| Abbreviation | SIF |
|---|---|
| Founder | Chris Butler (aka Siddhaswarupananda Paramahamsa) |
| Founded at | Hawaii, United States |
| Type | Religious organization;501(c)3 organization |
| 99-0177647 | |
| Purpose | Education,philanthropy,religious studies,spirituality |
| Headquarters | Honolulu, Hawaii, United States |
Region served | Worldwide |
| Services | Yoga classes |
| Website | scienceofidentity |
Formerly called |
|
TheScience of Identity Foundation (SIF) is anew religious movement started in the 1970s. It was founded by Chris Butler after he broke from theInternational Society for Krishna Consciousness. It is based in theUS state ofHawaii.
Its theology professes to combineyoga with aspects ofGaudiya Vaishnavism. The followers must observe behavioral guidelines, such asvegetarianism and refraining from alcohol. Butler's teachings includeIslamophobia and condemnation ofhomosexuality.[1][2] A secretive group, it has come under a great deal of media focus due to the politicianTulsi Gabbard's ties to the group.
Chris Butler (b. 1948), son of acommunistanti-war activist, had entered the 1960scounterculture while enrolled at theUniversity of Hawaiʻi.[3][4] Soon, he joined the burgeoning Hare Krishna movement as aguru, with the name Sai Young, and soon acquired disciples.[3][5] Butler joined theInternational Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and received the name Siddhaswarupananda Paramahamsa.[6][4][7] Within a few years, Butler began to deviate from ISKCON's ways, choosing to marry and allowing his disciples to keep their heads unshaved, leading ISKCON founderA. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada to publicly denounce him.[6][4] After the death of Prabhupada in 1977, Butler broke away from ISKCON and founded SIF, then known as the Hari Nama (lit. Holy Name) Society.[8] Simultaneously, he began to deemphasize ISKCON's rigid adherence toVaishnava texts and promoted a range of eclectic views.[3][6]
In 1976, Butler's disciples launched a new political party, the Independents for Godly Government, presenting themselves as a "multifaith coalition of conservative-minded reformers", and ran candidates for the House of Representatives and mayoral elections; the candidates did not disclose their links with Butler and explicitly claimed to have no affiliation with any religious organization including the Hare Krishna faith.[3] The party was funded by a variety of businesses, including two local newspapers and a health-food store chain, run by the disciples themselves.[9]
In the 1980s, he ran a late-night television show calledChris Butler Speaks onChannel 13.[10] Since the 1990s, Butler has kept a low profile, rarely speaking in public; in 2017,The New Yorker reported that Butler presents himself less as a Hare Krishna dissident and more as a member of a worldwide Vaishnava movement.[3] Butler's wifeWai Lana has received acclaim for popularizing yoga through theWai Lana Yoga show; in 2016, she was conferred with thePadma Shri award by theGovernment of India.[11]
The organization combines the teaching ofyoga with aspects ofGaudiya Vaishnava theology.[8] The followers should practicevegetarianism and refrain fromgambling, smoking, drinking alcohol, taking drugs or having "illicit sex".[10] While theological basis ofGaudiya Vaishnavism comes primarily from the ancient Indian texts,Bhagavad Gita andBhagavata Purana,[12] Butler deemphasized the Indian texts, and in 1984 published "Who Are You? Discovering Your Real Identity", which used some examples from science to argue against materialism and asert eternal nature of the self.[3]
Butler's teachings included condemnation ofhomosexuality,[13] suspicion ofIslam,[1]Islamophobia,[14] and skepticism of science.[14] In the 1980s, Butler opposedbisexual relations, asserting that these would lead topedophilia andbestiality.[3]
Multiple ex-members of SIF have described it as a cult; Butler's status has been characterized as "akin to a god" and not willing to be questioned.[6][14][15] They say Butler regularly mocked his devotees, publicly, calling it "a form ofKrishna's mercy".[4] Butler denies these allegations;[3][6] and he threatened to sue theHonolulu Star-Advertiser when it planned to publish accounts of ex-followers in 2019.[16]
SIF has received a great deal of media coverage due toTulsi Gabbard's strong ties with the group.[3][17][2][18] Gabbard was raised in the SIF community in Hawaii and considered Butler her mentor.[19] Her parents,Mike Gabbard[3][20][21] and Carol Gabbard,[20] are members of SIF.[18][1] In 2015, she acknowledged Butler as her guru in a video statement for anISKCON anniversary event.[3][14] Butler has likened her to a star pupil.[3][17] Gabbard has worked to minimize and hide her relationship to Butler and SIF.[18][22][19]
[Butler] remained with ISKCON until after Prabhupada died in 1977. [...] He founded the Science of Identity Foundation as a vehicle to facilitate his teachings. [...] The Science of Identity Foundation (originally the Hari Nama or Holy Name Society) is located in Honolulu, Hawaii.
