By Radha Bhakti Devi Dasi (Toronto, Canada)
Member of Toronto V-Care Team/Strategic Planning Committee
In January of 2014, I ventured to Mumbai to interview some staff and patients at the Bhaktivedanta Hospital, and to write down their stories. I was told that many transformations of heart have occurred there, and that their stories should be written. I was apprehensive at first; what would it be like to spend so much time in a hospital? I, like many people, dread hospitals. The sounds, the smells, the overall vibe…I have only ever been to hospitals for bad reasons. Needless to say, I was extremely anxious.As I prepared for my trip, I had no idea what to expect. Would I be able to be around sickness and death all day? Would I be able to be in a hospital, where there is typically so much grief and negativity? Could I stomach it? So it was with great trepidation that I walked into Bhaktivedanta Hospital that day in early January. And I couldn’t believe what I saw.Srila Prabhupada’s deity was greeting me in the lobby. Immediately I offered obeisances.
I looked arou
nd. “Wait, is this the hospital?” I thought to myself. “Why does everyone look so…happy?” I smelled incense and camphor. There was BBT art on all the walls. Everyone was wearing vaisnava attire and tilak. There was a book stall on the left. Srila Prabhupada’s chanting of the mahamantra was softly playing in the background. And, it was immaculate. For the next five weeks, I stayed at the hospital and spoke to a number of staff, patients, and their families. It was a life-altering experience. I wanted to share a few lines from my journal whilst I was staying at the hospital:
For the next five weeks, I stayed at the hospital and spoke to a number of staff, patients, and their families. It was a life-altering experience. I wanted to share a few lines from my journal whilst I was staying at the hospital:
The staff here is not from this world. They are demigods who are most definitely going back to Godhead after this life. Except they’d probably opt to stay here because of their unbelievable service attitude and commitment to Srila Prabhupada- There is no difference between the Bhaktivedanta Hospital and the spiritual world
- I feel Srila Prabhupada here more than anywhere else in the world
- It’s brilliant – the perfect venue to bring people closer to Krishna consciousness. We read all the time in the scriptures about the miseries of the material world, not the least of which are birth, death, disease and old age. Here, those things are so apparent – we are exposed to those things on a daily basis. I can see the scriptures in action – as soon as we realize that the material world is a place characterized by suffering, we become ripe and eager for Krishna. This is genius – more effective than any temple.
Lord Jagannatha is the presiding deity here. I always knew He was merciful, but I didn’t realize how much. Every day, He goes with Lord Balarama and Subhadra Maharani into each patient’s room to give them the opportunity to offer a flower and to have His darshan.- I just met with a number of women from the Spiritual Care Department. They are looking after me so nicely – arranging my prasadam, my accommodation. Their service attitude is melting my heart, and all I want to do is assist them in their service! I would consider that to be my greatest success.
- Here, people are looked after from the “womb to the tomb.” They have programs for pregnant women, and they have an extensive palliative care philosophy and team. And everything is based on Srila Prabhupada’s teachings. This place is magic.
There is so much I could say about this hospital but it wouldn’t do it justice. I heard so many amazing stories of how people’s lives, and those of their families, were completely transformed. People come to the hospital to treat a physical ailment and leave having mended the important relationships in their lives. They come back for the outreach programs, they chant Hare Krishna, they eat prasadam, they hear the holy names. They make friends with 
their doctors and nurses. This hospital is the most genius preaching tool. I humbly bow down to Srila Prabhupada, to His Holiness Radhanatha Swami, and to all the staff at the hospital for their amazing, selfless service. I have no words to do this institution or my experience justice.
All glories to Bhaktivedanta Hospital! I hope the whole world takes notice of their unparalleled service and care.
