Kirtanananda's head smashed with iron pipe

Originally posted on Pada Newsletter April 5, 2000

Iskcons certified guru voting

Triyogi das Michael Schockman

One of the supporters of the idea that many more gurus should be certified was named Triyogi dasa: Michael Shockman.

Triyogi wanted to become the next guru for the state of Ohio, sort of replacing Kirtanananda.

Yet Kirtanananda was very much opposed to the whole reform program, and he wanted no new gurus in his "zone." Oddly, Kirtanananda was also quoting some of the same arguments PADA gave; The guru is not made by rubber stamps, votes, temple president's consensus, a show of hands of GBC quorum, and so on. The guru is "self-effulgent."

Kirtanananda

And so Kirtanananda was seen as a major obstacle to "the reform of ISKCON," i.e. rubber stamping another fifty people as the next wave of imitation-gurus of Srila Prabhupada. Meanwhile, Triyogi was getting very angry at Kirtanananda for "holding up his guru certification." Apparently word got around that the GBC was going to "cave in" to the "50 man committee" and give anywhere from 20 to 40 new guru certificates at the 1986 Mayapura meeting, but one had to get permission and recommendation from the local guru first.

Kirtanananda just was not going to give in. So Triyogi and Kirtanananda got into a big argument one day. Triyogi demanded that Kirtanananda give him his guru recommendation. When Kirtanananda refused once again, Triyogi picked up a large, heavy piece of pipe and bashed Kirtanananda over the head, almost killing him. [October 1985]

[Note: Kirtanananda was rushed to the nearby hospital, where he lay in a coma for over a week, he almost died and barely recovered from this attack. After Kirtanananda head was smashed with a steel pipe, fracturing his skull, he lost the vision of his right eye]

After Kirtanananda was assaulted, the GBC tried to make it appear that a great saint had been attacked just like Jesus was crucified.

Leaders from all over poured into New Vrindavana to offer support and condolences. Of course, this was a good opportunity for them to blame Sulochana for the attack and perhaps spawn an attack on him. So the rumor was started that Sulochana was good friends with Triyogi and that they had planned the attack. This made no sense to the intelligent observer however. Triyogi wanted to get "voted in as a guru" and Sulochana, well, he hated the idea that a guru could be rubber stamped. Sulochana also said that if a person got a guru rubber stamp from Kirtanananda he would be, "A certified faggot, not just a regular faggot."

It is well known that Kirtananda or his minions retaliated against Triyogi by blaming and then killing Sulochana which means: they are indiscriminate. Triyogi hated Sulochana, they were not working together. In sum, they killed the wrong man.

And Sulochana also thought that Triyogi was "a jerk" and not a person who was qualified to be voted in as a guru.

Similarly, Triyogi disagreed with our idea that guru voting is foolish and bogus. Also, if the attack had been "planned," why did Triyogi attack in the open in front of eye-witnesses, and especially when there were a number of Kirtanananda's followers nearby -- who could have killed him in retaliation? This was not a planned attack, this was a spontaneous outburst of extreme anger. If Triyogi was so attached to our idea, why did he not contact us then or since?

Triyogi hitting Kirtanananda on the head was the result of Kirtanananda own bogus guru program. Triyogi wanted to be a guru since the GBC was 2/3 voting them in, and Kirtanananda had said he would not recommend that vote, and so Triyogi attacked him. This whole idea of guru-appoinment-program itself is a sham. This was the real motive for the attack, the bogus GBC guru vote.

The Iskcon certified 2/3 hand voted in guru successor appointment program [wow]

Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
All glories to His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada!