Brainwashed! His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Srila Prabhupada has, once or maybe more, clearly mentioned that ISKCON brainwashes its members, he says We are brainwashing from bad to good This is true. He also stated that everybody is also being brainwashed by advertising and material education etc., what a simple but profound statement that is. So let us make a humble, maybe humorous (or not) attempt to define extremism and brainwashing from another perspective. The definition of cult by the Oxford Pocket Dictionary is as follows: cult n. 1 religious system, sect, etc., esp. ritualistic. 2 a devotion to a person or thing (cult of aestheticism). b fashion. c (attrib.) fashionable (cult film). [Latin: related to *cultivate] Let us also note the Latin definition related to cultivate and also note some definitions are -improve (the mind, manners, etc.). b nurture (a person, friendship, etc.). cultivate v. (-ting) 1 prepare and use (soil etc.) for crops or gardening. 2 a raise (crops). b culture (bacteria etc.). 3 a (often as cultivated adj.) improve (the mind, manners, etc.). b nurture (a person, friendship, etc.).  cultivable adj. cultivation n. [Latin colo cult- till, worship] Let us also look at the definition of extreme; extreme adj. 1 of a high, or the highest, degree (extreme danger). 2 severe (extreme measures). 3 outermost. 4 on the far left or right of a political party. 5 utmost; last. n. 1 (often in pl.) either of two things as remote or as different as possible. 2 thing at either end. 3 highest degree. 4 Math. first or last term of a ratio or series.  go to extremes take an extreme course of action. in the extreme to an extreme degree.  extremely adv. [French from Latin] Recently Srila Prabhupadas edition of the Bhagavad Gita has come under attack as being extremist, now in accordance with that definition I can only assume that it is as above most closely defined as either of two things as remote or as different as possible. So, basically Hare Krishnas are different from the normal population. What is Normal? Excuse me for making this article into what seems like a boring English lesson, but I will give the Oxford Pocket Dictionarys definition of Normal and related words norm n. 1 standard, pattern, or type. 2 standard amount of work etc. 3 customary behaviour etc. [Latin norma carpenter's square] normal adj. 1 conforming to a standard; regular, usual, typical. 2 free from mental or emotional disorder. 3 Geom. (of a line) at right angles, perpendicular. n. 1 a normal value of a temperature etc. b usual state, level, etc. 2 line at right angles.  normalcy n. esp. US. normality n. [Latin normalis: related to *norm] normalize v. (also -ise) (-zing or -sing) 1 make or become normal. 2 cause to conform.  normalization n. normally adv. 1 in a normal manner. 2 usually. From the above definition we find that Hare Krishnas are abnormal, because they do not follow the norms- at least in countries where such conscious practices are not generally followed. Hare Krishnas are taught that embracing a materialistic lifestyle is diametrically opposed to spiritual advancement.

