Srila Prabhupada’s draft (so-called original manuscript):
Original and authorized 1972 Macmillan edition:
“The Supreme Lord said: My dear Arjuna, because you are never envious of Me, I shall impart to you this most secret wisdom, knowing which you shall be relieved of the miseries of material existence.”
“The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: My dear Arjuna, because you are never envious of Me, I shall impart to you this most confidential knowledge and realization, knowing which you shall be relieved of the miseries of material existence.”
Here we, again, see that Jayadvaita Swami’s editing often takes us further away from Srila Prabhupada. We see again and again that the BBT International’s claim to fame, namely that they are making the books “closer to Prabhupada” is false. In fact they are deliberately changing Srila Prabhupada’s own chosen words. In other words, they are violating the principle of arsa-prayoga – again and again.
ISKCON’s unauthorized changes to Srila Prabhupada’s books are the most important issue that we, as followers of Srila Prabhupada, have to clearly understand. Our connection to Srila Prabhupada is through his transcendental books and as he says: “I am living in my books.” So if someone starts messing with Prabhupada’s books he is trying to put himself between Srila Prabhupada and us, the followers of Srila Prabhupada. No follower of Srila Prabhupada would ever tolerate such an intrusion into his relationship with Srila Prabhupada.
ISKCON are trying to force devotees to only purchase books that contain thousands and thousands of unauthorized changes to and they are practically banning the reading and distribution of Srila Prabhupada’s original books.
Srila Prabhupada’s mission was to write, publish and distribute his transcendental books. Prabhupada has taken the timeless knowledge of the Vedas and presented it completely without any compromise in a language and style so easy to understand. Anyone, no matter how fallen, can understand Vaisnava philosophy and become a fixed up devotee of Krishna by reading his books.
Prabhupada’s books are not ordinary books. Srila Prabhupada said every night Krishna would come to him and dictate the books. Every day he would read his own books. When asked by his servant, Srutakiriti Prabhu, why he was reading his own books, Prabhupada answered: “These are not my books, they are Krishna’s books.” Even Prabhupada himself was constantly reading his own books and enjoying great spiritual ecstasy.
As confirmed many times by Ramesvara Prabhu [who was in charge of the BBT and the person ultimately responsible for publishing Srila Prabhupada’s books] Prabhupada’s greatest fear was that after his disappearance his disciples [who were infected with what he called “the American disease”, the tenancy to always change] would change his books and thus ruin everything.
“Prabhupada just explained how everyone’s a rascal for daring to touch anything in his books. The greatest anxiety he has is that after he’s gone we will add things to his books that are bogus, we will take things out that are bona fide, we will make changes in his books and the whole work for 10,000 years, his plan Prabhupada was working on, it will all be spoiled by us because of our tendency to change. And Prabhupada gave an example that the disease to do things differently is so inherent in the Americans that for the sake of doing things differently we would walk on our hands rather than our feet.” (Ramesvara interview 1981)
There are hundreds of direct orders by Srila Prabhupada forbidding changes in his books. Even if they changes were apparently an improvement on principle Prabhupada would not allow any changes to his books:
“I’ve had many experiences with Prabhupada literally drilling me, pounding it into my head thatyou’re never allowed to change anything in his books. He trained me so intensely on this point. Even when the changes make sense he wouldn’t let me change. Just to train me.” (Ramesvara interview 1981)
This order from Srila Prabhupada forbidding changes to his books is no secret. If you read Prabhupada’s letters you can not miss it. It is everywhere. Prabhupada is often complaining about the “American disease” of always changing and he orders his disciples not to change anything.
But unfortunately as soon as Srila Prabhupada left our material vision Jayadvaita Swami started work on a new “Revised and Enlarged” edition of Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is. Jayadvita had been working in the BBT for years and was aware Prabhupada’s greatest fear was that his disciples would change his books after he left. Still Jayadviata had a burning desire to change Prabhupada’s books. Prabhupada’s chosen editor was Hayagriva Prabhu, however Jayadviata considered himself a better editor and thought he could do a better job than Hayagriva had done editing Srila Prabhupada’s books.
So as soon as Prabhupada left the planet Jayadviata tried to go back to the earliest drafts of theBhagavad-gita, before Srila Prabhupada and Hayagriva had edited them, and he tried to remove Hayagriva’s editing style and influence on Prabhupada’s Gita and replace it with his own style and influence.
Hayagriva Prabhu was a University professor in English. Eminently qualified to present Srila Prabhupada’s books in a language and style that was perfect for the Western audience. The combination of Srila Prabhupada’s writing and Hayagriva’s editing was certainly a grand success. On the other hand Jayadviata was a high-school drop-out with no qualifications in regard to the English language, however he was a very good typist. Prabhupada has said in one place that Hayagriva is the best editor and in another place that Jayadviata is the best typist. So it was like that. They were both experts in their respective fields.
Jayadviata got a copy of Prabhupada’s authorized 1972 Macmillan Gita and scribbled his changes on the book. He claims his changes are based on early drafts and transcriptions of dictation tapes, before Prabhupada and Hayagriva had worked on it together extensively. But on close examination this claim turns out to be false. There is very little correlation between the so-called original manuscript and Jayadviata’s changes to Prabhupada’s Gita. Even if it was true he was trying to ‘correct’ Srila Prabhupada’s final, authorized, approved Bhagavad-gita As It Is based on first drafts that had later been corrected and edited by Srila Prabhupada himself and his chosen editor Hayagriva. It is outrageous. It is insane. No author wants his final, edited, approved and published book changed back to some early draft or dictation tape.
