ISKCON TRUTH

$150,000 pledges to boost Akshaya Patra efforts

2013-05-16T16:11:00.002+05:30

Akshaya Patra team with Honorary Guest

and Keynote Speaker. (Left to Right)

Dr. Desh Deshpande, Piyali Dutta, Jaishree Deshpande,
Dr. Sam Pitroda, Sunil Kumar

CHICAGO: The Chicago Chapter of Akshaya Patra Foundation (APF) held its annual fundraiser recently at Intercontinental O’Hare, Rosemont, a north side suburb of Chicago and received overwhelming community support for its great cause.
A live auction was conducted where several donated items were sold to the highest bidder. Pledges amounting to $150,000 were made to support schools where meals are delivered. The event hosted over 200 attendees from the Chicagoland.
Hunger is a problem that over 50 million children are battling silently in India. It keeps these children out of school and forces them to take menial jobs to bring home food for their families. Hunger also impedes their ability to learn.
The Foundation is one of the world’s largest NGOs which runs school meal programs serving over 1.3 million children daily in over 9,000 schools from 19 kitchens in nine states in India.
A public-private partnership, Akshaya Patra combines good management, innovative technology and smart engineering to deliver school lunches at a fraction of the cost of similar programs in other parts of the world. The APF is the world’s largest non-governmental organization that feeds children. The Global Journal also ranked Akshaya Patra 1st in the world for NGOs working to improve the lives of children and youth.
This event was chaired by Parminder Sawhney who in her welcome speech exhorted everyone to get involved and provide a chance to change the lives of underprivileged children in India. She credited her team members Jasneet Edke, Lubaina Raj, Neha Patodia, Ragini Shekhawat, Anu Aggarwal and Tanu Singh for working hard to ensure the success of this event.
Dr. Gururaj “Desh” Deshpande, Chairman and Interim CEO of APF USA gave a complete overview of the organization right from its inception to its current operation in 9 states of India. The guest speaker at this event was Dr. Sunil Kumar, Dean of Chicago Booth School of Business. Special dignitary who graced this benefit was Dr. Sam Pitroda who serves as Chairman of India’s National Knowledge Commission
Dr. Pitroda remarked that Akshaya Patra is an excellent public/private partnership model benefiting a large number of children in India.
He added that the Govt. of India is not equipped to solve all the problems facing the country unless NGOs like Akshaya Patra take an active role to address the needs. Through technology, innovation, management, entrepreneurship and business skills, APF has wrought wonders.
Following his speech, Ashley Singh sang “Tumhi Ho Bandhu “. There was a video presentation on the Foundation’s work in India showing the kitchens where mid-day meals are prepared for school children and the process involved in doing this.
A beautiful Bollywood dance number was performed by Infinity dancers – Anika Gupta, Shivani Shah, Pooja Venkit, Ravisha Saini, Radhika Patel, and Jasmine Merchant. Vote of Thanks was given by event chair, Paraminder Sawhney.

Jayapataka's Ghost Busting Scam

2013-05-16T11:54:00.001+05:30

Oh oh, ghosts are haunting the acharyas, watch out!

Dear Puranjana Prabhu,
I was not questioning because I don’t know about the money these people have wasted, I was just interested to know if they went to that hospital as it is connected to mind control by the Illuminati.
===================================
[PD: So the question is, are the GBC controlled by the illuminati? No, the illuminati theory is that their members try to blend in and hide their identities, by conforming to the organization they are infiltering, then they gradually sneak in their agenda over decades of time.
These GBC guru people did not bother to even TRY to hide their bogus activities and try to “blend in” at all. Jayatirtha was taking LSD and he was singing like an out of control insane fool with his cracker pot kirtans, right in public, on his Vyasasana, and this was right out of the box in 1979. He was not trying to blend in at all. He was making huge public waves immediately. The rest of the GBC defended Jayatirtha, because they were not hiding their agenda that they wanted mad fool drug addicts on the Vyasasana in ISKCON.
Jayatirtha was also giving drugs to his inner circle of people, having illicit sex, and behaving in public like a buffoon. No blending was even attempted. That is not blending in. Kirtanananda’s people were being arrested for selling drugs, using underage teenage girls as drug mules, and so on, and this was in all the newspapers. Blending in? No. Making huge public waves? Yes.
Hansadutta had his people stealing credit cards, and his farm was busted by a Federal raid in 1979, not blending in at all. Ramesvara’s PDI (drug selling) pals were busted and the Laguna Beach temple president was arrested also in 1979. Federal agents were involved again. And we could give countless examples of this, for example that the entire ISKCON was sued in Syracuse Federal court for fraud, for selling candles and calling that samkirtana, for using bogus charities for the blind and poor to collect money, etc. and this was in all the newspapers in the USA, and they lost the case. Again, FEDERAL cases, NATIONAL newspaper coverage. Even the pornographic magazines made by Larry Flint were carrying articles about the cheating of these leaders. In other words, even the editors of porn magazines were appalled at the evil behavior of these leaders.
The Syracuse case was started in 1979, so right out of the box they did not try to make a blending in of anything, they made huge public waves — after waves — after waves — of giant public problems that were in all the newspapers.
Apart from that, had these people really been organized criminal conspirators, I never would have got “the will,” the letters, the July 9th letter, the May tape, and especially — the poison tapes and so on. Not only that, I never would have lived long enough to obtain any of these items if these were actually organized conspirators.
Nope, they are a bunch of hippie do-dah space cadets, they bungled almost all their crimes. And that is why they were constantly in the newspapers. They were amateur criminals by any standard. That does not mean that amateur crooks are NOT dangerous of course. The police around here say that these amateur crooks are their worst problem. The “crooks in learning” do not even know how to shoot guns properly. So they often kill innocent men, women, even pregnant women, and children, even babies and toddlers, … in short, the innocent by-stander is much more likely to die than the people they are shooting at. Amateur crooks, they are not hardly organized, but very dangerous nonetheless. ys pd
Hari Bhakta says: Thanks for your comment Puranjan Prabhu. Yes, I agree, they should not spend so much money. It’s a shame. Maybe they are amateur criminals on purpose to bring the Mission of Lord Caitanya down? Well I’d also like to say, that Citeswar Prabhu is actually a really good ghost buster. He helped me with a serious issue and through his yagnas, he helped me a lot.
http://www.pagalbaba.net/home.php?ur=historiaig&bt=botig
Although it is a material science, it can help those who are struggling and not on the pure devotee platform, free from the effects of the mind and modes of material nature.
Haribol!
Puranjana das says: Right, well Chitesvara thinks that acharyas are full of ghosts. That means, he is in illusion. I was in Badger when Chitesvara came there to milk all the devotees for money with his ghost busting program (pagal baba means “mad man,” no kidding), and he may have known about me being his worst critic.
So I sunk down in the seat of my van, and waited till he was right beside my van window, then and I popped my head out and said, “Hey Chitesvara, its your old pal Puranjana”! I have never seen anyone run away so fast in my life. He looked just like — he had seen a ghost. Hee hee. ys pd
Hari Bhakta says: What exactly did he say about the Acharyas? Wonder why he said that? Did he say that Prabhupada was full of ghosts? He will get a lot of bad karma if he is actually ripping people off. What more do you know of his program?
Puranjana das says: Chitesvara supported the GBC gurus in 1990 when they were trying to explain all their fall downs. He said — the reason these gurus are always falling down is — they are haunted by ghosts. I cannot remember the exact numbers he gave but he said something like, Ravindra has 14 ghosts, Hrdayananda has 23 ghosts, and so on and so forth.
Prabhavishnu was the only slightly sensible person here, he protested the whole thing saying — this is all foolishness. And so Chitesvara said, that is because the ghosts inside Prabhavishnu to not want to be taken away by his ghost busting technique. So Prabhavishnu was ordered to be ghost busted, and he was.
JAYAPATAKA swami then ordered that ALL the GBC’s gurus must be ghost busted by (his disciple?) Chitesvara. Shortly after that, and all through the early 1990s, Chitesvara was given the job by the GBC gurus, to be flown all over ISKCON to ghost-bust gurus, temples, devotees and so on. Which he was doing worldwide.
So yes, Chitesvara not only says acharyas are full of ghosts, he says, only he has the potency to save acharyas who are full of ghosts. That means, he thinks acharyas are being overwhelmed by ghostly hauntings, and that the “pagal baba ashram” has to save the acharyas. Notice the word “pagal,” Chitesvara is saying that the acharyas are mad men (pagal) who are full of ghosts. That means, he is saying the acharyas are in the lowest modes of tamasic guna. I still have one of his business cards somewhere which says “pagal baba ashram ghost buster, Chitesvara das.”
I do not really blame Chitesvara so much, he was simply a tool the GBC used to explain all their fall downs. Of course he will get some serious karma for his supporting and helping the main GBC idea that the Lord’s acharyas are ghostly haunted mad fools who are engaged in debauchery,
This is very sinful, to juxtapose such low level material contamination with the acharyas. Even the ordinary karmis are not ghostly haunted debauchees, so for the GBC to say the Lord’s successors and acharyas are on that odious tamasic level means, they are saying the acharyas are much lower class of people than — the ordinary hamburger eating man on the street? This is what they have said all along, the ordinary man is more advanced than the acharyas, because the ordinary man is not falling into illicit sex, intoxication, criminal activity and so forth. To say the Lord’s successors are mad fools who are chasing intoxication and illicit sex is an insult to pure devotees everywhere, and its an attack on Krishna by saying His direct servants are mad debauchees.
Chitesvara will be karma implicated in all this, and if you think about it, for their saying the successors to God are pagal baba ghostly haunted debauchess is — just not going to win them any favors with the Yamaduttas, lets face it. They have not figured this out yet, but fighting against Krishna like this is just messing with the wrong person, they won’t win this war. Do they say Prabhupada is full of ghosts, well indirectly yes, when they say acharyas are full of ghosts, that could be any of them. This also means, as soon as we become purely attached to Krishna, ghosts will make us behave like debauched criminals, that means, the worst thing you can do is to surrender to Krishna. This is very offensive. ys pd
Acchedya das says: When reading comment above I remember when this Chitesvara was sent to our newly constructed temple around 1983. As soon this temple was ready built it was announced that “powerful ghosts obsessed the building and an expert would arrive soon to solve this problem”.
Then Chitesvara arrived in great pomp with a team of assistants. Of course all this fund-raising was paid by -- sankirtan laxmi. It’s easy to be wise after the event, but it’s hard to believe that Chitesvara considered this exorcism ritual to be of any value. They placed a few pumpkins in front of the temple and started chanting mantras. At one point Chitesvara declared that he can see that all ghosts are hiding now in those pumpkins because they were terrified by Chitesvara’s powerful mantras.
Then he told the devotees to smash those pumpkins at the concrete temple stairs. This would shock these ghosts so much that they would never return. He told the devotees to bow down and pay obeisances in honor for being rescued from these ghosts. Chitesvara received a check and asked for immediate transfer to the airport because there was, “another urgent exorcism to be performed in Italy”.
Quite amazing how naive we were at that time. The whole thing was nothing but pickpocketing?
Hari Bhakta says: Thanks for the information Prabhu, seems like Chitesvara Prabhu was used as a puppet by Jayapataka in a bid to explain why the “Acharyas” were so pagal. Guess he made some good money out of it. So sad. Do you think he actually has the ability to remove ghosts and see past lives? According to him he has a mystic siddhi to obtain this information. I guess you can have these powers, but still be mislead by others. Was I duped by this guy? Is there anyone in the world that is trustworthy?!
Puranjana das says: Yes, as soon as I saw the business card “Pagal baba ashram,” I said, this shows how desperate the GBC gurus are, they have to explain their “guru failures” as being “caused by ghosts.” We had a comedian here in the USA named Flip Wilson, and that was his main punchline “The Devil Made Me Do It.” So the GBC borrowed almost the same idea and came up with “The Ghosts Made Me Do It.” Yes, anyone who accepts this is being duped, its a scam.
This is now a big problem here in San Francisco. Old Chinese ladies are being told to collect their valuables — including taking their money out of the bank — and to put the valuables into a paper bag under their bed to remove evil spirits, so their house will be ghost busted. Problem is, the ghost busters change the women’s paper bag with their own, a bag filled with useless newspapers, and they steal the old ladies money and jewelry. Its the same type of criminal cheating as the GBC. Preying on people’s sentiments. ys pd

Vandalism forces Krishna community to rethink safety

2013-05-08T16:41:00.000+05:30

Hare Krishna devotees worship at the Krishna Temple in Alachua on Sunday.

GAINESVILLE: Matthew Goldman was chanting in the Hare Krishna Temple in Alachua on Saturday morning when another Krishna devotee told him about a mess in the bathroom.

Someone had clogged the toilets, he said.

The damage extended far beyond that inconvenience. Someone had defecated on the bathroom floor, strewn bleach around the temple and into a fountain, broke furnishings and tossed books into the fountain.

There were only a few people at the temple because many other devotees planned to attend a festival in Clearwater later that day. Goldman said he had an idea who was responsible: Peter Bergman.

Bergman had been at the temple from time to time, including that morning. He had even stayed at the guest house.

He had struck other members as strange, but that raised no alarms. "He seemed a little odd, but we normally don't jump to conclusions about oddness," said Miriam Tassinare, president of the ISKCON of Alachua temple at 17306 NW 112th Blvd.

Sheriff's deputies came to the scene and arrested a man they say helped Bergman deface the facility, while later filing a sworn criminal complaint against Bergman.

For a community that strives for a peaceful existence — devotees generally don't kill other creatures, even mosquitos — the incident has been a wakeup call.

The Hare Krishna community in Alachua welcomes newcomers to visit the temple, Tassinare said, and that won't change.

"We're always open for people to come experience our meditation and the spiritual atmosphere here, but we'll probably look more now at having some security here," she said.

They lock their doors and have an alarm system that keeps the building secure at night, but she said they'll probably look at adding security during services and other times.

Tassinare said she also wants to talk to the Alachua County Sheriff's Office about the congregation's rights, such as whether they can physically restrain someone who vandalizes their property. She explained that devotees are allowed to restrain an aggressor without compromising their religious views or lifestyle.

This incident could have been much worse, she said. There wasn't a lot of damage, and no one was hurt.

Because he was a familiar face, Bergman's arrival around 7 a.m. Saturday didn't ring any alarm bells, she said. And devotees said they assumed the man with him, Melshizedek Reyes, was a friend of Bergman's.

"But I think very soon after he came, they began acting erratic," Tassinare said.

According to a sheriff's report, the men said the temple was unclean and threw bleach around the facility and poured bleach into a decorative fountain at the front of the temple.

They threw books into the fountain and broke vases, according to the report. A sacred plant was also broken, Goldman said, which is considered offensive to Krishna devotees.

He said Reyes seemed to be following Bergman's orders during the incident.

"Whatever that other guy (Bergman) told him, it seemed like he would do," he said.

Bergman, 54, had seemed a little strange to other members of the temple, Goldman said, but they didn't think he'd do anything like this.

"We didn't expect that, even though he was little weird," he said.

