Underworld Plots

• The Walrus Discussion Forum
• "Like a Strolling One"
• The Sects and Widespread Insecurity of Members, if not Narcissism
• A tentatively mapped sect country

The Walrus Discussion Forum

Those Who Need Advice Are Not All Likely to Take It

"Rebuke me a million times - do scold med now!" says Paramahansa Yogananda somewhere [Pa 432]. In another place he says, "Our best friends are those who criticise us the most . . . who never condone our faults".

How often is the saying true for critique as for counsel, that it is "seldom welcome, and those who need it the most, like it the least." [Lord Chesterfield]. Many proverbs evolve that basic idea: "Advice is something the wise don't need and the fools won't take [Ap 9]." A variant: "Fools need advice most, but wise men only are the better for it [Ap 10]." Apropos, "He asks advice in vain who will not follow it [Ap 10]."

If you have something of value to be implemented for the benefit of people in largely submissive groups and authoritarian clicques, consider that "frozen" cliques may neither like nor want you, that pertinent critique or criticism the wise seldom need and the fools would rather not take.

Overlooked Problem Source?

The founder-guru is an overlooked source of contemporary problems in SRF. Just as an institution is the lengthened shadow of a man, as Emerson says, so may the institution's problems be. Yogananda set wheels rolling, in part by inconsistent teachings and practices, dubious propaganda, and hailing of dictatorship. Other delicate problems and suggestions for how to deal with them, are exposed elsewhere. [LINK]

By and by Paramahansa Yogananda's teachings turned into exhorting "God-lore" rather than "Selfhood serving". You may say he luffed to serve the sort of audience he attracted by the demagoguery. His kriya teachings were simplified and changed, and the kriya hype vastly expanded. He set up his own church in 1935, with its own monastic order too, and monastics are not known for managing even needed change.

Yogananda's early messages are quite yoga-psychologically oriented, focusing on Self and universality. But after fifteen years he had his own registered church and monastic order, and the focus of his output became "God!" and exhortations to meditate. SRF has gone on to serve the guru without discerning between the changed profile of their guru from the eary and later years in their mixture-based SRF Lessons, a blend of guru sayings and poems, and, in my experienced, too little practical value. After all, a good part are based on his orator output - lectures, sermons, and talks.

Walrus Ex Monastics with Deep Problems and Unresolved Issues

A board made up by disgruntled ex-members cannot possibly say nice things about SRF, and is hardly what I would call an unbiased source of information. [mccoy, Dec 2006, on the SRF Walrus [www.yoganandaji.org/board/showthread.php?t=4324]

However, his monastics are not allowed to find fault with the guru, and the church of Yogananda is indeed sectarian, teeming with unprovable tenets and so on. When many monastics and other members left in the early 2000s, they got that baggage with them, along with their dissatisfaction, loss of hopes, and fears that might be guilt-related. We find astonishing sectarian belief about Yogananda and his teachings there, smearing, crib-biters, and almost paranoic fear of legal actions from "big brother" - SRF which most had left.

A message board was set up by one former monastic, and soon dozens started to teach one another there, but anonymously. Unresolved conflicts were quite easy to observe - some wrote of deep problems and traumas, and of resorting to psychoteraphy. One of the hot spots was unresolved conflicts around loyalty and devotion and leader submission on the one hand, and the fact that some participants on the board had left SRF, the guru's cult - and some had left Yogananda altogether.

The SRF Walrus today is quite stagnant, but also a documentation of a phenomenon. Its Message Board is still online. I put some time and study into in the early 2000s.

Other SRF devotees have decided to ban the disappointing board after sensing the "evil hand", such as unreflected Yogananda-sectarianism and allegiance troubles. They talk down on SRF leaders and faithful SRF followers by such as "the bad ladies" and "bliss bunnies", and that is not the worst you may come across. And they seldom seem to relate their own troubles to their own parts in their "SRF dance", for example "It takes two to tango". There are not many self-searching posts, who try to find out "What was it in me that made me vulnerable to this sect and its teachings in the first place?" In this respect some share a problem with divorced couples - after a break-up there is vulnerability and a desire to talk and blame much on the other part, but too often too little self-searching so as to escape committing similar mistakes in years ahead.

Some on the board are not marked by writing fondly of others, even their own past board members.

