Hansadutta Das (), formerly Hansadutta Swami (), born 27 May 1941 in

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( ; from Low German , local dialect: ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

, Germany, died 25 April 2020 in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, was a

Gaudiya Vaishnava Gaudiya Vaishnavism (), also known as Chaitanya Vaishnavism, is a Vaishnava Hindu religious movement inspired by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534) in India. "Gaudiya" refers to the Gaura or Gauḍa region of Bengal (present-day Malda dist ...

spiritual leader. An early member of, and later

guru Guru ( ; International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''guru'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian religions, Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: tr ...

in, the

International Society for Krishna Consciousness The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement, is a religious organization that follows the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. It was founded on 13 July 1966 in New York City by ...

(ISKCON), he was one of the senior disciples of ISKCON founder

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Abhay Charanaravinda Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (; ) (1 September 1896 – 14 November 1977) was a spiritual, philosophical, and religious teacher from India who spread the Hare Krishna mantra and the teachings of "Krishna consciousness" ...

. He was born Hans Jürgen Kary and also known by the alias Jack London.

Early disciple of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

Hansadutta became an initiated disciple of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami aka Srila Prabhupada in March 1967. He assisted with the pioneering of the Hare Krishna movement, opening centers and preaching in Canada:

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

and

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

; Europe:

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

; in US: Boston, Berkeley; and in Asia:

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, Sri Lanka,

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

and

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

. He was one of the leaders in publication (printing and distribution) of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami's books, particularly in European languages, heading up the sales of books in Germany and North Europe, and in 1974 was appointed by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami to serve as lifetime trustee of the

Bhaktivedanta Book Trust The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement, is a religious organization that follows the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. It was founded on 13 July 1966 in New York City by ...

. He was also appointed as a member of ISKCON's Governing Body Commission, and took turns serving as A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami's personal secretary. In 1976 Hansadutta took up the order of

sannyasa ''Sannyasa'' (), sometimes spelled ''sanyasa'', is the fourth stage within the Hinduism, Hindu system of four life stages known as ''ashrama (stage), ashramas'', the first three being ''brahmacharya'' (celibate student), ''Gṛhastha, grihast ...

. While preaching in Sri Lanka in the year 1977, Hansadutta created a public sensation with his answer to a challenge by Dr. Abraham T. Kovoor, president of the Sri Lanka branch of the Rationalist Association, which exchange was published in the Colombo (Sri Lanka) Sunday Times. A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami approved Hansadutta's proposal to print the exchange and instructed that it should be included in his own publication titled "Life Comes from Life".

ISKCON Guru

In July 1977, Hansadutta was one of eleven disciples named by Bhaktivedanta Swami to act as " ritviks" ( Vedic priests), or "initiating

acarya In Indian religions and society, an ''acharya'' (Sanskrit: आचार्य, IAST: ; Pali: ''ācariya'') is a religious teacher in Hinduism and Buddhism and a spiritual guide to Hindus and Buddhists. The designation has different meanings i ...

s", who would initiate new disciples. Four months after Bhaktivedanta Swami died on 14 November 1977, as part of ISKCON's Zonal Acharya system, Hansadutta began initiating disciples primarily within zones assigned to him, namely North America, Sri Lanka,

and

Expelled from ISKCON

In 1980, Hansadutta was arrested for possession of illegal weapons. On 8 July 1983, the Governing Body Commission of ISKCON passed a resolution demoting Hansadutta from sannyasa and taking away his responsibilities in ISKCON.

Ritvik representative of the Acharya

In 1993, Hansadutta published a collection of essays, letters and articles under the title ''Srila Prabhupada, His Movement and You'', in which he presented arguments and evidence in support of continuation of the parampara (disciplic succession) as a "ritvik", or representative, of Bhaktivedanta Swami. At this time Hansadutta redirected all his former "disciples" to regard Bhaktivedanta Swami as their spiritual master, and began to initiate new disciples on behalf of Bhaktivedanta Swami, as "ritvik representative of the Acharya".

