Severe Problems with "Bhagavan Kalki's" Deeksha Oneness Movement

Compiled by Timothy Conway, Ph.D., April 2008

(--two updates in late October 2013: a long revelatory letter from "S," and a reproduction of a hard-to-find 2010 notice by a former prominent O.M. advocate, A. Ardagh)

One of the faster growing spiritual movements from the 1990s up until its growth stalled a few years ago due to unsavory revelations is the so-called Kalki Deeksha movement, known since 2002 as the "Oneness Movement" (O.M.). Actually, as the evidence from quite disenchanted former higher-ups will show, this movement is a gigantic scam based on corrupt greed and empty promises by its heads, "Bhagavan and Amma," and tragic naivete and New Age superstition by too many (but certainly not all) of its followers.

It was founded in South India under another name in the late 1980s and then made public in early 1991 by one of the more clever hucksters in religious history, one Vijaykumar Naidu (b.1949). Possessing a certain mix of intrigue, chutzpah and perhaps some minor psychic powers, all of which gave him a mesmerizing power over some young people in a school he directed from 1984 onward, and spouting "final level" spiritual teachings gleaned from the wisdom of great advaita-nondual sages like Ramana Maharshi and Nisargadatta Maharaj as well as J. Krishnamurti and U.G. Krishnamurti, Vijaykumar circa 1989 grandiosely re-named himself "Kalki." Kalki is the traditionally prophesied coming Avatar or Divine Incarnation of Vishnu (the "Preserver-Sustainer" aspect of the Hindu triune Deity: Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva).

Within a short time, because of legal issues surrounding the name "Kalki," Vijaykumar re-titled himself "Bhagavan" to amplify his status as "the Lord God Incarnate," the one who is here (or so he claims) to grant mass enlightenment to all of humanity by year 2012 by first fully enlightening 64,000 people. How was he to do this? Through his alleged capacity for shaktipat, Bestowal of Divine Power, and deeksha, Initiation or Blessing, "the transfer of Divine energy." In his penchant for pseudo-scientific jargon, Bhagavan Kalki calls enlightenment a "neurobiological brain-shift event," a "re-wiring" that happens as a result of this blessing or "transfer of Grace" from him, his wife, his close disciples, and anyone who is willing to pay the big bucks for a 21-day course and other costs to become a certified "deeksha-giver." For many years until recently, the cost for the basic course was $7,000, not counting certain other costs.

UPDATE #1: I am informed by a Deeksha practitioner in late June 2010, around the time that Krishna, the son of the self-styled "Bhagavan," started his own offshoot "blessing" movement: "This year Bhagavan insists on not charging and is doing free webcasts on internet to supposedly speed up the process of awakening. He was planning on doing this in 2012, but is afraid his movement may be shut down in India and wants to do it now. He is training people in India from all over world "free," just charging for room and board $1500--which used to be $500. So I don't think it's really that free, but at least it's not that expensive [compared to certain other groups]." Yet the room & board charges are massively marked up to insure continuing major profits for the pseudo-"Bhagavan."

UPDATE #2: Here we are in Oct. 2013 as i write this and Kalki's incredibly-hyped prophecy of "mass enlightenment" for humanity by 2012 because of his efforts--well, it NEVER HAPPENED.

Kalki's former chief missionary to the West, Freddy Nielsen, now deeply regrets having lured tens of thousands of people in 15 countries into the Kalki Deeksha Oneness Movement. Nielsen reports: "[Kalki] said that he is the first full incarnation of God in more than 20,000 years, and if mankind will not cooperate with him, it cannot get enlightened and will therefore die as a species." Yet, as Nielsen and others have revealed, the so-called Bhagavan / "Lord" is a chronically rude, lying, manipulating, avaricious and arrogant authoritarian who, along with his wife and other accomplices, has schemed to exploit humanity under the pretext of enlightening them. It is for these reasons that most of the leading longtime disciples (the dasas or "servants") have left this scoundrel who poses as the "Divine Incarnation" of our era.

I have not compiled this webpage of reports to personally denigrate Vijaykumar / "Bhagavan Kalki" (may he and all beings be truly enlightened and liberated from all karma by Divine Grace!). These materials are presented only as a public service announcment to educate and warn all sincere but not-so-savvy spiritual aspirants to watch out for this man and his movement's missionaries, and beware other con-artists who have no qualms exploiting followers for their own private gain.

Authentic spirituality is so much more beautiful than the cheap, distorted product that is dangled before the public by the likes of the so-called Bhagavan Kalki, who thinks that the Divine can be turned into a commodity for purchase-- and has cleverly convinced hundreds of thousands of persons to think likewise and buy into his fantasy and farce.

I would hasten to add here a reply to the question I have been asked by several persons, namely, "Have you personally experienced the Deeksha blessing?" The answer is YES, a few people have volunteered to "lay on hands" for a Deeksha blessing for myself and, in one case, several of us sitting together at a lunch-table in a restaurant. In the latter case, the Deeksha giver was someone previously unknown to me; in the two other cases, the two Deeksha-givers were long known to me. I didn't experience anything noticeably stronger or more "full of blessing power" with the Deeksha experience in comparison to what I'd experienced MANY times over previous decades in various kinds of "blessing" situations--including 1) a private "laying on of hands" healing circle several of us created in the late 1980s that met every Sunday for over a year; 2) being with various Hindu gurus and Tibetan lamas over the decades, most notable for a really subtle, profound blessing force from Mata Amritanandamayi of Kerala, India ("Amma the Hugging Mother") and Dadaji of Calcutta; 3) participating in several Christian Charismatic/Pentecostal healing events in my teens and a few times in later years; and 4) undergoing ch'i-kung (qigong) sessions from a few very potent Taoist healers, most notably Master Zhou from mainland China (for some years practicing in Santa Monica, CA).

Bottom line: the human energy field (ch'i/qi energy, prana-shakti, orgone, call it what you will) has a remarkable capacity for extending natural blessings and healing power via caring love and focused attention. It's an ancient, natural, and entirely FREE process to extend such blessings-love-caring. But Vijaykumar, the "Kalki Bhagavan" fellow, has gone about hyping it and monetizing it for personal aggrandizement. In so doing, he has financially ruined many thousands of hapless Indian people through his schemes. I wish him well with the heavy karma he has created for himself.

I wrote my M.A. thesis back in 1983 at CIIS (California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco) on the worldwide ancient-modern phenomenon of Shaktipat, Divine Grace and/or Energetic Empowerment (which occurs in many of the most powerful lineages of our sacred traditions and is featured in numerous modern groups including Pentecostal Christianity and new religious movements on all continents). With a certain expertise on this extraordinary and multi-faceted phenomenon, and on the big topic of "enlightenment" (on which i wrote a nearly 600-page doctoral dissertation, completed in 1988), I have been "amused," to say the least, to see how a rather large number of pseudo-gurus and/or cult-leaders have selfishly exploited the idea that Divinity or Enlightenment can be "transferred" or "transmitted" (almost always for a big price!) via the touch, sight, or mental intention of the exalted "Guru" and his/her initiates. This creates neurotically hungry "Grace-chase" expectations in the minds of seekers looking to get "high" on euphoria and altered states of consciousness (ASCs) rather than become truly clear and free, free of egoic attachments, aversions and delusions.

God-Realization or Self-Realization is not about obtaining some experience for a "me"--but about awakening to and lovingly living from THIS Absolute Open Infinite Awareness which is never an experience but the "No-thing-like" Empty/Full Source and Substance of all experiences. And THIS Absolute Awareness or Pure Spirit is always Who/What We Really Are, freely available as the inner Self of all selves, the Subject in which all objects arise, the Noumenon for all phenomena. THIS true Self or Reality is "closer than close," "subtler than the subtlest," right HERE before any and all identifications, right NOW before one can strategize to "get it."

A genuine Guru or "remover of spiritual darkness" simply and consistently points the aspirant back to this intrinsic, inborn (sahaja) "Inner Guru" Reality, the Divine Truth of our real Being. The authentically helpful human Guru or Friend does NOT needlessly entice one into an external "Grace chase," pompous worldly schemes, "energy experiences," or any other worldly phenomena high or low (heavenly, earthly, etc.).

By contrast, however, a false or pseudo-guru will strategically use all sorts of tricks to create dependency, limited identifications, attachments, complications and delusions so that you feel like a special "somebody," somebody who is part of an elite group which is now especially "empowered" to usher in a Golden Age of Enlightenment for all lesser beings.

It is just such a swindle that has been run since the early 1990s by Vijaykumar / Kalki Bhagavan....

As we shall learn from the materials gathered and presented below, Vijaykumar was a mid-level administrator in a Krishnamurti school in India; he began to have some spiritual experiences and then, more problematically, began to have inflated ambitions to become a leading guru-figure himself. J. Krishnamurti (1895-1986) criticized Vijaykumar's spiritual experiences and pretensions. Vijaykumar subsequently worked with an elegant "front-man," Dr. R. Shankar (who brought Vijaykumar into the JK school), to open in India's Andhra Pradesh state his own new school for adolescents and to create an exalted status and mythos for himself as a great spiritual leader. Predictable in an era of spiritual hunger, Vijaykumar, with the attractive Shankar's help, began to draw in lots of sincere, impressionable, and rather gullible young people to his movement. Vijaykumar-Kalki and his wife Padmavathi Amma ("Amma" commonly means "Mother") and their closest inner circle of followers cleverly utilized certain high-flown language about enlightenment and (from 1993 onward) the power of naive expectations about "collective mass enlightenment," along with insidious social dynamics (authoritarianism mixed with "collegial networking," peer pressure, etc.) and well-known inner psychological dynamics (experience-seeking, interpersonal dependency, group identification, cognitive dissonance, etc.).

With the newfound power of the giant sums of money they were soon amassing, the proud and petty "Bhagavan and Amma" quickly grew a large mass movement out of the initial cult group.

Part of the big appeal was to entice growing numbers of persons with the chance to feel self-important and even make some money as "deeksha-givers," people who could "transmit enlightenment via Divine Grace" by laying on hands over other people's heads and "letting the Divine energy flow." All sorts of expectancy effects play into this set-up, and, combined with a natural flowing through the hands of warm heat and subtle energy (variously called in different traditions prana-shakti, ch'i, ki, mana, baraka, orgone, bioplasma, etc.) from our own human energy field (HEF) in resonance with the HEF of the deeksha recipient, most recipients of this deeksha will enjoy unusual temporary experiences of focused attention, relaxation, openness, a feeling of being nurtured and loved, and, yes, a heightened sense of energy flowing in and around their body.

But to use the word "enlightenment" to describe these fleeting experiences and a modicum of nondual mystic understanding is to cheapen the word "enlightenment" beyond all recognition.

The rapid growth of the Kalki Deeksha movement (for a time it was called the "Golden Age Foundation") created its own snowballing social dynamics such that by 2005 the Oneness Movement was inflatedly claiming 30 million followers in India and worldwide. Realistically, there are likely "only" a few hundred thousand people, not millions, who have paid to take the courses, initiations, and/or darshan-audiences proffered by the Deeksha / Oneness Movement.

An especially nifty strategem created by Kalki Bhagavan and his organizational leaders is to invite certain foreign New Age, New Thought, New Paradigm, and neo-Nondual "spiritual teachers" and "healers" with sizeable followings to come to the Golden City (now Oneness UniverCity) to present their lectures and workshops and to meet Bhagavan at the twice-a-year "Oneness Festivals." This strategy is a brilliant form of "collegial networking" to insure that all the followers of the foreign teachers will also come to know of Bhagavan's "eminence" as an Indian Guru/Avatar, and, in turn, the foreign teachers can feel that they have participated in some lofty form of cross-cultural, interfaith ecumenicism and can also proudly feel that they have received (in addition to monies received) some kind of recognition and blessing for their own work by a "prominent Indian spiritual Master." What an insidious quid pro quo arrangement for all parties involved in this club of mutually congratulatory back-slapping! Almost all participants can then think (sincerely or not) that they are doing their part to "enlighten humanity"! Well, everyone except "Bhagavan and Amma," who most likely are secretly laughing all the way to the bank over the amazing credulity of the multitudes who come to see them and participate in their charade.

The Kalki cult has attained even more national and international attention with the completion and inauguration, on April 22, 2008, of its ostentatiously lavish Oneness Temple, situated at the Oneness UniverCity complex. Formerly known as Golden City, it is 65 km / 40 miles north of Chennai/Madras, just outside Varadayyapalem village, 4 kms from Tada, on the road from National Hwy 5, west of Pulicat Lake and just north of the Andhra Pradesh - Tamil Nadu state border. The Oneness Temple is a mammoth, three-floor marble structure twenty times the size of the Taj Mahal, adorned with marble spires and balconies. Its centerpiece is the "Golden Ball of Divine Grace," that supposedly can induce those neurobiological brain-changes creating higher levels of enlightened consciousness.

The temple was built on the backs of the poor but hopeful (now hapless) Indians and the naively gullible Westerners whom "Bhagavan and Amma" have roundly fleeced with their long-running money-making racket. (Inauspiciously, celebrations were suspended at the Temple after four persons died and many were injured in a stampede on the inauguration day when allegedly 600,000 persons--including Oneness members and the curious public--overwhelmed the ill-prepared hosting personnel.)

Presented below at the rest of this webpage are accounts on this Kalki Deeksha Oneness cult from various sources:

1. R.P. Sivam's biographic notes on Vijaykumar (aka Kalki Bhagavan) and first disciple Dr. Shankar.
2. An Indian Rationalist's critique of Kalki Bhagavan & his cult.
3. An uncritical, brief Wikipedia entry on Kalki Bhagavan.
4. Excerpts from the 1997 Life Positive magazine article on the Kalki cult.
5. Brief blurb from What Is Enlightenment? magazine: "Can 64,000 People Get Enlightened by 2012?"
6. Letter about economic entrapment from a former Indian member of Kalki's cult, posted on Sarlo’s "Guru Ratings" website.
7. Primary missionary Freddy Nielsen's scathing revelations.
8. Christian Opitz's revelations of Kalki's drugging of certain O.M. course participants in 2004.
9. Brief report from a devotee of Ramana Maharshi in India on govt investigations of the Kalki movement.
10. News item: Madras High Court orders investigation of Kalki cult.
11. Report from Tobi, a former prominent Deeksha-giver in Sweden, on how one gets sucked into the cult.
12. Doomsday threats by Kalki Bhagavan so as to gain recruits.
13. Bhagavan says he is not getting enough of mankind's support.
14. Another Swedish Deeksha-giver's letter of resignation.
15. GREAT 2010 UPDATE on the Oneness Movement and offshoot movement One World Academy with Tony Robbins: A 2010 notice from a former quid pro quo player, Arjuna Ardagh, who no longer promotes the O.M. and now recommends independence.
16. A revelation from "S" in October 2013 on being swindled and lied to by supposedly "enlightened" dasas and on how wealthy Chinese are being lured into the money-hungry O.M. in recent years.
17. My response to questions from a former Oneness Movement member ("Sally").
18. List of relevant Websites.

Especially valuable are #1, the biographical account of Vijaykumar's early history by Mr. R.P. Sivam, someone who well knew the ambitious Vijaykumar (VK) before he became the self-exalting Kalki Bhagavan; #7, a long, scathing report from 2007 by young Freddy Nielsen, VK/Kalki's chief world emissary from 1993 to 2006 (scroll approximately halfway down this long webpage to find this important article by Freddy Nielsen); #8, a damning report from late 2007 by Christian Opitz, whose initial neuroscience reports for the Oneness Movement appeared to legitimize it, but who was then shocked to find that many of the "dazzling enlightenment states" experienced by many people were most likely the result of these people being criminally drugged with a narcotic by Kalki Bhagavan without their consent and presumably against their will if they were to know what he was doing to them; and #15, an update notice from former O.M. promoter Arjuna Ardagh, who also discusses the split in the movement involving the B&A's son Krishna and American infomercial king Tony Robbins.

Other important critical testimony (e.g., items #6 and #11) comes from people reporting on the massive amount of exploitative financial gouging and manipulation committed by Bhagavan and his wife and business partner Amma. This wouldn't be so bad if it was solely targeting rich Westerners on the seeker's circuit who should know better than try to "buy their way to enlightenment." But, alas, this ongoing economic exploitation has sucked in and financially destroyed tens of thousands of poor Indians, most of whom are now evidently condemned to debt-slavery for much or all of their lives as a result of the voracious greed of the selfishly ambitious "B&A" or "A&B" as the couple are often called.

There's no need for me to do any further editorializing on the Oneness Movement and its founders. The sources presented below more than adequately report the greed, delusion, dishonesty and manipulations perpetrated by the conniving "Bhagavan and Amma." Moreover, readers of my other webpages here at Enlightened-Spirituality.org (which feature several critiques of other spiritual con-men along with dozens of appreciative essays on the lives and teachings of our truly great and eminent spiritual leaders, as well as informative essays on aspects of genuine spirituality) will clearly know why I consider the Oneness Movement to be in several important ways a very dysfunctional cult, not a healthy, empowering, "functional cult."

And so, without further ado, let us start by presenting some useful history on Vijaykumar Naidu, later to style himself as the Divine messiah "Kalki," then "Bhagavan." The following eyewitness report was written by Mr. R.P. Sivam, someone who knew VK/Bhagavan Kalki and his wife from the early days and who wants the world to know more about this spiritual pretender and presumed Messiah before he acquires any more social power.

In the following report and other subsequent reports i've reproduced, I have made occasional corrections of spelling, punctuation and (less often) also grammar, for the sake of readability. I have also boldfaced certain passages for emphasis.


1. R.P. Sivam's biographical notes on Vijaykumar (aka Kalki Bhagavan) and first disciple Dr. Shankar

--from website www.freewebs.com/deekshashadows/Articles/The%20evolution%20of%20Vijay.doc

The following account is written by Mr. R.P. Sivam, an acquaintance of Dr. R. Shankar and Vijaykumar Naidu, later to become known, to many devotees all over the world as Kalki Bhagavan. The author is sharing a lot of facts and first hand experience of Bhagavan and his first disciple, Dr. Shankar. The author met and was in regular contact with Vijaykumar in the period before he became a Guru. It is a personal perspective and the author does not make any claims of this being the absolute truth.

[Note from Timothy: the editor of R.P. Sivam has occasionally included remarks in brackets []; when i add any of my own notes, i will use rounded brackets { }.]

VIJAY KUMAR AND PADMAVATHY
--dictated by Mr R.P. Sivam to Rajendran

This is a brief biography of Kalki Bhagavan, as I have come to know him over the years. I used to be a friend of Dr. R. Shankar and Kalki Bhagavan, or Vijay, as I knew him.

I feel it is my duty to share the experience that I've had with them, as they have influenced the lives of large number of people in India and abroad. I have done all I can to be as objective as possible. From my point of view I have not exaggerated or said things that did not happen. Having said that, I must add that this is indeed a subjective perception of events and personalities.

When I met Kalki Bhagavan he was still called by the name his parents had given him: Vijaykumar [hereafter I shall refer to him as VK]. VK and his middle-class family speak a kind of colloquial Telugu that is neither Telugu nor Tamil. His Naidu caste has its origin in Andhra Pradesh, in the south{east} of India.

VK did not hail from an intellectual, spiritual or noble ancestry, therefore his natural cultural inclination was to find security in a secure government or public sector job.

After finishing his basic education, the clever and creative VK joined Life Insurance Corporation of India [LIC] as an office clerk. When he had reached marriageable age he was quickly married off to Padmavathy, a woman from his own caste and clan. Though Padmavathy did not attend college, she could read and write but could not speak English. Padmavathy is not what we in India call a sophisticated or a cultivated lady. She had a great female instinct and could sense her husband's appetite for other women. She often quarrelled with him when he showed excessive interest in other women. There was even a time when a friend of mine intervened to calm the quarreling couple. Padmavathy is a very straight-talking, no-nonsense woman who often unhesitatingly confronted VK in public. Her language, while shouting at VK, was rough and somewhat disrespectful.

{In the mid 1980s,} VK was alleged to have had a relationship with the then headmistress of {his school and ashram} Jeevasharam and had her dismissed when he thought it would affect his launch of a promising career as a Guru.

Padmavathy is the one person capable of embarrassing or frightening him into submission. One is not at all surprised by the strategy adopted by VK in including her in the launching of Kalki Bhagavan and Amma Spiritual Company Private Limited. This would ensure that the public know of his marital status and keep Padmavathy comfortable. Her title as Amma has also given her a sense of supreme authority in the organizational hierarchy.

