Jagadānanda - bitter sweet memories
Controversial as Jagadānanda [1950-2024] was, he was also a very interesting man and I learned a lot from him.
Despite his linguistic talent it is sad that he never had the patience to translate any of the Goswamis granthas A-Z. He started many things but never finished anything but Rupa Goswami's Hamsaduta. He not only had huge linguistic talent, he had a witty style of writing too. My Gurudeva Sadhu baba did not like him and later it became clear why, when Jagadānanda started writing some really offensive things on the internet. Our relationship was chequered to say the least.
I first met Jagadānanda in Vrindavan on October 1, 1982. My diary of that day states: "While returning from darśana I meet another western bābājī in Banki Bihari Bazar — this must be Jagadānanda! I stop him and ask: "Are you Jagadānanda? I am Advaita dās, a disciple of Nikunja Gopāl Gosvāmī." I walk with him (back) to Keśī Ghāt Ṭhor, where he is staying. He finds I took dīkṣā a bit too fast.
Later I have a dispute with Jagadānanda about gaura-mantra, but I get support from our mutual friend Madhusūdana, who writes me from Navadvīpa: "Nikunja Gopāla Gosvāmī is a great devotee, an expert lecturer, a good musician and a nice person. Concerning the one-ness of Gaura and Kṛṣṇa, don't worry, Śrī Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī says: śacī sūnuḥ nandīśvara pati sutatve — "O mind! Know the son of mother Śacī to be the son of the king of Nandīśvara (Kṛṣṇa)!" Jagadānanda is not satisfied though.
Jagadānanda once tells me he visited Śrīdhara Mahārāja at Kholer Ganj when Mahārāja asked him: "What was your name again in ISKCON?" Jagadānanda: "Hiraṇyagarbha Mahārāja." "So, what happened?" "Well, as you know Hiraṇyagarbha means 'the golden egg'. Now what happened? The egg broke and Jagadānanda came out!"
Jagadānanda comes daily to Kālidaha to teach Bengali to me, Rādhā Ramaṇa and Jagadīśa, in my room, and takes me to Jai Singh Ghera for lectures of Ananta Dās Pandit, so it is through Jagadānanda that I came to know Ananta Dās Pandit since I never heard of him before.
Jagadānanda moves from Keśī Ghāṭa Ṭhor, where he is accused of breaking sadācāra, to Jagadīśa, who lives in a small temple between Bihārījī and Kālidaha. There he gets into a brawl with Jagadīśa about his Christian books. According to Jagadīśa, Jagadānanda was reading these books himself too; he doesn’t want to take śikṣā from Jagadānanda—"I only accept teachings from a siddha."
Jagadānanda wants to take bhekh from Premānanda Śāstri, a very old and highly learned Bābāji who lives close to Sevā Kunja, behind Rādhā Dāmodara temple. Premānanda Śāstrī scolds him out of the door: "Idiot! What do you need bhekh for?! Aren't you living in Vraja? Isn't that enough?!"
After Ananta dās Panḍit's pāṭha in Jaisingh Ghera, Jagadānanda quickly picks up the mṛdaṅga, so that he can lead the kīrtana. In this way I hear the kīrtana-pada "Jay Jay Rādhe Kṛṣṇa Govinda" for the first time. Later, in Śṛṅgāra Bat, Jagadānanda sermons to me and Rādhā Ramaṇa: "Now we are all playing Rūpa and Sanātana here in Braj, but let's see where we are after five years!" "Or ten..." I add. "Let's see if I can get my visa extended." Jagadānanda: "Oh, that's the least important thing!" That is an enlightening and relieving remark. Jagadānanda smiles when we complain about the large numbers of Rāmānandīs in Braj and explains: "They are here because Tulasī dās wrote his Hindi Rāmāyaṇa here."
I sometimes visit Jagadānanda in Śṛṅgāra Baṭ, where he lives between rats and monkeys, in a small first-floor room. Once he tells me: "When I was still a sannyāsī in ISKCON, I thought Madhusūdana's escapades were amusing, and I thought the paramparā-idea was also interesting. But I felt there was more (siddha praṇālī), so I asked Madhusūdana, (looking at him over his glasses): "But there's something more, isn't there?" Madhusūdana nodded. "Do you have it?" Silence is a sign of agreement. At that moment I was ready to run out with him!" Jagadānanda beams.
When I lament to him about the hard life in Vraja he says: "You have great attachments to bhukti and mukti." According to his diary he doesn’t think highly of me.
Jagadānanda comes daily to my room over the parikramā mārg, I see him coming from my window. Jagadānanda thinks I should read simple Bengali books. like Manindranath Guha's Bengali translation of Ānanda Vṛndāvana Campu.
One day in Śṛṅgāra Baṭ Jagadānanda apologizes for not chanting so much: "Ah, some bābājīs tell you that you can't get Kṛṣṇa without chanting four or five lakhs. Well, I just laugh at that!" Outside of Jaisingh Ghera Jagadānanda says: "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the kunja!"
