Remembering Srila Prabhupada - Why Are You Inventing? Why Are You

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Why Are You Inventing? Why Are You Not Satisfied?

 

 

In 1974, at ISKCON Dallas gurukula, one of the

teachers introduced a new learning contest for the

children. He called it "Krsna Bowl," modeled after a

television program called "General Electric College

Bowl.College Bowl" was a contest that tested the

wits of the brightest college students, so Krsna Bowl

was a contest to see which students had the best

memory for incidents in the Krsna book. The competing

gurukula students would sit at desks facing the

assembly of children and teachers, and a tense

competition ensued. The questions tended to be

extremely intricate, and the first student who knew

the answer had to press an electric buzzer. Whoever

buzzed first got to answer.

The games caused great excitement among the children

and sometimes caused tears and tantrums for the losers

of the game. Some of the adult devotees in Dallas

wondered if maybe the whole Krsna Bowl was just so

much mental speculation. One of the teachers in favor

of the game wrote to Prabhupada for approval.

Prabhupada replied as follows:

"I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter regarding

the Krsna Bowl game, and it should be stopped

immediately. This thing will be a taxation on the

brain of the young children. Why are you inventing?

Why are you not satisfied? You are all only inventing

and spoiling money. You teach the children perfectly

Sanskrit and English instead of spoiling time and

money. The children cannot pronounce correctly the

Sanskrit. But then read it correctly. That is wanted

first. They must pronounce nicely Sanskrit and

English. The English is no difficulty. If you can do

this, then your education is all right."

Another letter from Srila Prabhupada soon followed,

sent to one of the GBC representatives. "I received

one letter from gurukula regarding the Krsna Bowl

contest," wrote Prabhupada, "and I want you to know

that nothing new should be added. Whatever I've

introduced should remain. Nothing new should be added.

New things means that their brain is not clear.

Carefully manage things that I have established."

"Krsna Bowl" letter from Prabhupada to Aksobhya dasa,

March 9, 1974; letter to Rupanuga dasa, April 9, 1974.

Srila Prabhupada was particularly concerned that

concoctions not be introduced with the children. When

someone wrote to him complaining that a child had been

beaten, Prabhupada replied that whoever had done the

beating should himself be beaten. One major deviation

occurred when a devotee in the gurukula became

interested in Montessori teaching methods and

attempted to introduce them into the school.

Prabhupada squelched them as definitely as he

squelched the Krsna Bowl. In his letter stopping the

Krsna Bowl, Prabhupada mentions that the devotee's

brain is not "clear," and therefore he had invented

these things. This indicates that if we keep ourselves

clearheaded in Krsna consciousness by always following

the parampara and observing the rules and regulations,

these unnecessary outside ideas will not occur to us.

 

- From the Prabhupada Nectar by HH Satsvarupa dasa

Goswami Maharaj

 

 

 

 

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