H.D.G. A.C. BHAKTIVEDANTA SWAMI'S MEDICAL CARE

[Guest guest]

HARE KRISHNA !

 

SRI SRI GURU AND GAURANGA KI JAYA !

 

DEAR DEVOTEES,

 

PLEASE ACCEPT MY HUMBLE OBEISANCES.

 

(PLEASE FORGIVE THE ALL CAPS AS I HAVE DIFFICULTY SEEING THE SMALL

LETTERS)

 

I HAVE JUST READ AN ARTICLE ABOUT SRILA PRABHUPADA'S MEDICAL CARE IN

HIS LAST BODILY DAYS HERE. I AM GLAD TO SEE SOMEONE DISCUSSING

SRILA PRABHUPADA'S LACK OF PROPER MEDICAL CARE FROM A 'WESTERN'

MEDICAL PERSPECTIVE. IT IS MY OPINION THAT A FANATICAL,

UNREASONING REJECTION OF 'WESTERN' MEDICINE HAS CAUSED AN ENORMOUS

AMOUNT OF SUFFERING IN THE HARE KRISHNA MOVEMENT.

 

I REPEATEDLY SAW DEVOTEES DENIED BASIC MEDICAL CARE BY THEIR

AUTHORITIES, BECAUSE OF THE IDEA THAT ALL 'WESTERN MEDICINE IS

DEMONIAC'. MY CHILDREN AND I WERE ALSO PERSONALLY VICTIMS OF THIS

PERVASIVE FORM OF NEGLECT AND ABUSE IN THE MOVEMENT. TO ME IT WAS

NOT 'VEDIC' BUT WAS PART OF THE 'HIPPIE' NEW AGE ANTI-

ESTABLISHMENT, REBELLIOUS MENTALITY OF THE LEADERS.

 

TO THINK THAT SRILA PRABHUPADA HIMSELF WAS SUBJECTED TO THIS KIND OF

NEGLECT AND ABUSE IS INCOMPREHENSIBLE. KNOWING OF HIS DIABETES AND

ITS PROPER TREATMENT, HOW COULD ANY REASONABLE PERSON FEED HIM SUCH

A DIET, AND FAIL TO TEST HIS GLUCOSE LEVELS OR GIVE HIM ANY OF THE

MEDICATIONS AVAILBLE FOR THE RELIEF OF HIS CONDITION?

WAS THIS HIS OWN DESIRE ? I DOUBT IT. AS A PHARMACIST, SRILA

PRABHUPADA WAS CLEARLY NOT PHILOSOPHICALLY OPPOSED TO TAKING

MEDICINE.

 

REGARDING THE HIGH ARSENIC LEVELS IN SRILA PRABHUPADA'S BODY......

 

AS A PHARMACIST FOR YEARS, BACK IN THE DAYS WHEN ARSENIC WAS USED IN

MEDICINES FOR THINGS LIKE SYPHILIS, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT HE MAY HAVE

BEEN EXPOSED TO IT IN HIS WORK. IS IT ALSO FOUND IN SOME AYUR VEDIC

TREATMENTS ? DID HE DRINK WATER WITH A HIGH LEVEL IN IT AT SOME

POINT IN HIS LIFE ? THERE IS A HIGH LEVEL OF ARSENIC IN THE WATER IN

SOME PLACES IN INDIA. I DO NOT KNOW THE ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS,

BUT THESE THINGS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS POSSIBLE CONTRIBUTING

FACTORS TO HIS HIGH ARSENIC LEVELS.

 

SO MANY QUESTIONS

 

I HAD NO FIRST-HAND EXPERIANCE WITH ANY OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES

SURROUNDING OUR BELOVED GURU'S DISAPPEARANCE, SO I HAVE TRIED TO

REFRAIN FROM VOICING AN OPINION. HOWEVER, IT IS DIFFICULT FOR ME TO

GRASP THE APPARENT REALITY THAT HE RECEIVED NO PROPER

MINIMAL 'WESTERN' MEDICAL CARE FOR HIS DIABETES AT ALL. REGARDLESS

OF ANY OTHER FACTORS, 'MATERIALLY' SPEAKING, THIS WOULD HAVE SURELY

DISMINISHED HIS QUALITY AND LENGTH OF LIFE. UNCONTROLLED DIABETES

CAN ALSO RESULT IN BLURRED VISION AND MANY OTHER OF THE SYMPTOMS AND

SIGNS HE EXHIBITED.

 

IN THE UNITED STATES IF CAREGIVERS FAIL TO GIVE BASIC

STANDARD 'WESTERN' MEDICAL CARE, THEY CAN BE PROSECUTED FOR CRIMINAL

NEGLECT, NEGLIGENT HOMOCIDE OR MANSLAUGHTER. THIS CREATES MANY

LEGAL BATTLES BETWEEN THE STATES AND RELIGIONISTS AND NEW AGE PEOPLE

WHO REJECT ALL MEDICAL, OR 'WESTERN' MEDICAL INTERVENTION. IF SRILA

PRABHUPADA HIMSELF OPPOSED WESTERN MEDICINE, IT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN

FORCED ON HIM. BUT IF IT WAS SIMPLY DENIED TO HIM BY OTHERS, THAT

IS A TRAGEDY AND A CRIME IN ITSELF. IT IS NO EXCUSE TO SAY THAT HIS

CAREGIVERS DIDN'T KNOW ANY BETTER. ANY HUMBLE PERSON WOULD HAVE

SOUGHT WHATEVER EXPERT HELP WAS POSSIBLE TO RELIEVE HIS DISTRESS.

