His Holiness Grand Delusions
Yes, it is now definitely confirmed, the self-proclaimed “His Holiness Sri Sri”, Ravi Shankar, suffers from a very rare and incurable mental illness, causing bouts of grand delusions in which he sees himself as NPP winner, with world leaders gathered at his feet.
Having tried year after year to win the NP prize unsuccessfully, in spite of throwing huge cash and resources at it to influence NP committee (see the 4-part post on this subject), he is now trying a new strategy to win the coveted prize. Yes, you guessed it, “Fake it until you make it”! Even though SriSri is often heard to give this advice to his followers, asking them to fake smiles or spiritual growth or happiness, it is the first time he is applying it to win NPP!
A recent circular issued by AOL to invite AOL members worldwide to a gathering in Berlin to glorify the megalomaniac leader, is accompanied by the following fake article, in which the pathological brain fever consuming the guru is laid bare for everyone to see. Click here to read.
Not only SriSri is assuming he will win 2011 NPP, but he is assuming 2.3 million people, including world leaders, spiritual leaders (including Pope), and famous musicians (including Madonna, Bono, sting) will gather at his feet, to sing his praises.
In a feat of delirium, exhibiting his unfulfilled desire to have a famous Western musician as his devotee (like famous Guru Mahesh Yogi with Beatles), he sees Madonna as his devotee, sweeping his stage for him!
This leaves us with no doubt that SriSri has reached an acute stage of his degenerative illness and is in urgent need of hospitalization before total collapse!
The New York Times
NEW YORK, MONDAY, JULY 4, 2011
Turning Point for Humanity
The World Witnessed as the Planet De-stressed
Berlin, 3rd July 2011
The world rocked Berlin yesterday! An unprecedented, 2.3 million people came together in Berlin’s Olympia stadium, united behind one vision for one mission with one inspiration.
One World Family
Celebrating its 30th anniversary, the International Art of Living Foundation, the world’s fastest growing NGO, united the world to achieve one common objective – inner peace for world peace. Founded by this year’s Nobel Peace Prize winner, His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the Art of Living’s central aim is to create a one world family. World leaders gathered to create a new policy for world peace through promoting human values. Madonna sings a new tune Lighting the world flame for peace, this sea of humanity, representing over 200 countries, included political leaders from all European countries, 1000 famous singers, 5000 dancers, 2000 religious and spiritual leaders (a bare footed 110 year old yogi). From academicians to adolescents, from teen agers to truck drivers, from politicians to priests – this gathering was indeed unique… Could you ever imagine that the pope from Rome would be found dancing next to a saint from India? Your journalist was moved to tears seeing Israelis, Palestinians and Germans singing together in the spirit of harmony and brotherhood. For once, Madonna was happy to share her stage with Shakira, Nena, Bono and Sting. But wait, this was just the beginning. She went ahead to hand her mike to the German Prime Minister to pick up a broom to clean the glass shells that cultural artists from Italy, Croatia and Bulgaria had spilt on the stage during a performance. All in the spirit of service to humanity. It really happened! Perhaps the Guinness Book had lots to think about yesterday… The largest number of parking tickets with smileys given out in one day, the largest number of people turning vegetarian, the largest number of famous singers singing together on one stage, the largest European gathering meditating for world peace, the lowest world stress levels recorded by the famous independent agency from Ireland.
A New Beginning
“Its not only appropriate, but also an honour that His Holiness chose Germany for this event, ” said Angela Merkel, Prime Minister of Germany. A graduate student from Oxford was heard saying “This made me higher than hash!” A poignant moment for this journalist when she heard an 85 year old grandma say with a tear in her eyes – “I now see hope for my grandchildren.” Perhaps this is really the turning point for humanity.
From our special correspondent
Comments are closed.
Beyond The Art of Living 
Elsewhere in the fake newspaper clip says:
Thousands of Israeli’s feel at home in Berlin
On 2nd of July history was created. 10.000 Israeli Jews went to Germany for the World Peace Celebration of the Art of Living Foundation. Many of them were the first ones after many generations to set foot on German soil because of the traumatic experiences of the past. After such a history what made them come all the way to Germany?
One of the Jewish participants testified: “By doing the spiritual practices and meditation that I learned through the Art of Living, I have discovered such a peace inside myself and could let go of my deep rooted fears. I felt that the whole world belongs to me and I wanted to bring along as many people as possible from my country in a spirit of forgiveness and unity.”
Nevertheless, they came with some sense of trepidation. However, this feeling immediately dissolved as soon as they landed in Berlin Airport and were welcomed with the highest honours according to Jewish tradition.
A special Sabbath was organised in the Hilton Hotel on Friday evening by their German hosts. Throughout the Peace Celebration, they felt warmly welcomed and embraced, not just by the German people, but by people from all over the world.
Many Israeli’s told us afterwards that this allowed them to effectively get rid of many of their scars of the past and their fears for the future. For the first time in their lives they felt at home and secure about the future.
The World Peace Festival may not just be an ideal, but also a reality. Perhaps more of these events are a way to end enmity between different peoples on our planet and bring more peace.
And from another clip on the same fake newspaper:
Invincible in Berlin
Youth inspire the world to take action
I have never felt more alive than I did last night. Goose bumps on every pore of my body, overwhelming sensations of bliss, enthusiasm, and a strong commitment to create the world we’ve always wanted. Last night, the youth inspired our civilization to a great vision of what we never thought possible, could this be what we’ve been waiting for?
