{"id":5401,"date":"2008-03-01T05:47:18","date_gmt":"2008-03-01T04:47:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/?p=5401"},"modified":"2008-03-01T05:47:18","modified_gmt":"2008-03-01T04:47:18","slug":"compromise-modern-secularism-vs-vaisnava-dharma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/?p=5401","title":{"rendered":"COMPROMISE – Modern Secularism Vs Vaisnava Dharma"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Krsnacandra dasa<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dear Maharaja’s and prabhu’s. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.<\/p>\n

In modern times the term compromise is understood to be the synthesis of differing views or attitudes etc to form an acceptable interaction between various conflicting parties via a process of negotiation. This is a concept that has taken a prominent role in contemporary secular society. In the broader sense compromise is where solutions to problems are achieved via either arbitration or negotiation. The former meaning, where an ‘arbiter’ is used, comes from the archaic Latin ‘root meaning’ of the word compromise, where both parties accepts the decision of an arbiter. However, in the secular world the latter meaning, a process of negotiation, is more widely used.<\/p>\n

As the years unfold, scientists, academics, moralists, religionists, philosophers etc become more and more secure in their belief systems as they seek to aid man in adapting to evolving trends and methodologies in order to make a safer and more efficient society. This process is how the concept of ‘compromise’, usually the latter meaning, affects and impacts on the development of human society.<\/p>\n

The process of decision making is usually where the more intelligent, practical, moral, ethical or forceful opinion is accepted over ‘so called’ inferior opinions. This process is easily demonstrated in the field of science where a scientific hypothesis when posited is considered under ‘Poppers Law of ‘Falsifiability’ and is then either accepted or rejected by the scientific community. This law loosely translates as the process of ‘If the hypothesis can be disproved – by scientifically accepted methods ‘ then it is rejected and if it is not able to be disproved it is accepted as a theory.’ In this way science makes advancement and builds its knowledge base.<\/p>\n

In the socio-political communities the processes of decision making varies. They range from ‘top down’ Despotic regimes to ‘bottom up’ Democratic systems. The Democratic system is in the majority in human society. Here the decision making process is by ‘vox populi’ where the higher percentile averages of voting public make the decisions. Here, it is by precedent and laws, that society makes advancement.<\/p>\n

The basic tenet of the various processes outlined above is ‘sophistry’. Where one view can be accepted as the predominant view over other views due to either intellectual \/ practical or sentimental considerations.<\/p>\n

An individual’s view can be changed, modified or consolidated by the influence of the considerations described above. For example: In post-9\/11 US Gallup polls were conducted, to gain the people’s views on Capital Punishment and to seek people’s views on whether the US should ‘nuke’ Iraq, to eradicate the perceived threat of Iraq’s ability to make and use weapons of mass destruction.<\/p>\n

The percentage of people ‘for’ capital punishment for rapists \/ murderers etc had dropped since 9\/11 and the percentage of people ‘for’ the ‘nuking’ of Iraq –
\n(innocent women and children included) was 29%, that is over one quarter of people were in support of using nuclear weapons against Iraq much more powerful than the ones that the US used against Japan.<\/p>\n

The question here – is this a case of simple compromise where people made two mutually exclusive decisions based on sentimental \/ intelligent \/ moral\/ ethical or practical terms? Or is this a simple case of mass stupidity?<\/p>\n

How can this be a simple case of mass stupidity when the average person has been educated by a society that has been created by intelligent \/ western educated majorities? All of whom are graduates of the American education system.<\/p>\n

The decision to nuke Iraq by the voters is of course not done without precedent, for the US is the only country that has used weapons of mass destruction, namely nuclear bombs, on another country.<\/p>\n

The process of ‘vox populi’ is very infectious as seen above. Thus we saw sentimentality, taking precedence over the practical and\/or intellectual considerations of the general population.<\/p>\n

The Media in all its forms are very important ‘normalization’ tools. Here governing bodies can manipulate the masses by using multimedia process in order to appeal to the individua’ls sentimental mind as opposed to rational mind.<\/p>\n

