Back To Prabhupada, Issue 43, Spring 2014
wo issues ago, we exposed GBC-elected ISKCON guru HH Bhakti Charu Swami ("BCS")'s shocking attack on Srila Prabhupada's teachings about education, which BCS stated were a "mistake" (BTP 41, "Srila Prabhupada v. Bhakti Charu Swami"). Shortly after our expose had landed worldwide, BCS held a teleconference where he was asked to address the same points raised in the BTP article. In response, as we shall see, BCS goes further and actually calls for Srila Prabhupada's orders to be abandoned altogether! The quotes in the shaded boxes below are from this teleconference held by BCS on 4/2/14.
"But very aptly rla Prabhupada pointed out that that education system is actually the sudra education system. [...] The purpose of education today has become just to earn money, to get a good job. [...] At that time Prabhupada opened the Gurukula in Vrndvana. Just a Gurukula building was built. And Prabhupada told Mr Dalmia (big industrialist): "Just send your children to the Gurukula." Prabhupada pointed out that what is going on in the name of education is simply to create slaves. The purpose of this education is to get a job."
BCS first agrees with the points made in the BTP 41 article: that Srila Prabhupada wanted gurukula education rather than education geared towards getting a job -- sudra slave education.
"Those who have to go out and get a job, those will go out and start their own business. At least these two classes, we have to prepare them, so that they have the option and the liberty to take up this kind of lifestyle. That is what Avant schools are providing."
Having correctly stated that Srila Prabhupada was opposed to education geared towards getting a job, calling it a sudra slave education system, BCS also states that he supports the Avant schools providing education geared towards getting a job.
"In response to whatever some individuals may say about the Avant schools, my response will be: "We have to be practical." We have seen that the world is not ready for our Gurukula system, the way we established them at that time. That kind of Gurukula will probably be there when the whole world is Krsna conscious. They can get pure Krsna conscious education and lead a brahminical life."
BCS justifies the job education (sudra slave education) of the Avant schools by claiming that the world is "not ready" for the gurukula system of education given by Srila Prabhupada. And, therefore, according to BCS, to establish such gurukulas would first require the whole world to become Krsna conscious. But it is not possible for the whole world to be Krsna conscious:
"No, no, you cannot expect that the whole world will become Krsna conscious. That is not possible."
(Morning Walk, 29/5/74)
"You cannot expect that the whole world, whole population of the world, will become Vaisnava. That is not possible."
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, 24/3/69)
"So we cannot expect that cent percent people will be God conscious or Krsna conscious. That is not possible".
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, 3/1/70)
Thus, BCS is actually saying that gurukulas should never be established, period.
BCS justifies abandoning the gurukula system of education by claiming that the "world is not ready" for it. But Srila Prabhupada never stated that his orders should be abandoned just because BCS does not have enough faith to follow them in the face of world opposition. On the contrary, Srila Prabhupada explained that we must continue despite the world not being ready:
"You cannot expect favorable situation. It is not possible. When I came in America, I never expected any favorable situation. I wrote that poetry in disappointment, that 'Who will accept this?' That is the position. [...] Actually, the American boys are fighting against so many unfavorable situations. They are sometimes beaten in the airport, you know that? Still they are preaching; that is preaching, that is preaching. 'The unfavorable situation, so let me give it up,' that is not preaching. Yes, we must know that there is unfavorable situation, still I have to."
(Room Conversation, 10/8/76)
Hence, though Srila Prabhupada was well aware that the world preferred sudra slave education to gurukulas, he still wanted the gurukulas established:
"I wanted to start this gurukula long, long, ago before going to the USA, in 1960, say '62, '61, but I approached so many gentlemen friends; they never agreed to give their sons to gurukula. They never agreed. Everyone said, "Swamiji, what benefit there will be by training our students in the gurukula way? They have to earn their bread."
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, 14/4/76)
"I consider this Gurukula school to be one of our most important aspects of this movement".
(Srila Prabhupada Letter, 20/6/72)
We quoted BCS in the last section stating that gurukula will allow one to:
"get pure Krsna conscious education and lead a brahminical life."
From BCS's perspective, ISKCON is also supposed to be providing this. Therefore, by BCS's faithless argument, if we must abandon gurukulas because the world is not ready for them, then BCS should also call for ISKCON itself to be shut down. Because both ISKCON and the gurukulas are, according to him, offering the same "Krsna conscious education and brahminical life".
There can be no argument over the conclusions presented above because we quote BCS specifically stating that Srila Prabhupada preached the opposite to what he proposes. Indeed, after the above teleconference was posted to both BCS's personal website and a GBC funded website, it was hastily removed! However, we managed to archive it before the cover-up occurred. Again, we have a stark choice. Faith in Srila Prabhupada or faith in his faithless GBC "representatives". Please choose Srila Prabhupada.
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