Eight hundred thousand youth singing, dancing, acting, meditating, breathing, and collaborating together in a spirit of belongingness and peace that inspired our leaders to action and change. I arrived at the event a little skeptical of whether I had a place in this peace makers movement. I mean none of us are very happy with the present state of the world, but who knows what to do, where to start, or what pharmacy sells the magic peace pill. However before my negativity train got to full speed I was startled with what laid before my eyes. The entire evening was surprise after surprise. Before I knew it I was twisting and turning in directions I never thought possible, and ended up sitting silent amongst hundreds of thousands of youth that just minutes before were bubbling with laughter and, enthusiasm. I have never felt so happy and peaceful than I did after the peace meditation. Who ever thought Yoga could be so cool, and dynamic, and at the same time peaceful, and refreshing. Amazing!
With these clear minds and open hearts the youth inspired the world leaders to take action on their idealism, with a concrete action plan. The youth challenged the leaders to see the unsustainable and unethical ways that they have been governing our society. With fairness and frankness the youth made the leaders see that the short terms gains that they have been pursued have not brought them the happiness they desired for themselves or their people. They expressed their vision of an honest government, ethical business, clean environment, healthy citizens, quality universal education, and a movement to a stress free violence free society founded in the reawakening of human values. I know what your thinking. “These dreamer need to get real?” But you’ll be surprised to know that all the leaders were emotionally moved and changed, each in their own way.
Whether it be the peace commitment arranged between President Shimon Peres of Israel and President Mahmoud Abaas, of Palestine by their experience of the cooperation of two young Palestinean and Israeli girls who’s families had been killed in the conflict or, how President Nicholas Sarkosy and President Angela Merkel were engaged to set a rewards system for ethical business as a result of the number of corporation who ratified the Youth Conference’s plan on ethical and sustainable business. Real action and real change was happening before my eyes.
How was this possible? There is one connecting thread in this sea of inspiration and change and that is H.H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. Could what we need be an inspirational leader? Someone who gives each individual the tools to uplift themselves so they can uplift their community, their society, the world. I feel its time for a change and I witnessed it in front of me. Perhaps its time for all of us to drop our concepts of what was and rise to a new level of responsibility, commitment, joy, enthusiasm, and a celebration of human values and the best that life has to offer. On the road of life there are passengers and there are drivers. So the question is which one are you? In any case, buckle up its going to be an incredible ride!
I have to agree either RS or his lackeys went crazy with their NPP, foreseeing future and thought that they can buy it. Unfortunately they didn’t take either political or historical lesson in school. Country of Germany don’t call their leader as Prime Minister instead ‘Chancellor”
> A recent circular issued by AOL to invite AOL members worldwide to a gathering in Berlin
Are you serious? Can someone post more details of this circular? Where in Berlin is it going to be celebrated ?
Human nature is too complex. It can’t be changed by just a gathering of bunch of people to sing and dance together.
The heading of the circular said Celebrating 30 years of Art of Living on 2nd and 3rd of June 2011 in Berlin, Germany. Inside the fake NY times article the venue is stated as “Berlin’s Olympia stadium”
He Could you please get a copy of the Same Circular and publish it in public space.
Could you please get a copy of the Same Circular and publish it in public space. If possible sent it to NY Times and Nobel Price Committee,Pope and German Chancellor. So that they can plan things earlier 🙂
Good idea. I have sent the PDF article to Skywalker to post it on the blog. As you say, NY Times, NP Committee, German Chancellor, Pope, Madonna, Bono, Sting, etc., would need a fair amount of time to get ready for the grand occassion. Just think of Madonna, she has to do part1 and several part2s and part3s and Gurupuja to become a brainwashed devotee in time. Then she also needs to do the DSN as well if she is expected to broom the stage too! Hope she knows how to use one!
http://nobelprize.org/contact/
Noble committe contact list – I bet they would love to see NYT. One can also comment on this page.
“Questions, comments and suggestions
If you have questions that are not answered in our FAQ page, or wish to make suggestions and comments about the site, please send your messages to:
comments@nobelprize.org“
You can now find the link to AOL wishful article in the post itself or see it under Secret Knowledge pages, titled “A turning point for humanity”. Thanks SkyWalker.
There is a humor fake newspaper called “The Onion” (published in New York I think). This sounds like their work. I could imagine Madonna beating Ravi Ravi with the broom quicker than I could imagine her sweeping a stage. Perhaps the organization has changed its name from Art of Living to Art of Living Delusions. If this was really written by someone in AoL they are more out of touch than I thought possible. Sheesh..nut jobs. Send in the mental health teams because sudarshan kriya has caused total breaks with reality.
If this circular is for real, it means AoL is taking practicing the Law of Attraction (sankalpa) to new extremes. Make believe it is so and, voila, it will be so. This is actually why numbers are exaggerated so often in AoL.
By the way, it was claimed years ago that Madonna has gone through the AoL programs in a VIP setting. By all accounts, she has chosen to concentrate on Kabbalah studies, though. And from my experience, Kabbalah people don’t think much of Eastern spiritual traditions.
Based on the fake NYT, apparently RS never stopped wanting NPP, in fact he wants more now than ever. Even last month expressbuzz article shows that he was one of the favorites for the peace prize, obviously by the AOL planted information to the press.
http://expressbuzz.com/cities/bangalore/land-grab-charge-on-aol-ahead-of-nobel-prelims/191319.html
“But the controversy has come up at the time of the Nobel Award preliminaries, where Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is one of the favourites for the peace prize.”
here is a good comment to that article:
“The noble prize is a blade of grass for HIM. HE has come on this planet to bring back home millions and outnumber than that done by Buddha and Krishna. HIS true devotees have already got a glimpse of the INFINITY and therefore anything does not matter to them not even the whole world turning against HIM. What HE will do and has done Zillions of Teresas or Lamas will not not do. He has transformed my life. He has kindle the fountainhead of love inside me and just like me there are millions who only have tears of gratitude for HIM. Just think of HIM, even if You hate HIM do it to the fullest you will be liberated since your consciousness is occupied by HIM.”
