@ 1975: GBC RESOLUTIONS, March 1975

1) Jayatirtha presented a definition of GBC, which was accepted as follows:

Resolved: The GBC (Governing Body Commissioned) has been established by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada to represent Him in carrying out the responsibility of managing the International Society for Krishna Consciousness of which He is the Founder-Acarya and supreme authority. The GBC accepts as its life and soul His divine instructions and recognizes that it is completely dependent on His mercy in all respects. The GBC has no other function or purpose other than to execute the instructions so kindly given by His Divine Grace and preserve and spread his Teachings to the world in their pure form.

It is understood that the GBC, as  a collective body of 14-members has been authorized by His Divine Grace to make necessary arrangements for carrying out these responsibilities of management. These arrangements may include delegating authority, managing resources, setting objectives, making plans, calling for reports, evaluating results, training others, maintaining spiritual standards and defining sphere of influence of the various GBC members as well as other devotees.

The members of the GBC do not have any inherent authority but rather derive their authority from the Governing Body Commission itself and ultimately from His Divine Grace. Their authority may be over a particular geographic area or over a particular function. Whichever area of responsibility be given to the various members their primary responsibility is to the society as a whole.

2) Resolved: A GBC member should not consider himself as the whole GBC, but as a member or commissioner, commissioned by the whole Governing Board.

3) Resolved: The Governing Board may authorized one of its commissioners to go to any GBC member to get a report from him on his activities. The GBC member must co-operate and give the Board his report.

4) Resolved: If a GBC man whose behavior is in question does not co-operate, Srila Prabhupada and the GBC must immediately be informed.

5) Resolved: The selection of GBC members is that Srila Prabhupada will nominate, and if there is a discrepancy, His Grace will change him. There will be no elections, and the present GBC member will remain.

6) Resolved: An annual oath of allegiance should be signed by each GBC and Temple President.

7) Resolved: Committees may be formed from time to time by His Divine Grace for a certain purpose and may be disbanded by Him.

8) Resolved: The GBC must resolved the problem: Indian Life Members are complaining that they are not getting the books, due to Indian temples spending BBT funds on maintenance.

9) Resolved: In order to receive first initiation one must have been a full time member for 6-months. For second initiation, there should be at least another one year after first initiation.

March 26th 1975

1) Resolved: Each Temple President should submit a monthly report to the GBC, containing an itemized account of income and expenditure. The report should include number of books sold , and inventor of books. A GBC member can go to the center and see and correct any unbonafide expenditure.

2) Resolved: An information card will be kept on each devotee, containing personal information. It will be kept on file at the temple he is staying in, and another copy will be kept by the GBC. The card will be transfered wherever the devotee is.

3) Resolved: If a devotee wants to change temples, his present President should agree as well as the new temple president. The GBC member may be consulted if there is disagreement.

4) Resolved: There should be no change of Presidents but difficulties should be worked out. In the case of an incorrigible President who

     1)doesn't submit reports or submits false reports

     2) who mis-spends money

     3) who doesn't follow regulative principles he must be changed. Three GBC men may decide on this in an urgent case and in a non-urgent case it may be done by majority vote of GBC by letter.

5) Resolved: No new thing should be instituted within a year, but at the annual meeting.

6) Resolved: Each GBC has to spend one month a year with Srila Prabhupada.

7) Resolved: The GBC will vote in yearly meeting how the 50% of the BBT money will be spent.

8) Resolved: The GBC member should co-operate to send men to ISKCON Africa.

March 27, 1975

1) Resolved: GBC members will stay with Srila Prabhupada one month each:

APRIL                                       BRAHMANANDA SWAMI

MAY                                         HAMSADUTTA DAS

JUNE                                        BHAGAVAN DAS

JULY                                        JAYATIRTHA DAS

AUGUST                                      SATSVARUPA DAS GOSWAMI

SEPTEMBER                                   HRDAYANANDA DAS GOSWAMI

OCTOBER                                     RUPANUGA DAS

NOVEMBER                                    GURUKRPA SWAMI

DECEMBER                                    KIRTANANANDA SWAMI

JANUARY                                     MADHUVISA SWAMI

FEBRUARY                                    TAMAL KRISHNA GOSWAMI

MARCH                                       GOPAL KRISHNA DAS

2) Resolved: Method of initiating sannyasi:

Each year at Gaur Purnima festival, any GBC member can nominate a man from zone for sannyasa. The man must be a preacher and not sexually inclined. He must be an initiated brahmin. GBC should avoid recommending a sannyasi whimsically. After his nomination is recorded, then a year must pass, and if at the next Gaur Purnima festival, the man has continually preached and not fallen down, he can be initiated.