Anyhow the result was a “Revised and Enlarged” edition of Bhagavad-gita As It Is containing more than one thousand significant changes. The style and feel of the book has completely changed. Hayagriva’s English is beautiful and poetic and Jayadviata’s Engilsh is as you would expect from a high-school dropout. As well as completely destroying the style and feel of the book he made many philosophical changes, some very subtle and others so outrageous that his “Revised and Enlarged” edition, in places, says the exact opposite to what is said by Srila Prabhupada in his original “Complete Edition.” For example Prabhupada’s original Gita (10.34 purport) says:
“One need not read many books on different subject matters; the ability to remember a few and quote them when necessary is another opulence.”
And Jayadvaita obviously does not like this so he changes it to:
“And the ability not only to read many books on different subject matters but to understand them and apply them when necessary is intelligence (medha), another opulence.”
So the “Revised and Enlarged” Gita encourages reading many books on different subject matters and applying them when necessary while Prabhupada’s Gita discourages this. And we can not find this instruction to read many book on different subject matters anywhere else in Prabhupada’s teachings. This is a new teaching, Jayadviata’s teaching, that has appeared for the first time in his “Revised and Enlarged” Bhagavad-gita. He just inserts his teachings, realizations and interpretations into Prabhupada’s books like this whenever he thinks it is appropriate to do so.
I can not very extensively discuss the changes here because there are so many, unlimited, endless changes, not just in Bhagavad-gita, but in many other books. I would ask you to please go towww.BookChanges.com and make a through study of the articles there.
It is amazing. BBTI gives complete freedom to their editors to change anything they want to in Prabhupada’s books. And there are no checks and balances. The editors don’t even have to keep any records of what they change. They don’t have to tell anyone what they change. BBTI put complete and absolute faith in their editors and allow them to change anything and everything in Prabhupada’s books and then they print the changed books without having the slightest idea what has been changed!
This could never happen anywhere except in ISKCON. Can you imagine any organization, spiritual or otherwise, that would let one unsupervised person with no checks and balances whatsoever change whatever he wanted to change in the vital foundational documentation that forms the basis of the organization? It is insane, completely and absolutely and totally insane. This completely and totally destroys the authority of the books currently being printed by BBTI.
After Dravida (another BBTI editor) reedited Srila Prabhupada’s Caitanya-caritamrta by himself with no checks and balances I asked Jayadviata if he was aware of what changes Dravida had made, his reply was “No. I do not know the specific changes, but I know the categories of the changes he made.” So BBTI printed a significantly changed edition of SriCaitanya-caritamrta without knowing what had been changed!
When questioned about one very radical unauthorized change on the guru issue on page 1 of Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Dravida’s reply was: “What Prabhupada says does not tally with the understanding of guru we currently have in ISKCON… I agonized over this for days… and then decided to change it.”
So “Only BBT” is absolutely out of the question. The unauthorized changed books BBTI are printing carry no authority whatsoever. Even BBTI themselves are unaware of the changes their editors are constantly making to Prabhupada’s books. So no one can know when they are reading a BBTI book if what they are reading is from Prabhupada’s original book or not. No thoughtful person will ever be interested in these unauthorized books. They have purposely implemented a revisionist mentality knowingly in defiance of Srila Prabhupada’s very clear and direct orders not to change his books.
Please purchase cases of Srila Prabhupada’s original books at the wholesale prices fromwww.KrishnaStore.com and distribute them to your friends and family and to the general public. The only way we can solve this problem is by widely distributing Srila Prabhupada’s original books. So please take the responsibility for this. The prices are very reasonable and everything you pay for Prabhupada’s original books will go directly into printing more original Prabhupada books.
Also please read the articles at www.BookChanges.com and educate yourself on this issue which is the most vital issue for the future of Srila Prabhupada’s movement and Krishna consciousness.
It seems that finally the BBT International has been listening to the arguments presented by many concerned devotees and is now taking a step in the right direction by putting Jayadvaita Swami’s name in the edited edition:
“Firstly I noticed that Your name does not appear on the re edited version.”
Jayadvaita Swami replied:
“It will appear in the “Note about the Second Edition” in upcoming printings.”
To be completely honest, transparent and follow academic rules Jayadvaita Swami’s name ought to appear on the front cover of the book, so everyone – in advance – will know that this is a posthumously edited book.
An example of how it is supposed to be done is here:
Of course, eventually we need to have Jayadvaita Swami’s edited version of Bhagavad-gita As It Is (and all other posthumously edited versions of Srila Prabhupada’s books) completely eliminated. But as long as the BBTI insist on violating the sastric rule of arsa-prayoga, they at least should mention it on the books.
Nice to see the original and authorized Bhagavad-gita As It Is being distributed by an ISKCON swami! The man in the picture receiving the original blessed and authorized Bhagavad-gita is the Governor of the Siem Reap Province of Cambodia, the Honorable H.E. Khim Bunsong!