Whatever the general people are doing is termed as Society and people who follow a different path from the general masses will not be able to conform or find it difficult to integrate properly into such a Society and behave normally as per some of the descriptions given below. Basically fitting into society means that if there are a lot of sheep and you dont fit in there must be something wrong with you. .So you must conform to whatever the masses are doing and just because everyone is doing the same thing. It does not follow that this may necessarily be the right thing, its mass peer pressure. The normal people of yesterday, before mass industrialization, were .agriculturally based/ dependant; many cultures were centred on religion. Normal People Today or Norms of Today. Some examples of normal yet extremist behaviour. We have given the definitions of cult, normal and extreme. Let us analyse general normal living and behaviour which is found practically in every country on the globe. We may imagine that independent impartial observers were to come from another world (just like the United Nations may send a team to a foreign land) to observe all the activities of entities living here.... what would their findings be? Who would be defined as a dangerous cult what would be labelled as extremist behaviourIt would depend on whether they were in knowledge or ignorance. Some examples odd behaviour. Smoking - A bizarre habitual ritual of inhaling a toxic herbal smoke which is life threatening and has no value whatsoever except that it generates money for some and gives an artificial comfort to the habituators. It destroys the smokers lungs and is the cause of many adverse conditions and diseases. It is also harmful to people in surrounding areas. Sometimes smokers may react negatively and even become abusive if asked to stop the habit or at least not smoke in others presence that may dislike the practice. . The profiteers of this industry have even have engaged many farmers to grow the poisonous tobacco leaves instead of life sustaining grains, fruits and vegetables. Other sister sects prefer to chew the poisonous herb and spit it out indiscriminately. Some citizens, out of concern actually got the tobacco cult followers to stop harming others in public places and restricted them to certain areas, they even boldly and clearly inform the followers on the packaging that this poisonous product will kill them but this suicidal cult just wont give it up. Can we call the collective group of worldwide smokers and their profiteers a suicidal and murderous extremist cult? I have seen this bizarre culture personally and practically in my country of my birth (in 1972) in a country calledRhodesia (which achieved independence in 1980 and became Zimbabwe.) It used to be the bread basket of Southern Africa despite its small size. Over thirty years I saw that they grew more and more tobacco leaf, as a cash crop it was considered to be the best quality leaf in the world. Srila Prabhupada had warned of such precarious agricultural practices, in the end few became rich and the masses are suffering for want of basic food. http://www.smokingeffects.org/ http://images.mylot.com/userImages/images/postphotos/2193695.jpg Many Hare Krishnas were brainwashed into giving up this toxic and obnoxious habit. Drinking of Poisonous Liquids. -Many members of this extremist group and their sister cults drink poisonous liquids which destroy their livers and other parts of the body, these liquids come in different types and strengths, these cultists gather in large groups and drink this liquid abundantly. It makes many of them lose their senses and the result is that they cannot even walk and even forget who they are. Unable to recognize even their closest acquaintances properly, often times they get into vehicles and kill other men, women or children randomly without discrimination. They also

sometimes commit violence against their fellow patrons and families or general members of the public. Urinating and vomiting indiscriminately they may wander about anywhere and simply lie down, the next day when they wake from a drunken stupor they cannot remember anything of what they had done before.

No serious attempts have been made to quell this intoxicated extremist group who are in fact considered normal. In fact there are many warnings to the intoxicated not to drive, which is very odd considering that ones senses are not in order for rational thought anyway, however sometimes peaceful and law abiding (ab)normal Hare Krishnas are sometimes quelled with extreme force. Even after such severe abuse aka Salted Bread & Kazakhstan the general reaction from devotees is a heartfelt appeal to the laws of the land the international community and hope common decency and sense may prevail. Many Hare Krishnas were brainwashed into giving up this cultish ritual of inebriety after understanding the teachings Srila Prabhupadas Bhagavad Gita. Face and Body modification and alterations; There are many people who go to the extreme to modify their bodies or appearance. The nose job as it is harmlessly called involves the wilful smashing/cutting and resetting of the nose to create a different look, a lot of painkillers are required after this brutal assault. Liposuction also involves a very painful and violent process of physically removing fat from bodies. The procedures as mentioned above are not for the squeamish. One may visit the link (below) to an animation of this brutal and totally unnecessary procedure. http://www.plastsurgery.com/flash5/cuz_ypo.swf

