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| Dr. Patanjali Jayadeva Yogendra (15th July 1975 – 24th July 2012) |
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| Students and well wishers filling up the hall |
The prayer (condolence) meeting in honour of Dr. Patanjali J. Yogendra was held on Friday, 27th July 2012 at 6 pm at The Yoga Institute, Santacruz, Mumbai. Hundreds of people from Mumbai, rest of India and abroad, filled the hall and grounds of the Institute to pay their last respects Dr. Patanjali. We thank each and every one for their immense love and support.
The prayer ceremony began with a few minutes of silence in honour of the departed. It was followed by a reading from the Bhagwad Gita by Sadhakas – Shri Sharad Waghmare and Captain Saudamini Deshmukh.
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| Capt. Saudamini reciting the Slokas |
The reading of the Gita began with Chapter 2, Sloka 11 and is translated in English as follows:
Shri Bhagavan said: Arjuna, you grieve over those who should not be grieved for and yet speak like the learned; wise men do not sorrow over the dead or the living. (11)
In fact, there was never a time when I was not, or when you or these kings were not. Nor is it a fact that hereafter we shall all cease to be. (12)
Just as boyhood, youth and old age are attributed to the soul through this body, even so it attains another body. The wise man does not get deluded about this. (13)
O son of Kunti, the contacts between the senses and their objects, which give rise to the feelings of heat and cold, pleasure and pain etc., are transitory and fleeting; therefore, Arjuna, ignore them. (14)
Arjuna, the wise man to whom pain and pleasure are alike, and who is not tormented by these contacts, becomes eligible for immortality. (15)
The unreal has no existence, and the real never ceases to be; the reality of both has thus been perceived by the seers of truth. (16)
Know that alone to be imperishable, which pervades this universe; for no one has power to destroy this indestructible substance. (17)
All these bodies pertaining to the imperishable, indefinable and eternal soul are spoken of as perishable; therefore, Arjuna, fight. (18)
Both of them are ignorant, he who knows the soul to be capable of killing and he who takes it as killed; for verily the soul neither kills, nor is killed. (19)
The soul is never born not dies; nor does it become only after being born. For it is unborn, eternal, everlasting and ancient; even though the body is slain, the soul is not. (20)
Arjuna, the man who knows this soul to be imperishable, eternal and free from birth and decay – how and whom will he cause to be killed, how and whom will he kill? (21)
As a man shedding worn-out garments, takes other new ones, likewise the embodied soul, casting off worn-out bodies, enters into others which are new. (22)
Weapons cannot cut it nor can fire burn it; water cannot wet it nor can wind dry it. (23)
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| Sadhakas of The Yoga Institute |
For this soul is incapable if being cut; incapable of being burnt, impervious to water and undriable as well. The soul is eternal, omnipresent, immovable, constant and everlasting. (24)
This soul is unmanifest; it is unthinkable; and it is spoken of as immutable. Therefore, knowing this as such, you should not grieve. (25)
And, Arjuna, if you should suppose this soul to be subject to constant birth and death, even then you should not grieve like this. (26)
For in that case death is certain for the born, and rebirth is inevitable for the dead. You should not, therefore, grieve over the inevitable. (27)
Arjuna, before birth beings are not manifest to our human senses; at death they return to the unmanifest again. They are manifest only in the interim between birth and death. What occasion, then, for lamentation? (28)
Hardly anyone perceives this soul as marvellous, rarely speaks thereof as marvellous, and rarely hears of it as marvellous, while there are some who know it not even on hearing of it. (29)
Arjuna, this soul dwelling in the bodies of all can never be slain; therefore, you should not mourn for anyone. (30)
Treating alike victory and defeat, gain and loss, pleasure and pain, get ready for the fight, then; fighting thus you will not incur sin. (38)
Your right is to work only, but never to the fruit thereof. Be not instrumental in making your actions bear fruits, nor let your attachment be to inaction. (47)
Arjuna, perform your duties established in Yoga, renouncing attachment, and even tempered in success and failure; evenness of temper is called Yoga. (48)
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| Crowd outside the hall |
The reading was followed by a short speech from Shri Ajay Bansal, another Sadhakaof the Institute. He spoke as follows:
“On Monday, 23rd July, Patanjali had gone to Kurla area in the evening. There he met with an accident. He was immediately taken to a nearby hospital. He was severely injured. He was given immediate attention. He was in an unconscious state. The doctors did their best but they couldn’t save him. He passed away at 4:30 am on Tuesday, 24thJuly, 2012.”
He went on to quote in Hindi, “Buzurg kaha gaye hai – Agar meri itcha se koi kaam hota hai toh khushi hoti hai. Agar meri itcha se kaam nahin hota hai toh bohut khushi honi chahiye. Kyu? Kyuki vaha Bhagawan ki itcha se ho raha hai.” (Wise elders have said – If things happen as I wish, I feel happiness. If things don’t happen as I wish, then I should feel even happier. Why? Because it is happening according to God’s wish.)
