![\"\"](\"https:\/\/lh3.googleusercontent.com\/-wEKeypq2950\/Vanl7o1onuI\/AAAAAAAARJU\/uUQ67OdcyzY\/s0\/2015-07-18_07-36-29.jpg\")
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By Phalini Devi Dasi<\/strong><\/p>\n As the embodied soul continually passes in this life <\/i> <\/p>\n from boyhood to youth to old age,<\/i><\/p>\n the soul similarly passes into another body at death. <\/i> <\/p>\n A self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.<\/i> (Bg 2.13)<\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n 12:30 p.m. Friday, May 1, 2015. My husband and I were home in Udupi. We were cooking a big pot of Prema Pasta. We planned to honor lunch prasadam and then pack up the left-overs for our train trip to Navi Mumbai that afternoon. Our train was due to depart at 3 p.m. Just as we stirred the salt into the Prema Pasta, the phone rang. \u201cKanaiji!\u201d my husband joyfully answered the phone. But on the other end it was not Kanai\u2019s voice. Prajapalaka, Kanai Thakur\u2019s adopted spiritual son, was calling from Hanja, on Kanai\u2019s phone. \u201cPrabhuji! Kanai Thakur won\u2019t speak to me! He is not breathing, he\u2019s not moving, and his body is cold.\u201d Prajapalaka hesitated to say the obvious, so my husband said the words for him: \u201cSounds like Kanai Thakur Prabhu has left his body.\u201d My husband told him to stay calm and chant Hare Krsna, and that we would come there as soon as possible. We immediately canceled our train tickets and our engagements in Navi Mumbai, called several devotees and drove in a caravan out to Kanai\u2019s place near Hanja, a remote village about two hours from Udupi. <\/p>\n That morning, Kanai Prabhu and Prajapalaka had finished their morning program which included a story from Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead<\/i>. After instructing Prajapalaka to go take care of the cows, Kanai lay down to listen to \u201cBhaja Hure Mana\u201d and \u201cGurudeva Krpa Bindhu Diya\u201d on his headphones. Prajapalaka came in after completing his morning go-seva, and reported to Kanai Thakur about the cows. Kanaiji didn\u2019t respond. Prajapalaka spoke again. Again, no answer. Prajapalaka went into Kanai\u2019s bedroom to humbly ask him if he was angry with Prajapalaka for some reason and if perhaps that was why he wasn\u2019t speaking to him. Prajapalaka spoke again. No answer. He touched Kanai\u2019s arm and it felt cold and lifeless. He bent down and heard no breathing. He feared that Kanai Prabhu had left his body. Prajapalaka got on the phone and started calling devotees in the Udupi area, including us. <\/p>\n Upon reaching Hanja, we found that several other devotees from Udupi, Brahmavara and Kapu as well as some local villagers had already arrived. We had all come to help with the last rites of our beloved Kanai Thakur. Someone called Kanai\u2019s wife, daughter and son. Someone else made an arrangement to acquire a cold box in which to preserve the body while we waited for Kanai\u2019s relatives to arrive from America and Jordan. People talked of hiring local Madhva brahmanas to prepare a feast after the twelfth day to be distributed to all the villagers. Someone was designated to pick up Kanai\u2019s daughter from the Mangalore airport. Everyone pitched in to clean the entire house, inside and out. After everything was decided and planned, most of us drove to our homes for the night. We all returned the next day for the last rites. <\/p>\n It was the first time I had ever seen the cremation process from beginning to end. Along with other elderly ladies, I participated in the ritual bathing of the body and sprinkling of Holy Gangajal three times into Kanai’s mouth with a sprig of Tulasi<\/i>. After the bath, Kanai\u2019s body was dried, decorated with tilak, dressed in new cotton cloth and placed on a plank made of bamboo. His body was decorated with garlands. Pall bearers were chosen. In India, it is a great honor to be asked to carry the palanquin of a beloved departed soul, so the men who were chosen were grateful for the seva.