THAT SRILA PRABHUPADA'S MEDICAL MANAGEMENT WAS APPARENTLY SO

STRANGELY CONDUCTED IS APALLING TO ME. IT ONLY SEEMS POSSIBLE TO

ME, BECAUSE OF THE SEEMINGLY PROUD HIPPIE ANTI-DOCTOR, ANTI-WESTERN-

MEDICINE MENTALITY OF SOME OF HIS CAREGIVER DISCIPLES.

 

ARE SRILA PRABHUPADA'S DISCIPLES AND THEIR CHILDREN STILL BEING

DENIED NECESSARY BASIC CARE IN ISKCON AND THE MOVEMENT ? IF SO, THEN

HE IS STILL ENDURING THE SAME NEGLECT AND ABUSE IN HIS SOCIAL-BODY

NOW. HAS THE SEEMINGLY FANATICAL, IGNORANT MENTALITY THAT ALLOWED

HIS PHYSICAL NEGLECT AND ABUSE BEEN CONFRONTED AND RECTIFIED ? IF

NOT, THEN IT DID NOT END WITH HIS PHYSICAL DEMISE. SRILA PRABHUPADA

STILL EXISTS, AND HE IS STILL BEING NEGLECTED AND ABUSED TODAY IF

THESE PROBLEMS ARE PERSISTING. IF ISKCON IS HIS SOCIAL-BODY, HAS IT

BEEN ILL AND DYSFUNCTIONAL, AND IS IT NOW DISTRESSED AND PERHAPS IN

MORTAL DANGER FROM A LACK OF DIAGNOSIS AND PROPER TREATMENT FOR ITS

TRUE CONDITION?

 

THE QUESTION IS, WHAT WERE HIS WISHES THEN, AND WHAT ARE THEY NOW ?

WHAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE THEN, AND WHAT SHOULD BE DONE NOW ? WHAT

WAS PROPER CARE THEN, AND HOW CAN WE GIVE PROPER CARE TO OUR BELOVED

GURU AND ALL OF HIS FAMILY NOW ?

THERE MUST BE PROPER DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT, NOT AVOIDANCE,

IGNORANCE, DENIAL, NEGLECT AND ABUSE. THESE THINGS MUST BE SEPARATED

FROM CONSIDERATIONS OF ACTUAL FOUL-PLAY. THERE COULD HAVE BEEN FOUL-

PLAY, BUT THERE DEFINITELY WAS NEGLECT AND ABUSE, AT LEAST IN THE

MISMANAGEMENT OF HIS DIABETES. ONE PERSON COULD HAVE DELIBERATELY

POISONED HIM, BUT MANY APPARENTLY ALLOWED HIM TO GO WITHOUT THE MOST

WELL-KNOWN BASIC TREATMENT OF A VERY WELL UNDERSTOOD AND TREATABLE

DISEASE. HOW COULD THAT HAVE HAPPENED ? THIS IS A QUESTION THAT

NEEDS ANSWERING. HIS CAREGIVERS BECAME THE LEADERS OF A MOVEMENT

WITH RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CARE OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE. WERE THESE

THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE ALSO NEGLECTED AND ABUSED IN THESE LEADERS'

HIPPIE-MENTALITY CARE ?

 

THANKYOU TO THE AUTHORS FOR DISCUSSING SRILA PRABHUPADA'S STANDARD OF

MEDICAL CARE. TO ME, THIS IS A QUESTION OF CENTRAL IMPORTANCE.

WITH REGULAR 'WESTERN' MEDICAL TREATMENT, IT IS VERY DOUBTFUL THAT

ANYONE COULD HAVE POISONED HIM AND GOTTEN AWAY WITH IT. IF HIS BODY

WAS SO ARSENIC LOADED AS TO BE CAUSING SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS, ANY

THOROUGH WORK-UP BY 'WESTERN' DOCTORS WOULD HAVE DIAGNOSED IT.

THE ONLY REASON FOR HIM NOT TO BE UNDER SOME MODERN MEDICAL

MANAGEMENT WAS IF HE WAS ADAMANTLY OPPOSED TO IT. STILL DEVOTEES

COULD HAVE TAKEN SAMPLES OF HIS EXCRETA TO BONA FIDE MEDICAL LABS FOR

ANALYSIS, TO HELP TO MORE ACCURATELY DIAGNOSE HIS AILMENTS. WAS THIS

EVER DONE ? IN HIS LATTER DAYS, DID HE EVER ONCE HAVE A COMPLETE

PHYSICAL WITH A TOX SCREEN AND OTHER IMPORTANT TESTS? IS IT BECAUSE

HE WAS REALLY OPPOSED TO IT, OR WAS HE DISSUADED FROM IT, OR DENIED

IT BY HIS CAREGIVERS ? I WASN'T THERE AND HAVE NO ANSWERS, ONLY

QUESTIONS, MANY QUESTIONS.

 

ASPIRING TO SERVE THE SERVANTS OF THE SERVANTS OF SRILA PRABHUPADA,

 

BHAKTI ANANDA GOSWAMI