Source: http://vaisnavascare.org/?p=3234
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
I read your article with interest. I would like to make some comments. Although some preaching is being done. Is it a step in the right direction for ISKCON to start opening hospitals? How do we reconcile this project with the fact that Srila Prabhupada mentioned so many times not to open hospitals in ISKCON and to only focus on spiritual benefits as opposed to bodily benefits? I listed some quotes below:
You can open a hospital for the human being but where is your hospital for the tiger? Can any man open a hospital for the tigers, for the snakes? And why not? You are compassionate with living entities. Are they not living entities? This is the frailty of imperfect knowledge
[Bhagavad-gita 5.17-25 — Los Angeles, February 8, 1969]
They are very much puffed up, that “We are doing this, opening hospital and school, and philanthropism, nationalism.” Is there any such thing in the Bhagavad-gita? Is there any advice that “You open hospital, school and do this philanthropic work”? No. If you have got anything to give in charity, you are charitably disposed, Krsna says, “Give it to Me. If you are so rich and if you have got this good intention to give in charity, give it to Me.” Yat karosi yaj juhosi yad asnasi yat tapasyasi dadasi yat [Bg. 9.27]. Dadasi yat means “whatever you give in charity.” Kurusva tad mad-arpanam: “Give it to Me. Yes, I am expanding My hand. Come on.” But they have forgotten Krsna or Krsna’s advice, and they remain puffed up, that “I am engaged in this activity, that activity, this activity.” Thousands of millions of such activities may be very good in the estimations of the fools and rascals, but it may not be accepted by Krsna. That is the crucial point. But our point is that unless accepted by Krsna, it is simply srama eva hi kevalam [SB 1.2.8], simply waste of time. Our philosophy says. We have to satisfy Krsna. We haven’t got to satisfy ourselves that “I am doing very nice work in this way.” So all these people, they are manufacturing concocted ideas.
[Bhagavad-gita 2.2 — London, August 3, 1973]
Hrdayananda: You’re the only one, Prabhupada, who dares to criticize hospitals and schools. (laughter)
Prabhupada: Yes, so many people came to request me… Even Dr. Ghosh. Eh? You know.
Satsvarupa: He wanted you to open a medical dispensary.
Prabhupada: “No, no, we are not going to waste our time in that way.” I frankly told him. We have no extra time to waste like that. What he thinks very big project, we say it is waste of time. (laughter)
Jayatirtha: Yes.
Hrdayananda: Jaya. It is a completely revolutionary idea.
Prabhupada: Yes. I cannot allow anyone he’s waste his valuable time of human life. Guru-krpa: You said before that the more hospitals they open that means the more people have to become sick.
Prabhupada: That, more… Yes.
Guru-krpa: To get in the hospital.
Prabhupada: They are very much proud, “We have opened fifty hospitals.” That means fifty thousand people have become sick. “We have increased so many beds.” That means so many people have more increased their disease. But they’re proud of doing this.
[ Morning Walk — July 9, 1974, Los Angeles]
There so many quotes like this where Srila Prabhupada forbade this activity. And so I would humbly like to hear about your opinion or anyone else.
Thank you.
Your servant,
Murari Das
yasyaprasadad@gmail.com
Generally, we think of a hospital as taking care of our bodies, which incidentally, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura says, is also devotional service for devotees, but a hospital which takes care of the mind and soul also is rare. If all the hospitals of the world became like the Bhaktivedanta Hospital, that would be nice. What comes to mind is the analogy Srila Prabhupada uses of the kittens being cared for and carried in the cat’s mouth on the one hand, and the mouse also being carried in the mouth of the cat, on the other. The two are not the same. One is secure and comfortable, the other is terrified and only facing death and destruction. Maybe we can give the Bhaktivedanta Hospital a different name from hospital so that it does not conjure up the usual scenes in the average hospital today. For some, it will be our transition into Vaikuntha, where Krsna and His devotees are patiently waiting for us.
Murari Prabhu, the Bhaktivedanta Hospital is not, nor has ever been an ISKCON project. It was started by a group of independent devotees who were all doctors and professionals in health care. Most of the members are ISKCON members.
I have had the good fortune of getting treatment there several times. Like Mother Radha Bhakti, I found the atmosphere very devotional and the staff there both professional and full of bhakti. I appreciate your point and agree with it. It is not the business of ISKCON to run hospitals. What should be done in a case like this? Should we tell them not to keep Srila Prabhupada’s deity or to play Prabhupada’s bhajans in the rooms? Should we tell them not to chant Hare Krishna or serve Krishna prasadam cooked by initiated devotees? Should we try to force everyone outside of our institution to not do anything devotional?
