Why is ISKCON no longer challenging atheists as Hamsaduta Swami did in Lanka?
From: Mukund
Why ISKCON no more challenges the atheists and rationalists as Hansadutta Swami challenged Dr. Abraham Kovoor in Sri Lanka, as now we have more scientific evidence to prove existence of God and soul as compared to 1970s?
Transcript
This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Question from Mukunda Prabhu, why is ISKCON no more challenged the atheists and rationalists as Hamsadut Swami challenged Dr. Abraham Karur in Sri Lanka? As now we have more scientific evidences to prove existence of God and soul as compared to 1970s. Answer, ISKCON is not a monolithic body that does one thing or doesn’t do one thing.
Hamsadut Swami was one ISKCON leader who at a particular forum, at a particular time found an opportunity to challenge atheists and he did that. Vishwa Prabhupada gave us various definitions of success. So there could be distribution of books, opening of temples, writing of books, conducting of festivals like Rath Yatra and others.
And then say inviting people for our regular courses and programs. There can be various definitions of success. And different ISKCON leaders have taken on different definitions of success as their life missions.
So at an individual level, there may be on some occasions discussions between devotees and atheists on particular issues. But it will depend on every individual leaders or spiritual teachers, ISKCON devotees, particular inspiration. So it is not that this is the most important activity.
Ultimately ISKCON, the real transformation happens not just by media events, by PR events like debates. Actually, from a point of view, Abraham Kabur continued to be an atheist and he maintained his atheism. But all that had happened was that his aggressiveness was temporarily checked.
So in general, ISKCON is right now largely in the mode of consolidation and gradual expansion. So the legacy of scientific preaching has been taken up by individual devotees within our movement. And they are doing it according to their particular inspiration.
The Karmaprabhu is countering evolution by compiling evidences. He goes around and presents papers. And whenever there is an opportunity, he may even have some discussions which tend towards debates.
Ishwar Krishna Prabhu is a devotee in Hungary who has been very successful in challenging evolution. And he has written a book on mythology, that is the study of animal behavior. It’s called Nature’s IQ.
And that has been widely featured as documentaries and interviews and TV chat shows. And he has also had discussions with various people on this issue. So at an individual level, whenever there are forums, devotees are doing this.
And whenever forums present themselves appropriately, and those spiritual teachers who are inclined towards these debates, they get the opportunity, they will take this up. But it is not that ISKCON as an institution is doing something or not doing something. Whenever the forum and the person presents itself to come together, the right forum and the right person to take up that forum, then such things are continuing on.
These things have sensational value, but they don’t necessarily have transformational value. Transformational value comes from the inspiration to steadily practice Krishna consciousness. And that doesn’t necessarily come about just by mere image.
So it was one part of ISKCON history, a significant part that was captured in the book Life Comes from Life. Hamsadut Maharaj debating Dr. Abraham Cowd. But that is not the most significant part of ISKCON scientific outreach also.
Publishing of books like Forbidden Archaeology, Vaidata Karmaprabhu, or the conducting of the Science and Religion World Congresses by several Congresses, and like that were conducted by Bhaktasaro Damodara Maharaj. These are actually far more significant landmarks in ISKCON’s scientific outreach. So depending on individual inspiration and opportunity, challenging atheists either directly by having some forum newspaper or media or some stage, a dais event where debates can take place, or by writing books and conducting conferences wherein the spiritual paradigm is introduced, substantiated and propagated.
All these are happening according to individual inspiration of the devotees who are taking up the service.