Less Friendly Goings

I got some letters from one such former Yogananda devotee who told about her troubles with the cult SRF and the message board of former cult members. After she had become Christian, she put some of her harsh experiences with the SRF cult and cultists online. There might be something to learn there. I hope all the links lead to the proper places also after she started to upgrade her pages.

She left SRF and Yogananda altogether

The "Turtle-dove" (alias) does not usually write about the Self-Realization Fellowship, the church she left - a church of Hindu faith - for she does not wish to attract SRF followers. This is because she has learnt that they put on the air of being holy and perfect while in public, and the Internet has afforded some of them an opportunity to behave quite badly, for example by smearing her.

She sums up that before the Internet, those who questioned Self-Realization Fellowship were largely left to suffer their various disillusionment in silence.

Several years ago she came across the SRF Walrus discussion board where ex-SRF members with camouflaged screen names, shared the machinations of this church which was a cult, many found. She had realised that members live in great fear - some of it consciously too. Many would often come back to the board and delete entire posts, sometimes within minutes after posting, due to inner conflicts coupled with guru fears, one may add.

For a while, people were gathering information and sharing experiences about SRF. Most of those who left, didn't leave the guru. They could still practice his teachings on their own, or join a spin off church, Ananda Sangha, with guru-idolisation still intact.

Now when board members found out she'd become a Christian "they trolled the internet for any false, lying, wrong, mistaken, misleading, incorrect, inaccurate, sham, dishonest, deceptive, spurious, erroneous, fallacious, untruthful information about Christianity they could copy and paste to denounce my decision".

Someone posted back to her that "You had a nice day because you thought you were too good for a bad one." And every once in a while someone would leave her a message and outright offend her, threaten her, and accuse her, she tells. From one such comment:

You're a fool, and you will endure incarnations of suffering for leaving your guru for Christ. . . . Only an idiot would leave the guru, what kind of fool would go to Christianity after having (guru)? You're going to be in the astral world one day wondering why you were so *&^$ stupid as to believe in Christ! . . . What a joke. Get a life! . . . I'm not going to listen to you, your an *(& hole and anyone like you would ***&^. Your father *&%*$ you when you were little, and that's why you left the guru, and you were *^$#*^ repeatedly in high school.

She corrected this politely: her father did not molest her. And she found the attacks of nasty cult members scary - and so should you, considering that the guru Yogananda teaches love and decent conduct.

[More]

Evaluations of SRF people close to and in the SRF headquarters

"Turtle-dove" studied, mediated and followed the famous guru Yogananda during most of her life. She served at fellowship gatherings and tells she "knew hundreds of yogis for up to 30 years, but not one of them had ever attained much". Most of them had little financial success, and not happiness either. And "There were drugs, alcohol, affairs, divorces, physical abuses . . . They seemed a bunch of shame driven antisocial beings." She had never seen anyone enter into Samadhi, and found that "None of these struggling yogi's were better off, if anything, all of them suffered mental and emotional problems."

[More]

She sobbed

She sobbed on the phone the night her mother died after one of the SRF leaders had told her on the phone that her "mother deserved to die a horrible cancer death, and that she really didn't mind dying in this way, that her soul understood."

She lived in shock for a good long time after that, for her mother's last word to her was "shit", and then she lapsed into her final coma.

In talk therapy that followed outside SRF, she learned she'd formed a religious addiction added to problems that would go away.

There was unwanted, up to neurotic perfectionism running in SRF, she noticed by and by. "Silly things like using a ruler to measure the exact location a plastic spoon and fork should be set on a table. Such awkward "perfectionism" was used to humiliate and wound "lesser" devotees and to pump the egos of the reinforces of the neurotic-looking SRF culture, which was defended and upheld by typical top-down attitudes demanding foolish submission from beginners as the cover-up.

"They brought me feelings of distrust, worthlessness, inferiority," writes Turtle-dove. Many devotees passed on non-democratic patterns "to others through control, perfectionism, contempt, criticism, blame, envy, judgment, power and rage," and when she began to seriously question the flaws of the teachings, she was abandoned. Before it happened to her, it happened to others too: "We lost many monks to mystery. The really good ones never stayed," she found.

[More]

Guru of deceptions

When she left Yogananda, it had nothing to do with his deceptions, as she learned about them many years later. SRF members guard themselves against what has been dug up, for example that Yogananda talked for dictatorship, praised Mussolini, and things like that. SRF does not try to publish Yogananda material that does not look acceptable to Americans today, then. But the fact remains that he set up a hard, submission-based society, SRF, and that its authoritarianism is not much to og for, after all is said and done.