This is the degree of fanaticism in many AOL devotees. I personally find it very scary. Imagine what a person like that is capable of?
Agree, it scares hell out. Don’t know what he (the guy who commented there) will do in you stand in front of him and criticize his Guru (HIM!). No doubt he will only respond with violence, so much for HIM! preaching nothing but peace. It makes sense why close ex-AOLites scared of HIM hurting them and want to stay anonymous.
Remember reading this post by KLIM. It fits what RS/AOL stands for
http://artoflivingfree.blogspot.com/2010/02/violence-and-deceit-promotes-you.html
In this recent BBC interview, Ravi Shankar is referring to AOL 30th yr celebration next year.
[audio src="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/worldservice/interview/interview_20100813-2332a.mp3" /]
He sounds so fake throughout and repeats his trite, well-rehearsed answers to every question. Anyone who has been with AOL for a while can answer for him! He is so boring and predictable.
He hints at himself as a child prodigy! He definitely promotes himself big time. He claims he has 7500 teachers worldwide and hundred thousand teachers in villages and that AOL has reached hundreds of millions worldwide!! In his dreams of course!
If he takes an inventory of his teachers he would see more than half have already left the organization and half of those left are inactive (can’t be bothered to give their lives for SriSri and sister and nephews extravagant lifestyles). He forgot to say he is doing his best to churn out teachers as fast as he can (upon receiving few thousand dollars from each) but doesn’t seem to be able to curb the exodus of AOL teachers and members!
He claims AOL has reached 48% of Mongolia and is big in Argentine. When asked why so big in Mongolia, he said because of low population!!
(I met someone from Mongolia last year. Having heard the AOL propaganda that half of the population and most of politicians and Govt officials have done the course (and this was SriSri’s claim since few years back!), I asked this person about AOL, she had never ever heard anything about it!!)
He repeated that AOL can’t do charity from an empty bowl, hence charging for courses. Then added that AOL charges a minimal fee for courses and most of it goes to course expenses and whatever is left goes to charity! He again repeated the lie that AOL teaches for free in prisons, etc.
He admitted that his father was a car dealer! And then quickly jumped to his grandfather saying he was with Gandhi and gave 20 kg gold to him and served him for 20 yrs and that his teacher was also associated with Gandhi. No mention of Maharishi or any other Guru. He wants to attach himself to Gandhi (like a bad smell, I might add) for NPP consideration!
He admitted he gave the title of SriSri to himself. Then the usual lie that SK came to him after 10 days of silence. This time though he said he taught his first course to 50 doctors in a small town and they brought more people to him and that he was teaching around 150 people every week. Didn’t he previously tell us (his teachers) that he taught his first course to his mum and dad and sister and few friends and that it was a combined basic, adv. and DSN course and that he used to lock the doors so they couldn’t get away?! Suddenly the story has now changed to 50 doctors!!! Sure, sure, 50 doctor out of the blue sky dropped by for his first course!
He said that he uses his own breathing often (!!), then quickly added “but these days I don’t need it that much” but that he uses it while travelling! Obviously not effective enough for him as he still needs first class travel (from charity money of course)!
He demonstrated the art of fake laughing and fake humility (while boasting about himself) throughout!! He denied that AOL is a cult! If anyone still has any doubt about AOL being a cult, just take any textbook about cults and just go through the cult’s criteria checklist!!
It is such a shame that BBC gives this megalomaniac half an hour free on air, without giving the same time to one of his critics or at least mentioning some of the charges, controversies surrounding this fake guru!
> AOL can’t do charity from an empty bowl, hence charging for courses.
Don’t do charity! 🙂
That should reduce the price of courses and allow many more (poor) people to learn Yoga.
And if you are so fond of charity, ask people to donate their money to other NGOs which have lower overhead than yours.
RS saying in the interview – they had 2.5 million people for 25th anniversary in the rented space of 285 acre. Even if you can put the bodies (standing up) no breathing space – you can only put 1.4m – that is without space between anyone and no other public facilities.
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_people_can_you_fit_in_one_acre
5k Per acre x 285 = 1,425,000
But that beats 2.3m in an Olympic stadium which can only fit 75k.
Good work goneagain. The truth is that there were not 2.5 million people in SJ in Bangalore. Indeed there were not even a million, not even half a million. Vast areas in the back stayed empty.
The cameras were focused on Internationals who were given the areas near the stage. Only a few thousand Internationals came, in spite of high pressure from SriSri on his International teachers. He was very disappointed by this.
Majority of attendees were Indians. Later on we found out many were non-AOL people who were brought to the airfield to fill up the space.
There were around 10 portable loos near the stage. These were absolutely filthy and not enough even for internationals use. Internationals were aghast that in spite of being charged hefty sums to attend the event, they had such a miserly treatment. The whole event was very poorly planned from all aspects.
when the interviewer asked SriSri if he goes around the globe seeking followers, he was quick to deny it and say that he just wants to share what he knows!!
From the book Guru Papers:
…What most proselytizing groups face is how to sell their beliefs without appearing to do so. Recruiting is therefore always done in the name of helping or doing some kind of good.