Vijaykumar meets the faithful Dr. R. Shankar

It was only a year, by sheer chance, that VK went to Don Bosco Matriculation School in Chennai {aka Madras; apparently he was about 11 or 12 years old at that time}. Here he felt like a fish out of water as most of the children in this school came from upper middle-class or class-conscious bourgeois families of Chennai. In this brief one year stint he managed to befriend R. Shankar. Shankar was a very sympathetic and friendly lad who was warming towards this rather isolated and fish-out-of-water, VK.

VK got introduced to the teachings of J. Krishnamurti [hereafter JK] as a young man. It is not clear if Shankar’s mother introduced VK to JK. Shankar's mother, Mrs. Kanaka Durga Ramachandran, as a child, was educated and influenced by J.Krishnamurti.{...} Shankar's father Mr. A. Ramachandran studied law at Cambridge University and later practiced as a lawyer in "Rao and Reddy", a popular law firm in Chennai. Mr. Ramachandran abhorred the idea of caste or class superiority and so started off as a communist sympathizer; he helped workers and fought for their rights. Shankar's parents were poles apart: father an atheist and his mother a somewhat confused believer in everything that claimed to be religious or mysterious. VK was also quite clan and caste conscious, his initial interest in Shankar may have been because Shankar's mother's parents were of a mixed caste.{...}

Shankar, a studious and somewhat naive young man, studied science and went over to do a PhD in Theoretical Physics at Tata Institute of Fundamental Research. Vijaykumar, who had lost touch with Shankar, had moved on to start a little shop in Perumbur (area in Chennai) selling rice, while working in the Life Insurance Corporation of India as an office clerk.

Learning from J. Krishnamurti {1895-1986} and Hindu Tradition

Shankar, after completing his PhD, moved on to Germany, worked there for a few years and returned to India to marry Dr. Prema, a medical doctor. Prema, a faithful and cultured lady, kept off the spiritual "fog" that surrounded Shankar. She continued her support and loyalty towards her husband through thick and thin. Shankar, like his mother, went through much of oscillation and conflict between science and belief. He found J. Krishnamurti (JK) an ideal bridge; JK satisfied his need to close the gap between his doubts and beliefs.

Shankar went to {Krishnamurti's school at} Brockwood Park in U.K. where he met J. Krishnamurti [it was not the first time he met JK] and JK being impressed by Shankar's dignified looks and scientific education was not late to invite him to join his foundation and head his {Rishi Valley} school in Bangalore. It was this same dignity and grace of Shankar that was used by Vijaykumar. A credible looking man can always sell a sub-standard product, this is a well known fact that any good marketing or sales expert would vouch for.

Vijaykumar exhibited some narcissism but always felt he lacked the handsome looks or charisma to attract a following. Shankar, on the other hand, was very articulate, had scientific credentials and very good looks. VK found people trusted Shankar and were prepared to donate land and offer financial support. When Shankar spoke people listened with rapt attention. Here was his ideal marketing manager; Vijay sprang at the opportunity of using Shankar.

Vijaykumar had a great ambition to become a Spiritual leader and this required no verifiable qualifications or education. Knowing how Indians think, I believe, with his looks and manners, he needed a man like Dr. Shankar to promote him. All he needed was an intelligent, trustworthy and sincere man like Shankar, a person who believed in him more than he himself did, to launch him on his brand name: Kalki Bhagavan. He mesmerized Shankar {re-named him "Paramacharya" and made him #1 disciple} and possessed him and made use of him until he no longer had any need for him.

I often heard VK saying that we need people to do things and help our cause, and after they have served their purpose they can just go on with their lives. In short he meant he would use people and discard them when they have outlived their usefulness.

People who know VK well, know he can be very opinionated and even rude when speaking about others. But when actually speaking with the person, he would always be very charming and friendly. After this person leaves, VK generally, among his “trusted” friends, had no problems saying anything derogative about the person. I never posed any threat to VK’s ambition, he perceived me as pawn in the game and so he was always friendly to me.

Vijay Kumar works at J. Krishnamurti’s school

Vijaykumar was very impressed by JK; he even named his son [Krishna] after this respected teacher. Dr. Shankar offered VK a job as an administrator in the {Rishi} Valley School office (as VK did not possess teaching diplomas). Vijaykumar maintained the office files and quickly knew all the confidential information related to people's salaries and private correspondences; he even, without asking permission, read letters JK had written to Dr. Shankar which JK had specifically asked Dr. Shankar to keep private.

Vijaykumar had worked in the LIC (Life Insurance Corporation) branch offices of Kancheepuram and Coimbatore. He seemed to have had quite an unpleasant experience with his work mates. He was particularly allergic to people who hailed from Kerala. He used to call them "Malayalathaans", this aforementioned swear word is generally used by uneducated xenophobic Tamil chauvinists and thugs… He often said that Malayalees, that is people of Kerala, are not to be trusted and to be watched! Vijaykumar was rather distrustful of people and often charmed people to get things done. He was charming, treacherous, tactful and a master manipulator of events. He knew how to sideline people when they had outgrown their usefulness or have taken ideologies too seriously or sincerely and had unwittingly obstructed his personal agenda.

Bhagavan never forgives

After reading the personal letters [in 1983] of JK to Dr. Shankar, Vijaykumar felt deeply hurt as JK, in his letters, was very suspicious and dismissive of VK's various claims to have had special mystical experiences. Shankar, who totally believed Vijaykumar, had shared VK's so called mystical experiences with some colleagues, who in turn informed JK. JK then wrote to Dr. Shankar of his opinion about entertaining "mystics" or letting them work in his school. Reading this letter deeply hurt VK’s pride and he never forgave JK. From then on his desire to become a guru in his own right got fully strengthened. He began visiting U.G. Krishnamurti {1918-2007}. [Note from R.P. Sivam's editor: U.G. Krishnamurti is considered an “enlightened” person by his followers; he used to bad-mouth JK, Buddha, and Ramana and says vile things about them.] While UG was visiting Bangalore, I once accompanied VK to meet UG. In the early '80s he met UG and learnt the art of dealing with followers. He gradually started showing his dislike for JK and even went to the extent of always addressing JK as "Avan", a very disrespectful and derogatory Tamil term.

Foundation for World Awakening and Jeevashram

In 1983 KFI [Krishnamurti Foundation of India] was running several schools for children of the influential rich people of India. Krishnamurti was impressed by Dr. Shankar's academic background besides his culture and international experience. As JK's {Rishi} Valley School lacked cohesion, structure, stability and proper direction he decided to appoint Dr. Shankar as the Principal. Shankar knew he would not be easily accepted by the political heavy weights in that school, so he brought in some loyal friends to support him. Vijaykumar was placed in the office. Krishnan Kutty Nair [hereafter KKN], a former IAS officer [a very respected title in Indian bureaucracy] had given up a promising career to join the KFI [Krishnamurti Foundation of India] in 1976. He was also invited in as a friend by Dr. Shankar.

KKN was educated and deeply interested in philosophy.... KKN and VK often disagreed; VK could not tolerate Shankar appreciating KKN. VK maneuvered and gradually got KKN out of the way by gaining the most influential place in Dr. Shankar's mind and heart. This was also the time when KFI was going through a crisis and people were leaving. VK found KKN an obstacle and a threat to the trusting and bonding relationship he was developing with Shankar.

Dr. Shankar, KKN and others wanted to propagate JK's teachings. Many people responded to their advertisement in “India Today,” a mainstream national magazine, and wanted to join this movement. JK was appalled as he was against this way of going public with propaganda. He wanted them all to tow the line or leave the organization. This led to the exit of Dr. Shankar and all who had been brought in by him.

There were several people, most of them unemployed youth, who responded to this advertisement and had came over to offer their services, and find a way of making a meaningful living, but by this time VK and Dr. Shankar had moved on to a different agenda as they were disappointed by JK's response. JK was also upset by the fact that Dr. Shankar had brought in many people who had no cultural affinity to JK's approach. A sizable section of JK's disciples are from the more educated class of India.

Dr. Shankar had in him a bit of his father's egalitarian compassion which made him want to serve the common man. VK was a very different character; he was practical, a strategist, and a quick learner. He, unlike Shankar, was suspicious of people’s motives. His aim was to launch a universal programme acceptable to most people. VK wanted a mass based global movement to attract maximum number of people.

VK never revealed his real agenda. Once, when we were discussing the future, he let us know that a movement that is broad-based and all-inclusive would be necessary to attract large following so that followers would not feel any need for other complimentary systems, therapies, religions and could be easily weaned off from their original faith.

In 1982 there was no place for Dr. Shankar and others to go and at this time VK had been on a long leave from his LIC job. If he hadn't turned up in 90 days he would have lost his job. Luckily he went back and joined LIC on time.

But, in the meanwhile, a piece of land was available; this land was gifted by Dr. Rajasekar Reddy, a surgeon at Stanley Medical College Hospital. He met two former teachers from JK's Rishi Valley School, and offered them his land in Rajupeta. As these two teachers did not know what they should do with so much land they called Dr. Shankar to talk to Dr. Reddy. This was how Rajupeta land, near Kuppam [Chittoor district], was acquired. After acquiring this land VK and Shankar started an organization called: Foundation for World Awakening. The land donated by Dr. Reddy was taken over on a 99 years lease period and converted into Jeevashram: a school modelled to imitate Rishi Valley School; but soon it was used as a launching pad for Kalki's coming to save our world. [The school was opened in July, 1984.] It was here that Kalki's story from rags to riches began. Though he initially began to dream of Gurudom to rival JK, he ended up creating a hierarchy and started “enjoying” the perks of unquestioned authority and complete obedience from his devoted followers.

Ex-followers and true believers of Bhagavan

There were several other people who had trusted Dr. Shankar's belief that Vijaykumar was destined for "Stardom." This higher education or PhD in physics is no guaranty for wisdom in all fields. In fact, Dr. Shankar wasn't that balanced emotionally and sought a foster father in JK and later in VK. Most people who knew Vijaykumar are indeed very shocked to read about his claims that he and his wife, Padmavathy or Amma, had created the Universe. If people were to meet his acquaintances in Valley School or ex-colleagues in the LIC, they could learn much more about VK's evolution.

Decent people like Loganathan, Captain Kumar or Dr. Shankar would probably not dare to discuss their doubts about or suspicions of Vijaykumar publicly; there is always this fear of their own safety and that of their families. In India, it is quite common that Gurus use their thugs, hoodlums and hit-men to orchestrate an accident and kill off people who are critical of them.

Dr. Shankar was the one arranging the Movement around Kalki Bhagavan and for a long time was the only disciple of Kalki Bhagavan. He is no longer in Kalki Bhagavan's Movement and avoids commenting. Today he is living a quiet life in Chennai studying astrology.

Bhagavan’s plans for the Universe

This is how a con-man transformed himself to an opportunistic manipulator of events. He called himself Acharya and gradually maneuvered to make people call him "Paramaguru" [roughly translated: the supreme teacher] and later graduated into Kalki Bhagavan [meaning roughly "The Lord God Messiah"].

In India, people tend to ignore thousands of budding Gurus; this makes {opportunistic pseudo-} gurus go around to scout for credible people [like Dr. Shankar, Judges, successful people, politicians, actors, artists, scholars], to endorse them. When Westerners gather and show devotion to a budding Guru, his Indian following increases manifold, because the average Indian thinks highly of the white skinned affluent truth seeker. Moreover, Westerners are in general unaware of the lurking greed for money and power in the Guru’s mind. They themselves like the special attention and feel elated and euphoric when the Guru glances or smiles at them. Gurus are often clever, they offer very useful courses to comfort the [budding] follower. When the prospective follower finds some benefit, he/she is encouraged and made to feel a sense of hope and feel very important, he/she is told that enlightenment is not far away. This makes the fanatic follower go around scouting for new recruits to spread this “divine mission” which he sincerely believes in.

People looking for security in their not-so peaceful lives, might benefit from the courses Vijaykumar has put together. He has borrowed most of the ideas from the teachings of JK, {Buddhist mindfulness} meditation techniques of {Burmese-Indian teacher} S.N. Goenka of the Vipassana foundation, several other teachers like {the eminent advaita/nonduality sage} Ramana Maharishi and yoga teachers, besides generously borrowing from the goldmine of Indian Hindu and Buddhist traditions.

These disciples, desperately longing for enlightenment or, to put it differently, wanting ultimate power or understanding of life, or desperately seeking answers to their burning questions, give their hard earned money and labour to this "Master." It would be sad if they live this lie and do not discover the real Vijaykumar Naidu behind the Kalki Bhagavan mask. If they dare to question, doubt and seek real truth they would be freed from living a lie.

These kinds of false prophets bring shame and disgrace to India! One thing common to most popular gurus today is that they do not want you to renounce the religion you were born into, all they ask is gradual acquaintance with their system and once you fully get conditioned or indoctrinated they suck you into their inner circle. After you are found to be a loyal follower they ask you to promote, spread and bring in new converts to their brand of pseudo-spirituality. When you bring in many converts you are subtly rewarded by granting you special private interviews, promotion in the hierarchy and a fast lane to enlightenment!

I, as a fellow traveller in search of truth, feel a compulsion to share my perceptions; it is up to you, the reader, to interpret, misinterpret or perceive as you like.

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2. An Indian Rationalist's critique of Kalki Bhagavan & his cult

The following is from a Rationalist website based in India (scroll down to the 4th paragraph to begin reading specifically on Vijaykumar / Bhagavan Kalki).

Note: this piece is posted at the "Cults" section of the website "Learn Hinduism," whose compiler is apparently K.S. Shrawan. The first few paragraphs of this particular article deploy some typical Rationalist-Skeptic criticism of popular forms of "religion" and superstition in India. I would affirm there are still many authentic, no-nonsense, and quite noble sages and saints to be found in India, associated with whom are mature spiritual aspirants apprenticing in a profound spirituality of wisdom, devotion, compassion and generosity.

Further note: the author refers to Kalki Bhagavan by the mis-transliteration "Bagwan," which i have corrected to the more phonetically proper "Bhagwan," though the actual correct transliteration into English is "Bhagavan."]

www.geocities.com/Athens/Pantheon/4789/Articles/Cults/Kalki.html

KALKI BHAGWAN - A FRAUD OF THE CENTURY

Nirad C. Chaudhuri, the well-known iconoclast of Bengal, has described India as “A continent of Circe” meaning it to be “A Land of Sorcerers” or “A Land of Lunatics”. This judgement of his could never be questioned as long as our guardians of “Secularism” and champions of “Hindutva” [Hindu-dom] bow their heads before the idols of mud, wood, stone, cowdung, etc., and fall at the feet of saffron-robed Sadhus, sex-manic Sanyasis [renunciates], mafia-linked Mahans ["great teachers"] and power-mongering Babas for their own personal gains and fool-proof protection from evil stars, ominous planets and scheming opponents. All steeped deep in selfish motives and self-centred interests seek help starting from the opium-smoking Sadhus and Sanyasis up to the Babas and Sankaracharyas leaving no stone unturned. They are ready to sacrifice every thing from hair to self-respect to get their wishes gratified. Tonsuring heads is no longer a shame nor receiving kicks from the Sanyasis a disgrace provided it brings them power and fortune.

The seeds of such a culture is to be seen in the barbaric Aryan literature called “The Vedas” which are nothing but a compilation of prayer songs sung by the Aryans beseeching blessings from their gods and cursing their sworn-enemies, the Dasyus. Even though hundreds of years have elapsed and modern scientific and technological revolutions have touched new heights, the Indian Circe remains so powerful in religion, culture and tradition that the picture of India as a “Lunatic Asylum” remains unperturbed to date.

The newly created “Kalki Cult” in Tamilnadu is an outstanding example of this demoralising trait of Indian culture. This cult is the second of its kind to take root in Tamilnadu in the recent past. Some years ago one “Bangaru,” a nondescript school teacher at Melmaruvathur village near Chennai, started his “Om Shakthi [Shakti] cult” as a soothsayer. He called himself “Amma” [Mother] (Shakthi), a curious metamorphosis of a female deity with male genitals! His “Amma cult” was systematically spread as an organization blessed by men in power and pampered by doctors, lawyers, judges, officials, businessmen and their wives. Thousands of dim-witted women [and men!] fell an easy prey to the cult making it a mega success in Tamilnadu. A poor teacher turned into a multi-millionaire in no time. Mass gatherings at various poojas [rituals], colourful processions of women in red sarees and blouses, congregational rituals like ‘homas’ and ‘Yagnas’ [fire sacrifices], periodic ‘pada yatras’ [pilgrimages] of ‘Amma’ to various places threw a spell over the fancy-loving and weak-willed women who became ardent devotees of the hermaphrodite ‘Amma’ in ‘Bangaru Adigalar.’

A similar myth-making note struck the mind of one Mr. Vijayakumar, a B.Sc. Maths graduate from Vaishnava college, Chennai, who after graduation worked in the LIC and other establishments in Chennai and Coimbatore. In 1982 when he was 34 years old, he joined hands, with his old friend Mr. Sankar [Shankar], a Physics graduate from Loyala College, Chennai, who had just then returned from Germany after a research study. Now both of them started [in 1984] a Matriculation School at Sathyalokam in Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh [about 140 km / 85 miles northeast of Bangalore]. Vijayakumar became the Director and Sankar the Principal of the school. Vijayakumar settled on the school campus with his wife Padmavathy and only son Krishna.

From now onwards Vijayakumar in collusion with his friend Sankar started to play his gimmicks to make himself ‘Kalki Bhagwan’ the tenth avatar (incarnation) of Lord Vishnu in Kali Yuga [Dark Age], the current era. The school was named ‘Jeevashram.’ The blind belief of the Hindus as that of the Christians in Jesus Christ’s Second Coming was deftly handled by Vijayakumar & Co to fool the gullible Indians both educated and uneducated. Vijayakumar attired [himself] in yellow robe covering his body and head [signifying renunciation]. He called himself ‘Kalki Bhagwan [Bhagavan]’ and started speaking mystically. Bewildered by his babblings and bewitched by his hypnotizing eyes behind a bushy moustache and beard, people began to throng round him begging for boons and gratification of their multi-faceted desires.

The school at Sathyalokam was closed down in 1993 and a posh ‘Kalki Ashram’ was built at Nemam village near Poonamallee [a rustic suburb just west of Chennai/Madras. NOTE: Sathyaloka or Satyalok later was re-opened as an ashram for Kalki and his followers]. Vijayakumar’s accomplice Sankar become Bhagwan’s prime disciple and was re-named ‘[Paramacharya] Sri Sankara Bagawathpade.’ Like [the Nazi propagandist Joseph] Goebbels he did a wonderful job in the propaganda and spread of the cult. Sri Kalki Bhagwan went underground making his physical darshan [lit. "sight" or audience] a rare commodity. Rumours of Bhagwan’s omnipresence and omniscience were set afloat; stories of Bhagwan’s miracles were meticulously fabricated and systematically spread with authentic versions of the devotees. One claimed he had a face to face talk with the Bhagwan, another said his kidneys failed but with the grace of the Bhagwan he got completely cured without any operation or transplantation. The third one said he lost everything in his business and became a pauper. He sent a fervent prayer to the Bhagwan and all that was lost was restored to him in no time. Reports from Bangalore say that Bhagwan Kalki offers his devotees ghee [clarified butter], milk and honey from his consecrated portraits hung in their homes. The cult caught fancy of the people like wild-fire and Bhagwan’s ashram grew rich by leaps and bounds.

Sri Kalki & Co. wanted to cast a wider net to catch the international market. With this idea they started to wean smart young middle-class graduates from their families, convert them into Sanyasis [renunciates] and send them out for propaganda work. The parents of the missing youth started complaining to the police about the whereabouts of their sons and daughters. The police have started probing the bona-fides of the ashram. However their efforts are being forestalled mainly because it is a matter of religion which our Constitution guarantees to the individuals and the youths claim they have attained majority and there is no question of kidnapping or mesmerising them.

They claim that their Cult has spread not only in the neighbouring states of Karnataka and Andhrapradesh but also in some of the northern states. They say they have their branches abroad in the U.S.A., Sweden, Russia, Argentina and Japan.

What are the reasons behind the formidable growth of such swamis and how can we counteract their influence on the gullible public? The following are some of the techniques followed by the godmen to fleece the ignorant and keep themselves in luxury.

(1) They create an impressive look by donning colourful robes and choosing a calm place with a sylvan back ground as their ashram.

(2) They set afloat rumours about their miraculous heading powers through their agents in the garb of devotees.

(3) In the name of Dhyana [meditation], Yoga, etc they offer a psychological relaxation to the stressful minds of the devotees and create an illusion of seeing God, Atman [the Self], etc. in the form of light or a shock.

(4) They seek the patronage of the politicians, bureaucrats, businessmen, judges etc to add credibility to their stature.

