Sai Baba, Vishwananda etc; the question of godmen

An increasing concern on the subject of bogus gurus has initiated the motivation to write a passage on the question of Godmen which hopefully attempts to provoke a deeper enquiry into the nature of gurus and the so-called enlightened beings who have become increasingly fashionable in the quest for divine growth.

What I have learned is that an uplifting spiritual experience can become quite addictive. One may wonder what wrong there can be in that. Surely the point of spiritual upliftment for most of us is to yearn for more until we reach inner fulfillment or peace! The most common problem facing the modern spiritual seeker is lack of adequate guidance. A specific avenue can seem quite tempting but may in fact be potentially detrimental, even disastrous, to an individual. Wandering through a few avenues of attaining spiritual heights, stories have arisen; stories of abuse of yogic power, scandal, lust, sexual abuse, kundalini mistreatment, possession, imposed soul ties and severe mental and emotional torment. Hence it is worth delving more deeply into the essence and nature of these ostensibly great beings. Invariably there appears to be an increase in the number of persons with a great deal of yogic power who are able to make a very lucrative living from demonstrating such abilities although having no sincere interest in the spiritual development of their followers. They may conduct themselves in a way that suggests that they have great abilities and knowledge, but will they really stand the test of time as individuals advance in their own intellectual and spiritual awareness. Unfortunately a surprising number of individuals, particularly women in their twenties, thirties and forties have found themselves in unsolicited, and usually vulnerable positions at times. Tragically their stories often remain obscured as societal pressure and judgement disallows their freedom of expression. Moreover many of them find themselves entrapped by the false spiritual teacher, master, guru or swami and fear prevents them from voicing their afflictions.

Although most of these bogus gurus are men, there are a few women as well who also operate in the West claiming to be avatars or enlightened souls who also demonstrate questionable practices. The obvious way of detecting their authenticity is whether there is any obligation to pay an amount of money including the so-called 'minimum donation' for what is called 'darshan' or divine transmission of blessings. There should never be an obligation to provide any money for just being in the presence of someone, especially someone who claims to be a master or avatar. A true avatar will never demand anything from anyone and will give freely of themselves as part of their unconditional love.

It must also be said that many of the numerous channels of spiritual development are indeed full of love and wisdom and can be extremely uplifting to its diciples and followers. However blind acceptance is not the answer and furthermore, demonstration by one of yogic or other forms of power does not necessarily equate to an enlightened being. One does have to question the nature of the so-called Godmen.

Sri Sathya Sai Baba is a primary example - God incarnate or Avatar, man of miracles, spiritual giant or fake (as many recent reports would have you believe). With his trademark afro of disctiction, he has become increasingly shrouded in controversy over the last few years. His followers are numerous, many millions worldwide; a few are profoundly devoted, a greater proportion are primarily seeking his blessing and benevolence as one who can take care of them and cure them of their varied problems. Alongside his controversies are his acts of great deeds - a thriving town in a remote part of India with a university and hospital of distinction (free of charge to all). Then there are the overwhelming reports of his remarkable miracles of materialisation, being in two totally different places at the same time, curing the sick and even raising the dead. So the decision on this god-man may be a difficult one to make.

Then there are the young upcoming gurus who again seem to find their niche in the West, especially with the increasing number of younger people interested in exploring the spiritual world who remain the obvious targets. See the growing appeal of the so-called young yogi from Mauritius - Swami Vishwananda (also known as Visham). The free flowing praise of him from his followers overshadows those who knew him growing up in Mauritius as someone who had an affinity with Sathya Sai Baba as well, having gone frequently to his ashram. Mauritian sources make mention that he was married to someone in Europe a number of years ago and would also request money from individuals in his home area to visit Sai Baba's ashram periodically in his more youthful days (bearing in mind he is still in his twenties). Yet in recent years there appears to be a detachment from Sathya Sai Baba, with Vishwananda branching off on his own, aligning himself elsewhere and consolidating his own organisation. He has claimed to be the reincarnation of Yogananda, of 'autobiography of a yogi' fame. Whether this is true or not, it is worth remembering that rumours have surrounded Yogananda himself as being something of the ladies man (and perhaps also fathering a child). So the jury's out on this one! As for Vishwananda, the irony is that many of his initial supporters have been followers of Sathya Sai Baba as well and his disconnection gives rise to obvious talk among circles. Vishwananda has become more well known among devotees of Sai Baba, especially in the UK and recent responses refer to younger, more vulnerable women being the target of malpractice (even at a sexual level) after going to see Vishwananda. Apparently a group (predominently from Germany) went to Sai Baba's ashram last year to receive healing after having very challenging experiences with Vishwananda. A few were reported to have received the necessary help. Others perhaps have not been fortunate enough as yet.
One of the difficult things to make sense of is that whatever your impressions of Sathya Sai Baba, he remains an elderly figure with an immense and established following reputed to be engaged in humanitarian activities around the world - this is not a celebration of the organisation which has consolidated around him but an acceptance of the kind of work that has been done as directed over the years. Hence regardless of Vishwananda's abilities or powers, he is still a young man in his late twenties or so who cannot be compared to someone of the kind of stature of Sai Baba. It is bizarre then that he would aim to connect to followers of this elderly guru (or god-man if you believe this) and at the same time dis-associate from him as an avatar whom he once followed as well - unless, of course, it has become a mere case of competition. One wonders whether Sai Baba may have something in store for those who are riding the gravy train, so to speak.

And so the questions continue about these god-men and enlightened beings..........


On a more sensitive note, if you feel you would like to share a story that you may normally find difficult to talk about regarding seemingly enlightened beings, feel free to comment here (anonymous or otherwise).
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VISHWANANDA WARNING UPDATE

http://vishwanandawarning.blogspot.com

VISHWANANDA UPDATE

http://vishwananda-shenanigans.blogspot.com/

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.VIREN'S SHENANIGANS - UPDATES

A bit of fun on the comment below on Vishwananda being the demon that killed Kusha. Spoofed a blog tied in with some factual info - this is a bit of easy reading on the monthly updates for Viren!!
http://thequestionofgodmen.blogspot.com/2007_05_01_archive.html

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REFLECTION ON FEMALE GURUS

http://female-gurus.blogspot.com/

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VISHWANANDA WARNING UPDATE

http://vishwanandawarning.blogspot.com



* RELATED LINK: (SUVEN'S BLOGSITE)
http://violetflame-suven.blogspot.com

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