Betrayal of the spirit. My life behind the headlines of the Hare Krishna movement

Combining behind-the-scenes views of an often besieged religious group with a personal account of the author's struggle to find meaning, this work takes readers closer than any other source to the reality of life in the Hare Krishna movement. Nori J. Muster, who joined the International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISKON) in 1977, lived in the movement's western headquarters in Los Angeles and worked for a decade as a public relations secretary and editor of the organization's newspaper. Her narrative reveals the decline of the Hare Krishnas through personal reminiscences, published articles, and internal documents. It details troubling issues such as drug dealing, weapons stockpiling, deceptive fundraising, child abuse, and murder within ISKON, alongside the schisms that led to the departure of approximately 95 percent of the original members. Despite the turmoil following the death of the movement's founder, the author's journey reflects a continual search for truth and religious meaning. Muster's account of the scandal-plagued decade after Swami Prabhupada's death culminates in 1988, when she, disillusioned by ongoing internal strife and scandals, left her job and the movement.