”I went back and re-edited especially the translations in the first canto. Especially the first perhaps three chapters where I thought their were a lot of short comings. And I typed up all the translations – after I finished all the work, I typed up all the translations in one manuscript and put them in an envelope, and Prabhupada was coming to New York where I was at the time. Prabhupada came, and I put all the translations in an envelope, and I wrote a cover letter explaning what I have done, and asking him whether it was okay. And then I brought it up to Prabhupada’s quarters at 55th Street in New York–the New York temple—with the idea that I would leave them with his secretary and come back later. But Prabhupada was right there, and so he…I offered obeisances, and he had me, you know: ”What do you do in here?” ”What have you come for?” Not in those words, but, you know, he inquired was I was doing. And I explained that I had come to deliver this. So Prabhupada had me start reading right in his presence. And I began, I read the first verse, the second verse, the third verse. I went through a few verses, and Prabhupada stopped me. Prabhupada was listening very carefully, he stopped me. ”So what you have done?” And I said: ”Well, Srila Prabhupada, I have edited to try to bring it closer to what you originally said.” Prabhupada said: ”What I have said?” I said: ”Yes, Srila Prabhupada!” Then Prabhupada: ”Then it is alright!”, and that was it. ”Then it is alright!” ”What I have said?”, ”Then it is alright!”
A few points about this story:
1. Jayadvaita Swami’s story is merely anecdotal evidence which is considered a rather unreliable and dubious support of a claim. No one is really able to investigate the truth value of his story. To use anecdotal evidence as the foundation for changing the books that are supposed to guide mankind the next ten thousands years will surely create doubt about the authority of the changed books.
As Srila Prabhupada said about such stories:
“Just like in our ISKCON there are so many false things: “Prabhupada said this, Prabhupada said that.””
(Srila Prabhupada Letter, 7/11/1972)
“They misunderstand me. Unless it is there from me in writing, there are so many things that “Prabhupada said.”” (Srila Prabhupada Letter, 2/9/1975)
And as Jayadvaita Swami says:
“If Srila Prabhupada didn’t clearly and definitely say it, and if it first came up after 1977 whatever it is, don’t trust it. Rule of Thumb.” (Diksa-Diksa, Where the Rtvik People are Wrong, p. 85, Jayadvaita Swami)
Jayadvaita Swami started circulating his story after the book changing controversy started, and there is no evidence to support that it is true. Therefore, “…don’t trust it. Rule of Thumb.”
2. Jayadvaita Swami seems to conclude that since Prabhupada approved the verses that he brought him, then he also approved that he could change all his books using the same method – even after his disappearance. But this is an unwarranted extrapolation, because Jayadvaita Swami extrapolate far beyond the range of available data, namely from one single instance of editing to more or less all future instances of editing. But from his story no justification for such an extrapolation can be found. The only conclusion to be deduced (if the anecdote is at all true) is that what Jayadvaita Swami did to the very specific verses he brought Prabhupada was okay. No more, no less.
3. If Jayadvaita Swami’s anecdote is true, then Prabhupada told him that if he had made the text closer to what Prabhupada originally said, then it was okay.
However, in my previous articles to Jayadvaita Swami I have referred to articles where it is clearly documented that he has:
Deleted many of Prabhupada’s own chosen words and sentences (even those also found in his ”original manuscript”)
Added his own words and sentences (which means they are also not to be found in the ”original manuscript”)
Changed Prabhupada’s own personally typewritten sanskrit translations.
The article ”The Duty of the Finger” demonstrates all these types of changes made to Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is:
Now, I think most devotees around the world would like to know what Jayadvaita Swami thinks Prabhupada would have said if he had told him:
”Well, Srila Prabhupada, in my editing I have deleted some of your own chosen words and sentences! And I have also invented some completely new words and sentences and put them in where I felt they would do a good job! And since we at the BBT International are now ”accomplished sanskrit scholars” we have gone through some of your own typewritten sanskrit translations and changed them also.”
What do we, honestly, think Prabhupada would have answered? Then try to extrapolate that answer to the changes Jayadvaita Swami has made to Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is.
“As all surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Pṛthā.”
Hayagriva Prabhu was true to Srila Prabhupada’s words here. Jayadvaita Swami’s 1983 version is not! Why?
There is NO explanation of why this change was made on the BBTI’s website. I wonder why, since they write:
“Want to see the actual revisions made for Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Srimad-Bhagavatam, and Teachings of Lord Caitanya? You’ve come to the right place.” (BBT International’s website)
And on Jayadvaita Swami’s “annotated scans” which are categorized under “See the changes” on BBTI’s website there is no annotations made to verse 4.11.
Regarding these “annotated scans” BBT International’s website says:
“When Jayadvaita Swami made his revisions for the second edition of Bhagavad-gita As It Is, he did them directly on a copy of the book–that is, a copy of the first edition. After the second edition was published, for many years his first-edition copy was lost. But back in roughly 2006, Dravida Dasa found it in a trunk in San Diego. More recently, that copy has been scanned and digitized. And now the BBT is putting it here online.”
Apparently not all the changes made to Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is are to be found in this “annotated scan” that all of a sudden mysteriously re-appeared. Why do they not write that not all changes are mentioned in this “annotated scan”? Are they trying to hide some of the changes from the public?
