How to start varnasrama

[Guest guest]

>

> I was practicaly forced to go on sankirtan, and I hated every second of

> it, and felt completely useless and discouraged in my Krsna consciousness

> for YEARS as a result (the tactics used were the psychological demeaning

> of ones character, forcing one to try to act transcendentaly, even if not

> actualy qualified).

 

OK. So let's forget "some time of sankirtana" as the part of

the basic spiritual activities in Hare Krsna temples?

Then, how about brahmacaris going out to streets and bagging

money from the people, for their gurus? That's the general Vedic

custom. It is natural for brahmacaris to do it, isn't it?

 

 

 

> Srila Prabhupada did not wish to force one against his

> nature. Unfortunately Prabhupada had gone, and I was at the hands of

> people who did not care for Srila Prabhupadas long term vision. They are

> gone now.

 

Well, some got forced sex on them "against their nature", from the

side of the authorities. And you got traumatized by being forced

sankirtan on you, against your nature. True, some others may get

traumatized by being forced to go out in harinama, or to chant

the Holy Name in public, or even to bow down in the temple room.

All of these can be viewed as the violation of human rights, indeed.

 

 

The kind of spiritual austerities (tapas) from side of a disciple

that done for the sake of pleasing Guru and Krsna, is not something

that got to be fitting to our "nature", Samba prabhu. So that you

hated every second of it may speak well of your readiness to do

something spiritual that is "against your nature". On the other hand,

yes, none should be *forced* to do it against his/her free will.

Not everyone is ready for the same kind of spiritual austerity. Some

would want to do only that what goes along their nature (but then

one can not really speak of the austerity anymore).

 

So this kind of abuses might have been occurring, but that should not

be the reason to dismiss now the whole idea (idea of *sankirtana* as

one of the basic spiritual activity/austerity for Hare Krsna monks).

It would be an another absurd extreme. If the idea of the Hare Krsna

temple as the place where "natural" inclinations of so-called

"brahmacaris" and "monks" are to be exercised, then you missed the

"door". Your door should be then some college or some workshop where

you will be doing things according your "nature", and at home you

practice that much of the spiritual activities, ant that particular

ones, as you find to your likening. And this is exactly what many of

us here are finding now to be our position, after having to undergo

unnecessarily the pains of hating "every second" of the particular

temple life reality -- it is in the NATURE of *everybody* to live

in the temple as a Hare Krsna monk! So don't do it, on the first

place. And if you do it, then don't think how to cut the general Hare

Krsna temple life-style to suit your particular "nature", or the

nature of anybody and everybody who might happen to hit the door.

 

 

 

 

 

- mnd

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In short, yes, the abuse can happen in *any* occasion. So, no

forcing anybody on anyting should be the basic understanding.

That may refer not only to doing "some time sankirtana" (as

being that horrible proposal here), but also in implementing

VAD and forcing the people on anything of a kind.