Jaya Prabhupada! On this most auspicious day of Lord Nityananda’s divine appearance, I want to remember Him constantly, and constantly pray that He empower me to serve His pure devotee, Srila Prabhupada in the most effective, useful way.
With best wishes,
Hridayananda das Goswami
February 20, 2016
Jaya Prabhupada! On Sunday I will fly to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, a beautiful coastal city where I hope to rest and write for some time. Studies show that people who take needed vacations are more productive.
Of course I will dedicate my “vacation” to write for Prabhupada’s mission. Before planning visits to other countries, I will make sure that I have rested sufficiently to maintain good health.
From the beginning of Krishna West, I explained that we must address two publics: the internal public of ISKCON, and the external public of the world. Our first goal was that Krishna West be accepted as an authentic ISKCON program. That is now the case. Therefore, rather than waste precious time in endless debates with other devotees, we want to positively spread Krishna consciousness to non-devotees, and also help interested devotees to recover their enthusiasm and determination to serve Prabhupada’s mission.
I send my sincere thanks to all of the many friends who have faithfully supported and encouraged me in all circumstances. I am always grateful to you, and pray that Lord Krishna bless you with health and happiness in Krishna consciousness. Let us do all we can to help this poor planet.
With best wishes,
Hridayananda das Goswami
January 27, 2016
Jaya Prabhupada! As many of you know, Monday and Tuesday of this week I met with the GBC chairman, Praghosha Prabhu, and my Godbrother Vaisesika Prabhu here in Los Angeles. I want to report to you about that meeting.
First, I am grateful to Praghosha Prabhu who took on the austerity and expense of traveling all the way from Ireland to meet with me. I found him to be fair and open-minded, and genuinely searching for a reasonable solution. Vaisesika Prabhu, a saintly Vaishnava, came down from his center in Silicon Valley, California and proved to be a very valuable participant in our discussions.
I was especially pleased that in the course of our two day meeting, we all interacted with real Vaishnava friendship based on mutual good will and understanding. Here are my conclusions from that meeting.
Jaya Prabhupada! I have heard from many devotees that someone recently posted a recording of me speaking about the GBC. I will clarify the context.
1. This was a private conversation in which I was “venting” or letting off steam, after having been greatly frustrated in my dealings with some GBC members. Obviously, I would never reject Prabhupada’s GBC system.
2. I told the devotee with me, repeatedly, not to record these private moments, and that devotee insisted on recording anyway with the guarantee that “no one would ever hear it.” Now we see the result.
3. In any case, various GBC members have also made many public, insulting comments about me and accused me of absurdities, such as rejecting Krishna, rejecting the spiritual world, being dishonest, mentally impaired, etc.
Conclusion: For the sake of Prabhupada, ISKCON, and the world, we should stop this fighting. Today and tomorrow I will be meeting with a small GBC committee, including the GBC chairman, and I sincerely hope we can come to an agreement to resolve this conflict. I will do my best toward this goal.
With best wishes,
Hridayananda das Goswami
January 4, 2016
Another godbrother has accused Krishna West of betraying Prabhupada and his mission. I will refer to this critic as CG, for Critical Godbrother. I have already replied to most of his arguments in my last paper, “Reply to a Senior Leader.”
In this paper, I will consider CG’s accusation that Krishna West is deviant and can be compared to three past deviations—two in ISKCON, and one in another religion. CG compares Krishna West to:
I hope that my analysis of these three figures will help the reader to consider rationally and fairly to what extent Krishna West is analogous to them, and whether Krishna West deviates from Prabhupada’s standards.
Recently a senior ISKCON leader tried to refute some basic claims of Krishna West. I feel it is my duty to respond to these points.
After all, the Caitanya Caritamrita says, “A sincere student should not neglect the discussion of [Krishna conscious] conclusions, considering them controversial, for such discussions strengthen the mind. Thus one’s mind becomes attached to Sri Krishna” (CC Adi 2.117).
I indicate this leader with the letters SL, for Senior Leader. Most of us are tired of endless debates on these subjects, and we all, hopefully, want to preach in a positive spirit. I am sure SL feels this way as I do. Still, I thought it necessary, for the good of Prabhupada’s mission, that we try to come to a reasonable conclusion about how we can best spread Lord Caitanya’s wonderful mission.
Basically I will argue that in SL’s presentation, we find the following problems:
Jaya Prabhupada! Many of us have been working hard to establish Krishna West in ISKCON. We are doing this because we know that this type of approach is needed to revitalize Prabhupada’s movement in the West.
The Caitanya Caritamrta 1.2.117 declares that we should not avoid necessary discussions about Krishna:
“A sincere student should not neglect the discussion of such [philosophical] conclusions, considering them controversial, for such discussions strengthen the mind. Thus one’s mind becomes attached to Sri Krishna.”
At the same time, we must be careful to always act as ladies and gentlemen when presenting or defending our viewpoint. I understand that many of you feel strongly about Krishna West, and that many of you have endured attacks because of your views.
For example, one sannyasi just published a rather vulgar “announcement” that I had left ISKCON and was “starting a cult.” Still, in order to persuade sincere people, we must avoid harsh language. We should remember that in a debate like this, even when replying to criticism, we are not ultimately addressing our opponents, but rather the general Vaishnava public. The Vaishnavas in general may reject Krishna West if they see that our comments are too harsh, angry, or sarcastic.
Therefore, I sincerely appeal to all of us (I include myself) to make a special effort to speak and write as ladies and gentlemen, despite inevitable provocations. Thank you very much.
With best wishes,
Hridayananda das Goswami
October 14, 2015
Jaya Prabhupada! I am preparing now for my flight from Kansas City to Denver.
I was hosted here in Lawrence, Kansas by Gopimata and Ankotta, a wonderful Vaishnava couple and disciples of Prabhupada. Gopimata is a highly respected yoga teacher in this beautiful college town, and she incorporates a lot of Mahamantra chanting and spiritual philosophy in her courses. Many intelligent, open people take her extensive yoga teacher training courses. Both her sons and their wives are exceptional people, and altogether I always have some of my best programs when I visit Lawrence. I am grateful to them for hosting me so nicely.
On Wednesday I will fly to Los Angeles, and finally rest and write. As you can imagine, after over five months of traveling and preaching, I will need to focus for some time on writing.
The response to our new Bhagavad-gita has been extraordinary, including enthusiastic appreciations from many senior ISKCON devotees. The response to the Gita reminds me of the power of writing, and before I travel again, I must complete some substantial writing.
My next international trip will be to Latin America. I send my sincere thanks to all of you for supporting and understanding me at a time when misunderstanding is prevalent.
With best wishes,
Hridayananda das Goswami
September 28, 2015