After discovering the damage, a staff member suggested that Goldman drive the men to their homes, but Goldman said no. He said they should call the Sheriff's Office and then went back outside to keep an eye on the men.

When a deputy arrived, he arrested Reyes, who refused to give him any identification and said he was not going to speak to the deputy. Each man was carrying a bag — a backpack and a grocery bag — and they refused to let the deputy see what was inside, according to the report.

Reyes tried to run away from the deputy and was shot with a Taser stun gun after turning and charging at the deputy, according to a report.

Reyes, 25, of Volusia County, was arrested on charges of damage to property/criminal mischief, resisting arrest and disturbing the peace at a religious facility.

Bergman, however, was taken to Shands at the University of Florida. He still had a bracelet from Shands, where he had recently been treated for bone cancer, said Sheriff's Office spokesman Art Forgey.

He said the deputy felt Bergman needed medical attention. Medical issues take precedent over arrests, he said.

Bergman later was charged via a sworn criminal complaint with damage to property/criminal mischief, resisting arrest and disturbing the peace at a religious facility.

Forgey said the State Attorney's Office could determine that Reyes and Bergman should receive hate crime charges, but that hasn't been done yet.

Despite the concerns this incident has raised, Tassinare said she doesn't consider this a hate crime.

"I think it was really the crime of crazy people," she said.

Madhu Pandit Dasa on Etv Telugu

2013-05-07T16:13:00.003+05:30

ISKCON Bangalore's President & Chairman of Akshaya patra Foundation Madhu Pandit Dasa on Etv Telugu

Iskcon worker alleges sexual assault

2013-04-23T16:32:00.003+05:30

THE TIMES OF INDIA: LUCKNOW: A volunteer of the Iskcon temple in Mathura on Monday lodged a police complaint accusing two members of the temple management and a security guard of sexual assault, intimidation and threat to life. While she submitted a complaint with Vrindavan police accusing a senior member and temple manager, the temple administration denied the allegations saying she had dispute with the temple authorities.

Senior superintendent of police, Mathura, Pradeep Yadav said action will begin once the allegations are verified. The woman has alleged that she was not being allowed to enter the temple by the management, but Iskcon representatives said there were no restrictions and that she was stopped only from venturing into the area where saints live.

SSP Yadav said the two sides have been involved in dispute for sometime. "Investigations have revealed that after a dispute, the temple management denied her entry into the temple compound. But she approached the court which ordered that she must not be denied entry for prayers and meditation. After which she was allowed entry into the premises," said SSP Yadav.

"She has accused the temple management of making lewd remarks and sexual assault. She has also accused a temple guard of physical assault. We have listened to what she had to say about her complaint in detail and are getting the specifics verified. Since there is a court history of dispute between the two sides, malafide intent on the part of either or both cannot be ruled out," SSP Yadav told TOI on phone.

ISKCON's Bangalore temple offers 1,200 sattvic recipes to a higher plane

2013-04-23T16:24:00.000+05:30

Many worshipers stay back for the lavish buffet
at The Higher Taste, the temple's restaurant.

Business Today: Krishna, the eighth incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu, has moved with the times. He no longer thrives on just butter or yogurt stored in an earthen pot dangling from the ceiling. That would be outright boring, with a global gastronomic explosion afoot. The Lord's feast now includes Italian pasta and bruschetta, Chinese stirfried noodles, Russian salad, American burgers and French coffee walnut mousse.

That is just a sampler of the offerings at the Bangalore temple of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, also known as ISKCON or simply the Hare Krishna Movement. After being blessed by Krishna, the food finds its way to the lavish buffet at The Higher Taste, the temple's fine dining restaurant, where bhajans play in the background to remind guests of the food's higher purpose. Here, eating and divinity are closely related. As the restaurant's name suggests, the lipsmacking food is aimed at helping diners reach a higher level of consciousness.

Various centres of the movement run 100 such restaurants around the world, all of which promote what ISKCON calls sattvic vegetarianism. Sattva is Sanskrit for 'pure'. ISKCON's cuisine includes no garlic, onion, highprotein pulses and caffeinated drinks.

"Sattvic food eliminates chemical reactions that generate negative energy," explains Chamari Devi Dasi, Division Head of The Higher Taste. "To generate the best consciousness, to nourish the mind and soul, eating sattvic food is important," she says, a little wrinkle in her forehead marked by a tilak made with mud from Krishna's childhood home of Vrindavan. Onion and garlic, she says, generate tamas, the state of ignorance.

The Higher Taste employs 280 people, and can cook up to 1,200 dishes. The kitchens at the Bangalore temple - one of the largest ISKCON temples in the world - use 400 kilos of nuts, 250 litres of milk, 150 litres of oil, 500 coconuts, and more than 150 kg each of sugar, rice, potatoes and flour daily. All these ingredients go into 20 types of laddoos, dhoklas, rice dishes and 2,000 samosas.

On holidays, some 20,000 people visit the Bangalore temple, and many stay back to partake of its sattvic fare. If ISKCON were a commercial organisation, its food business would be one of the largest in the city rivalling top restaurant chains - through sales from temple counters, its restaurants, stores and catering, it generates revenues of Rs 16 crore a year.

ISKCON's kitchens hire professional chefs and bakers who are trained in eggless and meatless cooking

For several years, ISKCON's Govinda's Restaurant, at Juhu in Mumbai, has been engaged in a tussle with the Maharashtra state incometax authorities, who say it should be taxed as a commercial operation. The Bangalore restaurant, however, is under no such pressure.

ISKCON says it is not a commercial outfit. It is a not-for-profit organisation, founded in 1966 in New York City by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada to preach Bhakti Yoga, or "the science of devotional service to Lord Krishna". Today, it has 400 centres worldwide. Its restaurants are typically run by a trust. Profits from the sale of food mostly go into preaching or charity. ISKCON is the world's largest vegetarian food relief organisation.

The Rs 4 crore annual profit that ISKCON Bangalore makes is used to print religious texts, youth programmes and sometimes for free meal programmes.

Govinda Datta Dasa (left) runs the revenue-generating kitchens (not all of them generate revenue) at the Bangalore temple, with fellow-devotees Chamari Devi Dasi and chef Kaivalya Pathi Dasa

Cooking 1,200 dishes daily is a complex operation, and professional chefs and managers, overseen by devotees who are passionate about food, make things smooth for those who pay to get their minds and souls nourished. The revenue-generating kitchens alone have 60 chefs. The food must be offered to the Lord before eating, which means chefs cannot taste it while cooking. This is why they must perfect ISKCON's version of molecular gastronomy - a scientific cooking method that requires strict adherence to temperature and proportions of ingredients.

Work is divided between three units. Plant One is a huge production unit that caters to the temple counters that sell sweets, savouries, juice, and packaged products such as snack mixtures. Plant One also caters for companies and events. Plant Two makes cakes and cookies. The third division is the restaurants.

Besides The Higher Taste, there is Annakuta, a cafeteria that sells fastmoving items such as dosas and sandwiches. "We have separate managers for each division, but ISKCON has a centralised system to predict sales, receive orders and pass them on to different plants," says Chamari Devi Dasi. To handle the complexity, Plant One's kitchen is subdivided into ten - there are separate kitchens for rice dishes, snacks, North Indian sweets, South Indian sweets, Bengali sweets, laddoos, mixtures, samosas, fried fare, and a speciality kitchen that makes spring rolls, bread rolls, burgers and cutlets.

Devotee Kaivalya Pathi Dasa is a chef with a passion for experimentation. ISKCON, he says, is a master at innovation. An in-house food lab, started in 2005, is a repository of around 3,000 recipes that its fine dining restaurant draws on daily.

Cooks and devotees constantly try out new combinations in the lab to keep sattvic cuisine alive and kicking. One of the experiments was on biryani: how can you create an authentic biryani taste without using meat, onion or garlic? The result was the Kabulistani Biryani, which substitutes meat - traditionally goat or lamb - with cauliflower and potato.

mosimageContinued research and development will be necessary for ISKCON to retain its fan following. But competition is brewing. Just a few weeks ago, two former employees of ISKCON teamed up to open Sattvam, a sattvic restaurant less than five kilometres from the temple. ISKCON has to grapple with problems that other food entrepreneurs face, such as attrition.

How does ISKCON maintain quality given the staff churn? Pat comes Chamari Devi Dasi's reply: "Krishna is in charge. He's managing it."

Tanzania Opens Its Doors for ISKCON

2013-04-22T10:22:00.002+05:30

ISKCON News: The opening of ISKCON Arusha Centre, marks the onset of a new Krishna-conscious age in Tanzania.
Over the last decade the Regional Secretary of East Africa, Umapati Das, along with a handful of devotees headed by Draupadi Rani Devi Dasi and Venu Madhurya Das, have been persistently endevoring to open a centre in Tanzania.
For the past few decades, Tanzania has been predominated by "conveniently theistic" inhabitants. Going to the temple, mosque or church has been more of a formality for the locals than actually a spiritual gesture. However, the new Arusha ISKCON Centre still has been able to grab the attention of masses of people of different social statuses.
After a lengthy struggle, on a bright sunny morning of 29th March 2013, the Govinda's sweet shop and gift shop was inaugurated. The event was endorsed by various devotees from Nairobi, the donors, locals and Pran Govinda Das from Mumbai. The atmosphere was euphoric with the vibrant and energetic harinam sankirtan.
“The reason for a sweet shop and gift shop, is to break the ice and to break the stereotype of ISKCON being only a contemporary Asian Temple, irrelevant to local Tanzanians” - Venu Madhurya Das, Arusha centre leader explained. The Centre is sustained majorly by the sales from the sweet shop and by the grace of the donors. “We are fortunate to have a handful of the leading businessmen coming forward and financially supporting us. A generous man, for instance, happily offered to advertise our sweet shop and gift shop and various festivals for free.”
Currently, the devotees in Arusha are trying to acquire a moderately larger piece of land towards the city centre. to reduce the proximity issues. In the future, the devotees along with the East African Regional Secretary, are planning to develop the centre and spread in the rest of the areas of Tanzania

Aasaram Bapu Imparting ‘Diksha’

2013-04-19T12:58:00.000+05:30

Aasaram Bapu, the self-styled Godman sermonised the nation on how the gangrape victim – Nirbhaya would had avoided it all if she would had taken diksha, recited mantras and begged in front of those six beasts who were raping. Aasaram’s sermons made our blood boil in disgust.
But now after seeing this photograph of Aasaram Bapu imparting ‘Diksha’ to a disciple in his unique style, I understand where he is coming from and what kind of sermons he is capable of uttering.

Ratan Tata Visits Akshaya Patra Hubli

2013-04-17T16:19:00.001+05:30

Ratan Tata, non-executive chairman, TATA group visited the Akshaya Patra Hubli kitchen recently. He was accompanied by N.R Narayana Murthy, Founder, Infosys Ltd, along with Sudha Murty, Chairperson of the Infosys Foundation, Dr. Gururaj Deshpande and Jayshree Deshpande. Chanchalpathi Dasa, Vice Chairman, The Akshaya Patra Foundation, Rajivalochan Dasa, President, Akshaya Patra Hubli, Shridhar Venkat, Executive Director, The Akshaya Patra Foundation and Yagneshwara Dasa were also present during the visit.
Ratan Tata spent an hour in the Akshaya Patra premises visiting the kitchen with all the dignitaries. He also conversed with Chanchalapathi Dasa about Akshaya Patra's social service and was impressed by its operations.
After visiting the kitchen and interacting with the Akshaya Patra representatives, Ratan Tata said, “It is an extremely impressive undertaking which indicates what can be achieved when you have dedication and sincerity of achievement for the public good.”

Some recent questions about the book changes

2013-04-16T15:36:00.000+05:30

By: Bhakta Mark

There are many fools who blindly regurgitate the following slogans which were concocted by the Zoned out Acharyas and their GBC (Gangster Boy Cheerleaders) of Iskcon, including their BBT (Butlers of Better Truth).

Referring to the Ritvik initiation system, they say there is no such thing as “post samadhi initiation” or “posthumous Diksha”, that it is asiddhanta and not part of the Gaudiya Tradition.

So I am surprised that Jayadvaita and his BBT book mangling crew have yet to edit Jagannatha das Babaji’s name out from the list of disciplic succession in the “new improved” Bhagavad Gita. After all, according to the parampara list as written by Srila Prabhupada in CC Adi Lila chapter 1, “Srila Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakura accepted Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji”, even though Vishvanatha was “post samadhi” by a hundred years.
I hate to give our misguided pre-samadhi editors any more "bright" ideas, but that edited Gita is ruined already, so Jay might as well just continue to show the world what he really thinks about the ideas of the one he claims to be a disciple of.

THE DISCIPLIC SUCCESSION

Evam parampara-praptam imam rajarsayo viduh.

(Bhagavad-gita, 4.2)

This Bhagavad-gita As It Is is received through this disciplic succession:

1) Krishna, 2) Brahma, 3) Narada; 4) Vyasa, 5) Madhva, 6) Padmanabha, 7) Narahari, 8) Madhava, 9) Akshobhya, 10) Jayatirtha, 11) Jnanasindhu,
12) Dayanidhi, 13) Vidyanidhi, 14) Rajendra, 15) Jayadharma, 16) Purushottama, 17) Brahmanyatirtha, 18) Vyasatirtha, 19) Lakshmipati, 20) Madhavendra Puri, 21) Ishvara Puri, (Nityananda, Advaita), 22) Lord Chaitanya, 23) Rupa (Svarupa, Sanatana), 24) Raghunatha, Jiva, 25) Krishnadasa, 26) Narottama, 27) Vishvanatha, 28) (Baladeva) Jagannatha, 29) Bhaktivinode, 30) Gaurakishora, 31) Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, 32) His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
- (Bhagavad Gita INTRO)

Of course J.Swa will need to attack the Bhagavatam next…
Brahma is the direct recipient of Vedic knowledge from the Personality of Godhead, and anyone discharging his entrusted duties in disciplic succession from Brahma is sure to gain fame in this life and salvation in the next. The disciplic succession from Brahma is called the Brahma-sampradaya, and it descends as follows: Brahma, Narada, Vyasa, Madhva Muni (Purnaprajna), Padmanabha, Narahari, Madhava, Akshobhya, Jayatirtha, Jnanasindhu, Dayanidhi, Vidyanidhi, Rajendra, Jayadharma, Purushottama, Brahmanyatirtha, Vyasatirtha, Lakshmipati, Madhavendra Puri, Ishvara Puri, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Svarupa Damodara and Sri Rupa Gosvami and others, Sri Raghunatha dasa Gosvami, Krishnadasa Gosvami, Narottama dasa Thakura, Vishvanatha Chakravarti, Jagannatha dasa Babaji, Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Gaurakishora dasa Babaji, Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami.
- (SB 3.13.8 : PURPORT )
Might as well edit a few taped lectures while he is at it…
“One who has accepted acharya, he knows things as they are.” Acaryavan puruso veda. So we are receiving knowledge through the acharyas. Krishna spoke to Arjuna, Arjuna spoke to Vyasadeva. Arjuna actually did not speak to Vyasadeva, but Vyasadeva heard it, Krishna speaking, and he noted down in his book Mahabharata. This Bhagavad-gita is found in Mahabharata. So we accept the authorities of Vyasa. And from Vyasa, Madhvacharya; from Madhvacharya, so many disciplic succession, up to Madhavendra Puri. Then Madhavendra Puri to Ishvara Puri; from Ishvara Puri to Lord Chaitanyadeva; from Lord Chaitanyadeva to six Gosvamis; from six Gosvamis to Krishnadasa Kaviraja; from him, Srinivasa Acharya; from him, Vishvanatha Chakravarti; from him, Jagannatha dasa Babaji; then Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji; Bhaktivinoda Thakura; my spiritual master. The same thing, we are preaching. That is Krishna consciousness movement. It is nothing new. It is coming down from the original speaker, Krishna, by disciplic succession.

