By Geoffrey D. Falk from his book "Stripping the Gurus"
It may take a minute, an hour, a day, a year, ten years or more, but eventually the details of one’s behaviors are likely to surface. Whether one’s public face is that of a saint or a sinner, ultimately “the truth will out.”
This text will not likely change the mind of any loyal disciple of any of the spiritual figures and paths specifically addressed herein. Indeed, no amount of evidence of alleged abuse or hypocrisy on the part of those leaders could do so, for followers who are convinced that they have found “God in the flesh,” in their spiritual hero. (Swami Sevaratna’s comment: Every Monday I have a firsthand experience of that).
The “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” approach to life, simply allows the relevant problems to continue. No one should ever turn a blind eye to secular crimes of forgery, incest, rape or the like. Much less should those same crimes be so readily excused or forgiven when they are alleged to occur in spiritual contexts. That is so particularly when they are claimed to be perpetrated by leaders and followers insisting that they have “God on their side,” and that any resistance to their reported blunders or rumored power-tripping abuses equates to being influenced by Maya/Satan.
To say nothing in the face of evil, after all, is to implicitly con-done it. Or equally, as the saying goes, “For evil to triumph in this world, it is only necessary for good people to do nothing.”
If we are really interested in truth, we should still welcome having the hypocrisies and (alleged) abusive evils of persons in positions of spiritual authority be laid bare to the world. Exposing them to the public eye, after all, is the only way to get them to stop.
You were gradually having your freedom taken away from you, and it was done by such subtle means, you were unaware as to what was happening.
This text will not likely change the mind of any loyal disciple of any of the spiritual figures and paths specifically addressed herein. Indeed, no amount of evidence of alleged abuse or hypocrisy on the part of those leaders could do so, for followers who are convinced that they have found “God in the flesh,” in their spiritual hero. (Swami Sevaratna’s comment: Every Monday I have a firsthand experience of that).
The “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” approach to life, simply allows the relevant problems to continue. No one should ever turn a blind eye to secular crimes of forgery, incest, rape or the like. Much less should those same crimes be so readily excused or forgiven when they are alleged to occur in spiritual contexts. That is so particularly when they are claimed to be perpetrated by leaders and followers insisting that they have “God on their side,” and that any resistance to their reported blunders or rumored power-tripping abuses equates to being influenced by Maya/Satan.
To say nothing in the face of evil, after all, is to implicitly con-done it. Or equally, as the saying goes, “For evil to triumph in this world, it is only necessary for good people to do nothing.”
With “gods” like these, we do not need devils.
The “perfection” and infallibility of their own leader is not open to questioning.
The “unique” claims of one’s own path are also being made, equally untenably, by numerous other paths.
If we are really interested in truth, we should still welcome having the hypocrisies and (alleged) abusive evils of persons in positions of spiritual authority be laid bare to the world. Exposing them to the public eye, after all, is the only way to get them to stop.
You were gradually having your freedom taken away from you, and it was done by such subtle means, you were unaware as to what was happening.
Swami Sevaratna
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