“Aside from the few, now infamous remarks of public record, please explain why anyone should believe that GHQ was ‘nefarious: flagrantly wicked or impious: EVIL; VICIOUS.’ (Webster's)”
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Following from that initial mistake, each of your further calculations has thus compounded your original error.”Guru-Krsna das (HDG) replies to Srila Dasa
Dear Srila Prabhu,
Please accept my respectful obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories to all genuine Prabhupadanugas!
I sincerely thank you for your open letter, which includes both undeserved praise of and kindness towards my wretched self. And indeed I appreciate Your Grace's reminder that "Hearing, not arguing, promotes understanding." Therefore, as if with a clump of straw between my teeth, I now humbly request to hear further from Your Grace, so that I may properly understand that which you deem essential.
Your Grace's opening comment was that I had "attempted to respond to and rebut the numerous accusations that implicate [me]—along with all the other members of the now nefarious GHQ—in misogyny." Already I am confused, prabhu. Please explain why you have determined that GHQ is "now nefarious." Aside from the few, now infamous remarks of public record, please explain why anyone should believe that GHQ was "nefarious: flagrantly wicked or impious: EVIL; VICIOUS." (Webster's) You have also faulted me for use of "rhetorical strategy." But it seems to me that your accusation is a case of atmavan manyate jagat, as you yourself proceed to employ rhetoric with the strategy to divert readers from the serious questions and legitimate points which I have raised in "Anonymous Anathema?" I desire very much to hear Your Grace's response—to dispell my confusion.
I am bewildered even moreso by your claim that GHQ is "implicated in misogyny." Please explain to me why anyone should accept that judgement as fact. I wish to hear more about that, for we know that Lord Caitanya Himself was quite radical in His avoidance of women. Yet Srila Prabhupada explains that it was "not out of hatred" for the woman class, but to set proper example, that Mahaprabhu was so extreme in His avoidance of women. Was or is GHQ's view towards Vaisnavis even as extreme as Lord Caitanya's, what to speak of being moreso? Yet, Your Grace declares that GHQ is implicated in the psychopathy of misogyny. Therefore, I humbly request you to explain the unequivocal symptoms of misogyny, according to our founder-acarya and jagat-siksa-guru, Srila Prabhupada. Or perhaps better still, Your Grace will kindly direct us to the exact pages of the lawbooks (for 10K years), wherein Srila Prabhupada fully describes misogyny from all angles of vision.
You also kindly opined that I had not once distanced myself from the unsavory remarks made on GHQ and that my "conspicuous silence must mean a fundamental agreement with the basic intent of those heinous letters." But I humbly beg to inform Your Grace that I had already made several public, conspicuous statements with regard to those letters, including a public apology sent to (but not published by) CHAKRA.
You have also advised me that a polemic approach will prove futile in "the face of this overwhelming public and ecclesiastical backlash," being challenged with such "overwhelming reproof." However, it is not polemics in which we indulge—rather, it is philosophical research of Srila Prabhhpada's vani. Moreover, I confidently assure you that no GHQ member is even mildly fazed by this backlash. You suggest that perhaps "the collective will of the Vaisnavas is trying to tell you something." But quite honestly, prabhu, that collective will appears to be driven not by conclusive fact, but by meager truths and misapprehension. (I do wish to hear more on this from Your Grace, lest I am wrong.) And I humbly inquire, Is truth known by vox populi or vox Dei?
Your Grace has kindly urged us to give up our "self-righteousness and condescending attitudes towards women and genuinely try to surrender unto qualified Vaisnavas." It is our humble opinion that we are sincerely trying to surrender to the most qualified Vaisnava Srila Prabhupada, the first and foremost item being to hear from His Divine Grace with faith. As Your Grace has instructed, "Hearing, not arguing, promotes understanding." I do trust that Your Grace strictly adheres to this practice and does not argue or doubt when hearing directly from Srila Prabhupada the myriad of apparently condescending/disempowering/sexist statements throughout the pages of his transcendental purports, conversations, lectures, and letters.
It is my most humble opinion that the first calculation made by Your Grace above—that GHQ is nefarious and misogynic—is wrong. Following from that initial mistake, each of your further calculations has thus compounded your original error. Due to that redoubling error, I must submit honestly that I remain bewildered and confused as to what, exactly, Your Grace would have me understand.
Nevertheless, I thank you very much for your kind attempt to counsel me, and I eagerly await your replies to my queries. Hoping that Your Grace is well, I remain humbly endeavoring to become
your servant in service to ISKCON,
Guru-Krsna das (HDG)
dharmo-rakshati rakshitaha
(CHAKRA regrets not having published Guru-Krsna Prabhu's apology. In our correspondence with Guru-Krsna Prabhu, there was some confusion over what was to be published and what was not.)
© CHAKRA 28-Dec-98
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