- (Lectures : Bhagavad-gita 2.13 — Pittsburgh, September 8, 1972)

That is guru. Means one who has seen the truth. How he has seen the truth? Through the parampara system. Krishna said this, and then Brahma said the same thing, then Narada said the same thing, Vyasadeva said the same thing, and then disciplic succession, Madhvacharya, Madhavendra Puri, Ishvara Puri, Lord Chaitanya, Sad-gosvami, Krishnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami, Srinivasa Acharya, Narottama dasa Thakura, Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakura. In this way. Jagannatha dasa Babaji, Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati. Then we are speaking. The same thing.

- (Lectures : Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.4.1 — Los Angeles, June 24, 1972)

J. and cohort Dravida das already edited the Parampara list in CC Adi 1, but failed to properly address the false post samadhi Diksha that Jagannatha received when Srila Vishvanatha Chakravarti accepted him as servitor. Instead he our Mangler in Chief focused on editing Srila Prabhupada’s "bogus" idea that Bhaktivinode was initiated by Jagannatha dasa, and that Bhaktivinode initiated Srila Gaurakishora das babaji
“The direct disciple of Srila Krishnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami was Srila Narottama dasa Thakura, who accepted Srila Vishvanatha Chakravarti as his servitor. Srila Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakura accepted Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji, who initiated Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, who in turn initiated Srila Gaurakishora dasa Babaji, the spiritual master of Om Vishnupada Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Maharaja, the divine master of our humble self.”

(Original CC Adi Chapter 1)

“The direct disciple of Srila Krishnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami was Srila Narottama dasa Thakura, who accepted Srila Vishvanatha Chakravarti as his servitor. Srila Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakura accepted Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji, the spiritual master of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, who in turn accepted Srila Gaurakishora dasa Babaji, the spiritual master of Om Vishnupada Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Maharaja, the divine master of our humble self.”

(Changed CC Adi Chapter 1)

I know, I know, so many changes to make, so little time. Perhaps some one of J. Swa’s divine stature could make an appeal to Kala, the presiding Deity of time, in the form of a request to slow things down a bit so His Magnificence will be able to properly wield his editorial scalpel and undo all the errors Srila Prabhupada left us with and save the entire Jagat from being so grossly misinformed.

Hemamalini releases commemorative volume on 15 years of ISKCON Bangalore

2013-04-15T09:58:00.000+05:30

Smt. Hemamalini, MP Rajya Sabha, releases commemorative volume on ISKCON, Bangalore 15 years.

ISKCON Sri Radha Krishnachandra Temple, Hare Krishna Hill, Rajajinagar, Bangalore, held a commemorative ceremony- BHAKTI-RATNA today in its premises of the temple. MP of Rajya Sabha, Smt. Hemamalini ji was the chief guest for the function who also released a special commemorative volume on the same.
Pt. Pravin Godkhindi, Pt. Venkatesh Godkhindi, Master Shadaj Godkhindi & Vidwan Kiran on tabla, performed a musical performance on the occasion..
Ys,
Bharatarshabha Das,

Another delivery vehicle added to Akshaya Patra

2013-04-05T17:40:00.001+05:30

BANGALORE: Corporation Bank donated a mid-day meal distribution vehicle to the Akshaya Patra Foundation recently.

The custom-built vehicle is insulated to maintain optimal temperature, is dust-free and helps to retain the freshness of the meals. The meal delivery vehicle will help transport hot, nutritious meals from the centralized kitchens to about 4,000 children daily in 40 schools each day.

Officials from the bank visited Akshaya Patra to flag-off the mid-day meal delivery vehicle. The officials also visited the Akshaya Patra kitchen to understand how Akshaya Patra's kitchen caters to the needs of thousands of children across the city every school working day.

Madhu Pandit Dasa, chairman, the Akshaya Patra Foundation, said, "Many organizations in the banking sector have always supported Akshaya Patra in its endeavor. We are honored that reputed organizations like Corporation Bank has continued to strengthen its partnership with us. With their continued support, we hope that we will be able to reach out to more hungry children across the country and by 2020 to at least five million children across India."

Mediation between ISKCON Bangalore & ISKCON Mumbai

2013-04-03T12:43:00.000+05:30

Please find attached a set of documents to update the devotee community re. on the progress of the ongoing mediation. These documents consist of correspondence between between Madhu Pandit Dasa , the GBC Bureau and the ISKCON GBC :

Justice Raveendran (the retired Supreme court justice who was appointed by the Supreme Court to oversee the present management at HK Hill, by the ISKCON Society of Karnataka a year ago) took an initiative to bring about an out of court settlement between two parties thru several mediation sittings.

The Bangalore group offered to bring the property in dispute in the court, which is the Hare Krishna Hill temple under the ownership of ISKCON registered in Mumbai if Bureau assured before the Supreme Court that the rtvik system of initiation practiced now will be the only system to continue and the preaching that Srila Prabhupada is guru of everyone in this temple will also continue. Then we went further to offer all the group properties, worth about 500 million dollars, about 20 temples in India to ISKCON registered in Mumbai with same condition on initiation.

To avoid court battles, they even offered that Madhu Pandit Dasa, Chanchalapathi Dasa and Jai Chaitanya Dasa will be out of management of the Hare Krishna Hill temple, which is disputed before the court. The Bureau had its meeting with GBC on March 9, 2013 and rejected the condition on initiation and rejected the settlement offer. The Bureau's foul cries that rtvik is just an excuse for Sri Madhu Pandit Dasa's plan to grab properties now stands exposed as just mud slinging tactic. If they really believed this to be the case, why don't they take the offer that would have included Madhu Pandit's offer?

The attached documents should be read in the following time sequence:

Letter dated Jan 25th, 2013 to Justice Raveendran

Final Offer of Madhu Pandit Das to GBC and Bureau March 5th, 2013

From: Madhu Pandit Dasa
Sent: Tuesday, March 05, 2013 8:46 PM
To: dayaram.jps@com.bbt.se; Dayaram.JPS@pamho.net; Bhanu.swami@pamho.net; rgomatam@bvinst.edu; bhakti.charu.swami@gmail.com; Bhima.ACBSP@pamho.net; Bhakti.Charu.Swami@pamho.net; Rasaraja.BI-Bombay-Berkeley@pamho.net; atd@indiabbt.com; Bhaktarupa (das) ACBSP (Bhubaneswara - IN)
Cc: radhajivana@gmail.com; Chanchalapathi Dasa; Jai Chaitanya Dasa (Eco Agri)
Subject: Bureau meeting GBC

Without Prejudice to all connected matters pending before the Supreme Court

Dear Prabhus,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

Though we had closed the mediation exercise on 7^th February formally withdrawing all our earlier offers through my email to you dated 3^rd February , we will still await your fresh offer, if any, from your side for which we would respond afresh. Just for your assurance to continue to endeavor for settlement we wish to communicate that the basic offer of ownership and rights over all the properties will be unchanged from what was offered till 7^th February. More details needs to be discussed afresh with regards to certain extra safeguards required to prevent any victimization of the leaders who have been leading this theological issue apprehensions and to allay fears that the bureau and GBC is going through this exercise just get hold of the properties and later stamp us out. If your real intentions are identical to what is being expressed openly to us , there should be no problem for you to ensure all those extra safeguards. We can discuss that after you first communicate to us that the July 9^th initiation system can be put in place for our group of temples.

I consider the meeting tomorrow as a very crucial meeting towards a positive settlement. My reason for this clarifying note is that the rare opportunity that has arisen for the bureau to meet the GBC to get a clear black and white answer either way towards the settlement should not go in vain again due to the mistake of taking off in the direction of discussing philosophy. We want you to know what exactly is being offered by us.

After CPD presented our position to the Bureau on 10^th Feb for information, instead of discussing the other settlement terms , the discussion took off in a direction to make us change our philosophy. Both sides exchanged drafts with good intentions . Each succeeding draft from our side would include statements that protected the officiating system of initiation as per July 9, 1977 directive and in response we would get drafts from your side with changes which make sure that it is not a representational system of initiation but just a diminished regular guru system. CPD agreed to these exercises with the team of Rasaraj Prabhu, hoping, as assured by him, that he would in the end derive the same system that we are practicing now. Both sides have learnt that it has failed to produce any satisfying solution and we were back to square one after several days of exchanging drafts back and forth. Thanks to Rasaraj Prabhu and Bhanu Swami who tried sincerely worked hard to make two ends meet. I am writing this so that we do not take this route once again in the current endeavor.

We have also agreed that post settlement of the dispute, we would participate in the discussions as part of a Guru issue Committee which includes representations from GBC members, members of ISKCON Bureau, selected members from national bodies around the world and ISKCON Bangalore Group of devotees. At any post settlement stage if there is consensus among the Bangalore Group of Devotees for any change from the present system allowed for us before the Supreme Court, we will change. But if there is no consensus we will not change the system agreed before the Supreme court. Though any miracle can happen through Guru issue Committee, we frankly feel that that settling a common initiation system seems like a far cry as the position of both sides on this guru issue is mutually exclusive. Two non interfering groups serving and growing together respectful to each other under one legal structure with a pre decided code of conduct is the spirit of this settlement as we understand. Therefore I insist that we be understood properly for the sake of a genuine settlement not only letter but as well as its spirit.

Whatever settlement we are seeking now , we want to ensure that our stand on initiation is understood by your decision makers right from the start not only in letter but also in spirit . Let me repeat that changing our present understanding of initiation or the system of initiation has never been offered to the Bureau at any point of time. Even the last proposal sent to you by CPD on Mantra guru/Officiating Acarya , which you are proposing to discuss does not change our stand on initiation if you carefully study. On the face of it , It is quite a confusing document as these exchanges of drafts were being made in a rush to close settlement and can lead the reader astray if some statements therein are not clarified. Anyway the conclusive stand is scripted by us in a nut shell through the very last line of that document which says in red “ We do not consider or call ourselves diksha disciples of Mantra guru or Officiating Acaryas.”

The only change we have made during the discussion of different drafts on initiation with Rasaraj Prabhu is that , the Officiating Acaryas are institutional gurus and not just priests who give first and second initiation on behalf of Srila Prabhupada. However we consider ourselves as receiving the two components of transcendental diksha in terms of di+ksha divya gyan and ksapayati from Srila Prabhupada, not only at the formal initiation ceremony as the current link in our parampara but also on a ongoing basis forever, beginning from the first day a devotee faithfully hears Srila Prabhupada’s vani .

Our continued stand is that since Srila Prabhupada , as the Founder and Acarya of ISKCON, his prominence as the Primary guru to whom everyone directly surrenders should be institutionally preached and promoted in ISKCON temples, notwithstanding the fact that there may be many pure devotees in ISKCON. Such pure devotees would do everything by preaching and by their conduct to keep this prominence of Srila Prabhupada in life of the devotees of ISKCON. If at all any faith that can be justifiably institutionalized for promoting in ISKCON , it is only this faith in the Founder Acarya of the institution as the Primary guru. Srila Prabhupada has wished without doubt to remain active as long as the institution exists in this capacity as the Acharya. All other followership relationship in ISKCON should be geared to promote this Prominence of Srila Prabhupada in the heart of ISKCON members.

In the last proposal we have also agreed that considering the sensitivities involved in ISKCON on newly initiated in ‘calling ’ ourselves diksha disciples of Srila Prabhupada, we would just call ourselves as disciples of Srila Prabhupada or Prabhupadanugas. Nevertheless from the rest of the document it is clear that Srila Prabhupada is our transcendental diksha guru. Again we are seeking all these liberties of a different system of initiation only for our group of temples. We will still stand by that offer to call ourselves only as disciples of Srila Prabhupada.

Having said all this , all this is nothing but implementation of July 9^th 1977 directive. Easier than narrating all these faith matters and beating around the bush, it is easiest and elegant to state before the Supreme court that in our group temples, the system of initiation will be as per July 9^th 1977 directive of Srila Prabhupada since that is what our real proposal is and has been always including the one sent last by CPD. Live and let live under one umbrella. July 9^th 1977 also do not use the word diksha disciple for those initiated. It just says disciples.

Therefore please do not work on the that last document sent by CPD which needs clarification and explanation on many points. We have already officially withdrawn that offer w.e.f. from 7^th February for this very reason. Instead we are attaching a ‘synopsis’ herein which is just compilation of the points in red in the same CPD’s last document that are applicable to our group of temples with some elaborations for greater clarity. Our group of Temple Presidents are yet to approve the attached draft. But that should not be a problem as we are moving forward as per the general direction given by that body.

For us, since this faith is the very genesis of this dispute arising from being expelled from ISKCON for the same , we need to ensure that there are enough legal safeguards and mechanism in the settlement decree for the Bangalore Group of devotees to have a locus standi to go before the court for enforcement of any violation on the agreed system of initiation by the bureau or if we are victimized directly or indirectly for holding and preaching this faith in our group of temples. We not want to make any secret out of this possibility. Such a possibility will never be there if the live and let live principle is adopted. I hope this is understandable considering that the ownership/rights of properties are being offered irrevocably and we cannot ever go to court for revoking the same and the GBC wishes to retain in its book draconian law on banning rtvik doctrine in ISKCON.

The GBC and other bureau members should also be informed of the salient features of the other terms like opening more temples by Bangalore group of devotees for ISKCON Bureau as properties for ISKCON Mumbai as per the other non- philosophical terms orally discussed once.

Let me state again that when we are not seeking any in between solution which needs any philosophical discussion. Such discussions are bound to drag forever . We are expecting a clear answer on 8^thor 9^th March giving in-principle approval to our specific proposal in writing. Then we could work out all other details before the next OC committee meets and file before the Supreme Court. If this fails we would restart the discussion after the Supreme Court case is over. Our desire to integrate ourselves under one umbrella will always remain.

From now on I will be the single point of contact from our side for all purposes of this settlement . I thank Ambarisha Prabhu and Radhajivan Prabhu for their recent involvement in this settlement efforts.

