is a term of respect for women in iskcon, and is often prefixed to the sanskrit name they receive in initiation. even unmarried women are referred to as mothers". malati devi dasi is the first woman appointed to the iskcon governing body commission (gbc) after years of discussion and reforms, a general consensus emerged to accept women as leaders and initiators in iskcon. in 1998 malati devi dasi became the first woman appointed to the gbc. the second woman leader, dina sharana, was selected in 2009. an updated document was released by the gbc in 2019 stating that it was permissible for women to become initiating gurus within the iskcon movement. the ministry was developed to account for the growing interest of female devotees to partake in temple practices and ensure representation in decision making. child protection office in 1998, iskcon published an exposé of widespread physical, emotional and sexual abuse of children in the group's boarding schools in the united states and india in the 1970s and 1980s. the hare krishna monks and young devotees caring for the children had no training in the task and often resented having to perform it, the report said. at a meeting in 1996, former krishna pupils testified that they had been regularly beaten at school, denied medical care, and sexually molested and raped. in 2002 a suit for $900 million was filed in texas state court by alleged victims of abuse in isckon boarding schools. iskcon had to later file for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. known as the turley case, the eventual 2008 settlement was $15 million. the iskcon central office of child protection was established by the gbc in 1997, and in 2005, released its first official child protection policy and procedure guidelines. the cpo has provided child protection information training to over 500 child care providers within the organization internationally and continues to file and review reports on local child protection teams. the child protection policy and procedure guidelines was revised and ratified by the gbc in june 2018. kirtan and music influence hare krishna devotees were singing at the esplanadi park in helsinki, finland in august 2014 the practice of mantra meditation, also known as kirtan, is prominent in the iskcon movement. dedicated kirtan festivals are held annually around the world, such as the sadhu sanga retreat in boone, north carolina, kirtan 50 in dallas, texas, and radhadesh mellows, in durbuy, belgium. notable kirtaneers include jahnavi harrison, gaura vani, and the mayapuris, who have all released kirtan albums. kirtan sessions are also held outside of temple settings, including at a local university "bhakti clubs", mantra lounges, and at a yoga and wellness festivals. full theatrical performances have been produced based on the vedic theologies. prominent performance companies include viva kultura and vande arts. the hare krishna mantra appears in some famous songs, such as former beatle george harrison's 1970 hit "my sweet lord". john lennon included the phrase "hare krishna" in his lyrics to "give peace a chance" and the beatles' 1967 track "i am the walrus". the backing vocalists also sing the phrase in ringo starr's 1971 hit "it don't come easy", written with the help of harrison, although the words were mixed low on the released version. of the four beatles, only harrison fully embraced krishna consciousness. he also provided financial support for iskcon's uk branch and in 1973 purchased bhaktivedanta manor for their temple compound. harrison enjoyed a warm friendship with prabhupada, who provided the inspiration for harrison songs such as "living in the material world". in the 1980s underground new york city hardcore punk band the cro-mags included hare krishna members and made references to krishna consciousness. by the early 1990s, an entire underground krishnacore subgenre was established with other new york hardcore bands like shelter and 108. in 2020, willow smith and jahnavi harrison collaborated on the song "surrender (krishna keshava"), and the album "rise", featuring ancient sacred songs from india with sanskrit lyrics. vegetarianism vegetarianism is one of the four tenets of iskcon. due to prabhupada's focus on food distribution, many iskcon devotees have opened vegan and vegetarian eateries. not all restaurants opened by iskcon members are officially affiliated with iskcon, although many govindas’ restaurants or catering businesses operate out of the main temple center. the hare krishna followers call their type or style of eating behaviour as 'krishnatarian'. according to them "a krishnatarian meal is one which is cooked using fresh, vegetarian ingredients (sans onion, garlic, red lentils or mushrooms) and milk products which is cooked by a krishna conscious individual who cooks for devotion instead of for profit, and offered to krishna before it is distributed or consumed by an individual." demographics iskcon claims to have around one million congregational members worldwide (majority in india), with 15,000 in great britain. in the west it "has a relatively small number of followers", estimated at "a few thousand full-time practitioners", but those showing interest in its activities might number into the "tens of thousands." after knowing success in the west due to the counterculture of the 1960s, iskcon has lost is momentum from the early 1980s onward, "facing a sharp decline in membership and in financial resources" in north america and in western europe, while in the late 1990s the situation began to deteriorate in eastern europe as well, and it was estimated that in 2000 only 750-900 members were residing in iskcon centers in the united states. since then, the iskcon has depended on the indian diaspora to "revitalize" the movement, in most north american congregations indian members making up 80% of the numbers. controversies iskcon has experienced a number of significant internal problems, the majority of which occurred from the late 1970s onwards, and especially within the decade following bhaktivedanta swami prabhupada's death. iskcon has also been scrutinised by some anti-cult movements. in a 1976 case, people vs. murphy, a criminal trial court in queens county, new york held that "'he hare krishna religion is a bona fide religion with roots in india that go back thousands of years." in that case, a grand jury indicted iskcon, inc. and the president of an iskcon temple for the