Hrdayananda Goswami submitted the name of two Brahmacaris, Viraha and Pramana, and Brahmananda Maharaj submitted the names of Jagat Guru and Navayogendra, and Tamal Krishna Goswami submitted the name of Dristadyumna, and Gopal Krishna recommended Satadhanya.

3)  Resolved: A meeting will be held at 3pm. March 28 to discuss Gurukul and Spiritual Sky Incence Co.  A meeting will be held at 3 pm. March 29 to discuss Indian BBT and Indian temple maintenance and India in general. Garga Muni Swami and Giriraj das should attend. A meeting may be held whenever other meetings are finished to discuss ISKCON Press and BTG. Rameswara, Radhavallabha and Gopijanavallabha should attend.

4)  Resolved: All BBT paintings not sold three months after completion should be sent to Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir.

5) Openings of an ISKCON temple must be done at Gaur Purnima after consideration of entire GBC at annual meeting. Once opened, a temple should never be closed.

March 27, 1975:

1)  Resolved: GBC has divided zones as follows, based on recommendation of Srila Prabhupada that GBC members should have jurisdiction over no more that about 6-temples.

Rupanuga das- New York, Boston, Wash. D.C., Philadelphia, Baltimore, Atlanta.

Kirtanananda Swami- New Vrndavan, Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh.

Satsvarupa das Goswami- Miami, Gainesville, New Orleans, St. Louis, Phoenix, Denver, Houston.

Jagadish das- Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Winnipes, Chicago, Detroit, Ann Arbor, Dallas.

Jayatirtha das- Los Angeles, San Francisco, Laguna Beach, San Diego, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver.

Gurukrpa Swami- Japan and Hawai.

Hrdayananda Swami- South America and Caribean.

Bhagavan Das- Barcelona, Paris, France; farm Geneva, Rome.

Hamsadutta das- Frankfurt, Stockholm, Copenhagen, London, Bhaktivedanta Manor, Berlin.

2)  Resolved: No temple shall be opened in Zurich during the following year. Any temple opening requires consultations with the whole GBC.

3)  Resolved: Amsterdam temple shall be in Bhagavan das's zone. All spiritual sky profit shall go to support Amsterdam center.

4)  Resolved: Madhuvisa Swami- his zone include Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Fiji and the Phillipines.

5) Resolved: Gopal Krishna Goswami- his zone is India and also S.E. Asia excluding Japan, Phillipines and Indonesia.

6) Resolved: Brahmananda Swami- Africa, including North Africa. North Africa should be developed jointly with Atreya Rsi.

7) Atreya Rsi does not want zonal responsibilities but is responsible for any future development in the entire Mid-East.

8) Resolved: Tamal Krishna's travelling buses are his jurisdiction.

March 28, 1975:

1) Resolved: Dallas should increase their Sankirtan by training their own men in Dallas. Tripurari will be

requested to help them by contributing his profits for 6-months.

2) Resolved: Unless he becomes a first class devotee and follows the four regulative principles, Karandhar must be removed as President of Spiritual Sky.

March 29, 1975

1) Resolved: Ramesvara das is appointed a trustee of BBT.

2) Resolved: The ISKCON Press will be moved to LA. In order to compensate for the loss of considerable manpower for New York, Bhavananda Maharaj will go to New York for preaching six months a year. Trivikrama Swami and Tusta Krishna Swami will remain in Mayapur to assist Jayapataka Swami.

3) Resolved: Gadadhara Pandit will go to LA to take over the Presidentship of Spiritual sky Incence Co. Karandhara will stay for one month to turn over the Management.

4)  Resolved: Tamal Krishna Maharaj is granted permission to increase his SKP fleet by six buses amounting to BBT loans up to 60,000 dollars.

5) Resolved: ISKCON India temples will pay cash in advance for BBT books and they may then sell them and distribute profits above costs to temple maintainance and the building fund, as they determine.

6) Resolved: A general meeting will be held March on 30th at which all Temple Presidents will attend and hear the resolutions adopted at the above GBC meetings.