Yours in service of Srila Prabhupada

Madhu Pandit Dasa

Final Synopsis offered to GBC by MPD on March 5th, 2013

GBC cover letter March 9th, 2013

GBC statement Final March 9th,2013

Reply to GBC and Bureau March 14th, 2013

Final letter to Justice Raveendran March 22nd, 2013

Without Prejudice:

22.3.2013

Justice Raveendaran,
Chairman,
Oversight Committee, ISKCON Bangalore.

Dear Sir,

Hare Krishna. Please accept our greetings.

We are grateful to you for having mediated with ISKCON Mumbai for an out of court settlement on our mutual request.

ISKCON Mumbai and the GBC have jointly written to us at last with finality that, it is not possible to accept Srila Prabhupada as the sole Guru/Acharya of our group of temples. Further they, ironically, are asking us also to become “regular gurus” and make our own disciples by becoming Gurus/Acharyas. Copy of their communication is enclosed.

As you are aware we offered a lot to facilitate the settlement only considering that it is bad to spend temple money on lawyers. We offered first the ownership of suit property (Hare Krishna Hill temple). Then we extended the offer to bring all other properties of our group which is materially worth 20 times the suit property. We even went to the extent of offering myself and few others to step down from the management of Hare Krishna Hill if only they accept that Srila Prabhupada would be the sole Guru in our group of temples and the same is decreed by the Supreme Court.

Unfortunately ISKCON Mumbai only want to take what we offered without acceding to our simple demand of leaving intact the system of initiation that is currently being practiced in our group of temples which is in accordance with the written directive of our Founder Acharya, His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.

Thus we regret that mediation efforts have unfortunately failed to bear any positive result of an out-of-court settlement with the bureau and GBC expressing their inability to accommodate our faith that is being currently practiced in our group temples. Right from the outset, we got interested in the mediation only because Sri. Dayaram Das of ISKCON Mumbai stated that there is the possibility of the Bureau of ISKCON Mumbai allowing Srila Prabhupada to be the only guru in our group of temples if the property is given to ISKCON Mumbai.

We cannot accept their rejection letter to be in the spirit of settlement. It is merely as demand for total surrender and not a compromise. This would mean we have to give up our faith that Srila Prabhupada as our dikhsa guru. This is simply impossible to give up. The self-made gurus rule the GBC and the Bureau. It is this very dogmatic approach wherein the Founder Acharya, Srila Prabhupada cannot be considered as one’s diksha guru has thrown out thousands of sincere followers of ISKCON movement all over the world. They do not want to give up their guruship as it would stop their ‘guru dakshina business’ for themselves independent of the temples and their own rubberstamped follower camps within ISKCON. When we brought up this very matter in the year 1999, the GBC passed a resolution expelling us from ISKCON. It was at that junction, we asserted our legal independence that we are members of a legally independent society in order to protect our services to the Lord and the society from the expelling action of the GBC for holding that Srila Prabhupada is our sole guru and refusing to accept the self-appointed gurus of ISKCON.

It is only to fight us, the ISKCON reformists, world over, they are united. Otherwise they are fragmented in to as many camps as there are self-appointed gurus in ISKCON. They have hijacked Srila Prabhupada’s ISKCON. This moral and financial corruption is the very genesis of this dispute and they do not want to budge an inch on this demand. On the other hand they have gone to the extent of asking us also to join them in the league of self-appointed gurus.

It is clear that they are not satisfied with offer of ownership of properties under ISKCON Mumbai but they want to continue their multi-guru system even in our group of temples.

We have replied to their communication indicating our unacceptability of their demand to continue multiple self-appointed guru system in our group of temples. A copy of the said communication is also enclosed.

We have suggested in our reply to GBC and Bureau if we can peacefully co-exist and expand as separate groups in service of Srila Prabhupada. We have stated in our letter:

And we hope if this new approach can bear fruit. We shall continue to try our best. Meanwhile the matters before the Supreme Court could continue and we shall leave everything in the hands of Lord Krishna with regard to the suit schedule property. We thank you once again for your kind efforts to bring about an out of court settlement.

Yours in service of Lord Krishna,

Madhu Pandit Dasa,
President, ISKCON Bangalore.

Enclosures:

1. Final Offer of Madhu Pandit Das to ISKCON GBC and Bureau on March 5^th, 2013 on matters concerning philosophy.

2. Synopsis of SYSTEM OF INITIATION (as applicable to ISKCON Bangalore group of temples)

3. Statement of the Governing Body Commission (GBC) of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) adopted on March 9, 2013.

4. Joint letter of the GBC and Bureau to the Leaders of the Bangalore Group of Temples dated March 9, 2013.

5. Joint letter of the Temple Presidents to the GBC and Bureau dated 14 Mar 2013.

Prabhupada's View on Sai Baba

2013-03-27T11:34:00.002+05:30

Pradyumna: This says, "God is an Indian." Putaparti. "God is an Indian. His contemporary avatāra..."

Prabhupāda: Putaparti? What is that?

Pradyumna: Putaparti is in Andhra. "His contemporary avatāra rests in the trinity of Sirti Baba, Sai Baba, and Prem Baba to come. So Satya Sai Baba, the second of the triple incarnation, asserted in the course of a marathon interview to add, 'In my present avatāra, I have come armed with the fullness of the power of the formless God to save humanity.' "

Prabhupāda: So, to whom we shall address this letter?

Pradyumna: Well, it depends where we want to send it for publishing. To this or to another magazine.

Prabhupāda: He says that "I'm avatāra." So therefore it should be addressed to him. He says. So address to Satya Sai Baba. Where is he, at Bombay?

Pradyumna: No, he stays at this Putaparti or in Bangalore.

Prabhupāda: Putaparti...

Pradyumna: That is a small village.

Prabhupāda: Oh. Post office, Putaparti. And it is in, where Bangalore?

Pradyumna: That is in Andhra.

Prabhupāda: Andhra. Hmm. Dear Sai Baba, just recently in the Blitz paper, published on—give the date—we were surprised to find one article "God is an Indian." And you have claimed to become an incarnation of God to save the human society. What is the ground of your claiming as incarnation? And what you have done to save the human society? Will you explain for enlightenment of us. Or many of us. We have got the list of incarnations recorded in the Vedic scriptures and their respective activities also. So where is that record in the Vedic scripture about your appearing as incarnation? Lord Kṛṣṇa's incarnation is fully described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Lord Kṛṣṇa's incarnationship or give... What it should be?

Pradyumna: Lord Kṛṣṇa's incarnation...

Prabhupāda: There may be so many, but I mean to say Lord Kṛṣṇa is incarnation, so avatāratva. So what is the English? Avatāratva?

Pradyumna: The incarnationness or quality of being an incarnation, but that is not... The quality of being an incarnation is not... The most literal is incarnationness.


Prabhupāda: Therefore say that. Lord Kṛṣṇa's incarnationness is fully described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Similarly, Lord Rāmacandra's incarnationness or Lord Buddha's incarnationness, Lord Caitanya's incarnationness, we have got full information in the Vedic literatures.


Pradyumna: Lord Rāma's incarnationness, Lord Buddha's incarnationness...


Prabhupāda: Lord Caitanya.


Pradyumna: Oh.


Prabhupāda: Where is your incarnation is described? Will you kindly give the reference. Anyone can say like you, that one is incarnation, as it has become a fashion nowadays. But is that claim only is the proof of one's becoming incarnation? Some such unauthorized claim of becoming an incarnation is certainly ridiculous. Such...


Pradyumna: ...unauthorized claim of one's becoming an incarnation...


Prabhupāda: Is certainly ridiculous. Then you have claimed to take form. What is he has written?


Pradyumna: "Then you have claimed to take..."


Prabhupāda: No, no. What he has written.


Pradyumna: "In my present avatāra I have come armed with the fullness of the power of the formless God to save humanity."


Prabhupāda: So you have claimed to... What is that? Again read it.


Pradyumna: "I have come armed with the fullness of the power of the formless God to save humanity."


Prabhupāda: So you have claimed to take a form of the formless God. But we see in the Bhagavad-gītā that God is never formless. Find out this verse, avyaktaṁ vyaktim āpannaṁ manyante mām abuddhayaḥ.


Pradyumna:


avyaktaṁ vyaktim āpannaṁ
manyante mām abuddhayaḥ
paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto
mamāvyayam anuttamam
[Bg. 7.24]


"Unintelligent men who know Me not, think that I have assumed this form and personality. Due to their small knowledge, they do not know My higher nature, which is changeless and supreme."


Prabhupāda: Purport.


Pradyumna: "Those who are worshipers of demigods have been described as less intelligent persons, and here the impersonalists are similarly described. Lord Kṛṣṇa in His personal form is here speaking before Arjuna, and still, due to ignorance, impersonalists argue that the Supreme Lord ultimately has no form. Yāmunācārya, a great devotee of the Lord in the disciplic succession from Rāmānujācārya, has written two very appropriate verses in this connection. He says, 'My dear Lord, devotees like Vyāsadeva and Nārada know You to be the Personality of Godhead. By understanding different Vedic literatures, one can come to know Your characteristics, Your form and Your activities, and one can thus understand that You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But those who are in the modes of passion and ignorance, the demons, the nondevotees, cannot understand You. They are unable to understand You. However expert such nondevotees may be in discussing Vedānta and the Upaniṣads and other Vedic literatures, it is not possible for them to understand the Personality of Godhead.' In the Brahma-saṁhitā it is stated that the Personality of Godhead cannot be understood simply by study of the Vedānta literature. Only by the mercy of the Supreme Lord can the Personality of the Supreme be known. Therefore in this verse it is clearly stated that not only the worshipers of the demigods are less intelligent, but those nondevotees who are engaged in Vedānta and speculation on Vedic literature..."


Prabhupāda: You can give up to that Yāmunācārya's quotation. What you have written.


Pradyumna: So far? Everything? Or just... Only, is one's word only...


Prabhupāda: What you have written.


Pradyumna: "Dear Sai Baba, just recently..."


Prabhupāda: No, no, no. Last what you have written.


Pradyumna: "Similarly, Lord Rāma's incarnation, Lord Buddha's incarnation, Lord Caitanya's incarnationness, we have got full information from the Vedic scriptures. Where is your incarnation described? Will you kindly give the reference. Anyone can say like you, that one is an incarnation, as it has become a fashion nowadays. But is that claim only the proof of one's becoming an incarnation? Such unauthorized claim of one's becoming an incarnation is certainly ridiculous. Then you have claimed to take a form of the formless God. But we see in the Bhagavad-gītā that God is never formless."


Prabhupāda: (dictating:) Only the rascals and less intelligent class of men think that God is formless and when He incarnates, He takes a particular form. In this connection, a verse from Yāmunācārya may be quoted as follows. You have quoted the Bhagavad-gītā? That quote?


Pradyumna: Well, it doesn't mention the Sanskrit here of that Yāmunācārya verse.


Prabhupāda: No, no. "In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said"—what you have written?


Pradyumna: Oh. We can put the Sanskrit, avyaktaṁ vyaktim āpannam.


Prabhupāda: No, what you have written here?


Pradyumna: "Such unauthorized claim of one's becoming... Then you have claimed to take a form of the formless God, but we see in the Bhagavad-gītā..."


Prabhupāda: That you have to quote.


Pradyumna: Yes. So, Bhagavad-gītā 7.24, Sanskrit and translation. "But we see in the Bhagavad-gītā..."


Prabhupāda: Read it.


Pradyumna:


avyaktaṁ vyaktim āpannaṁ
manyante mām abuddhayaḥ
paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto
mamāvyayam anuttamam
[Bg. 7.24]


"Unintelligent men who know Me not, think that I have assumed this form and personality. Due to their small knowledge, they do not know My higher nature, which is changeless and supreme." That God is never formless. Only the rascals and less intelligent class of men think that God is formless and when He incarnates he takes a particular form. In this connection a verse from Yāmunācārya may be quoted as follows.


Prabhupāda: So what is Yāmunacārya's quotation?


Pradyumna: "My dear Lord, devotees like Vyāsadeva and Nārada know You to be the Personality of Godhead. By understanding different Vedic literatures, one can come to know Your characteristics, Your form and Your activities, and one can thus understand that You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead."


Prabhupāda: You have to quote that verse and the meaning.


Pradyumna: But the Sanskrit wasn't give here?


Prabhupāda: The Sanskrit is there.


Pradyumna: No, but this verse from Yāmunācārya.


Prabhupāda: Oh. You'll find the Sanskrit in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta.


Pradyumna: Oh. Which place?


Prabhupāda: In the Ādi-līlā. Tam, it begins with tam. You can find out. Call, call him. (bell rings) Read. The Sanskrit verse is not...


Pradyumna: No, it's not quoted here.


Prabhupāda: Tam paribhāvita, like that. There is a verse.


Pradyumna: Oh. I will find it.


Prabhupāda: Ādi-līlā.


Hari-śauri: Which volume?


Prabhupāda: Caitanya-caritāmṛta.


Hari-śauri: First volume?


Prabhupāda: I think. There is, what is called, index?


Pradyumna: Yes, for Ādi-līlā? Where's the verse index.


Hari-śauri: Which verse is it. If you give me the verse I can...


Pradyumna: It begins tam paribhāvita. T-a-m. T-a-m. Tam paribhāvita.


Prabhupāda: You can bring here. Then?


Pradyumna: So this quote goes on. "But those who in the modes of passion and ignorance, the demons, the nondevotees, cannot understand You. They are unable to understand You. However expert such nondevotees may be in discussing the Vedānta and the Upaniṣads and other Vedic literatures, it is not possible for them to understand the Personality of Godhead."


Prabhupāda: So in this connection, the statement of Bhāgavatam, is especially important. Brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate [SB 1.2.11]. Brahman is impersonal, Paramātmā is localized, and Bhagavān is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Personality of Godhead...


Pradyumna: Brahman is the impersonal.


Prabhupāda: Brahman is impersonal. Not "the." Paramātmā is localized, and Bhagavān is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. When Arjuna understood Kṛṣṇa after hearing Bhagavad-gītā, he addressed Kṛṣṇa as follows. Quote this, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma [Bg. 10.12]. Find out. No. Find out in the book.


Pradyumna:


paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma
pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān
puruṣaṁ śāśvataṁ divyam
ādi-devam ajaṁ vibhum
[Bg. 10.12]


Prabhupāda: Puruṣaṁ śāśvatam...


Pradyumna: Puruṣaṁ śāśvataṁ divyam.


Prabhupāda: Divyam. So here Arjuna addresses Lord Kṛṣṇa as śāśvataṁ puruṣam, eternally the Personality of Godhead. It is never admitted that Supreme Lord is originally imperson. Puruṣam. I have described puruṣam? Yes. What you have written?


Pradyumna: "When Arjuna understood Kṛṣṇa after hearing Bhagavad-gītā, he addressed Kṛṣṇa as follows, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma [Bg. 10.12], etc. Here Kṛṣṇa addresses... Here Arjuna addresses Kṛṣṇa as śāśvataṁ puruṣam or the eternal Personality of Godhead. It is never admitted that the Supreme Lord is originally impersonal."


Prabhupāda: Then, you read the other verses. Param...