The Bhagavad-Gita and the Hare Krishnas teaches that one must not involve oneself in such extremist self- inflictions. Rather it teaches a form of austerity such as fasting on certain days which in addition to the main spiritual advancement also has some positive health benefits which do not require such violent actions. Also there are no strict regulations in this regard; no-one is forced to follow strict fasting as it is an individual choice. Eating the Flesh of the Dead. Each year billions of animals are slain in Government authorised slaughterhouses. The treatment of these cows, chickens and other animals is beyond inhumane and extremist behaviour. There are huge cults who feast on this flesh, not considering the pain and suffering caused to the poor victims. Many times even after killing animals they dont even bother to consume their flesh completely (in this way they are even less than the Rakshasa) and they throw the flesh away because it was cooked wrongly, or they cannot preserve it well enough. There is absolutely no understanding of the value of life taken or the karma involved this cult mentality is the height of cold hearted cruelty and it is very saddening to abnormal people. Even carnivorous animals take care to eat every last bit of whatever they kill and they only kill what they can eat. . The Bhagavad Gita teaches us not to engage in such extremist and heinous crimes. Followers of the Gita are disturbed by these horrible acts of extreme violence and cruelty, they do in fact condemn this inhumane but apparently normal standard behaviour, indeed they have been brainwashed to do so. They will also make efforts to stop this but only through propagation of philosophy, knowledge, kindness and practical examples, like cow protection.

Other extremist, abnormal or downright strange behaviour Destroying the world - , these cults destroy Krishnas (Gods) creations and replace them with cold iron and concrete cities, manufacturing toxic chemicals often they run around from building to building like rats. When they get tired they dream of going to some natural place of Krishnas creation to de-stress, that mentality is totally weird! Advertising Cults They really need your attention. They make you feel you really need something, even if you really dont Another example of strange behaviour are scientists and governments whose leaders spend outrageous amounts of their citizens money to travel beyond earth and collect rocks, which are available even in the Arizona desert, they also conduct many bizarre, dangerous and expensive experiments on this planet. They promise the citizens life on new planets when they allow and contribute to the destruction of their own planet and so many citizens in the world. There are wars over oil, water, and sometimes for no justifiable reason, just difference of opinions, nowadays these cult leaders send many young men and women and children to their deaths at a whim...

Through history we learnt that leaders of nations would lead battles themselves, and battles would be fought on battle grounds but now even women children are killed in their homes, previously any leader who would do this would be labelled as a demon, nowadays these cults have call them leaders..

Yet these same cults debate on whether convicted murderers should be given the appropriate punishment. They also promote the killing of babies in the womb; such are their cruel extremist ways.

Others adulterate products meant for consumption for example butter or ghee with animal fat, milk with hydrogen peroxide and honey with sugar. Some of these or similar groups poison rivers & ground water and most city dwelling persons only drink bland filtered water. The success of these cults are so widespread everybody somehow becomes a part of their cruel mindless ways, indeed every citizen is forced into these cult like extremist behaviours which are sanctioned by many leaders.

Of course devotees understand that these are all Mayas tricks and do not take all these things to heart rather they engage them in service to Srila Prabhupadas mission, the only remedy for this world. What is required is more spiritual brainwashing cycles - with extra strong detergent and without any of the fuzzy logic processing of the standard Maya brainwashing program which can be compared to being stuck forever in a fully automatic car wash.

What is the harm or danger in chanting Hare Krishna and practicing Krishna Consciousness activities when most people are lost in such strange behaviour?

Below is an article and several l links related to devotees being arrested for being Hare Krishnas.