Isn’t that a bit absurd?
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
Thank you for your replies. Yes I also visited there once just to see the place and found the atmosphere to be quite devotional and the devotees to be very helpful and focused on their service. The decor was also quite amazing with the BBT art.
I have to stress here that I am making some points not against the hospital staff, or initiators of the project or any individuals or devotees but we are purely discussing a philosophical point on whether a hospital should be included as part of our preaching endeavors in ISKCON. The reasons that I am not favorable to this idea is because:
1. It is a form of Punya karma. I read in so many conversations and purports where Srila Prabhupada spoke about how a spiritual institution should not have anything to do with opening hospitals as it was punya karma.
Prabhupada: [break] …become a slogan nowadays. Nobody does for others. “For others,” “For the poor,” these are all humbug.
Guest (1): You think people are doing something hospitals, that is for others?
Prabhupada: Yes. That is also punya-karma.
Guest (1): (Hindi) Helping these temples, hospitals…?
Prabhupada: Yes. Temple construction is different from hospital construction. That is for Krsna.
Guest (1): But suppose somebody’s doing hospitals. Is it not for others?
Prabhupada: Yes. But how many you can give shelter? A few. There are so many suffering people. You cannot provide hospitals for all of them. The hospitals are increasing, and the disease also increasing.
Guest (1): No, as you say that doing for others is humbug.
Prabhupada: No, no. Humbug means he cannot do it.
This means that we think we are helping people by running the hospital but it is a form of subtle sense gratification in form of Humanitarianism (extended selfishness). We get sense gratification from helping sick people and think that ‘I am the controller and curer’. So this ties us further to the material sphere and causes us to take birth again.
Pusta-krsna: Why are they so attracted to humanitarianism?
Prabhupada: That is false pride. This has been taught. In the Christianity they have taught like that, giving medicine, open hospital.
Prabhupada: That’s all.
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Room Conversation — June 5, 1974, Geneva
2. Srila Prabhupada had an opportunity to open hospitals and medical dispensaries in the past but refused. He gave the reason that it would It was actually quite popular RamaKrishna, Sai and so many others to open charitable hospitals or dispensaries and push their philosophy and preach in the hospitals. But Srila Prabhupada refused when asked by Mr Ghosh to do the same thing as he saw it as a deviation of duty of a spiritual organization:
Regarding the charitable dispensary, I am not very much enthusiastic for this enterprise because nowadays to keep a proper dispensary pushing on requires much attention and money also. I have heard from the authorities of the Rama Krishna Mission that their charitable dispensaries of hospitals are mostly run by paid men, as formally no intelligent medical practitioner was joining them to run it on.
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Letter to: Dr. Ghosh: — Bombay 17 November,
Srila Prabhupada said it requires so much money and attention. My comment: could we not use all that extra money and attention in other direct preaching methods that would surely please Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga such as Varnasrama Colleges, book distribution etc. instead of our own ideas.
3. One of the activities the hospital does is free eye clinics. What does Srila Prabhupada say about eye clinics:
But one thing is that we are preaching Bhagavad-gita as it is. In Bhagavad-gita there is no such statement that you take care of the eyes of the people. There is no such statement. That is your manufactured idea. But we are preaching Bhagavad-gita as it is. That is the difference. Our preaching is that instead of giving relief to the eyes, give him relief in such a way he hasn’t got to accept any more this body with eyes. …… So Bhagavad-gita is meant for that purpose. Tyaktva deham punar janma naiti [Bg. 4.9]. And as soon as you accept body, klesada… Na sadhu manye yato atmano ‘yam asann api klesada asa dehah [SB 5.5.4]. Asann api. This body is not permanent. So because the body is not permanent, the disease also not permanent. So Krsna’s advice is tams titiksasva bharata. Matra-sparsas tu kaunteya sitosna-sukha-duhkha-dah [Bg. 2.14]. You make the solution — that is the greatest solution — that how to stop janma-mrtyu. But that they do not know, that this can be stopped. They are simply busy with their temporary problems. And they are taking it as very great. What is great? Suppose if you have got a boil here. Simply by pinprick. (makes blowing sound) Will it cure? There must be surgical operation. Get out the pus. So this movement is for that purpose. It is not for this janma-mrtyu, I mean, temporary jara-vyadhi.