BBT court case

In 1997, Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc. and ISKCON of California, Inc. initiated legal action against Hansadutta, seeking court declaration that Bhaktivedanta Swami's Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (California, 1972) was not a legal entity and/or Hansadutta was not a legal trustee of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. On 13 November 1998, Hansadutta agreed to a stipulated court settlement that effectively terminated any claims he might have had to being a

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...

of the

conditional upon receipt of an undisclosed cash settlement and license to publish the original, unrevised books of Bhaktivedanta Swami.

Personal life

Hansadutta's parents immigrated from Germany to the United States when he was nine or ten years old. Hansadutta was raised in New York City. At the age of 17, he joined the Navy, where he served from 1957 to 1961. In the early 1960s he and his first wife, Himavati devi dasi, were aspiring artists living in Hoboken, New Jersey, when they met Hare Krishna devotees at 26, Second Avenue on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. In March, 1967 Hansadutta and Himavati moved to Montreal to assist with establishing the Hare Krishna center, and in May of the same year they were initiated by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, ISKCON Founder-Acharya, in New York. In 1976 Hansadutta took the order of sannyasa, and Himavati remarried a few years later. In 1984, Hansadutta married Lakshmi Kary, with whom he had three children. They later divorced. In 2003, Hansadutta suffered a heart attack. On 25 April 2020, Hansadutta died from pancreatic cancer.

Publications

Books: -- * 1983 - The Hammer for Smashing Illusion, based on a translation of "Moha-Mudgara Stotra", more popularly known as "Bhaja Govinda" by

Shankaracharya Shankaracharya (, , " Shankara-''acharya''") is a religious title used by the heads of amnaya monasteries called mathas in the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Hinduism. The title derives from Adi Shankara; teachers from the successive line of te ...

. * 1984 - Kirtan: Ancient Medicine for Modern Man. * 1985 - Fool's Paradise, -(pbk). * 1985 - The Book: What the Black Sheep Said, -(pbk). Papers, Compilations of Essays, Letters and Discussions: The following papers by Hansadutta address controversies in ISKCON, namely the ritvik controversy, Hansadutta's own alleged excommunication from ISKCON, and the influence of Narayan Maharaja of the

Gaudiya Math The Gaudiya Math (, ; ) is a Gaudiya Vaishnava ''matha'' (monastic organisation) formed on 6 September 1920,Devamayī dāsi, "A Divine Life: Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Saraswatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda" in ''Prabhupada Saraswati Thakur: The L ...

on ISKCON members: -- * 1993 - Srila Prabhupada, His Movement and You * 1993 - Excommunicated, Uncommunicated, Incommunicado * 1994 - Gopimania

Discography

Hansadutta recorded and produced a number of LPs and singles featuring Hare Krishna songs while in Germany, c. 1974, including the album "KRSNA Meditation" with vocals by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, which was recorded in a makeshift studio at Schloss Rettershof near Frankfurt, Germany. Later, in 1978 he produced an LP cover "Nothing to Lose But All To Gain". The LP cover "Nice but Dead" followed some time in 1981. The title seems to be a reference to the body, described as "nice but dead": according to Krishna teachings, notably ''Bhagavad Gita As It Is'', only the soul is alive, while the body is at best "nice but dead". Production reportedly cost $35,000. The cover has been described as "a collection of guitar accompanied potshots at other gurus". In or around 1982, Hansadutta recorded and produced the LP cover "The Vision". The tracks are listed as: * A1 The Vision 4:15 * A2 Protoplasmic Crud 3:22 * A3 Judas Goat 3:45 * A4 Oh Saragrati Vaisnava Soul 6:42 * B1 You're So Wise 4:17 * B2 Deluding Maya 3:54 * B3 Think Before You Drink 4:40 * B4 Srila Praphupada Is Your Name These three covers generally fall into the category of country rock, funk, and folk and were of limited release.

References

External links

Hansadutta's website

"Encyclopedic handbook of cults in America" - Google Books

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hansadutta Converts to Hinduism Former International Society for Krishna Consciousness religious figures 1941 births American Hare Krishnas German Hindus People from Braunschweig Hare Krishnas People from Cloverdale, California 2020 deaths