na sabhāṁ praviśet prājñaḥ sabhya-doṣān anusmaran abruvan vibruvann ajño naraḥ kilbiṣam aśnute
“A wise person should not enter an assembly if he knows the participants there are committing acts of impropriety. And if, having entered such an assembly, he fails to speak the truth, speaks falsely or pleads ignorance, he will certainly incur sin.” — Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.44.10
nindāṁ bhagavataḥ śṛṇvaṁs tat-parasya janasya vā tato nāpaiti yaḥ so ’pi yāty adhaḥ sukṛtāc cyutaḥ
“Anyone who fails to immediately leave the place where he hears criticism of the Supreme Lord or His faithful devotee will certainly fall down, bereft of his pious credit.”
— Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.74.40
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Organized Religion
by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur
Sri Krishna manifests His eternal birth, the pure cognitive essence of the serving soul who is located above all mundane limitations. King Kamsa [the demon king who wanted to kill Lord Krishna] is the typical empiricist, ever on the lookout for the appearance of the truth for the purpose of suppressing Him before He has time to develop. This is no exaggeration of the real connotation of the consistent empiric position. The materialist has a natural repugnance for the transcendent. He is disposed to link that faith in the incomprehensible is the parent of dogmatism and hypocrisy in the guise of religion. He is also equally under the delusion that there is no real dividing line between the material and the spiritual. He is strengthened in his delusion by the interpretation of scriptures by persons who are like-minded with himself. This includes all the lexicographic interpreters.
The lexicographical interpretation is upheld by Kamsa as the real scientific explanation of the scriptures, and is perfectly in keeping with his dread of and aversion for the transcendental. These lexicographical interpreters are employed by Kamsa in putting down the first suspected appearance of any genuine faith in the transcendental. King Kamsa knows very well that if the faith in the transcendental is once allowed to grow it is sure to upset all his empiric prospects.
There is historical ground for such misgivings. Accordingly if the empiric domination is to be preserved in tact it would be necessary not to lose a moment to put down the transcendental heresy the instant it threatens to make its appearance in earnest. King Kamsa, acting on this traditional fear, is never slow to take the scientific precaution of deputing empiric teachers of the scriptures, backed by the resources of dictionary and grammar and all empiric subtleties to put down, by the show of specious arguments based on hypothetical principles, the true interpretation of the eternal religion revealed by the scriptures.
Kamsa is strongly persuaded that faith in the transcendental can be effectively put down by empiricism if prompt and decisive measures are adopted at the very outset. He attributes the failure of atheism in the past to the neglect of the adoption of such measures before the theistic fallacy has had time to spread among the fanatical masses.
But Kamsa is found to count without his host. When Krishna is born, He is found to be able to upset all sinister designs against those who are apprized by Himself of His advent. The apparently causeless faith displayed by persons irrespective of age, sex and condition may confound all rabid empiricists who are on principle adverse to the Absolute Truth Whose appearance is utterly incompatible with the domination of empiricism.
But no adverse efforts of the empiricists whose rule seems till then to be perfectly well-established over the minds of the deluded souls of this world can dissuade any person from exclusively following the Truth when He actually manifests His birth in the pure cognitive essence of the soul.
Putana [the demoness who tried to kill Krishna] is the slayer of all infants. The baby, when he or she comes out of the mother’s womb, falls at once into the hands of the pseudo-teachers of religion. These teachers are successful in forestalling the attempts of the good preceptor whose help is never sought by the atheists of this world at the baptism of their babies. This is ensured by the arrangements of all established churches of the world. They have been successful only in supplying watchful Putanas for effecting the spiritual destruction of persons from the moment of their birth with cooperation of their worldly parents. No human contrivance can prevent these Putanas from obtaining possession of their pulpits. This is due to the general prevalence of atheistic disposition in the people of this world.
The church that has the best chance of survival in this damned world is that of atheism under the convenient guise of theism. The churches have always proved the staunchest upholders of the grossest form of worldliness from which even the worst of non-ecclesiastical criminals are found to recoil.
