Thread #8 - Proposal by Bhaktarupa Das

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> Krishna Kirtan Mataji wrote:

>

> > According to my humble understanding of his previous answers to me, he

> > considers himself the TP in his temple, but he thinks his duty is simply

> > to "empower", as he says, somebody else to do what I consider the main

> > TP's duties. Is that fair? Is that an honest proposal? Can somebody

> > kindly reply to his statement above?

>

> I am certainly not qualified to give a proper answer to your questions,

> but I will try to share some thoughts:

>

> There are many possible arrangements for managing. If a temple president

> wants to delegate most of his managerial duties to someone else there is

> certainly no harm in that. I would not be the one to stand up and say he

> shouldn't be the temple president, but that he should appoint someone

> else. If he is able to spend his time in studying, teaching, writing, and

> preaching while the temple is being well-managed by others, then who will

> argue with success? There is one important consideration, though: Does he

> consider himself ultimately responsible? If the appointed managers make a

> mess of things, will he hold himself accountable? If they quit, will he

> take up the tasks himself? Will he intervene in an emergency and overrule

> the managers' decisions? Does he keep himself informed of the basic

> position so that he can detect problems early and act to forestall them?

> If in general he would answer these questions in the negative then I would

> say he is being irresponsible and he should resign in the interest of

> protecting the temple's dependents and congregation. If in general he

> would answer in the positive then I would say he is doing a great job, but

> the next question would certainly be how we would classify his activities.

> Since he is actually managing then I would say he is doing ksatriya karma.

> Studying, teaching, writing, and preaching are not the sole domain of

> brahmanas.

>

> Just my humble opinion.

>

> Your servant, Bhaktarupa Das

 

 

I agree with Bhaktarupa Prabhu but would add some of Srila Prabhupada's

recommendations:

 

"So in our society these divisions should be there. The most intelligent

class of men, they should be engaged in preaching, reading books,

instruction, and taking care of Deity worship in the temple. Another class

will be strong managers to see that everything is going nicely and everyone

is engaged. Not that only eating and sleeping. Everyone must be engaged,

employed. So if one is very much adopted for eating and sleeping, he should

be engaged with plows. You see there must be activity. Otherwise, there

must be dysentery. Eating and sleeping, you cannot digest. So in this way

our society should manage. Not that, "Give me second initiation, sacred

thread, and after taking, business finished, now I am liberated, let me eat

and sleep." This should be stopped." VAD Morning Walks 1974

 

"But for proper management in the material world, one should be acting like

brahmana, one should be acting like ksatriya. That is required. Just like

you are actually doing so. Some of you are preaching and some of you are

cleansing the temple. That does not mean that a sannyasi who is preaching,

he is better than that man who is cleansing. The position of Vaisnava is

the same. But for management one is cleansing, one is seeing to the

construction, one is going to preach, like that. That should be there. It

is not that because I have taken sannyasa therefore I cannot any longer do

anything. If need be, he has to act as ksatriya or sudra. It doesn't

matter. But for management, this division must be there, otherwise it will

be mismanagement."

 

 

A temple president's job is to see that everyone is engaged; engaged

according to varnasrama-dharma. Especially in ISKCON, this task would

certainly be a full time job if ISKCON had followed Srila Prabhupada's

orders over 26 years ago to start varnasrama in EVERY center, for EVERY

devotee, EVERYDAY.

 

It has also always been a big illusion amongst many so-called leaders of

ISKCON that they are somehow above everyone else in their service if they

are studying, teaching, writing, and preaching or distributing books. Then

they think they can call themselves anything and everything will be OK. This

is NOT management and the results of such mentality can be widely observed

in ISKCON. I love to read Srila Prabhupada's books and have read them all

but I know that performing my varnasrama duties are for the same purpose and

will give me the same result, if done in the right mentality. Many also read

or "preach" and have the wrong mentality and not gain any benefit.

 

A temple president, or more specifically, a leader of a community of bhaktas

and other human beings and cows, etc., should be of the ksatriya nature,

obviously. MOST of his time will be spent practicing, training and

performing ksatriya activities and lifestyles. If he ever thinks that this

work is lower than reading, preaching, distributing books, etc., he has not

understood daiva varnasrama-dharma nor Srila Prabhupada's teachings:

 

Srila Prabhupada: Some of you are preaching and some of you are cleansing

the temple. That does not mean that a sannyasi who is preaching, he is

better than that man who is cleansing. The position of Vaisnava is the

same. But for management one is cleansing, one is seeing to the

construction, one is going to preach, like that."

 

Madhuvisa Swami: Srila Prabhupada, Krsna says in the Bhagavad Gita, "Those

who repeat this message of Bhagavad Gita, those persons are most dear to Me.

There is no one more dear to Me than he." Now wouldn't that indicate that a

preacher is higher than a worker?

 

Srila Prabhupada: No! This is preaching to help. Suppose you are

preaching and I am helping you. This is also preaching.

 

Atreya Rsi: This building is also preaching.

 

Srila Prabhupada: Yes, this is also preaching. So it is not that preaching

simply means talking. Preaching means everything. Construction is also

preaching, designing is also preaching. Everything is preaching. Otherwise,

what is the use of spending so much money if it is not preaching?

 

Devotee: Anything that has to do with propagating Krsna consciousness in any

way.

 

Srila Prabhupada: Yes, it is also preaching.