(5) They expand their clientele with the creation of a powerful band of followers, and with fraud and trickery, if need be.

Vested interests never dare to harm themselves by going against the religious sentiments of people.[...] As such it becomes the primary duty of the rationalist’s fora [forums] and social organisations like the Dravidar Kazhagam to take up cudgels against the frauds and cheats under the aegis of religion, tradition and culture. Even their endeavours would not be of much use unless people, as Periyar Ramasamy exhorted, should make use of their sixth sense of reasoning and get themselves rid of their shackles of religion, rituals, scriptures and shastras [texts], pujas [rituals] and purohits [priests] to live a pest-free life of discipline, decency and decorum.

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3. From the uncritical Wikipedia entry on Kalki Bhagavan:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalki_Bhagavan (consulted in early 2008)

Kalki Bhagavan (b. March 7, 1949) is the Indian founder of the spiritual movement known variously as Oneness University, Kalki Dharma, Bhagavad Dharma, and the Golden Age Foundation. He was born Vijay Kumar in Arcot district, Tamil Nadu [South India], and at various times has also used names such as Mukteshwar, Sri Kalki Bhagavan, and Sri Bhagavan.

Bhagavan and Amma (not to be confused with [the "Hugging Mother" Amma] Mata Amritandamayi, b.1953) claim to be two divine beings, or Avatars [Incarnations]. They reside at Golden City [now re-named Oneness UniverCity, north of] Chennai, in S. India. Their stated mission is to bring all of humanity into the Golden Age. They claim that they will fully enlighten 64,000 people in the world. These people in a highly enlightened state of communion will transform the rest of the humanity by 2012.

According to them, this state of enlightenment is offered to seekers through a process known as deeksha. Deeksha is a transfer of divine energy that is said to be so powerful it has the ability to break through the concepts and conditioning of our mind.

[Bhagavan says:] "Deeksha helps people to get in touch with their inner self, which in term help to increase the self awareness. The changes in the inner world ‘innerself’ will reflect the outer world." ... Bhagavan is quoted as saying, "The mind of man is like a wall which divides man from God. The deeksha is an electrical energy that makes a hole in this wall, which we call the mind. Once this happens, then God and man can come to relate to each other."

The act of receiving deeksha involves a special process where a qualified deeksha giver places their hands upon your head and, in a state of divine union, becomes a channel for cosmic energies.

================

4. Excerpts from a key 1997 Life Positive article on the Kalki cult

An interesting article on the burgeoning Kalki movement was written back in 1997 by an objective-minded Indian journalist, Makarand Paranjape. Entitled "Bhagwan Kalki: God incarnate or mere ‘Godman’?" --it was published by the Indian spiritual magazine Life Positive (July 1997), and posted at www.lifepositive.com/spirit/spirit-centers/god.asp. Alas, many of Paranjape's concerns and open questions turned out for the worst and one can no longer give the cult the benefit of the doubt which Paranjape in his article was sometimes willing to give Kalki's movement in 1997. Nevertheless, this is an interesting document on the early mindset, social dynamics, propaganda and leading personnel of the Kalki Deeksha cult-group.

Excerpts from M. Paranjape, "Bhagwan Kalki: God incarnate or mere ‘Godman’?" (1997):

SATYALOK, Andhra Pradesh. About 140 km from Bangalore [about 85 miles northeast of that South Indian city], in a small commune deep in the heart of rural India, a strange, thrilling, disturbing and moving phenomenon is erupting. Right before our eyes, a new religion, or at any rate a new cult, is emerging, complete with a living God, a monastic order, millions of thronging devotees, and tales of miracles.

The divine center of the phenomenon is a 48-year-old being [b.1949] of slender build, who has been proclaimed as the Kalki avatar [Divine Incarnation of Lord Vishnu]. The moolamantra, or the principle chant of his cult, celebrates him as "satchidananda parabrahman, purushottama paramatman"—the embodiment of truth-consciousness-bliss, the Supreme Godhead, Perfect Person, Transcendent Self.

After remaining incognito for over three years, Kalki Bhagavan has now made himself available for public darshan, divine glimpse, at Satyalok.

Ten a.m.-- In a small room, he sits on a raised platform in a modest chair draped with a silk cloth. His beard is trimmed, his head covered with a white flowing cloth. He has a garland around his neck. Above him is an umbrella whose shadow envelops him like a hole. A stairway covered with a blue carpet leads up to his platform. Underneath, two acharyas, the shaven-headed and white-robed Acharya Vimala Kirti and the Paramacharya [R. Shankar], an older, more impressive bearded man, stand at attention. The Paramacharya has just conducted an aarti, the ritual waving of a camphor flame, to the figure on the chair, signaling the end of a puja, ritualistic prayer. Both men prostrate themselves full length.

And then the darshan begins. Separated from this room by a glass partition is an even smaller darshan hall. From one side devotees pour in, men and women of all ages and classes, who have waited hours for a glimpse of their Lord Kalki. They are let in batches of 20-25 and, after a couple of minutes of gazing, coaxed or pushed out.

Kalki sits with his eyes closed, apparently in deep meditation. The stillness is, however, rudely shattered by the very first batch. Already, while waiting to be let in, some women had begun to wail and sob. Now, face-to-face with their Lord, the devotees' pent-up longing breaks all barriers. Without warning, a man shrieks repeatedly "Kalki! Kalki Bhagavan!" Soon, the small room reverberates with cries, screams, tearful pleas. Conservatively dressed gentlemen begin to jump up and down clapping their hands in joy. Tamil women in nine-yard saris slap their own faces in atonement, shouting their prayers. Illiterate peasants in shorts and lungis weep uncontrollably.

Just when the noise reaches a crescendo, Kalki suddenly opens his eyes. He raises his hands in a gesture of benediction, touching his chest with the tips of this fingers as if to say: "Don't worry, now I am here." Then he shuts his eyes again. The crowd of devotees cannot believe their luck. Some shout: "Thank you, Lord, thank you." Their faces light up like happy children. They stare even more hungrily at the enthroned figure.

The process is repeated again and again. The flood of human misery overflows that small room. Devotees unburden their sorrows in front of their living God and depart visibly relieved and uplifted....

[...] In July 1984, an Indian gurukula, or school, called Jeevashram was started. One of its benefactors was Dr. N. Sivakamu, a close associate of J. Krishnamurti. It was to Jeevashram that Vijaykumar, as Kalki Bhagavan was then known, was invited to take over as director [it seems more accurate to say that Vijaykumar and Dr. Shankar strategically set up this school with VK as director and Shankar as principal].

Five years later, in July 1989, a pupil, at home on vacation, suddenly had a spiritual experience: she found a golden ball of fire entering her and opening up her Brahmarandhra [the supposed “fissure” or “opening” atop the crown], the highest chakra of the kundalini.

This pupil is today known as Acharya Samadarshini, the head of the Kalki order of nuns based in Bangalore. She attributed her transformation to her personal God, Sri Kalki. Soon, some teachers and students of Jeevashram began to have similar mystical experiences. Prominent among them were the five who, in addition to Samadarshini, are leaders of the Kalki monastic order: Anandagiri, Akshaymati, Vimala Kirti, Maitreyi and Kaushika. All of them are less than 25 years old. [Note from Timothy: In other words: these are not seasoned spiritual aspirants but inexperienced novices.]

An early flag-beater of the movement is Dr R. Shanker [Shankar], or Paramacharya Sri Shankara Bhagavadapada. He had accepted Vijaykumar as the Lord when he was just 12 and the latter, 11. These seven direct disciples constitute the core leadership, acting on behalf of Kalki Bhagwan and conveying his directions to other monks and the laity.

[NOTE: Evidently only three of these leading disciples still follow "Kalki Bhagavan": Anandagiri, Samadarshini and Vimala Kirti. The others have all left.]

After the extraordinary events in 1989, Sri Vijaykumar came to be known as Bhagavan Ishwara, till he was declared the Kalki avatar. According to the Hindu Pauranic tradition, Kalki is the 10th incarnation of Vishnu, who descends to Earth during the Kaliyug, the Hindu era of darkness. His mission is to bring this degenerate Iron Age to an end and usher in the Golden Age.

Everything about this movement is still new and fluid. The "discovery" of the avatar itself is less than a decade old, as is the unveiling of the Srimurti [Auspicious Form], the specially charged portrait of Kalki which is worshipped. The sannyasa order is also less than five years old. The Mahavakyas [Great Sayings], the central tenets of the Kalki dharma, are still being revealed. Many of the dogmas, rituals, beliefs, organizational principles, and myths of the cult are in the process of being formulated.

What is beyond doubt is that the movement is expanding rapidly. The number of devotees is estimated at over 5 million [what "devotee" means is anyone's guess], with the bulk of them from the southern states of India. Centers and temples are scattered all over south India and in other Indian states. Missions are being opened abroad, especially in North and South America, Russia and Japan. I discovered this movement's intensity of devotion at its headquarters at Nemam, outside Chennai [just to the west of it in Poonamallee].

Nemam is crowded and cramped, in juxtaposition to the sprawling Satyalok. Instead of Satyalok's well-designed tiled cottages, Nemam has large halls with thatched roofs. I am invited to participate in a group interaction with devotees, most of them from Chennai. What binds them is a transformative experience, which led them to Kalki.... At Nemam, all the activities are manned by young monks, many of whom are under 20.... They looked composed and confident, claiming that the Lord was binding them together into a brotherhood, and that they felt an inner growth each day. Their devotion was amazing, considering that many of them had never met Kalki in person. [Timothy notes: this shows the power of expectation exerted by a growing mythology in the Kalki cult.] They had come to the movement, instead, through the varayagnas, a Kalki retreat which offers intense self-searching, leading to the fulfillment of one's desires. This was also the route through which most of the householder devotees had come to Kalki.

In Bangalore later, I met the nuns. Under the direction of Acharya Samadarshini, they were as motivated and enthusiastic as the monks.

The young monks and nuns are perhaps the most impressive part of the Kalki movement. Yet, it is here that the Kalki movement has landed itself into some controversy. According to press reports, some parents have complained that their children are being mesmerized and brainwashed into joining the cult. I discovered that these allegations were largely rumors and insinuations. Not one of the young men or women I met at Nemam and Bangalore seemed to be there against his or her wishes. [Timothy notes: but by the very definition of “brainwashed,” this is not a reliable criterion to use.] I also met some parents who had willingly and happily offered their children to Kalki. But it is also true that some monks have left the order to rejoin their families. As the Paramacharya explained to me, this monastic order is not maintained by coercion. A monk or nun can leave at any time.

Vimala Kirti, the head of the order of monks, told me how the phenomenon broke out in 1989: "We were young boys and girls, hardly 14 to 15. Suddenly we started spouting high philosophy, having mystical experiences, even seeing God. We were ordinary children transformed into something extraordinary by the Lord's grace."...

The key feature of the Kalki movement, apart from the several documented miracles, is the variety of supernormal experiences, which the adherents have reported. The most common of these are visions, dreams, revelations from previous lives, darshan of gods and goddesses, rising of the kundalini, joyous states, and so on.

[Note: as Freddy Nielsen would reveal in 2007, after being with the movement since 1989, most of these testimonials are bogus, purposely inflated, exaggerated or just fabricated to exalt Kalki and his cult.]

The Mahavakyas (great sayings) of Kalki, which form the core of this new religion, present some apparent contradictions. Perhaps that is why they are meant to be revealed only during the varayagnas.

Mahavakya No. 3 asserts: "Formless as I am, I the Antaryamin shall awaken formless inside you, or the form you desire, or the form I choose…for every form is my form…" If Kalki is formless, or if all forms are his, why should one form, that embodied in the Srimurti, be preferred to all other forms?

Further, while each devotee is encouraged to discover Kalki in his or her own heart, the Paramacharya and the acharyas are nevertheless the official intermediaries between the masses and the Lord. As Mahavakya No 43 clarifies: "All these truths shall be revealed to you through my disciples." The personal discovery of Kalki within, in other words, results not in freedom from external authority, but conformity to the official tenets of the cult as laid down by the Acharyas. A tight control over the movement is thus maintained.

Similarly, while the Mahavakyas seem to permit many religions and paths ("Every way is all right with Me as long as it comes naturally to you": No 13), the ultimate emphasis is on accepting and worshipping Kalki as the Lord. In reply to devotees' queries published in the Golden Age of Kalki, the movement's monthly gazette, devotees who worship other gods are encouraged to transfer their allegiance exclusively to Kalki. Clearly, there is an ultimate insistence on accepting and worshipping Kalki as the form that supersedes all the others.

But then without exalting Kalki to the status of God Almighty Himself, he is just another guru in a country which abounds in spiritual masters. Yet, the claim that the person who was known as Vijayakumar is the Kalki Avatar, the supreme incarnation, or the "supreme creator," is hard to sustain because it defies all our notions of the omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient nature of divinity....

Throughout my acquaintance with the Kalki movement I found that it has a distinct messianic, millennial and evangelical dimension. Devotional fervor runs high; everywhere there is a frenzy of faith, a highly charged display of loyalty, rather than the calm and peace of inner illumination. [Timothy notes: This frenzied fervor is NOT a good sign!--it suggests that the young people who comprise most of the movement are getting high on euporia rather than getting clear and free in authentic Divine Awareness.]

Perhaps it is this aspect of the movement which has made it so controversial. Its rapid spread, its hold on the youth, its induction of young women as nuns, its public display of ecstatic singing and dancing—all these have created a backlash, especially in Tamil Nadu. The ruling ideology of the state is atheist and anti-Aryan. Naturally, the explosive, high profile growth of a movement which uses distinctly Hindu symbols is bound to raise the hackles of the ruling party. This has resulted in plenty of negative publicity throughout the movement, especially on Sun TV, which is close to the ruling party. In the ongoing media war, Sun's rival, Vijay TV, has now begun to air pro-Kalki broadcasts.

Thankfully, though, unlike in similar cults springing out in the Judaeo-Christian tradition, the Kalki movement does not prophesy the end of the world, the destruction of all unbelievers and sinners, or the coming of Doomsday. [NOTE: This is no longer true. See the report presented near the end of this long webpage for some of Bhagavan Kalki's recently-issued Apocalyptic doomsday prophecies to gain recruits and compensate for the many people who have left the movement.] Instead, it seeks the transformation and fulfillment of this fallen age into a new age of peace, prosperity, international harmony, and the down of one universal religion. It must be admitted that Kalkians, however fervent, are not intolerant of other beliefs and faiths. As Mahavakya 17 says: "Religion is personal. Choose your own religion." They don't seek to convert others through condemnation or coercion but through persuasion and inner transformation....

All in all, the Kalki movement offers a mixed bag to genuine spiritual seekers. On the one hand, quick results, even instant transformations, replete with spiritual experiences, revelations of past lives, and so on, are promised. Furthermore, there are many opportunities to participate and contribute to a highly organized, rapidly expanding, worldwide movement, a feature which would appeal to those who have an active and energetic temperament. It will also draw those who are desperate to find solutions to intractable problems, whether personal or professional. One's deep need to believe in a living God and to derive security from his presence will also be fulfilled.

On the other hand, there is a grave danger that the movement will cause acute psychological distress and suffering to weaker minds, once their hopes and aspirations cease to be fulfilled. If it is true that only self-knowledge offers liberation from suffering, then Kalkians will have to realize that with or without the Lord, they will have to work on themselves painstakingly and patiently. ...

Truth is often simple, easy, near at hand -—if only we bother to see it. It requires no propagation, no spectacular displays, no fresh inauguration. Millennial claims, sensational promises, heady projections -—all accompanied by mass hysteria -—may actually be seen as a part of maya or illusion. Yet considering that all of us are enmeshed in maya, perhaps we must welcome, even join such a movement, especially if we find that our lives and those of others are being improved by it. Provided, of course, it suits our temperament. [End of article]

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5. From the magazine: What Is Enlightenment? Issue #35, Jan-March 2007 / www.wie.org/j35/pulse.asp

Can 64,000 People Get Enlightened by 2012?

Millions of people have experienced it, many thousands the world over are flocking to India to learn how to administer it, and celebrities - from movie actors to high-tech executives to self help gurus such as Tony Robbins- are swearing by it. It’s called deeksha, and if you believe its proponents, this new form or spiritual transmission is going to have quite an impact on spirituality in the new millennium.

Deeksha which means “benediction” or “initiation” in sanskrit, was created by a south Indian couple known as Amma and Bhagavan, founders of the Golden Age Foundation. Similar in some respects to the traditional transmission of shaktipat [Bestowal of Divine Shakti-Energy-Power], deeksha is generally conferred through touch, with deeksha givers (who undergo a twenty-one-day training) laying their hands on initiates heads in order to pass on the energy. Current initiates include Arjuna Ardagh, author of The Transluscent Revolution, and Catherine Oxenberg, actress, reality TV star, and daughter of the princess of Yugoslavia. While recipients’ experiences vary considerably, many reports are beyond exuberant, crediting the process with all manner of illumination and awakening. Some visitors to the new Golden City ashram near Madras even report that in addition to deeksha, they were told exactly when they would reach final enlightenment.

As Word of deeksha has spread to the west, Golden City has become a popular destination point for Western seekers travelling in South Asia, no small boon to the reputation of Amma and Bhagavan. Devotees’ numerous websites describe them as twin avatars (incarnations) of Lord Vishnu. That title might seem more than a little suspect these days with self-proclaimed avatars proliferating like colours on a hindu holiday, but there is, in fact, scriptural validity to the term. Indeed hindu texts tell us that the Kalki avatar will help humanity transition out of the current dark age, or Kali Yuga, and no doubt that’s why Bhagavan’s students spent many years referring to their teacher as the Bhagavan Kalki. But no longer. Today the Kalki references are out and deeksha is in. And Bhagavan has speculated on how the transmission of deeksha may be leading to global awakening. He suggests that all we need is roughly sixty-four thousand people, or one-thousandth of the world’s population, to become transformed, and a sort of golden age tipping point will trigger the arrival of the prophesised Sat Yuga (blessed Age)

What does this popular Avatar mean by “transformed”? According to one long time disciple, “changes will occur in the parietal and frontal lobes of the brain” that will allow people to experience “oneness consciousness”. Bhagavan has also made it clear that humanity’s transition to the Sat Yuga is on the fast track, destined for none other than 2012-- that infamous year known for being, among other things, the end of the Mayan calendar. And in the “truth is stranger than fiction” category, the Golden City guru is reported to have already met with Mayan elders about the significance of this date. So what will 2012 bring? Whatever the case, expect to see a flood of materials on deeksha and the Golden City between now and then.

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6. A private letter from a former Indian member of the Kalki cult, posted on Sarlo’s "Guru Ratings" website circa 2005, with personal details omitted:

I have been associated with the cult of Sri Kalki Bhagavan (and his wife Padmavathi Amma), who positions himself as the Vishnu Avatar, and a God -- although in recent years he has made his claims a little indirect, perhaps due to media criticism, and fear of ridicule.

I have served this cult for 2 years, attended their Deekshas [initiations], and done a lot of promotion for them. I would like to bring to your notice that this cult is pressurizing its INDIAN devotees to donate large sums of wealth, if they want to remain in the good books of the disciples (dasas) who run the show, and progress further. We have even been asked to take loans (the last case was Rs 100,000 [$2,500 at an exchange rate of 40 Rupees to the dollar] which is a large amount [most Indians only make $400 to $6,000 a year]), and donate, if we don't have the money. We have been told that we can repay the loans over a few years!

From the day we join we are pressurized to bring in new people and send them for the initial 3-day deeksha (costing Rs 5000, $125). This is because to qualify for the higher level we must send 60 (now 30) people for the program. First we are told that the 3-day program will enlighten us (for only Rs 5000!), then we are told, "sorry the higher process will enlighten you." So we have no option but to talk others (family, friends etc) into joining and going for the 3-day program.

Once we have sent so many people, and we find no change in us, it is very difficult to step out. I have still not told my family that I have left, for loss of face. In order to convince 60 people to go, we have to exaggerate and make tall claims. We have to create a miracle out of each little incident that happened to us (such as getting a green light on the way to work), etc. We have to keep talking of unending grace, and say things like "our whole life has changed." We are all basically sincere people, but we start telling lies without realizing it, and a time comes when we are stuck.

[Note from Timothy: The author is describing here the dynamics of Cognitive Dissonance: one is hesitant and reluctant to admit to oneself or to others that "I was badly fooled," when all of us like to think of ourselves as savvy and not so easily fooled.]

