Did Prabhupada not knew...

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Trivikrama Swami wrote on 17.07.99

 

>> You say you were there in his last days and therefore you certainly

>> recall his statements regarding varnasrama-dharma? It was the one thing

>> he wished he had completed. He said half the work was done by him and the

>> other half, varnasrama-dharma, was to be completed by us.

 

> Yes, we are not surprised by your response Janesvara Prabhu, but I have to

> say that I also have remained consistent in my position since the last

> time you and Hari Sauri drew me into this debate.

 

> I am all in favor of establishing varnasrama-dharma, but my contention is,

> in order to do that properly, we need to have a Krsna conscious executive

> head of state. Varnasrama-dharma is meant to operate in the whole society,

> and can't be properly established in a volunteer orginization like ISKCON.

 

Dear Maharaja, Please accept my humble obeisances.

All glories to Srila Prabhupda!

 

I,m sorry if my respond to your conclusion may sound a little provocative,

please forgive me for that, I dont want to make any offences here, but your

text gives me the impresion that Srila Prabhupada did not knew what he was

talking about when he was stressing the implementation of Varnasrama dharma

in the society of devotees.

 

WHY should it be imposible to establish VAD and its principles, properly in

the society of the devotees of Krsna? Are there no devotees with the ability

to become genuine ksatryias, brahmanas, vaisyas or sudras?

 

What should be the proper understanding of the following text about this

matter?

 

"Statement by Abhirama dasa:

 

I was personally present on two occasions when Srila Prabhupada spoke about

how important establishing varnasrama was to him. Both times were in the

summer of 1977, in Prabhupada's room in Vrndavana, before he left to go to

London. At the time, Tamala Krsna Goswami was Srila Prabhupada's personal

secretary, and I his assistant. I was also Prabhupada's nurse.

 

The first time, several devotees were with Srila Prabhupada. We knew that

his health was getting weaker. He was talking to the devotees about his

imminent departure. "I have no lamentation," Prabhupada said. He paused

for a few seconds, and then he said, "No, I have one lamentation." A

devotee asked,"Because you have not finished translating the Srimad

Bhagavatam?" Prabhupada replied, "No, that I have not established

varnasrama."

 

On the next occasion, some time later, I was with Srila Prabhupada in his

room when he made the statement, "Fifty percent of my work is not complete

because I have not established varnasrama."

 

I remember one more quote from that summer. Prabhupada stated, "I want to

establish varnasrama." A devotee asked, "How will you do that, Srila

Prabhupada?" and he replied, "I will go to Gita-nagari, I will sit down, and

I will teach you to live off the land." I personally consider that to be

the bija mantra [seed mantra] of varnasrama.

 

 

— Telephone Interview with Abhirama dasa,

Vrndavana, India 18 February 1996,

(Interviewer: Hare Krsna dasi)"

 

> The executive head must be willing and able to enforce varnasrama-dharma

> and be willing and able to inflict punishment on those who contravene its

> principles. This trained up executive head of state is therefore the pivot

> and emblem of varnasrama-dharma, the "sine qua non".

 

Nowadays where is such a executive head of state who has such a power that

he can do everything acording to his desires - establishing VAD in his

state, for example? Most heads of states are voted in, by the population of

that state, or their government for a short period of time, acording to

democratic rules. The real power in a state is nowadays the Constitution of

a particular state, therefore in order to enforce VAD on a state its

Constitution would have to be changed acordingly, and thats definitely not

posible only for a head of state, the majority of the senators or political

partys would have to be convinced of VAD in order that they allow the

changing of the Constitution. That means a political dialogue between the

partys envolved would have to take place.

 

Or how do you see this matter?

 

> I am currently preaching in the nation state of Mauritius where the idea

> of such a executive head of state is not so far fetch. Please wish us well

> in our attempt to establish such an ideal state based on the priciples of

> daivi varnasrama-dharma.

 

I definitelly wish you well in your attempt to establish daiva

varnasrama-dharma anywhere it may be posible, my only concern is this, how

can this problem in our society be solved?

 

"Chanting Hare Krishna is the ultimate solution, and if we want to to

achieve perfection in that we need a social system."

 

So what should be our social system or social structure if not VAD?

 

Your humble servant

Harsi das