<\/p>\n Kirtan began. The pall-bearers hoisted the palanquin up on their shoulders, and proceeded past the goshala, through the garden, and down into the meadow where the funeral pyre had been constructed by the local men. After piling on more logs in a scientific way to ensure that the body would burn thoroughly and the pyre would not collapse, the pyre was lit. The kirtan became more emotionally charged as the fire of the funeral pyre grew. It burned brightly and enthusiastically, reminding me of how it is said that during a havan, if the fire burns nicely, it means that Lord Vishnu is pleased. I remember thinking that Lord Vishnu must certainly be pleased by the many years of devotional service rendered by Kanai Thakur dasa, especially his selfless service to the Vaisnavas. <\/p>\n The preparations for Kanai\u2019s last rites as well as the ceremony had covered two days, and ended Saturday, May 2, at around 5:00 pm. We drove home tired but blissful from all the purifying chanting of the holy names and rituals associated with death. <\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n On the way home, I found myself wondering if His Holiness Varshana Swami had chosen the name Kanai Thakur for some special reason. So I looked up the name Kanai Thakur on VedaBase, just in case there might be some connection, some clue as to why Maharaja had given him that name. I found out that the original Kanai Thakur after whom our Kanaiji was named by Varshana Swami was the cowherd boy named D\u00e4ma during k\u00e5\u00f1\u00eba-l\u00e9l\u00e4<\/i>. \u201cIt is said that just after the birth of K\u00e4nu \u00d6h\u00e4kura, who was an associate of Lord Nityananda Prabhu, his mother, J\u00e4hnav\u00e4, died. When he was about twelve days old, \u00c7r\u00e9 Nity\u00e4nanda Prabhu took him to His home at Kha\u00f2adaha. It is ascertained that K\u00e4nu \u00d6h\u00e4kura was born sometime in the Bengali year 942 [A.D. 1535]. It is said that he took birth on the Ratha-y\u00e4tr\u00e4 day. Because he was a great devotee of Lord K\u00e5\u00f1\u00eba from the very beginning of his life, \u00c7r\u00e9 Nity\u00e4nanda Prabhu gave him the name \u00c7i\u00e7u K\u00e5\u00f1\u00ebad\u00e4sa. When he was five years old he went to V\u00e5nd\u00e4vana with J\u00e4hnav\u00e4-m\u00e4t\u00e4, and the Gosv\u00e4m\u00e9s, upon seeing the ecstatic symptoms of K\u00e4nu \u00d6h\u00e4kura, gave him the name K\u00e4n\u00e4i \u00d6h\u00e4kura.\u201d (CC Adi-lila 11.40 Ppt) I didn\u2019t really get a clear idea from that passage in Caitanya-caritamrta<\/i> why Maharaja named him that, other than the fact that his birth name, Kanaiyyalal, contained the name Kanai within it. But it was sweet to read that pastime, and I realized that Kanai Thakur dasa had been named after a great personality from Krsna-lila who later became an associate of Lord Nityananda. Our Kanai Thakur, in the preaching mood of Lord Nityananda\u2019s followers, had dedicated his life wholeheartedly to purifying his heart and encouraging others to become as pure as the original Kanai Thakur.<\/p>\n Kanai Thakur dasa\u2019s daughter Manju came to visit us on Wednesday, May 6th. She had flown in from Jordan where she works at the US State Department. Manju told us a little history. Kanai\u2019s father had been part of the British Corps Army of Engineers. He was stationed in Baroda. He and his wife had four children, and they had decided that four was enough. But there was a beggar who used to come begging at their house. He used to call \u201cKanhaiyya! Kanhaiyya!\u201d as he came begging. The mother used to lock the doors and ignore that beggar. But one day she finally reached into her choli and pulled out some rupees. She handed the money to the beggar and hoped that now he would leave them alone. The beggar then said, \u201cBecause you have given me something, I will now give you something. Soon your Kanhaiyya will come.\u201d Kanai\u2019s father was then transferred to Colombo, Sri Lanka. Nine months after the beggar had made his promise and seven years after the birth of their fourth child, Kanhaiyyalal Sadarangani was born. <\/p>\n Manju told us that her father discovered fairly early in his life that he wanted to find out what true happiness is. When she was a small child, she would ask him deep philosophical questions, and instead of brushing them off as childish, he would try his best to answer them. He admitted to her that he had the same questions in his heart, and would honestly tell her that he did not have the answers to her questions. But she felt satisfied that he presented to her the views of different religions so that she could at least have a universal understanding of philosophies in general. <\/p>\n She also said that her father became fearless and at peace after he found Krsna consciousness. He had told her, \u201cYou should do what\u2019s right even when it\u2019s hard. Fight for what you know is right.