Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept my most humble obeisances at your lotus feet.
On this sacred day of your appearance, I approach you with a heart full of gratitude. You came into this world to deliver the powerful medicine of nāma-saṅkīrtana, and by your inconceivable mercy, the holy name has spread to every corner of the earth. Temples have arisen in cities where once no one had heard the name of Kṛṣṇa. Books carrying the timeless message of bhāgavat-dharma are read in languages you never personally spoke. The kirtan you brought across the oceans now echoes in lands that once seemed spiritually barren.
But my heart is also full of uncertainty and concern. You had a dream: you envisioned that America would spearhead a global cultural revolution. During a December 11, 1973, morning walk in Los Angeles, you revealed your plan to your disciples:
That is my ambition. I want to begin one revolution. Their godless civilization, against godless civilization. That is my ambition. And the America will be the best person to be educated in this line and to lead, to become the leader. They’re already leader, but they must be real leader now, so that the whole world may be happy. That I can give direction. If the topmost American gentlemen come to me, I can give them direction how they can become the world leader. Actual leader, not bogus leader. Because God has favored them with so many things. And this movement has been started from America. I started this movement from New York. So it should be taken very seriously by the government.
Today, many decades later, the full realization of that vision still seems distant. The topmost leaders in America appear to be less qualified than ever to be the world leaders you hoped they would become. Many observers have concluded that the former superpower is losing its leading position in the world. We therefore sometimes wonder how the cultural revolution mentioned in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.5.11) will come about? In the purport to this verse, where Nārada Muni encourages Vyāsadeva to compile literature which is full of transcendental words directed toward bringing about a revolution in the impious lives of this world’s misdirected civilization, you refer to the Sino-Indian War that took place at the end of 1962:
While preparing this commentation on this particular stanza of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam we have a crisis before us. Our neighboring friend China has attacked the border of India with a militaristic spirit. We have practically no business in the political field, yet we see that previously there were both China and India, and they both lived peacefully for centuries without ill feeling. The reason is that they lived those days in an atmosphere of God consciousness, and every country, over the surface of the world, was God-fearing, pure-hearted and simple, and there was no question of political diplomacy. There is no cause of quarrel between the two countries China and India over land which is not very suitable for habitation, and certainly there is no cause for fighting on this issue. But due to the age of quarrel, Kali, which we have discussed, there is always a chance of quarrel on slight provocation. This is due not to the issue in question, but to the polluted atmosphere of this age: systematically there is propaganda by a section of people to stop glorification of the name and fame of the Supreme Lord. Therefore, there is a great need for disseminating the message of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam all over the world. It is the duty of every responsible Indian to broadcast the transcendental message of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam throughout the world to do all the supermost good as well as to bring about the desired peace in the world.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, when you formed ISKCON sixty years ago, part of your mission was to take up the duty that every responsible Indian was meant to fulfill but did not. As you pointed out later in that same purport, because India had failed in her duty to spread the message of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, there was so much quarrel and trouble all over the world. Therefore you entrusted us with this monumental task. You envisioned the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement to fulfill that duty and shine like a beacon of hope – a spiritual family united beyond the temporary designations of gender, race, nationality, and political ideology. And in many ways, it did and still does. Millions of people have heard and chanted and still chant the holy name because of you. Your books continue to transform hearts.
And yet, even within the house you built, there are signs of fissures. Increasing tensions cause many of your followers great concern. During your lifetime, you warned us about the danger of factions. You emphasized again and again that the real principle of unity is cooperation for the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa. You asked us not to quarrel over temporary differences but to remain united under your instructions and the common purpose of spreading the message of Lord Caitanya to every town and village. You established systems of management not so that power struggles might arise but so that the preaching mission could expand harmoniously.
Still, as time has passed since your physical departure, disagreements have grown sharper. Some of your followers identify themselves as defenders of tradition. They fear that in the attempt to adapt to a rapidly changing world the purity of your teachings may be compromised. They worry that contemporary cultural trends could weaken the philosophical clarity that you fought so hard to establish. To them, fidelity to your instructions means preserving the forms, standards, and interpretations exactly as they understand you to have given them.
Others, however, feel a different urgency. They believe that in order for your mission to reach new generations, it must speak in ways that people can understand and accept. They argue that, just as you made adjustments fifty years ago, a constantly changing environment is calling for further adjustments so that your message may remain relevant and accessible. To them, the spirit of your mission lies in dynamic preaching, not merely in preserving external forms.
Each side sincerely claims loyalty to you. Each side believes it is protecting your legacy. Each side accuses the other of having deviated and contributed to a drift from the mission.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, the prospect of a fractured mission causes deep pain in the hearts of many who love you. For you did not come to create another sect competing with other sects. You came to give the universal science of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. You showed by your own example that the essence of spiritual life is humility, service, and cooperation.
Sometimes I wonder what you would say if you were physically present today. Would you chastise us for our lack of humility? Would you remind us again that cooperation is the real test of love for you? Or would you simply encourage us to chant sincerely and engage ourselves fully in spreading the holy name?
Perhaps you would do all of these things.
The world desperately needs the message you gave. Humanity stands at a crossroads. Material progress has brought extraordinary technological power, yet it has not brought peace. Instead, anxiety is increasing relentlessly, both on an individual and a societal level. Relationships are more fragile than ever, and people struggle to find meaning in their lives.
We may not always agree on every detail of management or interpretation. Diversity of perspective may even be inevitable in a global movement that now spans continents and cultures. Yet if we can remember that we are united in service to you and to Kṛṣṇa, those differences need not become causes of division.
Instead, they can become opportunities for deeper dialogue, deeper reflection, deeper realization, and ultimately deeper cooperation.
On this Vyāsa-pūjā day, therefore, I pray at your lotus feet for guidance. Please help us remember the essence of your mission. Please help us see one another not as rivals in ideological battles, but as fellow servants trying, however imperfectly, to carry forward the work you began.
If we can do that, then the fears of division may gradually fade, and the movement you founded will continue to flourish for generations to come. You crossed oceans alone in old age to bring the mercy of Lord Caitanya to the world. Compared to that heroic sacrifice, our present difficulties are small. Yet even small difficulties can grow large if we forget the spiritual vision you taught us.
Therefore, on this sacred day, I renew my prayer to serve your mission to the best of my ability.
May your followers always remember that we belong to you. May we never forget that the real victory is not winning arguments but awakening love for Kṛṣṇa in the hearts of all living beings. And may we always remain, despite our imperfections, united in glorifying your extraordinary life and eternal teachings.
Your insignificant servant, aspiring to follow in your footsteps,
Bhakti Gauravāṇī Goswami