She had loved Yogananda dearly, and many women fall in love with prison inmates too - real killers. . She needed space from the monks and nuns who ran SRF like a gulag, and was unaware that she'd been slowly brainwashed a long time, she says.

[More]

Geoffrey Falk related online about SRF experiences he calls abuse and suppression in an ashram deep in California, and was likewise sweared at for it, he says. [Link]

Back to the SRF Walrus

One of the lessons above is there may be a difference between a godly facade and what actually goes on and how bad it is.

I was not so much impressed with SRF at the start as this woman seems to have been. But I did appreciate some of the monks, though, and was willing to bear up with a lot. Later it showed up that it was too much to put up with anyway.

As for the SRF Walrus Message Board, not all of its 28 000 posts are abusive and deranged railings. Still, there is an ample amount of strong, fixed New Age-related beliefs and ranting that goes against sound evidence and may be strenuous to go into.

The SRF Walrus stated it was

intended to help those who have been involved closely with Self Realization Fellowship . . . For most it is shocking when they get a close look at the reality of what the organization is like and it brings their loyalty to SRF and Yogananda into question . . . Should we stay involved or just develop a personal relationship with Yogananda [he died in 1952] that does not involve SRF? . . . Come help us. [Wal]

However, that appeal is soundly disregarded:

It's not really worth wallowing in the mud going in that room. - Ellyn,
[www.yoganandaji.org/board/showthread.php?t=4324&page=3]

Still, the above is what the Walrus moderator wrote herself/himself, and attached a little red devil icon to. Allround reliability appeared to be out of reach for most of them as they lectured their unquestioned New Age faith. Some who posted on the SRF Walrus stood up and claimed they had gone insane by the SRF methods and teachings. If so, and things are taken to courts, the SRF teachings and methods may become public as court evidence.

But what has happened? If anything, it is hardly visible today. SRF typically does not ask for help, other than money and donations and inheritance . . . And may I add, "Not all who ask for help, really want it if it is given." Sometimes the cure requires a bitter pill, such as awakening from stupid, very cultish, fetish idealisation of Yogananda. And still bear in mind "Advice, when most needed, is least heeded. [Ap 9]".

Among the ardent Yogananda devotees, we find some who thrash the SRF Walrus - it might be expected. Quote from another discussion board:

"I would stay away from that site . . . They do not listen to reason and the only reason it exists is to detract the teachings, be dismissive of disciples who stayed and negatively impact SRF and Masters [Yogananda's] teachings . . . Flies like to gather around filth." The moderator of that second board agreed with the content, but added, "To disparage a board that disparages others makes one board just like the other."

Another points out: "A board made up by disgruntled ex-members cannot possibly say nice things about SRF, and is hardly what I would call an unbiased source of information." [Source]

Speaking of court cases, SRF lost the right to much Yogananda material in a 12-year long legal feud with a spin-off church, Church of Ananda. SRF filed a massive lawsuit for trademark, publicity rights, and copyright infringement. The judge and jury decided mostly in Ananda's favour. [Details]

"Birds in their little nest agree; and 'tis a shameful sight, when children of one family fall out, and chide, and fight." [Isaac Watts]

The truth is that birds in their nest do not always agree, and some nestlings are kicked out too. Still it is a pity when it happens, and happens among seemingly evolved guru followers too.

Now, anyway, for the benefit of the blessed few who may take pieces of advice, more or less:

Posting after posting on the early Walrus tried to solve some hard problems of SRF nuns for them, but not taking into account the wisdom of proverbs like:

• He who gives advice for nothing could be a bigger fool than he who takes it [cf. Ap 10].
• Take your own advice, you'll be too busy to bore others with it [Ap 10].
• Advising is easier than helping [Ap 11].

Helping yourself is helping the world to the degree you are part of the world - as the centre of your own world perception. - The Catholic Church holds a similar view on charity. And proverb illustrates what is meant: "Charity begins at home but should not end there [Ap 92]."

You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person will not be found: You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection. [Buddha]

Yogananda teaches the world is pretence. If the world is illusory, as he says, he too would be illusory, his teachings, his barbarious kriya oath - and he would not count. So why serve the guru in illusion? Is it because "Illusion is itself illusory", as Ramana Maharsi says, but not Yogananda?

