This site, ISKCON of Dallas, operated by Krsna Kirtana Dasa has been officially approved by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) on November 13, 1996 as a site genuinly representing some or all of ISKCON's goals, in accordance with its character and policies.

But some will not, because they are not approved by ISKCON.

The reasons for this selective ISKCON imprimatur process are as follows:

ISKCON was established officially and legally in July of 1966 by its founder-acarya, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Although ISKCON has grown into a society of over 400 temples, institutes, educational institutions, publishing houses, and many other specialized entities and has seen the distribution of literally millions of scriptural books through the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT), many parallel, separatist, dissident, detractor groups and individuals have also arisen in recent times. Some characterize themselves as "Hare Krishna," "Vaisnava," followers of Srila Prabhupada or even ISKCON. Some have WWW pages that appear in some indexes along with ISKCON sites.

Such groups are many and varied. They run the gamut from supportive organizations, splinter groups, apostates, "new age" styled societies, "clone" associations, covertly inimical organizations and overtly hostile groups.

Some notable examples are Puranjana's PADA page, Hansadutta's World Nama-hatta page, and Madhudvisa's Shelter page.

The reasons for the appearance of such groups are also many and varied. ISKCON has had its problems over the years. In 1985 several of its top leaders experienced spiritual difficulties and abandoned ISKCON. In 1987 ISKCON's leading settlement, New Vrindavana in West Virginia, was expelled from the society when ISKCON learned that several members of that community were involved in serious criminal activity. Over the years, dissident and former members, including alumni of ISKCON schools, have filed civil law suits against ISKCON for a variety of reasons. Also, the existence of detractor and counterfeit groups is a general phenomenon that many well-established organizations commonly experience.

Nonetheless ISKCON has dealt with its problems in a responsible and reasonable way. Its own justice system has resolved many of its major difficulties.

ISKCON is currently managed globally by its Governing Body Commission, a board of 37 commissioners who meet annually in Mayapura, India, ISKCON's international headquarters. The BBT, ISKCON's principal supplier of books, continues to sell literally millions of books each year, and the ISKCON temples and institutes are growing and improving. The society's bi-monthly magazine, Back to Godhead and its bi-monthly newspaper, ISKCON World Review are still its standard global periodicals.

A listing of WWW sites that are approved by ISKCON and an application form for ISKCON approval can be found here at the Hare Krishna: The Complete Picture home page.

If you find a site on the Web carrying the ISKCON approval logo that is not listed here, or a site without this logo that claims to be part of ISKCON or to represent ISKCON or Srila Prabhupada in any way, please contact us.

Thank you for your interest and cooperation.