The Death of Spiritual Authority


IRM

Back To Prabhupada, Issue 23, Spring 2009, Editorial

Welcome to Issue 23 of Back To Prabhupada (BTP).

When Srila Prabhupada established ISKCON, devotees were attracted to ISKCON not because:

  • It provided them a free place to stay.

  • It gave them an opportunity to emigrate.

  • It gave them an opportunity to earn an income.

  • They were able to get some position.

  • There was some legal or managerial necessity to do so.

Rather, they did so because in Srila Prabhupada they recognised someone who would take them back to Godhead, and for whom they were ready to lay down their lives. Even though Srila Prabhupada incorporated ISKCON and the BBT (Bhaktivedanta Book Trust) legally, he did not require legal power to ensure obedience. Srila Prabhupada's authority came simply from the fact that he was Srila Prabhupada, Krishna's pure representative, and what he said was the same as coming from Krishna. And similarly, the GBC required no legal power over any of the temples or devotees. Rather, whatever they said was considered the same as coming from Srila Prabhupada. In this way, the whole movement was able to run on the basis of spiritual authority. Devotees obeyed and followed because they genuinely believed they were doing the Will of Krishna via the chain of command.

The situation today could not be any more different. The joke is that the only people today who read the GBC's resolutions every year are the IRM, who can quote chapter and verse better than anyone regarding all the contradictions and deviations in the resolutions the GBC pass every year! The reality on the ground in ISKCON is that nobody reads or cares for what the GBC says, unless it is necessary to use it to achieve some objective like throwing devotees out etc. And even in the guru-disciple relationship, spiritual authority is weakening. Initiation is seen by devotees as just a career move, required in order to move up the ranks and get access to power, position and recognition. This trend is encouraged by the gurus themselves being distant figures whom the disciples hardly meet, and the gurus justifying this lack of interaction on the basis of The Great Guru Hoax, Part 3 - that Srila Prabhupada is actually still there for the disciple, and they are actually just like ritviks, or officiating priests. (Indeed, proving the point, even initiation is not required in all cases, with a number of prominent managers and leaders in ISKCON not having needed to take either initiation or reinitiation). This relativisation of the diksa (initiating) guru as a reaction to the old, all-powerful "zonal acharyas" (The Great Guru Hoax, Part 1) was done to transfer spiritual authority from the diksa gurus to the GBC. But it has simply resulted in reducing the spiritual authority of the diksa guru, with no increase in the spiritual authority of the GBC.

In this spiritual vacuum, the only authority which is predominantly asserted today is financial and legal. This we see being asserted by both ISKCON and their "ritvik" competitors who try and acquire followers by seeing who can offer more facilities, position, etc. Hence, with nothing but recourse to financial and legal authority, there has been an explosion in secularisation, commercialisation and Hinduisation (yielding both more financial and legal authority) as a means to bolster this financial and legal authority.

Given all this, where does the IRM stand? It should be clear that the IRM is deliberately eschewing financial and legal authority, by not offering buildings, positions, etc. Rather, it is taking the high risk strategy of standing or falling on the basis of spiritual authority alone.

And what is this spiritual authority? That the IRM is following Srila Prabhupada's orders correctly, and not trying to use them simply to seize power and followers, whether as gurus or ritviks. We have to command authority based on this clear evidence of surrender and zero deviation to Srila Prabhupada's orders; of not having chopped and changed, and having never deviated historically. The result of such an approach will be that:

a) Only those who are serious about spiritual life will be attracted.
b) Those who are interested in amassing power and position will not be attracted.
c) And most importantly, Srila Prabhupada will be pleased, as we are trying to represent him correctly, and depending totally on Krishna, rather than depending on the power of money, buildings and other devices (financial and legal authority).

This is why it is also so important that the IRM never compromises to achieve some short-term fix, to get some short-term popularity. Others have tried this, and in the long-term they have not only not prospered, but have also destroyed any pretence at possessing spiritual authority.

Please feel free to write to me at the following address with any comments whatsoever: irm@iskconirm.com.

Thank you and Hare Krishna.

Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupada,

Krishnakant


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