Hare Krishna all,
PAMHO
AGSP
I have seen ISKCON selling books, food, and now even maha mantra. The charges laid are not common they are always more than the market price. I am not in india and the place near to my workplace has govindas, they have meditating room and they charge to go into that room and meditate. My friend was asking me why these people charge a lot and why god needs money to spread his name. He is eternal and most powerful, I know he will be happy if we do something for him out of love. But ISKCON is making lot of money worldwide using the knowledge gained from scriptures, My humble question is where this money is going, why they are building these many temples and why creating these many groups.God dont need any representatives to spread his glories, his opulence can be seen in everthing in this material world and everybody knows about the supreme power.
ISKCON feeds and care for people who are good economically or who can do some service. They are running some schools and 'Food for life' but even for that they are getting extra money. Why dont spiritual leaders come into politics and serve public if they are really concerned about them. In even bhaktivedanta hospital they charge more than normal hospital. Just by reading scriptures and explaining philosophy will not solve problem. We should feed poor people prasadam, we should open educational institutes that dont charge anything and include philosophy as a subject. Krishna consiousness is not a procedure to wipe of all your past sins and simply go back to godhead. Krishna is in everyone and we should have concern for everybody. I feel many are becoming fanatic and thinking themselves as special chosen one but it is not we dont know our place in krishnas heart. Anyways I failed to answer my friend about the necessity of this much money . I humbly apologise if I am offensive, I should not have any doubt when I follow something.
Hari bol
Replies
Hare krishna prabhu
First of all I would appreciate your questions because this is something many of my non-devotee friends also have in mind and they are unable to appreciate. So thank you very much.
What sudipta roy prabhu has said is very accurate. However I would like to add a few more points.
The accounts of temple are very well maintained. There are standards on how to record expenses, how to account for them, bills etc. There is very high degree of integrity and only devotees who are very senior, mature, advanced and of impeccable character are allowed to handle the lakshmi related matters. There are even financial audits like in corporate companies. I know a circuit of temples where devotees form one temple do audits in other temples, just to maintain the assurance and the integrity.
Now the point you have highlighted is that the prices are high. This is again debatable. Just to give an example I happened to go to corporate training program in mumbai. My company allowed us to stay in a 5 star hotel in mumbai where the daily expense was sky high. The highest amount an iskcon temple (in same region) would charge would be less than half of it for similar facility. So there are certainly many other institutions that charge truck loads more than Iskcon.
Another point is that the expensive services of iskcon are optional. Like restaurant, guest house rooms, fancy gift items etc. These are targeted at a different audience who can afford it painlessly. The essential components like Beads, bead bags, Srila prabhupad books etc are very reasonably priced if not cheap. Sunday feast prasadam of course is free. Holy name is certainly free. I'm sure the chanting room you have mentioned is only a unique instance which is targeted not at the common people. And frankly even I personally would not appreciate that. To assure you this is far from the common trend as far as my knowledge goes.
For the expensive services, the quality that is maintained is exceptionally high, not that other services are of poor quality. Like restaurants etc the level of hygiene is extremely high and much higher than what a similar priced outside restaurant would maintain. I have personally seen this in all the iskcon temples I have visited. So those who can afford certainly feel that it is worthy.
Another thing is that the flow of lakshmi in large and well established temples can be high. But this does not mean that the temples are hoarding money. Because there are equally high expeditures also. Sudipta roy prabhu has highlighted a few and there are many more. Generally when we visit a temple we are exposed to only certain aspects of the temple and there are many many more aspects which we may be unaware of and rightly so. In fact I sometimes wonder how there temples run, because as far as my complete understanding(having seen inflow and outflow), there are very narrow margins. In fact Iskcon doesnt even approach the visitors for donation. In many temples other than Iskcon that I have gone, temple may easily approach the visitors for donation and surprisingly the not many visitors feel offended. In Indian still there is lot of respect for temples and people naturally are inclined towards making some offering as per their capacity.
To summarize I would say that the essential and most imprtant elements namely Hare krishna mahamantra, association of devotees, devotional service and sunday feast prasadam. The expensive aspects are optional and those who can afford it do it happily. The accounts are well maintained and high standards are maintained for the same. The expenditure of most temples is barely less than the total amount of donations received.
Feel free to ask doubts relating to this
YS Bharat
Hare Krishna Prabhuji, I can understand what is question, but Prabhuji this matter has more local scope, I mean here in INDIA, nothing like this happens. No money is taken for entrance, worshiping, sankirtana etc. And books are sold at reasonable prices, may be this issue has arise due to wrongdoings at that place only, I hope that the situation will improve there.
Your Servant
Deepesh
Hare krishna Baktin maral mataji
even if devotees in iskon temples are acting as tresurers and leading a simple life themselves then where is the money ultimately spent. also the money spent should be beleivable amounts not like spending 15 lacs for a dress instead of 1 lac (example),moreover we dont know whether they do spent the said money
even karmis accumulate money they may lead a simple life but they may divert the money to their family,relatives and to orther sources .i dont intend to hurt anyone here but i just want to be realistic.
