NEWSLETTER OF THE ISKCON REVIVAL MOVEMENT (IRM) 
Issue 65, May 18th, 2004

Dear Devotees:

[ technical problem apology]

Your servants at www.iskconirm.com

FOUNDER OF GURU HOAX FALLS, BUT REMAINS GURU

In the last IRM newsletter (No. 64, “Satsvarupa’s Valentine Hodge Podge”) we described in detail the mental and spiritual breakdown of His Holiness Satsvarupa dasa Goswami, citing his attraction for mundane literature, pop music and the production of his nightmarish ‘artwork’. We ended with the following prophetic warning:

“Obviously he needs help, and fast. Our prescription is that he publicly admits he was never authorised to do what he is doing, that he renounce his disciples and give them back to the person on whose behalf he was meant to be initiating all along - Srila Prabhupada. At least his disciples can never say we did not warn them.”

(“Satsvarupa’s Valentine Hodge Podge”, IRM Newsletter 64)

Unfortunately, our prescription was not accepted, and now it has been publicly announced that HH Satsvarupa dasa Goswami (SDG) has been asked to stop initiating further disciples, due to a falldown he had with a female about one-and-a-half years ago. [HH Satsvarupa dasa Goswami was the lynchpin of the Great Guru Hoax in 1978 which resulted in the Zonal Acharya system, where Srila Prabhupada was removed as the Guru of ISKCON by 11 bogus self-appointed ‘successors’, led by Satsvarupa Maharaja himself. He was the ‘saintly’ devotee who gave the system credibility and kept it afloat]. The announcement from the GBC and SDG is given below:

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Concerning Satsvarupa Maharaja
Posted May 11, 2004

GBC Executive Committee Statement

Dear Devotees,

Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

The following statement from the GBC Executive Committee represents ISKCON's official position on the subject at hand.

At the end of this posting you will find a candid letter from Satsvarupa dasa Goswami about a falldown that occurred in his spiritual life about a year and a half ago. This took place within the context of his ongoing endeavors to serve while struggling with debilitated health.

The GBC Executive Committee would first like to express its deep gratitude toward Satsvarupa das Goswami, a much loved devotee in the Hare Krsna movement, and acknowledge his career of dedicated devotional service, exemplary sadhana, and inspired literary preaching on behalf of Srila Prabhupada.

As a GBC Emeritus, Satsvarupa Maharaja holds no official position in the management of ISKCON and is unlikely ever to do so.

In consultation with the GBC EC, he has agreed to retire from initiating; he will not initiate any more disciples.

His present disciples are encouraged to go on steadily in their devotional service to ISKCON and Srila Prabhupada, and he will continue to offer guidance and care as they so desire.

As Srila Prabhupada writes in Bhagavad-gita (9.30): "Sometimes it may be seen that a person in Krsna consciousness commits some act which may be taken as most abominable socially or politically. But such a temporary falldown does not disqualify him. The material contamination is so strong that even a yogi fully engaged in the service of the Lord sometimes becomes ensnared; but Krsna consciousness is so strong that such an occasional falldown is at once rectified. Therefore the process of devotional service is always a success."

Satsvarupa Maharaja has re-dedicated himself to his vows and asrama and is committed to his full recovery and service to Srila Prabhupada. We offer him our wholehearted affection, encouragement, and support.

Out of respect for Satsvarupa Maharaja, we request all devotees to give him the time, space and privacy he requires to recover fully. Out of respect and honour for the sacrifices he has made on behalf of Srila Prabhupada and ISKCON these many years, we encourage devotees everywhere to offer him their support, prayers, and good wishes.

Your servants,
GBC Executive Committee

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Letter From Satsvarupa Maharaja
May 1, 2004

Dear Maharajas and Prabhus,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

There has been gathering exposure that I, Satsvarupa Maharaja, and a female therapist had a short-lived romantic involvement about one and a half years ago. As many of you may know, I have tried many therapies over the years to try and cure what is a severe case of "anxiety disorder anticipatory migraine." In one such effort a Godsister was helping me as a counselor, and regrettably I held sessions alone with her. And so the relationship developed.

I certainly committed a mistake, and I felt relieved when I wrote a letter of confession to the ISKCON sannyasa minister. He asked me if she and I had sexual intercourse, and I honestly said "no." Krsna saved us from that.

I feel like I want to explain what steps I've taken to protect myself from further problems. The saying "once burnt, twice shy" certainly applies to me. In addition to any consequences endorsed by the GBC, I feel great personal shame. On the other hand, this has increased my intimacy with Krsna in prayer. I know, for example, that a sannyasi should never be alone with a woman. I am suffering third-degree burns by disobeying this simple first instruction for sannyasis I'm determined to never make that same mistake again. I am praying constantly to Prabhupada and associating with my Godbrothers in a humble mood.

My health is not good, but I don't wish to dwell on it here. I'm under the care of an expert psychiatrist MD and an authorized counsellor who is helping me with my anxiety issues. I consider my status to be semi-retired. I will not be initiating any new devotees. I am serving the devotee community by writing books and also answering letters. I served in an active capacity for almost 40 years and I can't keep it up. I am not avoiding the society of devotees. I simply can't travel in cars or planes to go to temples or festivals, to sing or dance or give lectures. Maybe each of you will reach that stage sooner or later.