Pradyumna:


paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma
pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān
puruṣaṁ śāśvataṁ divyam
ādi-devam ajaṁ vibhum
[Bg. 10.12]


Prabhupāda: Then?


Pradyumna: Āhus tvām ṛṣayaḥ sarve devarṣir nāradas tathā.


Prabhupāda: You have to quote this. Then? Read.


Pradyumna: Translation?


Prabhupāda: No, no. That you have to give a quotation and, then? What is next verse.


Pradyumna: In Bhagavad-gītā after this?


Prabhupāda: Āhus tvām, then next, what is next verse.


Pradyumna: Ah,


vaktum arhasy aśeṣeṇa
divyā hy ātma-vibhūtayaḥ
yābhir vibhūtibhir lokān
imāṁs tvaṁ vyāpya tiṣṭhasi


"Please tell me in detail of Your divine..."


Prabhupāda: That's all right. Next.


Pradyumna:


kathaṁ vidyām ahaṁ yogiṁs
tvāṁ sadā paricintayan
keṣu keṣu ca bhāveṣu
cintyo 'si bhagavan mayā


"How should I meditate on You?"


Prabhupāda: That's all right. Next.


Pradyumna:


vistareṇātmano yogaṁ
vibhūtiṁ ca janārdana
bhūyaḥ kathaya tṛptir hi
śṛṇvato nāsti me 'mṛtam


"Tell me in detail, O Janārdana, of Your mighty potencies and glories, for I never tire of hearing..."


Prabhupāda: The point is that "Your personality cannot be understood without Your mercy." There is a verse. Āhus tvām ṛṣayaḥ sarve. Find out that verse.


Pradyumna: Aham?


Prabhupāda: Āhus.


Pradyumna: Oh, āhus.


Prabhupāda: Āhus tvām ṛṣayaḥ. You read just now.


Pradyumna: Yes.


āhus tvām ṛṣayaḥ sarve
devarṣir nāradas tathā
asito devalo vyāsaḥ
svayaṁ caiva bravīṣi me


Prabhupāda: Next verse.


Pradyumna:


sarvam etad ṛtaṁ manye
yan māṁ vadasi keśava
na hi te bhagavan vyaktiṁ
vidur devā na dānavāḥ
[Bg. 10.14]


Prabhupāda: Vyaktyam?


Pradyumna: Vyaktim. Na hi te bhagavan vyaktiṁ vidur devā na dānavāḥ. "O Kṛṣṇa, I totally accept as truth all that You have told me. Neither the gods nor demons, O Lord, know Thy personality."


Prabhupāda: Yes, that's...


Pradyumna: Oh, it says,


svayam evātmanātmānaṁ
vettha tvaṁ puruṣottama
bhūta-bhāvana bhūteśa
deva-deva jagat-pate


Hari-śauri: There's no verse index in any of the Ādi-līlā.


Prabhupāda: There is, but we are missing.


Pradyumna: I have the Bengali.


Prabhupāda: The all ācāryas say that Your personality, although there are so many evidences in śāstra and authorized persons, still, the rascals cannot understand. So here is another verse, āhus tvām ṛṣayaḥ sarve.


Pradyumna: So do you want to quote this verse?


Prabhupāda: Hm. Must quote.


Pradyumna:


sarvam etad ṛtaṁ manye
yan māṁ vadasi keśava
na hi te bhagavan vyaktiṁ
vidur devā na dānavāḥ
[Bg. 10.14]


Prabhupāda: (dictating:) So one has to accept the statement of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, how He is originally the puruṣa or person. Impersonal Brahman is expansion of the rays of His personal body, exactly like the sunshine is expansion of the rays of the sun-god Vivasvān. Vivasvān is a person in the sunglobe and Kṛṣṇa is also a person who spoke the philosophy of Bhagavad-gītā long, long years before He spoke the same to Arjuna. Imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam [Bg. 4.1]. Therefore the conclusion is that originally God is always a person. Impersonal Brahman is emanation from the personal God. In other words, God, personal God is not from impersonal Brahman, but impersonal Brahman is from the personal God. That is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā as follows.


Pradyumna: Impersonal Brahman is an emanation of the personal God. It is not, it is not that the personal God is an emanation of...from... or it is that impersonal Brahman is an emanation. It is not that the personal God is an emanation of impersonal Brahman.


Prabhupāda: Impersonal Brahman is resting on the personal God, exactly that illumination of light is resting on the bulb. Not that the bulb is resting on the illuminated light.


Pradyumna: Exactly like illumination of light is resting...


Prabhupāda: On the bulb, electric bulb. Not the bulb is resting on the illumination. Besides that, we learn from Bhagavad-gītā, Second Chapter... Find out that verse. "It is not that we were..."


Pradyumna: Na tv evāham?


Prabhupāda: Ah.


Pradyumna:


na tv evāhaṁ jātu nāsaṁ
na tvaṁ neme janādhipāḥ
na caiva na bhaviṣyāmaḥ
sarve vayam ataḥ param


"Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings, nor in the future shall any of us cease to be."


Prabhupāda: So Kṛṣṇa has personally said to Arjuna that in the past he was person.


Pradyumna: So "Kṛṣṇa, in person"?


Prabhupāda: No, no. Yes. Kṛṣṇa, as a person, says to Arjuna that both of them existed in the past as person, and they'll continue to remain person in the future.


Pradyumna: Both of them existed in the past as person and both of them shall continue to...


Prabhupāda: Remain as person in the future. So without knowing all this knowledge, a mūḍha accepts the incarnation of God as coming from imperson. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam [Bg. 9.11]. Under this heading you have proved yourself to become a mūḍha. And how a mūḍha or an ass can become the incarnation of God? Then? Read that Blitz paper, one after another.


Pradyumna: Then, this is the end of his quote and then the editor, the writer is speaking. "This may appear an extraordinarily controversial claim to those unfamiliar with the spiritual depths of Hindu religio-philosophy. The latter totally accepts the avatāra concept which broadly means the descent of the divine principle into human affairs. In the Bhagavad-gītā Lord Kṛṣṇa intervenes to say..."


Prabhupāda: That is the editor's.


Pradyumna: Yes, this is the editor's. "In the Bhagavad-gītā Lord Kṛṣṇa intervenes to save humanity from evil forces. The Purāṇas personify earth, the mother, as groaning under a similar burden to supplicate God for relief." Then heading, "Solution and cure to world's ills. To Baba's devotees, the avatāra has similarly come to provide both the solution and the cure to a world living in terror of a nuclear holocaust. The false dichotomies created by Western thought between God and man, puruṣa and deva, simply do not exist in the Indian scriptures, which prescribe..."


Prabhupāda: What is that?


Pradyumna: "The dichotomies."


Prabhupāda: Dichot...? What is that?


Pradyumna: Dichotomy means some kind of distinction, to make a distinction. He said the dichotomies created by Western thought between God and man, puruṣa and deva. Differences or analysis of differences. "Simply do not exist in the Indian scriptures..."


Prabhupāda: Why not?


Pradyumna: "Which prescribe the assimilation of God in man and man in God as the basis of religion."


Prabhupāda: This is another rascaldom. God is always distinct from man.


Pradyumna: Sai Baba also quotes later, He is also directly saying, also later.


Prabhupāda: What he says?


Pradyumna: Now here's the quote. "Baba personifies this philosophy. As he told me, 'God is man and man is God. All of us have something of God, the divine spark, within us. All men are divine, like myself, with the spirit embodied in human flesh and bone. The only difference is that they are unaware of this Godhood.' " I'll get it for you.


Prabhupāda: So?


Pradyumna: Here he says, "The mission of the present avatāra is to make everybody realize that since the same God or divinity resides in everyone, people should respect, love, and..."


Prabhupāda: No, no. If he resides in everyone, then why he has special claim?


Pradyumna: Yes, well he says he has remembered.


Prabhupāda: He remembers? How God can forget?


Pradyumna: That he says. That he says here. He says that, "Take paddy or rice by way of an illustration. Every grain of rice is enclosed in a husk. You have to remove the husk to get the grain of rice. Now husk and rice both come from the same seed. Rice is the equivalent of God in man."


Prabhupāda: But still husk is not rice. You cannot say husk is rice.


Pradyumna: He says the husk... He says "Rice is the equivalent of God in man while the husk can be compared to desire which reduces God to man."

Prabhupāda: No, no.

Pradyumna: Therefore my desire is life plus desire equals man. Life minus desire equals God."

Prabhupāda: (dictating:) You are desiring to become God. There cannot be no desire. But you're unceremoniously desiring to become God. Although there is no proof in the śāstras. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is accepted that the living entities are sparks of..., part and parcel of God, Kṛṣṇa.

Pradyumna: "In the Bhagavad-gītā it is accepted that the living entities..."

Prabhupāda: Are part and parcel of God. But part is never equal to the whole. [break]

Pradyumna: "So you can claim as a spark of God, as every living entity can claim but you cannot claim as the..."

Prabhupāda: The Supreme Person with full power. That is misleading. You can show a little magic, as other magicians also can show.

Pradyumna: "You can show a little magic as other magicians can also show."

Prabhupāda: But you cannot show the full magic, as Kṛṣṇa displayed or Lord Rāmacandra displayed. Therefore your claim as a full power is completely false and blasphemous.

Pradyumna: "Therefore your claim for full power is completely false..."

Prabhupāda: And blasphemous. In this way find out.

Pradyumna: Completely Māyāvādī.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Pradyumna: Completely.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Pradyumna: Now someone may bring up the one point, they say "Well, if an avatāra comes if he must show all kinds of great opulences and powers, then he says sometimes the incarnation shows this, but sometimes, like when Lord Caitanya appeared He didn't show viśvarūpa or..."

Prabhupāda: But He never claimed that "I am avatāra." But we understand from the śāstric evidence. He never claimed. Rather when He was addressed as Kṛṣṇa He blocked His ears, "You don't say like that." He never claimed. He fully displayed Himself as a devotee. Not Bhagavān. Therefore Gaurāṅgavāda is illegal. Gaurāṅga-nāgarī. That is illegal. Moha-vāda or something like that.

Pradyumna: Gaurāṅga-nāgarī, mentioning Lord Caitanya in the role of Kṛṣṇa dancing with the...

Prabhupāda: In this way, find out the faulty statement and give him proof. He can claim... Hm.

Pradyumna: Thank you, Śrīla Prabhupāda

Feeding India's malnourished kids on an industrial scale

2013-03-25T16:39:00.000+05:30

Vrindavan, India (CNN) -- In the picturesque temple town of Vrindavan, 10-year-old Maya and her three siblings walk to school every day on an empty stomach. She says her parents can't afford to feed them adequate meals; they eat bread and milk for dinner and nothing for breakfast.

As the eldest child, she often has to skip class to help her parents harvest wheat. Maya says her parents believe this is a more efficient use of her time, but she has another good reason for attending school -- more food.

"At school we get the most amount of food. At home we don't get this much. At home my mother tells us to only eat a little bit so there's enough for everyone," she says.

Following a landmark decision by the Supreme Court in 2001, all government schools in India are mandated to provide free meals to students below the age of 13. In a country where more than 40% of children below the age of five are underweight, according to UNICEF, India's midday meal scheme is making great strides.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is working with the government to feed 1.4 million underprivileged children every day. They began in 2000, feeding a few thousand school children in several schools in the southern city of Bangalore. But in the space of a decade, they say they've served more than a billion meals across the country. Akshaya Patra's Vice Chairman, Chanchalapathi Dasa, says the benefits are manifold. Enrollment in schools has increased by roughly 20%, attendance has improved, children are healthier and their cognitive abilities have also increased.

"If a child is hungry in the classroom then he or she will not be able to receive all this education," says Dasa.

But preparing food for so many takes more than an ordinary kitchen.

You could call it a culinary revolution. In what looks like a factory for food, fresh meals are being mass-produced for millions of children. Custom-made cauldrons can prepare rice for 1,000 kids in 15 minutes. A printing press-like machine can make an impressive 40,000 Indian flatbreads or chapattis in an hour.

"India is a place of numbers. If you're doing something to provide meals for 1,000 or even 5,000 children, you are merely scratching the surface," adds Dasa. "From the beginning we at Akhshay Patra realized that in order to see a significant impact we have to do it in scale and that we have to use modern techniques of management and innovation."

They call it a three tier gravity flow kitchen. Tons of raw ingredients like rice, lentils and vegetables are taken to the top floor where they're cleaned, peeled, cut and sent down chutes into waiting cauldrons below. There, steam generated by furnaces cooks the food. The cooked meals are then thrown down chutes to another level where the meals are packaged. By 8 a.m. meals are ready to be delivered in special vehicles designed to keep the food warm.

But while the food production process is efficient, it is also considered.

"We want to treat these children with dignity. We don't say 'you are poor children and whatever we give you, you must eat that,' no. We adapt our cooking methods, our menus, recipes to meet the local children's requirements," says Dasa.

"You see, in India every 300 miles you come across a different culture, a different language, a different kind of food habit, so at Akshaya Patra we are sensitive to local cultural requirements and tastes."

While there are several school feeding programs that distribute rations of wheat and rice, cooked meal programs are rare. This is one of the most successful assistance programs yet -- nourishing food for millions of children and food for thought in the fight against poverty.

I-T dept questions merit in granting exemption to Iskcon's restaurant chain Govinda

2013-03-25T16:33:00.000+05:30

THE TIMES OF INDIA: MUMBAI: Is spreading the virtues of vegetarianism a good enough reason to avoid tax? One of these days, the court may have to take a call on whether it wants to listen to the taxman's argument that it isn't.
The other protagonist in the brewing court tussle involves Iskcon — one of the largest trusts known for its 'Hare Krishna Movement' — whose earnings from 'Govinda', a popular vegetarian restaurant chain, has come under the Income-Tax Department's glare.
For the taxman, Govinda is a pure commercial activity, but for Iskcon, inculcating vegetarian food habits is nothing but charity that should be free from taxation. Moreover, a major portion of Govinda's income is donated to charity, which publishes brochures and booklets for the promotion of vegetarianism.
But the tax office thinks otherwise. According to the I-T Department, the restaurant's activities and source of income clearly fall under the definition of "business".
Last year, the Appellate Tribunal, a quasi-judicial authority, had dismissed the stand taken by the department, which then approached the high court to argue its point. A tax professional familiar with the case said the hearing for admission of the department's plea is expected to come up "any time now".
"If the court admits the petition, it will be a landmark case. All the more because the definition of 'charitable purpose' has been widened from the start of assessment year 2009-10," said Arvind Dalal, a senior chartered accountant and an authority on trust matters. Indeed, the language of the law is such that many other establishments that are not religious or charity trusts have caught the tax department's attention. For instance, a posh club in Mumbai's Bandra suburb and a leading chamber of commerce have received tax scrutiny notices.
They will have to explain why they should not be taxed on their collection of huge fees and earnings from services provided to members.
According to an official of one of the chambers that has received a tax notice, earnings of an industry association are out of issuance of certificate of origins to its members, which is a statutory activity and, therefore, should not be taxed. Cases like these would also eventually come up in tribunals and boil over to courts.
But many feel that the tax department may be slowly walking into a touchy territory with its interpretation of the law and subsequent decision to make tax demands on activities of religious trusts. "There are trusts which are essentially religious in nature but have earnings which are not pure anonymous donations.
One can ponder how will tax authorities view the earnings of a temple trust that has sizeable income from selling hairs of devotees who have their heads tonsured... One has to wait to find out how far the department will go given the public sentiment and sensitivity around religion," said Anup Shah, partner at Mumbai based chartered accountancy firm Pravin P Shah & Company.