How did Srila Prabhupada feel about verse 4.11 as it appeared in his 1972 Macmillan Bhagavad-gita As It Is:
Prabhupada: So the original verse says that “All of them as they surrender unto Me, I reward accordingly. Everyone follows my path in all respects.” This means that everyone is searching after that absolute truth. Some of them are satisfied with impersonal feature. The philosophers, jnanis, they, because they want to understand the absolute truth by dint of their imperfect knowledge.
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Bhagavad-gita 4.11-18 — Los Angeles, January 8, 1969
Prabhupada: “All of them — as they surrender unto Me — I reward accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Prtha.” God is everything, and we can associate with Him according to our choice.
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Interview with the New York Times — September 2, 1972, New Vrindaban
Cyavana: Krsna says, “All of them, as they surrender, I reward accordingly.” So that means they are surrendering in different…
Prabhupada: Yes. He has not surrendered. He keeps himself separate from Krsna, and he is, artificially he shows surrender. Surrender does not mean that you reserve something for you. That is not surrender. Surrender means without reservation. That is surrender.
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Morning Walk — November 1, 1975, Nairobi
Pradyumna (leads chanting): Translation: “All of them, as they surrender unto Me, I reward accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Prtha.”
Prabhupada:
ye yatha mam prapadyante
tams tathaiva bhajamy aham
mama vartmanuvartante
manusyah partha sarvasah
[Bg. 4.11]
Everyone is seeking to find out Krsna. Directly or indirectly. Krsna means the all-attractive. All-attractive. Bhagavan means the all-attractive Supreme Personality of Godhead. So indirectly or directly, everyone is seeking Krsna, the all-attractive. Ananda-mayo ‘bhyasat. The Supreme Bliss.
Nitai: “All of them — as they surrender unto Me — I reward accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Prtha.”
ye yatha mam prapadyante
tams tathaiva bhajamy aham
mama vartmanuvartante
manusyah partha sarvasah
[Bg. 4.11]
We are continuing from yesterday’s subject matter, how one can become purified and go back to home, back to Godhead.
Here the second line of this verse is very important. It is said, mama vartmanuvartante manusyah partha sarvasah: “All human being is searching after Me.”
Prabhupada: This is page one-hundred-eighteen, yes.
Tamala Krsna: “All of them as they surrender unto Me, I reward accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Prtha.” Purport: “Everyone is searching after Krsna in the different aspects of His manifestation. Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is partially realized in His impersonal brahmajyoti or shining effulgence. Krsna is also partially realized as the all-pervading Supersoul dwelling within everything, even in the particles of atoms.”
Prabhupada: It [the microphone] is not fixed up right.
Tamala Krsna: “But Krsna is only fully realized by His pure devotees. Therefore, Krsna is the object of everyone’s realization, and as such anyone and everyone is satisfied according to one’s desire to have Him. One devotee may want Krsna as the supreme master, another as his personal friend, another as his son, and still another as his lover. Krsna rewards equally all the devotees in their different intensities of love for Him. In the material world the same reciprocations of feelings are there and they are equally exchanged by the Lord with the different types of worshipers. The pure devotees both here and in the transcendental abode associate with Him in person and are able to render personal service to the Lord and thus derive transcendental bliss in His loving service. As for those who are impersonalists and who want to commit spiritual suicide by annihilating the individual existence of the living entity, Krsna helps them also by absorbing them into His effulgence. Such impersonalists do not agree to accept the eternal, blissful Personality of Godhead, and consequently they cannot relish the bliss of transcendental personal service to the Lord…”
Prabhupada: Yes.
Tamala Krsna: “…and they extinguish their individuality.”
Prabhupada: God realization, there are three aspects: brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate [SB 1.2.11].
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Bhagavad-gita 4.11-18 — Los Angeles, January 8, 1969
Again we see that Jayadvaita Swami’s and BBT International’s claim to fame – namely that they are making the books “closer to Prabhupada” – is false propaganda. Many, many changes – hundreds (if not thousands) – are further away from the words that Srila Prabhupada originally wrote or dictated.
Their claim about not making needless changes is proved false by the changes to Bg. 4.11, since this change is not at all needed.
Does Jayadvaita Swami and the BBTI trustees ever ask themselves this question: If making all of these changes is our way of surrendering to Srila Prabhupada, then what will our reward be?
Recently, the ambitious corporate climber, Tamohara dasa/GBC Chairman, posted on ISKCON cheerleading website a deceptive letter addressing the devotees and the temples, where they should purchase their books. He is attempting to self-righteously clamp down on distribution of the ORIGINAL Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita on the pretext that it is not authorized by Srila Prabhuapada’s created BBT.
Tamohara Dasa
The purpose of ‘his’ letter is based on their (GBC) need for continuation of intentional ‘dumbing down’ of naïve devotees that is unfortunately based on complete lie and deception that most of rank and file devotees are not aware of. GBC/BBTI wants to completely control and systematically undermine Srila Prabhupada created ISKCON, BBT and his real teachings which are based on pure devotional principles.
Their lie and deception is twofold;
1) Firstly, after Srila Prabhupada’s departure they fraudulently and secretly incorporated their own private BBT called BBT INTERNATIONAL, that illegally replaced Srila Prabhupada’s BBT in their attempt to usurp total control and to put a stop to distribution of original Srila Prabhupada’s books. Replacing them with their own revised editions that was mentally contrived by Jayadvaita swami.
