by
Nimai Pandit das, Temple President Long Island, NY
Subject: ISKCON Long Island, NY
Testimonial Ref: Direction Of Management (DOM)
Date: Mon, 1 Aug 2005
Dear Mukunda Prabhu,
Please accept my most humble obeisances! All Glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Prabhu, thank you very much for compiling the Srila Prabhupada
Lilamrta As It is. The box of books which we got, we have been distributing to
our congregation and many have liked it. I had sent one box to Kapindra Maharaj
and 1 box to Nara Narayana Prabhu, as instructed by Jaya Krishna Prabhu. We read
from the book every day after Srila Prabhupada's Guru puja.
I have read your postings about the Direction of Management implementation
- that now is not the time to implement it, more need is there to concentrate
on Hearing from Srila Prabhupada and raising the general standard of the Temples.
I agree with you to a large extent. Your compilation book "All
of Us should hear Srila Prabhupada", has been well read and distributed by
us for the last 4 years. We hear from Srila Prabhupada extensively in the temple,
the ISKCON Long Island, NY. We also all read and distribute His Divine Grace's
original books and we go out and chant(singing in the original style of kirtan
as taught by Srila Prabhupada), distributing prasadam and books weekly thrice
and doing house programs. When the colleges start in September, we will start
regular college programs too. I myself read at least one hour daily Srila Prabhupada's
books and letters. In the temple we have Srila Prabhupada singing kirtans 24 hours
thru speakers in all places in the temple. We even have a 24 hours internet radio
station where one can log onto www.iskconny.com and here the temple kirtans and
lectures or singing/lectures from Srila Prabhupada or his early disciples all
day/night long. All in the temple are being trained to be Srila Prabhupada's disciples.
The deities Sri Sri Nimai Nitai, were installed by Srila Prabhupada in 1975 and
were worshipped by Visnujan Maharaj. We change their clothes twice daily, daily
abhishek and make offerings 4 times a day. We have been gradually trying to implement
the original way of deity seva instituted by Srila Prabhupada in his ISKCON temples.
So, at least by some standards, this is a functioning ISKCON temple,
as Srila Prabhupada desires it to be. Obviously, we could do much more to purify
ourselves and others. And we will continue to increase our endeavor's specially
by the blessings and instructions of devotees like your good self.
We came to know of the Direction of Management last year in court
(Supreme Court of New York) during a hearing on a lawsuit brought by the so-called
"GBCs" who were trying to kick us out of the temple, on the charge that
we are "ritviks". It was their argument that they are appointed GBC
by Srila Prabhupada according to the document- the DOM. Hence they had the right
to demand obedience!
That is the time Sriman Nara Narayana Vishwakarma Prabhu told
us the importance of Srila Prabhupada's DOM and the weak points in the presentation
of the "GBCs". He even submitted an affidavit to the court to lay the
real background of this document. Especially that these are not the real GBCs
as they have not been elected.
Partly, due to his brilliant exposition of the document, the judge
ordered the so-called "GBC"s to stay away. So now, for the last almost
1 year, we have been free to practice KC, as ordered by Srila Prabhupada to his
disciples, in an organized manner.
We do not associate with the so-called ISKCON temples. All "GBCs"
or their representatives have to take permission to come in the temple - which
they have never asked for. Basically, we are practicing Krishna Consciousness,
keeping the Acarya in the center and associating with like-minded devotees around
the world.
During the lawsuit, we requested Locanananda Prabhu to come and
speak about the Gurukuli abuses to show the corruption in the current ISKCON to
the Judge. His 5 minute testimony was powerful and moving, even he choked up!
We have also been helping the poison investigation, details of which I am not
at a liberty to reveal.
My point is that even though we are an ISKCON temple, we do not
associate with the corrupt ISKCON "leadership", rather are trying to
educate others(innocents) about it.
Since last year's court battle, we have also been implementing
the Direction of Management in the temple - gradually.
We have resisted the "GBC"s pressures to change our
name from ISKCON to something else, Direction of Management specifically is made
by Srila Prabhupada on the letterhead of INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS,
INCORPOATED. This is the legal organization which owns our temple property. So
this is the first thing we have done in implementing DOM. Not to change the name
to anything else other than ISKCON. Srila Prabhupada moreover says,
"Then in 1966, July, I incorporated the Society under the
name and style the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, briefly ISKCON.
The lawyer was Mr. J. Goldsmith. Gradually the Society increased, and one after
another branches were opened. Now we have got thirty-four (34) branches enlisted
herewith".
Srila Prabhupada is specifically saying he incorporated a society
name(d) .."briefly ISKCON".
All real property should be in the name of ISKCON. This is his
order.
"7. Advice will be given by the GBC in cases of real property
purchases, which will be in the name of ISKCON, INC. (Trucks or other vehicles
will be purchased in the name of the local president)."
Hence these are the first instructions of DOM that we have already
implemented here. We considered that these instructions we heard from Srila Prabhupada
via his DOM are as important as his instructions we heard from in his lectures.
I am sure you will agree and see the practicality of the situation. I have found
here that devotees are more agreeable to help and cooperate if they can work under
the name of ISKCON. You can understand that fighting a lawsuit to defend ourselves,
keeping the temple program going daily, keeping regular preaching programs in
NYC and taking care of the medium size congregation, for the last more than 1
year, takes some amount of resources, organization and cooperation among a good
many like-minded devotees.
Another instruction of Srila Prabhupada from the Direction of
Management which we have implemented is the next one:
"8. Removal of a Temple president by the GBC requires support
by the local Temple members."