From a Walrus Thread

The Walrus once got a letter, saying,

I am living in Southern India. I saw your website. Are you the devotee of Yogananda? Why did you keep websites of scandals about the master. We could not believe. It is shocking. We worry that the scandal should not spoil the reputation of the Great Master.

The Walrus moderator's response on the SRF Walrus Forum:

I replied to this person:

"To answer your questions...

1) Most here are long term devotees of Yogananda's.
2) We are not keeping a website of scandals about our Master. The scandals are about the organization he started which is seriously off track. Because of our love of Master we are attempting to prevent SRF from harming more of his loving devotees. Most who come in contact with the core of SRF leave Master. We think that is a crime.

Since you are so far away, I am sure this all looks terrible. I am sincerely sorry for any offense. I can assure you that most of what I read here is true. The stupid scandal about Master fathering a child is an unfortunate addition most of us think is wrong. That scandal, however, is hardly the brunt of what this website is about. (Still, people are free to discuss on the website what ever they want to)

I suggest you not read the website. You are protected from his organization, being so far away, and therefore also can't be part of any solution. Your prayers for his organization can and will help."

Do any of you care to answer this person also? If so include a message in this thread.

"A reply can have many strains. I came to think of these:

1. "Why did you keep websites of scandals about the master."

   It finds favour with the godhead, that is the simplest answer I see fit. It is far, far better in the long run to try for that than just be assuming things are right and next brand a bit on top of that again. I refer to "a blind-eyed way of writing or behaving" here.

2. "We could not believe. It is shocking. We worry that the scandal should not spoil the reputation of the Great Master."

   To this: Very human reactions are told of. But they are hardly good enough. It is human to "guard one's face" to save the reputation, but what may be sacrificed thereby is candour, real sincerity from inside and out. And if nasty truths can be told, perhaps they should, so as to "nourish" badly treated and infirm people. It has to be considered.

Further, Nagarjuna says according to one source, "An astronomer . . . doth not divine that in his own household his own womenfolk, being at variance, are misbehaving" [suggested: he should know it] - From Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrines, edited by W.Y. Evans-Wenz - Tiy 62.

That note goes along with the Walrus words, "We are attempting to prevent SRF from harming more of his loving devotees. Most who come in contact with the core of SRF leave Master."

One should know what is going on, at least when what is going in is highly important. And maybe "Companionship with the wise and truthful must be preferred to companionship with those who are sovereignty-stuck" and "thus loaded" as well. [Edited at: 18 June 2002].

These Data

The former SRF monastic and follower of Yogananda who started the Walrus discussion board, has also made it clear that critique of Yogananda would not be welcome, but would be deleted. The Walrus Forum moderator has deleted many pertinent messages for that reason, but not consistently.

Since the board actually is a cult aftermath, one should perhaps not expect that the cultural level of the large society is attained: Putting lids or limits on the freedom of speech and such things, the ex cult member Walrus has hindered valuable information about Yogananda.

It hardly matters to know the exact details of the anonymous postings as time goes by, but for qualitative research purposes such ground data make a big difference. So I took the trouble to save and keep about ten thousand older Walrus postings in case these data too could be helpful or needed. I have also noted that some of these postings have been deleted since then.

Thus, at times there are Walrus quotations on this site that missing on the Walrus Discussion board, but have appeared there earlier. One may try the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine to retrieve them [www.archive.org/web/web.php].




Literature  

Ay: Yogananda, Paramahansa. Autobiography of a Yogi. 1st ed. New York: Theosophical, 1946. Online. [oaks.nvg.org/pv6bk12.html]

Ap: Mieder, Wolfgang (main ed.), Stewart A. Kingsbury, and Kelsie E. Harder: A Dictionary of American Proverbs. (Paperback) New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.

Goa: Nikhilananda, swami, tr. The Gospel of Ramakrishna. Abridged ed. New York: Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center, 1974.

Pa: Yogananda, Paramahansa. Autobiography of a Yogi. 11th ed. Los Angeles: Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF), 1971.

Rap: Gupta, Mahendranath. The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. New York: Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center, 1942.

Tiy: Evans-Wentz, Walter Yeeling, ed. Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrines. 2nd ed. London: Oxford University Press, 1967.

Wal: SRF Walrus Discussion Forum. [www.angelfire.com/blues/srfwalrus/].

Was: SRF Walrus Message Board. [srfwalrus.yuku.com/]



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