I am profoundly sorry that I slipped and fell on the road this way, a 64-year-old sannyasi who had no other brush with a woman. I thought for sure I'd get through to the end with a perfect record. Krsna must have seen I was proud. I pray He allows me to remain in ISKCON and follow the rules and regulations to my dying day. I heard that Sridhara Swami told a Godbrother just before he passed away, "Be who you are and make a contribution." I think I have written this same sentence in my books. I fall at the feet of all devotees and ask their forgiveness.

Yours in the service of Prabhupada,
Satsvarupa das Goswami

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Please note the following:

a) The falldown supposedly happened one-and-a-half years ago. Yet action is only being taken NOW. This means that either the GBC or SDG, or both, have been engaged in a mass cover-up, and this so-called ‘admission’ has only come to light not because of any honesty or integrity on the part of the parties concerned, but because they were forced into doing so due to various stories which had been floating around on the internet for the last few weeks. As SDG himself admits, there has been “gathering exposure” regarding his illicit behaviour, and that is what has led to this announcement. This proves once again, that unless you actually CATCH the GBC or their bogus Gurus doing their cheating nonsense, there is no way on earth any truth or justice will prevail in the current GBC-run ISKCON. That is, SDG is now falling “at the feet of all the devotees” and asking “their forgiveness”, only because what he did a year-and-a-half ago has come to light now. Neither he nor the GBC made any attempt to take any action when the incident happened, but waited until they were forced to do so.

b) Despite all this, SDG has only been asked to stop initiating NEW disciples. He can continue to act as Guru for present disciples. He has not been removed from his position of either ISKCON Guru or sannyasi.

c) SDG also admits that he is so mentally debilitated that he needs to see a psychiatrist AND a counselor. Which makes one wonder how he is spiritually qualified to lead others by writing books and to also continue acting as Guru for the disciples he has already initiated. If one cannot even become free from continuous mental anxiety, then what exactly does that say for a person’s spiritual advancement? What is there to be in so much anxiety and fear about continually, such that it leads to severe headaches, if one is depending on and has realized Krishna?

d) The GBC true to form have trotted out the purport from Bhagavad-gita 9:30. The conclusion to this purport from Srila Prabhupada actually states:

“On the other hand, one should not misunderstand that a devotee in transcendental devotional service can act in all kinds of abominable ways; the verse only refers to an accident due to the strong power of material connections.” (Bhagavad-gita 9:30 purport)

If a sannyasi having a romantic affair with a member of the opposite sex, with him who he is not even supposed to associate, is an accident, one wonders what lengths one would need to go to, to actually do this deliberately! Further, the verse refers to a regular devotee, not a supposedly fully Krishna conscious Diksa Guru. Those of you with long memories may remember that in 1982 the GBC sent out a letter to all members quoting exactly the same verse in regards to Jayatirtha, after he had fallen down. Only on that occasion they quoted that verse to point out that it did NOT apply, since Jayatirtha was supposed to be a self-realised Diksa Guru, and not a regular devotee. How things can be twisted to suit whatever ends need to be suited at the time!

SDG needs all the help he can get, and we do all pray for his recovery. But let's end this charade of devotees such as him pretending they were authorized as Diksa Gurus. The sooner that is done, the sooner ISKCON can return to sanity.

[to balance the picture, a small testimonial received 
privately from one of Prabhupada's enthusiasts]

In response to my writing to him:
It will always be the case that people disagree with some of my selections. So it goes. There is no universal standard, and i resist ideologically-driven one-size-fits-all solutions. 

i dont want to take to much of your time....

but in the case of the gaudiya vaishnava representatives.....there is a very strong honest emphasis on universality of faith.....i experience this in my own practice.....unfortunately most interpreters misuse this teachings for worldly stuff....but this you can say about any teacher and his followers also those that you marked with 3 symbols..... 

i just ask to overlook the political tensions around those teachings and look at the teachings itself.....they are universally sublime....it is all about love of god.....nothing else....many really pure saintly persons have come out of this tradition......you have to read between the lines it is not about this tradition and that sect or the our sect is the best....no it is about universal love... 

i am not member of iskcon but maybe you can think over the ranking of bhaktivedanta swami prabhupada for example....he gave much more to the world than what can be seen on the first sight......i speak from experience....and believe me i dont identify as a hindu a vaishnava or anything i consider myself a universal spiritualist....and i dont like static concepts of the absolute....just like you... 

thanx for reading

ananda das

AD added subsequently:

the teachings are understood by many as pure and universal despite the orthodox approach...seemingly negative statements in connection with worldly matters can always be reconciled or relativated if the focus stays on the essence of his teachings, with is to realize love of god to the full extend and to learn to live by this love.....often the negativity of this world still visible in the community of any genuine religious group is misjudged as an effect of the teachings of the group. by people with a negative world view. in fact srila prabhupadas teachings represent the pure teachings of the great famous saint sri caitanya.