In one of Srila Prabhupada’s letters to his disciple Hamsaduta in 1969, he states, “I want that all of my spiritual sons and daughters will inherit this title of Bhaktivedanta, so that the family transcendental diploma will continue through the generations. Those possessing the title of Bhaktivedanta will be allowed to initiate disciples. Maybe by 1975, all of my disciples will be allowed to initiate and increase the numbers of the generations.” These statements seem to verify that female guruhood can indeed be supported by both the Acharya and the Disciplic Succession. However, I think the problem here may be the difference between our definition of guru, and Srila Prabhupada’s definition of guru. Srila Prabhupada’s statements seem to center on the spiritual wealth of Krishna Consciousness that he wanted to “continue through the generations” and increase “the numbers of the generations.” Problems arise when our Iskcon definition of guru becomes more like “little kings” or “feudal lords” competing with one another for disciples, power, money, and fame. Srila Prabhupada’s definition of guru is clearly a spiritual one, one that focuses on teaching and inspiring spiritual aspirants along the path to Godhead.
Heralding an era of female gurus does seem to threaten some of the male disciples. It seems there may be some hesitancy on the part of insecure males due to their own feelings of inner worth, or feelings of insecurity regarding the superiority of their “maleness.” We hope it will be possible to get past this. The important thing is to live in the times that we find ourselves, and try to progress and promote Krishna consciousness however we can. That was always Srila Prabhupada’s perspective. He was always focused on getting the message of Lord Chaitanya out in the world, not on which person did it. Here is one example of the times that we live in.
One young devotee lady, second generation, Tulsi Gabbard, from Hawaii, was just recently elected to the US Congress in Washington D. C. President Obama endorsed and backed her campaign prior to the election. At her January inauguration, Tulsi will be sworn in on Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Original Edition, as she publicly declares that she is a Hindu and a vegetarian. This is the kind of preaching work that will open up fields of interest all
over the world–what to speak of in America. And from a spiritual perspective, just having people chanting the name “Tulsi” grants benefit. During the campaign, our highways were papered with signs and billboards bearing the words, VOTE TULSI.COM. This, I assure you, would delight Srila Prabhupada! Folks, I think its time we move into the 21st century. As Srila Prabhupada once told an agitated brahmachary, if it bothers you to be around ladies, you should go to the forest! So my overall opinion is this: female gurus are inevitable. It will happen sooner or later. It is already happening in other spiritual lines; it is only a matter of time before it happens in our line. Perhaps it is just another consideration of Kali Yuga, and just doesn’t line up with our Vedic ideals, but what does? Srila Prabhupada was far more concerned with spreading Krishna Consciousness than sticking to ancient traditions. He saw the need of the times, and he stepped forward into the 21st century. He initiated his female disciples with Gayatri mantra, encouraged them to perform arotiks and Deity worship, and to manage temples when needed. He saw that girls are educated in the same ways as boys in the Western countries, and instead of trying to suppress that, he encouraged his female disciples to do whatever they excelled in–whether it was art, music, Deity worship, public relations, management, or whatever. It was much later, due to the anti-woman sentiment of a few agitated leaders, that Iskcon became so lop-sided and averse to the spiritual welfare of the women and children. In 1968, Srila Prabhupada did in fact list two of his female disciples to serve on the original GBC (Yamuna devi, and myself, Govinda dasi) but the opposition by some of his senior men prevented this. (Too bad–it could have saved millions in lawsuits and bad PR from the child abuse cases.) Now, years later, we see that there is at least one senior woman disciple on the GBC, as Srila Prabhupada originally intended. However, in this guruhood issue, I see the real danger is the dark horse called ambition.
Srila Prabhupada repeatedly stressed that there is no place in spiritual life for personal ambition.
So anyone, male or female, who decides to step in line for guruhood, should deeply question his or her inner motives. Is he or she inspired by a genuine desire to serve Srila Prabhupada, and to serve others, or is there some personal ambition lurking beneath the layers? Is he or she inspired by the desire for: Fame? Money? Adoration? Security? He or she must answer confidently, that he/she is not deceiving his/herself, but can actually uplift lost souls and place them at the lotus feet of the Lord. He or she must also be able take on the disciples’ past karmas, and purify them without losing his or her own purity. This is the real test.
Not some “rubber stamp guru approval.” That hasn’t worked in the past, and it won’t work in the future.
I myself am very “old-school.” I still believe in the old-fashioned philosophy that Srila Prabhupada taught us, and that his Guru Maharaj taught him: That is: “Don’t anyone try to become guru prematurely, just go on with your service. Whoever is meant to become guru will come out automatically in time.” And that already is happening; many have come, and many have gone.
There are teachers, there are guides, and there are various types of gurus. There is a vast difference between such teachers, guides, and gurus–and the Acharya, like Srila Prabhupada.
There is no harm in teaching and guiding others; but there can be great harm done if one accepts disciples prematurely, harm both to the “fallen guru” and to the disciples. This is the great danger. If there is a need to fulfill, that is, people want diksha so they feel they “belong” to the “club” or the institution, we must be very clear on what type of guru is giving that kind of
diksha. And by all means, we should not place so much importance on any Iskcon guru who seems to eclipse the importance of Srila Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada is the Master Guru of us all. We are like small moons orbiting around the sun of Srila Prabhupada; he is giving us the spiritual light and we are reflecting that light into the world. We must always remember from where our light is coming, and pray to Krishna to always remain humble in his presence.
All this, and more, is why, my initial reaction remains, “Who, in their right mind, would want to take up the role of diksha guru?”