All devotees in the temple(currently 5 brahmacaris, 2 grahastha
couple) know it and have seen this in writing and have been told by me several
times, that if the devotees feel that the current Temple President, myself, is
not doing his duty properly and is not qualified to do the service, then he can
be removed by the Temple Members and a new one can be elected by the Temple Members.
This instruction became paramount to implement now as devotees are all serving
here, voluntarily, and giving up all their material possessions, and they wanted
to know who is my authority. As I am definitely not a pure devotee, I found it
a very good question to think of an answer of. Who is there to correct me? Srila
Prabhupada. But what if I refuse or am unable to take the chastisement or correction
from Srila Prabhupada. Is there another method Srila Prabhupada has set up in
his organization for the managers to be accountable? According to the DOM, GBCs
supervise Temple Presidents. But what if there are no real GBCs supervising me,
as is the case now? At least the temple members have a say in keeping me in check
if I become autocratic. Without that safety check, which intelligent, Brahman
like devotee would like to surrender fully in such a temple environment for a
long time? Otherwise, generally we have seen, and I know you have also experienced
in "your" temple, the devotees in the temple start feeling that the
TP thinks it is "his" temple.
I see that this DOM instruction of Srila Prabhupada would work
the other way round too, when there are elected GBCs, they wouldn't be able to
remove a TP whimsically, and hence a householder would feel much more secure in
making his house into a preaching center in the name of ISKCON, legally, and put
his hard-earned earnings in ISKCON's bank a/c to be used according to the instructions
of Srila Prabhupada for preaching. This is how the new centres were opened in
the early days. To insure that kind of trust again, without the DOM as a safety
check, how will the householder's make their home's into ISKCON temples?
The other DOM instructions we have implemented are based upon
this instruction of Srila Prabhupada
"They are already managing individual centers represented
by one president, one secretary and one treasurer, and in my opinion they are
doing nice."
At that time, according to my research, and I may be wrong, there
were regular istagosthis of the devotees. In the temple the men and women were
living separately in the respective ashrams, even if they were married. All devotees
would attend the whole morning program, especially the TP, and they would go out
on sankirtan, which meant, distributing Kirtan, books and Prasadam. So we are
gradually implementing these instructions. You are welcome to come, stay with
us in the Men's ashram and check and give suggestions on what more can we do.
Another statement of Srila Prabhupada is "Gradually the Society
increased, and one after another branches were opened. Now we have got thirty-four
(34) branches enlisted herewith." So we are trying to see which other temples/preaching
centres around the world, whether called ISKCON or not, are willing to form the
real ISKCON organization, under the banner of INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR KRISHNA
CONSCIOUSNESS. Maybe in a year's time, things will get cleared up, on who are
real ISKCON temples and who are not, so that new contacts can be told the references
of the temples.
We are trying to make new ISKCON centers, based upon Srila Prabhupada's
formula of householder's opening preaching centers, men work initially, and in
spare time, they go out on sankirtan. NY has many householder's who are Srila
Prabhupada's disciples, and we are working with them, having regular Istagosthis
in their homes, and generally helping them start their own centers in their homes
-gradually. Of course, as you say, the first thing is to infuse in everyone the
strong desire and importance of hearing from Srila Prabhupada. And to understand
that Srila Prabhupada is a nitya-siddha associate of Lord Caitanya, Personality
of Servitor Godhead and that all his activities are executed from a platform of
ecstatic love of Lord Krishna. Krishnalingita Vigraha. I am not under illusion
that it will take some years before these places would become ISKCON centres.
But this is where we have started, and simultaneously these are the principles
of DOM which all of us are familiar with while preaching. They know that the temple
is governed by Srila Prabhupada's Direction of Management and in some years when
there are enough temples, and most of those temple presidents feel that "we
have increased our volume of activities, now I think a Governing Body Commission
(hereinafter referred to as the GBC) should be established. " Then we would
be in a position to implement even this instruction of Srila Prabhupada in his
expanding real ISKCON.
I can definitely say that I would not be today talking to you
as President of a functioning growing ISKCON temple(albiet small), if I had not
started studying the DOM with the understanding that this is a practical instruction
manual kept by Srila Prabhupada to manage his institution. And I can also safely
say that this understanding has been progressively made possible by the assistance
of our senior Godbrother Sriman Nara Narayana Vishwakarma Prabhu. I am grateful
that he preached the importance of DOM in ISKCON to us, we won the lawsuit partly
due to this angle. I see that he is preaching to ISKCON temples with a view to
enlightening some other ISKCON temples like us with the hope that some of them
will overthrow the corrupt leadership so that they can implement the hearing process
of Srila Prabhupada in the right environment. Otherwise, maybe some intelligent
devotees may come out of the temples on coming to know of the reality.
The hearing process of Srila Prabhupada, as emphasized by you
is of paramount importance and should be really propagated. This is the most effective
method to change our base qualities of nature to goodness and then to suddha goodness,
from which platform we can preach. I do not see from his postings or in his temple
that Nara Narayana Vishwakarma Prabhu is not agreeable to this fact. But I can
also maybe bring to your kind attention that to maintain the hearing environment
in an organized temple setup, which can provide a powerful tool to hear and discuss
in an association, progressive implementation of Srila Prabhupada's Direction
of Management is essential. I can testify to it.
Thank you for your great contributions to the resuscitation of
ISKCON, and look forward to hearing from you.
Your humble servant,
Nimai Pandit das
Temple President
ISKCON Freeport
Long Island, NY