Within this fraudulent BBT INTERNATIONAL (as per FORM TX – For a Literary Work – United States Copyright Office Registration form) Srila Prabhupada is not even mentioned. In point 2 of the form the ‘NAME OF THE AUTHOR is given as – The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. There is no mention of Śrīla Prabhupāda as the author of the Bhagavad Gītā As It Is. Why? “
This opens up a Pandora’s Box of questions…
For example why is there any need for a “Corporation” to assist the BBT in its service?
Who authorized the establishment of the BBTi to “acts\” as an authorized agent”
Why does this ‘authorized agent’ for Śrīla Prabhupāda’s BBT now have the ‘copyrights’ for Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books?
What or who stopped the BBT from printing his Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books in their original unedited format as a natural process after Śrīla Prabhupāda entered into Samādhi?
Is there any authorization from Srila Prabhupada stipulating that his books should be edited after his entrance into Samādhi?
And if there is no authorization for editing or printing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books, why are they doing it, especially after it is creating so much controversy amongst Śrīla Prabhupāda direct disciples?
Following is what the BBT International say is the relationship between the BBT and BBTi.
BBT? BBTI? Who’s who?
The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) is a California religious trust that owns the copyrights to the works published by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada during his lifetime.
The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International (BBTI) is a California corporation that has acted as an authorized agent of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust since 1988. The BBTI also owns the rights to some later works.
The BBT and BBTI work together to protect Srila Prabhupada’s rights and serve his will.
The important aspect of this subterfuge is that no one really knows what is going on… First they say that Śrīla Prabhupāda ‘owns’ the copyright of his book as per the BBT documentation but and it is a big but, what is this document where it shows the BBTi have the copyright of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Bhagavad Gītā As It Is???
What Bhagavad Gītā are they copyrighting? Is this their way of replacing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Gītā with their own edited version so it can be edited ad infinitum all the while leaving Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Gītā gathering dust archived somewhere?
This also begs the question how many of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books have they done away with him as the author and placed the BBT as the author, leading the unsuspecting devotees to believe that they are reading and distributing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books but in actual fact these are reading and distributing phony books.
I would not be surprised if in the future they openly say that these are not Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books at all, bearing in mind they ‘legally’ state that these books are ‘authored’ by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
The general devotees are so dumbed down to accept anything that the BBTi does or say as gospel truth or should we say ‘emet’ truth.
Consequently, once Śrīla Prabhupāda’s ‘as it is’ stance based on the ‘absolute truth” is undermined by the subjective truths of individuals such as Jaya Advaita Swami, then his books become ‘open game’ for any future BBT corporation/board and corporate members to edit according to their own interpretations of the truth that are fashionable at the particular time, place and circumstances.
Due to this ‘interpretive methodology’ of ‘these rascal editors’ which is based on so called academically contrived secular critical analytical study of texts, they can effortlessly indoctrinate devotees into the acceptance of hermeneutic (interpreting) views, that majority of ISKCON leaders are already habituated with, and are already steering our once glorious institution into the realm of mundane religion (cheating religion) a.i. Mayavadism, Sahajiyism, Hinduism, PC-ism, Corporatism, sentimental Veganism etc…
Devotees such as Ravindra Swarup, Tamala Kṛṣṇa Goswami, Kṛishna Kestra and Hridayananda etc, being heavily influenced and attached to secular academics have basically turned Śrīla Prabhupāda’s ‘as it is’ principles which are based on the understanding that truth is ‘absolute’, into truth being more in the realm of relativistic truth or truth that is malleable according to one’s personal cultural/psycho-physical background/realization/desire/preference.
Here is one but small example of such theorizing;
“The hermeneutical circle or interpretative horizon of scripture for modern readers has exploded out into the entire range of presently available texts drawn from an ever-increasing spectrum of religious and secular traditions. Canonical works no longer enjoy the seeming autonomy they once had, nor are they impervious to scrutiny from outside readers. The top-down, “vertical” process of receiving spiritual truth from infallible scripture is now, more than ever before, faced with the pervasive presence of a multiplicity of voices that challenge the privileged position of any one of them (Taken from – Constructive Theologizing for Reform and RenewalThomas Herzig (Tamal Krishna Goswami) and Kenneth Valpey (Krishna Kshetra Das)”
2) Secondly, over the years they conjured a plethora of false rhetoric’s to justify and rationalize their big deceptive lie. However any individual, who takes the time to study the issue, will soon recognize that all their feeble excuses are based on bluffing and cheating and nothing else.
a) We are re-writing Srila Prabhupada’s books to appease Academia so we will be recipients of approval by them with a pat on the back whilst telling us “good ‘little’ boys”.
b) We are re-writing the books to make it “closer” to Srila Prabhupada`s drafted version.
Unfortunately, everything that they rationalized and justified up till now is one BIG FAT, and SMELLY LIE. I urge the readers, who are not sufficiently educated with this important matter to visit the https://arsaprayoga.wordpress.com/ to see and analyze the comprehensive evidence that completely exposes them and indentifies them for what they really are.
Since the latest groundswell of the devotees questioning and clearly exposing this BIG fraud, Jayadvaita swami is out of fear resorting to a wicked non-vaisnava behavior in order to bamboozle the naïve devotees and perhaps himself, into believing his deception.