Jagadānanda and I share our love for śāstra and we memorize entire chapters of the Bhāgavat. I am learning Gopī Gīta (Bhāgavata 10.31) and Veṇu Gīta (Bhāg. 10.21) and I tell Jagadānanda of the four Gītas. Jagadānanda knows three (Gopī Gīta, Veṇu Gīta and Yugala Gīta (Bhāg. 10.35) and I remind him of the fourth, the Mahiṣī Gīta (Bhāg. 10.90). Jagadānanda dismisses it: "That's not Vraja-bhāva." Jagadānanda points out a very interesting thing in the Bhāgavata: prathama pūrva rāga, the gopīs' first love for Kṛṣṇa, as early as during the killing of Dhenukāsura, in SB 10.15.42-43. The gopīs offer pūjā to Kṛṣṇa with the lotus flowers of their eyes as Kṛṣṇa returns with the cows in the afternoon.
October 29, 1982 — Niyam Sevā starts, my first one in Vraja. Jagadānanda goes to Rādhākuṇḍa, after getting on my case for taking prasāda (bālya bhoga) in Jaisingh Gherā without bowing down to Ananta dās Paṇḍit at the end of his lecture-series. What could I do? Offering praṇāma also means making a chat with Ananta dās Paṇḍit and I am too shy for that, plus I don’t know Bengali.
November 1982, Navadwip - On Jagadānanda’s desk I find two big maps with his English translations of Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Vidagdha Mādhava in the one and Lalita Mādhava in the other. Bliss!! Long cherished desires are fulfilled! Finally access to the Gosvāmīs’ books! I read both books greedily. Jagadānanda used some hippy terms in his translation, that cause loving indignation in Madhusūdana. Kṛṣṇa tells Lalitā, who asks him for a bribe, so that He can meet Rādhikā: "Look, Lalite, I'll tell you what we'll do. I meet you somewhere in a lonely place tonight and we'll do it up!"
Jagadānanda also wants to publish Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī's Haṁsadūta with financial aid of Gadādhara Prāṇa, who helps translating.
Jagadānanda and Rādhā Ramaṇa arrived from Vraja to Jagat's room in Navadvip. They wake up as I enter. Madhusūdana asks Jagadānanda about the terms he uses in his translation of Vidagdha Mādhava and Lalita Mādhava: "What's all this — spilling the beans? doing it up?" Rādhā Ramaṇa has jaṭās and a beard, like Bābā and some of my Guru-bhāis. I personally find it too austere not only to stop cutting but also combing and washing my hair. "To increase the tamo guṇa" Jagadānanda says dismissively.
Once a group of Bengalis pull my chador off my shoulder in downtown Navadwip and throw it on the dirty street as I walk past Govinda Bāri. Furiously I complain to Jagadānanda, who wisely says: "You see, they will never change. You have to change."
I read in Jagadānanda's diary: "The problem is that BS (Bhaktivedānta Svāmī) made them (his disciples) so proud (with his, and thus their, constant claims on emancipation)."
One day Jagadānanda visits Sadhu Baba's āśrama and starts a Sanskrit recital in the godown which to my surprise seems to never end. Jagadānanda’s learning is very impressive, but he also knows how to show it off. After a while Bābā and me look at each other as if we’d better go and do something else because there seems to be no end to it. Later Bābā says: এত পড়িবার পরিশ্রম ! আমি শুধু রাধারসসুধানিধি, এই যে বিলাপ, গীত গোবিন্দ, কৃষ্ণ কর্ণামৃত, ভাগবত ও গীতা পড়ি “All that reading! I read only Rādhārasa Sudhānidhi, this here Vilāpa, Gīta Govinda, Kṛṣṇa Karṇāmṛta, Bhāgavata and Gītā.”
Jagadānanda thinks I would learn colloquial Bengali fastest by reading ISKCON’s Bhagavad-darśana magazine.
Once Bābā gives darśana to Jagadānanda and me in the parṇa kuṭīra. Bābā sits on the wooden bed and we on the floor as he warns Jagadānanda: “দেখ জগদানন্দ বাবা, ভাগবত জাগতিক মানুষের হৃদয়ে জাগ্রত হয় না - Look, Jagadānanda Bābā, the Bhāgavata does not awaken in the hearts of the worldly”. Jagadānanda regularly tours Bengal, reading the Bhāgavata to a few sleeping widows, without even getting his travel expenses covered. Bābā clearly does not want me to do that.
Jagadānanda tells me once: "The guru need not suffer the karma of his śiṣyas when he does harināma." If guru and/or śiṣya don’t take harināma he does not know what will happen."
When I once visit Jagadānanda, he greets me with a broad grin and the phrase advaitaṁ hariṇādvaita, Advaita, who does not differ from Hari. Once I see him in a temple in Navadvīpa with raised arms, taking part in a kīrtana. I can imagine that they call him a sahajīya in ISKCON.
Jagadānanda sometimes visits Sadhu Baba's ashram to help me and explain the situations described in Ujjvala Nilamani I borrowed from him.
One day I meet Jagadānanda near the Janmasthāna in Prācīna Māyāpura, when I walk towards him I see he shakes his head, as if thinking: "This one is really wacky!" I realise how I must look: Long hair, beard, naked and thin body with 'Rā-Dhā' written on the chest with Rādhākuṇḍa-tilaka in Bengali script, bare foot, bare legs and only a short bhakta-dhoti above the knees. And indeed, as we cross each other he calls me 'advaita avadhūta' (instead of Nityānanda Avadhūta), a wild holy wanderer. I feel flattered actually.
