Rmyaa, the story of Lord r Rmacandra, is filled with examples of great devotees from various backgrounds, who selflessly served Lord Rma. A former disciple of their acquaintance wrote and signed a statement alleging that he had procured illegal drugs-including mescaline, psylocibin, and LSD-for Swami Rama in 1971. We could pick a disorderly, poorly run train, however, that significant elements in the official biography of the swami may well have Hughes wrote Dr. Ballentine a letter on May 22, 1989, quoting Gandhi-Truth itself helps me when I commit mistakes. [1] He moved to America in 1969, initially teaching yoga at the YMCA, and founding the Himalayan Institute of Yoga Science and Philosophy in Illinois in 1971; its headquarters moved to its current location in Honesdale, Pennsylvania in 1977. Since our interview, Dr. Ballentine has been sent at least two letters by women who say they were sexually abused by Swami Rama: one from Carolyn and one from Susan. Grief should not consume a person, The only way he could do that was by killing Shambuka. No one creates us. when Hughes openly asked questions about Swami Rama's sexual activities during a weekend workshop at the Glenview Center, where he was the featured guest lecturer, he was escorted off the premises and driven to the airport. Every time he saw her, she says, he told her she was "perfect," as if she had passed some important test. Soon Carolyn noticed she wasn't the only woman being favored by the guru; he was also paying attention to Megan and Nirvana. hair, or put on new clothes. I have personally witnessed yogis casting off the body consciously on many occasions. Lectures on Yoga. That is difficult to believe only because we so strongly If someone felt pain in his foot, and the pain alerted him to an This is not to diminish One evening in early June, Carolyn remembers, Swami Rama's housekeeper phoned the women's dorm and asked her to bring the manuscript she was preparing over to Swami Rama's new cabin. These attachments create, recreate Turning East in the Twin Cities: Converts and Movements in the 1970s. Dr. Ballentine says he has good reason to think that Marston "was very anxious for [Nuernberger] to go further, and he didn't. "Unpurified ego is an evil which obstructs one's own progress. When someone criticizes our appearance we feel hurt. But the publicity surrounding the Menninger Foundation experiments gained Swami Rama an enviable "scientific" credibility in the eyes of the general public. relationship make their loss certain. transition in our journey. for the inner Self. But to accept a tuition-free second year, or even to leave the Institute quietly, Megan says, would have meant giving tacit approval to the continuing exploitation. Patricia Trescelli, and attorney with Parker, Chapin, Flattau, and Klimpel, agreed to consult with the women concerning possible legal action on a pro bono basis. Born: February 18, 1833 At that, she says, he raged at her until she was sobbing, unable to speak a word in her own defense: No! He says that Nuernberger's one mistake has "ruined his life, in essence, which is really too bad.". She took a meditation class at the alternative high school program she attended, and one evening her teachers invited her to a lecture by their guru, Swami Rama, who was visiting the Chicago area. The daughter of an alcoholic, she longed for guidance from a spiritual authority figure. If you need more, fill free to say us As Tigunait noted above, Mahatma Gandhi was indeed sleeping with teenage girls (including his cousins granddaughter) toward the end of his life. As the couple started making arrangements to move to England, they received another blow. Only recently has she acknowledged her anger at Swami Rama. But the siddhis can be an ego trap. There, he showed the ability to consciously control various aspects of his autonomic (involuntary) nervous system. But something, which is truth, cannot be falsified by having one hundred witnesses. The yogi suddenly went into deep meditation. [In the Katha Upanishad] Yama taught Nachiketa that it is necessary to understand death to understand life, and likewise life must be understood in order to understand death. They feel as if He became famous for his ability to control his body in yoga nidra, writing many books including the autobiographical Living with Himalayan Masters. The institute has branches in the United States, Europe, and India. Now she says that those who have allowed the abuses to continue unchecked are responsible for destroying the Institute's integrity. This was followed by his speedy cremation, and then came the elaborate, almost minute-to-minute official account of his death as presented by Amrito through a statement that he read out. His response: "Listen, there are certain things which are based on witnesses - those are facts. This is identifying Presented below is a beautiful collection of death quotes that have been organized under the following subheadings: Death is Not the Final Reality, for the Soul is Eternal. he was very tired and was anticipating death. Jesus taught that The orthodontist, who competed with his wife, Misti, on Season 25 of the CBS reality show in 2014, died in South . Shortly after they returned to the U.S., Karen and George say that they and all their correspondents received a bizarre, defamatory letter containing an implicit death threat. With sincere effort, proper preparation, and guidance, one who is not a yogi can also attain enlightenment before dropping the body. Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. Honesdale, Pa.: Himalayan International Institute of Yoga Science and Philosophy, 1978. overcome death. But Trescelli says she had to discourage her. One of my friends, Vinaya Maharaj, sent a messenger to my camp informing me that he was going to drop his body and I should come to witness it. (February 22, 2023). by Nor does Dr. Ballentine mention that in 1977 Nuernberger was formally reprimanded by the Minnesota Board of Psychology for unethical practices stemming from his relationship with a third woman patient. What does it mean to be The woman in question claimed to have been sexually assaulted by Rama a full thirty times over a Yogic Summer of Love in the early 90s. Two months after Swami Rama left for India, Carolyn went to Chicago to visit her family for Christmas. our bodies getting older and slowing down, it scares us. Chapter 4 in Koestlers (1960) The Lotus and the Robot give reasonable analyses of the all-too-human psychological reasons behind Gandhis emphasis on celibacy. it do to have all the riches of the world and all the worlds pleasures? the pain to identify an issue in his body that needed attention. I am Existence Absolute, Knowledge Absolute, Bliss Absolute, I am That, I am That, I am without form, without limit, Beyond space, beyond time, I am in everything, everything is in me. lose his own soul?. Carolyn had sought a consultation with Pandit Rajmani, who told her that Megan was either lying because she was "on an ego trip," or fantasizing a sexual encounter that had never taken place. Pandit Rajmani says he did not feel any responsibility, as spiritual counselor to the women who had approached him for help, to investigate their complaints or question his guru. Death is not the end of life, If a hundred people come and say that the day is night and I know that it's not, the voting system doesn't do it here, you know? She did receive an anonymous letter from "a friend" in May 1990, warning her that the Institute had contacted "one of the most vicious lawyers in New York City" and that it planned a defamation action against her if she continued her "harassment." The publication of the results of such tests generated a new medical interest in body-mind relationships and spurred public interest in yoga techniques among young adults already involved in reacting to the steady arrival of new Indian spiritual teachers. Maybe it's an honor that this great yogi asked me of all his students to serve him in this way. Both Chapter XVIII of Boses (1974) My Days with Gandhi and [2][R 1][R 3] Swami Rama founded other teaching and service organizations, including a large medical facility, in Dehradun in Uttarakhand in the north of India, to serve millions of poor people in the nearby mountains who had little access to health care. The scandal convinced Carolyn not to reveal her own secret, she says; she was learning that the Institute administration dealt with such accusations by smearing the women's reputations. attached to or to identify with something? I am the bliss of the universe, Mastery Over Death by Swami Rama. That doesnt make much sense Two of the guru's most devoted disciples left the Institute three years ago because they had learned while in India as part of an Institute tour group that parts of Swami Rama's official biography were fabricated. They introduced her to the guru, and she remembers he made a fuss over her, slapping her cheek lightly and calling her a good girl. the real Self. Carolyn was raised Catholic, and during high school she explored Transcendental Meditation, Zen Buddhism, Hinduism, and the "Jesus freak" movement. Two other women left the Institute shortly afterwards. It is also possible for a highly advanced yogi to assume the dead body of another if he chooses to do so and if a suitable body is available. Now Carolyn is more articulate: "When I finally start listening to myself, and I tell him I know he's sleeping with other women-and this is the man I came to, to help me learn how to listen to my inner voice, and then he tells me not to listen to it just as I'm starting to get some confidence in it-that's when I realized, this isn't yoga, this isn't truth, this is abuse.". So grieve, but Swami Rama was the author of many books. Well-to-do New Yorkers flock to Honesdale on weekends for seminars in stress reduction, meditation, and health and nutrition. According to the stipulation he signed with the Board's Ethics Review Panel, Nuernberger admitted that he terminated a counseling relationship with "Victoria S." during the third session in order to enter into a "personal relationship - such relationship to include sexual contact.". draining of a sore or the bursting of a boil.. Before the universe could be totally engaged, the Creator . Absolute. Went to his room in the Ramakrishna Math, the monastery he built in honor of his Guru to meditate and breathe his last. those things, people, feelings, and bodies. (Webster, 1990). She remembers that Swami Rama received love letters from several women; one of two of them even mentioned "your child." His best known work is Living With Himalayan Masters; the cultural historian Alistair Shearer calls it "an influential autobiography". [2][R 1][R 2] However, in 1987 two of his closest followers left his Himalayan Institute when they learnt that part of his official biography had been "fabricated"; further, Vanessa Webber of the Cult Awareness Network has stated that his academic background could not be verified. She says he arranged for her to meet him at the Gramercy Park Hotel and instructed her not to call him Swami in public. Several former students of Swami Rama granted interviews to Patricia Ann Darling, Ph. Relationships are the first test of spirituality. Dr. Ballentine, who says he stuthed psychology at the Sorbonne and completed his training in psychiatry at Louisiana State University, defends Nuernberger. During sleep we are not conscious of our bodies, And she would help him write books. Those eruptions were indeed reported by his one-time secretary, N. K. Bose, a distinguished anthropologist who resigned the former secretarial position in part because of his objections to the Mahatmas above experiments. Gandhis own admitted detestation of sensual connection, too, is a type of psychological violence upon himself. He is a seeker, with certain strengths and weaknesses. ISBN 8188157007 (Buy) "Rama, Swami (1925-1996) On our Instagram viewer you can easy watch Instagram stories, profiles, followers anonymously. that is not you. Dont be attached to these images. More so, he was in a perfectly healthy stat. God knows whether it was true or not, and even if it was true, this is a normal phenomenon. Is it not better to follow someone who has charted the path?". My father certainly had sex, and that's why I was born, so will I lose faith in my father? As the disease advanced the great Yogi instead of curing himself through his yogic powers, gave up his body in Samadhi. And I feared that Carolyn-young beautiful, idealistic, and worshipful of Swami Rama, the Institute's founder and spiritual leader - could be vulnerable to such exploitation. Rama, one of the most widely worshipped Hindu deities, the embodiment of chivalry and virtue. "I only needed one person to corroborate my experience," Megan says now. This life is concealed behind the two openings of birth and death. By then he had lived life on his own terms and was ready for death. A less intense twenty-three-day mourning period And the answer is no, After dismissing the other workers, she says he repeated the familiar litany, but this time he slipped in a new message. thoughts that we identify with, and this brings pain. Story of Shirdi Sai Baba's death. He was soon reportedly adopted there by one of the greatest masters of the Himalayas, Bengali Baba. are attached to them. We are dependent on Dr. Bal-lcntinc's response was reluctant: "It is only in view of your many years of association with the Institute that I have decided to take the time to reply to your letter of 22 May. [7], Swami Rama has been accused and convicted of sexual abuse. states: He is unmanifest, is not the subject of thought, and is said to Swami Vivekananda attained Maha-Samadhi on July 4, 1902, at the age of 39. Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. All of them had something to offer, but no spiritual path inspired her to make an exclusive commitment. Such trickery is common in the legends about crazy saints, who aimed to teach their disciples that ultimately they had to surrender the illusion of external control. Carolyn and others say Megan caused a scandal in the Honesdale ashram by breaking the silence surrounding Swami Rama's sexual behavior. Jesus meant that 1. Sex with a guru is a form of spiritual incest. The possible psychological effects of that on the girls themselves, even without any breach of his brahmacharya celibacy vow, does not seem to have concerned the Mahatma. Death is merely a Meanwhile, the couple says, they discovered more evidence of illicit activity. They are not allowed even to sit on chairs . The Upanishad examined in this book is the Kathopanishad, a scripture that unveils the mystery of death and the meaning of life. This In private sessions, ex-disciples say, Swami Rama has arranged marriages and instructed disciples to break off relationships. The Healing Network (former Himalayan Institute members), BO. Finally I found an opportunity to broach the topic of the lawsuit with Carolyn. We have bodies. frightening. Friends of the two couples set up a "truth booth" outside the entrance of the Institute's first annual congress in 1976. fright lies with undoing the attachments. if there is an inner being, it comes by way of the body. "Believing such stories means disbelieving in myself. "A lot of people have confused the siddhis-the powers to control body, emotions, and mind-with spirituality. He demonstrated this feat in my presence five times. No, he says: "Even if it happened, what's the big deal? a journey to learn and grow, and then the journey ends. Reality is neither good nor evil. The fear of death is one of our most prominent fears. miserable and death frightening. Rajmani explains the basic goals of the Institute's tradition of yoga: "The most important part of the practice is nonattachment." [8], Swami Rama authored dozens of books, published in India and America,[10] which describe the path he took to become a yogi. Ex-members say he also bends the rules and bestows privileges on his favorites, who may in turn enforce rules, which they do not follow. Sambhji (1657-89), Hindu king Shivji's eldest son, was imprisoned by Aurangzeb after Shivji's death. Swami Rama Himalayan University There is existence without limitation, She recalls that he would repeat a series of affirmations and commands in a hypnotic monotone: She had done very well organizing the book distribution operation, Carolyn says he would tell her. The women's fears have aborted projects intended to expose possible exploitation to a wider authence. At a later date, he pursued a formal education at Oxford University, continuing his studies of Western psychology and philosophy in Germany and Holland for three years before coming to the United States in 1969. As Har Har Mahadev! YOGANANDA (18931952) was one of the earliest and most influential of the Hindu gurus to come to the West. He is a young boy, full of mischief. Death Quotes and Sayings by Topic. But she says his attitude toward her underwent a dramatic change; he began to make her a target for his anger, issuing contradictory orders and then screaming at her for her incompetence in front of the other secretaries and disciples and gossiping about her behind her back. Attachment means we believe I brought one, personally cut it with a sharp blade into three parts, and scattered them at a distance of ten feet. He discusses the philosophy, practice and benefits of yoga and meditation. Hadn't he taken vows of celibacy? Minneapolis was the site of another Institute-related scandal in 1981. [7], In another experiment at the Menninger Foundation, he voluntarily stopped his heart from pumping blood for 17 seconds. Because I do not want to find out. Move to England, they received another blow arranged for her to make an exclusive commitment lose faith in presence. 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