How has the law changed?
Charitable trust, till recently, included activities like relief to the poor, education, medical relief and the 'advancement of any other object of general public utility'. In a circular dated December 19, 2008, the fourth limb of the definition was tweaked to say an activity would cease to be a charity — and, therefore, has to pay tax — if it carried on any activity "in the nature of trade, commerce or business", or "any activity of rendering any service in relation to any trade commerce or business" for a cess, or fee, or any other consideration. While the particular dispute with Iskcon pertains to financial year 2007-08, the income of the trust-run vegetarian restaurant in subsequent years may be taken up by the department.
There are other cases that will also test the tax department's contention on matters related to charitable trusts. ET, in its edition dated November 11, 2012, had reported that the I-T Department told Shiv Mandir Devsttan Panch Committee Sanstan — a temple trust in Nagpur — that it carried out 'religious activities' and spent money for maintenance of temples; here, the tax authority argued that anyone making a donation will enjoy a tax deduction — in other words, the person's taxable income would be lower — only if the institution receiving the donation is into 'charitable activities', and was not working for the benefit of any particular religious community or caste.
In fact, other than certain simple structures, many trusts will find themselves having to deal with the tax department, feels Dalal. "For example, an activity like an endowment trust using its interest income to give out scholarship to needy students will be exempted is a fairly straight forward case and will be spared on tax. But, not all trusts....the problem is that in the process some genuine charitable activities may also attract the tax department's attention," he said. There will be grey areas and tax officers have the powers to decide whether an activity is business.
The government has made it adequately clear that whether an entity is carrying on an activity in the nature of trade, commerce or business is a question of fact which will be decided "based on the nature, scope, extent and frequency of the activity".

Resolutions Concerning The Doctrine Of Ritvikism 1999 Original

2013-03-21T16:02:00.000+05:30

Whereas in 1990 the GBC Body ruled that the doctrine called the “posthumous ritvik theory” or “post-samadhi ritvik theory” (hereinafter called “ritvikism”) is a “dangerous philosophical deviation” and prohibited its teaching and practice in ISKCON, and
Whereas the decision of the GBC Body has been recorded in the ISKCON Law Book under the heading “Specifically Outlawed Doctrines and Practices”, as follows:
“6.4.7.2 ’Posthumous Ritvik’ Doctrine
“The doctrine that Srila Prabhupada continues to initiate direct diksa disciples after his departure from this world through officiating priests (ritviks) is a dangerous philosophical deviation. It is totally prohibited in ISKCON. No devotee shall participate in such posthumous ritvik initiation ceremonies in any capacity including acting as ritvik, initiate, assistant, organizer, or financier. No ISKCON devotee shall advocate or support its practice.”
And,
Whereas a number of devotees in and around ISKCON, some of whom hold positions in ISKCON as managerial and spiritual authorities, have begun again to practice and preach a refurbished version of ritvikism, and
Whereas the GBC Body has again carefully examined the case for ritvikism as currently presented, having had representatives meet at various times and places with its advocates to hear them make their case, and has, as a body sitting in plenary session on 9 February, 1999, carefully heard the case personally advocated by Adridharan Prabhu, president of Calcutta temple, Sattvik Prabhu, vice-president of Calcutta temple, and Madhu Pandita Prabhu, president of Bangalore temple, and
Whereas the GBC Body has given the current versions of ritvikism careful attention and all due deliberation to the best of its ability:
Be it hereby resolved THAT
1) The GBC Body states that it finds the arguments for ritvikism as represented to it by Madhu Pandita Dasa and other of his associates, and as preached by them around the world, to be erroneous in its conclusion as well as specious and sophistical in its conduct. The case for ritvikism is false and duplicitous in its method of procedure and in its selection and use of evidence. It depends heavily on speculation and word-jugglery. It presents it’s radical and speculative departures from the consistent teachings of Srila Prabhupada, his predecessor acaryas, Srila Vyasadeva, and the Lord Himself, under the name of “tradition” and “no change.” The effect of these arguments is only to bewilder, delude, and misguide innocent devotees from the teaching set forth by Krishna and upheld without exception by all Vaisnava acaryas.
2) The GBC Body reaffirms strongly its resolution of 1990 entitled “Prohibition Order Against the Posthumous Ritvik Theory.”
3) ISKCON Law 6.4.7.2 is hereby amended to read as follows:
“6.4.7.2 ‘Ritvikism’ aka ‘Posthumous Ritvik Theory,’ ‘Post-Samadhi-Ritvik Theory,’ ‘Proxy Initiation Theory,’ ‘No Change Theory,’ etc.
“The doctrine that Srila Prabhupada desired to continue to act as diksa guru after his departure from this world and did not desire any of his disciples to give diksa in succession after him is a dangerous philosophical deviation. Ritvikism directly goes against the principle of parampara itself (of successive diksa and siksa gurus), which sustains the pure teachings and practices of Krishna consciousness. This principle has been established by Krishna and is upheld by all Vaisnava acaryas. Indeed, it is accepted by all followers of Vedic culture. Ritvikism is thus an extreme deviation. It is utterly erroneous to espouse it, deluding and misguiding to teach it, and blasphemous to attribute it to Srila Prabhupada. No one who espouses, teaches, supports in any way, or practices ritvikism can be a member in good standing of ISKCON.”
4) The GBC acknowledges that this Body has since 1977 made changes in the manner in which initiations are carried out in ISKCON, is contemplating changes at present, and may well make changes in the future. However, the GBC Body maintains that these changes concern practical adjustments according to time, place, and object undertaken in the application of absolute, unchanging principle. Ritvikism contravenes absolute, unchanging principle. Hence it is categorically different from the permissible adjustments within the power of the GBC Body. In spite of its adjustments, the GBC Body has held steadily to the principle of parampara and remains committed to it, for it is the teaching of Srila Prabhupada and his predecessors, and it is a necessity in the matter of sustaining a living tradition. [All sections of 301 passed unanimously.]

[LAW] ENFORCEMENT OF ISKCON LAW REGARDING RITVIKISM

Whereas a number of devotees in and around ISKCON have begun again to practice and preach “ritvikism,” even though it is prohibited by ISKCON Law as a “dangerous philosophical deviation,” and
Whereas Among those espousing or preaching ritvikism there are several who hold positions in ISKCON as managerial or spiritual authorities,
It is hereby resolved THAT:
1) The GBC Body unequivocally rejects in principle any proposals that rivikism be in some manner or another accommodated or tolerated within ISKCON. [Passed unanimously.]
2) The GBC Body hereby makes known it’s strong determination to enforce ISKCON law in the matter of ritvikism, and it enjoins upon all its members and other official bodies, officers, and other authorities in ISKCON, such as Regional Governing Boards, regional secretaries, GBC ministers, sannyasis, initiating gurus, temple presidents, and temple officers, the responsibility to take every appropriate action, according to ISKCON law, to enforce the prohibition against ritvikism in ISKCON. [Passed unanimously]
3) A. The GBC Body declares that to espouse or preach ritvikism includes the following censurable offenses under the provision of ISKCON Law (8.4.1. 3):
1. Conscious and serious philosophical deviation from Srila Prabhupada’s teachings
2. Willful violation of GBC Body resolutions
B. Further, the GBC Body hereby rules that in relation to the espousal of ritvikism these offenses are of a sufficiently serious nature as to warrant immediate imposition of the penalty of probation, including its attendant program for rectification.
C. Further, the GBC Body hereby empowers the Executive Committee for the year 1999-2000 to place any ISKCON member who espouses ritvikism on probation, and, in consultation with that member’s immediate local authority or local GBC member, to establish a specific program of rectification, as provided in ISKCON Law 8.4.2.2, which can include
1. Disciplinary or remedial transfer to another location.
2. Reformatory change of service.
3. Prohibited for visiting or living in a specified temple or community.
4. Specific spiritual remedial programs.
5. A divestiture of certain actions for the period of probation.
6. Reasonable and just reformatory programs.
4). The GBC Body hereby undertakes the following actions with respect to the following members who are public advocates of ritvikism in ISKCON, who currently hold positions of managerial or spiritual authority in ISKCON, and who have heretofore rejected all appeals and reasoning by ISKCON authorities to conform to ISKCON Law

1. Adridharan Dasa, President of ISKCON Calcutta
2. Sattvik Dasa, Vice-president of ISKCON Calcutta
3. Madhu Pandita Dasa, President of ISKCON Bangalore
4. Cancalapati Dasa, Vice-President of ISKCON Bangalore
5. Sunder Gopal Dasa, leader in Singapore
6. Navayogendra Swami, initiating guru
7. Jayadvaja Swami, sannyasi
Whereas the GBC Body wishes to empower the Executive Committee of 1999-2000 to deal with these members appropriately, through as much dialogue and negotiation as possible, And, at the same time, it wishes to empower the committee with the ability to provide a system of rectification or to expel any of these members from ISKCON if it deems necessary because of developments during the course of the year,
Therefore, be it also resolved THAT:
A. The GBC Body, by a required two-thirds (2/3) minimum vote, expresses its judgement that the actions of these seven above listed persons are already so extreme as to meet two of the requirements for expulsion from ISKCON: a) they are openly deviating from the fundamental tenets of the Society’s teaching, and b) they are openly and flagrantly antagonistic to the GBC Body and other ISKCON authority.
B. In consideration of the above findings the individuals Adridharan Das, Sattvik Das, Madhu Pandita Dasa, Cancalapati Dasa and Navayogendra Swami, as above listed, being members of ISKCON India, are hereby deemed as unfit to be members of ISKCON India. This shall take effect after 31 March, 1999, unless the Executive Committee of the GBC Body deems them rectified sufficiently to remain as ISKCON members and issues a written statement to that effect.
C. The GBC Body, by a two-thirds (2/3) vote, in accordance with GBC Rules of Order, empowers the GBC Executive Committee to censure, put on probation, suspend or expel from ISKCON and its affiliates the above mentioned seven devotees both as members and as officers, as it deems appropriate and warranted without the necessity of further authorization from the GBC Body. The act of the Executive Committee in this regard shall carry the same effect and power as if taken by the whole Governing Body Commission.
D. The GBC Body hereby places Adridharan Das, Madhu Pandita Das and Navayogendra Swami on probation as ISKCON Branch Managers/Temple Presidents and Sattvik Das, Chanchalapati Das on probation as Vice-Presidents of branches. The GBC Executive Committee is hereby enjoined to establish by March 31, 1999 the conditions of rectification and probation for this year.

GBC indirectly adopts ritvik system in ISKCON

2013-03-15T16:44:00.000+05:30

Statement of the Governing Body Commission (GBC) of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).

As the Founder-Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and the preeminent teacher and ultimate authority within our society, Srila Prabhupada has a unique relationship with every ISKCON devotee.

Lord Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the original guru whose Divine Grace descends through the medium of the Guru Parampara. As such, a devotee is ultimately delivered by Sri Krishna acting through a combination of various manifestations of His mercy. These include, but are not limited to, the chaitya guru, Srila Prabhupada, the Guru Parampara, one’s diksha guru, other siksha gurus, the Holy Name, sastra, and the nine processes of devotional service.

Within these cooperative elements, Srila Prabhupada, as the Founder-Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, is the preeminent guru for all members of ISKCON. All members of ISKCON, for all generations, are encouraged to seek shelter of Srila Prabhupada. All members of ISKCON are entitled and encouraged to have a personal relationship with Srila Prabhupada through his books, teachings, service, and his ISKCON society.

All members accepting leadership roles within ISKCON, including diksha gurus and siksha gurus, have the duty of serving together under ISKCON’s Governing Body Commission (GBC) to fulfill Srila Prabhupada’s instructions as he has given in his books, lectures, and personal communications.[1]

Overall, the primary duty of all diksha gurus, siksha gurus and others in leadership positions is to assist Srila Prabhupada in his service to his Guru Maharaja Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur, and our Brahma Madhva Gaudiya Sampradaya.

Those who accept the service of diksha guru or siksha guru in ISKCON are required to be exemplary in representing Srila Prabhupada’s teaching in their words and personal behavior. The siksha guru gives spiritual instruction and inspiration on behalf of Srila Prabhupada and our Guru Parampara. The diksha guru gives spiritual instruction, inspiration, formal initiation, a spiritual name, and later imparts the sacred Gayatri mantras to a qualified disciple as a service to Srila Prabhupada and our Guru Parampara.

Srila Prabhupada has clearly explained that devotees who are strictly following the Krishna Conscious principles are acting on the liberated platform, and, as such, are pure devotees, even though they may actually not yet be liberated. [2] (Such unalloyed devotional service is not necessarily determined by one’s role or position of service, but by one’s realization.)

Those who accept the service of diksha or siksha guru within ISKCON are mandated to be strict followers of the instructions of Srila Prabhupada, and, as long as they follow, they are acting on the liberated platform. Thus they may serve, as Srila Prabhupada ordered, as bonafide representatives of the Lord and the Guru Parampara and be a via medium of Their mercy. Yet it should be clearly understood that if such diksha or siksha gurus deviate from strictly following, they may fall down from their position.

Thus, to act as a diksha guru in ISKCON means to serve under the GBC and in cooperation with other ISKCON authorities by functioning as a “regular guru” as Srila Prabhupada has directed.

This statement, while conclusive, is not exhaustive in its discussion of these principles. The GBC may authorize additional statements and papers in the future to further explain the preeminent position of our Founder-Acharya Srila Prabhupada, the role and responsibilities of those who serve as gurus in our society, and the related duties of ISKCON members and initiates.

All GBC members must distribute this resolution to all ISKCON temples, communities and congregations via all appropriate means of communication for the education of all ISKCON members. This statement shall also be studied in ISKCON courses including introductory courses, the ISKCON Disciple Course, the Spiritual Leadership Seminar, and other relevant venues. Reading this statement, and affirming it has been read prior to initiation, shall be part of the test for all prospective initiates.

1. More details on these spiritual relationships and duties may be found in the official “Lines of Authority” Paper approved by the GBC in 2012.

2. “This Krishna consciousness movement directly receives instructions from the Supreme Personality of Godhead via persons who are strictly following His instructions. Although a follower may not be a liberated person, if he follows the supreme, liberated Personality of Godhead, his actions are naturally liberated from the contamination of the material nature. Lord Caitanya therefore says: ‘By My order you may become a spiritual master.’ One can immediately become a spiritual master by having full faith in the transcendental words of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and by following His instructions.” Purport to SB 4.18.5.

