The Sanga for GBCs, Gurus, and Sannyasis (SGGS) continued on February 28, 2013, but the GBC members did not attend, instead formally beginning their Annual General Meeting (AGM).
The majority of the day was spent reviewing submitted proposals and casting straw votes. Several weeks before the GBC AGM begins, GBC Deputies organize and review all proposals sent to the GBC by ISKCON members. These proposals are then presented to the GBC for an initial discussion and a straw vote. Later in the AGM, the proposals with any necessary modifications are again presented to the GBC body for a final vote. Those proposals that receive a majority vote then become official GBC resolutions.
Approximately fifteen proposals were sent to the GBC for review at the 2013 AGM, and several were evaluated at today’s meeting. Proposals include ensuring Srila Prabhupada has a prominent place on the home page of every ISKCON temple website, making the new GBC paper on “Parallel Lines of Authority” mandatory reading for all those aspiring for harinama initiation, encouraging current ISKCON sannyasis and mandating sannyasa candidates to attend the ISKCON Spiritual Leadership Seminar, creating placement programs for engaging ISKCON youth who have graduated from ISKCON educational programs, and licensing the GCal Vaisnava calendar program.
[styled_image w=”300″ h=”199″ image=”http://localhost/igold/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/mini-IMG_9684.jpg” align=”right”]In addition to reviewing these proposals, Ambarisa Prabhu and the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium (TOVP) team updated the GBC on the construction. The TOVP is scheduled to be 360 feet high. 178 feet are complete, with half of the construction remaining along with the building of the three domes and all the finishing work. The TOVP project needs additional funding. Ambarisa Prabhu has personally donated more then $20 million; more funding is needed from around the world to complete the project. To meet this financial need, the TOVP team launched a new fundraising campaign to give all devotees the opportunity to sponsor one or more square feet of the TOVP at $150 per square foot. Radha Jivana Prabhu has enthusiastically taken up the service of leading the TOVP “Square-Foot Campaign,” and he gave a passionate presentation to the GBC expressing the global interest he has witnessed during his travels for the program. By sponsoring one or more square feet, devotees everywhere will have an opportunity to collectively fund the remaining construction. Radha-Jivan Prabhu emphasized that the TOVP will be ISKCON’s World Headquarters. It is also a phenomenal gift to Srila Prabhupada. If the fundraising is successful, the Mayapur Deities will move into their new temple in 2016, ISKCON’s fiftieth anniversary.
On March 1, the GBC members will rejoin the other SGGS.