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Room Conversation — January 8, 1977, Bombay
Srila Prabhupada clearly says that the idea of eye camps is against the mission of this movement. He proclaims the aim of this movement as being establishing the truths of Bhagavad-gita and thus saving souls from getting another body which permanently stops all health problems once and for all.
I have so many more thoughts but the space is limited. I just think we should revisit the idea of establishing hospitals under the auspices of ISKCON. Some may say that this is not an ISKCON project but it may as well be as it is very common for me to hear from devotees are are from the same project as the initiators of the hospital, that; “we have temple, school, eco-village farm and hospital”. In other words it is inevitably being associated with the main temple due to the presentation and due to the fact that it is being given support very directly from the temple. Even the author of article observed this and glorified the main senior devotee who we could say is the spiritual inspiration behind it, not seeing that it was started separately and is not part of any temple.
Now we are getting sidetracked. More and more hospitals are cropping up with plans for even more. This is how deviation happens. Even if we can’t understand why Srila Prabhupada didn’t want a hospital as a preaching forum for ISKCON, we still better not do it as Srila Prabhupada, Lord Gauranga’s SenaPati can see further than us.
Anyway if we are really keen to preach, then the best thing for changing this society as mentioned by Prabhupada would be for all the volunteers to dedicate their lives for the fulfillment of two of our most solid preaching programs:
“Book distribution and farms: these are our solid programs. They can change the whole world. The whole foundation of animal civilization can be destroyed.
>>> Ref. VedaBase => TKG: August
Thank you Murari Prabhu for sharing your well-placed concern about the focus of Srila Prabhupada’s mission. As our movement expands, and varnasrama in various aspects begins to manifest there will be many, many persons on the peripheral of our society who will feel inspired to promote projects that may not be 100% mukhya-bhakti (primary devotion).
The question is what should we do?
Should we try to get the secular governments to pass laws that only allow authorized members of ISKCON to chant Hare Krishna, distribute prasadam, or keep photos and appreciation of Srila Prabhupada?
Should we tell anyone working at the Bhaktivedanta Hospital, “Well it’s okay if you chant, and you can have a deity of Srila Prabhupada, but you are not allowed to come to our ISKCON temple and be a member here, as some people may think your hospital is an ISKCON project.”?
Please forgive me for being absurd. I share your concern that our society not have a mission drift away from pure bhakti. However, isn’t it both unreasonable and against our mission to try to stop private individuals, who may have some incidental connection with our society, from practicing gauna-bhakti, daivi-varnasrama acts such as feeding the poor or opening hospitals (especially if those acts of charity are conducted with the chanting of the holy names)?
Again, the simple, legal (easily substantiated) fact is that the Bhaktivedanta Hospital is *not* an ISKCON project. If the members of that hospital want to chant Hare Krishna and worship Srila Prabhupada, I don’t think there is much we can do about it.
In my humble opinion, rather than trying to discourage varnasrama dharma, acts of charity, and kindness done in connection with Krishna consciousness (but performed outside of our society), we would do better to focus on mukhya-bhakti, suddha-bhakti and strongly preach that to the devotees.
In such a case I think that everything will fall into place.
The core message of Bhagavad Gita is to engage our natural abilities in service to Krishna. BG 9.27: “O son of Kunti, all that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me.” Krishna does not tell Arjuna to give up his social responsibilities and move into the temple to do puja for him. Quite the contrary. He urges Arjuna to perform his social duties as an offering to the Lord. And this is what Bhaktivedanta Hospital is all about. It seems very naive to expect that in a broad social sense the only service worth doing for a devotee is ‘preaching’.
REPLY to Madhavananda Prabhu,
Again I open my reply by stating that this is not written as an attack against any person, group, or anyone. It is a philosophical discusion on whether the hospital in question is in line with the goals Srila Prabhupada set out for us in terms of its goals and activities.
