Last week in Obeisances I addressed an issue that has bothered me for many years,

regarding what I see as an absence of philosophy and a proliferation of storytelling in

ISKCON. Whether it be in the form of auto-biographies or memoirs, or devotees
telling their stories from the asana, there seems to be an over-abundance of it in the
movement since Srila Prabhupadas departure. I covered many of those issues in
last weeks segment, and tried to explain why I believe many of these stories arent
bona fide in terms of our tradition and Sampradaya. While I dont want to repeat
myself, I do wish to build on that theme today.
Im motivated to continue the discussion of these issues primarily because Ive read
A Wonderful Story by HH Radhanatha Swami. For all the same reasons previously
stated, I find this article to be firmly placed in the category of sentimental stories
having very little philosophical input.
Other than describing the so-called spiritual personalities, who in this particular case
are completely unknown to anyone other than the author, this story has little to do
with our Sampradaya. Theres no qualification on Radhanatha Swamis part as to
who these personalities are from a philosophical point of view, or how much theyre
in line with our siddhanta. Obviously he wasnt in line with our siddhanta at the time
these pastimes took place, given that he was a devotee of Lord Shiva, whatever that
means. Basically, he was a young American who came to India chasing a dream
about spiritual life.
Of course, one has to keep in mind that Radhanatha Swami Maharaja, like many
other gurus and notorieties in ISKCON in the past, and many in the present, has
what I would call a myth to maintain. This story plays to Radhanathas mystique in
stereo. This story is about the mythical Radhanatha Swami who begins his past life,
prior to coming to Krsna consciousness, traveling around India on a transcendental
journey. The mystique insinuated in this story will undoubtedly be told and retold by
his close admirers and followers, who will repeat it in tones of sastra-like awe and
reverence.
The story tells us of the pastimes of Radhanatha while he was becoming a devotee
in India. Of course, the pastimes that we rarely hear about are the ones that
consumed most of his adult life and time in ISKCON the time he spent at New
Vrindavan under the wing and tutelage of Srila Bhaktipada. That part of his story he
seldom broadcasts.
Just how much importance can we place on Radhanatha Swamis pastimes as a
Shiva bhakta? This is a designation that Srila Prabhupada rejects completely, as he
said those who worship Lord Shiva cannot be considered devotees unless they
accept Lord Shiva to be the greatest devotee of Lord Krsna. Of course, if one knew
of Lord Shivas official philosophical status in comparison to Krsna, why worship
Shiva? Thats obviously something Radhanatha decided to do once he came into
contact with an actual pure devotee.

As far as the story is concerned, one has to first of all assume that he was very
advanced himself at that point in his life. What does that make him from a sadhanabhakta point of view, considering he hasnt even begun to perform sadhana under
the guidance of an actual bonafide Spiritual Master? We have to wonder what
degree of realization he had during that era of his life unless, of course, one wants
to assume that hes a nitya-siddha, which Im sure some of his followers actually do.
If you listen to his story here, one might be inclined to come to that conclusion:
By the end of the 2 months I came to the conclusion that of all the theologies,
philosophies, religions and spiritual paths that I have experienced there is nothing
higher, nothing as sweet, nothing more beautiful then the religion of Vrindavana.
Devotion to Sri Sri Radharani and Sri Krishna. So I decided to spend the rest of the
my life in Vrindavana and never leave.
I cant say for sure whether it was his intention to paint himself as being very
advanced in this article, either overtly or subtly, but thats the overall impression I find
the article gives. Basically, Radhanatha is a storyteller hes both the narrator of the
story and one of the main characters, although he puts a lot of focus on the pujari in
question, Ghanshyam, and the Deities that Ghanshyam was worshipping, Sri Sri
Radha-Gopijanavallabha.
The story is obviously well thought out and very expertly narrated, and the overall
message or impression that Radhanatha Swami wants to project comes through
clearly. While I have not heard Radhanatha speak in person in recent years, his
voice in the story is very telling in that he omits many nouns and articles, like a,
an and the. The effect is a contrived mock Indian voice intended to add Vaisnava
authenticity to the presentation. For me, it has exactly the opposite effect. I have
never liked the practice of devotees using a pretend voice to imitate Srila
Prabhupadas speaking style, or trying to sound like a homegrown sadhu from
Vrindavan.
Most of the detail that Radhanatha chooses to go into makes no philosophical point.
Its simply eloquent filler that keeps the spotlight on himself and the fact that he can
so vividly remember what happened to him in 1971, prior to becoming a devotee.
The story emphasizes the sense that Radhanatha is a very qualified, saintly person
who was able to appreciate the Holy Dhama on a very high level. The story lets us
know that he was able to ascertain, or was qualified to detect, the high degree of
spiritual advancement in the characters we meet in the story. Basically, we all have
to assume that the story is real, because theres no way we can verify that it actually
took place, and the character Ghanshyam is who Radhanatha chooses to illustrate
him to be. There are no quotes from sastra and no collaborating evidence from
devotees who witnessed these events, so we cant determine the authenticity of the
story. Yet we have to digest passages like the following:

we would go around Vrindavana every night in the moonlight. And one of these
nice sadhus told me I want you to meet a very very very simple and pure soul. When
you meet him you will understand what is bhakti.
Of course, when this story was unfolding, Radhanatha Swami didnt have access to
our siddhanta, nor the mercy of the pure devotee, so all the detailed Vaisnava input
that hes given is something he came to after the fact. In other words, he couldnt
possibly have been thinking all these things at the time, or been able to analyze the
circumstance in the way hes describing it at this point in his life.
The timing of when Radhanatha met Srila Prabhupada and accepted him as his
Spiritual Master is somewhat confusing in this story. Its not clear why Radhanatha
was taking instructions from Ghanshyam if he had already accepted Srila
Prabhupada as his guru. He writes:
And he [Ghanshyam] and a couple others were saying if you have to leave
Vrindavana, because I was crying I have to leave Vrindavana. They said if you have
to leave Vrindavana you should go to New Vrindavana. I asked what is this New
Vrindavana? They said Swami Prabhupada, when he was here in Vrindavana,
because I had already accepted Prabhupada as my guru by that time in Vrindavana.
Its very interesting to consider the main character in the story, who were told is an
extremely advanced devotee and who personifies dedication to the Deities. This
individual is described as extremely austere and has all the nice qualities one would
expect to see in a true Vaisnava. In many of the stories Radhanatha Maharaja tells
about his pastimes at New Vrindaban, he depicts himself in a very similar way to the
description of Ghanshyam in this story. While one of the symptoms that an individual
is not highly advanced is his tendency to self-glorify, these are the kinds of
statements we read in Radhanatha Swamis presentation:
I was such a simple new devotee. I was thinking how is it possible, hes serving
Radha-Vrindavananatha. He is a personal, he is bathing Radha-Vrindavanatha, he is
dressing Them, hes feeding Them, why in the world would anyone who had such a
wonderful service would want to get married. Inconceivable!! So I went to that
devotee I said if you want female association come and help me milk cows. Its the
safest way to associate to with the opposite sex. Somehow or other he didnt accept
my advice. So he got married. Then the temple president said you should be the
pujari. I said who is going to take care of the cows? He said you, you do both. So I
was pujari for Radha-Vrindavananatha.
In the years following his long service at New Vrindaban, Radhanatha has often
explained to the devotees how he completely transcended all the nonsense that was
going on at New Vrindaban over decades, how he never liked Bhaktipada, and how
he kept his spiritual life alive by simply worshipping the Deities and staying aloof,
transcendentally. Therefore he was untouched, like a lotus flower, from all the
insanity, criminal activity and immoral pastimes that were going on all around him. Of

