ISKCONIRM: The pattern of ISKCON's GBC-authorized gurus blaspheming the pure devotee has now extended beyond just targeting Srila Prabhupada to also include other acaryas and incarnations! The quotes in the shaded boxes below are from a "2014 New Year's Message" from ISKCON guru, HH Sacinandana Swami ("SNS"), which was advertised on the GBC's main website for devotees. All emphases are added.
No sabotage
"Instead of living fully, we allow fear, selfishness, and anger to govern us, standing passively by despite their tyrannical rule. We throw ourselves into our own prison! Someone once told me, 'There are as many ways to sabotage yourself as there are people in the world.' Even saints have the ability to sabotage themselves."
SNS states that people can sabotage themselves through their own fear, selfishness and anger, and then claims that saintly persons can also sabotage themselves. But Srila Prabhupada has never taught that saintly persons "sabotage" themselves in this way, or any other way.
No foibles
"Have you ever wondered what Prahlada Maharaja, Nelson Mandela, Buddha, Mother Teresa, and Jesus have in common? Despite their foibles, they've each managed to rise above their inner weaknesses -- or at least they've tried very hard to do so."
Continuing with the theme of "saints can be ordinary", SNS immediately follows up the "sabotage" theme by mentioning in the very next sentence that pure devotees of the Lord such as Prahlada Maharaja, Lord Jesus Christ and the incarnation of the Lord Himself, Lord Buddha, are subject to "foibles" (imperfections or faults) and "inner weaknesses". Srila Prabhupada roundly defeats this blasphemy, stating that these exalted personalities were "perfect in every respect" and "not conditioned":
"Here we see that although Prahlada was perfect in every respect, he nonetheless followed the instructions of the brahmanas who performed the Vedic rituals."
(SB, 7.10.24)
(SB, 7.10.24)
"This narration describes the characteristics of the great and exalted devotee Prahlada Maharaja, his staunch devotional service, his perfect knowledge, and his perfect detachment from material contamination."
(SB, 7.10.43-44)
(SB, 7.10.43-44)
"Prahlada Maharaja: A perfect devotee of Lord Krsna (Visnu)."
(SB, 1.12.25)
(SB, 1.12.25)
"Lord Buddha and Lord Jesus Christ were in this group of saktyavesa avatara.. But they were not in conditioned state when they appeared; they came to teach here."
(Srila Prabhupada Letter, 14/11/68)
(Srila Prabhupada Letter, 14/11/68)
Therefore, they did not possess such "foibles" and "inner weaknesses".
Not material
We saw in the last section that SNS tried to justify his attack on exalted personalities such as Prahlada Maharaja and Jesus by comparing them to a political leader and a social welfare worker. Yet, even these latter personalities themselves never claimed to be on the same platform as exalted personalities such as Jesus. Indeed, Srila Prabhupada condemns the attempt to bring such acaryas down to the material platform:
"So Prahlada Maharaja, a great devotee, he's in the line of disciplic succession. He's considered one of the great acaryas."
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, 9/4/69)
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, 9/4/69)
"Jesus Christ is one such great personality. We should not think of him as an ordinary human being. The scriptures say that anyone who considers the spiritual master to be an ordinary man has a hellish mentality."
(The Science of Self-Realization, Ch. 4)
(The Science of Self-Realization, Ch. 4)
"Narada Muni, Haridasa Thakura and similar acaryas especially empowered to broadcast the glories of the Lord cannot be brought down to the material platform. Therefore one is strictly forbidden to think that the acarya is an ordinary human being (gurusu nara-matih)."
(SB, 7.7.14)
(SB, 7.7.14)
Thus, to consider such acaryas as being ordinary is symptomatic of hellish consciousness.
Actual blasphemy
In last issue's Editorial ("The IRM Way"), we exposed how, due to not understanding what blasphemy actually is, the IRM is falsely accused of being blasphemous. The irony is that whenactual blasphemy occurs, as in this case, ISKCON's leadership is actually supportive of it! As we demonstrated in our detailed analysis of the subject in BTP 32 ("The Real Meaning of Vaisnava-Aparadha"), blasphemy does not occur when the IRM speaks the truth about how Srila Prabhupada's position has been usurped. However, it does occur when SNS makes false statements about exalted personalities such as Prahlada Maharaja, as SNS has done here:
"Another story fabricated to defame Srila Jiva Gosvami states [...] This story is another ignominious example of blasphemy against a guru and Vaisnava. Such a story should never be accepted as authoritative."
(Cc., Adi-lila, 10.85)
(Cc., Adi-lila, 10.85)
"We cannot manufacture our own idea. That is blasphemy, sahajiya. Yata mat tata pat."
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, 26/3/75)
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, 26/3/75)
"Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu had heard rumors about Ramacandra Puri's blasphemy. Now He directly heard his fanciful accusations. [...] Ramacandra Puri could find no faults in the character of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, for He is situated in a transcendental position as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. [...] He thus discovered imaginary faults in the Lord and then left."
(Cc., Antya-lila, 8.50)
(Cc., Antya-lila, 8.50)
Conclusion
One has to wonder if there is anyone in ISKCON's leadership who understands even basic Krsna conscious philosophy. We have again had to explain to ISKCON's supposedly highest body, the GBC, and one of its supposedly most "advanced" devotees, one of their "good as God" gurus, simple concepts such as not disrespecting acaryas such as Prahlada Maharaja!