I saw the main points you made in the last comment you wrote and I tried to paraphrase them in brief and give replies to them below:
1. This hospital is not part of ISKCON and so how can we regulate what goes on here?
Yes you are right it is not officially part of ISKCON. But most people would easily think it is part of ISKCON. First and foremost is that they use the name BHAKTIVEDANTA. Srila Prabhupada repeated so many times how devotees shouldn’t open hospitals, after being asked so many times and gave the reason that it is Punya karma, it is waste of time and resources etc.. And after his unmanifesting, we open a hospital and put his name on it! This doesn’t seem like the right thing to do especially to the Guru. The word BHAKTIVEDANTA denotes a direct connection to ISKCON and shouldn’t be used on anything non-ISKCON or not in ine with our core philosophy. This should be regulated. In fact if it happens that any outised personin future ry to use this symbols and paraphernalia, we (ISKCON) has every right to sue them. just like the mall in Ahmedabad was sued for using the name ISKON. Another thing is the face of Srila Prabhupada should only be used for ISKCON or at least things Srila Prabhupada would favour. Srila Prabhupada was definately against mundane welfare activities like medical-care and eye care saying that it is subtle sense gratification (isvaro ‘ham) and leads to one taking birth again as it is Karma-misra Bhakti. After Srila Prabhupada clearly says not to do this, they do it and put his name and picture in the front making people think that this was the order of desire of Srila Prabhupada. Any new people coming gradually start thinking that this is Bhakti and we are ‘doing a good thing’, whereas this is clearly not Bhakti as it is bodily welfare related and thus cultivation of subtle material desires. This leads to confusion and as time goes, it gradually comes to be accepted as either an ISKCON project or acceptable by ISKCON.
There is no problem if some devotees, people come together and want to alter their work environment in a such a way as to remember Krishna. But they cannot call it BHAKTIVEDANTA, they cannot use the face of Srila Prabhupada (for reasons I mentioned above). And I also think it not right to use the deity form of Srila Prabhupada. These articles belong to ISKCON for use in ISKCON properties. It would confuse anyone into thinking that that is an ISKCON property.
To be clear; there is no problem with a hospital. I am in one now and Srila Prabhupada was also in one. The problem is; contamination of the philosophy of ISKCON which was supposed to be giving spiritual benefit to now bodily benefit which has nothing to do with Bhakti or spiritual benefit. ISKCON has an aim and this hospital has an aim which is different. As written in the website of the hospital: The collective dream was to provide quality healthcare to the medically deprived people at a very affordable cost.. This is mundane welfare work, which is against Srila Prabhupada’s teachings and so there should not be any signs of collaboration.
2. Shall we tell them not to attend ISKCON or not be connected to us?
As I understand, here you are making the point that we can’t interfere in what goes on outside of ISKCON. Thats true but we should at least not openly support it. Right here on Dandavat, a few months ago or maybe over a year now, there was an OFFICIAL RECOGNITION of the ‘good work’ the hospital is doing as a post on the main section on upper part of the website by a devotee who was at that time and maybe now also heading the highest administrative post of ISKCON. In my opinion this was totally uncalled for. It didn’t serve any purpose accept for devotees to think that it is OK to open a hospital. And most important of all was that it was against what Srila Prabhupada said..
Also senior spiritual leader(s) of ISKCON who are in the administrative commission have their pictures at the entrance of the hospital thus sending the signal to any followers of theirs that they endorse this project, which again gives credence to the point that this is an officially endorsed by the main leaders of ISKCON.
Conclusion
– Hospitals are OK, and working in a hospital is OK. Even medical dispensaries for devotee in a large project like Mayapur are OK.
– But medical-aid, medical welfare etc for the public is *not* one of the duties of ISKCON and does not come under the title of ‘preaching’ in ISKCON. Srila Prabhupada in fact denounced mundane/bodily welfare activities as another facet of maya Our work is to give jnana to the conditioned soul such that he doesn’t take another body which can get sick. Please see direct and clear delineation by Srila Prabhupada how to serve humanity:
All decent men want to give service to humanity, only thing is they do not have information really what is that service. Hospitals, feeding the poor, Red Cross, these are service to the bodies only, not to the man. Service to humanity means jnana. By giving people knowledge, jnana, that is the highest service to humanity. So we are performing the actual welfare work of society by informing everyone through our literatures who is God, who they are, and what is the relationship. In this way everyone who hears our message gets the opportunity to fulfill his actual position as human entity and become delivered from the clutches of maya……..