course, this is not a verified version of the story. In fact, many, many persons who
knew him during that period will attest to the fact that the image hes projecting is
incorrect. Its not at all what he was like during those years at New Vrindaban, where
he was actually playing a major role as one of Bhaktipadas main supporters and
enforcers. In his article, Radhanatha essentially tells us that whatever he did at New
Vrindaban was simply the result of his great surrender and service attitude:
We would never ever, ever act outside authority or blessings. So for 11 years I
remained there worshipping the deities.
Of course, he goes on to describe exactly the opposite scenario, as well:
Kirtananda Maharaja made a rule that I was not allowed to speak about Vrindavana.
That rule was very very difficult to follow. Sometimes devotees would come way up
to that old mountain farmhouse where the temple was of Radha-Vrindavanatha and
it would be just me and them looking after the offerings and the aratis. In between
they would say tell me about Vrindavana. And I would start telling them about the
places of Govardhana and the places of Vrindavana and the places of Nandaghama, Varsana.
In fact, the more I study how Radhanatha Swami runs his institution within the
institution today in Chowpatty, the more I see that he uses a lot of the tricks of the
trade that were sharpened to perfection by Kirtanananda. Kirtanananda was an
expert cult leader, and he appeared to be very austere, very saintly, and very
dedicated. He was a strict sadhana man, and he forced the members of New
Vrindaban to be the same way they worked really hard under very austere
conditions, showed up for the morning program, and chant their rounds. Externally,
Kirtanananda looked like he was into the Deities and he was dedicated to building
Srila Prabhupadas Palace of Gold, but in reality he was into himself and his vision.
Everything ultimately came down to Bhaktipada, because he controlled every aspect
of New Vrindaban. He was the king he even had the crown and scepter.
There is absolutely no question that Radhanatha was one of Kirtanananda main
lieutenants. In fact, even though Bhaktipada had his administrative leaders like
Kuladri and others who were running his construction program, on the so-called
spiritual side, it was Radhanatha who helped prop-up Kirtananandas spiritual
mirage. He was joined in that role by Bhakti Tirtha Swami, Umapati Swami and
Chandramauli Swami. These Swamis helped to give the impression that
Kirtanananda was actually advanced because they supported him and worshipped
him. Today we see that the image Radhanatha emphasizes at this point in his career
doesnt include the most significant part of his life story his relationship with
Kirtanananda and New Vrindaban during the most notorious part of their history.
Considering all this, what is Radhanathas wonderful story really all about? What is
the message behind it? Now people may think Im cynical, conspiratorial, or faultfinding, but to me, this story is nothing but a story. It has no real significance and no

purpose other than for the reasons Ive stated above. Basically, the story helps to
highlight and enhance Radhanathas image.
Its interesting to note that the character Ghanshyam is not only described as having
been instrumental in Radhanathas spiritual development, he also perfectly highlights
many of the mythical qualities that Radhanatha is becoming known for having.
Ghanshyam has apparently impacted Radhanathas life to such a degree that
throughout his whole life he has emulated this person. Of course, one should
question that, considering that Radhanatha has a Spiritual Master whos a
Sampradaya Acarya while Ghanshyam, as far as we know, has no connection to our
Sampradaya at all.
The way Radhanatha depicts Ghanshyam, hes an extremely advanced devotee. In
fact, its interesting to note that the characteristics of this person were far beyond
anything that Ive seen anybody in ISKCON exhibit, except for Srila Prabhupada. Of
course, Srila Prabhupadas mood and qualities were far broader, deeper, and wider
than anything this other character exhibits, so what does that really tell you?
Radhanatha tells us that Ghanshyam was practically a pure devotee, but only a few
people in the whole world had the mercy of knowing that and of course, HH
Radhanatha was one of the persons advanced and fortunate enough to have the
eyes to see what others could not:
When we read about qualities of selfless service, when we read about the principle
of servant of the servant of the servant, when we contemplate actual humility of the
heart, Sri Gopijanavallabha empowered him to be a very wonderful wonderful
example of that. But only a few people in the whole world ever saw him or knew him.
He was just totally an unknown person.
Frankly, I find the way Radhanatha is depicting himself throughout this article to be
questionable. At one point he emphasizes that his transcendental adventures in
Vrindavan happened very early in his life:
Because one great sadhu living in Vrindavana had given me a name when I was
little, the name Ratin-Krishna dasa. I never got initiated but he gave it out of
affection. So Ghanshyam always called me Ratin.
Of course, little Ratin was actually a full-grown man by this time. He tell us I was
such a simple new devotee, but at the same time, denigrates the New Vrindaban
pujari in his story about the pujari giving up his service in order to get married. On
one hand he tells us that these are the thoughts of someone whos a simple, new
devotee, yet the actual message is that these are the thoughts of an advanced
devotee. So throughout the whole article we get this duality wherein hes depicting
himself in a very humble way, and then on the other hand, hes portraying himself to
have this advanced spiritual vision.