June 21, 1983 — Jagadānanda and I go to Pāṇihāṭī for the Ciḍa-Dahi Utsava of Dāsa Gosvāmī. We go per train to Birganja, the birthplace of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, where Lalita Prasāda passed away. It used to be the Kālī-temple of Bhaktivinoda's family. On the second floor is the temple, with Bhaktivinoda's Gaura-Gadādhara deities. I ask Jagadananda why Bhakta Mā, Lalita Prasāda successor, a woman, wears a paitā (brāhmaṇa-thread). Annoyed, Jagadānanda says: "Prabhu just put it on her to show that such a thread has absolutely no value!" I ask: "Then why is he decorating his best disciple with something so useless? Why doesn't he tell everyone to take it off instead? Good riddance!"
June 22, 1983 — Arriving in Pānihāṭi for the Danda Mahotsava we must walk down a long road to reach the bank of the Gaṅgā. On the way Jagadānanda starts a kīrtana, playing karatalas. He is annoyed that the Bengali bhaktas sing in unison with him instead of following his lead, or sing a completely different tune. Due to stomach problems I can hardly relish and participate in the kīrtana, and Jagadānanda calls to me 'vanchita!', "You’re deprived!", while circumambulating the sacred tree with Gadādhara Prāṇa in the wild kīrtana. Later Jagadānanda sits himself under the Banyan-tree, exactly on Nitāi Cāṅd’s spot, showering his blessings on the devotees.
Early August 1983 Jagadānanda invites me to move in with him. I find it egocentric that Jagadānanda keeps a diary. He says, however: "This is a good way to do your own līlā smaraṇa". His diary also contains entire pages of Sanskrit and Bengali text. Somewhere he writes—"If I fall down, I wonder if I would have the courage to write it in this diary."
Jagadānanda spends one whole night composing a Sanskrit Rādhikāṣṭakam. I know some devotees who can read Sanskrit, but Jagadānanda can also compose in Sanskrit! In the morning Jagadānanda takes rest, not disturbed by the mosquitos, and I study and admire the product of his nocturnal labor, his Rādhikāṣṭakam.
Jagadānanda memorizes Saṅkalpa Kalpadruma, for ever-ready manjarī-sevā smaraṇa, and when he sees I am memorizing Vilāpa Kusumānjali he decides to do that too after Saṅkalpa Kalpadruma. He helps me translating it into English and does it very nicely. Jagadānanda has some sympathy for me because I am a book-lover like him. Since I have no ṭhākura he advises me to serve the book Bhāgavata. "Just like with a ṭhākura you can offer Him ārati and bhoga, put Him in bed, dress Him in a silken cloth, and even swing Him!" I start doing it modestly with my small Gīta Press Bhāgavata.
Jagadānanda: "The verse api cet sudurācāro from the Gītā (even the greatest miscreants are saints when they exclusively worship Me) actually applies to the whole of India." kṣipraṁ bhavati dharmātmā does not refer to a few seconds or minutes. It may take lifetimes." When I ask Jagadānanda about his favourite book he says: "Caitanya Caritāmṛta, because it contains the essence of all the Gosvāmīs' teachings and Vedic literature. Mahāprabhu's līlā is also most sweetly described here. I read it all the time. I could have only this book." He really knows the book through and through.
Jagadānanda once tells me: "There was once a rikshawala who used to bring bābājīs to the ponghot. When he saw how they were eating kṣīra, puris and laḍḍus without doing any work, he thought: "Why should I work like a slave for just some rice and dāl?" So he just dressed like a bābājī and joined them!"
October 1983 - Jagadānanda and Gadādhara Prāṇa arrive in Vṛndāvana. They invite themselves to come and live with Rādhā Ramaṇa and me in his tiny room in Kalidah. It is far too small for four people. We clash at once with them on gaura-tattva. Rādhā Ramaṇa and me are anti- and Jagadānanda and Gadādhara Prāṇa are pro-gaura bhajana. We ask Jagadānanda to translate Rūpa Gosvāmī's Nikunja Rahasya Stava, a detailed description of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa’s love game, for us. He doesn’t say yes or no, but does say: "It is not sure if it is written by Rūpa Gosvāmī because it is not his style. Madhusūdana thought the Sanskrit greatly resembled Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī's style. For some reason it is also not included in Stavamālā." After a few days Jagadānanda and Gadādhara Prāṇa go to Rādhākuṇḍa for Niyam Sevā.
October 18, 1983 — On the second day of Niyam Sevā I spontaneously leave for Rādhākuṇḍa with just 3 Rs and a gāmchā with me! When I arrive Ananta dās Panditji is just giving pāṭha about Rādhā Rasa Sudhānidhi in the kīrtana-hall east of the kuṇḍa. It is so beautiful and real! With great difficulty I find a place near the entry. I see Jagadānanda sitting in the back. After pāṭh Jagadānanda grins: "He (Ananta dās Paṇḍit)'s an avatāra!" Jagadānanda manages to get me into his place in Tin Kuri Bābā's āśrama on the south bank of the kuṇḍa. He takes me to his little room on the roof of the āśrama, from where there is a sublime view of Śrī Rādhakuṇḍa. I feel blessed with this place. Jagadānanda has a small Giridhārī and two books with him like a bhāvārthānuvāda of Kṛṣṇa Bhāvanāmṛta. We all have to do 3 hours kirtan in Tinkuri Baba's place at Rādhakuṇḍa to keep our place to sleep. Jagadānanda reads and makes notes during the kīrtana.