Has 7500 Teachers worldwide and 100 thousand teachers in villages? Doesn’t add up. Suddently 7500 teachers became 100000? even rehearsed answers he seems to mess up.
He meant on top of the 7500 AOL teachers worldwide, he has another 100 thousand teachers in villages. I suppose he was referring to YLTP graduates (of course highly exaggerated!)
Another fictional news!!! If you wish youmay post this separately.
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Art of Living to launch new kung-fu sudharshan kriya
In an exclusive finding in the arena of spiritual innovation, Sedition and Perdition found out that Sri Sri Ravi Shankar will soon be launching a new form of Sudharshan Kriya, integrated into a comprehensive new meditation programme aimed at the overall well-being of people, including their direct survival requirements and a quick method to duck bullets from any deranged gun wielder.
Fictional sources at the Art of Living Foundation told SedPerd that while the Sudharshan Kriya, developed by Sri Sri based on several years of meditation, research and learnings from the past, was sufficient for the well-being of the soul till recently, he recently experienced some stirring moments, which laid bare to his visionary and divine eyes the minute shortcomings inherent in the programme.
“The new programme will take care of the needs of the soul, the urge to overcome material instincts, evolve higher and nobler thoughts — and make you fit enough to escape the random bullets of any shooter,” fictional sources at the AOL told SedPerd. “It simultaneously takes care of both spiritual needs and protects you from people wanting to murder you.”
“We sit in a deeply relaxing pose, eyes closed, opening them once in a while looking around suspiciously to ensure there is no assassin lurking. If there is none, continue with the deep breathing, if there is, remove the gun from below your meditation mat and fire at him. Do this without having any hatred for the assassin, but make sure you don’t miss the guy,” they said.
“After you’ve focused on your breathing, get up suddenly, run to the wall, hide, raise the pistol to the top of the wall and fire in the air. Don’t expose your head to allow the murderer on the other side a clean view of your head. Then deep breathe again, and focus on the lord, the universal force, feel the cleansing within your soul… but constantly keep watching for any unusual sounds,” they informed SedPerd.
SedPerd also learnt that AOL was finalising the new meditation attire comprising a simple, thin khadi top kurta, dhoti, a bulletproof vest and night-vision goggles.
“Similarly, we will make slight modifications to our ancient-age satvik diet to include a few dishes adapted from the commando programs of the Indian army,” they said.
AOL sources also confirmed to SedPerd the modifications to the new military-spiritual programmes to be provided by the Foundation to its full-time sevaks, acharyas and the more devoted of its volunteers.
“A mandatory firing hour at the newly-constructed shooting range, kung-fu, besides the usual singing, praying, service and meditation modules will be imparted. Our teachers can now not only teach meditation but can also suddenly get up, do a cartwheel, punch a potential killer before kicking and maiming him. They can also throw a small knife, to be hidden and carried under their sleeve, from a great distance,” the sources said.
They also confirmed that Gurudev, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar himself has now inducted a special elite group of security men, the best drawn from across the world, who will be meditating with him all the time, ensuring they draw spiritual solace from Him while ensuring no more hanky panky stray gunman can get anywhere near.
“Previously, he used to be surrounded by these lean, thin acharyas who used to be perfect in the previous format of the Sudharshan Kriya. The new folks around him, while they are learning Sudharshan Kriya, are also expert at security detailing, martial arts, sharpshooting, all of Sri Sri now realises are perfect, needs to be able to grow one’s soul and merge with the Larger One,” they explained to SedPerd.
When quizzed if the call of Sri Sri to the possible assassin to come and join their programme had got any response, they responded in the negative. “But we are proactively seeking him out on our own… and when we find him, we will ensure that we help him meet the great God who made us all. Yes, we will sponsor his journey to heaven, — or hell, with a spirit of full forgiveness and love for his misguided soul.”
In a parallel incident, the wannabe assassin of Sri Sri told SedPerd in this fictional account that he would join the Sudharshan Kriya after news channels confirm that the parcel bomb he has sent with love for Gurudev has been opened by him personally, tearing apart the insignificant lusty body of Sri Sri and integrating his immortal soul with the Almighty.
Art of Living – Call it a Corporation not a Foundation
Thanks to all of you, a small band of rogue outcasts who have taken upon yourselves to let the TRUTH prevail. At times it seems like a never ending battle and maybe it is and indeed at some point one has to move on in life, but till that time comes letting people know the truth is a way of making peace with it all.
It was great to see all of your post of the recent email ads the AOL corporation is sending out. We need to keep doing this, it exposes the new trends and business practices of AOL corporation. In knowing their strategy we can expose them along the way.
So thanks WistleBlower for posting the three day course structure and the padma-sadhana. It will give people a chance to verify their origin, and so we keep focusing on the copying and plagiarism this company uses. As for the padma-sadhana routine yes it is lifted from TM, it was part of our routine when I attended TM weekend rounding courses and World Peace Assemblies.
As mentioned it is a fact that the enrollment numbers are down, the Profit and Loss statement (P&L) must have shown a considerable dip in the last year. And so like any well run cooperation AOL adjusted it strategy and created this façade that due to the bad times they will give a discount for their courses, to actually help those in need. To spread the knowledge and create a stress free society. So they Say…….
“In response to the challenging economic times that we are living through, the Art of Living Foundation and it’s sister organization, Ved Vigyan Mahavidyapeeth (VVM) will be reducing the tuition for The Art of Living Course, YES+ and the Art of Silence course. Course fees for these courses will be reduced as specified in the table below. An early registration discount of $25.00 will take effect February 1st, 2010 for those who sign up at least 7 days in advance. This special rate will expire on Sep. 31, 2010.”
