2. Letter from Tripurari Maharaja regarding the accusations of sexual misconduct against Paramadvaiti Maharaja

October 2018

Sri sri guru gaurangau jayatah!

I am writing to you ... regarding the unfortunate behavior of Paramadvaiti Maharaja.
"How could this happen?" This is the question some of his disciples are asking me. Well, Rupa
Goswami explains that lust can appear in the life even of a bhava bhakta! (1.3.59).
There he also states that one should not fault such a bhava bhakta, because he has attained bhava. But later in the text he cites Bilvamangala Thakura as an example of a sadhaka in bhava and further categorizes him as a madhyama bhakta. And we know the story of Bilvamangala. He was a madhyama bhakta in bhava who succumbed to lust, but his response to that is telling and makes it clear that despite this blemish he remained venerable. I think you know the story.

My point here is that in reply it is worth noting just how powerful lust is. So there is in one sense nothing to be confused about, if one knows the sastra. If lust can cling to one up to and into bhava bhakti, surely it could affect one who has not yet passed through sadhana bhakti. Of course, it is much more prominent before nistha, ruci, and asakti and its appearance in bhava bhakti would be more rare as bhava itself. And from my perspective, I do not see Paramadvaiti Maharaja as a bhava bhakta, nor is his reported and admitted (to some extent) misbehavior an isolated incident. There have been several instances of inappropriate behavior with female disciples on his part. This most unfortunate.

So if for the sake of discussion, we were to characterize Paramadvaiti Maharaja as a nistha madhyama sadhaka, how then should we reply to the second most asked question from his disciples: "What should I do?” First of all it is not that their service to him has been in vain and nothing that they received from him is spiritually helpful to them. Such a fall is not something that pervades the history of a guru in the stage of nistha. It came for some period and it should now more than ever go forever. He should take steps to insure that it never returns, including stopping from initiating and boiling the milk of his spiritual life and scriptural understanding— fully acknowledging his mistakes.
But some of his disciples may want to remain connected with him, rather than seek diksa or even siksa elsewhere. In fact, some of them definitely will. That is inevitable, for better or worse.

They should not be forced or intimidated to do otherwise, but should be scripturally educated as to the nature of the situation they find themselves in and their options. If they choose to remain faithful to him, serving in his mission and praying for his improvement, that is a valid option. He is not a Vaisnava aparadhi like those who have tried to capitalize on his fall down for sectarian purposes.

Meanwhile others will want to reconnect elsewhere, and they should know that this is also a valid choice. That connection could be through siksa, or it in my opinion, it could also include diksa again, which he should in no way object to. If those who prefer to seek another guru’s shelter could do this and remain in the Vrinda mission, that would have advantages.

Unfortunately, there will be others and probably many of them, who refuse to believe that he fell down. They will blame the victims and accuse them in the least of exaggeration. As such, they may become militant and a destructive force in the long run. Their unflinching support of him may be comforting to him, but it will be very unsettling to those who know the truth and feel that the truth should be told.

In other words, claims of memory lapse on his part and minimising what actual happened is nothing more than a second wrong added to his initial misbehaviour. And two wrongs in no way add up to a right.

In my brief conversation with him that was interrupted by poor cell phone reception, he stated that his approach to the issue was supported by Bhodayana Maharaja and Bon Maharaja. However, what did he tell them? And furthermore, neither of them are tuned into modern world sensibilities on such issues. I have known Paramadvaiti Maharaja for almost half a century. I love him and I am very sympathetic to his present plight, but he is being ill advised to minimize his wrongs and to not clearly admit them and share with his disciples the options before them that I have outlined above. This is not something to sweep under the rug. It is not a time for dishonesty and memory loss isolated to his unfortunate misbehavior. Atulananda Maharaja has contacted me and we have corresponded. And he wholeheartedly agrees with me and came to the same conclusion on his own.

Therefore I am writing to you at the request of Padmanabha Maharaja. I ask you to personally deliver, if not read this correspondence to Paramadvaiti Maharaja. If feel he has the chance to save the Vrinda Mission from a potential fratricidal war and its present spiritual confusion, and while it will take courage on his part to do as I have recommended, I have always known him to be a courageous person. I would like to continue to see him in that light, rather than in the light of a cowardly retreat into so-called life of bhajana. He should no doubt retreat into bhajana, but that requires a pure heart.

In service