Interview with Krishna Kshetra Swami
Published in Krishna-katha, March 2014

We have recently learned that you will be taking sannyāsa and that the initiation will take place this year in Goloka Dhama in Germany, during Janmāṣṭamī. What led you to take this step?

— There is no single event behind my decision; I would say it is rather the result of many years of thought and reflection. I was cautious, because in the past we could observe in ISKCON something that we might call “sannyāsa casualties,” and I did not want to become part of that statistic. So I thought it better to wait and make sure. At the same time I felt that since Śrīla Prabhupāda initiated senior devotees into sannyāsa, he had a purpose in doing so, and I would like to honour that and expand my service by taking on this commitment.

People say that in a sense I am already a sannyāsī. That may be the case, but I would like to confirm this formally. Since Kṛṣṇa arranged for the existence of four āśramas, I felt a desire that He allow me to make use of them as well.

All the āśramas are meant to support devotional service, so I see the sannyāsa-āśrama as a means to help the development of my spiritual life, and also as something that can help others in their spiritual lives.

How do you feel about it?

— Good. I feel that it is a right step. Time will tell, but I think it will be good. Everything points in that direction. All the senior devotees with whom I consulted were in favour; the GBC is very positive about this decision, and even the astrologers say that it is favourable.

Do you think this change will affect your approach to your disciples or to other devotees or non-devotees, and if so, how?

— If there is a change, let us hope it will be for the better, but I do not have any specific plan of changes. I hope that I will be able to inspire devotees more, and I think that with this āśrama it will become easier.

How do you see the future of your academic teaching after taking sannyāsa?

— Since two years ago, when I in a sense stepped back from regular teaching, I have been able to focus more on Bhaktivedanta College, where I am still working. I plan to continue writing and research, and I do not think that sannyāsa will affect this in any way. I believe I will be able to continue without disruption.

Last year you became Dean of Studies at Bhaktivedanta College in Radhadesh.

— Yes, that is what they call me.

What does that…

— What does that mean? We are still trying to understand what it means (laughter). We are still trying to figure out what exactly we are attempting to do at Bhaktivedanta College. The College is still a fresh project, but one with enormous potential. Being Dean of Studies means having oversight over academic quality, supervising the curriculum, and safeguarding the high standards of our courses in terms of content and pedagogy.

What is the overall significance of Bhaktivedanta College for ISKCON?

— At present the significance of Bhaktivedanta College for ISKCON is rather minimal, and this is what we hope to change. We would like Bhaktivedanta College to be perceived within the broader Vaiṣṇava community as an important centre to which students can be sent, and who, after gaining qualifications, will return to their communities as well-trained and educated leaders. That is our idea. But I stress: we are still a young institution and it may take some time before this is achieved. We are still working on it.

Last year the book Bhagavata Purana: Sacred Text and Living Tradition was published, edited by you and Radhika Ramana Prabhu. Could you tell us something more about this project and about the second volume on which you are now working?

— Yes. In fact this is the first of two volumes, commissioned by the American academic publisher Columbia University Press. Initially we proposed only one book and wanted it to be a companion to the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that would facilitate deeper understanding of the Bhāgavatam through the essays included in it. The book consists of twelve essays devoted to twelve different topics. They are meant to facilitate understanding, or to be an introduction to something that for most people remains still unknown.

The publishers reviewed our proposal, which they liked, but they asked: “Where is the Bhagavata Purana to which your book is supposed to be a companion?” We replied: “It already exists; it is Śrīla Prabhupāda’s multivolume Bhāgavatam.” However, they were not interested in that; they wanted a single volume. So in fact the proposal to prepare an abridged edition of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam came from their side. We accepted this — as we call it — as an expression of Kṛṣṇa’s mercy, and this is what we are now working on.

In practical terms it means that we are making our own translation from Sanskrit of selected passages from the Bhāgavatam, together with connecting summaries to provide continuity. Then these two books will form a kind of set and are to be distributed together at university departments in English-speaking countries. We hope this will have a positive effect. These two books constitute the first stage of what we call a four-phase, or perhaps even five-phase project on which we are working in Oxford — the Bhagavata Purana Research Project.

You recently gave lectures at various universities in China. How was it? Is there any difference between teaching there and in the West?

— Well, the language is different (laughter), and I do not speak Chinese, so we always had a translator. It was a pleasant opportunity to meet several professors and their students at various universities. We had a very good reception. People are very curious; they want to know more about the philosophy and religion of India.

What I am looking for, and the research work I am doing, aims at seeing how we can develop something more solid, something more substantial, something that will start to have a life of its own in the academic world in China. The language is a major limitation for me. Learning Chinese would take my whole life, and for someone of my age it is rather impossible. So I am only trying to indicate what could be done, and perhaps others will take it up. There is a good chance of that, but at present it is still a preliminary phase.

Could you indicate some area in which ISKCON devotees should work the most, what are the main difficulties we must face? In other words — how can we become better devotees?

— I have just been in Māyāpur where we had a large gathering called the ISKCON Leaders Sanga. Around 800 leaders of ISKCON from all over the world came there. Two years ago, at the same meeting, there were half that number, so about 400 devotees. The main theme is what we call strategic planning, and I see that there are many good initiatives in this regard.

I think that in a sense one can say that on this level everything is under control and devotees are engaged in many ways. There were many seminars, many of them focusing on subjects related to what is happening externally. And this also should be there. But what about what is happening internally? What about helping devotees to cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness more deeply? Of course such things also exist. Over the last years there have been japa retreats, especially developed by Sacinandana Swami, Bhurijana Prabhu and others. I think that this is a very good sign, very necessary, and devotees need such gatherings.

I also feel that there is a need for more educational projects. Education in śāstra exists, but I think that still only a small percentage of the large population of devotees has access to it. So I believe there should be more. There is a need for more good initiatives for a wider circle of devotees.

One of your areas of interest is community development. What should we especially keep in mind when we face conflicts in a spiritual community and want to find a solution?

— I think that to begin with we should understand that conflict will exist as long as we are what we are — human beings. Prabhupāda said that having different opinions is not something bad; it rather shows that we are persons, and because of our personalities differences can exist. Sometimes we become disturbed too quickly because we think that if there are different opinions, then something is wrong. But I sometimes think: why should we not find space for different opinions?

Do we necessarily have to reach the same conclusion on a given subject, or can we have different approaches? We speak a lot about unity and diversity, or unity in diversity, or diversity in unity. New conflicts are always accompanied by some anxiety. Usually the problem turns out to be a lack of good communication. We are not good at communicating and listening. But improving communication is not so complicated. It takes some time; it requires humility and patience.

In fact it comes down to listening to the other person and discovering where there may be some truth in what he or she is saying, even if we do not agree with the overall thesis. Some communication skills that we have underdeveloped, others have acquired through similar practices. We can take up this challenge.

I think we should give ourselves permission not to be certain. When some problem comes up, we feel anxious because it seems to us that we must come to clear conclusions and call things by their right names. I think a more appropriate attitude would be: “Well, we have different opinions on this matter; let us give ourselves time to reflect. Let us not rush to conclusions.”

One reason we think we must come to common conclusions is the international character of our mission. We value uniformity of opinion, and this is natural, because it seems to us that if new people come and hear different opinions, they will feel confused. This might lead them to give up and abandon the process. That may happen. Or perhaps they will appreciate that we allow space for different opinions. That is the other option. They will see that we are not robots who all speak and think the same way. For many of them this may be very attractive.