See link: http://us.artofliving.org/content-reduced-course-fees-register
It is a classical sales technique to place a deadline for the discount, sure you have all seen these in any store in the shopping mall (centers) as well, it creates a sense of urgency not to let this opportunity pass you by. Mind you I have seen the expiration date change many times this year so I wonder it must be a flexible date which suits AOL in order to to make their Financial yearly targets goals.
The standard fee for the part 1 course is USD 450 but for a limited time you can take it for USD 250. If I had paid USD 450, and now could take it for USD 250, I would feel like I was seriously screwed over. So I wonder what the real cost is seems to me the AOL corporation is playing a game with spirituality. The question then arises have they always been over charging people.
So AOL corporation lowers the fee, now wonder they had to shorten the part one course, as mentioned in previous posts it is all about VOLUME, just like selling Cars or Ipods. Nothing Spiritual about it just implementing very smart business principles. See WhistleBlower’s comments in the post “The latest Con scheme of SriSri” they are spot on and an eye opener.
But I am sure they had a dilemma how can we round up the troups (teachers) to embrace this new strategy of a three day course format. I can imagine that during their management meeting at the head office of the AOL corporation in Bangalore the CEO Ravi Shankar would cognized a brilliant answer. And so he did, see below actual rhetoric used by the cloned teachers to justify the 3 day course structure. Which I am sure came from none other then the CEO.
When Guruji introduces the three day format, the same knowledge in half the time! But the Grace speaks loud and clear!
Here are the plus points:
* No-nonsense focus on the actual knowledge: there is very little time for us go to off on a tangent which means we stick to what Guruji really wants us to talk about!
* Reduced time frame appeals to many who have held back so far
* A Genuine Thirst to Continue: this format ends so quickly I have found it leaves participants wanting more! ie they Do move on to part 2 etc. In fact one of my 3 day course participants has completed 2 AMCs at ashram, 1 DSN, Sri Sri Yoga and now started seva all in LESS than 10 months!!
* Super Value For Money! If time is money, this format saves you 50% of the time, for only 20% increase in price! What a deal : )
* A Connect with the Guru! Sometimes we prefer the longer format cause we think the connection is greater. This is NOT my experience. Remember, the connection has to be with THE MASTER and not with the teacher! So yes, they may spend longer with the teacher in a 6 day course, but if a teacher’s connection is behind the 3 day format he/she can definitely get the participants connected to the Guru which to me is the real point! My conviction is definitely 100% behind this format!
The CEO Ravi Shankar did his best to cognize the finest possible hooks to keep his employees (teachers) under his spell. The last point the connection to the Guru (CEO)
really is the kicker, it is this kind of belief which is created in the devotee by the Guru which will make him or her jump through hoops thinking that it is for their best will or that it will be to their benefit one way or the other. Benefit, sure someone definitely will it is obvious who, the CEO Ravi Shankar, managing director of the AOL corporation.
It is this kind of brainwashing which once sets in the Guru (CEO) will use to create this competitive environment amongst the teachers so that they will try to out do each other thinking that the more they do and accomplish (course given, people signing up) the more in favor they are with the master. This strategy is used in any company within their sales department, those that do well get a better bonus. But at least they are transparent about it.
The AOL company uses the cloak of spirituality to achieve its financial objectives, making the CEO financial independent and being able to bestow financial freedom to his family and inner circle. It is not about the knowledge (which is a rehashed anyway) it is about the numbers (revenue). I have seen spreadsheets which are compiled for every country, detailing the courses given in a certain period, how many courses an active teachers gave. How many new people took the course (not repeaters), and the total revenue generated by each teacher and the country as a whole. And ranking each teacher based on their revenue generated. The management information gathered and given to Ravi Shankar CEO is very detailed and I am sure if the numbers are not to his liking he will not be pleased.
Why is it that AOL is using all the means available to attract new people. It amazes me that people don’t ask this question and see the true attention behind it.
Of course having completely given away ones critical thinking does not help, and honestly I have been there as well. Unfortunately and from my perspective I see so many still trapped in this web of deceit. Trying to their best and under cutting there fellow teachers just to feel special. What makes some one a senior teacher anyway, a teacher is a teacher in my book, rank has nothing to do with it. Rank creates division, bad for the teachers very good for the master.
See the post by WistleBlower see https://aolfree.wordpress.com/2010/08/10/the-latest-con-scheme-by-srisri/#comment-922
Below is a part of the post
During the TRM, Outreach Support team will lead a break out session to train interested teachers about online outreach & public relations. We will cover:
• Using Facebook, Twitter, email marketing, blogs to get increase participants to Mind & Meditation intro talks, and to build a relationship with course graduates
• Effective ways in which you can reach out to the media to tell your story, including online press releases
In order to make the most of this session:
• Please familiarize yourself with Facebook & Twitter. If you don’t have an account, sign up, if you have an account, log in!
• Get familiar with some key local newspapers and magazines, read the papers…identify areas where we could possibly have AOL coverage
So as a teacher I need to open a Facebook and Twitter account, actively (under pressure really) create my own little AOL corporation and make it work with out any starting Capital (money). This blows me away, it is all about getting people to sign up. Why not just be a good teacher based in knowledge and let people come to me out of their own willingness, in stead of using boiler room sales tactics creating false needs and exploiting situations people are in.
