To: K-list
Recieved: 2002/09/21 09:54
Subject: [K-list] From the list archives, mar 2 1998. On Gurus.
From: Mystress Angelique Serpent
On 2002/09/21 09:54, Mystress Angelique Serpent posted thus to the K-list:
http://www.kundalini-gateway.org/klist/k1998/k98d00164.html
From: Afperry <AfperryATnospamaol.com>
To: richardATnospamskydancer.com
Cc: Kundalini-lATnospamexecpc.com
Subject: Re. Enlightenment & Gurus
Dear Richard,
I was most interested in your posting; this is a difficult area where emotions
and egos are constantly muddying the already turbulent waters!
IMHO, the majority of 'gurus' in this world are more like businessmen/women
than teachers. I am regularly appalled by the pure commercialism of much that
passes for spirituality, especially here in the West, and I have serious
doubts about the private motivation of many professed gurus - even though they
may have attained a considerable spiritual height (God and mammon do not
appear to be mutually exclusive until the final straight!). However it is
important not to throw away the baby with the bath
water........................ :-)
I am fascinated by the evidence that even from the highest spiritual level,
one can fall - and fall very badly. The recent case of Swami Premananda in
Tamil Nadu is particularly disturbing: openly recognised as one of the great
living gurus of India, and one of the very few who still produces materialised
lingams from inside him on the night of Mahashivaratri (i.e. not just an
acquired siddhi), Premananda is currently serving life imprisonment for the
rape of several of his female disciples and for being an accessory to murder.
How is this possible? And the fact that it obviously is possible raises the
awkward question "After all my spiritual efforts, could it still happen to
me?". The Indian epics are full of stories about spiritually-advanced souls
who fell at the final hurdle, and what about dear old Lucifer
himself..................
During my life, I have been blessed with close contact with a number of
gurus, male and female, mainly Indian or Sri Lankan but one American. All
these have been beyond reproach as regards their individual life-styles, even
though I have not always agreed with everything they say and do, but several
striking similarities can be clearly seen in those I have met who are God-
Realised (which may not all be apparent in those who are just spiritually-
advanced):
1. They actually live their message, there is no inconsistency at any level
that I am aware of. They teach love and service and they live love and
service.
2. None of them charges money for access to them (even though their attendant
organisations can often be subtly commercial), surviving on donations, etc.
The general feel has always been "Mother Lakshmi will provide", and She does.
3. None has ever tried to recruit disciples or to expand his/her organisation
by manipulating devotees. Each has shown by example that the sole
consideration is the spiritual advancement of the individual and, furthermore,
that their function as an external guru is simply to lead the disciple to
their inner guru, our God source within, and to a point where the disciple can
rely totally on that and no longer needs the external figure. The real guru
frees, he does not bind.
4. The possession of siddhis can never be a guideline, but all God-Realised
teachers will have power/shakti. You will feel it in their presence, in their
words, their writings and around everything to do with them. This power is
transformative, purging, purifying, cleansing and, often, churning to the very
core. And the teachers themselves will never claim it is their power - only
that they are instruments of God, bringing that shakti to help others.
Humility and honesty are very clear Divine traits.
5. All the God-Realised teachers I have been involved with saw God equally in
all religions and cultures, and would not even classify themselves as
necessarily Hindu. They teach universality because that is what they have
become. There can be no sectarianism at this level, nor any dogma.
6. Finally, a tree is known by its fruits. In assessing the worth of any
spiritual teacher, I have found the finest method is to bypass the figurehead,
who may be very charismatic, and look closely at those around him/her. Do you
like what you see or not? Fawning acolytes or earnest sadhakas, etc. etc.?
Discrimination is a critical faculty that we all need to develop and all gurus
can help us to do that, whether Rajneesh, Sai Baba or Da Free John. I recall
the words of Mabel Collins earlier this century: "No man is your enemy, no man
is your friend. All alike are your teachers". We should do well to remember
that!
With blessings,
Alan
http://www.kundalini-gateway.org
http://www.domin8rex.com/serpent/spirit/kindex.htm
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