IRG : 'Guru reform' resolutions following Bombay meetings


Results of Bombay meeting July 23rd thru 27th.

Proposed Resolutions:

* Srila Prabhupad's position:

1. For all generations of ISKCON, Srila Prabhupada is the pre-eminent and perpetual link to the Brahma-Madhva-Gaudiya sampradaya.

2. He and he alone shall perpetually occupy the Seat at the head of ISKCON as the sole Acharya.

3. As long as ISKCON lasts as a preaching mission under Srila Prabhupad's order, Srila Prabhupad is present in the world and remains the manifest link to the parampara.

4. Any initiated devotee in ISKCON who is sincerely following the teachings of Srila Prabhupad should be understood and respected as having a relationship with His Divine Grace as a direct and indirect disciple.

4.1 A direct relationship with Srila Prabhupada is established whenever an aspirant develops faith (sraddha) by coming into contact with the Krsna consciousness Movement. That aspirant thereby directly connects with Srila Prabhupada via one or both, of his currently manifested forms: His vani, which is his books and writings, and his vapu, or functional body, which is ISKCON and its members.

4.2 As the spiritual life of the candidate develops, he becomes further and further incorporated into the body of ISKCON. An essential element in this process is the acceptance of a diksa guru. This acceptance is enjoined by Srila Prabhupada and by sastra as essential for further spiritual development. This diksa strengthens, enriches, and enlarges the direct connection with Srila Prabhupada.

4.3 So inviolable is this connection with Srila Prabhupad that, as long as the devotee keeps faith with Srila Prabhupad, his relationship remains undiminished even if his own diksa guru should deviate.

5. Initiating gurus in ISKCON are servants of Srila Prabhupada; the duty of these servants is to insure that the master more prominent than himself.

6. Deliverance of the disciple is done by three agents working in concert; Srila Prabhupada himself, ISKCON (Srila Prabhupada's functional body with its various members), and the individual servants who personally care for the disciples (the initiating guru, the temple president, and other guides and teachers). Thus it is Srila Prabhupada who delivers the disciple, acting by himself and through his books, his society, and his devotees

In answer to the question "Who delivers the disciple?" the answer is "Srila Prabhupad, via his books, his society, and his devotees.

* Siksa Gurus in ISKCON:

A similar set of statements as those above about Srila Prabhupad's position should also be developed about siksa gurus in ISKCON, the many senior devotees who help train and guide ISKCON's members along the path of Krsna con-sciousness (san-nyasis, temple presidents etc.) The goal should be to highlight and expand on this essential element of Gaudiya Vaisnava culture.

* Training and Education:

Rather than designing a system which accepts a lower level of Krsna consciousness as the status quo (as the rtvic system does), we are proposing a system which pushes ISKCON's members to a higher standard. The following points outline steps towards this goal and top priority should be given to their
immediate development and implementation.

1. Initial and on-going training and education for all ISKCON gurus. Elements should include:

a) "Bhaktivedanta" degree required of all ISKCON gurus before they are allowed to initiate disciples
b) initial and refresher courses on pastoral counseling, interpersonal skills
c) a course in ISKCON's laws and standards
d) training, guidelines, and suggested systems to provide for the counseling of women and married couples

2. Bhakti sastra degrees required of all candidates before they can receive second initiation

* Assessments and Reviews:

1. Annual financial disclosure for all ISKCON leaders (gurus, sannyasis, regional secretaries, temple presidents) covering income, expenditures, and assets in their own name, or trusts, accounts, and or businesses they control directly or via their agents. Also include should be ISKCON funds spent on their
travel and personal needs.

2. Additional regular personal reviews and assessments for all ISKCON gurus should be done. Elements of those reviews should include:

a) sadhana standards
b) philosophical understanding
c) ability and proof of system to train and care for disciples d) ability to engage and work with disciples of other gurus
e) cooperation with other ISKCON authorities f) participation in on-going training courses g) financial disclosure
h) practical engagement and service

An unsatisfactory review would result in guidelines for improvement.

Failure to follow them would lead to suspension and ultimately cessation of
ISKCON approval to initiate.

3. There should be a review, along the guidelines listed above, of all current ISKCON gurus

4. There should be a standing committee to handle complaints and concerns about ISKCON gurus and to intervene before a crisis develops.

* Guru authorization process:

1. Our current "no falldown" period should be increased from the current five years to ten years minimum.

2. There should be an initial probationary period for new gurus with following restrictions:

a) the new guru should initiate candidates only from the area which recommended him.
b) the new guru should be allowed to initiate only a limited number of disciples
c) there should be careful annual review every year for three to five years

* Notes:

There were additional concerns and suggestion which have come up repeatedly and
will need to be discussed.

a) Expense and nature of individual vyasapujas (this can be quite an expense and source of contention for a large multi-guru temple)
b) Personal projects of individual guru (independent of ISKCON oversights and standards)
c) Number of disciples and the ability of individual gurus to give them the necessary training and association
d) Tendency of some gurus to surround themselves with and engage only their own disciples

-----------------------------------------

Research questions

IRG : We will be submitting a response to these proposals in due course.