Naman Shrestha
Adapted from ‘Monkey on a Stick’ written by John Hubner and Lindsey Gruson, ‘Monkey on a Stick: Murder, Madness & The Hare Krishnas’ is a two-part true crime documentary series that delves deep into the Hare Krishna movement in the nation during the 1970s and 1980s. With the main focus on the systemic crimes within ISKCON, the show aims to give a voice to the former devotees and other associates of the movement through their insightful interviews.
Hans Kar Handled Many Operations As a Part of the Governing Body Commission
On May 27, 1941, Hans Jürgen Kary, who was later known as Hansadutta Swami, was born in Braunschweig, Germany, but relocated to New York City with his family, including his sister Heidi Marie, shortly after the Second World War. When he turned 17, he joined the Navy and served for a couple of years, from 1959 to 1961. Soon, in the early 1960s, he got married to Himavati, with whom he shared a home in Hoboken, New Jersey. After getting to know about Srila Prabhupada and his teachings, they met Brahmananda Das and Hare Krishna devotees at 26 Second Avenue on the lower East Side of Manhattan.
In March 1967, their desire to become devotees took them to Montreal, where they helped in the establishment of the Hari Krishna center. Their efforts did not go unnoticed as in a couple of months, Hans and his wife were initiated as the disciples of AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Over the next few years, he spread the Hare Krishna movement by opening a large number of centers across multiple cities on different continents, including Montreal, Boston, Berkeley, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, and many more. By 1970, he was one of the first members of the Governing Body Commission (GBC).
After successfully handling the publication and distribution of Prabhupada’s books in different European languages, he became a lifetime trustee of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. Hans also served as the personal secretary of Prabhupada. When he took sannyasa in 1976, his wife Himavati remarried a few years down the line. After the passing of AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada on November 14, 1977, he was assigned a few zones — Sri Lanka, Philippines, North America, and Malaysia — where he was responsible for initiating new disciples.
Hans Kar Died of a Disease in California
Hans Kar, also known as Hansadutta Swami, was obsessed with firearms and reportedly used to have a collection. However, in 1980, he was charged with possession of illegal weapons and taken into custody. This turned out to be a turning point in regard to his association with ISKCON, as on July 8, 1983, the GBC expelled him from ISKCON for violating the community’s ethical codes of conduct. About a year later, he married for the second time with Lakshmi Kary-Rana and fathered three children with her over the course of their marriage. When the marriage deteriorated, they got divorced and parted ways.
Nearly a decade later, in 1993, Hans published ‘Srila Prabhupada, His Movement and You,’ which consisted of numerous articles, essays, and letters, wherein he showed support towards disciplic succession as a former associate of Bhaktivedanta Swami. However, a few years down the line, a case was filed against him by Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc. and ISKCON of California, Inc., claiming that Hans was never an official trustee of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. In November 1998, he settled the case out of court by agreeing to an undisclosed amount of cash and getting the license to publish original Bhaktivedanta Swami books in exchange for their demands.
In 2003, he suffered from a first health scare as he had a heart attack. In the later phase of his life, Hans made the most of his experience and knowledge to give lectures at several reputable universities, such as the University of California at Berkeley, McGill University, Harvard University, and many more. Besides publishing several other books, including ‘Fool’s Paradise,’ ‘The Hammer for Smashing Illusion,’ and ‘Kirtan: Ancient Medicine for Modern Man,’ he also featured in TV and radio shows. In early 2020, he had been battling acute pancreatitis, but in March, the doctors diagnosed that he had advanced cancer of the pancreas. Unfortunately, he passed away from pancreatic cancer on April 25, 2020, in California while chanting the holy names and listening to Srila Prabhupada’s lectures.
Read More: Thomas Drescher: What Happened to Former Hare Krishna Devotee?