So you may understand it that by disseminating our Krsna consciousness propaganda anywhere and everywhere, by selling books, by making publicity, newspapers, television, so many ways there are to spread Krsna consciousness information, you may know it that by utilizing our energy in this way to give everyone access to the Absolute Truth, that is the real understanding of desire to serve humanity.
[ Letter to: Ramesvara — India 9 January, 1973]
– Therefore anything which is of the nature of bodily, medical aid or work should not be endorsed by any ISKCON leaders or official ISKCON leaders or commission members and should not have the symbols and items related to ISKCON projects. The name Bhaktivedanta should not be used loosely with any project unless it is either 100% in line with Srila Prabhupada’s aim or part of ISKCON. The same goes for the picture/face of Srila Prabhupada if it is to be used as a logo. Srila Prabhupada once refused an invitation to an even after he saw that he would be on the stage with other prominent mayavadis and so he was sensitive about where he appeared and what was being associated with him.
– Let us keep in line with the aim of our Guru Srila Prabhupada. Thank you. Hare Krishna.
Your humble servant,
Murari Prabhu — good luck.
With respect, I think the Hare Krishna movement has grown much, much bigger than anyone can control. We sell pictures of Srila Prabhupada, Srila Prabhupada’s Deities and Srila Prabhupada’s books all over the world.
… and sometimes people buy them,
… and sometimes people put them on their walls and even in public places.
I have been living in India for the last 21 years and I have come across photos and sometimes deities of Srila Prabhupada in many surprising places. One example: in Jagannath Puri there is a hotel (that has 100% nothing to do with ISKCON or any ISKCON devotees) called, the “Prabhupada Hotel”. (Fortunately they stopped their public advertising of “non-veg items” a few years ago on the protest of some devotees.) Inside of the hotel, just as you come in they have a deity of Srila Prabhupada. I’ve also seen many ISKCON devotees stay there.
Aside from that example, it is not unheard of to find Prabhupada’s photo inside of public places, businesses etc in India or other places of the world. In Vrindavan, practically all of the shops in Loi Bazar have photos of Prabhupada on the wall. I’ve also seen a number of temples (not affiliated in any way with ISKCON) that have pictures of Srila Prabhupada on their altars. Similarly, there are groups who read Srila Prabhupada’s books, chant Hare Krishna and practice many other aspects of what they have learned from ISKCON, but have nothing to do with ISKCON. Sometimes even they have philosophies that we strongly disagree with. Similarly, over the years there have been many musicians (Boy George and George Harrison for two), who chant Hare Krishna on their recordings and have done some kind of promotion of our movement. Jimmy Hendrix took a photo of the universal form from one of Srila Prabhupada’s books and used it on one of his record albums (with a picture of himself inserted in the center).
Is this really a problem?
Is it really something we want to stop?
Is it possible to stop?
Do we want to stop people from being Krishna conscious? Is our message to be: “Oh you give free food for people. You have a hospital. You are a psychiatrist, etc, etc, etc. You are not allowed to practice Krishna consciousness at your work, or keep a picture or deity of Srila Prabhupada there.”
And what about varnasrama? Are we expecting that all of the people, governments, and businesses etc in the world are going to surrender to the GBC body? Isn’t it more realistic to expect that many will only take up some part of this process?
Isn’t that an integral part of Srila Prabhupada’s concept of promoting varnasrama dharma?
Once more, the Bhaktivedanta Hospital in Mumbai while ISKCON friendly is not officially, legally an ISKCON project. It seems to be similar to several other projects in India, for example Bhaktisvarup Damodar Maharaja’s temples in Nabadwip and Radhakund which are run by all ISKCON devotees but are not legally, officially ISKCON projects.
Do you have any suggestions how we can legally or practically stop people from practicing Krishna consciousness at their work places, music events, other religious houses etc?
And again — more than that — do we really want to stop them? I think that is the real question we need to consider.
Thank you again for your good heart Prabhuji. I appreciate your concern for Srila Prabhupada’s society.