It was the Thursday before Christmas, and Londons Oxford Street was brimming over with Christmas shoppers. Twice already that week plainclothes police had arrested devotees chanting Hare Krishna there, but today we were intending to avoid any trouble Come on! the constable said. You know as well as I do youre causing an obstruction. Down to the station; youre all under arrest! Obstruction? we protested. All around you theres drug addiction, prostitution, crime, and violence, and you cant find anything better to do than arrest us for chanting the names of God! What kind of policemen are you? The Arrest It was the Thursday before Christmas, and Londons Oxford Street (the longest shopping street in the world) was brimming over with Christmas shoppers. Twice already that week plainclothes police had arrested devotees chanting Hare Krishna there, but today we were intending to avoid any trouble. The five of us took a new route, profusely distributing the holy name to everyone within earshot. As we made our way through Piccadilly Circus (Londons Times Square) and then along crowded Regent Street, we brought smiles to many faces and raised eyebrows on many others. Finally we reached Oxford Circus, where we reluctantly stopped chanting and started back along Oxford Street toward the temple. But all the shops were staying open late, so the street was still filled with pedestrians, though traffic had died down. The rustle of hundreds of footsteps filled the air. With so many materially conditioned souls surrounding us, there we were, chanting quietly to ourselves on our beads, and just holding our karatalas (hand cymbals) and mrdanga drums! It was hard to restrain ourselves from the loud glorification oi the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. In fact, it was impossible! Casting aside any thoughts of our inevitable arrest, we launched into the most ecstatic chant ever! The tall buildings echoed to the sounds of Lord Caitanyas sarikirtanaparty while dumbfounded shoppers stood open-mouthed and bus lines of bewildered souls turned their heads to see the source of the transcendental sound vibrations. Single file, we chanted and danced along the clear space at the edge of the pavement, which widened as the crowds thinned out. Tottenham Court Road Tube Station, the end of the gauntlet, loomed up ahead. We were almost there, with no police trouble, when three highly suspicious figures suddenly appeared, blocking our path a few yards ahead. All right, lads, yer nicked! said the young student, flashing his police I.D. card with immense relish. What! How can you arrest us? Were not doing anything illegal. His two hard-faced confederates, similarly disguised, moved in closer. Come on! You know as well as I do youre causing an obstruction. Down to the station; youre all under arrest! Obstruction? The pavements fifteen feet wide, were walking in the gutter, and theres hardly anybody to obstruct! we protested. All around you theres drug addiction, prostitution, crime, and violence, and you cant find anything better to do than arrest us for chanting the names of God! What kind of policemen are you? The retort seemed to catch him by surprise, but he quickly regained his composure and barked, Look lad, youre under arrest. Anything you say may be used as evidence. Now move! Then, adding a liberal quantity of unsavory words (quite unbefitting a constable of Her Majestys Police Force), he joined his two colleagues in forming a rear guard, and the three of them escorted us toward the police station. We were thinking of how unfortunate they were. Not only were they obstructing Lord Caitanyas sankirtana party and harassing devotees, but these were the same policemen who had arrested the chanting party twice earlier that week! What demons! For protection we started chanting the glories of Lord NrsimhadevaKrishnas half-man-half-lion incarnationvery softly at first, and then a little louder. The mrdanga crept in, marking the rhythm, and the karatalas soon followed. With no complaints from our police escort as yet, we chanted louder and louder until the street once more resounded with the holy names. Amazed that they made no objection, we turned and saw that the three policemen were grinning from ear to ear! We were incredulous. Here was the mercy of Lord Caitanya! By repeatedly arresting the chanting party, these previously offensive policemen had become purified by associating with devotees, and now they were taking great pleasure in the chanting of the holy names!

