Vasu Murti's blog

by Vasu Murti

In an ISKCON newsletter, back in 1989, when the Robin George case was taking place, ISKCON San Diego, CA temple president Badri Narayan dasa endorsed Krishnafest. Krishnafest was a preaching program led by Danavir dasa and Gunagrahi Maharaja. Badri endorsed it saying that Krishnafest makes devotees, and (referring to the George case), offense is usually the best defense.

It was under these circumstances that my friend and godbrother in the San Diego FOLK program, R.F., and I wrote a paper on temple congregations, and we were hoping to make my roommate Greg a FOLK member. "Anti-cult" accusations can hardly apply if the majority of worshippers in a religious institution serve in its laity and are no different from secular people.

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In a letter to Upendra dasa in Fiji, dated October 26, 1970, from Amritsar, India, Srila Prabhupada wrote:

"Regarding worship of demigods, the whole Hindu society is absorbed in this business, so unless our preaching work is very vigorous it is very difficult to stop them."

When I speak of Hindu "polytheism", I refer not to demigod worship, but to our doctrine of vishnu-tattva expansions.

A friend in college, Victor, once said he thought God was "lonely," because He is a solitary and omnipresent Being who has no equal—because there's only one God, right? Victor said God may create humans for companionship, but this is similar to an old lady with cats as pets. 

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Back in 1985, my friend Victor, who is Jewish, invited me to a Shabbat (Sabbath) observance with a group of Jewish students on our college campus. They were singing songs in Hebrew, and clapping hands—almost like a "Jewish kirtana"!

I met a Jewish student who said she was interested in things like yoga and meditation, but was put off by the idea of worshipping images (idols). She was also skeptical of my assertion that according to Vedic cosmology, human civilization goes back millions of years: she told me she had taken a college course in Anthropology.

At one point, she equated the worshipping of images (idols) with the pagan religions of ancient Greece and Rome, asking: "How can you (Hindus) worship images (idols)—that's so Grecian!" I tried to shift the conversation towards deeper theological questions: "Does God have form?" "What does God look like?" Even Genesis 1:26-31 says man is made in the image of God!

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Vedic cosmology views time in vast cycles lasting hundreds of thousands of years, with phases of light and darkness corresponding to the level of spiritual awareness on the planet. According to the scriptures, men and women in previous ages were endowed with heroic and godly qualities. The supernatural was commonplace, and miraculous events were ordinary.

In his lucid translation and commentary of the Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.17.6–8), His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada writes that people in ancient times were godly. they enjoyed thousand-year lifespans, and the earth was ruled by saintly kings (rajarsis) annointed by God. These noble rulers cared for both their human and nonhuman subjects: “Men and animals were equally protected as far as life was concerned. That is the way in God’s kingdom.” According to Srila Prabhupada, such moral concern is required of today’s leaders: “The protection of the lives of both the human beings and the animals is the first and foremost duty of a government. A government must not discriminate in such principles.”

The Vedic scriptures warn against atheism, licentiousness, and unnecessary violence. The sages teach that gradual forgetfulness of God and religious principles will only lead to moral degeneration and greater human suffering.

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Regarding vegetarianism vs. veganism, man is the only species that drinks the milk of another species. All other species drink the milk of the mothers of their own species until they are weaned. Cow's milk is the perfect food—if you're a baby calf!

To mass produce cow's milk on a large scale via factory farming, cows have to be kept continually pregnant, giving birth, and lactating. The cows are genetically bred to produce excess cow's milk for humans. Male cows (bulls) are useless to the dairy industry, so they become veal. By supporting the dairy industry, one indirectly supports cow killing.

There was an article on veganism on namahatta.org by a vegan British devotee, in which she pointed out that Lord Krishna loves the cows, not the milk. Again, by supporting the dairy industry, one indirectly supports cow killing. Vegetarians do cause far less animal cruelty than meat-eaters, but Srila Prabhupada's teachings on non-violence would carry greater weight if we went vegan.

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In e-mail correspondence with my friend Tim Parks (a Protestant missionary, now preaching in China) during the late '90s, I told him that Lord Krishna identifies Himself as an avatar, or incarnation of God—the Supreme Being, and the Father of every living entity (Gita 14.4).

Modern Jewish theologian Martin Buber has written that there is only one God whom we are all worshipping under a variety of names. Christians and Muslims, for example, also claim to be worshipping the one God of Abraham. Do Jews deny this?

