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Preface xv
potency to fulf il Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission of spreading Kṛṣṇa
consciousness all over the world.*
In On Speaking Strongly in Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Service, I wrote:
According to the principle of unity and diversity that Śrīla
Prabhupāda often stressed, the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement
can and should accommodate a variety of approaches toward
the practice and propagation of devotional service. Yet in many
cases the dif ference is not simply of approach, but a fundamental
divergence in understanding what Kṛṣṇa consciousness entails
and of the very purpose of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. †
I respectfully submit that it is unrealistic to cite “unity in
diversity” without conceding that a fundamental divergence
exists within ISKCON over the issue of gender roles.
That there is a fundamental divergence is upheld by outside
scholars:
The issue of women in [ISKCON] has been troublesome for many
years, both within its own boundaries and in the depictions of
those outside it. For large numbers of devotees, predominately
women but some men, it has been a deeply painful matter, and
has been perhaps second only to the issue of the status and role
of the guru in threatening the future of the movement. 1
The debate about the position of women in ISKCON is so
contentious that some would question the need to air the
subject in this journal at all, while others would object if we
did not. It is difficult to ignore the subject since approximately
* Lecture: How to Glorify Śrīla Prabhupāda <www.bvks.com/2180>
† Lecture: Limitations of Unity in Diversity <www.bvks.com/20062>
1. “The Debate About Women In The Hare Kṛṣṇa Movement,” by Kim
Knott. ISKCON Communications Journal #3.2, Jul/Dec 1995. [Also featured
in Bhaktivedanta Vedabase]