It is not from any deliberate opposition to the ordained clergy that these observations are made. The original purpose of the established churches of the world may not always be objectionable. But no stable religious arrangement for instructing the masses has yet been successful. The Supreme Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, in pursuance of the teachings of the scriptures enjoins all absence of conventionalism for the teachers of the eternal religion. It does not follow that the mechanical adoption of the unconventional life by any person will make him a fit teacher of religion. Regulation is necessary for controlling the inherent worldliness of conditioned souls.
But no mechanical regulation has any value, even for such a purpose. The bona-fide teacher of religion is neither any product of, nor the favourer of, any mechanical system. In his hands no system has likewise the chance of denigrating into a lifeless arrangement. The mere pursuit of fixed doctrines and fixed liturgies cannot hold a person to the true spirit of doctrine or liturgy.
The idea of an organized church in an intelligible form, indeed, marks the close of the living spiritual movement. The great ecclesiastical establishments are the dikes and dams to retain the current that cannot be held by any such contrivances. They, indeed, indicate a desire on the part of the masses to exploit a spiritual movement for their own purpose. They also unmistakably indicate the end of the absolute and unconventional guidance of the bona-fide spiritual teacher. The people of this world understand preventive systems, they have no idea at all of the unprevented positive eternal life. Neither can there be any earthy contrivance for the permanent preservation of the life eternal on this mundane plane on the popular scale.
Those are, therefore, greatly mistaken who are disposed to look forward to the amelioration of the worldly state in any worldly sense from the worldly success of any really spiritual movement. It is these worldly expectants who become the patrons of the mischievous race of the pseudo-teachers of religion, the Putanas, whose congenial function is to stifle the theistic disposition at the very moment of its suspected appearance. But the theistic disposition can never be stifled by the efforts of those Putanas. The Putanas have power only over the atheist. It is a thankless but salutary task which they perform for the benefit of their unwilling victims.
But as soon as theistic disposition proper makes its appearance in the pure cognitive essence of the awakened soul, the Putanas are decisively silenced at the very earliest stage of their encounter with the new-born Krishna. The would-be slayer of herself slain. This is the reward of the negative services that the Putanas unwittingly render to the cause of theism by strangling all hypocritical demonstrations against their own hypocrisy.
But Putana does not at all like to receive her reward in only form which involves the total destruction of her wrong personality. King Kamsa also does not like to lose the services of the most trusted of his agents. The effective silencing of the whole race of pseudo-teachers of religion is the first clear indication of the appearance of the Absolute on the mundane plane. The bona-fide teacher of the Absolute, heralds the Advent of Krishna by his uncompromising campaign against the pseudo-teachers of religion.
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Results of bad association-iskcon gurus, Duryodhana types etc etc
(1). “A person who knows things as they are and still does not bear witness becomes involved in sinful activities.” (CC Madhya 5.90)
(2). Prabhupada: But one who tolerates mischievous activity, he is also culprit. If you are mischievous, you are criminal. But if you tolerate mischievous activities that is also criminal. (Conv, May 3, 1973)
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“Brahmanas, the topmost section of human society, are mostly devotees. They are generally unaware of the happenings within the material world because they are always busy in their activities for spiritual advancement. Nonetheless, when there is a calamity in human society, they cannot remain impartial. If they do not do something to relieve the distressed condition of human society, it is said that due to such neglect their spiritual knowledge diminishes.” (SB 4.14.41 Purport)
(1). “…one who is mischievous, he is culprit. But one who tolerates mischievous activity, he is also culprit. If you are mischievous, you are criminal. But if you tolerate mischievous activities that is also criminal. “
(Srila Prabhupada)
(2). .(Conv, July 9, 1975) Harikeśa: They are being quiet. They are too afraid to say.
Prabhupāda: That means they are accepting. When they are quiet… Quiet means… Maunaṁ śamyati rakṣaṇam. If there is some argument and you remain quiet that means indirectly you accept.
