About Deed & Creed

Some organizations preach their values loudly and live them quietly — or not at all. Deed & Creed exists for the ones who refuse that contradiction.

This publication is about the space between what we say we believe and what we actually do. That gap — sometimes a crack, sometimes a canyon — is where leadership either proves itself or collapses. We write about that gap honestly, without flattery and without despair.

What We Cover

Leadership — not the motivational poster kind, but the kind that costs something. The kind that shows up in budget meetings, difficult conversations, and decisions nobody wants to make.

Accountability — institutional, personal, and spiritual. Who answers for what, and how. What happens when no one does?

Stewardship — of resources, of trust, of community. The ancient obligation to leave things better than you found them.

Governance — the structures that either protect a community or quietly strangle it. Bylaws, boards, transparency, and the courage to ask hard questions.

Who We Write For

Deed & Creed is written for leaders who are done pretending — temple presidents and team managers, board members and devotional community workers, anyone who has sat in a room where the right thing was obvious and the silence was deafening.

You don't have to be religious to read here. You do have to care about integrity.

The Name

Creed without deed is hypocrisy. Deed without creed is chaos. The name says everything about what this publication demands of its subjects, its readers, and itself.

About the Author

Joshua Drake, aka Hari Dasa, is a U.S. Navy veteran, videographer, and ISKCON devotee based in Denver, Colorado. He spent 35 years serving in various capacities, where he developed a deep understanding of what thriving spiritual communities require — and what causes them to drift.

He is the author of more than 35 titles in a Leadership Library, covering governance, accountability, devotional professionalism, and organizational culture. His work draws on Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings, organizational psychology, and thirty-five years of watching institutions succeed and fail at the most basic test: doing what they say.