"We have to be very organized! Very strict! We cannot deviate an inch!"

The Honolulu ISKCON center was a medium-sized residential house in a crowded suburban neighborhood. The devotees were gathered outside the house, and they greeted Srila Prabhupada with sincere, intense enthusiasm, singing, dancing, and placing flowers in his path. Sudama was an accomplished kirtana singer, and with Srila Prabhupada seated on a simple vyasasana in the temple room, Sudama led an amplified kirtana, inducing the devotees to take part fully. The kirtana was obviously pleasing to Srila Prabhupada, and his pleasure in turn increased the devotees' enthusiasm. The devotees also performed the appropriate guru-puja and introduced Prabhupada to their Deity worship of Gaura-Nitai. All these activities were performed by mostly young men with shaved heads, sikha, tilaka, and robes, and by women wearing saris that covered their heads. Many guests were also at the temple, mostly long-haired Americans, some wearing neckbeads and carrying japa beads in beadbags. It was my first time to Hawaii, but I had heard how there were large groups of devotees here who chanted Hare Krishna without following the four rules and without living or working within ISKCON. In fact, it had been less than a year ago that the former temple president had run off, taking temple funds with him. And Hawaii was also the base of Anandaji, the self-styled devotee and initiated disciple of Srila Prabhupada who had his own following and who lived apart from ISKCON and its mission, even while claiming to be a follower of Srila Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada knew all these Hawaiian intrigues far better than I. He did not get cheaply involved in controversies; but by his words and actions he made it clear to whoever would listen what his order was and who were his actual followers. After the Bhagavatam lecture, Srila Prabhupada asked for questions. One of the long-haired boys asked, "Why do some people insist that spiritual life has to be something organized, like organized religion? Isn't the absolute spiritual nature different than that, different than following rules and running an organization? Do you have to be so organized?" "Yes!" Prabhupada answered loud and strong. "We have to be very organized! Very strict! We cannot deviate an inch!" It was clear that Prabhupada knew the heart of the Hawaiian controversy?and his answer was clear. "We have a mission to cultivate all over the world," he said. "We have to print and distribute books and open centers and train devotees, and we cannot do that unless we are very organized and efficient. If we are to conduct a mission to save the fallen souls, which is the desire of Lord Caitanya and the previous acaryas, then we have to organize the sankirtana movement very nicely. And we have to be strict devotees." Another question came to him about advanced devotees, which seemed to allude to Anandaji's position. Prabhupada replied, "Who is advanced? Actually to be a neophyte is all right. But don't pose yourself as a spiritual master. If you haven't passed through college, don't pose yourself, ?Now I am M.A.' One who is the most confidential servant of the spiritual master becomes qualified to be a spiritual master in the future. You have to be completely detached from sex life. It is not such an easy thing, spiritual life. Those who leave ISKCON and criticize, trying to gain personal prestige, rather than give prestige to their spiritual master, are not qualified to be spiritual masters themselves." There were more questions, but I was suddenly approached by a devotee who said there was an emergency phone call for me from Ramesvara in Los Angeles. Leaving the room, I went to the temple office and heard from Ramesvara the shocking news that Karandhara, the G.B.C. for Western U.S., had left the post. He had been involved with a woman, and so thought he should resign. Ramesvara was in considerable anxiety and asked me to tell Srila Prabhupada and find out what to do. We exchanged some reassuring words about staying under the protection of Srila Prabhupada's order, and then I had to go since Srila Prabhupada was getting ready to leave the temple. I promised I would approach Prabhupada with the bad news and seek a solution. I got into the small car with Srila Prabhupada. The devotees wanted him to sit in the front and use the seat belt. It was one of those cars that keep ringing a bell until you put on the seat belt. The seat belt was to go over Prabhupada's shoulder and around his waist, but it got tangled around his body and took several minutes to disengage. Prabhupada finally rode off without it. Several devotees accompanied us in the car, a small station wagon, two men riding in the back where there were no seats. They were carrying fruits and other things for Prabhupada's kitchen at the hotel. Sudama also rode with us, holding several bottles of a liquid milk culture called keifer. He told Prabhupada