Vetoed: Beef dinners to fund preaching events

[Guest guest]

"COM: Jitakrodha (das) ACBSP (JPS Ministries - USA)" wrote:

 

> [Text 2415308 from COM]

>

> On one of the other conferences there was a mention of a multilevel

> marketing company being offered to devotees. This particular company uses

> cow slaughter by products as well as selling beef products. I am not looking

> for a debate on the company but I wanted to see what the philosophical

> understanding is.

>

> Can a devotee be engaged in a self employment situation, where people are

> ordering products containing beef and other slaughter products, direct from

> a company and then the company send the devotee a commission check. That is

> if the devotee gives that profit to the service to Krsna is it purified?...

>

> Your servant, Jitakrodha das

 

Hare Krsna dasi comments:

 

I'll have more to say about this later. But first, my own personal experience.

 

When I was first starting to go to the Boston temple in the late 1970's (after

Srila Prabhupada's disappearance) I was a receptionist at a venue for major

events on campus. As anyone who works for non-devotees has experienced, it is

sometimes difficult to find a job which does not involve dealing with meat

products in some way or another. As Srila Prabhupada states, "Modern

civilization is centered around animal-killing." [sB 4.27.11]

 

But I thought I had a very good job, mostly scheduling speaking events and

doing

publicity. But in May, when the seniors graduated, it was my job to sell

luncheon tickets to them and their parents. In those days, the choices were

lobster dinner (since it was in Maine) or beef dinner.

 

I had been a vegetarian for 10 years and really did not want to be involved in

this, but I looked at it philosophically, from the point of the Bhagavad-gita

and concluded that this was just some fault covering my occupation and that I

had to go ahead and do it anyway. Nevertheless, when I got that paycheck, I

used all of it to purchase about 10 Bhagavad-gitas and other items from the

temple gift store.

 

The following year, 1979, I was in the same situation. It was May and I was

going to have to sell those tickets again. The more I got into Krsna

consciousness, the worse I felt about the situation. Anyway, I was at the

Boston temple. I think I was meeting with Agrani prabhu the temple president

to

arrange for devotees to come up and do a program in Maine. There was a

question

of funding to cover the event. I suggested to Agrani, "Well, since it's May, I

have to sell commencement dinner tickets for the seniors. Since it's for

lobster and beef dinners, I always give all the money to the temple -- so we

could use that money for finance the program."

 

Agrani became very grave, "You must not sell beef tickets. Even if you have to

sell lobster tickets, you absolutely must not sell the beef tickets."

 

That was a big shock to me, because I already had my Bhagavad-gita

rationalization. But, I instantly knew he was right.

 

But, would I loose my job? This was a big issue.

 

I remember one night soon after that. I made the dinner offering to our

picture

of Radha-Gopiballava. "....namo brahmanya devaya go brahmana..." It struck me

-- How can I make an offering to Krsna the protector of the cows at the same

time that I'm going to sell these beef tickets. I told my husband that I was

not going to do it. He agreed.

 

The next day I talked to my boss. It was a big deal for me. Here I was

risking

my very comfortable and pleasant job. I was going to have to explain about

Krsna -- to my boss.

 

So I did it. I had a meeting with him. It was an existential moment, very

intense. I had no idea what he would say. Would he get mad? Would he fire

me? "Mers, you know these commencement lunch tickets? I've become a Hare

Krsna

devotee, and Krsna is the protector of the cows. I can no longer sell these

tickets. I don't know what you are going to do about it, but I can no longer

sell them. I don't know if you'll have to fire me or what, but I just can't

sell them." I was praying like anything to Visnu in his heart.

 

He was stunned. It was unexpected. My reputation was that I was competent and

cooperative. He did not expect any difficulty from me. But I could sense that

he was sympathetic. "Well, I don't know what we'll do either. I'll just have

to think about it."

 

The next day, he told me that if anyone wanted beef tickets, they would have to

purchase them from a secretary that worked in the office.

 

Not a glorious thing on my behalf. I still sold the lobster tickets. But at

least I did not have to be involved in the beef tickets.

 

A couple weeks after that, my boss called me in to tell me that the

Administration was restructuring things and that both his and my positions were

being eliminated. So, by Krsna's mercy, even though I showed only the

slightest

amount of determination, He rescued me from having to do that again. Both my

boss and I got better positions in other departments.

 

History: Later on Agrani dasa took sannyasa. And some years later he got

involved with a young devotee and ended up getting married. But, regardless of

circumstances, I have always felt tremendous gratitude to him for his firm

guidance on this point. Because on Agrani's insistence I took that one tiny

step towards Krsna, Krsna has kindly allowed me to be involved in many aspects

of cow protection and to associate with his transcendental ISKCON cowherds over

the years.

 

Moral: The ends do not justify the means. Earning funds through cow slaughter

to spread of Krsna consciousness is not acceptable.

 

your servant,

 

Hare Krsna dasi