New people are lured in by promises of unending "grace", and then after we tell them lots of stories (most of them are just heard from others, no one has any evidence of them actually happening), then the disciples ask them to make donations, or go for paid darshans [audiences with Bhagavan and/or Amma] in order to get that "unending grace." These darshans are expensive and the latest one is that we can touch Amma's feet for Rs 100,000 [$2,500]. Prior to going for the higher process we were all told that in order for the higher process to be a great success we should make this donation. Many of us are very ordinary people, some have left our jobs to pursue a spiritual goal, so the amount is no small order.

Even the higher process (two weeks) has made no difference to anyone. Although it does seem to us that the program for foreigners (21 days, USD $5,500) has resulted in some enlightened people (such as Freddy Nielsen and Kiara Windrider - we have heard they are enlightened [Timothy: What does this mean??--NOTE that Freddy and at least several other prominent Westerners have left the Oneness movement claiming that no real enlightenment happens in the Kalki movement]), however in India there is not even an attempt at spiritual growth of devotees. It is only talk of great "celestial" miracles, and enlightenment is always round the next corner, after the next darshan (and donation).

Because of all the stories we perpetuate, the number of devotees has really gone up dramatically, each wondering when his turn for endless grace will come. They claim over 30 million devotees, although I don't know how this figure has been computed.

Sarlo, I write this to you primarily because I am concerned that large numbers of poor and low-income people in India are being fleeced by this cult, each hoping that his string of problems will magically vanish after a darshan or deeksha. When nothing happens their suffering increases.

We actually convince ourselves that we are happier than even before for a while after the deeksha. [NOTE: this is more Cognitive Dissonance, a futile attempt to justify to oneself that something fairly worthless was in fact worth quite a lot.] In that short period we are pushed to recruit more people and share our great experiences with others. The experiences we narrate are always the tales we were told by the disciples about others who got great grace.

Please keep my name under wraps. It is not safe for me, since I have been working very actively promoting this cult, and they know that I can negatively affect them through the internet.


7. Primary Missionary Freddy Nielsen's Scathing Revelations

In early 2006, the rather dramatic news came that Freddy Nielsen, VK / Bhagavan Kalki's longtime chief foreign emissary and recruiter, an author of an early book on Kalki and the cult, had left the Golden City / Oneness Movement, apparently forced out by certain O.M. personnel around Kalki. At Freddy's website in March 2006 he posted two pieces on why he left. (See www.livinginjoy.com/en/news/2579 and www.livinginjoy.com/en/news/2609.) These entries show young Freddy to still be very much a "true believer," still enamored of Bhagavan and Amma's "greatness," and attributing the reasons for his leaving only to the "coldness" and dysfunctionality of the inner circle and organization around "A&B" (Amma and Bhagavan): "...the Diksha Movement is less and less fun, more and more rules, misunderstandings, inner fights and an ever growing number of strange things."

By 2007 Freddy was obviously feeling much more free to report on his real feelings, long suppressed and heavily rationalized, about the dysfunctionality of Bhagavan, Amma and their big movement. From this prime missionary for Bhagavan and the Kalki Deeksha / Oneness Movement has come a cogent and lengthy revelation (30-40 pages when printed). In Freddy Nielsen's report, we hear a bizarre tale of corruption, dishonesty, manipulation, opportunism, and not just "folly à deux," but massive foolishness involving dozens, then hundreds, then many thousands of people.

We present here the most salient excerpts from Freddy Nielsen's revelations. I have chosen an order for the excerpts to best give a sense of the historical unfolding of the movement.

* * *

Questions about the history of the Oneness Movement, Bhagavan and the dasas--answered by Freddy Nielsen (updated July 6, 2007)

www.freewebs.com/deekshashadows/Articles/History%20of%20Oneness%20Movement%201.doc

Also posted at: http://deekshasecrets.blogspot.com/2007/06/ocean-of-information-on-bhagavan_15.html

Bhagavan changed his name at least nine times the first few years I was in the Movement [i.e., late 1980s to early 1990s]. The nine different names that I know of are: Paramacharya [Supreme Teacher], Bhagavan [Lord], Ishwaramurti [Form of God], Ishwara Bhagavan, Mukteeshwar [Lord of Liberation] Bhagavan, Sri Sri Bhagavan, Kalki Bhagavan, Kalki, Sri Bhagavan. He also asked me to find a name for him that would mean the Heavenly Father in Russian language, and we called him Tsebaoth (or Lord God Tsebaoth) for more than a year. I did not dare to do that in Sweden as that would have made many Swedes call our Movement a sect; and Bhagavan had instructed me to be very careful lest we get the sect label, which will be hard to remove once we have gotten such reputation.

He changed teaching and approach regularly. For some time his teaching was very similar to Christianity, with repentance, sinful nature, confession. Suddenly that was changed and the course looked much like a workshop in psychology and cleansing of psychological traumas. During a 7-days residential “psychology” course in 1992 in Jeevashram, Bhagavan decided in the morning that all psychology should be removed and now the focus should be on devotion to him. We had to change the entire course in the middle of it and the participants were rather shocked at such sudden and radical change. Bhagavan’s new message was: the more psychology and cleansing of blocks, the more shallow the results will be. A 180 degree turn....

(Q: Has Bhagavan ever changed the name of his Movement also?)

Freddy: Many times. In 1990, when I read the brochure describing their first ever course that was open for the general public, the Ashram was called “God’s Earth”. The course was called “Anugraha,” meaning Grace in Sanskrit. I remember I did not like the name “God’s Earth,” it sounded like a sectarian name. I asked why it was called God’s Earth. I was told that Bhagavan will give enlightenment to mankind, everyone will be like a Jesus or a Buddha. This will make man innocent again, and the world will once again return to the simplicity that is described in the story of Adam and Eve. Bhagavan was against the destructive modern civilization. In 1992 the Movement was called “The Temple of God.” Soon it was changed to “The Temple of the Light.” After some months it became “The Temple of Sri Sri Bhagavan.” I think I have even lost track of all the versions of these names. In 1997, [a leading disciple,] Anandagiri referred to this Movement as “The Foundation for World Awakening.” For a short while, probably around 2000 it was called “Living in Joy Foundation.” Soon that became Golden Age Foundation, and Bhagavan asked me to call the Movement by that name everywhere, as it had the right energy. It would speed up the coming of the Golden Age, the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. For many years it was popularly called the Kalki Movement as Kalki kept on changing the names, and it was pretty confusing for the followers. When Bhagavan found out that there are more than 300 gurus in India calling themselves Kalki, and one can go to prison by claiming to be Kalki, he became very cautious and tried to make it known that he never wanted to be called Kalki, it was forced on him, people refused to call him any other name even if he protested. Until he found out that one could go to prison for having the name Kalki, he never protested, that is a fact. Even his brother Ramesh called him Kalki, as did I for many years. Ramesh published tens of Kalki Bhajans cassettes (devotional music in praise of Kalki), and the company owned by Bhagavan and/or his son which published the cassettes, was called “Kalki Publishing house”. The trust to whom we donated money was for a long time called “Kalki Trust”, that was active until at least 2004.

A couple of years ago, I think it was in 2004, Bhagavan decided to call his Movement a University, the “Oneness University.” The word Oneness was inspired and taken from the author Carl Johan Calleman, the creator of Oneness Celebration, after Calleman visited Golden City and met Bhagavan. I know that Bhagavan is very cautious to not get the reputation of a sect. This is, as far as I have understood it, the reason he chose the name “Oneness University.” Time will show how long this name will last....

During the first 1.5 years after this Movement had become public in Feb. 1991 (it started as an esoteric “experiment” in July 1989), Paramacharya [Dr. R. Shankar] was the only one in the world who was authorized to conduct Bhagavan’s courses. They were mostly conducted where we lived, in Somangalam village, 10 km from Chennai airport. After some time we went on tours giving these courses, mainly in Tirupati, Bangalore and Chennai....

There was a man, Nirmal Parija from Orissa, who worked in the school when Bhagavan suddenly emerged as a Guru/Avatar. He was spiritually very close to Bhagavan; a few years later he became the personal secretary of Bhagavan’s only disciple: Paramacharya [Dr. Shankar]. For almost 2 years I was living in the Ashram near Chennai (250 km from Jeevashram) with Paramacharya as well as Anandagiri and a few more students from Bhagavan’s school. After a year in that Ashram we went to live at Bhagavan’s place: Jeevashram [at Rajupeta, near Kuppam, northeast of Bangalore]. I felt like the most blessed person on earth: I was meeting Bhagavan many hours daily until he, five months later (September 1993), asked me to start spreading his message to the rest of the world.

Bhagavan had started his spiritual work with the students [at his Jeevashram school on] July 19th 1989, and soon Jeevashram became an ashram too. 1.5 years later Bhagavan went public and I came to the first course they did for the general public.

In 1989 Nirmal had many mystical experiences around the creation of the universe. Nirmal told me in 1992 that Bhagavan said that they were the three incarnations of the Hindu Trinity: Bhagavan was Vishnu, Paramacharaya was Shiva and Nirmal was Brahma (God in the aspect of Creator).

After some time Bhagavan made some changes in the hierarchy of the deities. Amma, Samadarshini ([a young woman,] the most prominent devotee student from Bhagavan’s school) and Krishna (Bhagavan’s son) became the special deities (=gods), whereas he himself became the one Lord God, the one Christ and Mohammed used to pray to. After a few years, Bhagavan decided to change it again – Amma emerged as the new Goddess. Now she was as much God as Bhagavan....

When Bhagavan decided to have a monastic order [for his dasa "servants of the Lord"], I think it was in 1995, Nirmal soon left the Movement. The official version was that he got upset that his ex-subordinates (students from Jeevashram who now had become dasas) suddenly were above him in the hierarchy. Some years before Nirmal left, Bhagavan had told him, me and the other disciples (Anandagiri, Samadarshini) that we should marry.... Apart from getting married, he had also told us to let our hair and beard grow long, like the rishis (Vedic prophets) in the olden days....

In 1993 (around March) Anandagiri gave a lecture in his home town Nellore. He talked about the new wave of mass enlightenment that Bhagavan had initiated a few months ago; how very, very soon the entire world was going to become enlightened. (As far as I remember, we said that this wave would result in mankind’s total enlightenment by the year 2000). Anandagiri told that he himself was one of the hundreds who recently had become enlightened in less than a day. He shared his own story of enlightenment.

[Freddy goes on to report the inconsistencies and contradictions in Bhagavan and Anandagiri each confirming Anandagiri's "full enlightenment," which was not so "full" after all, since several times it needed renewal or updating.]

(Q: I have understood from what you just told, that permanent enlightenment need not be permanent. Was Anandagiri’s enlightenment getting gradually deeper, from his initial enlightenment as a student, until he was declared a god in 2005?)

Freddy: I have already mentioned that truths, teachings, approaches, names, history etc. are constantly being changed by Bhagavan. At age 13-14, Anandagiri described his state to be similar to what people often understand as enlightenment. (I do not think Bhagavan declared him enlightened at that age.) 2 or 3 years later, in 1993, Bhagavan declared Anandagiri irreversibly enlightened. Soon Ananandagiri and hundreds of other “enlightened” devotees discovered that what Bhagavan said was permanent was in fact impermanent. A few years later, around 1997 or 1998, Ananandgiri was again being projected as an enlightened teacher. Bhagavan has often declared people permanently and supremely enlightened. When the “enlightened” person gets depressed again, Bhagavan tries to avoid speaking about it. What Bhagavan calls permanent enlightenment, I would rather call “an altered state that might or might not become permanent, might or might not be what is considered enlightenment.”...

Bhagavan started to give mass enlightenment [sic] to mankind after New Year 1993. In October 1992, an entire school in Chennai (called Balalok) started to go through our programs. The school was owned and run by a married couple, Mr. Bhat and Mrs. Vanitha Bhat, who also happened to be its principal and head master. They inspired or asked all students to attend our courses. Some 200-400 students came to the courses in smaller groups. Some came before New Year 1993, others after. Soon Bhagavan declared almost all the students enlightened. The students were pretty young, between 12 and 15 years old. Among the assistants and inmates of the ashram, I was the only one who then did not get enlightened. The assistants and Paramacharya visited Balalok school in January 1993 to transfer enlightenment to the students who came to our courses in 1992, before mass enlightenment had started. I was the only one who could not transfer the state as I was not declared enlightened. Bhagavan’s wave of mass enlightenment had now started, and soon the millions and billions were going to make it. Our joy knew no bounds! We had been waiting so long for this!!! After a few months though, we all saw that the so-called enlightened ashram inmates as well as most participants and students of Balalok school started to complain about suffering and various problems. It was obvious that they were not at all enlightened, and whatever state they had got in January 1993 was only temporary.

(Q: Didn’t Bhagavan start to give mass enlightenment just a few years ago, after the deekshas were introduced in 2004?)

Freddy: It has come and gone in waves; up till now, it has always ended in failure. Bhagavan is not slow in coming up with explanations as to why it will be a little later instead, for instance that mankind is not ready for his Grace etc. On December 3rd, 1999, I invited a group of 120 Russians and 10 Swedes to Nemam for a 30 days enlightenment course, conducted mainly by Anandagiri. Halfway through the course, during the seven days cleansing part of the course that was conducted by Sri Acharya Kaushika Bhagavaddasa, Kaushika told us that Bhagavan had said that EVERYONE in this course were going to be enlightened by the end of the course. There would be no exceptions whatsoever! All of us were rejoicing and celebrating. Everybody started to participate even more intensely in the classes that lasted for almost 18 hrs a day. This was such amazing news. Many of the people had been in deep depressions and enlightenment was the only thing that mattered to them. I mentally said to Bhagavan that if I did not get enlightened this time (this was maybe the 4th time I had been promised enlightenment), I will leave this Movement right away. When the course was over, I was not only depressed for my own sake. I also felt terrible shame before the 128 out of 130 participants who did NOT get enlightened. I didn’t let anyone see my sadness, of course. I was after all their leader who should be their source of faith and trust in Bhagavan! The two Russian women who got enlightened, later told that they actually were not enlightened. Most of the poor 128 Russians and Swedes were confused and utterly sad. Bhagavan, the one they had trusted and put their faith in, did not fulfill his liberating promise. Many got very angry that Bhagavan had not kept his word, some even left the Movement. Not all who got angry were angry at Bhagavan primarily. Some were cross with me instead; they had come to the course because I had inspired them to. I was the one who had promised them that Bhagavan was God and we could trust him completely. I had given them my word and they saw me as a person that can be trusted....

Within these last three years of the “deeksha way” to mass enlightenment, there have been several changes. Here are a few examples: To begin with, in 2004, Bhagavan said that by 2012, all people on Earth would have become enlightened. A little more than a year later, this was changed. Bhagavan now said that by 2009 or 2010, 64,000 or more will be in Oneness state (highest form of enlightenment) and they will be able to pass on a state of freedom from (inner) suffering to mankind by 2012. (Freedom from inner suffering is a much “lower” state than enlightenment, according to Bhagavan.) Today the forecast is even less optimistic: I just read on Bhagavan’s official website (www.onenessuniversity.org, see the FAQ) that “…the Golden Age would definitely take birth by the year 2012.” This postponement gives Bhagavan several years or maybe even decades to make further changes, if needed....

(Q: Did Bhagavan initially have only one disciple?)

Freddy: Yes. When I joined them in 1991, it was often mentioned and emphasized that nobody but Paramacharya [Dr. Shankar] was Bhagavan’s disciple. One or two years later, I think it was in 1992, Bhagavan decided to take a few more (official) disciples, so-called Acharyas [Teachers]. He took seven more, and I was one of them. The others were: Giribabu, Vimalakirti, Kaushika, Ramesh (Bhagavan’s brother), and 3 female disciples: Samadarshini, Akshyamati and Maytreyi. We all changed names: Giribabu became Acharya Sri Anandagiri Bhagavaddasa, I became Acharya Sri Freddy Bhagavaddasa. Bhagavan even asked me to change my name in the passport. Vimalakirti almost stopped being an Acharya, as he thought of getting educated and lead an ordinary life. When I returned to India a year or so later, Paramacharya told me that Anandagiri, Samadarshini, maybe some of the others too had asked Bhagavan if they could live in celibacy. Therefore Bhagavan had decided that all the Acharyas from now on should be celibate (in thought, word and action). I was already feeling uncomfortable with this official apostolic title and having to be a guru. Many Indians, especially Bhagavan’s devotees, will then ask you to bless them and/or fall at your feet; and how did I know if I could keep celibacy in thought too, I have always wanted to be natural. I did not like when people’s actions and attitudes did not match their words or teachings; my heart didn’t allow me to live a hypocritical life. So I asked Paramacharya if it was ok if my Acharya title was removed. I added that I was not going to work less hard than before. Even after my title “Acharya” was removed, Bhagavan continued to call me his Western Apostle.

Today only three of the eight Acharyas remain: Ananadagiri, Samadarshini and Vimalakirti.

In 1993 Bhagavan had decided that there need to be a strict hierarchy: Acharyas, dharma mitras (Indian local coordinators) etc. This was a few years before the monastic order of dasas was introduced. He told me that I was to be his only Apostle for the West, and after the Monk order was born, Bhagavan decided that some others could also do his courses abroad, but he asked me to be his single representative for Europe and former Soviet Union. This changed over a night. From January 2004 Bhagavan decided to have no more leaders, everybody should be a leader. However, the dasas (monks and nuns) still have a very special role in the hierarchy, they are the only ones that are allowed to see Bhagavan and Amma for free, unless you happen to be a VIP....

Before the 21 days processes started in 2004, Western devotees came to Golden City for so-called darshan tours. These tours took place between 2002 and 2003. A darshan tour lasted for 5 days. On the last day of the tour, the groups had a darshan (=group meeting) with Bhagavan, usually lasting for an hour or so....

In 2001 four people were trained to conduct the Mukti Yagnas (enlightenment retreats) outside of India. I was one of them. The Mukti Yagna was the same course as the 30 days course in Nemam in 1999. It was just shorter, 7 days. To attend this 7-days retreat (Mukti-3), people had to go through two courses prior to this one. I called those two courses Mukti-1 and Mukti-2. Mukti-3 was a course where, according to Bhagavan, many were going to get enlightened. For those who did not make it (=get enlightened), Bhagavan came up with the 18/36 months program. It was called the 18 months process, and to make it logical for the Western devotees, I called it simply Mukti-4.

Any of the 18 or 36 months processes were for sure going to make the seeker fully enlightened, if the program was followed of course. Before embarking upon the 18/36 months process, one needed a physical touch by Bhagavan (it looked like a blessing or initiation). It was given, free of charge, during the so-called darshan tours to Golden City in 2002-2003....

People have sometimes wondered what Bhagavan’s true intentions are. Questions were posed, such as: Were these experiments not too dangerous and extreme? [--Such as having many of his foreign students go on a strict fruitarian diet for many months, which caused many people to fall very ill and a few to die.] Was it ethical to use innocent people as “guinea pigs”? This was a new process including an extreme diet and lifestyle that Bhagavan did not know the possible consequences of. These were not only sweet people: most of them had completely surrendered to the one who had inspired them to go for this tough lifestyle. Bhagavan was for them the long-awaited savior of the world; his words were law to them.... This is a pattern I have seen many times during my 15 years of being Bhagavan’s disciple. Bhagavan comes up with new ways to save the world. When one “experiment” doesn’t work, or the temporary results fades away in people, he quickly starts a new project with full enthusiasm and new extreme promises. The fervor he and his disciples have for every new “infallible” approach to give mass enlightenment is so intense that the old failures are easier to forget. Why should we think about the past when THIS TIME Bhagavan will definitely make mankind enlightened?...

(Q: How many got enlightened in the 18 or 36 months process?)

Freddy: I did not hear of anyone who got enlightened. Some were not even informed that Bhagavan cancelled the whole system of 18 and 36 months processes, and kept on following them faithfully till the very end. (Many of the Russians didn’t have e-mail or internet access at that time.) Bhagavan cancelled all old courses and processes when the 21 days processes were introduced in January 2004....

(Q: How did the 21 days courses start?)

Freddy: They were a natural continuation of the 18 months fruitarian process. The seekers should first go through a 10 days process in Golden City, the huge Ashram where Bhagavan lives. Those who would not have become fully enlightened after the 10 days process, could come to the infallible 21 days process. However, before coming to the 21 days process, a minimum gap of 6 months had to pass after the completion of the 10 days process....

In October 2003 Anandagiri told me over the phone that I could start to invite seekers from Europe and ex-Soviet Union. The price for the 10 days process was decided to be $1000 US dollars. Many, if not most, were expected to become enlightened in this 10 days process, said Anandagiri. I know that when he gives such important information, he is simply repeating Bhagavan’s words. He is not supposed to take any important decisions on his own. In the 21 days process, Bhagavan, with the help of his dasas, was going to remove all karma and blocks that hinder the seekers to become completely and irreversibly enlightened. To my great relief, Bhagavan had said that people didn’t necessarily have to be devotees of Bhagavan in order to get enlightened in the foolproof 21 days process.