And…

“A person who is liberated acharya and guru cannot commit any mistake, but there are persons who are less qualified or not liberated, but still can act as guru and acharya by strictly following the disciplic succession.” Letter to Janardana, 26 April, 1968

And…

“We may not be cent percent perfect, but as far as possible, if we follow the instruction as it is, that much perfect. In this way one will get perfection. So one has to follow. The same example, try to understand, that a perfect, expert technologist or technician or mechanic is working, and somebody is working under his instruction. So this somebody, because he is strictly working under the instruction of the expert, he's also expert. He may not be cent percent expert, but his work is expert. Is that clear? Because he is working under the expert. Do you follow? So if you follow pure devotee, then you are also pure devotee. It may not be one is cent percent pure. Because we are trying to raise ourself from the conditional life. But if we strictly follow the pure devotee, then we are also pure devotee. So far we do, that is pure. So pure devotee does not mean one has to become immediately cent percent pure. But if he sticks to the principle that "We'll follow a pure devotee," then his actions are... He is as good as a pure devotee. It is not I am explaining in my own way. It is the explanation of Bhagavata. Mahajano yena gatah sa panthah [Cc. Madhya 17.186].” Ref. VedaBase => Bhagavad-gita 2.1-10 and Talk -- Los Angeles, November 25, 1968

ISKCON TRUTH Analysis:

The highlighted area tell us that GBC wants ritvik system however they have used "Diksha guru" instead of ritvik. The other statement which says " to act as a diksha guru in ISKCON means to serve under the GBC and in cooperation with other ISKCON authorities by functioning as a “regular guru” as Srila Prabhupada has directed."
This is called cooking up things. The few statements which i have marked above indicates that ISKCON devotees should follow and worship srila prabhupada but this particular statement says that "to act as diksha guru in iskcon" (how do you act as a diksha guru?) & a Guru should be under GBC.
Well, srila prabhupada has told us that a guru is above everything.... then whats this?

GBC ARE YOU LISTENING???

Akshaya Patra Receives Three Prestigious Gold Award

2013-03-11T10:16:00.000+05:30

Akshaya Patra receives Gold Award at LACP 2011/12 Vision Awards

The League of American Communications Professionals (LACP) has honoured The Akshaya Patra Foundation with a Vision Award in Gold in recognition of Akshaya Patra´s 2011-12 Annual Report. This is the second consecutive LACP Award for the Foundation. The 2011/12 Vision Awards Annual Report Competition received more than 5,500 entries from across more than two-dozen countries and across all industry types.

Akshaya Patra has received two LACP Awards at the 2011/12 Vision Awards Annual Report Competition. One it received Gold Award for excellence within its industry (Non-Profit-Organization) on the development of the organization’s annual report for the past fiscal year. Second, the Foundation has been recognized for developing one of the Top 100 Annual Reports Worldwide and is ranked at 30^th. In the last fiscal year, Akshaya Patra’s Annual Report was ranked 73rd worldwide and this year it has climbed the ladder by 43 positions.

The Foundation is proud to receive this award and is further motivated to work towards its cause. Akshaya Patra implements the mid-day meal programme under the aegis of the Central and various State Governments. Currently, it is feeding 1.3 million children across 19 locations of 9 Indian states covering more than 9000 schools everyday. The mission of Akshaya Patra is to feed 5 million children by 2020.

Akshaya Patra receives Gold Award at PRCI Corporate Collateral Awards 2013

The Public Relation Council of India (PRCI) recently held its 7^thAnnual Global Communication Conclave at Hyderabad. It was a two-day Global Meet and the agenda included: Induction of PR Professionals into Hall of Fame; Chanakya Awards for Achievers; followed by Corporate Collateral Award. The Akshaya Patra Foundation received a Gold Award in PRCI Corporate Collateral Awards-2013.

PRCI is a National Body of professionals from Public Relations, Corporate Communications, Advertising, Media, Event Managers and Academicians. It was established in 2004 and is headquartered in Bangalore. It is spread across India in 23 centres. The PRCI’s Corporate Collateral Awards recognizes professional standards in communication support material in the categories like Annual Report, Corporate Brochures, Newsletters, and the like. Gold, Silver and Bronze are the awards for each category. Akshaya Patra bagged the Gold Award in the category of Corporate Brochure.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation receives ICAI Gold Shield Award for the 4th consecutive year

The Akshaya Patra Foundation has been conferred the ICAI Gold Shield Award for the 4thconsecutive year. This is the highest award given by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) for Excellence in Financial Reporting. Akshaya Patra bagged this award for the Annual Report 2011-12. The Award ceremony was held in Mumbai recently, as a part of the International Conference held by ICAI. Dr Ashwani Kumar, Honourable Union Minister for Law and Justice presented the Gold Shield Award to Akshaya Patra representatives. V.N Kaul, the former Comptroller & Auditor General of India, who was the Chief of the Jury for these awards, and was also present during the award ceremony. We were also recognized as the first NGO in India to comply with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

All the awardees including Akshaya Patra have been selected by the panel of judges on review of accounting practices adopted by the participating enterprises in the preparation of financial statements and the policies adopted for disclosure and presentation of financial statements and other information in the annual reports without regard to the financial condition and operating performance. ICAI adopts a very rigorous process for identifying the deserving awardees. Akshaya Patra has been awarded after considering some of the key parameters such as:

• Compliance with statutory requirements and requirements of concerned regulators for preparation and presentation of Financial Statements;

• Quality of financial information as judged from the qualifications in the auditor’s report; and

• The extent, nature and quality of non financial information presented in the annual report.

Though there are no established reporting norms / standards applicable to our Foundation (since we are an NGO registered under the Indian Trusts Act,1882), we have taken the initiative to comply with the IFRS as well as the Revised Schedule VI format of presentation of Financial Statements under the Indian GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Practices). This also demonstrates the level of transparency in our financial reporting.

The Vice Chairman, Chanchalapathi Dasa said, “The ICAI Award is a testimony to the transparent and responsible usage of funds by Akshaya Patra. This is a moment of celebration for all of us at Akshaya Patra and at the same time it has strengthened our commitment to reach out to more children.”

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is a Bangalore based NGO implementing the Mid-Day Meal programme in Government schools and Government-aided schools. It is currently operating in 19 locations in 9 states of India. Through this programme Akshaya Patra feeds 1.3 million children across India everyday. It aims to feed 5 million children by the year 2020.

ISKCON temple to have elements of South Indian architecture

2013-03-07T15:43:00.000+05:30

The proposed ISKCON temple site in Poigai Mottur,

near Vellore.Photo: D.Gopalakrishnan

The Hindu: The Lord Krishna temple to be built by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in Vellore would be based on South Indian temple architecture, said Priya Govinda Das, spiritual mentor of ISKCON, Vellore.

Talking to The Hindu on Wednesday at Hare Krishna Land, a seven-acre stretch acquired by ISKCON in Poigai Mottur village in Vellore taluk, 10 km from Vellore city and about five km off the Chennai-Bangalore National Highway, Mr. Das said that ISKCON has planned to build a traditional stone temple for Lord Krishna that would last for more than 1,000 years. “We want to do some serious research on the type of materials to be used to build the temple before starting the work. It would take another 10 years for the temple to be ready”, he said.

At present, the Hare Krishna Land has a couple of buildings which houses a temporary temple, kitchen, Prasadam hall and a Brahmacharis’ (celibates) rest house. A new four-storeyed guest house would be built at the spot to accommodate the devotees who visit the temple. The proposed guest house would have about 60 rooms, said Mr. Das.

A group of 10 ISKCON devotees from the U.S. visited the ISKCON centre here on Wednesday, as part of their pilgrimage to India. The devotees had already visited Tirupathi, Ahobilam, Srirangam and Udipi. From here, they left for Salem, after which they would be visiting other pilgrim centres in the country.

The Bhagawad Gita philosophy, he said, was not sectarian knowledge belonging to any particular caste, creed or entity, but meant for all living entities.

ISKCON founder A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who went to the U.S. in 1965 and founded ISKCON in 1966 preached the message in the U.S. In 12 years, he travelled all over the world 14 times. He gave an institutional structure to preach the message of Bhagawad Gita in an organised way. He built 108 temples and wrote more than 80 volumes of books. “We have more than 500 ISKCON temples in more than 160 countries”, he said.

About the project

Vellore popularly known as Fort Town of Tamilnadu is situated in the Northern part of Tamilnadu and surrounded by small towns like Arcot, Arni, etc. It has a big historical background. It is Chennai – Bangalore highway kms from Chennai. Katpadi Railway Junction is the main Railway Station which is on the Chennai – Bangalore Railway line. It is one of the fast developing towns of Tamilnadu. The famous Christian Missionary Hospital (C.M.C). V.I.T, Vellore Institute of Technology and Golden Temple are situated in Vellore.

ISKCON was started preaching in Vellore before 7 years in a rented place. In the past 7 years it has made many fulltime and family devotees. Its Krishna Janmastami function conducted at Ford Ground every year attracts thousands of people. To provide a base for the devotees for practising Krishna consciousness and attract the General people ISKCON Vellore has decided to build its own temple for this purpose it has purchased 7 acres of land in a village known as Poigai Mottur, which is 10 kms from Vellore old Bus Stand and New Bus Stand.

ISKCON, Vellore project has three phases. In the first phase a Temple (Double Storey) will be built. It will have a temple hall which cans accommodate 700 devotees, 3 guest rooms, 3 rooms for official purpose and a Brahmachari Ashram which can accommodate 60 devotees. Another building known as Prasadam Bhavan has been already constructed which have a big kitchen and Prasadam Hall.

In the Second Phase a big guest house with 40 rooms will be constructed with all facilities. It is meant for giving accommodations etc., In this ground floor of this building a Govinda restaurant will be constructed to provide.

There will be small deities of six Goswamis also. Big boundary walls along with four gopurams will surround the temple and Vimana will be on Radha-Krishna deity. The whole stone structure will have intricate carvings and paintings.

Akshaya Patra Foundation 'Sparkle Ball' raises a staggering £300,000

2013-03-06T15:54:00.001+05:30

Stars from the Indian cinema helped to raise thousands at a fashion fundraiser hosted by the Akshaya Patra Foundation.
Legendary film stars Waheeda Rehman, Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi were at the 'Sparkle Ball' - to raise money for the world’s largest NGO-run school meal programme, which feeds and educates some of India’s poorest, underprivileged childen.
Other attendees included LN Mittal and family, the Chairman of The Akshaya Patra Foundation UK Harin Thaker,and the advisory board members, Yogesh Mehta, Prashant Jhawar and Nirmal Banthia.
The Victorian Arches of the Great Room at Vinopolis hosted 400 of the leading lights from the Indian community in London and India.
TV personality Konnie Huq hosted the night which began with a champagne reception followed by a gastronomic journey showcasing the best of Indian fusion cuisine.
A highlight of the prestigious event was the exclusive unveiling of celebrated Indian designer Anamika Khanna’s new Luxury 2013 collection.
The Kolkata based fashionista, who has designed for Bollywood royalty Sonam Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra, has the notable honour of being the first designer from India to launch an international label, and is one of the first Indian designers to show at Paris Fashion Week.
The centre piece of the auction was the 'Adopt a School' appeal, where for £2,500 donors could sponsor school lunches in a single school for an entire year.
Dipika Khaitan said: “We are thrilled at the success of this evening and were delighted by the VIP and celebrity turn out who pledged their support. It was a fantastic event in aid of such a very worthy cause and a good night was had by all.
"A highlight of the event was the magnificent fashion show by the talented Anamika Khanna, who amazed guests with her new Luxury 2013 collection of inspired and absolutely beautiful new creations. I’ve had very positive feedback about the fashion show, with guests loving the whole look, staging and theme of the show.
“The UK chapter of The Akshaya Patra Foundation has so far raised funds to provide meals in approximately 250 schools which is 75,000 children.
"The funds raised by peoples’ enormous generosity has been so beneficial in helping us to continue our vital work to feed and educate some of India’s poorest and deprived children. The Akshaya Patra Foundation often provides a lifeline for children to eat well, which in turn aids their educational development, which then can help them to achieve their full potential.
“My heartfelt gratitude to everyone who attended this event, and those who have and continue to support our vital work – it is very much appreciated.”
Today, The Akshaya Patra Foundation provides freshly prepared, nutritious meals daily to over 1.3 million underprivileged children in over 8000 schools in NINE states from 19 kitchens. International communications agency Sterling Media was proud to be the event’s official Event and PR partner.

Shocking Rape charges against Hare Krishnas

2013-03-06T13:13:00.000+05:30

Glamour Magazine By Debbie Seaman: The radio show 26-year-old Ananada Tiller was listening to in her car one day last year seemed innocent: The announcer was reporting on a children's balloon-blowing contest. Yet it triggered a memory so jarring that Tiller served over a median.
As a deejay described how the children's cheeks ached from blowing up the balloons, Tiller recalled a time when, at six years old, her own cheeks ached with pain. But it was not from inflating balloons. Tiller, she found herself remembering, had been tied to a chair as a man forced his swollen penis into her mouth. The scene Tiller describes allegedly took place in 1981 while she was living in a gurukula, one of the 11 ashram-based boarding schools across the nation for children whose parents were members of the Hare Krishna religious sect. The assault, Tiller says, happened in a garage where Krishna devotees made candles to sell on the street. She remembers the same man dipping his fingers into wax and using them to probe her vagina.
Although her parents removed her from the gurukula at around age 10, Tiller charges that the physical scarring from the abuse may result in her needing to have a partial hysterectomy. But the emotional scarring is what she is struggling most to heal. It's why she has joined the nearly 100 others who claim they suffered at the hands of the Krishnas in a $400 million lawsuit again the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), the founding organization of the Hare Krishnas, which has an estimated one million members worldwide and 75,000 in the United States and Canada. (The movement, founded by Indian guru Srila Prabhupada in 1966, sought to promote peace and love and became popular in the American hippie culture of the sixties and seventies.) The lawsuit, filed in June 2000, alleges widespread sexual, physical and emotional abuse of young children at many of the 11 gurukulas in the United States, primarily between 1972 and 1990. The plaintiffs maintain that Hare Krishna children were subjected to various types of child abuse, including rape, beatings and improper medical care. The suit also alleges that children were often denied food and confined inside trash barrels and frequently moved to other schools without their parent's knowledge.
Young girls like Tiller who lived in these gurukulas were particularly vulnerable to violation says Nori J. Muster, author of Betrayal of the Spirit (University of Illinois Press), an autobiography of her years as a Krishna. "Girls were married off as young as age 12 to men about three times their age," says Muster. "Since Krishna authorities often allowed men to hit their wives for misbehavior, a girl was at the mercy of her husband."
Although the case against the Krishnas may not go to trial for another year or more, the mere filing of the suit has helped former Krishna children mend their lives says Windle Turley, the plaintiff's attorney in Dallas who is best-known for winning a $120 million child-abuse suit against the Roman Catholic Church in 1997. "It helps victims feel validated," Turley explains. ISKCON's attorneys neither confirm nor deny that abuse took place at the gurukulas. Individual Krishna devotees, however, are being tried in court for these crimes. This summer, a man pleaded guilty to sexually abusing two girls and a woman at a Krishna community in the late 1980s and was sentenced to eight months in prison. Turley's suit, though, could have a far broader impact. "If the plaintiffs win it will wipe out the religion's existence," says David Liberman, a Krishna and an attorney for ISKCON.