The above mention strategies are smart business principles, to increase market share. The AOL cooperation is in a win – win position, because they have such a wonderful base of employees (teachers) who are willing to work for no compensation other then to receive the grace of the GURU. In the end when the employees realize they were in a scam and they have been had, they realize that they don’t have any pension, or health benefits and worse yet no skills to survive, their world comes crashing down hard. And that is very SAD to see, when the realization set in the little life energy and meaning they had is evaporated. Hopefully they will have a support base to get them back on their feet.
So is AOL a Foundation on paper it surely is but in reality it is a corporation, being run by a family who is laughing all the way to the Bank. The banks of choice are most likely located in Switzerland and other financial offshore jurisdictions.
The little giant has awakened.
For the record here is the complete announcement. Let’s see how many more months/years this discounted fee continues before they reduce it further! My prediction is that by year 2012, they will be offering it for free!!
http://us.artofliving.org/content-reduced-course-fees-register
Special Tuition Rates for Art of Living Programs
We all know that these can be difficult times, particularly with respect to the economy and the uncertainty many of us may be experiencing.
In response to the challenging economic times that we are living through, the Art of Living Foundation and it’s sister organization, Ved Vigyan Mahavidyapeeth (VVM) will be reducing the tuition for The Art of Living Course, YES+ and the Art of Silence course. Course fees for these courses will be reduced as specified in the table below. An early registration discount of $25.00 will take effect February 1st, 2010 for those who sign up at least 7 days in advance. This special rate will expire on Sep. 31, 2010. (Please note that no other discounts will be available during this time.)
We look forward to providing you, as well as your family, friends, and associates, with those tools that make a difference in the areas of life that are important to you.
Course Type Current Enrollment Fee Reduced Fees
(valid until Sep. 31, 2010)
Art of Living Course $450 ($325 Students) $250 ($250 Students)
YES+ $375 ($325 Students) $250 ($250 Students)
Art of Silence (Part 2) $300 ($150 Student) $200 ($75 Student)
Cooperation or Corporation?
HI Ram,
Thanks for pointing it out indeed I meant Corporation. AOL is a business and run as such as well. But it does not take care of its employees, if they are of no use anymore to the CEO Ravi Shankar they will be left out to dry. They have given up their dreams some even ruined their mairrages and family life, to find out it was all a big joke and the joke was on them.
Balance is they key in life, not so in AOL.
Skywalker, can you edit my post and fix this for me Iwould appreciate it.
The little giant has awakened
Ronin, Thanks again for your excellent comment, which Skywalker is putting it on as a separate post soon. In the meantime, I thought the following extracts from the book: “The Guru papers” by Joe Kramer & Diane Alstad (A must read by anyone who wants to gain a deep understanding into cults and false gurus), is relevant to your post. AOL is foremost a cult.
STAGES OF CULTS
….first stage is messianic with the message being that all labors of the organization, including the guru’s are aimed at a higher purpose beyond the group, such as saving mankind. During this phase the guru is confident that he will eventually be acknowledged as the one who will lead the world out of darkness. The major emphasis is on proselytizing to bring in new converts. The continual increase in numbers satisfies the guru’s need for power and adulation…he remains happy and relatively benign in his treatment of those who have surrendered to him….the way he exercises power is through rewarding the enthusiasms of his followers with praise and positions in his hierarchy. He also whets and manipulates desire by offering “carrots”…Within the community… a celebratory, party-like atmosphere often reigns. Everything seems perfect…The guru is relatively accessible, charming, even fun.
The energy and excitement of proselytizing, conquest, gaining public attention, and of newcomers flocking to the group are what makes a cult feel vital and prosperous. Cults need a continuous stream of recruits and potential converts to reinforce the belief that they’re “where it’s at”–the vanguard of spirituality on the planet…Feeling in the vanguard fuels moral superiority and cuts insiders off emotionally from outsiders, which binds them more deeply to each other. Because cults are relatively closed systems, proselytizing is their main form of communication with the outside world. New members are also a needed source of revenue.
…What most proselytizing groups face is how to sell their beliefs without appearing to do so. Recruiting is therefore always done in the name of helping or doing some kind of good.
..New recruits attend testimonial sessions with older members as part of the indoctrination. they are treated very specially and made to feel important, and then are typically pressured to “share their experiences” with others.
What such sharing really amounts to is a more oblique form of proselytizing that cleverly accomplishes several things: It obviously can bring in more new people, but less obviously, the more new or potential members share their experiences with outsiders, trying to explain and defend why the group attracts them, the more they themselves identify with the group. New members have great enthusiasm, but are often not yet emotionally tied to the group. in this context, proselytizing itself is a subtle kind of indoctrination, as the very act of “sharing” moves one to identify more with the group. ……………………(Sounds familiar all AOL people out there?)
…Second stage…. Apocalyptic Paranoia
A time inevitably comes when the popularity and power of the group plateaus and then begins to wane. Eventually it becomes obvious that the guru is not going to take over the world, at least not in the immediate future. When the realization comes that humanity is too stupid or blind to acknowledge the higher authority and wisdom of the guru, the apocalyptic phase enters and the party is over….in order to attract more people the guru makes increasingly extreme promises and bizarre claims that offer occult powers, quick enlightenment, or even wish-fulfilment in the mundane sphere around wealth, love, and power. (Again, sounds familiar AOLites?)
….Any member who leaves threatens the cohesiveness of the whole group.