The rational mind seeks to protect the life of one’s child, spouse, sibling, friend or fellow human being. In the case of one’s child, spouse or friend being raped and murdered the natural response for the average person would be to have the culprit be given the death penalty. If one was to witness the act then one may, according to the circumstance, enact that death penalty on the spot in order to protect the victim whom they care about. However, once emotionally detached from the victim then it now appears easy to protect the living, in this case the perpetrator.<\/p>\n

The societal trend is to abolish the death penalty. It is seen as being more civilized and therefore advanced. Yet how is this so? How did a society come to this conclusion?<\/p>\n

As we progress and advance in so called modern society we are seeing more and more lenient punishment for the perpetrators of crime. Lawmakers influenced by public opinion modify laws in order to ensure that the rights of the criminal are more important than the rights of the victim. Therefore we are seeing punitive measures being increasingly watered down.<\/p>\n

Recidivist rates increase and jails become overcrowded, therefore more criminals are released early by probationary boards. Yet crimes become more and more heinous. Children begin entering into the more heinous crime bracket and we call this advancement.<\/p>\n

The average citizen is reluctant to report crime for various reasons that are usually based on fearfulness of retaliation by the ‘soon to be released’ criminal.<\/p>\n

It is more like the system has turned upside down. The mentality of the citizen becomes more like a ‘criminal mentality’ as opposed to an empowered citizen. Why punish the criminal? Why report the criminal? Why get involved?<\/p>\n

But is this really the mentality of criminals? What happens to a child molester in jail? What happens to a child murderer in Jail? They are usually isolated for fear that other criminals will kill them. Yet the law protects them. The same law, the average citizen, has voted for.<\/p>\n

This is one of the results of compromise based on sophistry.<\/p>\n

Decisions are based on an emotional imperative, desire. So in a hedonistic society where a person’s desires are stimulated and encouraged we see an increasing number of decisions made out of over stimulated desires, derived mainly under the modes of passion or ignorance.<\/p>\n

When a person enters into mainstream ‘normalization’ processes such as the educational system (School) they more or less knowingly fall prey to the predominating trend or point of view.<\/p>\n

The students are “schooled” to confuse process and substance. Once these become blurred, a new logic is assumed. The student believes that more educational process equals better results; or, escalation leads to success.<\/p>\n

The pupil is thereby “schooled” to confuse teaching with learning, grade advancement with education, a degree with competence, and fluency with being independently intelligent. The curriculum becomes a systematic and ritualistic (test \/ degree \/ diploma) process in order to judge ones worth, inside the school system as well as where they fit into the consumer based bureaucratic workforce.<\/p>\n

Ones imagination is “schooled” to accept service or a position, in a place that mainstream society values. Medical treatment is mistaken for health care, social work for community development, police protection for safety, military poise for national security, the rat race for productive work.<\/p>\n

Health, learning, dignity, independence, and creative endeavor are defined as little more than the performance of the institutions which claim to serve these ends. Further that any improvement in their results will be entirely dependent on the allocation of more resources to the management of hospitals, schools, and other agencies in question.<\/p>\n

Institutionalization of values leads inevitably to physical dis-ease, social polarization, and disempowerment (psychological impotence). This leaves the individual in a highly susceptible state and therefore easily influenced by institutional values.<\/p>\n

This process is accelerated when material needs are transformed into demands for commodities; when health, education, personal mobility, welfare, or psychological healing are defined as merely the result of services or “treatments by agencies.”<\/p>\n

Rich and poor alike depend on schools and hospitals which guide their lives, form their world view, and define for them what is legitimate and what is not. Both view healing oneself as irresponsible, learning on one’s own as unreliable, and community organization, when not funded by those in authority, as a form of aggression or subversion. For both groups the reliance on institutional treatment renders independent accomplishment suspect.<\/p>\n

In the past it was the normal thing to be born and to die in one’s own home and to be buried by one’s friends. Now to begin and end life at home become signs either of poverty or of special privilege. Dying and death have come under the institutional management of doctors and undertakers. Society dictates that a student is put through a process that conditions them to accept and value institutional life as the best and only way of life.<\/p>\n

The student graduate is one of the best “consumers” for this corporate\/institutional\/consumer world that we live in. This is noticeable in second and third world countries where the difference between the educated and the villager is more pronounced. The graduate is a much better consumer than the villager.<\/p>\n

