Look who's trying to teach us philosophy

"Dialectic Spiritualism" is a curious book. It consists of discussions between A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and his secretary Hayagriva dasa. The ostensible subject of the conversations is Western philosophy from a "Vedic" perspective.

Prabhupada was, of course, the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), better known as the Hare Krishnas or Hare Krishna movement. I think it's safe to say that he knew next to nothing about Western philosophy. The book must be read with this in mind. Indeed, the volume wasn't published until after Prabhupada's death, and seems to be based on somewhat raw manuscripts from conservations taking place over an extended period.

Essentially, Hayagriva summarizes statements made by various Western philosophers, almost in snippet-format, and Prabhupada then expounds on "Krishna consciousness". The connection between Prabhupada's preaching and the philosophical ideas purportedly under discussion is often very tenuous.

I admit that I haven't read literally every page and chapter of this book, which sounds like an extended sermon on the message of the ISKCON, a sermon that could very well have been given on its own, without the "philosophical" material. Since the worldview of Prabhupada is religious, a version of Gaudiya Vaishnavism to be exact, he finds it easier to relate to philosophers which are also essentially religious, such as Origen, Jung or Plotinus, than to "real" philosophers. In a sense, Prabhupada can also relate to Darwin, but only to sternly reject him and his materialist theory of evolution.

But sure, if you seldom or never read ISKCON material, I suppose "Dialectic Spiritualism" is a good introduction as any to Prabhupada's Weltanschauung. Gaudiya Vaishnavism is theist, since the Godhead is conceptualized as an actual person, Krishna. It's also panentheist: the souls are part of God in the same way as sunrays are part of the sun. The material world is relatively real (like the reflection of the sun in water), but it doesn' seem to be an illusion in the "hard" sense. Rather, the material world is a lower form of existence created and maintained by Krishna for those souls who reject him.

True knowledge can only come from revelation and/or a legitimate succession of teachers, but Prabhupada never really explains how true revelation can be distinguished from false. His purports are filled with Sanskrit quotations from various Hindu scriptures, usually the Bhagavad-gita and the Shrimad Bhagavatam. This somehow closes the matter. The method reminds me of the more simplistic versions of Christian presuppositionalism.

On a more bizarre note, salvation in Gaudiya Vaishnavism is interpreted in sexual terms, and compared to Krishna's "pastimes" (read sexual encounters) with Radha and the gopis. Prabhupada's view of women is decidedly misogynist and his view of sex a typical male power fantasy, where the woman enjoys herself by submission to a strong male - which somehow contradicts his view that everyone should submit to Krishna in a similar manner. Freud would have been fascinated by the sado-masochistic traits of this celibate monk...

There is also a strong anti-egalitarian, anti-democratic, anti-modernist tendency in Prabhupada's message. Society should be hierarchic, with the Brahmins on top. A monarchy in which the king is advised by a council of Brahmins is the best form of government. Democracy is out of the question, since most people are stupid by nature: there is only one Moon that shines up the night, but many lightworms who do not... Class society, war, death and destruction are all natural parts of the material world, although Prabhupada somehow hopes that Krishna consciousness can remedy the situation, if only the governments of the world would start promoting it! Another constant is Prabhupada's strong revulsion against killing animals. Since he believes that plants have souls, too, his prohibition of meat-eating is really based on revelation (another quotation from the Gita).

During the 1960's and 1970's, when the Hare Krishnas first became notorious in the West, ideas of this kind sounded more or less literally insane. After all, we assumed "our" civilization would last (and progress) forever. Today, they sound more ominous. After all, it's obvious that the West won't last forever. And when it's gone, who will remember Mill, Locke or Darwin? Sure, "Dialectic Spiritualism" is a zany book, like most books by this particular author. Let's just hope he won't get the last laugh!