J. Huber Resources

Huber, J. & Gruson, L. (1987, April 9). Dial om for murder. Rolling Stone, 497.

OVERVIEW

According to the article:

The Hare Krishna church, once brimming with youthful idealism, has become a haven for drug traffickers, suspected child molesters—and killers.

In 1965, a retired Indian pharmaceuticals executive came to New York City promoting belief in Krishna, one of the most widely worshipped Hindu deities. As Swami Prabhupada, he rented an old loft on the Bowry, and began chanting and preaching on street corners and giving lectures in a store front curio shop called Matchless Gifts.

He taught that anyone could transcend the degradation and frustrations of this world and merge with God by simply

• Chanting Krishna’s name hundreds of times a day.
• Devoting one’s life and labor to Krishna.
• Eating no meat.
• Living a pure life including sexual abstinence except for procreation.

"When he died in 1977, at eighty-one, Prabhupada left behind a movement that had millions of followers in hundreds of temples all over the world." Of him, Harvey Cox said in Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna (1983, Harvard Press), "When I say that (Prabhupada) was ‘one in a million,’ I think that is...an underestimate. Perhaps he was one in a hundred million."

But instead of a well-disciplined and organized religion, the Swami left behind a religious empire that soon lost its unity and high principles. "He left few, if any, instructions on who should succeed him or how the Krishna church should be run. As a result, eleven gurus divided up the world like Mafia chieftains. Each became the godfather in his territory."

International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) devotees insist that the religion and its disillusioned followers remain devout; greedy gurus are corrupt. In the late-1980s, the Governing Body Commission excommunicated six of the eleven gurus. Bavanamda (Charles Brace), the Australian guru, was expelled in 1991, accused of homosexuality. Ramesvar (Robert Grant), the Los Angeles guru, was also removed in 1991 because he seduced a teenager girl. Bhagavan (William Ehrlichman), the European guru, fled his temple after being discovered violating his vow of chastity.

The article investigates the activities of Bhaktipada (Keith Ham), whom the authors call, through the eyes of murdered Steve Bryant, "the most powerful and the most evil" guru. It has been charged that Bhaktipada tolerates child abuse and drug trafficking, breaks up marriages at will, and uses women as pawns. He has been depicted as a man who hates women, saying that "three things are better when you beat them: your drum, your dog and your wife."

Bhaktipada built the "American Taj Mahal," a Palace of Gold to honor the simple living Prabhupada. It is the centerpiece of New Urindaban, Bhaktipada’s 3000-acre kingdom in West Virginia. It is charged that it has been financed through the manipulation of women forced to beg and "by accepting money from drug smugglers,...welfare and fundraising scams."

This article explores the charges that Bhaktipada had disciple Thomas Drescher kill Charles St. Dennis and Steve Bryant, former loyalist. Since the murders, Bryant has become a martyr in many peoples’ minds. Former president of the Berkeley temple, Atreya Rishi, says, "Even if Bhaktipada is put in jail, he will come out victorious because he’s a martyr. The difference is, he’s a martyr to a lie, and Steve Bryant is a martyr to the truth."

IMPLICATIONS

1. This is a story of a lonely man (Bryant) who never found success—in marriage or vocation. Cults prey upon the vulnerable.
2. Many young folks who might not be interested in a unit on cults could find this article from Rolling Stone provocative if presented appropriately.
3. There are many beautiful, sincere young folks in Hare Krishna. We should examine the values and community that have attracted and bound them.