Some time back he wrote an article “Book Changes: History Backs the BBT” lying thru his teeth in the attempt to bamboozle devotees that Hayagriva prabhu never worked together with Srila Prabhupada on Bhagavat-gita. Sadly, for him it back fired on Jayadvaita Swami, when his article was completely and chronologically refuted by Madhudvisa prabhu in article titled Jayadvaita’s Smoke and Mirrors which was a response to what appears to be a planned, conscious and intentional lie on the side of Jayadvaita swami in hope to completely erase Hayagriva pr, from the pages of ISKCON ‘real’ history, and replacing it with his own deconstructed history.
Due to the BBT’s standing on perpetual editing of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books it has forced devotees who want to see Śrīla Prabhupāda’s original books to be printed and distributed (which is after all the stated purpose of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s BBT) they have resorted to printing his books themselves – for example KBI and in particular Jitarati Prabhu’s printing of the ‘Pocket sized Bhagavad Gītā ’ which by the way was a huge success selling out nearly all 100,000 books that they printed!
You have to pause and think about this for one moment… One Hundred Thousand (100,000) of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s original unedited books! Now this only goes to show that people want his unedited books!
Their success has so infuriated Jayadvaita swami that in his rage he began calling these books ‘rittvik’ books! Not only did he label them rittvik books he also began actively preaching to devotees not to purchase read or distribute these ‘rittvik’ books!
How pathetic is that? He is trying to say that Srila Prabhupada did not write the original books, but the evil RITTVIK`s DID IT!!!!!! ….HELP HELP HELP…save us from rittviks…and their evil “Original Srila Prabhupada” books. Come on Jayadyaita swami, how low can you go?
Naturally, when Jayadvaita swami was asked did Srila Prabhupada give him or anyone for that matter any instruction/consent to re-write his book “ad infinitum” after his departure, his answer is NO. Yet he disobediently continues with his offence to our glorious spiritual master.
WHICH MAKES ME WONDER WHO IS HE WORKING FOR, SINCE HIS ACTIONS CLEARLY AFFIRM THAT SRILA PRABHUPADA IS NOT HIS AUTHORITY AT ALL?
This is a very important point to consider especially when he would be loved rather than hated by many of his godbrothers if he spent his time and efforts to publish Śrīla Prabhupāda’s original books instead of putting our whole Vaiṣṇava society in such a hurtful and disheartening dilemma by spending not only countless hours scouring Śrīla Prabhupāda’s works to find what he perceives as an error or fault in the works of the uttama adhikāra devotee of Lord, editing those works and then publishing what he believes is the more superior/authoritive work.
While we are at it and going on the principle of establishing ‘shadow’ bodies to supersede the bodies that Śrīla Prabhupāda established, I would like to ask the GBC mouthpiece Tamohara dasa, why did they secretly and systematically privatize Srila Prabhupada’s created ISKCON, transferring the control into illegally created ‘shadow’, such as GBC of West Bengal, BBT International corporation etc, that have they own laws and by-laws and are diametrically opposed to the ones created by Srila Prabhupada. Huh, mister mouthpiece, please tell us???
However, I know that we will not hear from Tamohara nor any other GBC and BBTI corporate members (cronies), about this secret hijacking of Srila Prabhupada`s ISKCON, and its replacement with this Fraudulent ISKCON. CALLED FISKCON. We know that you want to keep this secret, because you know if the rank and file devotees wake up to how devious your agenda really is, they will have a revolution and unceremoniously kick you all out onto the curb.
Nevertheless, with time the devotees are waking up, just like is with the case of devious book changes of yours and are becoming more and more educated and enlightened with your secret plans, hence the time will come for you where you will not be able to bamboozle innocent no more and your ivory towers will come crumbling down like a deck of cards, with you in it.
Looking forward to seeing this day taking place
The main question devotees must be asking is – why are the BBT trustees relentlessly and ruthlessly pursuing this course of action? If all their efforts were placed on the printing of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s original books and making sure the Temples were distributing his books we would not be involved in such terrible controversies for all these years, wasting so much time resources and money that the BBT could use to print more books.
In this article we hope to bring to light how Srila Prabhupāda, the Acharya and Jagat Guru, has personally instructed the proper etiquette to all his followers in how to deal with seeming mistakes, or errors in the writings of an uttama-adhikārī and Acharya.
In this time of confusion and controversy, in regard to the editing of the BBTI, we humbly submit the following at the feet of all the Vaiṣṇava’s for their own contemplation and realization in spiritual life:
In the Caitanya-caritāmṛita, Madhya-līlā 9.358, Srila Prabhupāda cites his spiritual master Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, who points out that in the seventy-fourth verse of this same chapter there is an apparent error made by Kṛṣṇa dāsa, Kavirāja Gosvāmī. Srila Prabhupāda, just to teach us the principle of arsa-prayoga, [please see quotes from Srila Prabhupāda on “arsha-prayoga” at the end of this article] does not touch the words of Kṛṣṇadāsa Kaviraja Goswami, but leaves this apparent error as it is, out of respect for the transcendental book. Even though Srila Prabhupāda’s own spiritual master, the most pure and intimate confidential devotee and associate of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu himself, had clearly pointed out that this is an apparent error and is apparently wrong.
