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GURUKULA NIGHTMARE: ISKCON'S LEGACY OF CHILD ABUSE

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“All That is Necessary for Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to Do Nothing.” Attributed to Edmund Burke. Readers might be familiar with the argument that the abuse of children at the ISKCON gurukulas in the 1970’s and 1980’s was due to rogue elements that infiltrated the group and that it had nothing to do with its philosophy and practices. [1] This view is entirely mistaken . In fact, the cult's founder-guru, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, firmly and repeatedly stated his beliefs about the innate inferiority of women and the need for the parents marry their pre-pubescent daughters to much older men in order to contain the "lust" of the little girls. He also instituted the practice of arranging marriages between his disciples--often virtual strangers--for the purpose of opening new temples. If he believed that his preaching interests justified it, he would just as callously agree or encourage the husband to abandon his wife and children by entering into ...