Less than a month before the first 10 days process that was to start on January 5th 2004, Anandagiri emailed me and said that the 10 days processes had been cancelled. Bhagavan had decided that people should come directly to the infallible 21 days process instead. I immediately answered Anandagiri that people will become angry and speak very bad of Bhagavan’s Movement if this first 10 days process was to be cancelled this late. Most people had already bought their return ticket, and many could not get the money back if they cancelled their ticket. Even if they went to the 21 days process, it would be complicated and expensive to change the dates for their already fixed return flight; and the majority of those who could get the money back for their ticket, especially the poor Russians, did not have the necessary $4000 US dollars that those 11 extra course days would cost.

Some of the devotees who came earn only $100-200 a month and they had been saving for years to come to Golden City. $5000 is often what you get in 2-4 years in wages in Russia, as long as they do not spend a single dollar on food, clothes and living. In practice, $5000 can be saved in 5-10 years of economic living. Most ex-Soviet devotees, however, take loans that will take 5-10 years to pay back, if they ever will be able to. Some have become bankrupt; others have been forced to sell their flat etc.

It was not easy to convince Anandagiri to keep the 10 days process as it was decided originally; but with a lot of pressure from my side he finally agreed. They did two parallel courses, the 10 days and 21 days at the same time, in two different campuses.

Bhagavan declared many from the 21 days process enlightened, but many/most that I know – and I knew half of the group – soon went into depression.... I did my best to console them, inspire them to not give up this Path, to have trust that Bhagavan is after all the most powerful incarnation of the divine in human history.... People could become very desperate, sometimes even really angry with Bhagavan. Some almost wanted to commit suicide because they were disappointed with the processes and Bhagavan’s promises.

In order for them to calm down and also not spread bad rumors about Bhagavan, I saw no other way than to exaggerate certain things, such as all the mental suffering that they went through is good for them and it would be helpful on their path towards the soon-to-come enlightenment. I said all this because I believed it was for their highest good and for the best of the world if they believed in Bhagavan. Bhagavan and Anandagiri had let me know that sometimes a white lie is necessary. Whenever a white lie was helpful in the long run and serves a higher cause, it could be wise to use it. What better cause could there be than the final enlightenment of a person and the entire world?...

(Q: Does it really cost money (just) to see A&B?)

Freddy: Westerners have no access to get a private meeting or even a one minute private darshan (lit. to see or meet a saint or a god) with Bhagavan. The only way for Westerners, with very few exceptions, to see Bhagavan is to be famous or rich. Indians have to pay a huge amount of money to meet Bhagavan in person, I think it is $2000-3000 US dollars for a meeting of 20-30 minutes. Amma has regular public darshans in Nemam, near Chennai and they are free. For Amma’s private darshans there are two options: a group price where you can see her in a group for a very short time, it costs $150 per person approximately. To be alone with her for 2 minutes and talk to her shortly cost approx. $400, Indian and Westerners pay the same. For many Indian laborers, $400 is 8 months of wages. The prices for the private darshans I have mentioned are taken from my memory and are from November 2005....

If someone was donating money, Bhagavan would spend hours with that person. The more money a person gave, the more time he/she “happened” to get with Bhagavan. These things were never told directly to people, it was simply an unwritten law. I haven’t seen Bhagavan have a private meeting (free of charge) with an ordinary person in more than 10 years. I have only seen him meet people that can help him to become influential, famous or rich. I had been given strict guidelines regarding what kind of people who were welcome (and who were not) to come for the “VIP process” – a 21 days process, free of charge, in luxurious surroundings. I also got guidelines as to who among the VIPs additionally could get a private meeting with Bhagavan. Only VVIP’s (lit. very, very important person) were invited to meet Bhagavan: rich or famous people, famous spiritual teachers who could make Bhagavan (world)famous or a possible big sponsor. There were exceptions to the VVIP rule, for example our friends George and Stacy from Los Angeles and other rare followers who were extremely connected and personal friends with VVIP’s and were therefore capable of bringing several VVIP’s to Golden City.

There were also the “in betweeners”; people who had been invited for the VIP process, but were not enough VVIP to meet Bhagavan personally. In such cases, a shorter group meeting with Bhagavan could be arranged....

I have been sitting next to Bhagavan innumerable times when he has been meeting people, both private and group meetings. Bhagavan often discussed or commented, with the disciples (incl. me), on the people after they had left. He usually told which people he did not like, made malicious jokes about their, in his opinion, odd ways or shallow questions. I am not used to such discussions where humiliating things are spoken behind people’s backs; sometimes Bhagavan was rather sarcastic. This condescending attitude of Bhagavan was one of the major tests for my faith in him as mankind’s savior and God Almighty; in fact, it almost made me leave in several occasions in the early stages (between 1994-1998). [Freddy reports that "Bhagavan" was especially scathing about the religious insensitivity and spiritual stupidity of Americans, and Freddy feared that if this information got out to anyone in the West, the Kalki movement would never have grown any larger.]...

I had been with Bhagavan almost from the very beginning, four years before the dasas started to join the monastic order. Some dasas had come as teenagers to the groups I was guiding; I had also worked individually on a few of them (Murali dasa, Radhakrishna dasa). That might have been the reason they sometimes spoke very openly with me and said things that were never supposed to leak out....

There is a growing number of people who are either leaving the Oneness Movement or discovering ways that work more powerfully and suit them better than the deekshas and the 21 days process. I guess soon we will see a wave of paths that are as attractive or more attractive than the deekshas; for people in general as well as for the deekshagivers and deekshatakers. Most of these paths are likely to be inexpensive, some even for free. When the people who are into deeksha discover that the promises made by Bhagavan regarding the deekshas are not true, or at least highly exaggerated, I think that most of his Western following is likely to go elsewhere....

(Q: Have you ever seen strange or suspicious behavior in the dasas?)

Freddy: I did not know all of the dasas personally, maybe it was just 10 or 15 that I knew more closely. They have been very friendly in general, but not always. Some are considered, not only by me, to be egoistic and even rude.

[Freddy goes on to tell at length the tale of two leading Indian male dasas who sexually molested two different Swedish women participants in the Oneness Movement.]...

I know that 50-100 of the dasas are no more dasas. If they quit or were asked to, I don’t know....

(Q: I have been speaking to deeksha-givers who claimed that Bhagavan gives no rules or restrictions to his followers; is this true?)

Freddy: Yes and no! As many other gurus, he has parallel teachings. One teaching or approach is to attract the masses, as did TM [Transcendental Meditation, founded by Mahesh Yogi].... He follows a strategy to attract maximum number of followers and devotees. First the rope is loose, and the closer you want to come, the more will be expected from you, the rope will become tighter and tighter. Rules can be given indirectly too, through reward systems. If you do this or believe that, only then you will be allowed to meet the dasas or even Bhagavan privately, become a coordinator etc. You cannot remain a dasa unless you believe that Bhagavan and Amma created the Universe. The dasas are not “supposed” to relate to God in any other way than in the form of Amma and Bhagavan.... If you have a personal opinion, different from that of Bhagavan’s, you cannot really remain a dasa. The Bhagavad dasas (lit. servants of Bhagavan) are only allowed to say what Bhagavan has told them. There are various levels of brainwashing.... Like many [pseudo-] gurus, Bhagavan cannot tolerate when followers don’t agree with him or disobey. He is narcissistic and controlling. All this has been my experience during 15 years of being one of his closest disciples....

(Q: Did Bhagavan ever limit your own freedom or choice?)

Freddy: If he did it too openly and directly, I would have left him 15 years ago; he knows I am a freedom lover. It is possible, however, to control, limit or manipulate in more indirect ways; and in my experience Bhagavan is a skilful manipulator....

[On Aliyah, a prominent devotee and longtime friend of Freddy:] She told some Russian devotees of Bhagavan that he is a businessman who wants to get famous and rich and he is cheating people claiming to be God....

In 2001, Bhagavan asked me and three others to start giving 7-days enlightenment retreats, the only course I ever conducted where there was no room for improvisation, each word and exercise had to be exactly as per a strict plan Radhika Bhagavaddasa had given me during my training. As far as I know, nobody got enlightened in these retreats. I even saw that after getting high DURING the retreat, the majority went into depression some weeks after the course. Rather often these depressions were deep: people lost interest in life, nothing could make them happy anymore. Many of them also doubted that life had a deeper meaning and that there was a God.

After one of the retreats I happened to read a book that, I was totally convinced, would help most people to come out of the depression they got after the Oneness/Mukti courses. I was very sad when people, after a 7-days enlightenment retreat, became sadder than they were before the course. I felt so sorry for people and was really looking for something that could prevent people from going into these “Mukti-depressions” (and get rather stuck there).

I couldn’t wait to meet Bhagavan to share how the approach described in the book that I had just read could free his devotees from depressions.... This book had helped me during depressions that I sometimes got between the courses; so why not use it for the people who came to the retreats? From time to time I gave Bhagavan books and shared new powerful tools; pretty often he not only approved of it, he even adopted it in his own courses and teachings. He wanted to make use of the best from the already existing and effective teachings in the world. I was of course not supposed to tell others about it, and I didn’t – until now.

This time the situation was different. Bhagavan asked me to never use the system from the book I’d read, as it would only seemingly help, but soon it would hinder the people from getting the real enlightenment. The system that he asked me not to use or tell about was Byron Katie and her four questions....

(Q: Does Bhagavan say he is the most powerful and important Master on Earth?)

Freddy: He often said that… and more. He also said that he is the first full incarnation of God in more than 20,000 years, and if mankind will not cooperate with him, it cannot get enlightened and will therefore die as a species.

(Q: What did he say about other gurus?)

Freddy: It was rare that he spoke nice or approving words about other gurus or masters. He regularly ridiculed them – sometimes even in a rude way; or at least emphasizing that he is infinitely more powerful than they are. They only spoke about enlightenment [or so Bhagavan Kalki claimed]. At the best they also made some efforts to give people enlightenment. Bhagavan said he is the only one that can make it happen and actually give it. The very best of these masters could give enlightenment to one or a few disciples at most. He said this about Ramana; however, some years later he had changed his mind. He now said that Ramana did not give enlightenment to anyone, what he gave was not full enlightenment. In Bhagavan’s opinion, most spiritual teachers were not actually enlightened..., or had an inferior kind of enlightenment that should not be call enlightenment at all. The dasas has much, much higher states than Buddha, Ramana etc., he maintains. Before my process in June 2004, he told me that he, in my process, was going to give me a permanent state that was 100 times higher than what Ramana Maharshi had. Someone recently wrote to me that he had heard Bhagavan say in a darshan that Ramana was not 100% enlightened (I do not know if this information is correct)....

(Q: Did Bhagavan only say he was spiritually the most powerful, or also in other areas, such as healing?)

Freddy: His disciples maintain that he has got the most profound teachings in the world. Paramacharya [Dr. Shankar] said in 1992 or 1993 that more miracles (incl. healing) had occurred around Bhagavan in 3-4 years than in the entire history of mankind, with all its religions and spiritual Masters. Bhagavan said, that if he cannot heal a disease, that means that God also cannot....

There are innumerable examples of when Bhagavan promised sick or even dying people that he was going to heal them. Sometimes Bhagavan (in person) added that he was definitely / absolutely going to cure the person who asked him for healing/a miracle. In spite of these confident promises, healing only happened rarely. The healing results were pretty much like that of an average healer (including the placebo effect). It was a shock for these people when they realized that Bhagavan had not kept his promise; they began to have serious doubts in Bhagavan’s power, even in his integrity.... Some people even died in cancer shortly after Bhagavan had given them his word that he would cure them and prevent them from dying (from the cancer). It was not easy to accept all these broken promises that Bhagavan had made. It was a serious test to my complete faith and trust in him.... My inner voice gave me yet another signal that something was seriously wrong with Bhagavan’s integrity, but as usual I silenced that voice. There is nothing wrong in not healing or not making miracles. I just could not understand why healing/miracles had to be promised all the time....

(Q: Do you agree with all this?)

Freddy: Not today. When I was a devotee of Amma and Bhagavan (A&B), I was inspired by them to believe and talk like that. I see it as their way of presenting Bhagavan. It is a part and parcel of this Movement. The followers often over-promise, exaggerate, project unreal images about Bhagavan....

(Q: You have mentioned a lot about Bhagavan. What has been your personal experience with Amma?)

Freddy: I met her from time to time a few years before she was declared God by Bhagavan. After 1993 I have never really spoken to her in a relaxed home atmosphere, only in big groups or for a minute or two in the Ashram in Nemam to get her blessings. In the beginning (1991-1992), Paramacharya and Samadarshini were more spoken about as deities than Amma. As she only spoke a few words of English and my Telugu was not much better than her English, we couldn’t speak much. To me, Amma was just Bhagavan’s wife, in the same way as Bhagavan’s father (who happened to be an atheist) was only his father and not a god in the Hindu pantheon. She was not the one who talked to the people from the courses, she did not meet devotees etc. She was just the head of the kitchen in the school, and she also happened to be Bhagavan’s wife. She looked angry or dissatisfied most of the time, I hardly ever saw her smile. Her voice was not soft and loving, it was rather harsh. I made a lot of efforts trying to like her because she was the wife of my Master and God, though my instinct was more to keep away from her, I did not trust her and disliked her rough and dominant nature.... I saw her as an average Indian house-wife with her own plus and minus points. I never felt anything elevated or spiritual in her.... After having lived in Bhagavan’s Ashram for almost two years Bhagavan asked me to start spreading his message outside of India. I soon started to live and work in Russia and did not have the money to come to India for a few years. When I came back, Bhagavan and Amma had moved to Chennai and lived in a house there. Since then, I have only met Bhagavan, not Amma.... Bhagavan had often told me that I need to become devoted to Amma too as this was my major hindrance to get enlightened....

(Q: You said that you felt terrible shame before the participants who did not get enlightened after Bhagavan had promised them. Didn’t you regret bringing them to India?)

Freddy: Today I regret it. I wouldn’t have done it if I had known better. I used to be very enthusiastic about Bhagavan and his plan to save mankind. I spread his message and teaching to tens of thousands of people in more than 15 countries. I am immensely sad that I have been the cause to so much unnecessary suffering and problems and I cannot apologize enough to all of them. I was lead on a wrong track and inspired many to join me. I was a blind man leading others....

I have more or less witnessed the birth of the Kalki / Deeksha Movement (I joined them in 1990), and I have seen that they on purpose seem to use lies to manipulate people and situations. This seems to point at the fact that they have things to hide and are quite fear based, and as God and Life is Love, I cannot see much divine in lies and fears....

I personally would guess Bhagavan is using some powers or siddhis that are not in service of the Light and common good of mankind....

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8. Christian Opitz's revelations of Kalki's drugging of course participants

Why I ended my Involvement with the Oneness Movement

by Christian Opitz [the former "chief neuroscientist" of the Oneness Movement, author of a couple of papers included as Appendices 2 & 3 in Kiara Windrider, Deeksha: The Fire From Heaven, Makawao, Maui, HI: Inner Ocean: 2006]

www.freewebs.com/dikshainfo/whyopitzlefttheom.htm

When I first received deeksha in 2004, I experienced some true benefits, most notably a healing of a painful health issue that had bothered me for many years. Deeksha is of course simply a form of prayer and sometimes prayer does facilitate healing of the body or emotions or (to some extent) expansions in consciousness. But at the time, I interpreted the benefits I experienced differently, in the jargon and imagery of the Oneness Movement (OM), as a special gift of a type of grace that exceeds anything that simple prayer could evoke. I also did not recognize at the time just how much I felt a sense of obligation towards the OM and Bhagavan. Unconsciously, I felt obliged to interpret what I saw in the movement in a very positive light. When people had some benefits in the courses in Golden City, I interpreted these as largely due to the power of deeksha. I ignored that these people where spending a prolonged retreat in silence, prayer, meditation and rituals, all of which can be powerful catalysts for changes in consciousness and brain wave patterns. I did also see things that where disturbing, like the enormous exaggerations about the effects of deeksha and promises and predictions for the future that seemed unrealistic then and have turned out to be unreal by now. With this unconscious sense of obligation clouding my judgement, I simply explained these problematic issues away....

I have now completely ended my involvement with the OM. The reason is simple: I do not believe anymore that the OM serves true spirituality, true dharma [truth, virtue]. To me, spirituality is about two things: The liberation of consciousness from all illusion, so that the true nature can shine and an embodiment in life that is an alternative to the patterns of manipulation and greed that dominate our current culture. I do not feel that the OM serves either purpose. I will try to explain the reasons for why I think this way.

The fostering of saviour fantasies and virtual realities
The most problematic issue with the OM is that it continues to foster illusions in people, rather than serving to liberate their followers from illusion. In 2004, the big promise was personal enlightenment for everybody involved and enlightenment for the whole world by 2012. When the first huge wave of disappointment crashed on the shores of the OM, there where some apologies and it was simply stated that enlightenment takes a little longer. World awakening by 2012 was still promised with full force, the elimination of all political conflict in the world by 2008 and other fantasy promises were openly stated. In those who were not downright appalled by these promises, often the most immature patterns of seeking consolation, seeking some sense of security, of hope, were triggered and nourished. Isn’t spirituality the facing of reality, which also includes the acceptance of the relative reality of life, of the world? ...

World enlightenment is a fantasy
Awakening the world through collective fields is a fantasy that other movements have been chasing to no avail. The "100th monkey" story, if it really happened [it did not, say experts], simply showed that one skill in food preparation could be passed on through a collective field. These monkeys did not undergo a radical transformation of their monkey consciousness. The OM has often used that story to illustrate how deeksha will impact collective fields to awaken humanity. This is bullshit, pardon my French....

The fundamental illusion that the OM has fed to people again and again is that with deeksha, you operate in a different league. Whether it was about getting enlightened with no effort, having all your desires fullfilled as was promised with the phala deeksha in 2005 or the recent claim that deeksha givers are now endowed with siddhis [powers] to perform miracles, the idea that through deeksha a life that would otherwise remain utopia becomes real has always been encouraged. It just isn’t so. Deeksha givers struggle with life like everybody else. Deeksha givers grow spiritually to the degree they can let go of illusion, be truly aware of what is, like any other spiritual seeker. They have success and failures according to their talent, work ethic or lack thereof. Deeksha givers are as much subject to the waves of life, karma or whatever, like everybody else....

Manipulation
In 2004, so many Western deeksha givers reported the enormous peak experiences that were common then in Golden City. In early 2005 when I did the 21 day course, these experiences no longer occurred. We were told that Bhagavan had decided to no longer “give” them, because they were distracting from true enlightenment. Sounded very reasonable. All of this fostered the myth that Bhagvan has the ability to simply switch on and off such effects of deeksha, that he could influence a person’s consciousness to a degree that seemed unheard of.

From all I know now, it seems clear that in 2004, there was a psychedelic substance used in an herbal preparation that was given to participants in the courses, which really caused many if not most of the peak experiences. Before this preparation called leyham was introduced, no peak experienced occurred in early 2004 in a course where participants were promised enlightenment in five days. Wanting to appease the disappointed folks, Bhagavan invited everybody for another free course. This time leyham was given for the first time and people had incredible experiences of cosmic oneness, blood-boiling love etc. These usually occurred after taking leyham. Whatever this stuff was, it also caused severe nausea and vomiting.

But the Ayurveda experts that I have asked told me in unison that leyham is about as gentle as it gets, it is given to babies shortly after birth. Whatever they gave to people in Golden City was not traditional leyham. Nausea and vomiting are known reactions to alkaloids with psychedelic properties. Some people could not handle the leyham and had pyschotic episodes, even after leaving Golden City, they had screaming fits at the airport, which almost caused problems for the OM with the police. I know this from first hand reports from several people who were there. In 2005, when Bhagavan did no longer “give” peak experiences, we were told that some people had gone into such high samadhis [trance states], they had been dysfunctional at the airport. Simply not true. The people who had psychotic episodes were accompanied to the airport to get them on the plane without causing trouble. After that, they received no help, no support from the OM and their stories where changed into another PR pitch that helped to foster the myth of Bhagavan’s ability to just give people incredible high states of consciousness.

Some people believe drugs can help to open doors in consciousness, others believe they cause more harm than good. But even the strongest supporters of psychdelics I have met ... agree that to give drugs to people without their consent and then to claim that the experiences were due to the grace of a master is a serious breach of integrity.

A more recent manifestation of manipulation by the OM, one that prompted me to leave this movement for good, are the changes of the term deeksha to oneness blessing and the change of the message towards prosperity and success. We were told that there were problems with the term deeksha in the Western world, that many people thought it was a cult because of this term. I have never found this to be true. Countless people believe the OM is a cult because of the prices they charge, if THAT was changed, the OM would really do something for its reputation....

The real reason for both these changes, the change of the message to success and the term deeksha to oneness blessing has a completely different reason that the OM apparently does not want to tell people openly. Tony Robbins demanded these changes of the OM and agreed to bring all his famous friends and clients into the OM if they follow his directive. The dasas were obviously coached by Tony Robbins, at a recent course in Golden City, they sounded like Western-style success coaches. Great idea, take a bunch of monks who took vows of renunciation as teenagers and let them deliver a message of success in the world…but I am digressing. So the OM is obviously willing to simply change what they tell people, because a famous person promises them more famous people to join. This sounds like a politician campaigning, not like a spiritual movement. At least they should have the honesty to tell people, “hey, we thought it was a great idea for Tony Robbins to decide our message.” But no, they decided to give some reasons they simply made up, pretending to address real problems with these changes.

Is it worth it? Is the limelight of fame, the endorsement of celebrities really worth the discarding of any principle of integrity and honesty?...

Disempowerment
The OM has always given people a disempowering message. When good things happen, it is due to grace because you cannot do anything anyway. When there is disappointment, it just shows you even more that there is nothing you can do. Just recently, a dasa again shared the message in an internet chat of “dissolving the ego is AmmaBhagavan’s job, what could you do about it?” Well, what can AmmaBhagavan do about it? Nothing much it seems. I would rather encourage people to take their chances with their own awareness....

I do believe that by 2013, when there is no grand awakening, this movement will fade....

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9. Brief report from a devotee of Ramana Maharshi writing from India on the government investigations of the Kalki cult.

(Out of respect for the privacy and safety of the author, s/he will remain anonymous.)

"There are lots of reports on financial irregularities in his (Kalki's) ashram. There have been many raids on his ashram by the income tax authorities and by the Indian FBI. He has gotten tax exemptions from the government for getting donations for his ashram but the money is never used for charity but instead just to make himself and his family rich. His son [Krishna] has got more than 33 cars!!!"

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10. Madras High Court orders investigation of Kalki cult

"KALKI BHAGAVAN CULT SIPHONING OFF PUBLIC FUNDS FOR THEIR PRIVATE NEEDS!"

The Madras High Court:

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court was on Monday moved to direct the Tamil Nadu government to investigate and take appropriate action against members of the Kalki cult, including its head V. Vijayakumar alias "Kalki Bhagawan", who were allegedly siphoning off public funds for their private needs. When the public interest litigation filed by Vishwanath Swami, a former associate of Kalki Bhagawan, came up for hearing, a division bench, comprising Chief Justice B. Subhashan Reddy and Justice C. Nagappan issued notice, returnable by December 16, to the state government, state police, CBI and the income tax department among others. The petitioner alleged that family members of Kalki Bhagawan colluded with one another to derive monetary benefits from their association with the Kalki cult. They were hoodwinking the public and falsely propagating dubious schemes involving a broad spectrum of activities like religious and educational activities, he alleged. Stating that he had worked as a teacher-cum-administrator along with Kalki Bhagawan in Jeevashram School in Rajupeta village in Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh, he alleged that relatives of Vijayakumar were operating over a score of trusts and private companies in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. The petitioner also sought a direction to the authorities concerned to investigate the affairs and business activities of various trusts of Kalki, source of funding and alleged illegal benefits being derived under the Income Tax Act.

==============

11. Report from Tobi, a former prominent Deeksha-giver in Sweden, about how one gets sucked into the cult

from: kalkibhagavanalert.blogspot.com/2006/09/i-am-ex-follower-of-this-master-since.html

[NOTE: this kalkibhagavanalert.blogspot is a major critical site exposing the lies and corruption of "Bhagavan and Amma" and their Oneness Movement. Here follow a few reports filed at that blog:]

[From: Tobi, in Sweden]

Thursday, September 14, 2006

I am an ex follower of this master since more than four years already. This blog is based on personal experience after being in the very core of this cult in India in Andhra Pradesh state. This blog is a must for all the people who are being innocently attracted by the deeksha-givers throughout the world as a serious WARNING!

How the real process starts:
First you attend a deeksha evening somewhere and you are given this energy frm a deekshagiver who did already this process in India and who paid about $6,000 to become a deeksha giver.

As this energy is given to you you may feel sometimes energy flowing to you or nothing at all. This is not worrisome as it is universal energy which is being invoked by the group. So the bigger the group is the bigger energy flow. The problem here is the inner intentions of the deeksha-giver which are also passed to you and not always may be good or high, above all when they charge a lot of money for that transfer and are more eager to multiply the number of people for the money they will get in just one evening. Some of the deeksha-givers are goodhearted people who are in the illusion of being special and therefore in great duality. If they themselves experience [suffer from] this spiritual superiority they cannot give you oneness with all nor enlightenment. The problem starts when the people who receive deeksha believe that they are in a inferior spiritual position which is what most of the deeksha-givers have been programmed to feel before an audience. When this happens and you see the bright deeksha-giver in some minute's samadhi [trance-state] you feel like getting or asking for more and more deekshas. Then you go to more deeksha evenings spending your money until you yourself fall in the conclusion that you definitely want to get at least so enlightened like the deekshagiver and you start to copy his process. Then he will advise you to go to India to complete a 21 days process where you will become a deeksha-giver, a helper of Vishnu Enlightenment in the world.

From this moment forward you better get your wallet prepared!! The deeekshagiver will ask then from you for the so called coordination money which covers translations, telephone calls, and the comission your local deekshagiver will charge just by appointing to you to the process. I wonder if Vishnu really needs to charge these commissions...?

Then one week before the trip to india you are asked to pay to an account in Singapore, not in India (so they in India don't have to pay taxes). You will pay another $5,000 for the proper course in India. They will tell you that in any five stars hotel in the world you will pay this amount and plus you get the state of oneness and you see the actual incarnation of the avatar of enlightenment, Kalki Bhagavan and his wife.

Before the trip to India: The deeksha-givers will organise a pre-programmation course to make sure you don't need nor want to get those experiences you paid for, but just out of blind devotion you just want to see the avatars and join a process with no finish date and no garanty of success of any kind.... Many people are at this stage thinking that they are so special that they don't even need any proof nor guarantee.... They will make you feel that you are one of the most special people in the world and therefore you have being given the opportunity to spend a total of $7,000 for the enlightenment of the world...

In India: You will arrive at the city of Chennai which is the only good part. At least Chennai is just Chennai and you know that when you pay for something then that something will be given to you; but in the spiritual community you will be taken [exploited]....

During the 21 process your brain is programmed to feel the importance of being there and the importance to see the avatar. You will be introduced to the dasas who are the teachers of this movement who are allways in hurry and will not pay to much attention to what is going on within you. You pretty much feel you are a 5,000 dollar-bill walking though the ashram. You will be in a prison-like hotel where hardly ever are you taken away [allowed to go out]. So the programming gets more fixed in your mind, you get a "big brother" complex fighting to get more enlightened than the others. Day by day you will lose your inner honesty to yourself and to your real needs. You will read books and see pictures of the master and your mind will start to fantasize.

You will see the other people in the group trying to be more loyal to Kalki so as to get more enlightened and therefore [you] will feel like meditating like [Lord] Shiva and many other paranoias as your mind will try to justify your staying in that place. Other people will fall into depression as they honestly don't experience anything at all.

You will get many deekshas from very high enlightened dasas where you will feel an energy that just comes and goes away without giving you any extraordinary experience. Most of the people after many days of nothing are even convinced that they have had in fact experiences, but a such a subtle level that they can not feel with the senses....

You will be taken to numerous rites. In the rites such as the burning homas [sacrificial offerings of substances to the sacred fire] you will see some monks making a ritual to call the divine forces. Another one to get enlightenment. Another to call the [good] fortune. But soon you will realize that nothing of this is happening either.

They will take you to see the avatar and his wife. You will see Amma just once and Kalki every Saturday. At his darshan, [contrary] to what is [usually] said or written, very few people have some [significant] experience. Experiences for the people who do the process will very much vary according to the lack of inner honesty and the programming. I remind you that before a true Vishnu [i.e., Incarnating God] you cannot avoid having experiences whether you believe or not. He will take you to heaven or to the no-form space in a matter of seconds, giving you instant samadhi [trance]... This is the job of a Vishnu Avatar. But in this darshan [with Kalki Bhagavan] nothing of the sort happens.

At the end of the process you you will feel a bit of the Stockholm syndrome [a loyal prisoner who now identifies with the guards' agenda] after 21 days in the same place and with the same "no-experience" teachings [of nondual Advaita Vedanta]. But then they will give you permission to give deeksha in your country and charge for it if you want. Many people who want to give therapy or just want to have some spiritual business in their countries, they just tolerate the whole course just to be given this diploma.

They [the Oneness Movement organizers] will sell to you all they can in the meanwhile, jewels of amma, clothes, holy slippers of hagavan. Even in the bus back to Chennai they still want to sell to you excursions, photos, etc.

All this money is said to go to build a big temple which they stangely never finish. [The Oneness Temple was finally inaugurated on April 22, 2008 after many delays.] This temple is built on the special chakra of the earth for enlightenment but if enlightenment does not even happen to anyone in the process in groups of 30 to 100 people and during 21 days, how can we expect to get enlightenment just by going into a temple as they assure?

As soon as you say bye bye to the dasas the relationship [of] disciple and teacher disappears as they have already what they wanted: your money. They hardly will anwser your questions when you are back in your country.

All what they say is that you will need a more advanced process of ten days where you will reach the highest state. Once you come again to india for this process you pay again $1000 for ten days plus airplane ticket, so about $2000 more to add to the $7000 you spent already. This advanced course is nothing but a repetition of the first course. The dasas even bring into the classes the papers with the meditation written and again programming and more programming that will never happen. In this course they will tell you that Kalki is all of us (which is the only truth), but they say it in a way that does not make Kalki responsible for your enlightenmet... Everything can happen and everything can not happen.... If so...why do we pay for those processes??

Back in your country your coordinator, or the representative of this movement in your country will get in contact with you to collect more people to do this process and again pay at least $7000. If you make such questions like: "I did pay for an enlightenment process and they didn´t give it to me; when will i have it?"... Then you are in trouble and they will say that you are going through a normal process of ego dissolving --the normal answer in all sects.

Of course the representatives or coordinator don't want to cope with the total unsuccessful process in India. And they always say that enlightenment is a long process. In this way the people who recently come from India will start doing deeksha evenings to atract more people and to take them to India for the process.

All this makes this movement an enormous money pyramid based on some truths from the [ancient] Vedas and the destruction of the world for year 2012. Even this warning has been taken from the [Central American] Mayas and is not really theirs [the Hindus] nor does it appear in any of the ancient hindu books.

In the first processes with the Swedish people they promised us the enlightenment but much to my astonishment they gave us after the deeksha a plant compound called "legio" [leyham] which after the normal process in the intestines make you have the divine experiences such as walking like drunken and the typical experiences you may have when you take psychoactive plants. Awareness of oneness with all, walking in the air and so. After some process taking this stuff some people went crazy and the state of Andra Pradesh started to investigate so they have to stop giving this legio. As soon as they stopped with the legio nobody had experiences and they re-programmed the whole process with the cult to the avatar in the long term without wanting to have those oneness legio experiences as the main dish.

Many deeksha-givers here in Sweden and throughout the world have stoped giving deekshas and have broken the link with this movement as they notice all this is not clear and is only involved with quick money making through prophecies. I am one of them. Through me some people went to these processes and i feel now not guilty but very disappointed to discover all this after all these years. As I know that they (the people i introduced to the movement) are living now this never-ending illusion of having met the avatar, the only contribution on my part is this blog that i want to share with you out of extreme sincerity....

Do you really think that if you ask your own mother or father for happiness, enlightenment or whatsoever, she would make you sign a bank loan (to do the $10,000 dollar processes) in order for you to have it??? Or she would rather give it to you straightaway? God-- whether you call him Vishnu, Jesus, Buddha, Krishna-- is always willing to give right here, right now..... Somebody who keeps your joy for the next year's $5000-process is not your god but your boss.... Once you feel this you make the first step to your inner freedom.

I hope this little light will set you free. I really would like him to be the kalki but no kalki will let any being [struggle] without enlightenment. He [would] just give it immediatly, no condition and free.... You also within you are your own kalki all the time giving to you the freedom you allows to yourself.... Don't put any longer this freedom in the hands and conditions of others... TRUST YOUR GOD WITHIN for once in your life!

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12. Doomsday predictions by Kalki Bhagavan

from: kalkibhagavanalert.blogspot.com

Predictions of doom are a great way to augment one’s business. So we learn from correspondent Nayanar. In 2004-2005, Vijay Kumar (who claims to be the 10th avatar of Vishnu, and The Kalki Bhagavan/Avatar) predicted disaster for the city of Mumbai (aka Bombay). Kalki predicted (in public darshans) Mumbai would slide into the sea, or crumble like a biscuit dipped in hot tea.

And so to save Mumbai it was necessary that a certain number of people (several thousands) from the state of Maharashtra achieve the mahadeeksha. And to achieve mahadeeksha required sending 60 people for the deeksha (costing Rs 5000 [c.$125 US dollars]), plus of course many paid donations of far more than that sum. Only then could Mumbai be saved from crumbling into the Indian Ocean. And so crazed devotees, brainwashed and frightened by gory predictions of death and destruction, went on a rampage through the state of Maharashtra convincing all and sundry to come for the deeksha to save their relatives in Mumbai, their state and its major city.

Similar targets of several thousand mahadeekshas were laid out for other states, although these were never publically revealed. For all of these, deadlines were also laid out, the penalty of course really being death for that city/state.

In his public darshans, it was also revealed that about 60% of mankind would be destroyed in a mega-tsunami that would come in 2006. A few months later, others gave me a figure of 90%!! Of course, the only way to prevent all this was those 64,000 people who had to get enlightened, for whom 64,000 times 60 had to have the deeksha. If we go only by Indian costs, at a rate of Rs 41 per dollar, this comes to 470 million dollars. Add to that the donations that must be given for Amma’s darshan, Bhagavan’s darshan (Rs 100,000 then, now far more pricey we hear) and washing her dainty feet for Rs 100,000 (old rates, her feet are more expensive now) and you have a much larger sum.

The above prediction of global doom was carried over to the north by his dasas such as Pavitra and Rupali. In one place the dasa stated (smiling) that the Indo-Pakistan problem would be finished since there would be no Pakistan left.

Of course all this money was not for Krishna, the prodigal son [of Bhagavan and Amma] sitting in the US with a real estate business, or for his own future, but for that monstrous Oneness Temple that was to finish by June 2004 [finally only on April 2008], which was never to immortalize his name, but only for the enlightenment of mankind.

It makes sense that the public darshans have stopped, for now one can never quote Vijay Kumar (Sri Kalki Bhagavan) as having said or predicted anything. Orders/predictions etc will henceforth spring forth from his enlightened, celibate dasas whose words can always later be refuted.

However, unlike Indian drop-outs who rarely speak out, westerners are vocal, so the truth will come out. Vijay Kumar Kalki will meet his own destiny, which may not be a very pleasant one.

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13. Bhagavan says he's not getting enough of mankind's support

Oct 27, 2006 (updated from Sept 10)

Taken from a Swedish website: http://ashtarcommand.mylava.net.

... The recent catastrophes have been attributed by him (Kalki Bhagavan) to the karmas of mankind, and he says he is not getting enough of mankind’s support in fixing the problem. He ruefully added that the Golden City Temple which was to be completed in early 2004 is still nowhere near completion due to lack of donations. This temple would result in global enlightenment spreading in about ten hours. [NOTE from Timothy: Over a week after the inauguration of the Oneness Temple on April 22, 2008, i can report that global enlightenment has most certainly not happened!]

Due to lack of significant donations the date is slipping, mankind’s suffering is increasing and the cost is shooting up further. The latest estimate is that the cost roughly equals the defense budget of India and Pakistan, for 5 years. If the target is not reached this year, then China would be added to this list.

Bhagavan was crestfallen at news that the movement is collapsing. He said it was a malicious rumor spread by a rival camp. “Yes, many of the pillars of this movement have left us,” he said looking into the distance. “But the collapse is not total. We will rise again.”

In an answer to another question, he said “Freddy [Nielsen, who left in 2006] is not the whole movement. He was one part.” ... “When the body catches cancer, an arm often has to be removed.” ... “I knew when I saw him first, that he would leave after some time. But working for me, has been very good for his karma.”...

“I have enlightened 1500 people, you wait and see, I will enlighten the world.”

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14. Another Swedish Deeksha-giver's letter of resignation

From: Svenska Dagbladet--one of the biggest newspapers in Sweden; they published 3 articles about the dark side of the Oneness Movement. This article is translated from Swedish.

“That’s why I have to stop giving dikshas”

[A diksha giver’s letter to students explaining in detail why it is impossible to support whatever diksha stands for:]

June 22, 2006

Dear friends

Lately I have been wrestling with an incredible split feeling towards diksha and the Oneness movement. I have been irresolute and have not known on which foot I should stand. Now I have anyway taken the decision to leave the entire Movement and Amma & Bhagavan. So much have come to my notice that I can no longer stand behind this with a clean conscience. Probably you wonder why, and I do not want to speak filthy things about others, hurt someone or generalize the entire Movement. My backing out is partly founded on first hand experiences, partly on second hand facts. What has made me question is the following:

· At least 1000 Swedes have undergone the 21 days process and only a handful became “enlightened,” if at all there is someone who has attained “true enlightenment.” At present, there ought to be tens of thousands of Swedes who have gotten dikshas regularly and I do not know anyone who has received a permanent enlightened state.

· It is too commercial and there is too much money involved to suit my taste. The course fee is all the time increasing and are put on an account in Hong Kong. When we left Golden City and the 21 days process, we were asked to bring out 10,000 dollars per person, out of the country. So we left India with little more than 70,000 Swedish crowns in our pockets that we transferred to the Hong Kong account from Sweden (the majority of us, at least, agreed to do this, confiding as we were. Only when we came to Sweden, we realized that we had participated in an illegal money washing. Several participants in the process had asked and also been promised to get a receipt on the course fee that we had paid. Quite a few of us have our own companies and we have thus the possibility to deduct the course fee from our taxes. In spite of trying several times to push this matter, no one succeeded in getting a receipt. During the course in India we had to pay additional money for a trip to Amma’s ashram, in spite of that it was included in the course schedule, in spite of that we had been informed that the course fee should cover all costs. During our stay we were offered various treatments for exorbitant prices that were supposed to speed up our enlightenment. When we questioned the prices, we were told that it was going to sponsor the temple “Shakti stala” [the huge Oneness Temple]. None of us were informed that we had to live in dormitories (between 15-30 people in each room) on a construction site. We had been promised to live in wonderful double rooms where Bhagavan’s staying. However, it was maybe good for most of us to get some training in cooperation, patience and in showing consideration. And returning to the money – why should it be so expensive if one wants to help to save the world?

· I have come to know that that several people who have received diksha have gone to the mental hospital. On the web page, they mention “the dark night of the soul,” but it is in fact rather psychoses and deep depressions. I saw with my own eyes people who participated in the process in India land in serious psychosis. They should have been sent away from there to get treatment, but instead the assistants made us believe that it was “just a part of the process.” Some natural therapists have told me that dikshas cause inflammations in the nervous system (in Golden City they told about this, in fact) and in the urinary tract, due to which uric acid leaks out in the body creating various complications. A close friend of mine suddenly got acute leukemia after participating in the 21 days process. We cannot maintain that it is because of the powerful energies in India, but one cannot also know how much this might have influenced her disease. However, she has finished the radiation and chemical treatment and is now free of her cancer. Bhagavan promised this woman personally during a private interview in Golden City that she was going to get enlightened within three months; but instead of that she became deadly sick.

· A close friend of mine participated in the 10 days process, and was seriously sick in his stomach from the very first day, and hardly [could] take part in any of the lessons. He didn’t pee for a whole week, and was really in a bad shape. He was left alone in his room and nobody cared to see or visit him – they meant it was a part of the process. He could have died without anyone noticing it.

· I have met many within this Movement who have been far too greedy and wanted to trip others up to defend their “territory”; people who have claimed to be in various states of consciousness, but in fact just wanted to appear as a more evolved being to satisfy their ego and wallet. Some may do this unconsciously because they have managed to fool themselves into believing that they are “enlightened.” It may be difficult to let go of this and admit to oneself that one is not where one would like to be.