Furthermore in the purport to that seventy-fourth verse, mentioned above, Srila Prabhupada mentions nothing; only at the end of the chapter, after Srila Kṛṣṇadāsa Kaviraja concludes his narration, does Srila Prabhupāda even mention the apparent mistake.
That Caitanya-caritāmṛita, Madhya-līlā 9. 358 purport is cited here for your reference:
“Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura points out that in the seventy-fourth verse of this chapter it is stated that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu visited the temple of Śiyālī-bhairavī, but actually at Śiyālī, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu visited the temple of Śrī Bhū-varāha. Near Śiyālī and Cidambaram there is a temple known as Śrī Muṣṇam. In this temple there is a Deity of Śrī Bhū-varāha. In the jurisdiction of Cidambaram there is a district known as southern Arcot. The town of Śiyālī is in that district. There is a temple of Śrī Bhū-varāhadeva nearby, not Bhairavī-devī. This is Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura’s conclusion.”
This is a very good lesson to make a clear and prominent note of how Srila Prabhupāda, the teacher by example, has chosen to edit (or rather not edit) the words of the spiritual masters or previous acharyas’ writings.
Srila Prabhupāda has every right in the world to change or edit anything, for he is Kṛṣṇa’s direct representative and the present acharya and current link to the paramparā. But, as the Acharya, he has himself stuck to the principal of arsha-prayoga and did not change it just to teach us respect, correct behavior. He does not touch this apparent “mistake,” he leaves it completely untouched, as it is.
As Srila Prabhupāda said “I have instructed everything in my books.” (Letter to: Dina Dayala, Mayapur, 25 February, 1976) So Srila Prabhupāda has also instructed us to not edit the books in his books themselves.
There are many instances of this in Srila Prabhupāda’s writings if we just look.
We will cite another place were Srila Prabhupāda left a seeming mistake as it is, even though it may be considered “wrong.”
“Ambikāvana is situated somewhere in the Gujarat province. Ambikāvana is said to be situated on the river Sarasvatī, yet we do not find any Sarasvatī River in the Gujarat province; the only river there is Savarmati. In India, all the big places of pilgrimage are situated on nice rivers like the Ganges, Yamunā, Sarasvatī, Narmadā, Godāvarī, Kāverī, etc. Ambikāvana was situated on the bank of Sarasvatī, and all the cowherd men and Nanda Mahārāja went there.” (KRSNA Book 1970 edition Volume 1 Chapter 33 / Vidyādhara Liberated and the Demon Śaṅkhāsura Killed)
In this quote from Srila Prabhupāda’s original KRSNA book, Prabhupāda mentions that although it says, “Ambikāvana is said to be situated on the river Sarasvatī, yet we do not find any Sarasvatī River in the Gujarat province…” Prabhupāda does not change the text to correct the seeming mistake.
Below is another example of something that may be considered from the scholarly or mundane viewpoint “wrong” with the text but it was left as it is out of respect for the author, adhering to the principle of arsha-prayoga.
“TRANSLATION
Thus Paramānanda Purī started for Jagannātha Purī, and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu began walking toward Śrī Śaila.
PURPORT
Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura remarks, “Which Śrī Śaila is being indicated by Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī is not clearly understood. There is no temple of Mallikārjuna in this area because the Śrī Śaila located in the district of Dhārwād cannot possibly be there. That Śrī Śaila is on the southern side of Belgaum, and the Śiva temple of Mallikārjuna is located there. (Refer to text 15 of this chapter.) It is said that on that hill Lord Śiva lived with Devī. Also, Lord Brahmā lived there with all the demigods.” (Cc Madhya 9.174)
Srila Prabhupāda’s own standards and the established Vedic principal of arsha-prayoga that he gave to us are not being followed by the BBTI editors headed by Jayavaita Swami and Dravida. On the contrary, the exact opposite is being done, causing Srila Prabhupāda’s once authorized and respected writings to be lost and devalued due to these unauthorized offensive changes that directly go against Srila Prabhupāda’s will and example.
Through his books, Srila Prabhupāda is always instructing us and guiding us in the deep mellows of transcendental mood/rasa. If we disregard this guidance our minds and service will be of improper mellows, rasābhāsa, and not pure bhakti, and will thus not be acceptable by Kṛṣṇa.
Srila Prabhupāda further explains this fact in the Purport of the Caitanya-caritāmṛita Madhya 10.113 and 114 as follows:
“By overlapping mellows (rasābhāsa) one eventually becomes a prākṛta-sahajiyā and takes everything to be very easy. One may also become a member of the bāula community and gradually become attracted to material activities. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu therefore has advised us to avoid bhakti-siddhānta-viruddha and rasābhāsa. In this way the devotee can remain pure and free from falldowns. Everyone should try to remain aloof from bhakti-siddhānta-viruddha and rasābhāsa.”
Furthermore Srila Prabhupāda drives this point home in the very next purport in an effort to make this explicitly clear to his followers. Unfortunately, today, almost forty years later, we are still not getting it:
“Pure devotees of the Lord do not accept impure principles. Impure devotees accept rasābhāsa, or overlapping, contradictory mellows, and other principles opposed to the bhakti path. The followers of such impure principles are never accepted as pure devotees. There are many parties following the path of rasābhāsa, and the followers are sometimes adored by ordinary men. Those who adopt the conclusions of rasābhāsa and bhakti-siddhānta-viruddha are never accepted as devotees of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī never approved such followers as Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas, nor did he allow them even to meet the Supreme Lord, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛita Madhya 10.114)
The few references quoted in this short article are by no means at all a comprehensive list of these types of instances. A full book could be written on this topic alone, listing the numerous occasions of such instructions given by Srila Prabhupada. Here we are citing only a few that we have recently noticed in our own personal reading of His Divine Grace’s books for the purpose of this article.