Hare Krishna Bhanu Kiran Prabhuji, Dandavat Pranam. All Glories To Srila Prabhupada
For a simple sunday feast, There are 350-400 devotees gather every sunday (Atleast in Kolkata temple I have personally experience) ,In Outside temple more than that according to the capacity of that particular temple. If we consider each prasadam plate price at minimum of 80 rupees (which is not, much more than this will cost outside) , then where it stands 80*400= 32000. How many sundays are there in one month , 4 right ? then what all the sunday feast cost in 1 month 32000*4=128000. And the whole sunday fest is free .
Besides that there are Bhakti Vriksha and Corporate Voice classes, mainly in evening, where all the family and youth gathers. Prasadam is also distributed there .
Ok , that was sunday feast. Now how many festival ISKCON conducts throught out the year ? who attains they know well, there are festivals like Rathayatra , Nityananda Trayodashi, Gaur Purnima, Nrishimha Chaturdashi, Janmastami, and many more. In one festival suppose is Nrishima Chaturdashi there are around 2000 devotees come (what I have seen in Kolkata temple, outside may be much more, our temple is small one), and prasadam is distrubuted to all the 2000 devotees + extra people . And one plate minimum cost 150 . Now where it stands 2000*150= 300000 . its 300000 for only 2000 devotees in One festival and there are minimum 7-8 major festivals each year, then how does it cost 300000*8= 2400000.
And above is the scenario in one small temple. where food costs so much only though the calculation is given at lowest minimum level.
Apart from that there are
Daily three times food for Brahmacharyis, and there are cost for maintaning them, Though they use least of the Resources of ISKCON, sometimes they even fell short of prasad if not reach in time.
There are maintenance of Temple, like rebuilding or inaguration of new temple for further propogating Krishna Consciousness.
There are cost for maintaning Deities, there new dresses, jewellry, Daily flowers for Puja, daily Mahaprasadam, fruits and many other necessary things fro Kitchen.
There are Devotees who stay and work at the same time in ISKCON, their salary.
There are cost to print Books.
There are cost for electricty , water to run a big temple.
There are cost for sannasyis going outside of country to preach in foreign situation.
And there are thousand of miscellaneous expenses, which alone cost lacks of rupees
And Don't misunderstand things, think logically that these devotees who are now in ISKCON, left their high paid job to join ISKCON, just to do-sadhana Bhakti, A huge number of them are from top institution like IIT,NIT, medical colleges, from top IT company. They have thrown away the money and came here, what again they will do with the same money, which they could earn if they worked outside.
Hope this will help
your aspiring servant
hare krishna sudita roy prabhu and all other devotees
AGTHDG Jai srila Prabhupa , it was just a question lingering especially it came big after seeing this discussion you have aptly and clearly removed my questions in my mind sorry for the temple devotees on whom i raised my finger who sacrifice a lot on their part . i dint knew or counnt estimate all this expenditure calculate it ,I ask for forgiveness from whomsoever i hurt in this issue.all glories to the lord srhi krishna and vaishnavas.
Hare Krishna Bhanu Kiran Prabhuji. Dandavat Pranam. All glories To Srila Prabhupada
No issue, and don't feel bad. Everyone has a right to question specially who donates. Things should be used properly and in right thing.After all, all is Krishna's property. we are accustomed to see things materially in these world in all our day to day dealings, and where money is hard earned. It is also true that what Srila Prabhupada has given to us , we shall never repay the debt in 1000 of lifetimes by money, but still we should also enquiry whether money is properly used to propogate Prabhupada's mission as it is, If Prabhupada would not become happy, then whoever will misuse that person will definitely suffer, because Krishna take everyone's karma in his account, no one can dump him...:)
Your aspiring servant
Hari Bol
hare krsna
pahmo aakash menon
prabhu aakash you are very learned and intelligient but now onward forget about the problems and just think of lord chaitanya mahprabhus teaching chaitanya katha karo vichar vichr kaihe cit paye chamatkaar think about the teachings
of lord sri chaitanya mahprabhu and all your doubts will be cleared chant with one focus hare krsna hare krsna krsna krsna hare hare hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare just concentrate on chanting and all your doubts will be cleared
hari hari bol
bol hari bhol hari bhol vaisnavare charan pADHIYAE HARI BHOL
that is TRUE for 300%! if we chant attentively we become fullyyyyyyyyyyyy satisfied and in that spiritually intoxicated condition we won't be able to see faults. everything in this world made of faults. so no time for them. :-D
Hare Krishna dear Devotees, please accept my humble obeisances! All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
i apologize with above said!
It was very true from the side of Aakash Menon Prabhu, posting this question. It is better to solve the misunderstandings in mind so that understand and see everything in reality.
For that only here are so many Devotees and this Discussion.
i also sometimes see how easy earned (i mean food stuffs bought for the charities) sometimes used not carefully. wastes of Prasad, or Temple belongings...
Srila Prabhupada was serious even a drop of drinking water, He was against wasting even that. We have to try as possible as we can use carefully Krishna's wealth. Your servant, maral
PAMHO! AGTSP! Nirbandh Krsna sambadhe yuktam vairagyam ucyate.....by utilizing all the energies in Krsna's service we can actualise Vairagya and not otherwise! Haribol
-
1
-
2
of 2 Next