I recently read the GBC's short piece on purchasing pirated products, and I believe they should have elaborated on the cultural ripple-effects of such activity.

The philosophy of a pirate usually runs something like this: "Why should devotees pay so much for CDs, tapes, MP3s, paintings, or books? These are spiritual items and should not be sold simply for profit. Similar to Deity worship, we shouldn't produce these things simply for profit. I'm going to sell these items even cheaper and actually help spread Krsna consciousness."

And the mentality of one who purchases pirated items usually runs like this: "I don't spend so much time making money. I've dedicated my life to serving Krsna and spend whatever time I have directly serving Him, not working like a mudha for money. Therefore, if I purchase these items at the cheaper price, what's the harm?"

This is not a holier-than-thou statement. It's a humble confession. I know the mentality because I've been there.

The problem with these ideas is that they're riddled with vipralipsa, one of the four defects of conditioned souls: cheating.

From the pirate's point of view, it's easy to see that he is profiting from another's work. Do you think a pirate would continue to sell goods if there were no profit whatsoever? No way. And because he's profiting from someone else's work, without receiving permission from that person, he's cheating.

Similarly, a person who purchases a pirated item is victimized, not spiritualized. The devotee who originally produced the item, be it a CD, painting, book, or whatever, gave of himself/herself time, energy, intelligence, and his/her own hard-earned money. Most devotees who go through such endeavor usually have something of value to offer. Indeed, if their item weren't worth much, it wouldn't be worth pirating. In essence, buying a pirated item cheats the person who produced it. This person has asked for some remuneration for his/her work, but the purchaser of pirated materials has not honored that request.

The activity of buying and selling pirated items, multiplied hundreds and thousands of times, has an impact on society (and therefore on the very growth of Krsna consciousness). Devotees who produce saleable items usually work diligently at their art, and then share their realizations with others through the selling of their goods. If those items are pirated, those devotees will either become completely discouraged and stop their creativity, or forced to spend valuable time working to make money rather than using that precious time to produce something to share.

Thus the pirate who rationalized he was "helping spread Krsna consciousness" is actually stunting its growth in two ways. 1) Devotees who produce items are actually hindered by pirates while attempting to spread Krsna consciousness through their artistic endeavor. 2) The pirate and his customers are victimized by vipralipsa, and the ripples of such cheating send them tumbling through the vicious cycle of defective work over and over again until they learn to stop it.

Finally, it should be noted that Krsna consciousness is still in its cultural infant stages. Our cultural basis can't possibly compete with Hollywood or Wall Street. Therefore, it behooves devotees who produce saleable goods to make them widely available at reasonable prices, otherwise immature distribution methods will naturally encourage pirating because those who desire Krsna conscious items are greedy for nectar.

© dipika.org August 18, 2003