So what to do about the seeming discrepancies that a critical editor may find in Srila Prabhupāda’s books?
As for me I do not know for I am just a simple second generation devotee. But as a follower of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivadanta Swami Prabhupāda I have no other recourse but to have fidelity to him and take his example as the standard and adhere to that. What else can we do?
To conclude let me leave the thoughtful reader of this article with these important words Srila Prabhupada has given in his Nectar of Instruction, verse six, last paragraph where he warns us not to correct the Acharya or spiritual master: “It is also an offense to consider an empowered Vaiṣṇava an object of disciplinary action. It is offensive to try to give him advice or to correct him… The spiritual master must not be subjected to the advice of a disciple”
Please watch this short video where two of Srila Prabhupāda’s most senior disciples recall Prabhupāda’s direct personal instructions on editing and the standards and mood he wanted to be followed.
———————
Prabhupāda: The system is: whatever authority has done, even there is mistake, it should be accepted.
Radha-vallabha: Oh.
Prabhupāda: Arsha prayoga. That is ha… He should not become more learned than the authority. That is very bad habit….
Prabhupāda: Why finish it? Whatever is done is done. No more….
Radha-vallabha: Well, now that this system of no corrections anywhere, that makes it very simple. Then he can’t do anything. I don’t think he wants to, either. It makes it more simple for him. It makes him very uncomfortable.
Prabhupāda: No corrections.
(Conversation with Italian Woman with Translator – February 28, 1977, Mayapura)
[Note: in the Vedabase the transcriber, not being familiar enough with Sanskrit, did not transcribe the word arsha prayoga correctly so it is misspelled, but for the purpose of this article we have corrected it above]
“So unless one is self-realized, there is practically no use writing about Krsna. This transcendental writing does not depend on material education. It depends on the spiritual realization. You’ll find, therefore, in the comments of Bhagavatam by different acaryas, even there are some discrepancies, they are accepted as Arsha-prayoga. It should remain as it is.”
(Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.5.23-24 – Vrndavana, March 31, 1976)
[Note: Again, in the Vedabase, the transcriber, not being familiar enough with Sanskrit did not transcribe this word correctly so it was misspelled originally]
Learn how the conditioned soul can gradually progress from his state of ignorance to pure spiritual bliss.
From Chapter One of the book:
Actually we are all spirit souls and are intended to associate with God in the spiritual sky where there are innumerable spiritual planets and innumerable spiritual living entities. However, those who are not fit to live in that spiritual world are sent to his material world. This very idea is expressed by Milton in Paradise Lost. Although spirit soul, we have voluntarily accepted this material body and by accepting it have also accepted the threefold miseries of material nature. Exactly when we accepted it and how we accepted it cannot be traced out. No one can trace out the history of when the conditioned soul first began accepting these material bodies.
At present Darwin’s theory of the evolution of organic matter is very prominent in institutions of higher learning, but there is information given in the Padma Purana and other authoritative scriptures of the living entities’ spiritual evolution from one bodily form to another. This Purana informs us that species amongst plants and vegetables alone. At present everyone is giving stress to Darwin’s theory, but in Vedic literature there is immense information about the different species. Darwin expresses the opinion that the species are evolving from lower forms of life, but this is not the whole truth. The soul may progress from lower forms to higher forms, but in the beginning of creation all species were created by Sri Krishna, as indicated in Bhagavad-gita.
sarva-bhutani kaunteya
prakrtim yan ti mamikam
kalpa-ksaye punas tani
kalpadau visrjamy aham
“O son of Kunti, at the end of the millennium every material manifestation enters unto My nature, and at the beginning of another millennium, by My potency I again create. The whole cosmic order is under Me. By My will is it manifested again and again, and by My will is it annihilated at the end.” (Bg. 9.7,8)
All of these living entities are subject to the threefold miseries, including those miseries pertaining to the body and mind. Animals cannot understand that they are suffering, but human beings can. One who does not know that he is suffering is in animal consciousness. Animals may be standing behind a fence to be slaughtered, but they do not understand this. As human beings, we should be cognizant that we are suffering the pains of birth, old age, disease and death and should be inquisitive to know how to avoid these miseries. We have been suffering from the beginning of our birth when as a baby we were tightly placed for nine months in the womb of a mother. After birth, suffering continues; although a mother may take much care for her child, the baby still cries. Why? Because he is suffering. Either a bug is biting, or there is a pain in the stomach or some other malady. Whatever the case, the suffering goes on. The child also suffers when he is forced to go to school when he does not want to. The child does not want to study, but the teacher gives him tasks anyway. If we carefully anlyze our lives, we will find that they are full of suffering. Generally speaking, conditioned souls are not very intelligent, and therefore they go on suffering without ever inquiring why. We should understand, however, that this suffering is there, and if there is a remedy we must take advantage of it.
Arsa-Prayoga 
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