In our tradition, one of the main aspects of our philosophy is that an advanced
devotee is, by nature and by activities, very humble. So by portraying oneself in a
humble way, youre essentially glorifying yourself, because thats the sign of an
advanced devotee. So calling yourself a lowly person or a wretch is really a form of
self-glorification. Of course, those who are listening to Radhanatha in this story
would think the opposite, but the fact is that hes portrayed throughout ISKCON as
being one of the great gurus and sannyasis, and on account of that he gets a great
deal of adoration and distinction.
The way the whole story of the Deities and Ghanshyam unfolds as its told here puts
the reader on the spot, so to speak. You either have to think of Radhanatha as being
an extremely rare and advanced soul, or you have to suspect that hes pulling a
Kirtanananda on us. I feel fortunate that Im not put into this quandary, like so many
devotees are, because his existence doesnt directly impact me or my life, as it does
so many others.
One of the great pains that Ive experienced in my devotional career is seeing the
devastation thats created when a guru falls down, and those who have worshipped
him as good as God and spent innumerable hours serving him, have to come to
grips with the fact that theyve been cheated, and the person wasnt at all what they
said they were. Not only does that impact the disciples psychologically, emotionally
and spiritually, but its very hard for them to regain faith. Inevitably you are a
neophyte if you have a guru who is of this type of character, and its very difficult for
a neophyte to recover when the guru falls down. And it is even more difficult in the
case of a fallen guru who had all along been presenting himself as highly advanced,
when he was not. This is not an isolated case in ISKCON; many disciples of fallen
gurus have lost faith in Srila Prabhupada and the whole process thats presented by
Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Thats the great loss, ultimately. Ive seen this so many
times, so forgive me if it appears that Im looking at Radhanatha from this critical
perspective but I am. My fears and skepticism have been reinforced after reading
this story.
The only time Radhanatha mentions Kirtanananda in this story is in the context of
making Kirtanananda look bad, as in the story about Kirtanananda muzzling
Radhanatha from telling stories about Vrindaban. All this would make sense, except
that it doesnt match the reality of Radhanathas relationship with Kirtanananda over
the years. Perhaps Radhanatha was simply living a false life all those years, inwardly
disliking Kirtanananda while outwardly acting as if he was the next great
Sampradaya Acarya. But I dont see how an advanced devotee could tolerate acting
like that. The fact is that anyone who had any degree of spiritual enlightenment
would have left New Vrindaban, and not have been faulted for it. History proves that
to be a fact. Of course, this is the part of the Radhanatha myth that has to be
covered up. And it appears that so many neophyte devotees are ready to buy into
the perception hes now projecting.

We should keep in mind that in around 1987, New Vrindaban was kicked out of
ISKCON. There was a period of time thereafter when Kirtanananda was still in
charge, and was busy changing everything at Srila Prabhupadas Palace of Gold
over to the neo-Christian motif. Radhanatha Swami stayed with Kirtanananda that
whole time, even after he and his aberrant community were kicked out of his Spiritual
Masters movement. As recently as the 1990s, Radhanatha was still on the record
(via taped lectures) in which he was glorifying Kirtanananda.
When Kirtanananda was completely de-throned and sent to prison, then the GBC
came up with a plan to get New Vrindaban back into the ISKCON fold and to
minimize the fallout from Kirtananandas departure. They hand-picked Radhanath to
become the person who re-initiated all Kirtananandas people in India and Bombay.
Similarly, Bhakti Tirtha Swami got to re-initiate all the African disciples. Basically,
Radhanatha was installed by the GBC and vaulted into notoriety, not because of his
spiritual purity, but because he knew the inside story, and was in a position to help
them with damage control. For those who knew the events of the day, all this history
comes flooding back when you read stories like the one Radhanatha is telling here,
the sanitized, spiritualized version of his devotional career in which he is clearly selfproclaimed as being a highly advanced Vaisnava.