Yes, these were some of the reasons that I longer want to have anything to do with the Movement. You can also read articles that have been published about the Movement in Svenska Dagbladet* in September 2005. One can hardly say it’s a very merry reading.

From my own experience though, I know that the diksha energy is not bluff, it exists fully, but the effects are exaggerated. Maybe it is only a powerful healing that anyone can give, one probably doesn’t need to be initiated to give it. I know many people who have entered beautiful states (incl. myself) and that it has helped many to regain a meaning to life. However, many are clinging on to this straw of hay and do not want to admit that the beautiful state is not enduring. When later negative reaction arises, one is told that it is fully natural and that it belongs to the process. I want to emphasize that the dasajis that are working in Golden City are fantastic people and they do their best to help the participants. [NOTE: but this statement is contradicted by Freddy Nielsen and even by the author of this piece in the above-cited instances of neglect.] One of the reasons that it is going on the wrong track (according to my experience) is that there are too many who are doing this, and not all of them have “nothing to hide.” People give dikshas and offer courses “to the left and the right” without really knowing what they are doing. Only some of them are trained to take care of the people for whom things go wrong, and these are left to themselves. Irresponsible, I think.

Coming to my own process. As I have said earlier, I experienced high states in Golden City and there were moments when I even thought I had become enlightened. Once home, I felt peaceful and in good mood. Thoughts are less and feelings rarely take over. I can say though, that I was probably under anesthesia for the first few months, as if I lived with a small dosage of morphine. I did not realize this until the “anesthesia” gradually faded away. For some time, I had no contact with my feelings, but was rather indifferent. I felt neither fear nor worry, sadness nor anger. Now I am back to myself and feel more grounded than ever. I feel that I have gotten a higher state of consciousness, but I don’t think it is only because of Amma & Bhagavan. After all, I have been a spiritual seeker for almost 20 years and I have gone to innumerable courses and have studied a lot of literature. I have practiced thinking in the right way, a very laborious task. I have tried to let go of my ego as much as possible and I try to act as right as possible in all circumstances. I simply try to be an as good person as possible and walk “the path of service.” I maintain childhood faith in God, and I believe that “we reap what we sow” or as Gary Zukov says: ”what you give is what you get.”

After all that has happened I am skeptical though, and take all this with a pinch of salt. I do not give dikshas any longer, but still try to keep following my task in life through helping other people, which one can do in many different ways. I do not believe in enlightenment any longer. I believe it is only a concept or an illusion with a lot of myths. However, I believe in “translucency.” That is, a person who is listening to his heart and who has courage to walk his own ways and who takes the consequences for his own actions.

I can understand if this is overwhelming to [hear], but I can’t keep quiet any more. So this is my picture of the whole thing and my truth that I feel obligated to share with you. I wish all the best to you who is reading this.

--A friend

================

[Added Oct. 29, 2013:]
15. GREAT 2010 UPDATE on the Oneness Movement and offshoot One World Academy: A notice in 2010 from a former quid pro quo player, Arjuna Ardagh, who no longer promotes the O.M. and recommends independence

Arjuna Ardagh was one of numerous people to try to organize "neo-advaita" into a money-making institution. Within a few years he also became one of the western teachers bringing his recruits to India to meet the so-called "Bhagavan Kalki," Vijaykumar Naidu.

This hard-to-find statement from 2010 by Ardagh was passed along to me in late Oct. 2013 from a dear friend, who wrote me an explanatory note:

"Many have left Kalki's Oneness Movement, including Arjuna Ardagh. I did a bit of googling, [and came up with] Arjuna's Afterword for the Dutch edition of his book Awakening to Oneness, where he explains this [leaving the O.M.]. I guess since the original American edition didn't get reprinted, there wasn't a chance for it to get in there."

From: http://home.wanadoo.nl/prembuddha/deeksha2.html

AFTERWORD for the 2010 Dutch edition of the book Awakening into Oneness, by Arjuna Ardagh.

I wrote this book about the Oneness Movement in the spring of 2006. The manuscript was completed by the summer. So many changes have gone down in the intervening period that it means that the book you have just read is more of a historical document than a contemporary account.

In this short afterword, I [Arjuna Ardagh] will briefly summarize some of the most significant changes that have happened in the intervening period.

In the summer of 2006, shortly before the research for this book was complete, the Oneness University received a visit from the well-known motivational speaker Tony Robbins and his wife Sage. Soon after their visit, the Robbins invited Bhagavan’s son Krishna, [and well-known early dasa] Anandagiri, and Rani Kumra (at that time the leader of the Oneness Movement in North America), to his [Tony Robbins'] resort in Fiji. A number of meetings ensued throughout the fall of 2006 and spring of 2007 resulting in the announcement of a partnership between Tony Robbins and the Oneness Movement.

Plans were made to build an additional campus for training deeksha givers on an adjoining property to the resort in Fiji. It was around the same time that word deeksha was changed to Oneness Blessing. A large event was scheduled all over India called “Breakthru” modeled after Tony Robbins seminars. The monks [dasas], who have previously worn white clothes and shaved their heads, now grew their hair out and wore western clothes.

* Another significant change since I wrote the book is that the 100 Village Project referred to in Chapter 10 has been essentially abandoned. It was followed briefly by another program called Friends of Oneness but at the time of writing there are no further humanitarian projects underway.

* The Oneness Temple referred to in Chapter 12 was completed in the spring of 2008 and a huge consecration ceremony was scheduled for April. There were significant problems with crowd control at the event such that more and more people kept filling the large upper chamber, while others were not leaving. The event was cancelled after several hours and it took 13 more hours to get everybody out of the temple. Five people died during the incident. The temple was placed under police control for a year.

* Of the more than 300 people interviewed for this book, more than 70% have ceased their involvement with the Oneness Movement, including Erwin Laslow who wrote the Foreword, Rani Kumra, who was in charge of the American movement, Christian Opitz who did a lot of the initial research in the effects in the brain, and many others.

* The brain research referred to in Chapter 4 was never completed. A pilot study was conducted at an Indian Medical Research Institute which showed some increased blood flow during the administration of deeksha. Another study was started at the University of Wisconsin under the direction of Dr. Andrew Newberg, but proved inconclusive. At the time of writing there is actually little indication that deeksha has any effect on the brain different from meditation or other kinds of relaxation.

* Perhaps the most significant change took place in November, 2009 when Bhagavan’s son Krishna, Anandagiri, and Vimalkirti (and all of the senior instructors for the university) disaffilated from Amma and Bhagavan to form their own organization, “One World Academy.” They currently still teach courses at the facility in Fiji and other locations.

Soon after this split between Amma and Bhagavan and 25 most senior dasas, it was announced that the teacher training courses (described in Chapter 13) were to be abandoned, and newly created oneness trainers would be able to initiate deeksha givers in their own countries. At the time of writing, this happens in one weekend and is very inexpensive [NOTE from Timothy: but the "accommodation" charges for lodging and food are ridiculously overpriced, still allowing the O.M. to profit handsomely from bring in new recruits].

* In summary, we are all left to come to our own conclusions about this phenomenon. There are many people who feel betrayed, misled and frustrated by Bhagavan’s promises of instant enlightenment and miracles. Others, albeit a small minority, remain loyal to the cause and still consider Bhagavan to be an avatar. Despite all of the upheavals through which this organizations has gone, they still feel that the [obviously failed] goal of creating 64,000 deeksha givers by 2012 [never accomplished] will somehow significantly affect the collective consciousness of humanity.

The majority of the people I interviewed for this book however fall into a third camp, neither feeling betrayed nor remaining loyal followers. They recognize that their involvement with this phenomenon has opened them to the possibility that human beings have this potential to be an instrument of blessing. They also now realize that it doesn’t require any external authority to make this possibility actual. It only requires an open heart and a strong intention.

For example, I conducted a training program to create Awakening Coaches about a year ago, in Nevada City where I live; 30 or 40 people were present. Someone asked if we could have a deeksha. I thought about it for a moment. A couple of the people had been to India for the 21-day course. One had been to several courses. Some people present were very skeptical and opposed to it. Others had never heard of the possibility of blessing until a few minutes before.

So I came in up with a suggestion. “Sure.” I said. “Let’s give and receive blessings. But everybody in the room can give blessing in whatever way they choose, and everyone can also receive.”

When we gave and received blessings in that room on that day, no one could tell the difference between trained deeksha givers and people who were blessing for the first time. And so it was, for me at least, that I could be grateful for the possibilities that the Oneness Movement had opened to me, to but leave behind the need for any organization to contain it.

We are, all of us, you and me and your next door neighbor, avatars in disguise. In one paradoxical reality, that can only be lived but not understood, we are both the seeker and the savior, the recipient and the bestower of blessings.

Whether or not you choose to further your involvement with the Oneness Movement or not, hopefully this little book will have inspired you to the possibility of your own presence as a source of blessing to everyone you meet.

Arjuna Ardagh
Nevada City [California, USA], April 2010

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16. A revelation from "S" on being swindled and lied to by supposedly "enlightened" dasas and on how at present many wealthy Chinese are being lured into the O.M.

[I received the following letter in October 2013 from a person whom i'll simply call "S" to protect that person's identity, on request. Here's the letter from "S":]

Hi Timothy

Thanks for your site. [...]

Reading in such detail the whole history of Vijaykumar/Bhagavan and the story Freddy shared really have gotten to me. My mind was spinning a bit last night. I knew they [the Oneness Movement leaders] were corrupt, but I was unaware of just how much. Of course, none of us will probably ever know exactly how ugly the truth about them really is.

I did the Deeksha-giver course in 2007, and this year [2013] I did work for the Oneness University as an Interior Designer. I got to see a different side to these people. It sickened me, and it has taken time for the feelings around being lied to and used to fade away.

I wrote what turned into quite a long story about it. If you wish to publish it on your site, please do, but I'd rather not have my name attached (honestly, I don't know what these people might do to me. It is true that people use mafia types to harm others when they speak up or act in any way against them).

I don't see anything recent on your site about them, so thought this might help clarify what's happening on campus now, and who these people are when they are not acting as teachers in front of a paid audience.

[Here follows the story by "S":]

October 21, 2013

I would like to share my experience with the Deeksha/Oneness Movement with all the Westerners out there who are totally buying what “Bhagavan” and “Amma” are selling. There are already plenty of experiences shared online, and mine may not be necessary, but I have also seen another side to the people within the organization, including some of the dasas. I was working in Interior Design and had an offer to do a big job at the Oneness University, Campus 3 (the nicer, more expensive campus). I found out quite a bit about these people and all the money coming in, what they are charging VIP’s to get “Awakened” (guaranteed!) in just 5 days (as these multi-millionaires/billionaires lead very busy lives), and what they are really like when they are doing business and not getting the adulation that they are so fond of. Also, I had direct interactions with Krishna (the son) and his assistant Chandarji.

But first, some back-story.

I first took part in a Deeksha meeting in early 2007. I was in a desperate place (as one must be to believe that the Oneness Movement is authentic), searching for final liberation, after a lifetime of searching, which included meditation and teaching meditation in various countries, fasting, satsang with numerous “Gurus,” reading every book that I thought would enhance my experience, trying to pretend that I already am Enlightened as some would have you believe is the meaning behind the Advaita Vedanta wisdom, etc.... So, I was not really interested in Deeksha, having been around the block a few times, but a close relative encouraged me, so I went. And I knew quickly that I was to go to India, a strong intuition told me. I didn’t necessarily feel that Deeksha was anything special, I experienced in the Deekshas nothing more than what I experienced already while meditating. But I was desperate for a new direction in my life that would lead to permanent joy and freedom from the mind, so I went with it.

I worked hard and saved up the required $8000 for the trip ($5500 for the 17 day process, airfare and other travel expenses). During my 17-Day Process I heard nothing new, nothing I had not already heard many times before. It was all information that could easily be taken from a book or the internet. In fact, in some ways it was very much like another course I had done, The Landmark Forum [NOTE FROM TIMOTHY: See my extensive critique of The Landmark Forum in the webpage criticism of LGAT (Large Group Awareness Training) movements) filed with a link at the "Healthy Spirituality" section of our website].

But we did have a dasa leading most of the talks who was quite talented at public speaking. That, I must say, was the best part of the course. I went along, tried not to judge or have any expectations. Well, at the end of my class, I can say that, luckily, nothing really damaging happened, I just paid way too much for a trip to India. Nothing really great happened during the course either. But, I do believe it was my destiny to get to India, and the Oneness Movement gave me the excuse to get here. Yes, here, 6 years later, I am still living in India. After my course I went traveling with a fellow course attendee. Within a week, I fell in love at first sight with an Indian man, and we are now married for 5 years with a beautiful daughter. [...]

I quit having anything to do with Deeksha shortly after I finished my course. [...] I didn’t feel like using Deeksha anymore. Intuitively it just didn’t feel right for me anymore, so I dropped it.

I have learned a lot in the 6 years I have lived in India. You get to see a very different side to India when you stay for a while. One thing you learn living here, is something that Indians already know, but many of us Westerners don’t realize: Many, maybe even most, “Gurus” are fakes. In fact, most Indians know that the Oneness Movement is a scam and that “Bhagavan” and “Amma” are just money- and power-hungry frauds. (If you are a Oneness practitioner and you travel through India, people will not tell you to your face, but you can be sure that they are laughing at you behind your back. Poor chump! And, many of them see you as an easy target to charge more for their own business.)

They have been working this scam for close to 30 years, and I figure the only way they have gotten away with it for so long, is the same reason anyone else gets away with illegal activity here, they pay huge bribes to government officials. The Oneneness Movement has been investigated by the Indian government (in particular the Tamil Nadu government) but nothing has happened to them. Well, they paid them off. It is the way the government works here, and everybody knows it. Anyone in jail can pay their way out, even vicious murderers. It is a very outwardly (obviously) corrupt system here.

Ok, on to my more recent experiences. I was working in Interior Design, living several hours away from The Oneness Campus. I live in a very popular spiritual destination, and meet lots of tourists and many Oneness participants, fresh out of their course. Earlier this year, I met a woman who was working as a translator at the Oneness University, with the wealthier Chinese groups. She told me many things that she has seen and learned in her time at the campus. I wish to keep her identity a secret, as she still works there, and though she doesn’t necessarily believe in what they are doing, she says the money is too good, so she just plays along.

What I learned from her is about the newest system Bhagavan is employing. Since Dec. 21, 2012 (yes, the date that the world was supposed to Awaken, or at least the 64,000 who would then awaken the world), they started claiming that at least 98% of students were awakening during the classes. The other 2% would wake up within a few weeks of the ending of the course. They say that awakening is a neurological rewiring, and that when you “Awaken” this rewiring has reached a certain point of no return, but you might not actually feel any change at all... but eventually you will (well, that’s a great way to make people believe! They may not even feel any different! So they can never even verify with their own experience that this whole thing is a farce! That has got to be Bhagavan’s most clever story so far). And, they are given a number, from 1-100, telling them how “Awakened” they are. So, they need to keep coming back to get more and more “Awakened”. Also, once they reach 100, they go into another state called “God Realization”, which of course will entail taking more and more courses. So, it’s a life-long bondage to the Oneness Movement to move on up through the levels of Enlightenment.

Truly, this is the ultimate money making scheme if ever there was one! Because your need for the courses never ends. And, it has to do with [coddling and reinforcing] the Ultimate Desire: Enlightenment and Freedom from all suffering. All of this goes so well with the Western way of living, with an emphasis on instant gratification. McEnlightenment. 30 Million served. Next!

My friend, the translator, also told me about how much the Chinese are donating to the Oneness University. They are getting plaques with their names on the buildings, which means they donated at least some hundreds of thousands of dollars. She told me the Chinese are desperate for spirituality, as they were not allowed to have any type of spiritual life with the communist government in place. So they are just so hungry and desperate. Plus, there are getting to be a lot of filthy rich Chinese, with loads of money to spend. And Chinese apparently believe that making donations to such organization will give them great blessings and remove negative karmas, so they are throwing their money at the Oneness Movement.

My friend also told me about a 5-Day Process, for very busy/rich people. The cost? Just $118,000 USD! I was shown the VIP rooms while at the campus for the interior design work. They get a 2 bedroom apartment, with kitchen and living room. I felt that for the amount they are paying, they could have invested a bit more money into making the accommodation not look so cheap.

Currently, the other classes are said to be “free”, with a charge only to cover room and board. People are paying $100 a night to share a room with 15-20 others, or paying $200 a night to share a room that would cost about $10 anywhere else in India. The food is also atrocious. Very cheap quality. The same exact thing every single day!

While at the campus, which I visited 3 times for my work (with one overnight stay, and the other 2 being several hours), I also got the chance to talk with and also overhear conversations of the participants. I felt so sick to my stomach and turned off by the arrogant way they talked about their “Awakening.” One girl even said to me I should come back and take the course (again) and get Awakened. “Wouldn’t that be so cool if you were Awakened too?” I must say, I felt a very disturbing energy every time I visited. I also visited Campus 2 (the one with dorm rooms) and the office at the Golden Temple, 3 times. I felt a lot of dis-ease in being there, but I thought “It’s just for business so just get through this”.

The dasas and the man in charge of finances, Rameshji (whose office is located at the Golden Temple) are another story. I had a lot of interaction with them over a 2 month period. Although one of the dasas was very nice, I believe he was just playing a part. He turned out to be quite manipulative, like all the rest I interacted with. I feel that this is the main thing they have learned in being a part of this organization. How to manipulate. How to lie. How to live a brain-washed existence. He asked me to lie to other people within the organization, as he was planning something behind the back of Rameshji, the financial guy. He kept asking me to come out to the campus for meetings (a 6 hour drive each way, costing $100 of my own money each time). I did all this believing they were about to sign a contract with me, which they kept promising me to do. I made a total of 6 trips to meet with them, one in Chennai at Krishna’s Kosmik music company’s office (very expensively done, might I add... walls, counters, everything covered in granite!), and a few several-day trips to Bangalore for this project. I made for them, along with my architect partner, no less than 10 full designs for the rooms at Campus 3. All the while telling them I must get a contract signed right away, as all the work was coming out of my own pocket. I got promise after promise, and believed them. I was not yet aware of how truly deceptive these people really were. My architect partner tried to warn me, but ultimately she trusted me enough to go along with all of it. But through this experience, I came to understand who they are.

They are also planning (as early as next year they want to start construction) on a new campus just for the uber-rich, ultra-VIP Chinese. That was the plan of this dasa (along with some other dasas apparently) who wanted me to lie for him. He didn’t want me telling Rameshji anything about their plans for a super high-end campus. There are other campuses planned as well, including one for [pregnant] women [ready] to give birth (bet that won’t be cheap for the mothers!), and campuses for children and teenagers.

So, the dasa who asked me to lie, and put me in a very uncomfortable position with Rameshji, that dasa lied about asking me to come for a meeting, while I was right there with Ramesh. He turned it on me, blamed me for being an idiot and coming when he never asked me. A bit of yelling went on as well between Ramesh and the dasa, and I just had to do my best to act ignorant and stay out of it. I was honestly shocked by how they behaved. It felt so childish and ego driven. I cannot say that any of these people are experiencing any kind of higher state. They behave like people drunk on their own worldly power. They lie to each other, and I’m quite sure to everyone else. I witnessed a lot of irritation, anger, dishonesty, irresponsibility and fully alive desires for material riches with all the people I was involved with from the Oneness Movement. I experienced no humility or respect. And their actions were clearly lacking any inner integrity or morals. Do they really care about others? I think not. I would say that most (not all, mind you) of them are quite superior in their intelligence, which I suppose goes a long way in fooling people into thinking they also have a superior spiritual experience as well. The two do not necessarily go hand in hand. Many psychopaths are also very intelligent and charismatic. That is how they lure in their prey. You decide if you want to put these people in charge of your spiritual progress.

I had a meeting with Krishna (the son). Now what I will tell you about him comes from intuition, which I have learned to trust more and more as I have seen that what I have felt in different situations gets validated at some point. Krishna cares nothing about spirituality at all. He is purely a businessman. He loves his power, his money, his homes, etc.... He came across as well educated and sharp, but also, again, drunk on his own power. He was egotistically talking about his amazing home and his great taste in the best that life has to offer (for those that can afford it). He was a snob. I felt no humility from him, only overconfidence.