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| Shri Ajay Bansal |
Shri Ajaybhai continued, “Dr. Jayadeva and Hansaji lost their son, but they have many sons here who really love and respect them. Gauri has lost her husband, but she has many brothers and sisters here who love and respect her. Soha has lost her father, but she has many uncles and aunts who love and cherish her. Gauri’s parents have lost their son-in-law, but they have all of us here who will always support them.
Dear Dr. Saheb and Hansaji, all of us here will do our best to see that the activities of The Yoga Institute continue, the purity of yoga will be maintained. The show will go on and all of us, including Gauri, will take The Yoga Institute to greater heights.
May Patanjali’s soul rest in peace.”
Following Shri Ajaybhai, Smt. Asha Asrani, who was a close friend of Dr. Patanjali, spoke to the large gathering:
“We have all gathered here today with a very heavy heart to mourn the sudden passing away of our dear Dr. Patanjali. This is a huge loss in our lives and no words are enough to express our thoughts and feelings. But, let me share a few things with you about Dr. Patanjali.
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| Smt. Asha Asrani |
As a child, Patanjali was very sweet. He took up games, sitar, guitar, harmonium and vocal singing. He loved animals, especially dogs. He had kept a Great Dane at the Institute for a year. He had great knowledge about dogs and their pedigree. He was also a lover of horses.
Patanjali was a simple person with a very sharp and brilliant mind. He was a good student. He did his schooling from Maneckji Cooper and B.Sc. in Chemistry from Parle College. Later he did his Masters in Ancient Indian Culture. He was deeply interested in Yoga history and practice. He would practise meditation and other techniques for long hours.
His practice and study of Yoga along with his research on Yogis culminated in a PhD thesis titled, ‘Yoga in Ancient India as revealed in the Upanishads.’ This was conferred upon him in the year 2009.
He was interested in meeting various Yogis, Nath Panthi Sadhus and Babas. He attended the Maha Kumbha Mela at Prayag and also at Ujjain and Nashik. He visited Degam in Gujarat which is the ancestral village of the Yogendra Family.
He had a very keen sense and power of observation and very deep grasping power. He instantly picked up the gist of the subject matter. His memory was also very sharp. He took to writing stories, short stories, long essays and published them in the monthly journal of The Yoga Institute, of which he was the Assistant Editor.
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| Crowd filling the Institute garden |
Patanjali was always full of ideas and plans for the Institute and played an active tole in the Institute’s administration. The garden as we see it today, the arrangement and construction of the kitchen, the washrooms, the ladies’ hostel and the third floor ‘B’ wing were all done under his ideation and supervision. He was authoritative and forthright in his behaviour towards all and did not suffer fools gladly. At the same time, he was caring and considerate to all the staff and helpers at the Institute.
In his personal life, he was very meticulous and organized with very regular and simple habits. He believed in keeping a low profile and had little interest in material possessions. His material possessions were very few, just a few simple clothes and a pair of Chappals (Sandals).
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| The Yogendra Family |
He maintained a strict time-table for all his daily activities. He had a simple lifestyle and strict routines and disciplines. He loved very simple Sattvic, vegetarian, home-made food.
He was a complete family man. As a child he was very close to his Dadaji– Late Shri Yogendraji, the Founder of The Yoga Institute. Both of them spent a lot of time together. He was also very close to his Nanaji – Late Shri Jitendra Patni and had lunch with him once a week without fail.
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| (L-R) Dr. Jayadeva Yogendra, Smt. Hansaji Yogendra, Smt. Gauri Patanjali, Smt. Taraben Patni and Gauriji’s family. |
As a family man, he was loving and responsible. He took great care of all the family members, their health, hygiene, wellbeing and security. He was a most loving and supportive companion to his wife, Gauri. He loved going out with her and loved her singing. He was a proud and doting father to little Soha. He loved playing with her and singing songs to her. He was a caring son and his primary concern was his parents’ health and wellbeing. He always desired that they should rest and relax enough. He was a valuable friend to a close circle of people.
To say that we shall miss him very much is an understatement.
Let us all remember this uniquely simple person in our prayers and may his soul rest in peace.”
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| Smt. Armaiti Desai |
Smt. Armaiti Desai, who has been associated with the Institute since the Founder’s time, shared some of her memories of Dr. Patanjali when he was a child. She shared fondly that even as a child, Patanjali was unusual in that, not only was he born in a family of Yogis, but he hardly even slept. She remembered Dr. Jayadeva or Hansaji holding him in their arms at all times.
She had heard him speak to someone on the phone at a very young age and the person on the other line must have been complaining about someone. She remembers being surprised on hearing him respond wisely, “Let it go.”
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| Senior IPS Officer Shri Sadanand Date attended the prayer meeting. |
Once, Hansaji had requested him to help her out with making good talks as her English was not as good as his. He readily and sincerely helped her out all the time and truly cared about the activities at the Institute.
Such was the personality of this wonderful young man who leaves behind him loving memories in the minds of thousands of people.
The prayer ceremony ended with Captain Saudamini reciting the Shanti Mantra in Sanskrit. The crowds of people – family, students, teachers, friends, followers, etc. all joined hands and paid their respects to Dr. Patanjali Yogendra.
God Bless.
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| Paying last respects |