“…Both the Pāndavas and the sons of Dhrtarāsṭra belong to the same family, but Dhrtarāsṭra’s mind is disclosed herein. He deliberately claimed only his sons as Kurus, and he separated the sons of Pāndu from the family heritage…” (Bhagavad-gita As It Is 1.1; 1972)
“…As far as the others are concerned—like Jayadratha, Krtavarmā, Śalya, etc.—all are determined to lay down their lives for Duryodhana’s sake. In other words, it is already concluded that all of them would die in the Battle of Kuruksetra for joining the party of the sinful Duryodhana. Duryodhana was, of course, confident of his victory on account of the above-mentioned combined strength of his friends…” (Bgita 1.9)
“…Duryodhana clearly felt that the victory of the Kurus depended on the presence of Bhīsmadeva. He was confident of the full support of Bhīsmadeva and Dronācārya in the battle because he well knew that they did not even speak a word when Arjuna’s wife Draupadī, in her helpless condition, had appealed to them for justice while she was being forced to strip naked in the presence of all the great generals in the assembly. Although he knew that the two generals had some sort of affection for the Pāndavas, he hoped that all such affection would now be completely given up by them, as was customary during the gambling performances…” (Bgita 1.11)
“…It was an open secret that Duryodhana wanted to usurp the kingdom of the Pāndavas by evil plans, in collaboration with his father, Dhrtarāsṭra. Therefore, all persons who had joined the side of Duryodhana must have been birds of the same feather…” (Bgita 1.23)
“… According to scriptural codes, a teacher who engages in an abominable action and has lost his sense of discrimination is fit to be abandoned. Bhīsma and Drona were obliged to take the side of Duryodhana because of his financial assistance, although they should not have accepted such a position simply on financial considerations. Under the circumstances, they have lost the respectability of teachers. But Arjuna thinks that nevertheless they remain his superiors, and therefore to enjoy material profits after killing them would mean to enjoy spoils tainted with blood…” (Bgita 2.5)
Note: Thus we see that Bhismadeva, even though he was a great devotee, and a Mahajana, he sided along with, and was maintained by Duryodhana, because of financial considerations, and thus he was destined to be killed by Lord Sri Krishna. Similarly, because they are concerned about their maintenance and positions, all the ISKCON misleaders and ISKCON senior devotees have sided with the primary suspects on the poison issue. Although presented with the evidence, they all chose to deny even Srila Prabhupada’s own clear statements about being poisoned just to politically favor the existing ruling elite. Thus they have acted just like Bhisma and Drona and will surely have to face the consequences for their great misdeed. Some misleaders have even ridiculed or laughed at the notion of Srila Prabhupada’s poisoning. How can devotees allow themselves to be led by such corrupted, dishonest persons who have engaged in fraud, lies, deceit, and blind denial to cover up the substantial evidence in this matter?
Evil flourishes when good men do nothing
Srila Prabhupada in a May 17, 1975 morning walk:
“Regarding the position of a person who does not speak even when he knows the truth: jani saksi nahi deya tara papa haya. ‘A person who knows things as they are and still does not bear witness becomes involved in sinful activities‘.”
SB 4.8.5 Purport
“Malam means: ‘contamination’. We should learn to despise all the causes of devastation, beginning from irreligion and cheating, and then we shall be able to make advancement in a life of piety.”
And if these aren’t enough, here are a few more from SB, and Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur
SB 10.44.9,10
“Religious principles have certainly been violated in this assembly. One should not remain for even a moment in a place where irreligion is flourishing. A wise person should not enter an assembly if he knows the participants there are committing acts of impropriety. And if, having entered such an assembly, he fails to speak the truth, speaks falsely or pleads ignorance, he will certainly incur sin.”
Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur:
Patrikara Uddesya, Sajjana Tosani:
“In the name of bhakti in many places people are engaged in illicit or anti-bhakti activities in the name of practicing bhakti. If one does not expose those issues (cases) very clearly, then pure bhakti will never be victorious or be established.”
Bheka Dharana, Sajjana Tosani.
“One should compulsorily engage in endeavoring to trying to uplift the Vaisnava Dharma from the mud of contamination and trying to free it from all kinds of dauratmya (wrong ideas and practices).”