He and his assistant flat out lied to me, promising me to sign a contract within a couple days, they just wanted more design options first. I was very naively agreeable to them, as I was not used to the Indian way of totally bullshitting to get whatever you want, but also because I didn’t think they would want to give themselves a bad reputation with someone who has connections with Oneness participants. But apparently they don’t care. I spent 2 months on the work for them, and spent approximately $2000 of my own money (along with getting paid nothing for all my work), plus my architect spent 6 weeks working on this project (involving her whole office of more than 10 people). I’m sure her expenditure was a minimum of 10-20 lakhs worth of work. After the final meeting I received an email saying "we have other options we are going to pursue" (all the time they had been telling me that I was their only option and they would certainly go with me and my team). They have all the designs, and they will just go out and find someone else to implement the designs for a lesser charge. The assistant, Chandarji, did actually call me a fool for being so trusting. He said, “You have a lot to learn about how business is done in India.” Yep. Sure do. I am much too trusting and believing that most people are good and would not want to screw others over. This has been a major lesson in trust for me. Big lesson, trust my intuition! Listen. I felt wrong about it early on, maybe the first meeting, but I put that feeling aside. I listened to my brain, which said that these people (while not my cup of tea) are good people who really care about humanity and the world and really believe in what they are doing. I now feel that this is far from the truth. Perhaps many of them have fooled themselves into believing this also. Otherwise, how could they live with themselves?

I had other very disturbing experiences while interacting with these dasas. I could see that they were totally self-absorbed (small self, not Self-absorbed). They all looked truly unhappy. Depressed. I feel sorry for them, really. Most of them probably believe the lie. This whole Oneness Movement experiment shows just how willing we are to be deceived. How we deceive ourselves in order to line up with our fantasies. We will pursue something that shows no real results, and even our brain will release endorphins and other such “feel good” hormones, to line up with what we are currently believing. But when the believing starts to falter (which it always does, since belief is from the surface level of the mind and takes work to maintain) the “feel good” hormones stop, and so does the experience that we thought was Awakening.

After reading about how “Bhagavan” has been claiming for so many years that he has gotten many people Enlightened, and many of those people have later claimed that the Enlightenment didn’t really happen, you can see the power of the mind to deceive. The power of the Ego. Some good feeling might have been there temporarily, but it didn’t last. And now so many people are totally disillusioned with the Oneness Movement. But, there are so many more suckers in the world willing to believe!!! And so the Oneness Movement lives on....

On a totally positive note, in my time in India, I have met a few totally genuine Gurus. One thing that really sets them apart from “Bhagavan” and “Amma”--they don’t charge you to be in their Presence. They don’t charge you for a blessing. And they are among the biggest givers of selfless service you will ever see. [...]

I met my own Guru 2 years ago. It was at a very difficult time in my life. I was able to regularly talk with my Guru (I’d rather not reveal who it is), getting guidance and clarity directly. I experienced many times that my Guru knew my thoughts. He answered questions I had but did not ask. Now, two year later, I have fully come through the difficulties, and it is really because of this direct help that I so patiently was given. I felt, directly, that the Divine is truly always with me. But the biggest teaching that my Guru teaches is to open to the Divine within. He does not encourage dependency. He does not ask for anything. He just gives, every day, every hour, to anyone who wishes to come be in His Presence. [...]

=================

17. My response to a former Oneness Movement member's questions

----- Original Message -----
From: "Sally" [name changed to protect anonymity]
To: Timothy Conway
Sent: Friday, May 30, 2008
Subject: Kalki & Oneness Movement

Dear Timothy

I discovered your web site only yesterday and look forward to exploring its rich offerings. I am very interested in non-dual spirituality and appreciate a quality site which is dedicated to this.

I am still reeling from the information regarding Amma & Bhagawan and their Oneness Movement. I have been receiving phone/online/distant deekshas from the US - I live in [another country] -since 2007. I feel very disappointed but also relieved to know of some of the shocking facts revealed, especially that the type of peak experiences described by a number of people following deeksha in Kiara Windrider's book 'Deeksha - the Fire from Heaven' were almost certainly the result of a psychoactive drug.

I had started to feel very uncomfortable with the position that I had found myself in, of feeling the need to keep paying for these "Oneness Blessings" if I were to be able to develop spiritually, since I have been on a disability pension [...] and struggling to pay for the basics as well as ongoing treatment. Although I did find one deeksha-giver on-line who had flexible payment options for people less able to pay, she cut me off the list, depriving me of phone conference details, without notification, when I was not able to pay even the reduced amount that I had committed to. The idea that is promulgated, that there is nothing one can do, but that enlightenment has to be given, puts one in a position of dependency, and since it is recommended that the Blessing be received weekly, this had started to seem to me to be a very unhealthy type of dependency which in my case would impose financial strain. I had questioned a few Blessing-givers about the fact that a set fee was being charged - usually about $20 per group phone/distant Blessing and considerably more for private ones -- rather than a donation, stating that whilst I understood that for many employed people $20 per week was very affordable, for many others financially disadvantaged due to age or disability or other factors, it was definitely not affordable, and that I didn't understand how excluding people due to their inability to pay, or for any reason, was compatible with rapid collective enlightenment, or even with basic compassion, the only answer I was given was that Bhagawan had told them to ask for a "donation" and that $20 per (group) Blessing was affordable for "most" people, the implication being, to hell with the rest.

I believe that probably most of the deeksha-givers on-line are entrepreneurial, opportunistic types who have found a nice little earner (easily making $1000/hour if they have 50 takers. One I came across-- [name deleted]-- charges $50 per person for a group deeksha, or 'Divine Opening' as she has re-branded it). However, I'm sure that there must be many, many sincere but duped and confused people who are giving deeksha.

I was referred by a few of these deeksha-givers to Bhagawan's instruction that a donation should be asked for, because of the principle that "one receives when one gives" and that it is helpful for the recipient to give a donation. This is such a distortion of the principle of karma or reciprocity to justify their taking! Also, Bhagawan says that it may not be appropriate to ask for a donation from family members, close friends or deserving people who are genuinely unable to pay. How do they make the judgment of who is deserving? This is reminiscent of the notion of Dickensian times of the deserving and undeserving poor. Naturally, there is no question of whether those able to pay the full fee are deserving or not!

As I said, one very sincere online deeksha-giver gave the option to those unable to pay the full fee of paying a partial fee and doing some seva [service] in addition, which could be anything one nominated, providing it was approved by her. Although on the surface this seems reasonable, it reinforces the assumption that people are poor because they are lazy. It doesn't seem to occur to someone like this, well-intentioned as she seems to be, that many people are already doing a lot of seva in their daily life and not getting paid much or anything for it, such as sole parents, nurses, teachers, social workers, policemen, people working with the disabled, in low-paid service jobs and many others. These people often have to work more than a 40-hour week to survive, and then come home to a second shift of family responsibilities. The last thing they need is more work! Meanwhile, the corporation owner making a fortune off the backs of the poor in third world countries can just pay what for him is a pittance, and Divine Grace will be delivered! Oh, it's all too stupid.

I had found myself in a position of craving something that was out of reach and starting to stress about missing out on something that I thought was vitally important for my spiritual unfoldment. Then I started reading Nisargadatta's [book of conversations] 'I Am That' and the insanity of my situation and attitude struck me forcefully. However, it was still difficult to let go of the fantasy of effortless and fast enlightenment being offered by the Oneness Movement, not just for me personally but as a hope for the whole of humanity. So I am very grateful to be released from this cycle of craving, frustration and dependancy. It feels quite liberating.

However, I am still left wondering how both Kiara Windrider ('Deeksha - the Fire from Heaven') and Arjuna Ardagh ('Awakening into Oneness'), who both seem to be intelligent, sincere, spiritually experienced and credible people, could have been so deeply impressed by A & B and the whole Oneness organization, and how so many thousands of people could have been persuaded to part with so much money for the 21 and 10-day processes, and how the movement could have grown so quickly if its claims are so hollow, as they appear to be from the articles posted on your site from former long-time followers. Perhaps I am very naive, but I find this very difficult to grasp. My feelings about my own experience are mixed. I definitely experienced a qualitatively different type of awareness at times in the early months - feelings of greater peace and spaciousness, a seemingly quieter mind and awareness of the present moment. However, during a 3-week Proxy Program from India coinciding with the opening of the temple, I experienced precisely nothing, despite the effusive testimonials of many others. If Bhagawan is just a clever scam artist, driven by desire for power and money, what was the cause of those shifts in awareness for me? Was it just some kind of auto-suggestion at work, and if so, why hadn't this ever occurred before with any other exposure to spiritual books or teachings? Actually, I spent 18 months in an ashram in India in my youth and never had this kind of experience then. Can you shed any light on this? Also, Arjuna Ardagh states that he never witnessed any evidence of opulent living by A & B and the dasas, so what would be the point of having such an efficient money-making machine if its fruits aren't being enjoyed?

Tim, I don't know if you have the time or inclination to respond to this letter, but I am sending it just on the off-chance that you might. Part of my motivation is to get enough clarity to be able to really let go of this thing and not have any lingering doubts. I appreciate that, as a public service, you have provided warnings about dysfunctional and exploitative cults. I feel this is very important in order to prevent people wasting years of their lives going down spiritual dead ends and possibly being very damaged in the process. I have done this myself in the past, over a couple of decades, and definitely don't want to repeat the experience. Although I am disappointed, I don't feel crushed by the revelations about A & B because I know that authentic teachers and paths do exist, even if they are not so easy to find. I feel that 'I Am That' has given me enough to go on with for the rest of my life and that if I could just apply myself earnestly to only that, it would be enough.

Yours Sincerely
"Sally" [name changed to protect anonymity]

-----

Timothy responded:

Dear "Sally,"

Thank you for your email and your passion for real spirituality. Yes, earthly life right now is "beyond busy" for this one, but i'll take the time to respond to some of your points.

First, i'm so very glad to hear that you've made acquaintance with the truly Self-Realized sage Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj. If you've not already seen it, there is a lot of material on his life and teachings at my long webpage (with several links to free books, teachings-excerpts, etc.) at www.enlightened-spirituality.org/Nisargadatta_Maharaj.html

A few comments on A&B and the Oneness Movement....

You wrote:
>I had started to feel very uncomfortable with the position that I had found myself in, of feeling the need to keep paying for these "Oneness Blessings" if I were to be able to develop spiritually, since I have been on a disability pension [...] and struggling to pay for the basics as well as ongoing treatment. [...] I had questioned a few Blessing-givers about the fact that a set fee was being charged - usually about $20 per group phone/distant Blessing and considerably more for private ones - rather than a donation. [...]

Sally, having a set fee for Deeksha (or for any other spiritual "service" that is being commodified in today's insecure and voracious society) is ridiculous and unjust, not only because God-Realization is not a "commodity" but also because of our world's increasingly disparate distribution of economic wealth. If one is charging money for one's services, there should always be a "sliding fee scale" to match this widespead economic disparity. Consider: for someone making over US$100,000 per year, paying $20 for a group fee is nothing. But for the great majority of other folks-- comprising the "near poor," "working poor," poor, and destitute-- a set fee like this $20 per group deeksha and much more money for a private deeksha is punitively rigid... and greedy.

Ah, "the karmas of jivas." Alas, there is "karmuppance" for such greed and exploitation. We pray that all may be saved from their own karmas and karmuppance and come back to real freedom, openness, emptiness, fullness as Divine Awareness-Aliveness-Isness!

[UPDATE: another correspondent, a Deeksha practitioner not devoted to A&B, informs me in June 2010: "Since 2008 OM has told us not to charge any money... I haven't asked for donations in years, and when I did have a basket out it was for suggested donations. I don't think there is one Blessing Giver who ever thought they would make money from this."]

Sally, you also wrote:
>The idea that is promulgated, that there is nothing one can do, but that enlightenment has to be given, puts one in a position of dependency, and since it is recommended that the Blessing be received weekly, this had started to seem to me to be a very unhealthy type of dependency which in my case would impose financial strain.

Yes, Sally, this dependency is a very real problem, and it is the mark of inferior spiritual groups that are not about true spiritual Freedom, but are perpetuating insidious forms of bondage, attachment, fear and insecurity.

As for the interesting "experiences" that are available through A&B's O.M. and through other cults --e.g., Adi Da's group, Osho Rajneesh's, Sathya Sai's, not to mention certain cultic circles outside India within Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity, certain forms of Muslim Sufism, New Age groups, etc.-- there's nothing very impressive about these experiences. Expectancy effects and the sincerity and dedication of many spiritual aspirants who come to these movements could account for many of the inner experiences. Furthermore, any of these human characters who establish these cults could just be psychic channels for discarnate entities working interdimensionally to create all sorts of "experiences" in people, experiences that seem dazzling and/or extraordinary in their peaceful content or energy-intensity. (Apparently, according to psychics, such entities like to "feed" off the energy in human beings drawn to big gatherings of a religious, spiritual, political, sports, or other type.) I'm sure that if people sat around the legendary Satan/Lucifer (the "Light Bearer," brightest of all angels), they'd be having all sorts of "amazing experiences" as well.

I always like to distinguish between getting really CLEAR (on our True Nature as Pure, Open, non-objectifiable Awareness) and merely "getting high" (on euphoria, on dazzling experiences, energy-rushes, states of great peace-bliss, and so on). In other words, true spiritual aspirants make a priority out of relaxing the ego-knot and receding back into realization of Siva (Pure Empty-Open Awareness) and not indulging in Sakti's play, the play of energies and states of consciousness which are always "downstream" from Source-Awareness, which is always HERE and NOW as Our Absolutely True and Simple Spiritual Reality. To one who has fully surrendered his/her life to this Siva-Source, the various gifts, powers and states of Sakti will bow down in service. Moreover, such a true sage will never be a "taker," only a giver, one who gives freely without neediness.

>However, I am still left wondering how both Kiara Windrider ('Deeksha - the Fire from Heaven') and Arjuna Ardagh ('Awakening into Oneness'), who both seem to be intelligent, sincere, spiritually experienced and credible people, could have been so deeply impressed by A & B and the whole Oneness organization, and how so many thousands of people could have been persuaded to part with so much money for the 21 and 10-day processes, and how the movement could have grown so quickly if its claims are so hollow, as they appear to be from the articles posted on your site from former long-time followers.

Sally, the reasons for the large, rapid growth of O.M. are no doubt due to 1) the great spiritual hunger of lots of people for unusual experiences; 2) Kalki's silly but sizzling idea that enlightenment can be bought and obtained through "transmission" and "changing of the brain" via deeksha; and 3) the intensely apocalyptic idea of mass enlightenment by 2012 (many people's psyches are drawn to this fascinatingly attractive but unproven and actually quite implausible idea of collective enlightenment ushered in by an astrologically auspicious and momentous date on the calendar). Also: 4) in that quid pro quo arrangement i mentioned in [this] long webpage on Kalki and O.M., i made it clear that certain western teachers (Ardagh, Windrider, Robbins, et al.) are benefitting by their relationship with A&B, and vice versa: the support of each party can be used for publicity purposes of mutually "legitimizing" the other party. In other words, A&B are legitimized by the attention of these western teachers and their followers/readers, and these western teachers and followers are legitimized by the "blessing" of A&B. But i find the entire Oneness movement to be illegitimate because of its fraudulent, exploitative dynamics! [Update Note: See Arjuna Ardagh's public statement, given in previous entry, finally dissociating himself from the movement.]

Sally, you wrote:

>Also, Arjuna Ardagh states that he never witnessed any evidence of opulent living by A & B and the dasas, so what would be the point of having such an efficient money-making machine if its fruits aren't being enjoyed?

Well, that Oneness Temple (to which most of the funds have been going over the last several years) is rather opulently luxurious and extravagant, isn't it? I'm sure that A&B and the remaining dasas (most have left A&B) very much enjoy looking out from all those marble terraces of the Temple onto the crowds of deeksha-seekers below. My bet is that the opulent living by A&B will increase over time, and will take subtler forms than, say, Rajneesh's ostentatious fleet of 75 Rolls Royce automobiles. Apparently, according to at least one lawsuit in the courts, lots of monies are being siphoned off to enrich the family of A&B. See items #9 and #10 at [this] webpage on Kalki--"Brief report from a devotee of Ramana Maharshi writing from India on the government investigations of the Kalki cult" and also "Madras High Court orders investigation of Kalki cult." In the former it is alleged that Kalki's son Krishna has 33 cars (at last count). That's rather "opulent," no?

>Part of my motivation is to get enough clarity to be able to really let go of this thing and not have any lingering doubts. [...] Although I am disappointed, I don't feel crushed by the revelations about A & B because I know that authentic teachers and paths do exist, even if they are not so easy to find. I feel that 'I Am That' [the book of conversations with Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj] has given me enough to go on with for the rest of my life and that if I could just apply myself earnestly to only that, it would be enough.

Yes, Sally, as Sri Nisargadatta, Sri Ramana Maharshi and other true sages would say, the best form of Satsang is abiding as the Atma God-Self, the Self of all selves, and spontaneously serving every self as none other than One Self!

Wishing you everything wonderful, O Atma-manifesting-as-Sally! And i do hope and pray that your finances and health improve!

--timothy

* * *

"Sally" responded:

[...] I just want to add that whilst I understand that many people seem to have been seduced by the exotic, peak experiences that Kiara Windrider and others recounted in his book, and the many "testimonials" that are put about, I was more interested in what appeared to be genuine ego-dissolving experiences (such as www.deekshafire.com/?Global_Enlightenment:A_Grandmaster%27s_Experiences_with_Ilahinoor:Sewers_of_the_Mind) and awareness of non-duality, and the emphasis placed by A&B & dasas on enlightenment as being free of the sense of a separate self, and reported experiences of, for example, "being nowhere and yet being everywhere" and being free of all concern about oneself and one's own enlightenment, but having become interested only in helping others to awaken. Their material abounds with ripped-off nondual-speak that resonated with me from my readings over the past few years in Buddhist literature. Having thoroughly read everything on your web page and many other comments elsewhere, I now know that no-one is getting enlightened in this movement, and that the leaders are very far from enlightened.

When I first read about this movement 3 years ago and the extortionate prices being charged, I immediately wrote it off as a money-making scam. But then when a spiritual teacher who I respected got involved and became a deeksha-giver, I felt I should take another look. I was suckered in! I now feel disgusted that they have so cunningly spread their net so wide as to catch every kind of seeker, from the raw beginner looking for spiritual thrills to the more seasoned who are seeking an authentic awareness of the Self. It is really hard for me to comprehend such cynicism and base self-seeking, exploiting not only people's interest in becoming enlightened, but also the well-grounded fear that so may have at present about the precarious state of the planet. I can only conclude that they must have bought their own PR and are deeply deluded themselves. Perhaps the one thing to feel good about in all this is that it has revealed that there are at present a lot of people who are at least interested in the idea of enlightenment, which would not have been the case a few decades ago.

--"Sally"


===============

18. Relevant Websites

(Favorable) Oneness Movement Websites:

Readers who want to keep tabs on Kalki Bhagavan's Oneness Movement (or whatever it may be called in time) and its activities in India and abroad may peruse any of several websites that the Oneness Movement has used (deploying various website-promoting tricks) to boost its presence on the Internet. These include:

onenessuniversity.org (the official Oneness University site)
globaloneness.com
onenessmovement.org
onenessawakening.nl
trueawakening.org
onenessforall.com
onemovement.org
deeksha.com
www.experiencefestival.com
deekshafire.com
--and many local sites, such as for (just to mention the USA) the New York area, the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas, Maui-Hawaii, Utah, Florida, etc. Note that in the USA/Canada, there was a coordinator for the Oneness Movement for all persons living west of the Mississippi River (this was previously Rani Kumra, who had quit the O.M. by 2010); those in the eastern USA/Canada were being coordinated by someone else (for years this was Evelyn Cole; it is uncertain whether she is still with the O.M. or has left like so many other disenchanted former followers).

This is the One World Academy website:
http://oneworldacademy.com/owamainsite/

Here's the website for Anandagiri, former head Dasa of the Oneness Movement: http://anandagiri.com/

Critical Websites:

DeekshaDanger.weebly.com/index.html (Freddy Nielsen's site)
Livinginjoy.com
Guruphiliac.blogspot.com (do article search on "Kalki")

See also the July 2012 Indian television program that scathingly exposed Vijaykumar / "Kalki," at www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/india-tv-reveals-truth-behind-self-proclaimed-kalki-bhagavan--16892.html

New age healer, author, and workshop leader, Kiara Windrider, who wrote the first book published in the West promoting Bhagavan Kalki and the Oneness movement, quietly left Kalki and his movement years ago, and has been privately critical of it. His website is http://www.kiarawindrider.net/ and he is known for teaching Ilahinoor, another form of energy transmission, and charging very little money for it, and he is very critical of those who charge lots of money, see: http://www.kiarawindrider.net/ilahinoor/ilahinoor-and-money/

--and there are likely more critical websites being created as more and more people see through the big swindle...