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"I Ask Only Three Steps" - The Vamanadeva Approach
By Abhinandana Nitai dasa
We trust that Lord Vamanadeva will not mind that, for describing preaching
activities in ISKCON, we are using the famous words He spoke when He
conquered the entire universe. Since ISKCON's goal is to flood the whole
world with Krishna consciousness, I feel that this analogy is suitable and
justified.
As told by His Holiness Giriraja Maharaja:
We remember Srila Prabhupada's last days with us, and our last exchanges
with him.i Prabhupada asked me, "Do you think this movement will go on
without me?" I replied, "As long as we are sincere and chant Hare Krishna
and follow the regulative principles, the movement will go on." Srila
Prabhupada listened. Then, again with great difficulty and ever so softly,
Srila Prabhupada responded. He uttered the word, " "Organization.
"Organization and intelligence." I was startled. But later I considered the
significance of Srila Prabhupada's pragmatic reply. Although sincerely
chanting sixteen rounds and following the regulative principles are the
basis of Krishna consciousness, intelligence and organization are also
required, especially to spread Krishna consciousness and fulfill Srila
Prabhupada's and Lord Krishna's mission. (Talk given on 11 November 1999,
Los Angeles)
The mutual cooperation of all spiritual masters within ISKCON is what makes
us different from other spiritual organizations in India, and the result is
obvious. Yet it is no secret that there is still much scope for improving
cooperation and organization. The Vamanadeva Approach is a conceptual
overview of all preaching activities in ISKCON and of their interconnection
and interdependence.
First step: Contact
In this level of preaching are: book distribution, harinama, prasadam
distribution, festivals, Sunday Feast programs, Padayatra, and Krishna
consciousness in the media. These are the activities through which an
individual first comes in touch with Krishna consciousness. On this level
ISKCON is strong and effective. Most devotees are engaged in preaching on
this level, and ISKCON focuses most of its attention on this step. Yet
although it might be the strongest, without the other two it is incomplete.
Why? Because if we stress only this step, we are like a farmer who
enthusiastically sows grains here and there but does not also water and care
for the sprouted plants, or does not even remember where he planted them. In
this example, simply to plant seeds is more important than the crop yield!
In this world it is rare to meet a soul who has seriously cultivated
spiritual practices in previous lives and for whom his first contact with
ISKCON is sufficient for him to immediately become dedicated to devotional
service. Most conditioned souls need ongoing personal attention and
continued care from devotees to become serious in spiritual life.
We can give attention to someone only if we know how and where to find him
again. It's therefore essential to collect names, telephone numbers, and
email addresses of interested people. So in this context "contact" doesn't
just mean that someone came in contact with ISKCON, but that a
representative of ISKCON can contact him again. On this level the most
important task for preachers-especially those acting in the field of book
distribution, organizing festivals, and caring for the congregation-is to
understand the importance of obtaining contact information from everyone
they meet.
Second step: Cultivation
This step could be called the missing link in the preaching chain of most
ISKCON centers. Only a few keep a list of all members and friends and have a
team of devotees to systematically and professionally take care of people
who show interest in Krishna consciousness. Those persons should be invited
for temple programs, should be visited in their home, and should be assisted
in their spiritual development.
This is key for increasing the yatra's membership. (In Slovenia, fifty
percent of all guests first came to the temple on the invitation of a
friend.) Those email addresses and telephone numbers can help ensure that
new contacts don't get "lost in a crowd" and become forgotten until some
future time when they might again be met by a sankirtana devotee in the
street. In order to offer spiritual care to those who have shown interest in
Krishna consciousness, we need to keep a database of important information
about them-for example, their skills and the kinds of service they prefer,
or what special facilities or assistance they might require. Building a
personal relation with them, with special attention to fulfill their needs
and becoming friends with them, is the essence of cultivation and follow-up.
Third step: Care
On this level, new devotees receive a mentor, establish deep friendships,
begin to regularly attend Nama-hattas, Bhakti-vriksha or Counselor groups,
start advancing in the Siksa Program, study Srila Prabhupada's books, and
may join a Bhakti-sastri course. They gradually come to the point of taking
shelter of an ISKCON spiritual master.
Care can encompass emotional, spiritual, and social aspects of a person's
life; but it doesn't happen automatically. Initially it may be that we care
for others only out of duty, because we understand that it's an important
part of our spiritual culture. But in the long run, care must come from the
heart, from a deep appreciation for all living beings, the eternal parts of
Lord Krishna. By his example, Srila Prabhupada, a genuine representative of
Krishna, showed us the meaning of the word care.
To properly apply care we need to come to the level of sattva-guna and think
about the long-term benefit of the devotees.
Conclusion
The effectiveness of our preaching can be evaluated only when we know how
many people have begun chanting, how many are engaged in educational
programs, how many have become initiated, and so on. But only a few devotee
communities keep track of such data. The overall task delineated in the
Vamanadeva Approach is not necessarily easy, as all preaching programs must
run parallel to achieve the best results. Evaluating how well applied and
integrated the three steps are, gives us an idea of the development of a
yatra. ISKCON is strongest in the first step (Contact), but the second step
(Cultivation) is missing in many places. The third (Care) could be more
deeply assimilated in our culture and applied more systematically. For the
proper functioning of any yatra, it is essential that all three steps exist
and properly function-with the optimum number of devotees engaged,
investment of time spent, volume of resources used, and so forth. Our
"chain" of preaching will be most effective only if its links (all three
steps) are strong and firmly connected.
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