Once he gets up in the middle of the night to go on Girirāja Parikramā. I read in his diary: "The bābājīs are being paid for this kīrtana. That means: no money, no kīrtana." He rejects it in full, but we also need food and shelter, so we have to sing along. I suggest: "Doing kīrtana for money is not mentioned amongst the ten offences", but Jagadānanda says "It becomes a fruitive activity, which is the eighth offence—and even if you would not agree to such interpretation, and it was not mentioned amongst the ten offenses, it is obviously wrong to chant for money!" Sadhu Baba would agree on it. He takes an ice cold bath in the kuṇḍa early every morning and translates Rūpa Gosvāmī's Nikunja Rahasya Stava for us.
One day Jagadānanda tells me I shouldn’t have taken dīkṣā from such a caste conscious brāhmaṇa and even that I should leave my Guru! (what about ācāryam mām vijānīyam?) "You shouldn't, like your Guru-bhāis, let this life pass in vain and take initiation as a mere formality or social custom (am I doing that then, doing non-stop bhajan at Rādhākuṇḍa?)." "But you are cleverly steering between the gṛhasthāśrama and the tyāgī-āśrama. You're officially not under a vow, but you have the freedom to go where you like and use all the facilities offered to sādhus in India."
Jagadānanda has big plans: In his diary I see he wants to do 3 lakhs a day — 96 round in the morning, 64 at noon and 32 in the evening.
Jagadānanda is making a big show-off in a kuṭīr next to the Banyan-tree opposite Kuṇḍeśvara Mahādeva, loudly crying and calling: "Rādhe Rādhe!" I see and hear it from the roof of Tin Kuri Bābā's āśrama.
One evening, as we go to hear Ananta dāsjī's Dāma-bandhana pāṭha in the Rādhā Ramaṇa Mandir, I tell Jagadānanda: "You can never have real Kṛṣṇa conscious experiences in the company of others." Jagadānanda wholly disagrees: "It is just in the company of others that you can share Kṛṣṇa-conscious experiences." Introvert vs extrovert.
October 27, 1983 — The strict Hindu sādhu in our little room, who goes daily on Girirāja Parikramā, wants racial segregation when a Bengali bābu is pressed into it. Indian gṛhi with Indian tyāgi and Westerse gṛhī (with only a gaṁchā and 3 Rs) with Western tyāgī. Jagadānanda jumps up and leaves in protest. I come with him, but later Jagadānanda makes up with Vanamālī (“I blew it again...”), who allows him back in but not me!
Back in Navadwip, December 1983 - At Rādhākuṇḍa Ananta dās Paṇḍit had requested Jagadānanda to translate a booklet of his guru Kunja Bihārī dās Bābājī, named Manjarī Svarūpa Nirūpaṇa (definition of the status of a manjarī), into English and the result already lies on his desk, on the usual large white sheets, writing with a fountain-pen.
December 19, 1983 — I protest against the gaura aṣṭakāla līlā the bābājīs have introduced — "Svarūpa Dāmodara, Rūpa and Raghunātha in Navadvīpa! And even as gṛhāsthas! Zigzag silken dhotīs! It's almost an insult!" "Why not?" Jagadānanda says. "This is nitya līlā, not prakaṭ līlā!" "But this līlā is not mentioned anywhere in the Gosvāmīs' books!" I protest.
December 20, 1983 — Jagadānanda puts on big tilaka, asks me to help cooking and cleaning and, while eating his self-made khichuri on the kitchen floor, looks at me sternly and says: "You can only stay if you completely obey me. If I do anything in the household you should consider that my mercy upon you. There is no question of a friendly relationship between you and me. There is only a relationship of master (I) and servant (you) possible between us. You seem not to be good enough to live with your guru. Now you must regard me as your guru, at least as the authority in this house. You must bow down every morning for me, and if I do anything in this house you should regard this as my mercy upon you - " I don’t hear the rest anymore, I have already run out through the kitchen door, which is opened behind me, to Prācin Māyāpura to tell Bābā everything. Bābā nods his head about all this dambha and ahaṅkāra.
December 21, 1983 — Jagadānanda comes rushing into the āśrama, looks at me with startled eyes and asks: "Is your guru mahārāja here?" "Yes, he is over there", I say. He rushes past me, towards Bābā. Curiously I follow him and see him falling at Bābā’s feet to ask forgiveness: আমি আর কোনো ভজন করতে পারলাম না। এটা সব বন্ধ ছিল | আমি তখন বুঝতে পেরেছিলাম যে আমি অদ্বৈতের কাছে দাবি করে আপনার কাছে একটি অপরাধ করেছি যে সে আমাকে তার গুরু বলে মনে করে । “I could not do any bhajana any more. It was all blocked. I understood then that I had committed an aparādha to you by demanding from Advaita that he regards me as his guru." Bābā clearly won but externally He is indifferent, shrugs His shoulders and says: অপরাধ কিসের? (No offense taken) আচ্ছা, আমি পাযখানা যাচ্ছি ! OK I am going to the toilet!" Jagadānanda bows down to a few of my equally indifferent Guru-brothers and then leaves.
