Hello, all.

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awjm

ex-BKWSU

  • Posts: 3
  • Joined: 15 Mar 2008
  • Location: London, UK

Hello, all.

Post23 Mar 2008

Namaste!

I am not exactly sure what to say, really. I guess I'll just tell you why I registered with this forum.

In December 2003, I had a kind of "spiritual awakening," which changed my life completely. Before it, I wasn't consciously a spiritual person and did not think about spiritual life at all. After it, my life was completely about the path. But because I had never previously considered spiritual matters before, I was like a newborn, and I was rather naive.

After it happened, I basically would read everything and anything that smelled slightly of spiritual literature. A few months later, I found advertisements for free meditation. This led me to a BKWSU centre in London, and I eventually was going at a very regular basis, moving through the courses. I was really enthusiastic there, due to my awakening. I was actually sharing my insights and talking to the teachers there, and even they sort of looked at me as if I was a nut.

Anyway, I eventually pulled out and away from them, probably just in time, as I was becoming quite involved and it did not feel right. For a while, they had been telling me about their philosophy, the endless cycle and the descension of God into Dadi Janki and that other woman (I cannot remember her name), showing me videos and so on. I was starting to accept all this and I was starting to think in a way that they wanted me to, but I suddenly snapped out of that (with help from my mother), rejected it all and would not set foot in their centre again.

It's been a long while since then. I am now a strong believer that there are as many paths as there are people, and that there is no one set, right path that leaves all others as wrong paths. I am really interested in the Buddha's teachings, but I am interested in many teachings from any religions.

Due to my experience with the BKWSU and some other experiences since then, I have thought a lot over the years about what the signs of a good, true and selfless teacher/organisation are and what the signs of a ill-motivated teacher/organisation are. I've been thinking lately about writing a book to do with how to see the signs of good teachers and how to look out for negative ones. It's something I feel very passionate about. It wasn't just brought about by my involvement with the BKWSU, it's also inspired by my investigation and mild involvement with people from ISKON (Krishna Consciousness org), by hearing a lot about my dear friend's life being split apart by an ill-motivated spiritual teacher who claimed to channel Christ, and by my recent interest in the activities of the Scientology cult (which I believe is the most dangerous cult in the world today - http://www.youfoundthecard.com).

My inspiration doesn't end with that list. I've spent a lot of time thinking about all kinds of teachers from different traditions that I have somehow come in contact with. The Buddha helped me very much to discover the markings of a good teacher, as I see him as someone who is utterly safe, someone who never made any demands or claims of authority, as well as Buddhist teachers and communities to this day who give me such a feeling of safety, respect and humbleness.

I have a drive to devote my life to the spiritual life, to insight, and, if I can, to helping others to have insight. Hopefully I don't sound arrogant there, but I find that I cannot word my feelings without sounding that way. I am trying to align my life so that I can really practise deeply, to let go of my negative habits and so on, for my sake and for everyone's. If it all works out, then I hope I can write that book!

So, hello!

~Adam
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alladin

no label

  • Posts: 917
  • Joined: 27 Feb 2007

welcome

Post24 Mar 2008

Hi, Awjim and welcome on board!
.. the descension of God into Dadi Janki and that other woman (I cannot remember her name)

Although DJ often speaks very highly about herself, both in classes and in private meetings, to the extent that it may sound that she's godlike but the name of the appointed, official, still number one medium is Dadi Gulzar.
Cheers
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ex-l

ex-BK

  • Posts: 10661
  • Joined: 07 Apr 2006

Re: Hello, all.

Post24 Mar 2008

How do you compare the BKs to the other new religious movements that you have been involved with?

I actually think that ISKCON is a useful experience for Western BKs to give them a grounding in Vaishnavism. They have had their problems too but are working admirably to resolve them. They are not going to go away and have entered into a sort of second phase of being an established religion having also moved over a large proportion of the general Hindu followership in the West ... mainly from the lack of competition. Scientology ... I know nothing about except from what I have learned from South Park. Its weight, Scientology not South Park, seems to have somewhat distorted the whole debate over new religions and it amazes me why folks still sign up and pay over huge amounts to it.

What is your over all take on the BKWSU?

awjm

ex-BKWSU

  • Posts: 3
  • Joined: 15 Mar 2008
  • Location: London, UK

Re: welcome

Post24 Mar 2008

alladin wrote:Although DJ often speaks very highly about herself, both in classes and in private meetings, to the extent that it may sound that she's godlike but the name of the appointed, official, still number one medium is Dadi Gulzar.

Yes, I remembered that, but I couldn't remember the other woman's name, so I just generalised it between the two. It's been a while.
ex-l wrote:How do you compare the BKs to the other new religious movements that you have been involved with? ... What is your over all take on the BKWSU?

Well, now I don't really have the desire to become involved with any organisation. I also have no desire to have philosophy in my life. It's all about me, now. The focus is on me. It's all about what I experience every day. Not to say that I don't have philosophical thoughts, because I do. But I try to be aware of becoming attached to any philosophies. I feel that philosophy cannot deliver me to ultimate truth.

There are so many spiritual organisations out there today. Some of them claim to have the true and only way. Some of them simply claim to have the best way. Some of them do not make any such claim. There are organisations that have conscious ill intentions, there are some that unconsciously have ill intentions and there are some that have neither. There are all these different factors at play. But even someone with the best intentions can cause harm. It's such a confusing world, huh?!

I like to think that no individual is an authority on the ultimate truth, above other individuals. I like to think that every individual is his or her own authority, and that the ultimate truth cannot be given to an individual by someone else, let alone even be helped. But that's going into philosophy now :wink:. Being part of a community can be really helpful, but I think that a person needs to be careful if he joins a community that looks in one set direction. I cannot dictate to anyone what communities are good or bad, a person has to feel what's right for themself.

What is my overall take on the BKWSU? Hopefully I don't offend anyone, but in my eyes they're a cult. I don't see them as the most harmful cult in the world, but a cult nonetheless.
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paulkershaw

ex-BK

  • Posts: 863
  • Joined: 11 Dec 2006
  • Location: South Africa

Re: Hello, all.

Post31 Mar 2008

Hi Adam and welcome to the forum,

reading your post I'd like to say that I feel that you're already doing some amazing spiritual work within yourself and this in itself is very powerful. To me, its about accountability of/with myself and of the way I handle me thats become important. Sometimes the most spiritual people I meet don't belong to any organisation but rather carry their own inner light and strength and this makes them joyfully powerful.

Welcome on-board - I wish that your presence here continues to inspire as much it already has. Kind regards and warm wishes from South Africa ...

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