exhibited amongst the so called leaders of ISKCON that we will finally see our movement mature in its ability to provide spiritual leadership based on vijñāna instead of jñāna.
The ISKCON Educators (like Hiranyakashipu) have purposefully thwarted the implementation of the Gurukula system into ISKCON and have from the outset sought to discredit and degrade this system in order to attempt to prove its ineffectiveness for the Kali yuga.
It is a very sad indictment on our Society that parents and children are left with no choice other than to enrol their children in the karmī secular schooling system that the MED is providing and promoting within our devotional community.
The only reason why our parents and children are advocating compliance with the Government system, in direct opposition to Śrīla Prabhupāda instructions, is that they have lost faith in Śrīla Prabhupāda and his ISKCON society which can only be contributed to maya’s influence on the wicked neophyte, less than kannistha consciousness of the ISKCON Educators and The Ministry for Educational Development.
The undeniable fact that parents and children have no future within our ISKCON Society is largely due to the Ministry intentionally destroying their future and not because Śrīla Prabhupāda’s ISKCON is not able to meet the challenges of the so called modern world.
The most responsible thing to do with regards to the future education of our children and adults is to remove from any position of authority and responsibility all the so called ISKCON educators past and present.
There is no other way if we as a society desire to create a community for those who are sincerely desirous of becoming Krsna conscious.
If the GBC and our ISKCON parents are serious about their children’s future development in Kṛṣṇa consciousness then the present Ministry for Educational Development will need to be completely overhauled and it would be best accomplished by appointing devotees who have actual faith in the process as given by His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Further that the present system of education given by the Bhaktivedanta Academy should be the prototype for all ISKCON schools.
We must not be ashamed or lose faith in the system that Śrīla Prabhupāda has given us; on the contrary we should be proud and have firm faith in our Vaiṣṇava culture and philosophy and its ability to show a perfect example for these modern troubled times.
We should not give in to the faithless Ministry for (Secular) Education as espoused and promoted by the ex Gurukula Principals who desire only to destroy our glorious Vedic Vaiṣṇava culture and practice.
Important Links are as follows:
http://www.bhaktivedantaacademy.com/index
http://www.bhaktivedantaacademy.com/node/37
After going through these websites you will very easily see and appreciate what Vedic Vaiṣṇava education has to offer our children in not only the development of their Kṛṣṇa Consciousness but also offer them futures in the various fields of professional expertise that is very much needed in not only our Vaiṣṇava Society but also needed as an option for the secular world in which we live.
Something that the present ISKCON educators have no appreciation for…