February 8, 1984 — During a big kīrtana for Madan Gopāl's Mandir I am lovingly coerced to dance, though I’d rather not, since I’m tired and because my dhoti is not tied properly. When I am afraid that my dhoti, under which I wear no underwear, is falling off, making me dance naked, as a foreigner, in front of a huge crowd, I want to sit down, but the ecstatic bhaktas won’t allow that and force me to go on dancing. I get in panic but nothing happens. Later I tell Jagadānanda, who smirks and says: "You should have just kept on dancing!" and quotes the Bhāgavata: unmādavan nṛtyati loka-bāhyaḥ "The devotee dances like mad, without bothering about public opinion.” We both have a good laugh.
April, 1984 - Jagadānanda, freshly shaven, visits the ashram and, when he hears that Bābā is sitting in his private quarters, he rushes in, like a bear in the china-cabinet. A little later he emerges again and says: "Your Gurujī is steeped in meditation". Later Bābā gently asks me to ask Jagadānanda not to disturb him in his own quarters. Another embarrassing incident.
Rādhākuṇḍa, June 1985 - I get a postcard from Jagadānanda in Navadvīpa. "I'm thinking of giving up sannyāsa and going back to the west. Can we understand Camatkāra Candrikā? Even if you're in māyā, you're still very fortunate to be at Rādhākuṇḍa." Shortly after that, Jagadānanda indeed gives up sannyāsa and returns to his native Canada.
February 2000, returning to Rādhākuṇḍa after 9 years absence, I visit Anantadas ji in his ashram. We speak in Bengali; a wonderful exchange of praises starts. Panditji is surprised to hear me speaking Bengali so fluently (much better actually than in the '80s), and asks me আপনার দেশে কত বাঙ্গালী লোক আছে? ("How many Bengali people are living in your country?") কেহ নাই ("Nobody"), I reply. I then return the compliment by saying that Jagadānanda told me that I should learn Bengali by going to the lectures of one Ananta dās Paṇḍit. To this Ananta dās Paṇḍit says: "There are two foreigners who know Bengali — Jagadānanda and Advaita. Jagadānanda used to attend my pāṭhas with a khātā (notebook)."
October 2, 2003, Navadwip - First-ever darśana of Madana Gopāla Gosvāmī. He tells me that he offered Jagadānanda to do pārāyaṇa at his place but after some time he complained "Why are you sitting higher than us?" Then he told him: "I am a kulina brāhmaṇa - I should not even take water from your hand, but still I let you do pārāyaṇa here. You cannot give pārāyaṇa any more. dainya is the life of bhakti. maryādā rakṣaṇa hoy sādhura bhūṣaṇa (“Upholding etiquette is the ornament of a sadhu” Mahāprabhu told Sanātan Goswāmī in CC Antya 4). We have been doing these ceremonies here for 70 years.” Jagadānanda came back a little later and offered apologies. From Canada he wrote him: "I cannot appear before you anymore. That Jagadānanda that stood before you is no longer there."
19 February, 2004 - Ananta dās ji told his sisya Acyutananda that once Jagadānanda lectured in front of an audience of senior Vaiṣṇavas in Braja, including Ananta dās Pandit and said: “You know why I became a devotee of Mahāprabhu? Because He’s not a Hindustāni!” Ananta dās told him later that that remark was really off and he should not lecture anymore.
My last meeting with Jagadānanda in the flesh was on Sunday, December 16, 2007. My diary of that day says:
At 3 p.m. I am awoken by Sakhicharan, who comes with none other than Jagadānanda, whom I have not met in the flesh for some 23 years. He's a lot older of course, but also still very much the same guy as back then - jovial, upbeat, occasionally flashing a naughty grin while laughing loudly about his own jokes. He bows down and embraces me. He will assist Satya-Nārāyaṇ Panditji as an editor and seems to be quite in demand as a productive scholar. Interestingly he speaks about the synthesis we western Vaiṣṇavas have to make, between Indian/Hindu/Vedic culture and our efficient western cultures.
Jagadānanda joined webforums long before me, and when we both join Gaudiya Discussions in 2002 it becomes clear how devious his thoughts were. A sample -
Jagadananda Thursday, May 18, 2017 reacting to a blog of mine from 2008
I think that the desire to be a guru is another side of spiritual ambition, the genuine desire for spiritual achievement; one's desire to achieve the end is accompanied or sullied by the desire to be recognized for one's realization or achievements, pratishthasha. There is nobody who can claim to be free of this, except for someone on the highest stages." I think that is complete nonsense - there are 1000s of devotees with great talents who are perfectly happy in anonymity.