Now stop or youll cause an obstruction, directed our police guide as we approached a large bus line, which engulfed the pavement. We obediently stopped, considering it our good fortune that we had been allowed to chant at all. Then something totally unexpected happened. After we had passed the bus line, our captor definitely proved himself to be no ordinary police constable when he ordered, Okay, start chanting again.!! So we did, all the way to the police station, accompaned by the three blissful police constables, who, grinning from ear to ear, made no objection as the ecstatic sankirtana party passed right into the police station, past the main doors, through the hallway, and into the charging room itself!!! Everyone was thunderstruck. Arrestors and arrested alike couldnt believe it. Shaven-headed Hare Krishnas chanting their way into the cop shop? With drums and cymbals? It was unthinkable! The sergeant on duty turned a vivid scarlet and exploded in a fit of anger, threatening to throw the book at us and charge us with all manner of subversive criminal activities. We apologized profusely, pleading that we didnt quite realize where we were, and he became somewhat pacified. As we answered philosophical questions from some of the interested constables, the sergeant charged us with obstruction, one by one, and we had to wait as he filled in numerous forms. All right, boys, tomorrow morning at ten oclock youll be appearing in the Magistrates Court, said the sergeant, now quite amiable. And with that he allowed us to go. Feeling very blissful at the way things had turned out, we filed into the hallway and prepared to return to the temple for the evening arati (temple worship) of Their Lordships Sri Sri Radha-London-isvara. (London-isvara means Krishna, the Lord of London.) On our way out of the station, we passed a high-ranking plainclothes detective inspector. He paused and turned in our direction. Not knowing what to expect, we were surprised when he glanced over us in an almost fatherly way and said in a concerned voice, Dont be discouraged, lads; keep up the good work! Next morning in court we pleaded not guilty to the charges against us, and the judge deferred our case to February 2. At the time, we were unaware of the significance of the appointed date. Our trial was to be on the appearance day of Lord Nityanandathe incarnation of God who helped spread Lord Caitanyas sankirtana movement, and who personifies His mercy. The Trial As is customary on such holy days, the five of us fasted through the morning of Lord Nityanandas appearance day and chanted His glories. At noon we attended a blissful aratiand then broke our fast with a splendid feast. Afterward, we set off for Great Marlborough Street Magistrates Court, confident that Lord Nityananda would protect us. We were accompanied by a new and enthusiastic visitor to the temple, the Reverend Norman Morehouse (second only to the Bishop of Norwich), who came along to observe the court proceedings. We arrived at the courthouse a few minutes before our appointed time of 2:00 P.M. and waited in the big hallway while the Reverend went through to the public gallery. The plainclothesmen who arrested us soon turned up, now in uniform, and waited with us. (It took a little persuasion before they cautiously took some of the hazelnut cookies we had earlier offered to Lord Nityananda.) At last we were beckoned into the courtroom itself and ushered into the dock. A stir went through the assembly. Shaven heads and saffron robes were the last thing anyone expected to see i n Magistrates Court on a Tuesday afternoon. The Magistrate (a balding, portly man in his late middle age, sporting a red rose in the lapel of his dark grey suit) surveyed us over the top of his goldrimmed spectacles. After we reaffirmed our plea of not guilty to the court clerk, one of the constables, who had been sworn in at the witness box, proceeded to report the alleged conditions of our arrest. In the constables version of the story, the chanting party miraculously grew from the original five members to sevenand later to eight when he described how three devotees ran off and escaped arrest. According to his description, it seemed that there were many more people on Oxford Street than we had been aware of. Indeed, we had supposedly forced unlimited numbers of pedestrians into the road and had exposed them to the grave risk of being run over by the almost nonexistent traffic! The judge listened impartially and then, since we had no lawyer to speak on our behalf, he asked us if we would like to comment on the policemans evidence. We humbly pointed out that the constable, like everyone else, had imperfect senses, and that he had contradicted himself in assessing the number of devotees on the chanting party. The judge politely suggested the constable had made a mathematical error. At this a titter of laughter rippled through the courtroom, while the constable shuffled his feet and looked embarrassed. The magistrate then asked if we would like to speak in our own defense. Having been previously chosen as spokesman, I stepped forward to be sworn in at the witness boxand was taken aback when the usher asked me to hold a copy of the Bhagavad-gita in my right hand. He handed me a card, and I read out the words: I swear by almighty Sri Krishna that the evidence I give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Heartened by smiles from the devotees in the dock, I began to describe the circumstances of our arrestthis time as they actually had happened. The magistrate listened as I went on to say, We understand that the police have a duty to perform, sir; but we also have a duty. We have been instructed by our spiritual masterindeed, we are instructed by all the principle scriptures of the worldthe Koran, the Torah, the Bible, and the Vedasthat we should glorify God by chanting His holy names. Whether you know the Lord by the name of Allah, Jehovah, Rama, Govinda, or Krishna, God is one. Oh, quite so, quite so, affirmed the magistrate. Encouraged, I went on: In the Vedic scriptures, in the Brhan-Naradiya Purana, it is said, harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam

In Englishbut what does it mean in English, please? he interjected. Kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha. This was written in the Sanskrit language five thousand years ago. It means, In this age of Kali [the present age of materialism and quarrel] there is no alternative, there is no alternative, there is no alternative for making positive spiritual advancement but the chanting of the holy name, the holy name, the holy name of the Lord. The judgein fact the whole courtroomsat there fascinated. I remembered Srila Prabhupadas introduction to the SrimadBhagavatam and began to speak further. Although mankind has made great material advancement in so many spheres, we can see that factually there is a fault in the social body at large. People are not happy with their day-to-day activities, and there is an increasing disturbance of drug addiction, prostitution, violence, and crime. The root of the problem is lack of God consciousness. People are unaware of the actual purpose of life. Intrigued by this sound philosophy coming from the witness box, the judge relaxed his judicial appearance, sat back, and took a sip of water from his glass. Even more encouraged, I asked, Sir, with your permission, I would like to read a short passage that appeared in the London Observer in October 1972. It is an excerpt from an article written by that eminent English historian, Arnold Toynbee. Upon hearing the name of such a distinguished personality, the judge smiled slightly, and nodding his head in approval, he asked that I continue. The cause of it [the world's malady] is spiritual. We are suffering from having sold our souls to the pursuit of an objective which is both spiritually wrong and practically unobtainable. We have to reconsider our objective and change it. And until we do this, we shall not have peace, either amongst ourselves or within each of us. I continued, As devotees of the Lord we strictly follow four principles: mercifulness, truthfulness, cleanliness, and austerity. These are the higher qualities of human life, and the absence of these qualities means the degradation of society. So the spreading of spiritual understanding among humanity at large is the highest welfare work. And an essential part of this program is the distribution of literature, and the congregational chantingin the streetof the holy names of God. Is that all? inquired the judge. Yes, sir, I replied. Then you may step down. Adjusting his spectacles and regarding the devotees, who were once more assembled in the dock, the judge then said in a very firm yet amicable manner, In legal terms you are guilty of obstruction, although it is of a very minor degree. Taking this into consideration, and seeing your obvious sincerity, I have decided to dismiss the case. We smiled jubilantly, thanked the magistrate, and were about to step down, when Kr na prompted me to add, Sir, we were wondering if you had a court library here, in which case we would like to present a book for addition to the collection. Thank you, he replied. I am quite sure we can accommodate it. I gave a copy of Srila Prabhupadas Sri Isopanisad to one of the clerks, who promised to pass it on to the judge. Then we left the courtroom, thanking Lord Nityananda for His mercy. Outside, our friend Reverend Morehouse greeted us with an ecstatic Hare Krishna! Beaming from ear to ear, he took each of us warmly by the hand. Congratulations! he exclaimed. It was wonderful! I am so proud of you all. I must say, though, I was somewhat surprised at the decision of the judge. In the cases before yours he had been quite severe. Im sure that the Lord must have had a hand in the matter. And so were we. Sankirtana is always successful, but it is especially so on Lord Nityanandas appearance day: even a judge will take a book! On the way back to the temple, I read one verse in Srila Prabhupadas Caitanya-caritamrtathat summed up our whole wonderful experience: aparadha ksamaila dubila prema-jale keba edaibe prabhura prema-mahajale Lord Caitanya excused all the offenders, and they merged into the ocean of love of God, for no one can escape the unique loving network of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu (Cc. Adi-lila, 7.37). [An article from Back to Godhead Vol.12 No.8 (1977)]

http://www.iskcondesiretree.net/video/devotees-and-demonstrators?xg_source=activity http://www.krishna.com/taste-salted-bread http://news.iskcon.com/node/3181 (Man Arrested for Assaulting Hare Krishna) http://www.dandavats.com/?p=6194 http://content.iskcon.org/icj/2_2/armenia.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinduism_in_Kazakhstan#ISKCON_in_Kazakhstan