The Appeal of Religion

You've probably seen Krishnas-men and women dressed in robes, chanting, passing out literature in airports and other public places, panhandling for change. Founding guru Prabhupada encouraged parents to leave their children in the sect's gurukulas so that the parents could devote themselves to spreading the Krishna work and raising money for the movement. The absence of parents, however, is one reason that abuse became prevalent, according to research by E. Burke Rochford, a sociology professor at Middlebury College in Vermont. "Krishna followers were taught to put religion ahead of family," notes Rick Ross, a cult expert in Jersey City, New Jersey. "They believed that sending their children away was best for the children as well as for the group." So three-year-old Vilasini Silverman's parents were simply following their leader's doctrine when they sent their daughter to the Dallas gurukula in 1972 while they remained in Los Angeles to head the large Krishna temple there. "Our routine was to wake up at 4 A.M. and take cold showers," says Silverman of boarding school life. "The children then spent hours praying and chanting before breakfast, which was served on waxed paper on the floor, she continues. "The food frequently had bugs in it, but we risked punishment if didn't eat it."
In 1976, state school authorities closed the Dallas gurukula. For four years, Silverman and her older sister, Chandra, traveled with their parents back and forth between India and the United States and were rarely enrolled in school. But the nightmare of living in a gurukula began again for Silverman in 1980, when her parents moved to Saudi Arabia for work, leaving the children behind. This time, the experience was even more traumatic. Silverman recalls that at barely 13, she was attending a Krishna festival in 1982 in West Virginia when a devotee she knew who was in his late twenties invited her and a friend to see a waterfall nearby. As they descended into a ravine, Silverman realized that her friend had turned back. "That's when [the man] threw me down on the ground and raped me," Silverman charges. She says she remembers the anise aroma of Indian toothpaste on his breath as he pushed up her sari and forced himself between her legs. "I had no idea what he was doing."
The man never uttered a word and afterward rushed back to the festival, Silverman says. According to her, he was never charged with the crime-in fact, she was made to feel guilty. Her teachers accused her having lured the man to have sex with her, she says; as a result, they forbade her to speak to anyone or to leave the temple grounds for three months. Then, five months later, her mother came to take her to India to marry a devotee 11 years her senior, says Silverman.
Compared to Silverman's gurukula existence, married life wasn't so bad. Her husband never beat her, and she considered that a blessing. But hope disappeared when he divorced her a year later. She ended up at a temple in India, where she says she was raped by a worker. "" had absolutely no self-worth, no value. The rape made no difference to me," she says.
Being a victim was all Silverman knew. "When you grow up in a isolated environment of sexual abuse, you believe repeated abuse is normal, especially when you're a child," says cult expert Ross.
Krishna leaders say they are opposed to these violent acts. "It's not part of our spiritual teaching to abuse children," says Druta-karma Dasa, a member of the Los Angeles Krishna chapter. "We want to prevent this." Still, he adds, "if men are put together with women in certain situations, they might do things they might not otherwise do."
Silverman believes the abuse she suffered was encouraged by the Krishna religion. Says Ross: "Women are devalued by the Krishnas. Krishna women are even told that their brains are smaller than men's brains." ("Biologically, women's brains are smaller than men's," says Svavasa Dasa, the Los Angeles Krishna Temple president.) Anutama Dasa, ISKCON'' communications director, points out that the Krishna religion, unlike some other faiths, permits women to hold positions as high as men do.
When she was 15, Silverman escaped from the Krishnas for good. Now a 32-year-old wife and mother of three, she lives with her family in Gaithersburg, Maryland, a tranquil suburb of Washington, D.C. But the suffering she endured as a child has left scars. "Some days I feel at peace, strong and secure," she says. "But most days I just want to crawl into a hole and hide."

A Paradise for Predators

Along with being separated from their parents, children in the gurukulas were typically separated from outside figures such as doctors and social workers, who might have been able to identify the violence, according to the lawsuit. "By isolating the children and not allowing conventional medical care, there was no way for the abuse to be recognized," Ross says. The abuse was also hidden from parents, the lawsuit states. Elaine Romero, a former Krishna member whose daughter, Melody Romero-Gedeon, attended a gurukula, says she got many letters from Melody but that none hinted at trouble. "That's because our teacher would print on the board what we were supposed to write to our parents," explains Romero-Gedeon, 31, a massage therapist in Miami and a plaintiff in the suit. The isolation was made worse because the teachers weren't necessarily good with children. In fact, they were made teachers mainly because they weren't skilled at raising money, former members claim. Still, Krishna leaders maintain that this fact doesn't make ISKCON responsible for the abuse. "We were let down by some of the people responsible for child care education," says temple president Svavasa Dasa.
Tiller says she felt isolated when she entered the gurukula at age four. Across the street, "you could see children playing baseball. I loved their clothes, particularly their bathing suits, says Tiller, who was almost always dressed in a sari.
But in her world, she charges, there was persistent violence. "One boy was put in a trash can with a sock in his mouth, which was then duct-taped shut," she recalls. When a guru discovered that Tiller had a Barbie doll (she'd found it in the garbage), she was beaten with a belt, Tiller says.
But the sexual abuse Tiller says she suffered caused the most pain. One reason: When it came to sexual offenses, Krishnas often put the blame on the female, say both Ross and former Krishna Muster. "One man made me perform oral sex, then spit on me to purify himself because I'd made him sin," Tiller recalls.
Although it was "normal" for girls to marry at around puberty, Tiller's parents refused to let a 30-year-old recruit marry Tiller when she was 10. But he followed Tiller around and made her watch him masturbate, she says.
Tiller's parents removed her and her brother from the gurukula and moved them to a Krishna farm in Oklahoma. The family left the Krishnas for good when Tiller was 11, but "I was throwing myself out of cars because I couldn't put the abuse behind me," she says. At age 15, Tiller checked into a psychiatric hospital because of suicidal tendencies. Although she thought she was getting better, a year later she screamed at her boyfriend when he made amorous advances. He knew about her past and insisted she get help. "Only then did I realize I couldn't just jump into the real world," says Tiller, now a divorced mother of two. "My past was following me wherever I went."

Could it Happen Today?

ISKCON insists it's trying to prevent future abuse. In 1990, the international governing body of Krishnas resolved to create child protection teams a its almost 400 temples. But when asked whether such teams are in place, Anuttama Dasa, ISKCON's communications director, can only say, "That was the policy. They were supposed to be there." About three years ago, the religion's Child Protection Office was created to provide financial support to victims and to investigate alleged past and present abuses. But Dasa won't reveal how much money the office has given to victims. The Child Protection Office aims, among other thins, to stop the policy of teaching children than even hugging is "subtle sex." Says Melody Romero-Gedeon, "I thought I was perverted because I liked it when my mom kissed me on the cheek."
And like Silverman, who alleges that she was blamed for provoking a man to rape her, Romero-Gedeon felt shame for the violence committed against her. "When I confided in my teacher that a devotee put his hand inside my underwear, she told me I incited him by acting like a prostitute," she recalls. Says Druta-karma Dasa of the L.A. chapter, "Obviously, that teacher was wrong."
Despite the abuse, Romero-Gedeon followed the religion until two years ago. "It was all I knew," she says. She credits her husband whom she met in 1995, for helping her disaffiliate. Her real moment of truth came two years ago when she attended a Krishna festival and noticed a teacher scolding a young girl. "Her chin quivered," Romero-Gedeon says. "I suddenly saw myself in that little girl, and for the first time I cried for myself."
Elaine Romero, Romero-Gedeon's mother, says she feels terrible guilt for putting her daughter in such a situation. "I thought she would get a great education," says Romero, who left the Krishnas two years ago.
Romero-Gedeon still has a fear of the dark and of roaches, the result of being forced to sleep in a garage, she says. "I ask my husband ho he fell in love with me. He says, 'Because I could see you in there honey! I just had to take you out of that negative environment.'"

The Road to Recovery

As a result of the lawsuit, Silverman, Tiller and Romero-Gedeon have become friends and have created a support network for survivors. In July, the three women picketed local Fourth of July Krishna gatherings, carrying signs with declarations like ISKCON Rapes Its Women and Children. They talked to both Krishnas and onlookers, and Romero-Gedeon says she even persuaded one woman not to join ISKCON. "Demonstrating empowered us," says Silverman. "It made us feel like we have a voice and that our lives, unlike what the Krishnas may say, aren't worthless."

How Sects Endanger Girls

Many religious groups have been linked to child abuse, and often it's young girls who are the victims. The Branch Davidians
Numerous ex-Davidians claim that leader David Koresh sexually abused young girls, and former member Kiri Jewell testified that Koresh began having sex with her when she was 10. Koresh also fathered a child with his wife's 14-year-old sister because he was "commanded" to in a vision, according to David Thibodeau, co-author of [a book about the Waco Davidians].
The Children of God
Through his writings, called the "Mo Letters," founder David Brandt Berg advocated having sex with prepubescent girls, says cult expert Rick Ross. Berg fled to England in 1971 after a New York crime commission accused him of numerous offenses, including child molestation. Never indicted, he died in 1994.
People's Temple
Young girls in this cult were forced to strip and perform sexual acts in front of group members, says Kenneth Wooden, author of "The Children of Jonestown" (McGraw-Hill). Temple founder Jim Jones wasn't trying to punish the girls, Wooden says; he was punishing their parents for violating cult rules, including those barring escape.

'Sparkle Gala' to raise funds for Akshaya Patra Foundation

2013-02-28T15:50:00.000+05:30

Asian Image: Charity ambassadors and celebrities will gather this Saturday to raise funds for the Akshaya Patra Foundation UK.
The star-studded night of haute couture fashion will take place at the Vinopolis in London.
The Akshaya Patra Foundation UK is the world’s largest NGO-run school meal programme, which feeds and educates some of India’s poorest, underprivileged childen.
Today, The Akshaya Patra Foundation provides freshly prepared, nutritious meals daily to over 1.3 million underprivileged children in over 8000 schools in eight states from 19 kitchens.
The 'Sparkle Gala' will be hosted by Konnie Huq and will begin with a champagne reception followed by a journey showcasing the best of Indian fusion cuisine.
A highlight will be a spectacular fashion show presented by one of India's leading celebrity designers, Anamika Khanna, who will showcase her Luxury 2013 collection.
The Kolkata based fashionista has the notable honor of being the first designer from India to launch an international label, and is one of the first Indian designers to show at Paris Fashion Week. Anamika Khanna uses traditional Indian and modern methods, including texturing with various embroideries to create her exquisite clothing collections.
Chair Dipika Khaitan said: “The UK chapter of The Akshaya Patra Foundation has so far raised funds to provide meals in approximately 250 schools.
"The funds raised by peoples’ enormous generosity has been so beneficial in helping us to continue our vital work to feed and educate some of India’s poorest and deprived children. The Akshaya Patra Foundation often provides a lifeline for children to eat well, which in turn aids their educational development, which then can help them to achieve their full potential.
“We hope that on the evening of The Sparkle Gala we can raise funds to reach out to 300 schools and continue with our important community work.”
International communications agency Sterling Media has been named as official Event and PR partner.

Ford to part fund Rs 400 crore Iskcon temple in Bengal

2013-02-26T15:55:00.000+05:30

ET: KOLKATA: Alfred Ford, grandson of iconic American industrialist Henry Ford, would partly fund the upcoming Rs 400 croreIskcon temple at Mayapur in West Bengal.

"I have given some seed capital for the huge dream project of Srila Prabhupada, founder of the Iskcon movement, for construction of a temple at the birthplace of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu," Ford told reporters here today.

He said the project would be ready by 2016 after which there would be an exponential growth in the number of pilgrims and tourists visiting Mayapur.

Presently, the number of visitors to the existing temple at Mayapur is four million, Ford, a disciple of Prabhupada, said.

Once through, the temple would be taller than the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul and the temple's dome diameter and floor space would be bigger than St Paul's Cathedral in London, he added.

Sharmila Bhattacharya Ford, his Bengali wife, said it would be a spectacular sight once the structure, covering an area of 4.25 lakh square feet on 1.5 acres, comes up.

Another disciple, Anand Poddar, said the Queen of England and President of India would be invited to inaugurate the temple, which would be built with pure stainless steel.

Deccan Herald: The International Society of Krishna Consciousness (Iskcon) Monday said the world's largest Vedic temple 'Chandrodaya Mandir', which is under construction at West Bengal's Mayapur, would be inaugurated in 2016.

The 340-foot-high temple, being constructed at a cost of about $75 million or about Rs.37.5 crore at the birthplace of 16th century saint and social reformer Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in Nadia district, will be a centre of Vedic knowledge, culture and science, Iskcon officials said.

Construction work for the temple, dedicated to the worship of Lord Krishna, started in 2010.

Alfred Brush Ford, scion of US automobile pioneer Henry Ford, who has shouldered the responsibility of financing the first phase of the construction, told reporters here that the Chandrodaya temple would be a world class of attraction, bringing visitors from around the globe.

Ford, who is also the chairman of the temple, said: "This historic project does not belong to any community or an individual but to the entire human race."
ISKON officials said the temple spread across 425,000 square feet will also boast a state of the art 75-feet tall domed planetarium theatre, the largest in India.

"The temple will be built at a total cost of $75 million, in which about $35 million has already been donated by Ford. The construction work will be completed by 2016," an Iskcon official said.

"We will invite the US president along with the Indian president to inaugurate the huge temple," he added.

No alternative route for Sethu project

2013-02-25T10:10:00.001+05:30

Taking on the UPA Government over its stand to go ahead with the Sethusamudram project despite the R. K. Pachauri Committee report suggesting it unviable, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday said that the Center has declared an indirect war against Indian civilization.
Accusing the government of polarizing the nation on communal line by taking such steps, senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Balbir Punj said his party will fight against the decision in and outside Parliament.
"The government stand on the issue is very unfortunate. They have declared an indirect war against Indian civilisation, because the Ramayana and God Ram are the integral part of our civilization. The government is not giving any rational logic behind dismissing the Pachauri Committee recommendations," said Punj.
"The project will be a disaster for environmental and sentimental points of view and it will not going to benefit economically also. The government has decided to go ahead with the project by ignoring the sentiments of the majority only to polarize the nation on communal lines. It needs to be condemned by all right thinking people and the BJP will fight against it in and outside Parliament," he added.
R. K. Pachauri Committee, which was constituted on the Supreme Court direction, submitted its report on Friday, suggesting the entire Sethusamudram project unviable on two fronts - economically as ecologically.
However, the government has rejected the Pachauri Committee report and submitted an affidavit in the Supreme with and intention to pursue the project cutting through the Adam's Bridge, popularly known as Ram Setu.

ISKCON should come forward, take a stand and stop this idea of destroying rama's bridge.