Overall, throughout his writings on the internet, Jagadānanda showed himself to be a rationalistic sceptic, thus committing the nāmāparādha of sruti sāstra ninda, and an avid sahajiya, a sexually obsessed monist. I have a record of my online refutations of his main apasiddhāntas and aparādhas but this would make this blog too large. Jagadānanda leaves a very mixed heritage.
adāntasyāvinītasya
vṛthā paṇḍita-māninaḥ
na guṇāya bhavanti sma
naṭasyevājitātmanaḥ
Srimad Bhagavat, 10.78.25
"His study of the scriptures is like an actor’s studying his part, for he is not self-controlled or humble and vainly presumes himself a scholarly authority, though he has failed to conquer his own mind."
Thanks for sharing. It would be better not to end your tribute with such a critical note. We should focus on a Vaiṣṇava's good qualities and not on his faults. Criticising like this is also an offense.
ReplyDeleteI agree. The ending is harsh and unnecessary. If we learned something valuable from this departed vaisnava then leave it at that. Speaking critical of him now taints writer and readers with aparadh which nobody wants.
DeleteThe ending is neither harsh nor unnecessary. It is the truth and necessary in order to preserve the full picture of Jagadananda's mixed legacy to future generations.
DeleteJagadananda made very grave offenses that have not even been fully discussed in this blog. This should not be forgotten, and thus the account I wrote is even handed and comprehensive. Current and future generations of Vaishnavas should me made and kept aware of it.
ReplyDeleteTo me, Jagadananda ‘s life is ought to be filled with passion and curiosity in search for truth on one side , but on the other hand, he had lacked maturity in dealing with time and people, and that had created serious troubles in his life 🙏
ReplyDeleteAnd in turn this reflects on his choice in life- To heavily rely on mind than the heart.
I can fully agree on that!
Delete"He is a fool who starts digging a well when his house is already ablaze. Therefore, so long as this body exists, one should earnestly devote himself towards the exploration of the ultimate truth." - Kularnava Tantra
ReplyDeletehttps://archive.org/details/Kularnava/page/n12/mode/1up?view=theater
Searching around, i came to this blog, and realized that he has passed on, and even though many of the concepts regarding sexuality held by him i considered to be sacrilegious and i disagreed with a lot of the theories which i thought were incorrect, still, i have got so much joyful insights from his writings over the years. He definitely was a unique child of Hari, and was such a valuable resource for Gaudiyas. It never bothered me that i found a few of what he considered his core beliefs about tantric sexuality and how awful it was to read him try to connect it to the Gaudiya philosophy, because one need not run from these things out of fear. The truth is the truth, and sublimation of the sexual urge is actually what is fundamentally happening to devotees as they advance anyway. So much learning is yet to happen, gaudiya Darshan is so vast, many more horizons will come and go, new heights will be scaled by the next generations. I pray that Jagat Ji knows some of us are grateful to hear his ideas, just so that we culd either agree or disagree and test our tattvic gyan while doing so.
ReplyDeleteDandavat Pranam Advaita DasJi, i had written out a comment but being that google just refused to post it here, i will have to try again and get to the point.
ReplyDeleteCould you please share your thoughts on what you think about Raya Ramananda and Sri Rupa Goswami meeting and interacting over the years while serving Mahaprabhu?
It seems to me that without Krishnadas Kaviraj Goswami, we wouldnt even know about Raya Ramananda as mentioned in the CC. your thoughts? Do you think Raya Ramananda and Rupa Goswami, Sanatana Goswami had discussions and sharpening of the writings by them, perhaps run them by Raya Ramananda and ask what he tought? ive wondered what an amazing time that must have been and was curious about your thoughts..even though its speculation.
Such meetings are not recorded, they may well have taken place and must surely have been superexcellent. The Caitanya Caritamrita is about Mahaprabhu and therefore focuses on him mainly. Surely it would have been great if any side meetings - if they had indeed taken place - between Mahaprabhu's parshads had been recorded and published.
DeletePrabhu ji Dandavat pranaam, sorry about a random question, but i really would like your opinion on this. there is a bhajan by Meerabai that is attributed to her saying that Mahaprabhu is non-different from Sri Krishna, with a line translated as "O stealer of butter, You have appeared as an Ascetic in renounced order! "
ReplyDeleteNow some claim that this is a fake bhajan just attributed to her, and i dont know either way, because its a beautiful bhajan, but it seems suspicious or maybe i should be more trusting, and i was wondering do you consider that bhajan to be rally sung by Meerabai?
Meera was 12 years younger than Mahaprabhu, so was just 12 when Mahaprabhu took sannyas. Seems very unlikely.
ReplyDeleteDandavat Pranam Advaita DasJi, I would like to ask a relevant question if you would kindly indulge me. I recently came across a compelling argument that BSST may have a different G.V. tilak than what Srila BVT has and what Srila BVT gave to Sri Lalita Prasad Thakur, his son and Jajat Ji's Guru. Now while I couldn't find a different tilak on BVT on photos, Jagat Ji clearly wears the black lined tilak and not the one he formally wore in Iskcon. This means that Sri Lalita Prasad Thakur must have given Jagat Ji that particular Nityaanada Parivaar tilak, and apparently Jagannath Das Babaji also wore the same one.
ReplyDeleteApparently Sri Gaurav Kishore Das Babaji wore a black but with a rounded leaf signifying from Advaita Parivaar. (Btw I didn't know about "parivaars" till 2 weeks ago, hence the seeking clarification).