I said that as Vaishnavas, we identify ourselves as worshippers of Lord Vishnu, the Supreme Being in the Hindu pantheon. The Judeo-Christian tradition is monotheistic, but the apostle Paul does make a passing reference to the cult of angel worship in his Epistle to the Colossians. Lord Krishna similarly spoke Bhagavad-gita to the sun-god millions of years before He spoke it to His disciple Arjuna.

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Author, God's Covenant with Animals
born: November 30, 1933; 4:25 a.m.; New York, NY
died: October 8th ?, 2007; Sarasota, FL

(Shortly before passing away in early October 2007, Regina agreed to have a Hindu astrologer analyze her astrological chart. Some of the biographical information provided here comes from what was given to the astrologer.)

Regina was raised Irish Catholic and attended Catholic school as a youth, but went over to the Protestants to become an evangelical minister, since the Catholics don't ordain women. She reverently referred to Jesus as "my guru." Regina had been vegetarian since the 1970s, but found it odd that some religious vegetarians also consider mind-altering substances like alcohol to be "unspiritual." Regina admitted that having been raised Irish Catholic, she was fond of alcohol, and believed (like most Christians) that the Bible permits alcohol in moderation.

She said she religiously read a copy of Bhagavad-gita As It Is, which I sent her years ago. She obtained a copy of Srila Prabhupada's book, The Path of Perfection when living in Texas a few decades ago, and says that while she was attracted to Srila Prabhupada's teachings on yoga and meditation, she was put off by his (apparently) sexist comments about women.

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Inside the Hare Krishna Movement:  An Ancient Eastern Religious Tradition  Comes of Age in the Western World  by Mukunda Goswami  Torchlight Publishing  279 pages  $19.95

Buy at Amazon.com

In his book Inside the Hare Krishna Movement, Mukunda Goswami expertly discusses the relevance of Krishna Consciousness to modern life. Devotees are depicted not as ascetics renouncing the material world, but as active participants in the world's affairs. Devotees are shown associating with and distributing books, prasadam and the holy name to people from all walks of life, including celebrities and world leaders: Nelson Mandela, Yasser Arafat, Hayley Mills, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, Fidel Castro, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Jesse Jackson, Mother Teresa, etc. 

Srila Prabhupada said Krishna Consciousness is meant to "solve all problems of the world." (p. 53) According to Mukunda Goswami, "Srila Prabhupada had an agenda for social change. He sometimes addressed financial, social, and political issues." The first lesson in Krishna Consciousness is that we are not these bodies—we are spirit souls. Social ills such as racism, sexism, caste-ism, nationalism and speciesism arise because souls falsely identify with their temporary bodies. On the spiritual platform, we are all equal. Herein lies the basis for a real "liberation theology." 

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The second most repeated argument against animal rights I've gotten from Christians is a verse in the New Testament where Paul quotes Jesus as having said to him three times, "My grace is sufficient for thee."  (II Corinthians 12:8-9)  Christians misinterpret this verse to mean they're free to do whatever they want—ignoring the rest of the New Testament, and (especially) Jesus' and Paul's other teachings. The apostle Paul taught his followers to bless their persecutors and not curse them (Romans 12:14), to care for their enemies by providing them with food and drink (12:20), and to pay their taxes and obey all earthly governments (13:1-7). He mentioned giving all his belongings to feed the hungry (I Corinthians 13:3), and taught giving to the person in need (Ephesians 4:23). He told his followers it was wrong to take their conflicts before non-Christian courts rather than before the saints. (I Corinthians 6:1)

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The most-repeated argument against biblical vegetarianism I've gotten from Christians is that they think they are no longer under Mosaic Law, because the apostle Paul referred to his background as a former Pharisee and his previous adherence to Mosaic Law (with its dietary laws, commandments calling for the humane treatment of animals, etc.) as "so much garbage."  (Philippians 3:4-8) 

There is nothing in the synoptic gospels of Jesus, however, to suggest a fundamental break with Judaism.  Jesus was called "Rabbi," meaning "Master" or "Teacher," 42 times in the gospels.  The ministry of Jesus was a rabbinic one.  Jesus related Scripture and God's laws to everyday life, teaching by personal example. He engaged in healing and acts of mercy.  He told stories or parables—a rabbinic method of teaching.  He went to the synagogue (Matthew 12:9), taught in the synagogues (Matthew 4:23, 13:54; Mark 1:39), expressed concern for Jairus, "one of the rulers of the synagogue" (Mark 5:36) and it "was his custom" to go to the synagogue (Luke 4:16). 

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