Jayapataka Swami Age, Family, Biography

Bio/Wiki
Birth Name	Gordon John Erdman II
Other Name(s)	• Jayapataka Dasa Brahmachari • Tridandi Biksu Jayapataka Swami • His Holiness • Maharaja • Guru Maharaj
Profession(s)	Spiritual Leader, Author
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	5' 10" (178 cm)
Eye Colour	Grey
Hair Colour	Black (semi-bald)
Career
Awards	• Mayapur Book Distribution Award (2023) • Bhakti Vaibhava Degree by Mayapur Institute (2023)
Personal Life
Date of Birth	9 April 1949 (Saturday)
Age (as of 2024)	75 Years
Birthplace	Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
Zodiac sign	Aries
Nationality	• American (1949-1979) • Indian (1979-present)
Hometown	Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
School	St. John's Northwestern Military Academy, Delafield, Wisconsin
College/University	Brown University, Rhode Island, United States
Educational Qualification	College Dropout
Religion	Hinduism
Sect	Vaishnavism
Blood Group	B Positive
Food Habit	Vegetarian [1]Facebook - Jayapataka Swami
Hobby	Travelling
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Unmarried
Family
Wife/Spouse	N/A
Parents	Father- John Hubert Mother- Lorraine Erdman
Social Media
Instagram	jayapatakaswamionline
Facebook	Jayapataka Swami
Twitter	JayapatakaSwami
YouTube	Jayapataka Swami

Some Lesser Known Facts About Jayapataka Swami

• He passed with the highest score from St. John’s Academy at the age of 14.

• According to sources, at the age of 17, Jayapataka Swami cured a skin disease by himself just by taking the name of God.

• After he passed out of the academy, he was offered full scholarships from the top universities around America.

• He got the inspiration to search for a spiritual teacher after he heard a lecture about Gautam Buddha at Brown University.

• After leaving University, he was prepared to leave for India to seek a spiritual teacher but stopped by when he found out the devotees of Swami Prabhupada in America.

• In 1968, he visited the ISKCON temple for the first time in San Fransico, during the Rath Yatra preparations. He helped Jayananda Prabhu in the Rath Yatra service by building Lord Jagannatha’s cart.

• After two months of visiting the ISKCON temple, he decided to become a devotee himself and followed the principles of ISKCON.

• In 1968, took his first initiation in Montreal, Canada, and was renamed from Gordon John to Jayapataka Dasa Brahmachari.

• In 1969, Jayapataka Swami was sent to West Bengal by Srila Prabhupada to offer service to the people of Bengal.
  

  Jayapataka Swami with Srila Prabhupada and other disciples

• After reaching West Bengal he learnt Bengali from the local people, conducted house programs, organised pandal programs, and distributed religious books to the people.

• After the ISCKON temple was established in Mayapur, West Bengal, he started engaging himself in agriculture with local farmers to grow crops, which helped him raise funds for the temple.
  

  ISKCON Mayapur Temple in West Bengal

• In 1970, Jayapataka Swami became sannyasi. Srila Prabhupada personally performed the fire yajna for his sannyasi initiation. After that, Jayapataka dasa was known as Tridandi Biksu Jayapataka Swami.

• In 1977, Mayapur was attacked by local villagers who wanted to loot. Later, some devotees were arrested during the incident. To protest, Jayapataka Swami and the devotees came together and organised a big procession from Mayapur to the Chand Kazi samadhi and then to the Jagannath temple in Puri, Odisha. The march consisted of 25,000 people and 168 kirtan groups.

• Jayapataka Swami Maharaja made an ISKCON Sankirtan Organisation to preach the teachings of Lord Krishna. He developed the idea to educate the villagers who visited the temple so that they could return and spread the teachings in their villages.
  

  Jayapataka Swami preaching

• After Srila Prabhupada’s disappearance, Swami developed his preaching method by introducing the system of Namahatta and Bhakti Vrska.

• In 1978, Jayapataka Swami provided relief supplies for the villagers during the Bengal floods.
  

  Jayapataka Swami distributing food during the West Bengal flood

• He is the chairman of the Food for Life initiative and ISKCON Food Relief Programs.

• He translated Bhakti Siddhanta Sarasvati Thakura’s Bengali poem ‘Vaishnav Ke?’ to correct the ideas of ritvikism written in the poem. He has written the book titled rtvik- maya-vada-sata dushani to point out the importance of initiation.
  

• In 1979, Jayapataka Swami got the Indian citizenship.

• Some of the other posts of Jayapataka Swami Maharaja in ISKCON are Zonal Secretary seva in various states of India and abroad, GBC committees Constitutional and Law Revision Committee member, ISKCON Publication Review Board Member, Mayapur-Vrindavana Festival Committee member, Philosophical research group, deity worship handbook committee, Mayapur Development Committee member, and Exhibits and Theme park Department Head Land Department Head.

• He is one of the founders of the World Hindu Federation, which was established in 1981.

• Jayapataka Swami was diagnosed with a brain haemorrhage in 2008.
  

  Jayapataka Swami after brain haemorrhage