…The Transition from optimistic expansionism to the paranoid doomsday mode involves a heavy turnover of people. Those not really “serious” leave, and others begin surreptitiously to question leader’s omniscience. in an attempt to counteract this, the group becomes more militaristic, demanding even greater obedience. Even when a cult is no longer expanding, some recruiting of new members still occurs to balance off the losses of old ones during the turnover of this phase. But a cult in decline has more trouble selling itself. It no longer looks that enticing or special.
members and the guru become withdrawn and the focus gets more internal, insular, and isolating. Internecine squabbling and power struggles replace external conquest. When the guru realizes that most people are not going to acknowledge him, he often compensates (if he can afford it) by building monumental edifices that proclaim his greatness. This includes monuments or temples, buildings, model communities, and “learning centres.” The fun is over. The rewards are now put into the distant future(including future lives) and are achievable only through hard work. This not only keeps disciples busy and distracted, but it is necessary because the flow of resources that came with expansion has greatly diminished. This glorification of work always involves improving the leader’s property (the commune or ashram), increasing his wealth, or some grandiose project.
Whenever a guru’s power needs are not being satisfied by expansion, he generally seeks more adulation from and control over those who have surrendered to him. He does so by dictating more directly how they spend their daily lives…Though the guru needs his disciples even more attached to him, he becomes more remote, sending his dictates down the line. Subtle or not so subtle warnings proliferate about the disastrous consequences of disobedience and of trusting outsiders. Statement like this become prevalent:”Disobedience to the guru brings countless lifetimes of suffering.” “How can you expect enlightenment or salvation if you are not obedient and do not work hard for it?” “You must not pollute yourself by associating with those who are not spiritually developed.”
Although the guru usually preaches the unity of all humanity, he becomes increasingly more separate. His message is of love, but he shows little concern for those under him, as they have become mere tools for his ambitions. Often he consciously or unconsciously blames those around him for failure of his messianic aspirations. As the group’s isolation increases, so does its paranoia toward outsiders, which can trigger violence. Those who drop out are often threatened, violently punished, or sometimes even murdered. This stage commonly results in scandal and tragedy.
Authoritarian groups with a leader who has few constraints(our definition of a cult) derive their intense feelings of loyalty and unity from erecting huge walls between insiders and outsiders.(We define cults as a group where the leader is unchallengeable and considered infallible. The term “guru” is used generically for any such leader.
I invite all AOL members to read the above and indeed the rest of the book and see the truth of the above statements from their own AOL experience. Perhaps we can share these in another separate post. For the time being I thought the above can be some food for thought after reading Ronin wonderful and detailed post and put things in perspective. In my opinion AOL is well into second stage of Cult and the signs are all there for everyone to see. The existing members and teachers will do well to get out while they can, as those left behind will be the ones to bear the brunt of SriSri’s increasingly megalomaniac ambitions and they would be expected to compensate for the lack of revenues from newcomers. Already they were asked to dish out for the church building in Washington DC, then for his birthday celebration and Gurupurnima and for SriSri university,etc. And when it comes to courses, it is existing members who are expected to fill up the coffers by attending Part3 course with master, Blessing course, Guru Puja course, Sahaj TTC, Part1 TTC and so on.
From bawa’s blog – confirms Berlin stadium stuff.
“We may be having Art of Living’s 30th year celebrations (next year) at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin… nothing is really fixed yet, but it has high chances that it may happen there, possibly sometime in June.”
http://bawandinesh.name/
Olympia stadium, Berlin can only fit 75k, I don’t know how they going to manage to lie 2.3 million people came?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_Stadium_(Berlin)
If SriSri claims he had 2.5 million people last time, how come he is aiming at a lower 2.3 million this time? Doesn’t he believe in his own propaganda re AOL growth?
Obviously not. He would know better than anyone else that the number of new enrolments are down worldwide and more and more people leaving AOL. He can’t even get 1000 people for his Birthday or Gurupurnima (In spite of exerting huge pressure on his teachers) . And paying for Bawa and Dinesh’s expensive Europe travels (another use for charity money) is not exactly bringing revenues in!
A stadium of 75k is well above the capacity he needs next year. Maybe if he is lucky he can get the 7500 teachers he claims he has. Of course he has to make it compulsory for them, like TRM! But, judging by the rate his teachers are deserting him, I wouldn’t even count on that! Of course Bawa, Dinesh and family will come but as long as SriSri pays for them!
Well, this fake newspaper article is meant to motivate the AOL volunteers/teachers to make this prediction a reality. So they have to aim high. If they aim for 2.3 million, then they might get 20 thousand. If they aim for Madonna, they might get a somewhat famous singer. If they aim for pope, they might get some church representative.
So the standard fees of AOL part 1 has now been reduced to $250 from $450? But didn’t SSRS claim that most of the course fee gets spent towards organizing expenses and only 15% towards saving and that too eventually goes to charity? So how did they reduce the fee by almost half? Does it mean that they are now subsidizing the course from their own pocket?
My heart goes to SSRS and his sister and his brother- in- law and his nephews and his relatives and his relatives of relatives who are making this supreme sacrifice for the benefit of lesser mortals like us.
CHRISTIAN TERROR WANTS TO DESTROY INDIA
Interview of a Christian Evangelist in India
By: Bandyopadhyay Arindam
The world today could have been a much better place for all of us, had we all refrained from trying to prove the superiority of our own religion………..
This is an interview of “Father Johnson’ after his award by the Government of India for his exemplary work in India in enlightening the people in the path of the ONLY God. Father Johnson returned to the USA after 10 years of service, to uplift the people of India in the name of God. The interview was taken in July 2005 by a journalist in Houston, USA……
Welcome home Father. You have been in India for 10 years, where “our mission’ is still going on. Tell me Father, how is India?