that the keifer was very good for the devotees' health, but Srila Prabhupada said he didn't want any. It was better he said, to use fresh boiled milk, or to make your own yogurt. Going through a commercial section of Honolulu, Prabhupada saw a sign and read it out loud, "Service is our business. " We laughed, and he commented, "Yes, when the service is done with remuneration, that is material. When it is done voluntarily, out of love, that is spiritual" Riding in the back seat, I felt inspired to hear Prabhupada's definition of pure devotional service, and joyful to be with him as we sped along in the tropical sunshine, back to our private hotel. I kept thinking of the news I had to break to him about Karandhara. It was exciting to bear confidential messages for the spiritual master, but not when they would disturb him. Sudama began commenting how Srila Prabhupada handled the questions so expertly after the class. "One of these groups is agitating against ISKCON," Sudama said. "Do not agitate back," Srila Prabhupada replied. "Don't cause a strain." "But they spoke to one girl who had moved into the temple," said Sudarna, "and they took her with them." "So many girls come and go," said Srila Prabhupada. "Just chant, dance, read, preach, and think of Krishna always. The secret of success is to serve the bona fide spiritual master and follow his instructions with sincerity. In material life one is proud he has cheated the government or another person. But in spiritual life one cannot cheat. That is very bad. It cannot be done." Back in his room high above the ocean, Srila Prabhupada sat on a chair before a circular white formica table, and we served him a breakfast of fresh pineapple, melon, coconut slices, macadamia and cashew nuts, and hot milk. He said the fruits here were much better than in India. Soon after, I told him the painful news from Los Angeles. He was disappointed but didn't say very much. I didn't know whether I should give an opinion. I didn't want to be simply a dumb message boy, but neither did I want to be presumptuous and give unasked-for advice. I wanted to help Srila Prabhupada do what he thought best. But when he did not say anything, I remained silent. Then he spoke philosophically, stressing how strong the sex impulse was. "Hridaya-granthis means a knot in the heart is made by sex union," Prabhupada said. "The lovers say, ?You are my life, you are my life,' but that is illusion. They are only after sex intercourse and for the time being say, ?You are my life.' Home, family and possessions are another knot on top of a knot." Srila Prabhupada's pure Krishna conscious mind expanded from thoughts about the immediate falldown of a disciple to a consideration of all the living entities and their entanglement in sex. "Except for Krishna consciousness," said Prabhupada, "everyone is in ignorance entangled in sense gratification. People come to Hawaii to have sense gratification. They are the same as animals. The knowledge of how to free the soul from material life is lacking in them. So read my books. What is already published is sufficient to make a man perfect. Chant, go and preach. We have enough variety that no one should deviate. Take prasada, read all day. We have so many books." At the time I was the only one in the room, but whist Srila Prabhupada had said was not just for me. He had published millions of books; his lectures were recorded, reproduced, and distributed all over the world; and even these words, spoken in the privacy of his room, with only his servant present, were intended for everyone. Although his books were intended for everyone and his lectures were arranged so that they could be heard by people everywhere, yet he could not resist his all-valuable talking even if only one servant was present. But especially for we who had come under his charge, and those who were responsible for helping him in his work with devotees in the Krishna consciousness movement, especially for us his words were like the living sastra, the basis for a sure and definitive policy for managing ISKCON temples and devotees. "This organization," he said, speaking of ISKCON, "is not run by bylaws, meetings, or vouchers, but by following the instructions of the spiritual master with sincerity. Whatever success I have is due to that. To one with faith in the spiritual master and Krishna comes knowledge of the scripture. Without that faith and sincerity, bylaws are useless." But Prabhupada said that at least Karandhara had left in an honorable way without taking any money. He had had a falldown and so he had resigned. At least that was better than the ex-temple president in Hawaii who had gone off with money. Personally and managerially, the new problem was a disturbance, and Prabhupada decided to talk no more about it for the time being. He indicated I should go do my work, and he rose from the sofa and walked to the large window facing the sky. He began chanting his beads, and I made a quick exit.