So Advaita Das Ji, since you are a neutral third party observer, can you comment if the tilak seen on the forehead of who we knew as Jagat Ji, is the same one for his Guru Lalit Prasad Thakur and the same for his Gurus Guru, Srila BVT?
It is the rule that Gurudev places tilak on the sisya's body at the time of diksa, so Jagat wore the tilak he received from his Guru Sri Lalit Prasad ji. In Nityananda Parivara that is Neem leaf and in Advaita Parivara that is Banyan leaf.
DeleteThank you for the clarification, but a little more details please. Is it the same blackish color and not with gopichandan that BSST started? Because that's the claim I've heard, that Srila BVT who is the Guru of Sri Lalit Prasad thakur, then that means that in the photos of Srila BVT where we see him having the gopichandan tilak as found in Iskcon, are those edited photos, or did in later life Srila BVT start putting the yellow gopichandan tilak even though his Guru Sri Jagannatha Das Babaji Maharaj also wore the blackish Tilak of the Nityaananda parivaar?
ReplyDelete(btw there is some confusion, it makes sense that it's Lalit and not Lalita Prasad Thakurji, so which is the correct one? It's not Lalita like Sri Lalita and Vishakha the Sakhis of SriJi?)
gopi chandan is actually the standard set by Hari Bhakti Vilasa but raganuga vaishnavas follow in the footsteps of Sriman Mahaprabhu who took clay from Radhakund for tilak. I believe one time the late Jagat corrected my spelling of his guru's name, saying it should be Lalita Prasad, not Lalit Prasad.
DeleteIt's interesting to see Sri Atul Krishna Goswami has a straight blackish line which Pundrik Ji Goswami also has in modern times but also has a similar yellowish tilak like in Iskcon. Basically I still don't know if Srila BVT was in Nityaananda Parivar and Srila GKD Babaji was in Advaita Parivaar, and both were blackish/brown tilaks, then would it be incorrect to say that BSST adopted a different yellowish colored tilak which was different from both BVT and GKD babaji?
DeleteI appreciate the clarification about Lalita Prasad Thakur Ji, now atleast we reading know that the "a" is intended.
The fact that Bhaktisiddhanta had a different tilak from Gaurakishor Das Babaji is an indication for some that he was not initiated by GKDB
DeleteYou know, sometimes I sit back and shake my head and wonder, Sri Krishna, you truly are great! I saw this documentary about Salmon on Discovery channel once long ago, and in order to get the privilege of breeding and progeny, they literally have to swim against the river current, sometimes jumping from the bottom of a waterfall upward, to try to get up in the mountains where finally the waters are calmer and they can fulfill their purpose. It's fascinating, and it's all intelligent design to ensure the best genetics etc etc.
DeleteNew devotees are coming to GV for the first time in 2024, and statistically it's going to be mostly in Iskcon or Gaudiya Math of Srila BV Narayana Goswami Maharaj.
And it's quite a salmon-esqe journey to realise that oh! actually do you see Srila Jagannath Das Babaji M and Srila Gaura Kishore Das Babaji on the altar? Well, see their Vaishnav tilak? It's the same as you are wearing right? Yes. But actually, they personally, wore a different tilak, and are actually from 2 different Parivaars so they can't even technically be together this way on the altar. Etc etc about janeyu and saffron and tridand, and apparently you've been doing the Panchatattva mantra different from them, because it's actually "Sri Gauranga Nityaananada Sri Advaitachandra! Gadadhar Srivas Adi Gaura Bhakta Vrinda!".
Also, calling Sri Ji as Mother Hara, and taking us to serve Sri Krishna, when ACTUALLY Sri Ji is not a ladder or stepping stone " to" Sri Krishna but is actually YOUR Swamini and it's your own Rupanuga aspiration to serve Them....
I suppose even if takes 10 years to figure this out, it's a positive outcome.
I remember reading one of Jagadananda's blogs where he couldn't fully reconcile how manjari bhav is really greater than sakhi bhav, since the sakhis have a direct conjugal relationship with Krishna. How can we induce people to come to Gaudiya Vaisnavism, what's the real selling point, if the final goal is not clearly the most attractive?
ReplyDeleteWhat's your answer for this?
Akinchan, manjari bhava is the actual upasana of the Gaudiya Vaisnava Sampradaya, yet the persons who have adhikar for it are very very few. I think Jagat projected his own strong sexual urges on the upasana of sakhi-bhava. There is a certain rasa in manjari bhava, a rasa of service that provides a higher relish than sakhi bhava.
DeleteHow do you understand Caitanya Caritamrita Madhya 8.212-213 in relation to the manjaris? Radha makes efforts to induce Krishna to enjoy the gopis, and becomes happier than experiencing Her own meeting.
DeleteAkinchan, for unknown reasons Krishnadas Kaviraj Goswamipad chose not to mention manjaris or manjari bhava in Caitanya Caritamrita. He does mention them in Govinda Lilamrita though, but also not too often. It is confidential beyond these books. When we arrive at Srila Raghunath Das Goswamipad we learn about manjari bhava. If any sahacari of Radha is mentioned in CC it is always sakhi bhava.
