Back To Prabhupada, Issue 56, Summer 2017
ecently, GBC-elected guru HH Trivikrama Swami wrote to us, arguing that the July 9th, 1977 directive mentioned in the previous article was not a "final order" on initiations for ISKCON. Instead, he claims that on October 18th, 1977, Srila Prabhupada gave his actual "Final Order" to HH Jayapataka Swami ("JPS") and others "to begin initiating their own disciples." (Email sent to us on 11/8/17). Other ISKCON GBC gurus have also made the same argument. However, there are at least 7 proofs that this was not a final order for JPS to become a diksa guru (emphases added):
1) Srila Prabhupada states that JPS is to act according to a "list" of names of "deputies" he had given:
Srila Prabhupada: "So, deputies, Jayapataka's name was there? [...] This initiation. I have deputed the... my disciples. [...] You have got the list of the names?"
Tamala Krsna: "Yes, Srila Prabhupada."
(Room Conversation, 18/10/77)
However, the only time Srila Prabhupada had ever given a list of names in respect of initiation, with JPS's name, was in the July 9th, 1977 directive. There it clearly states that those on the list would only ever act on Srila Prabhupada's behalf to produce Srila Prabhupada's initiated disciples:
"these representatives may accept the devotee as an initiated disciple of Srila Prabhupad".
(July 9th, 1977 directive to all Temple Presidents and GBCs)
2) Srila Prabhupada states:
"So I think Jayapataka can do that if he likes. I have already deputed. Tell him."
(Room Conversation, 18/10/77)
Srila Prabhupada states that JPS must act now according to the manner in which he had been "already deputed". This deputation, as we just saw, occurred on July 9th, 1977, and meant that JPS was to act on behalf of Srila Prabhupada to produce initiated disciples of Srila Prabhupada. Hence, one cannot claim that those named on the "list" as "deputies" were to now change the function they had been assigned on that list in the July 9th, 1977 directive, and instead act as diksa gurus.
3) Srila Prabhupada had already stated (Letter, 2/12/75) that it was not possible for a disciple to initiate in Srila Prabhupada's physical presence, otherwise it would break the "law of disciplic succession". Thus, Srila Prabhupada could not have been giving an order on October 18th, 1977 for JPS to go and initiate his own disciples, as then he would be acting as a diksa guru in Srila Prabhupada's physical presence.
4) As detailed in the July 9th, 1977 directive, the rtvik system enabled initiations to occur only via the use of Temple Presidents and rtviks, and thus without Srila Prabhupada being involved at all. Therefore, it does not depend on Srila Prabhupada's physical condition. Hence, when Srila Prabhupada states —
"And if by Krsna's grace I recover from this condition, then I shall begin again, or I may not be pressed in this condition to initiate."
(Room Conversation, 18/10/77)
— clearly this cannot be referring to the July 9th, 1977 directive rtvik initiation system, as this was not affected at all by Srila Prabhupada's physical "condition". Thus, this system of initiation is not being stopped here, and hence JPS is being asked to initiate according to this July 9th, 1977 directive in which he was named in the "list" as one of the rtviks/"deputies".
5) Therefore, Srila Prabhupada can only be referring to that activity which does depend on his physical "condition". And this was him physically conducting an initiation in person. Because, as shown in the previous article under the section "India I am here", Srila Prabhupada states that he can also conduct initiation ceremonies himself in India, in addition to the rtvik system. And this was the situation we had here, because Mr. Sukamal Roy Chowdury had flown all the way from New York to Vrndavana to get initiated by Srila Prabhupada in person:
Srila Prabhupada: "Hare Krsna. One Bengali gentleman has come from New York?"
Tamala Krsna: "Yes. Mr. Sukamal Roy Chowdury."
(Room conversation, 18/10/77)
And thus, because Srila Prabhupada is physically unwell, he states he has stopped physically performing initiations himself, and asks that they instead be carried out by the disciples he has already "deputed":
Srila Prabhupada: "I stop for the time being. Is that all right?"
Tamala Krsna: "Stopped doing what, Srila Prabhupada?"
Srila Prabhupada: "This initiation. I have deputed the... my disciples."
And this deputation, as we already saw, was set out in the July 9th, 1977 directive where he had named JPS to act as a rtvik.
6) Srila Prabhupada states that whatever he was stopping was being stopped temporarily, and that he would resume if his health recovered:
"I stop for the time being. [...] And if by Krsna's grace I recover from this condition, then I shall begin again".
(Room conversation, 18/10/77)
Thus, Srila Prabhupada could not be issuing a "final order" to JPS to succeed him as a diksa guru, because he is not in any case intending to stop initiating permanently, and thus no final order for succession could be given. Rather, as shown above, Srila Prabhupada is actually referring to temporarily stopping conducting initiation ceremonies himself in person, which he would resume if his health recovered.
7) Since Srila Prabhupada's health did not recover after 18th October, 1977, if Srila Prabhupada had been referring in this conversation to stopping initiating via the July 9th, 1977 system of using rtviks, then for the latter half of October and November, there would have been zero disciples initiated by Srila Prabhupada. However, the "Srila Prabhupada disciples database", maintained by BBT online, shows that through October and November, right up until when Srila Prabhupada physically departed, dozens of disciples continued to be initiated by Srila Prabhupada. Thus, we know for a fact that Srila Prabhupada did not stop initiating disciples around October 18th, 1977, and thus this was not what he was referring to "stopping" in this conversation. Nor, crucially, does he ever state that this rtvik initiation system is to be stopped (see previous article). Hence, when he asks JPS to initiate as a "deputy", he is asking him to continue initiating via the July 9th, 1977 rtvik/deputy system.
These points were sent to Trivikrama Swami but he has not been able to reply. Those who are supposedly the most spiritually advanced ‘as good as God' gurus are unable to accept a conclusion so clear that it can be established in at least *7* different ways.
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