Times of India interview with Bhakti Vigyan Swami

By Mona Mehta

Swami Bhakti Vigyan, head of the Russian chapter of the ISKCON spoke to Mona Mehta on the day a Russian court rejected the plea to ban the Gita.

What is your reaction to the Tomsk court’s dismissal of the plea for a ban on the Gita?
We’re grateful for all support of the Indian people and government in this regard. As the Gita says, if you stand for truth, truth will protect you. “Dharmo rakshita rakshatah”, meaning if you protect your religion or dharma, your dharma will protect you.

What is the significance of the judgement?
It was not the government, but some uninformed, misguided individuals related to the Russian Orthodox Church who put the Gita on trial. The plea submitted by the prosecutor based on an expert panel’s study of the Gita, showed that actually the issue was that of the difference between the Gita and the Christian view of the conception of God. But this is not the subject matter of a court case. They could have set a dangerous precedent. On two earlier occasions, when such pleas were filed in Moscow courts, they were dismissed at the initial stage by the prosecutors themselves. But this one time, the case went to court and was dismissed. Now we have a precedent and it’s a good thing.

How do you convey the Gita’s core message to the uninitiated?
Every living being is part and parcel of God, connected with God eternally, and every living being is spiritual by nature, and does not die. And the nature of every living being is eternity, knowledge and bliss. These are three things everyone is seeking.

How does it contradict the Christian faith?
There are some contradictions. Hindus believe in worshipping deities. We believe in reincarnation; we’re vegetarians. But you see, the core teachings are all the same. You love God, you love your neighbour, you don’t do something stupid. Ultimately, you have a spiritual nature. I don’t know why they (the ones who initiated the case) are so agitated. It could be because the number of those believing in reincarnation is increasing. More people are interested in yoga, prompting the church to say that yoga is something demonic.

What are the challenges you face in conveying the Gita’s message to a largely atheist population?
I was a third generation atheist and was called Vadim Touneev. A scientist by training, I first read the Gita in 1980, and it gave me a rational explanation of Creation, even though it was different from my atheist upbringing. I have been reading it daily ever since, not because I wanted to become a Hindu, but because I was intellectually convinced by what I read. Russian people are very philosophical, and there is a great deal of receptivity among them to the Gita because it offers meaningful answers to their questions such as – what is the meaning of life; what will happen to us after death; why were we born here? The main challenge has been that people feel that being born in a certain country, means they are born with a certain religion, whereas religion is not something you are born into; it’s something you consciously choose….

What kind of questions do seekers in Russia ask you?
The most important thing they want to know is how to be happy. Russians were suppressed for more than 70 years. They faced scarcity of food and material goods. Now they have all that – fancy cars, food, shoes, clothes, plenty of everything, but they are still not happy. The Gita explains that happiness is not outside of you, but inside. People also ask me questions about relationships. How to maintain good relations with the family? Russians are emotional, but family relationships have deteriorated of late.

What kind of following does ISKCON have?
Most Russians affiliate themselves with the Russian Orthodox Church; 70 per cent follow some form of Christianity, 10 per cent follow Islam, and the rest are mostly atheists. The ISKCON has around 40,000 followers; during a big festival, nearly 7,000-10,000 people visit our temple. Most followers have higher education, they are successful and on an average, are below the age of 30.