“In the name of bhakti in many places people are engaged in illicit or anti-bhakti activities in the name of practicing bhakti. If one does not expose those issues (cases) very clearly, then pure bhakti will never be victorious or be established.”
Bheka Dharana, Sajjana Tosani.
“One should compulsorily engage in endeavoring to trying to uplift the Vaisnava Dharma from the mud of contamination and trying to free it from all kinds of dauratmya (wrong ideas and practices).”
From Srila Prabhupada’s Jun 4, 1974 SB 1.13.15 lecture (Yamaraja/GBC)
Yamarāja is one of the GBC of Kṛṣṇa. Yes. As we have got twelve GBC’s, similarly Kṛṣṇa has got GBC’s. Now,
svayambhūr nāradaḥ śambhuḥ
kumāraḥ kapilo manuḥ
prahlādo janako bhīṣmo
balir vaiyāsakir vayam
[SB 6.3.20]
kumāraḥ kapilo manuḥ
prahlādo janako bhīṣmo
balir vaiyāsakir vayam
[SB 6.3.20]
That twelve men are authorized to preach Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So we have to follow. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ. Therefore we have created these GBC. So they should be very responsible men. Otherwise, they will be punished. They will be punished to become a śūdra. Although Yamarāja is a GBC, but he made a little mistake. He was punished to become a śūdra. So those who are GBC’s, they should be very, very careful to administer the business of ISKCON. Otherwise they will be punished. As the post is very great, similarly, the punishment is also very great. That is the difficulty. You can see from this example, Vidura. He was immediately punished. He did little mistake at Maṇḍūka…
And here is this from someone who isn’t a “Hare Krsna”:
Edmond Burke: “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
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implicated in sinful activity by association
Srila Prabhupāda: (aside:) That child…? So that separation… Crows will not like to live with the ducks and white swans. And white swans will not like to live with the crows. That is natural division. “Birds of the same feather flock together.
Jagadīśa: And honest men don’t like to associate with thieves and criminals.
Jagadīśa: If you know that someone is committing criminal activities, then if you associate with them, you’ll also become implicated.
Conversation on Train to Allahabad with His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda January 11, 1977, Allahabad, India
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Aug51973-London—Therefore Arjuna is considering, “How can I kill Bhīṣma?” But duty is so strong. Kṛṣṇa is advising, “Yes, he must be killed because he has gone to the other side. He has forgotten his duty. He should have joined you. Therefore he is no more in the position of guru. You must kill him. He has wrongly joined the other party. Therefore there is no harm, killing him. Similarly Droṇācārya. Similarly Droṇācārya. I know they are great personalities, they have got great affection. But only on material consideration they have gone there.” What is that material consideration?Bhīṣma thought that “I am maintained by the money of Duryodhana. Duryodhana is maintaining me. Now he is in danger. If I go to the other side, then I should be ungrateful. He has maintained me so long. And if I, in the time of danger, when there is fighting, if I go to the other side, that will be…” He thought like this. He did not think that “Duryodhana may be maintaining, but he has usurped the property of the Pāṇḍavas.” But it is his greatness. He knew that Arjuna will never be killed because Kṛṣṇa is there. “So from material point of view, I must be grateful to Duryodhana.” The same position was for Droṇācārya. They were maintained.
Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said that viṣayīra anna khāile malīna hayamana [Cc. Antya 6.278]. Such great personalities became darkened because they took money from them, anna. If I am provided by somebody who is too much materialist, then that will affect me. I will become also materialist. I will also become materialist. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu has warned that “Those who are viṣayī, those who are not devotees, do not accept anything from them because it will make your mind unclean.” So therefore a brāhmaṇa and a Vaiṣṇava, they do not accept directly money. They accept bhikṣā. Bhikṣā.
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You are also one of the members of the GBC, so you can think over very deeply how to save the situation. “It is a fact however that the great sinister movement is within our Society.” Srila Prabhupada letter to Hamsaduta , Kalkata 2-9-1970