\u201d <\/p>\n The night before he left his body, at 11:00 pm, Kanai Prabhu had been on What\u2019sApp counseling young students as he was accustomed to do. One young man shared, \u201cLast time I talked to Kanai Prabhuji, a week back, he instructed me to be in Vaisnava sanga wherever I am, and to be always anxious to serve Vaisnavas. To be Krsna conscious should be our first priority always. Everything else is secondary. This was his last instruction to me which I\u2019ll always keep in mind.\u201d<\/p>\n According to Kishan Sadashiv, who heads up the Bhaktivedanta Youth Services program at Bhajan Kutir for students at Manipal University, Kanai used to ride his motorcycle all the way from Hanja to Manipal, a two-hour journey. He would come into the kitchen at Bhajan Kutir and render seva for the Saturday evening feast. Kishan appreciated how even though Kanai was old and had health problems, he nonetheless took the trouble to come so far to render service to the devotees. Kishan said, \u201cWe were all concerned about Kanai living in such a remote place. If something happened to Kanai, who would take care of him?\u201d But Kanaiji had strong faith in Krishna, and Krishna showed us all how even if you live in a remote area, He will still take care of you and even at the time of death, He will remember you and help you remember Him. <\/p>\n Kanai Thakur dasa was beloved by all the devotees, and a siksha guru for many. He was so popular that if someone would mention his name in a crowd, immediately there would be smiles on all the faces of those who heard his name, and even laughter would bubble up from inside their hearts. Kanaiji was so Krsna conscious and so blissful that his enthusiasm for pure Krsna consciousness was infectious.<\/p>\n From my own personal experience with Kanai Thakur, there is one quality I admired in him, and that was his chastity. Although he would generously give Krsna conscious advice to both men and women, toward us women he was always aloof and respectful, addressing us affectionately as \u201cMaaaataaaa.\u201d A friend shared with me recently that although she had met Kanai Thakur only twice, she remembers him as having been very encouraging to her in her Krsna consciousness and in her service to the Vaisnavas. Her sentiments are shared by many souls, far and wide.<\/p>\n The preparations for Kanai\u2019s last rites as well as the ceremony had covered two days, and ended Saturday, May 2, at around 5:00 pm. Thirteen days later, we gathered again at Hanja to celebrate the departure of our dear friend. Sheetalanga Gauranga Prabhu of Udupi conducted a beautiful fire sacrifice\u2014the Sudarshana-Narasimha-yajna\u2014in honor of Kanai Thakur. Haripada dasa led a blissful kirtan. Srinatha Krsna Prabhu and other devotees from Brahmavara and surrounding areas cooked a fantastic feast, offered it to Kanai\u2019s beloved Deities, Sri Sri Radha-Muralidhara, and then lovingly served the prasadam to all who had come. Radha-Muralidhara\u2019s prasadam was honored enthusiastically by many villagers as well as by all the assembled devotees. As the blissful, purifying celebrations concluded, we all felt very happy and confident that our dear Lord Krsna had taken our beloved friend Kanai Thakur dasa back home, back to Godhead. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Kanai Thakur dasa was beloved by all the devotees, and a siksha guru for many. He was so popular that if someone would mention his name in a crowd, immediately there would be smiles on all the faces of those who heard his name, and even laughter would bubble up from inside their hearts. Kanaiji was so Krsna conscious and so blissful that his enthusiasm for pure Krsna consciousness was infectious. From my own personal experience with Kanai Thakur, there is one quality I admired in him, and that was his chastity. Although he would generously give Krsna conscious advice to both men and women, toward us women he was always aloof and respectful, addressing us affectionately as \u201cMaaaataaaa.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-in-memoriam"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18485"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18485\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18487,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18485\/revisions\/18487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Hare](\"https:\/\/lh3.googleusercontent.com\/-GvKqc5ApbZM\/VanmLSSi_bI\/AAAAAAAARJc\/gFCbXvsGH0Y\/s0\/2015-07-18_07-37-49.jpg\")
By Phalini Devi Dasi<\/strong><\/p>\n