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The Direction of the Kṛṣṇa Consciousness Movement           3

             necessity of the varṇāśrama institution as long as the living
             being is bound up in the human body? If it is abandoned, and
             the above-mentioned four principles are lacking, the jīva will go
             astray and no good whatsoever will accrue to him. One should,
             therefore, strictly adhere to the rules governing  varṇāśrama
             for the sake of the mind, society, and one’s advancement in
             Kṛṣṇa consciousness. But the observance of  varṇāśrama-
             dharma  is not the sole business of the  jīva.  Therefore, with
             the assistance of varṇāśrama-dharma, one must cultivate pure
             devotional service. The purpose of the varṇāśrama institution
             is to facilitate the practice of devotional service. 1

           Śrīla Prabhupāda often emphasized the necessity and urgency
           of establishing varṇāśrama-dharma:

             There should be a thorough overhauling of the social system,
             and society should revert to the Vedic principles, that is, the
             four varṇas and the four āśramas. 2
             The whole world has now become hell. So the Kṛṣṇa
             consciousness movement is a very important movement. It is
             overhauling the whole human – social, political, religious. So
             those who are engaged in the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement
             should be very, very responsible, sober, try to understand
             the situation, and take shelter of Kṛṣṇa, and everything will
             become very successful. 3

           Thus Śrīla Prabhupāda’s social vision of establishing
           varṇāśrama-dharma, derived from śāstra and the desire of the
           previous ācāryas, is clear and is stated profusely throughout his
           recorded teachings. Yet conversely, an alternative social vision
           that is not based on Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books has become
           predominant within  ISKCON. This vision was articulated in

           1. Jaiva Dharma 3.4.
           2. SB 4.29.54, ppt.
           3. Lecture, 4 Dec 1973.
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