"In 1998 the devotees of ISKCON-Bangalore challenged the wrong Acharya system and formally declared to the Governing Body Commission that they shall only follow Srila Prabhupada’s directions on the Acharya system and implement what he intended for the ISKCON society. "
INEWS-2, 2010/09/15 14:34 — A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada set out on a 35 day long trans-Atlantic voyage to the United States in the year 1965, at the age of seventy. He carried with him Rs.40 and a trunk filled with his English translations of The Srimad Bhagavatam.
For four decades following the instruction of his spiritual Master he travelled to different places spreading the message of Bhagavad-Gita and other Vedic literatures all over the world. During his journey he confronted with many challenges and difficulties, but he moved ahead to serve the order of his spiritual Master with firm determination and vigor.
Srila Prabhupada reached the eternal abode of Lord Krishna in the year 1977. As a great futurist he was aware of the complications that might arise after him and hence laid out his succession plans before his departure from this world.
He had already formed a Governing Body Commission to manage the affairs of the society. Next he had to decide on who will be the spiritual successor to take up the seat of the Acharya (acharya-peeta)- an ultimate possession of spiritual and material authority.
During that time most of his leading disciples were westerners and Srila Prabhupada was aware of the fact that they were young and inexperienced in age and spirituality. He could feel that even his senior most disciples were tremendously materially ambitious. In such situations, Srila Prabhupada decided not to appoint any successor Acharya.
Instead he appointed eleven Officiating Acharyas or Ritviks, who would initiate on his behalf and the new initiates would be Srila Prabhupada’s disciples. Four months before he left for the heavenly abode he issued a written directive to the whole institution explaining this system of initiation.
But unfortunately these eleven members who were all westerners conspired and declared themselves, without authorization from Srila Prabhupada, to be the next Acharyas. Devotees who tried to question them were ill treated and harassed. ISKCON went through several crises in the next few years after 1977, and had to face some major embarrassments because of these self-proclaimed Acharyas.
The devotees of ISKCON-Bangalore under the guidance of Sri Madhu Pandit Dasa have taken up the struggle to fight this disobedience of Srila Prabhupada’s directions. In 1998 the devotees of ISKCON-Bangalore challenged the wrong Acharya system and formally declared to the Governing Body Commission that they shall only follow Srila Prabhupada’s directions on the Acharya system and implement what he intended for the ISKCON society. Since then Madhu Pandit Dasa with his team has dedicated themselves to fulfill the seven purpose of ISKCON as enunciated by Srila Prabhupada.
More details: http://www.iskconbangalore.org
It is proper to glorify a great mahabhagavata-devotee with the relatively mundane, or quite common term of a futurist? Well, I strongly belive Prabhupada is tri kala jna, He knows the past, presence and finally the future. But the question is whether such selfless, perfectly united with the supreme will of Krishna devotee will in any other way than His beloved Lord Himself interfere with the free will of the jivas, and the consequent very nature of the materiall world?
Will He? I try to understand this from the point view of Prabhupadas statement where He assures all His followers that He said everything in His books. So as the tri kala jna, He must have known all what will we need in order to go back to Godhead, isn’t ? Certainly yes! And to be honest, I have no slightest doubt, that if He had desired the ritvik acarya system to go on after His departure, the very same system He implemented while beeing with us, for particulare purpose of humbly and mercifully initiating devotees worldwide while allways busy working on the mission of His Guru Maharaj(brihad mridanga) Bhaktisidhanta Sarasvati Goswami, than He would have explained it in slightest detail in His books. Since in His divine books there is nothing, literally nothing about this kind of carry forward of the sampradaya after His departure, we have to conclude all ideas which differ from the direct meaning of His wishes and comments given in His books, as speculations only. We have hundreds of direct verses and quotes, where Srila Prabhupada explains the eternall low of the disciplic succesion. Unfortunatelly it is not the way of todays “GBC of West Bengal inc. IsKCON” neither. Very sad.
My comment was not meant to offend the great devotees of Krishna and Prabhupada, who do follow the idea of he posthumous ritvik initiations. My point is whether it is not to risky to assume Prabhupada was merely a futurist, because someone could then ask us, why being so, did He choose notorious child molestor, or an envious, fame and name thirsty black snake, amongst those 11, to be His representative? What we gonna say than? The Å›astra warns us not to judge the Acarya from material perspective, since nobody can explain the mind of a pure devotee of Krishna. It is very difficult for many devotees to find out the truht about the initiations, and so on. Wouldn’t than be wise and honest just to sit down and chant Hare Krisha as lon, as we come by Krishna’s grace to the final conclusion by the mercy of the Holy Name? So, for example I undesrtood the instructions of H.G. Aindra Prabhu. I beg you all dear Prabhupadanugas for forgivness, if You feel in any way offended by me!
your lowly serwant jd