In the sixties there was a move amongst the younger generation and many intellectuals to opt out of the mainstream ‘normalization’ system and thus the hippie generation was born. They mainly stood for Nuclear Disarmament (Hence the ubiquitous peace symbol) as they saw weapons of mass destruction as the zenith of consumer culture. Here adherents understood the problems of the “system” and rebelled against it.<\/p>\n

Modern consumer based culture became manifest at the dawn of the “industrial revolution” in the late 18 hundreds in Britain. This is when “machines” became more important than humans in the workforce. It also meant the rapid increase of production. With that demand increased as did availability. With increasing demand
\n(consumers) and subsequently production, capitalism increased exponentially. This increased the need of having people trained to fit into the roles within the production side as well as the demand.<\/p>\n

For consumer culture to be efficient then it needs absolute control of the consumers and the best way to achieve this is to set up a system that produces controllable consumers. Thus the life of a consumer had to be institutionalized from birth to death and the best way to achieve this is to instill values into the consumer such as the ‘work ethic’ etc that ensures compliance to the system.<\/p>\n

The exponential increase in Credantialism and Professionalism has led to a ‘deskilling’ of the individual who is trapped in a disempowering consumer based culture that is grounded in secularism which leaves no room for true spiritual thought.<\/p>\n

Thus the Hippies opted out of the work force, refusing to accept institutionalized positions as they saw it was the only way to break the cycle. They were thinking that by the use of ‘passive resistance’ they could achieve both: awareness of the problem in consumers and\/or a ‘revolution in thinking’ that would lead to creating a better society.<\/p>\n

Many social commentators of the sixties and seventies considered that monies saved from say the school system could be diverted back into the community in the form of training centers that were apprenticeship based and aimed at teaching children and adults in a more “experiential” way with emphasis being placed on ability and aptitude.<\/p>\n

Srila Prabhupada arrived in the US at the dawn of the Hippie movement. He offered a profound replacement for mainstream institutionalized consumer based culture. The Vedic Culture. A system that’s epistemology was based on the instructions of the Supreme Lord Sri Krsna Himself and not man-made de-constructions.<\/p>\n

Krsna Himself constructed this super-excellent system for perfecting life; however, humans have been busy changing this absolute system for relative systems since time immemorial.<\/p>\n

The “idea” of compromise, as it has been presented in this essay, is redundant in the Vedic system. In the Vedic system the ‘former’ meaning is utilized, where views of Sastra, Guru and Sadhu are accepted when they align. Guru or Sadhu makes the knowledge of Sastra readily available and understandable to the general population.<\/p>\n

ISKCON is a spiritual organization that is here to teach the absolute truth as given by Sri Krsna Himself and explained by the disciplic succession. It teaches by use of “religious principals” a moral and spiritual way of life. Srila Prabhupada has further explained the principals of the disciplic succession in a very practical manner for us to use in order to live our life together in Krsna Consciousness.<\/p>\n

There is no question of compromise in the “relative” sense. Srila Prabhupada has given us instructions on both mundane and supramundane matters from the “absolute” sense. Thus we can readily find instruction on all aspects of devotional life to aid us. We also can find in the form of another devotee, who is also attempting to follow Srila Prabhupada, a practical aid (Siksa) to help us understand and practice our Krsna Consciousness.<\/p>\n

Difficulty comes when devotees who, failing to understand Srila Prabhupada and therefore weak in their spiritual resolve, become influenced by secular trends and methodologies by being “enamored” and “valuing” institutional consumer culture. This is especially noticeable when the devotee is in a leadership position. Their advice and support is tainted with institutional jargon and perspective and contradictory, thus ultimately confusing as it conflicts with the higher Vaisnava philosophical view point.<\/p>\n

In all religious movements we see both the mundane influenced and Sastrically influenced devotee attempting to work side by side. They eventually form into two distinct streams: the Traditionalists and the Modernists.<\/p>\n

