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Autumn 2004

Readers may recall the "Guru wars" article in which we quoted one ISKCON Guru, Bhakti Tirtha Swami, complaining at being called a "demon" by an other so-called Guru, Bhakti Vikash Swami. Since our expose the Gurus have tried to keep their attacks on each other out of the public eye. However, as we shall see, seething just beneath the surface the enmity continues unabated.

Jayapataka Swami is one of the original eleven disciples appointed by Srila Prabhupada to act as a ritvik (priest) in his letter of July 9th 1977. He once claimed in an offering to Srila Prabhupada:

"In your transcendental literatures you repeatedly mention how you hope for the day when all your followers will be initiating spiritual masters, initiating even 10,000 or more disciples into the Guru parampara."
(Jayapataka Swami, 1998 Vyasa Puja offering to Srila Prabhupada)

Jayapataka has not allowed the fact that the above instruction is not mentioned even once, not to speak of "repeatedly", in ANY of Srila Prabhupada's "literatures" to deter him from a massing over 5,000 disciples, far in excess of any other ISKCON Guru hoaxer.

Well, no actually wrong. The trouble started when he began approaching and writing to the disciples of other ISKCON Gurus, sending them his blessings and offering to act as their spiritual guide.

He was cautioned by the Executive Committee (EC) of the GBC in an extraordinary meeting to deal with the crisis, but to little avail. Here is one angry complaint from Indradyumna Swami, whose disciples were so propositioned:

"I would like to request you not to send such letters to any of my disciples in the future. I feel these letters are in the mood of canvassing for followers and are contrary to the restrictions imposed on you recently by the EC."
Indradyumna Swami (photo, right)

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Here is part of Jayapataka's letter that caused the offense:

"Happy Birthday to you! You are in my regular prayers whenever I pray to the Deities. (…)
Please find attached a picture of myself sending you blessings.
I hope this finds you blissful in Krishna consciousness and healthy.
Your well wisher always,
Jayapataka Swami"

When the GBC last tried to curtail Jayapataka's lavish worship in 1999, he encouraged hundreds of his followers to surround the GBC as they met at their headquarters in Mayapur, thus intimidating them into allowing his daily Guru puja (worship) to continue. Now many ISKCON Gurus think he has become completely crazed by the ambition to acquire worshippers, rampaging around the world in a frenzied attempt to beg, borrow or steal disciples from anyone he can.

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As Sivarama Swami, (photo, left) another GBC voted-in Guru, stated about Jayapataka: "he is a sick person" and "obsessed". He further added for good measure that Jayapataka's obsession "makes lying or duplicitous behaviour fully reconcilable with service to Prabhupada."

Of course, the Gurus who complain about Jayapataka are all hypocrites themselves since they have been stealing disciples from Srila Prabhupada for nearly thirty years. And is it not the very height of hypocrisy that Sivarama Swami does absolutely nothing to warn the many thousands of Jayapataka's hapless disciples that they are offering daily worship to a "sick, obsessed, duplicitous liar", whilst at the same time immediately kicking out of ISKCON any poor soul who happens to want to follow Srila Prabhupada's July 9th directive and thus become the authorized disciple of a truly great personality?

The reason for such political behaviour might be that should yet another high profile ISKCON Guru come crashing down it would reflect badly on all the bogus, unauthorized ISKCON Gurus, including Sivarama Swami. Another ISKCON Guru recently complained that Jayapataka was "putting together his own cult within our society", yet that is precisely what they are all doing, only apparently less successfully.

SRILA PRABHUPADA IS THE REAL ISKCON GURU - ACCEPT NO SUBSTITUTES!