DeleteThank you, a very interesting reply. I have a few doubts to these comments that I would like to submit.
DeleteCC introduction says anarpita-carīṁ cirāt... Was sakhi bhav not given for a long time? If manjari bhava is the actual upasana of the Gaudiya Vaisnava Sampradaya, how can it be avoided in CC?
Krishnadas Kaviraj serves as an asta manjari and concludes every chapter of CC by praying at the feet of Rupa and Raghunatha. Surely, he is among the topmost followers of Rupa and Raghunatha. How could he neglect their most important conclusion of manjari bhav and potentially confuse readers about pure manjari bhav if sakhi bhav is what's highlighted?
Ramananda Samvad, CC Madhya 8.204-205, says rādhā-kṛṣṇa-kuñjasevā-sādhya. Isn't kunja seva to Radha Krishna the exclusive privilege of manjaris to which the sakhis have no access? This is appearing in Ramananda Samvad, about the ultimate goal of life and the means to achieve it. Because the word "manjari" has not been used is not evidence that the bhav is not discussed, right?
Narottama das Thakur's Prarthana, Dainya Bodhika Song 1says kṛṣṇa dāsa kavirāja, rasika bhakata mājha, yehoń koilo caitanya carita - gaura govinda līlā, śunite goloye śilā, tāhāte nā hoilo mora cita. Prarthana is highly focused on manjari bhav. But why is Narottama das Thakur highlighting CC so strongly if it has neglected manjari bhav?
We don't know Kaviraj's motives. The quotes from CC you mention are clearly about sakhis. manjaris are not mentioned in CC even once. Kaviraj may have considered it too confidential. Even Rupa Goswami hardly mentions manjaris in his books.
DeleteIs it possible that the issue is that there is a mistake in your conception of manjari bhav? Perhaps you have artificially created a much larger distinction between sakhis and manjaris than what is really the truth?
Deleterasa- and prema-distinctions between manjaris and sakhis have not been clearly delineated by the purva acaryas, but I follow the siddhanta of Srila Ananda Gopal Goswami Prabhupada, my Gurudev's father, as do most contemporary Vaishnavas. But the taste of the pudding lies ultimately in the eating.
DeleteI really appreciate you indulging me in these questions!
DeleteWhere can I read the most clearly articulated siddhanta of Srila Ananda Gopal Goswami on this point in question - the distinction between sakhis and manjaris?
Where do you place Manjari Swarup Nirupana of Kunjabihari as a source text for the same subject?
A sample from Ananda Gopal Goswami's lecture on Vilap Kusumanjali verse 16 -
DeleteŚrī Rūpa Gosvāmī said: “The heroines are like girlfriends. Their suhṛd rati (love for the friend of Kṛṣṇa, in this case Rādhā) is a sancārī bhāva (inserted feeling), while their love for Kṛṣṇa is the sthāyi bhāva (main feeling). Individual feelings that roam within the sthāyi bhāva or main feeling are called sañcārī bhāvas. sañcārayanti bhāvasya gatiṁ sañcārino'pi te (Bhakti Rasāmṛta Sindhu 2.4.2). First and foremost they love Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and that love is inserted in their feelings for Rādhārānī. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī states in his 'Bhakti Rasāmṛta Sindhu' (2.5.128):
sañcāri syāt samonā vā kṛṣṇa-ratyāḥ suhṛd ratiḥ
adhikā puṣyamānā ced bhāvollāsa itīryate
“However, when feelings for the friend of Kṛṣṇa (Rādhā in this case) exceed feelings for Kṛṣṇa Himself, it is called bhāvollāsa.” This is mañjarī bhāva.
Manjari Swarup Nirupana of Kunjabihari dasji more or less follows this siddhanta too.
I don't follow how this description creates the distinction between sakhis and manjaris that you say.
DeleteCan you direct me to any compilation of evidence showing that sakhis have a conjugal relationship with Krishna while the manjaris do not?
Especially, I'd like to see evidence against this proposition: Fidelity to Radharani and feelings for Her that exceed feelings for Krishna does not preclude a conjugal relationship with Krishna if *Radha* desires it, as expressed in CC.
See Vilap-kusumanjali 16 and 92, vraja vilasa stava 38
DeleteThose verses themselves don't come close to addressing my question. I was able to look at Ananta das Pandit's commentaries for VK 16+92 (your translation) but wasn't satisfied that there was much there for my query either. Don't have access to any commentaries for Vraja Vilasa Stava. Is there another commentary I should look at, and is anything available online?
Deleteananya śrī rādhā padakamala dāsyaika rasadhī
Deletehareḥ saṅge raṅgam svapana samaye nā’pi dadhati
balāt kṛṣṇa kūrpāsakabhidi kim apy ācarati kā-
py udāśrur meveti pralapati mamātma ca hasati
(Vṛndāvana Mahimāmṛta 16,94)
"The maidservants, who are exclusively devoted to the service of Śrī Rādhā’s lotus feet, which are like an ocean of nectar, do not enjoy with Śrī Hari even in their dreams. When Kṛṣṇa forcibly pulls at their bodices, they cry out: ‘No, no!’, while Rādhikā watches and laughs."