F. Gerald Ham, Compiler, Records regarding Kirtanananda Bhaktipada Swami
Collection
Collection Number: A&M 3830
Records regarding Kirtanananda Bhaktipada Swami (Keith Gordon Ham), a founding member and leader of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) or "Hare Krishna" religious movement. Most of the material in the collection regards his involvement with the community of New Vrindaban in Marshall County, West Virginia and the controversies and legal problems that arose during his term of leadership there. The collection also contains biographical information regarding Bhaktipada, Hare Krishna associated publications, and other material.
English
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Kirtanananda Bhaktipada Swami (6 September 1937 - 24 October 2011) was born Keith Gordon Ham in Peekskill, New York to Marjorie (Clark) and the Reverend Francis Gordon Ham, a Baptist minister. In 1959, Bhaktipada graduated from Maryville College magna cum laude and received a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship to pursue a doctorate in American history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Bhaktipada remained at North Carolina for three years before dropping out of school in 1961 due an alleged "sex scandal" involving an undergraduate student, Howard Morton Wheeler, who became a lifelong partner.
Bhaktipada moved to New York City where in 1966 he met A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). This religious movement is more commonly termed "Hare Krishna" and is a denomination of Hinduism. Bhaktipada become Bhaktivedanta's student and devotee, and later became an influential leader in the movement himself. Bhaktipada purchased land near the town of Moundsville in Marshall County, West Virginia. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s the land was developed as the community of New Vrindaban with Bhaktipada as its spiritual leader.
Bhaktipada and New Vrindaban were the source of many controversies, both internally and externally. Bhaktipada was expelled by ISKCON in 1987 and New Vrindaban itself was also expelled the following year. Bhaktipada was indicted by a federal grand jury in 1990 on charges of mail fraud and racketeering. Although he was initially found guilty, his conviction was vacated on account of prejudicial testimony. A re-trial commenced in 1996 and was settled with a plea bargain. Bhaktipada served time in jail from 1996 until 2004. He moved to India in 2008, where he later died after a period of illness at age 74.
0.8 Linear Feet (Summary: 10 in. (2 document cases, 5 in. each))
West Virginia and Regional History Center / West Virginia University / 1549 University Avenue / P.O. Box 6069 / Morgantown, WV 26506-6069 / Phone: 304-293-3536 / Fax: 304-293-3981 / URL: https://wvrhc.lib.wvu.edu/
Gift from Ham, F. Gerald, 2012/03/26
Part of the West Virginia and Regional History Center Repository