bond

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Jesus and John the Baptist

10

by Terry McGilloway

the difference between a statement of

truth and the pronouncement of a fact.

“A just and truthful action always results

in good, whereas your statement of a fact,

which resulted in great harm to yourself and

to that man, was far from ultimate truth.

“Why didn’t you point in the wrong

direction in the forest and save yourself from

harm, and also save the man’s life?

“Even if you had committed the sin of

uttering a falsehood, that would have been

less sinful than the horrible sin of being an

instrument in the murder of an innocent man.

“By your silence, you let him think that

you would protect him, and deprived him of

the opportunity of seeking another hiding

place unknown to you. Then, to save yourself,

you betrayed him.”

Jama continued: “Honored saint, know

that a truthful action always brings good

results, and is different from a statement of a

fact which may produce good or evil.

Always give preference to an action that

results in good.

“To say, ‘Hey, Mr. Lame Man,’ or, ‘Hey,

Mr. Blind Man,’ to a lame man or a blind

man may be a statement of a fact, but it

would be untruthful because not conducive

to any good.

“To say: ‘Hello, Perfect One,’ or ‘Hello,

IN AUTOBIOGRAPHY of a Yogi and

other writings, Paramhansa Yogananda

reveals the identity of Jesus Christ in a past

life, and also of Jesus’ guru from that life. He

discloses how Jesus met his guru again in his

life as Jesus, but under unusual circumstances

in a kind of role reversal!

Yogananda tells us that in their past

lives, John the Baptist was the great

prophet Elijah and Jesus was his foremost

disciple, Elisha. He writes that by the time

of their respective incarnations as Jesus and

John, Jesus had attained Self-realization

whereas John did so only at the end of

that lifetime.

A lesson in divine fiendship

The lesson Yogananda shares is one of

divine friendship:

how the

disciple and

guru remain

in an eternal

bond of soul

helping soul.

This deeper

understanding

of Jesus’ life makes it clear that the Bible

itself discloses that the doctrine of reincarnation

was widely accepted by the Jewish

people of ancient times, and by Jesus as well.

Elijah and Elisha in the Old Testament

The explanation Yogananda gives is not

as difficult to discern from the Bible as it

might seem at first. Let us go back in time

through the pages of the Bible to Kings II,

Chapter 2.

It is a brief chapter, and we read here that

when Elijah the prophet became aware that

he was soon to leave his body, he offered

his disciple, Elisha, a boon, saying, in

effect, “Ask what you want of me before I

leave you.”

Elisha’s response shows the intensity of

his spiritual quest, for without missing a

beat, he responds, one imagines rather

eagerly, “Let a double portion of thy spirit

be upon me!”

The Guru grants a boon

Elijah withdraws into silence seeking

the divine sanction necessary to grant such

a request.

Receiving it, Elijah sets one condition:

“Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless,

if thou see me when

I am taken from

thee, it shall be so

unto thee; but if not,

it shall not be so.”

(Thereafter Elisha

doesn’t let his guru

out of his sight!)

When Elijah leaves his body, the Bible

says that Elisha then took up Elijah’s “mantle,”

which Yogananda explains was “his

glory and his spiritual wealth.”

Soon thereafter, when the rest of Elijah’s

disciples saw Elisha, they could see that “the

spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha.” 1

“I will send you Elijah”

Let us now move forward in time and in

scripture to the closing words of the Old

Testament by the prophet Malachi.

Strong Man,’ or ‘Hello, Man of Spiritual

Vision’ may not be statements of fact, but

they are wholesome in their effect.

Therefore, they are the truth.

“At the same time, remember that it is

not good to indulge in cheap lies. Suppose I

secretly saw you meditating in your room

and knocked on your door and inquired,

‘Mr. Saint, what were you doing?’

“If you replied: ‘I was eating bananas,’

you would have sacrificed my trust by lying

to be modest. If you had answered my question

with: ‘Well, I was just a little busy,’ I

couldn’t accuse you of lying nor could I

blame you for that evasion.

“Honored saint, one should avoid cheap

prevarication for by this habit you lose the

trust of everyone. One may distort facts

only when it is a question of life and death,

and an unjustly accused person can be saved.

“One should develop the habit of speaking

the truth without unnecessarily advertising

all one’s secrets. For if you tell your

weaknesses to false friends, they will poke

fun at you whenever the occasion arises.”

Concluding, the great Jama said, “Avoid

repeating unpleasant facts. Always speak

and act in a way that will bring lasting happiness

to yourself and others.”

from the Praecepta Lessons, 1935

The Eternal Bond of Guru and Disciple

Far right, Yogananda at age 16.

In their past lives, John the Baptist

was the great prophet Elijah and Jesus

was his foremost disciple, Elisha.