The Traditionalist devotee is someone who understands the process as described by the spiritual preceptors under the authority of Scripture and thus seeks to adhere to its tenets as closely as possible. The Modernist seeks compromise by “blending” modern trends and methodologies with traditional ones in the understanding that their opinions or views are for the betterment of the society. Another term for the modernist is ‘Latitudarianism’ as this meaning pertains more accurately to the adherents of this attitude within our movement.<\/p>\n

We must be very careful not to change the principals that our Archaryas have laid down. When we attempt to “change” or “adapt” specifics in regard to the implementation of the philosophy or its practice, we must first ascertain if these changes are based on correct Vaisnava or Vedic principals.<\/p>\n

For example with the education of our children and adults it is extremely vital that we do not accept the modernistic secular idea of using the western educational curriculum and syllabus process. It instills in our devotees values of mainstream consumer culture and not Vaisnava spiritual culture and is therefore diametrically opposed to the instructions of our spiritual master Srila Prabhupada in other words it is considered guru aparadha.<\/p>\n

Most of the changes that ‘Latitudinarian’ devotees promote are in regard to secular considerations and\/ or sensibilities, therefore they are specifics of secular principals and not appropriate for inclusion in our Vaisnava tradition.<\/p>\n

There is no place in Vaisnava society for Latitudinarian thought and practice that is born out of speculative ideas from contemporary secular society which makes the assumption that spiritual thought and culture is evolving and therefore it can be modified by what they believe is the best and most appropriate ideas and programs of modern thought.<\/p>\n

History attests that so called modern thought changes as newer and newer views, opinions and attitudes become manifest from the minds of mental speculators\/philosophers. The modernist believes that views, opinions and attitudes “evolve” as society “evolves” therefore modern thought is more civilized as it has evolved by the processes outlined in this essay and is therefore more ‘advantageous’ and appropriate than traditional thought. <\/p>\n

Yet in the Vedic Scriptures we find that many if not all these views have been postulated over the history of the material manifestation and are not necessarily “new”. They have predominated as time, place and circumstance change, in the relative world of the non Vedantist.<\/p>\n

The Vedic views, opinions and attitudes remain the same after all this time. It’s adherents accepting them and making advancement. While the other views and opinions are in a constant state of flux. The latitudinarian view while seemingly advantageous will only be temporary as will the devotional lives of the modernist devotees, unless of course they begin to understand and accept the truth in what Srila Prabhupada and the previous Acaryas have given us and try and maintain their life in the service of our more spiritually advanced preceptors.<\/p>\n

ISKCON must seriously look at this issue. We must ascertain where we are developing our movement by using consumer based mainstream cultural principals and therefore processes and make the necessary changes. This may seem like a drastic step but we must remember that these processes are ‘a 180 degree turn around’ from the direction that Srila Prabhupada and the previous Archaryas intended or instructed.<\/p>\n

Mainstream consumer culture is very aware of the potency of “school” to shape a child’s world view, values and future and so should we. Our children must learn to devalue Credentialism and Professionalism or other governmental secular normalization procedures and processes and value true spiritual progress.<\/p>\n

Monies, manpower, resources and buildings need to be redirected to look at finding training and employment or service within our own communities which are according to our own samskaras, procedures and processes.<\/p>\n

Srila Prabhupada did not want us to focus our movement to “Krishnaizing” the mainstream consumer based culture he wanted that we create our own spiritual, agrarian culture whose economic base is to be primarily ‘Book Distribution’ and ‘Life Membership’ (Book Distribution). For this, mainstream consumer based culture has no idea.<\/p>\n

So please forgive my mistakes and sometimes the “force” of my presentation. I have tried my best to present this essay as balanced as possible and hope that I have not offended anyone in the process. I sincerely pray that you think about what I am saying.<\/p>\n

Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupada and Sri Sri RadhaSyamasunda<\/p>\n

Krsnacandra dasa<\/p>\n

Vrndavana Dham<\/p>\n

July 2005 Revised 2008<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"HareBy Krsnacandra dasa<\/strong><\/p>\n

In modern times the term compromise is understood to be the synthesis of differing views or attitudes etc to form an acceptable interaction between various conflicting parties via a process of negotiation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5401","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5401","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5401"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5401\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5401"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5401"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5401"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}