Book Reviewed: Killing for Krishna: The Danger of Deranged Devotion by Henry Doktorski

Hare Krishnas and the New Vrindaban community “Killing for Krishna” is an intelligent and impeccably researched work on the early events of ISKCON - New Vrindaban, a rural community of Hare Krishnas in Moundsville, West Virginia. The author who lived and witnessed events during his stay acknowledges ambiguity in this inherently complex narrative. He offers clarity to the history of one of the major temples in the United States. The main character of the story is Swami Kirtananda also called Bhaktipada, the charismatic man who was the first disciple of Srila Prabhupada. Kirtananda helped build the very first temple in New York City before he moved to Moundsville. He was primarily responsible for expanding the spiritual movement of Hare Krishnas in the United States. The major event in the history of the commune was the 1986 murder of the devotee Steven Bryant (Sulochan Dasa), and the involvement of senior disciples of Swami Kirtananda in this crime. Bryant was a resident-devotee of New Vrindaban and worked for Kirtananda at the temple for few years before the relationship soured. The hostility of Bryant towards Kirtananda became personal when he blamed Kirtananda for breaking his family and separation from his wife and children. His first book, “The Guru Business,” attempts to exposes illegal activities at New Vrindaban and put the blame on Kirtananda, but his attempts fail. He refuses to give up, upon more research at Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) in Los Angeles, California, he digs more dirt on Kirtananda and start campaigning with devotees at various American temples. The close followers of Kirtananda become involved in the murder of Steven Bryant. ISKCON leaders denounce the murder and distance themselves from New Vrindaban. The ISKCON Governing Body Commission (GBC) urges Kirtananda to resign from the GBC if he is indicted. Kirtananda agrees, but when he is indicted, he refuses to resign. In September 1986, New Vrindaban lays off their entire work force of 187 employees. All money at New Vrindaban goes to Kirtananda’s legal fund. All projects are neglected, including the dairy, and many protected cows at the New Vrindaban community die from starvation. The closure of New Vrindaban Elementary School directly affects forty children of the devotees. Kirtananda Swami inaugurates a year-long “First Amendment Freedom Tour,” during which he appears on ninety radio shows and sixty television shows, including CBS Evening News with Dan Rather, Larry King Live, and the Sally Jesse Raphael Talk Show and West 57th Street. In April 1987, Rolling Stone publishes an article entitled “Dial OM For Murder,” about the murder of Steven Bryant. The authors claim that Kirtananda ordered the assassination of Bryant to silence him from sharing information about Kirtananda’s illegal and immoral activities. Most New Vrindaban devotees believe the charges against their spiritual master are “rumors and hearsay.” The book offers a one-sided look at the dark history of the temple, but several things written in this book are unsubstantiated from independent sources. Despite all the ills, the New Vrindaban at present is a prosperous community for a large population of devotees in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Over the past twenty years, this temple has emerged as one of the important spiritual centers of ISKCON organization that has lived up to the teachings of Srila Prabhupada.

Book Reviewed: The Origin of Satan: How Christians Demonized Jews, Pagans and Heretics by Elaine Pagels

The spiritual battles with Satan (five stars) The study of the Satan in the biblical literature is fascinating. Author Elaine Pagels offers an interesting discussion largely from the point of New Testament. The crucial issue is the irreconcilable paradox: if God is benevolent and omnipotent, then why does He permit evil? Or do we live in a world made of two forces, God, and the Devil? Satan is also called Lucifer. In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, often identified as the serpent in the Garden of Eden. In Christianism, he is considered as a fallen angel who rebelled against God but retained power over human beings. In the Synoptic Gospels, Satan tempts Jesus in the desert. He is identified as the cause of illness and temptation (Mark 1:12–13, Matthew 4:1–11, and Luke 4:1–13). Satan plays a role in some of the parables of Jesus, namely the Parable of the Sower, the Parable of the Weeds, Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, and the Parable of the Strong Man. According to the Parable of the Sower, Satan influences those who fail to understand the gospel. The gospel of Mark mentions angels only in the opening verse (1:13) and in the final verses of the original manuscript (Mark 16:5-7). He characterizes Jesus' ministry as involving continual struggle between God's spirit and the demons who belong to Satan's "kingdom" (Mark 3:23-27). For nearly two thousand years Christians believed that Jews killed Jesus and the Romans were merely their agents. Examination of synoptic gospels in the historical context reveals that they are theological treatise of a historical biography. The authors of Matthew and Luke based on the gospel of Mark revised in different ways. They each added their own interpretation of the source materials from earlier traditions like, oral tradition, anecdotes, and parables. The gospel of Mark was written more than a generation after Jesus' death, and the other synoptic gospels nearly two generations later. The gospel writers tended to downplay the role of Romans in the aftermath of the unsuccessful Jewish war against Rome. In fact, the Jesus' execution was imposed by the Romans for activities they considered seditious. Each author of synoptic gospels shapes a narrative to respond to circumstances that surrounded them in ancient Israel. Christians as they read the gospels have identified themselves with the apostles. They have also identified their opponents, Romans, Jews, pagans, and heretics with forces of evil. The book is academic but numerous references are provided for readers interested in the history of gospels and the evolving idea of Satan in the New Testament. Highly recommended to those interested in the ancient history of Israel and the early Christian traditions.