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The new chapter of the Vishoka's book #3 on Jayananda

Jayananda Thakur broadcasted to thousands


So rare in our world, does a disciple [of any religion] exhibit symptoms and qualities of a Saint, and even more rare than that, is he/she being accepted as a bonafide Saint by the general populace. In some cases, he/she receives a quite negative treatment, being minimized, made typical, beaten, tortured and killed. Case in point is Joan of Arc, after saving France from English invasion, she was burned alive, denounced as a heretic. And Jesus, we all know the story.

Dear Prabhuji, pamho agtsp There is no controversy here at all. We cannot say which stage Jayananda was at, and we can't assume to say so. Actually, Prabhupada talks about the bhava stage as a stage of constant absorption in Krishna Consciousness, and everybody who was there, says the same thing, that Jayananda was 24/7 in KC. As far as the title goes, like I said, this title took shape long before I mentioned it, Caru was saying “Jayananda Thakur” to thousands at LA ratha, and everybody around me too was saying it. We just don't know why, but we can't dismiss it just for some opinion. I asked around the community and nobody was in objection to it, only positive response. Also the Jayananda website is certainly dear to Iskcon, as it is linked on the major websites, and there's been many kind words. So many devotees tell me how everybody loves it. One guru said it was the best site on the web. When I went back to LA, everybody was treating me so nicely, and I could tell it was because they like the website. I can assume that most devotees in Iskcon have read the site and everybody likes it, no negative comments, no comments at all about the title. Therefore, on that merit, I cannot entertain any suspicion as to the veracity of that title. As far as different titles for different Vaisnavas, its always been that way, they are always different, but we can't say one is better than the other. But there is a real reason why the title for Jayananda caught on, and everybody was saying it. It was no accident. We can't dismiss it because of some acedemic considerations. Prabhupada said he went to Vaikuntha, and to have a feast once a year for him, like we do for other important [great] Vaisnavas. Prabhupada loved him, and said he was always thinking of Jayananda. We really don't know who Jayananda was. We can't say that he was only in devotional service for 10 years or so. How can we know that? How is it possible for that kind of advancement in 2-3 years, if we think he was only a bhakta for the first time? Nobody can advance like that, in that short of time. Its impossible, from everybody else's experience. How do we know if he was not in devotional service in previous lifetimes. We don't know. This is what we hear from the acaryas, that it may take 100's of lifes to perfect. How can we know what number Jayananda was on? We don't know. So we can't speculate about anything like that. All we know is, that he was the crest-jewel of Prabhupada's disciples, that Prabhupada loved him dearly, and said he went back to Godhead. Plus we have witnesses who had association with him. They all say the same thing, that he was 24/7 KC, and he was a touchstone, in that he profoundly effected ordinary, work-a-day people on a daily basis.

End Part 1 of “Jayananda Thakur broadcasted to thousands”