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In London, Gurudev was greeted by thousands of Jains and non-Jains who had traveled over long distances to have Gurudev's darśan and to attend his discourses. There were thunderous cheers of “Jai Mahāvir!" and "Jai Chitrabhanuji!" Shri Dahyabhai Meghani was delighted and grateful to be the host for Gurudev and Shantilal during their stay.
During his week in London, Gurudev gave seven public lectures. Most of his talks were given in English, for his fellow countrymen felt that his lucid insights should be available to more than just the Indian population. Two of the lectures were arranged by the Hindu Mission and the Hindu Center of London to celebrate the occasion of Mahāvir Jayanti. Outside of London, he spoke at Oxford and Cambridge Universities as well.
At that time, an old friend, Mr. Jean Grimple, art historian and writer, who had come to Gurudev's Sunday discourse in Bombay several years before, invited Gurudev to meet the grandson of the renowned Charles Darwin. His host was eager to exchange views with this philosopher from India. In the few hours spent together, Mr. Darwin saw evolution from a fresh angle of vision. In this light, he became inspired to try a vegetarian diet for at least two years.
The cold and damp weather in England did not bother Gurudev. He met his steady schedule of talks, some of which were televised by the B.B.C. A special program took place through Radio Canada as well.
Often Gurudev was on the move from early morning one day till late afternoon the next. Even the robust Shantilal could not always keep up with him. One morning he told Gurudev that he would have to take one day of complete rest. Gurudev told him, “You will be all right. See how you feel in fifteen minutes.” Then he left the room.
“To this day I don't know what happened,” Shantilal recalled, “but within a few minutes I felt like a normal man again and was able to keep pace with Gurudev the rest of the time!” The vast halls where Gurudev spoke were crowded to
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