WHY AFFILIATE TO ISKCON, INC.?

Nimai Pandit dasa

Just as Srila Prabhupada listed the 34 "branches" at that time around the world, in Direction of Management, dated July 28, 1970, including some which were barely started, what we sometimes call Namahatta, (Amsterdam center did not even have an address!-see the 1st in the list) and appointed 12 GBCs for them, similarly we can also prepare a list of the centers affiliated with the same Society 42 years on and elect GBCs. All these together then will be called ISKCON centers or ISKCON, Inc. centers.

The reason many Prabhupadanugas worldwide are feeling the need of affiliating with ISKCON, Inc. is that Srila Prabhupada made ISKCON, INC. as we see above. And he was using it as his worldwide society for many years.

This society was not made by any other devotee(s). Hence it is much easier for devotees around the world to associate with/ work with this society rather then some other society which, though transcendentally could be ISKCON if following the purposes of ISKCON, but still organizationally it is different, hence most devotees are not able to cooperate on one platform. Especially now that Srila Prabhupada’s worldwide movement has been highjacked and the followers of Srila Prabhupada feeling out of place in “ISKCON”, many already having left it for many years, many not even joined it, but all more or less working alone, or just barely surviving alone. Hence it is very important at this time to find ONE platform to work together.

How would the worldwide devotees work together if they cannot even agree on any one name of the international Society, as is the case now when there are so many regional or local groups of Prabhupadanugas but there is no agreement on one common name of an international society?

(Please note that we do not want to forget Srila Prabhupada’s instruction to decentralize but still ONE decentralized worldwide Society is what is being proposed and being desired.)

Can we ALL agree on any one name of that International Society other than the one already given by Srila Prabhupada?

ISKCON. International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

Hence combining around name ISKCON of a worldwide society becomes imperative. International Society for Krishna Consciousness, Inc., established by Srila Prabhupada himself in 1966 in New York (from where the 7 purposes of ISKCON are coming from), provides that name.

Moreover, Srila Prabhupada’s books are filled with references to ISKCON and International Society for Krishna Consciousness.  They do not contain references to BBT or any other entity created by Srila Prabhupada. So are those statements time and place statements or false? Are we to somehow justify these statements, when a viable alternative in the form of ISKCON, Inc. exists with us.

Also as the basic Management directives of ISKCON are given by Srila Prabhupada himself, namely the Direction of Management, on the letterhead of ISKCON, Inc,referring to all the centers existing in the world at that time, 34 in total, to be “branches” of this ISKCON, Inc., and making a GBC for those centers, there is much more chance that most may agree to follow Srila Prabhupada’s system of management rather then that conceived of by another devotee however well intended.

These 2 criteria unique to ISKCON, Inc.lendsus more chances that real long-term cooperation could happen among Prabhupadanugas worldwide.