crime of unlawful imprisonment in the first degree. although the parents of two hare krishna members claimed iskcon had allegedly imprisoned their children through brainwashing, justice john j. leahy dismissed the criminal indictments on the basis that the two members had freely followed the tenets of their chosen faith. in a 1984 case, george v. international society for krishna consciousness of california, a lawsuit that led to lengthy appeals resulting in a mixed judgment. in that case, marcia and robin george, a mother and daughter, accused iskcon of kidnapping robin via brainwashing and later lying to her parents about her whereabouts. they sued iskcon for (a) false imprisonment, (b) intentional infliction of emotional distress, (c) libel, and (d) the wrongful death of robin's father based on stress caused by the alleged circumstances. a california state appellate court dismissed robin's claims for false imprisonment and intentional infliction of emotional distress on the basis that she was not brainwashed, but rather was "a bright and gifted high school student of above-average intelligence and maturity" who was "capable of consenting" to her travels with her purported kidnappers. on the other hand, the same appellate court affirmed the jury verdicts holding iskcon liable for intentional infliction of emotional distress against marcia and wrongful death because the defendants had deliberately lied to robin's parents about her location while actively assisting robin in her travels. the court also dismissed robin's libel claim while affirming the jury verdict of libel in favor of marcia. kirtanananda swami, or swami bhaktipada, a leader of iskcon, was expelled from the organisation in 1987 for various deviations. he was the leader of new vrindaban, the largest and most famous hare krishna community in the united states at that time. in 1996 kirtanananda pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering and after serving 8 years of a 20-year prison sentence was subsequently released in 2004. previously in 1991 the jury had found him guilty of racketeering and mail fraud. these convictions were later overturned on appeal, only to result in the later retrial. in the 1990s iskcon faced accusations of child abuse, and its leaders acknowledged physical, emotional and sexual abuse of children who were sent to live in the rural communities' boarding schools in the united states and india in the 1970s and 1980s. sociologist of religion e. burke rochford argues that a culture of abuse in iskcon schools arose in part because of renunciant leaders' subtle denigration of the value of householders and children. several safety regulations and subcommittees, such as iskcon resolve and the iskcon child protection office, have been developed since these allegations to ensure that legal rights as well as the health and safety of devotees. persecution in 2006, a bomb blast struck the iskcon temple in imphal in manipur, india. five devotees were killed and a further 50 were injured. the attack was not claimed by any individual or organization. in 2007, the kazakhstan government authorities demolished 25 homes belonging to the iskcon members in sri vrindavan dham commune in almaty, on the grounds that they were illegal constructions. in 2009, an orphanage run by the iskcon chittagong (sri sri radha madhava mandir) in bangladesh was attacked by unknown men. the gang vandalised furniture and a statue in the orphanage and beat the devotees. they also tried to take control of the temple and the orphanage. in 2015, the iskcon temple, dinajpur in bangladesh was attacked by jamaat-ul-mujahideen bangladesh terrorists. the terrorists opened fire and at least two people were injured in the attack. in 2016, the iskcon sylhet in bangladesh was attacked by muslims and at least ten people were injured in that attack. in 2018, the gate of the iskcon temple in curitiba, brazil was targeted by unknown perpetrators. the painting of krishna with his mother yashoda was defaced. in 2018, rath yatra organised by iskcon dhaka in bangladesh was attacked by a group of people, leaving six devotees injured. in 2020, an ansar al-islam group planned an attack on the iskcon temple dhaka but police arrested them. in 2021, during navami (15 october), a muslim mob attacked the iskcon temple in noakhali, bangladesh and killed two devotees. centers worldwide india india has the highest density of iskcon centers in the world, with over 800 temples, 12 state-recognized educational institutions, 25 affiliated and non-affiliated restaurants, and a number of tourist and pilgrimage hotels. iskcon india disciples are more conservative than the iskcon disciples in the west. mayapur chandrodaya mandir of the vedic planetarium, mayapur the iskcon temple of the vedic planetarium at mayapur, under construction. set to be completed in 2024, the temple of the vedic planetarium, mayapur in west bengal is built in the birthplace of sri chaitanya mahaprabhu, the founder of the gaudiya-vaishnava lineage of hinduism. the temple itself currently sits at 425 000 square feet and is 340 feet tall, and is surrounded by accompanying lodges, shops, residences, educational centers, and gardens. the project cost an estimated $75 million, with its major investor being alfred b. ford, the great-grandson of henry ford. the complex has a planetarium based on vedic cosmology and exhibitions about the vedic arts, sciences, and culture as described in the srimad bhagavatam. sri krishna-balaram mandir, vrindavan sri krishna-balaram mandir, vrindavan. located in the raman reti area of vrindavan, uttar pradesh, the sri krishna balaram mandir temple was built in the original village where the spiritual figures krishna and balarama are said to have resided in the vedic period of indian history. it is built in close proximity to other holy sites such as the village of gokul, govardhana hill, the mathura palace, and various holy lakes. as a result, iskcon vrindavan is a common pilgrimage site for followers of the krishna conscious movement. the complex is home to a guesthouse, a museum, gift shops, a restaurant, a bakery, a broadcast studio as well as a marble temple hall. the temple is also affiliated with the vrindavan institute of higher education. vrindavan chandrodaya mandir in march 2014, the project was inaugurated, and on 16 november 2014, the foundation stone of the temple was laid. overseen by iskcon bangalore, the vrindavan