| Home | “Either they were ritvik gurus before AND AFTER Śrīla Prabhupāda’s disappearance, or their “guru” service ceased to exist after his disappearance.” |
The GBC now says that the zonal ācārya system was a
“deviation.” They also say that the original 11 ritvik
representatives of the ācārya’s service as “ritvik gurus” ceased
to exist at the time of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s disappearance on
November 14th, 1977, and that Śrīla Prabhupāda never appointed any
gurus.
Therefore, according to the GBC, they, the original 11 “gurus,” had the same status as Śrīla Prabhupāda’s personal servant. That is, when Śrīla Prabhupāda left, their ritvik service was finished. Then they should have simply gone back to being ordinary GBCs, sannyāsīs, grihasthas, non-GBCs, etc., just like Śrīla Prabhupāda’s personal servant did. Prabhupāda needed ritviks to help him, so he chose ones who were willing to do this service, and most of whom were already on the GBC (all except Bhavānanda, whom Śrīla Prabhupāda never put on the GBC), so that additional air fare would not have to be paid for them to fly from temple to temple, initiating “whomever was nearest.” This was simply a practical management decision. Therefore, shouldn’t their guru status now, according to the GBC, be null and void?
Either they were ritvik gurus before AND AFTER Śrīla Prabhupāda’s disappearance, or their “guru” service ceased to exist after his disappearance. The GBC can’t have it both ways!
If their “guru” service DID cease to exist after Śrīla Prabhupāda’s disappearance, then what did Śrīla Prabhupāda intend, for post-samadhi initiations within ISKCON? Ravīndra Swarupa Dāsa didn’t dream up ISKCON’s current system of initiations until 1986! Are we to believe that Śrīla Prabhupāda intended for all those who wanted to be initiated in 1978 to wait for eight years to be initiated?
I would be very grateful if the GBC would please come up with a logical explanation for this obvious anomaly. As I’ve said before, to say that Śrīla Prabhupāda was negligent in regards to making it extremely clear how initiations were to be continued in post-samadhi ISKCON is a very great offense against my Guru Mahārāja, Śrīla Prabhupāda!
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