India is a fascinating country, a land of contrasts. Modern India is the largest democracy, the budding economic superpower, with the second-largest pool of scientists and engineers in the world. India is also the only surviving ancient civilization with over one sixth of the world population. At one time, not so long ago, when Europe was in the “dark ages’ and America was not even “discovered’, India was a far advanced and developed country with a contribution of over 25% of world GDP till the 17th century and far advanced in all aspects of life, be it knowledge, philosophy, science, mathematics, arts, astronomy or navigation.
Ella Wheeler Wilcox, (1850-1919), American poet and journalist, wrote “India – The land of Vedas, the remarkable works contain not only religious ideas for a perfect life, but also facts which science has proved true. Electricity, radium, electronics, airship, all were known to the seers who founded the Vedas.”
Dick Teresi, American author of “Lost Discoveries’ mentioned “Some one thousand years before Aristotle, the Vedic people asserted that the earth was round and circled the sun….Two thousand years before Pythagoras, philosophers in northern India had understood that gravitation held the solar system together, and that therefore the sun, the most massive object, had to be at its center….Twenty-four centuries before Isaac Newton, the Hindu Rig-Veda asserted that gravitation held the universe together….. The Sanskrit speaking people subscribed to the idea of a spherical earth in an era when the Greeks believed in a flat one…..The Indians of the fifth century A.D. calculated the age of the earth as 4.3 billion years; scientists in 19th century England were convinced it was 100 million years…”
Despite all its riches, history says that India never invaded any country. On the contrary, India has been repeatedly assaulted and conquered by numerous invaders and has been ruled by “foreigners’, first the Muslims and then the British for over a thousand years. India, before the advent of the British rulers, was a rich and prosperous country.
Rev. Jabez T. Sunderland (1842-1936), Unitarian minister and reformer, wrote that “…when the British first appeared on the scene, India was one of the richest countries of the world; indeed, it was her great riches that attracted the British to her shores. For 2,500 years before the British came on the scene and robbed her of her freedom, India was self-ruling and one of the most influential and illustrious nations of the world ….. This wealth was created by the Hindus’ vast and varied industries.”
What about Hinduism as a religion?
Hinduism has a deep philosophical and spiritual heritage that has repeatedly mesmerized the world including western scientists, leaders and philosophers. Despite propaganda to the contrary, Hindus, like us, believes in one Supreme God but they do so in many forms, that helps to develop personalized relations. Hinduism is the oldest major religion in the earth with 900 million followers. Unlike monotheistic institutionalized, religions like Judaism, Islam or Christianity, it is not based on any single prophet or scripture, but allows its followers all the freedom to pursue God and Truth in their own way, while living harmoniously with all creation.
We know that the Hindus are tolerant of other religions. Recently, UNESCO pointed out that out of 128 countries where Jews lived before Israel was created, only one, India, did not persecute them and allowed them to prosper and practice Judaism in peace. Similarly the Zoroastrians, when driven out of Persia by Islam were given shelter by the Hindus in India and still coexist in India peacefully. Very recently, the Dalai Lama, driven from Buddhist Tibet, has been accepted with open arms. Such is the ethos of Hinduism and India.
I have heard that Mark Twain once said that “In religion all other countries are paupers; India is the only millionaire’. I have also read Arnold Toynbee’s writing “…at the religious level, India has not been a recipient; she has been a giver. About half the total number of the living, higher religions are of Indian origin’. What do you think about it?
We know India gave birth to religions like Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism. Hinduism, though the predominant religion, has, to quote Aldous Huxley, “never been a persecuting faith, have preached almost no holy wars and have refrained from that proselytizing religious imperialism which has gone hand in hand with political and economic oppression of colored people.’
What many do not know and I will not elaborate further for obvious reasons, is that there are researchers who think that the teachings of Jesus Christ have something to do with the ancient wisdom of Vedas. The Hindu concepts of “karma’, and “reincarnation’, which are part of the New Age Movement that we see today, were not unknown to Jesus.
Then Father, why do we need to convert people in India?
You see, we in the western world, have the “white man’s burden’ of civilizing the rest of the world. We also have the need and desire to spread the message of Christ, since we believe that it is the ONLY way to salvation and all other nonbelievers will go to hell. The faith in Christianity is being eroded in Europe and America. That is why our Pope on his visit to India said, “Just as in the first millennium, the Cross was planted on the soil of Europe, and in the second on that of the Americas and Africa, we can pray that in the third Christian millennium a great harvest of faith will be reaped in this vast and vital continent.’
Why do you target India?
India is the right country because Hindu Indians are generally peace-loving tolerant, law abiding people who are truthful and virtuous. India”s devotion to being good rather than being clever comes nearer the heart of a true civilization, said W. J. Grant, in his book,
“The spirit of India’. The unsuspecting Indians have always welcomed everybody on their shore and still keep on doing so. You cannot say the same about a Muslim country or of communist China. You see Hindus are such naive – they go out of their way to say that “all religions are same – they all lead to God’. Christians and for that matter, no other religion, says that.
Where does your resource come from?
There are five major aid-giving countries, viz., USA, Germany, Britain, Italy and the Netherlands. According to the available data, in the last decade alone, foreign aid organizations received more than 2.5 billion dollars. This is only official statistics. According to the record and report of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, the statistics about the foreign aid being received by Indian Non Government Organizations shows that 80% of it is meant only for the Christian organizations that have been buying their ways into the Indian society and converting unsuspecting people under the guise of social service.
How powerful is Christianity in India?
Oh, though we are only 2.4% of the population officially, we have a large control over the country because of our economic invasion. You see, the present leader of the main political party-The Congress Party of India is a Roman Catholic with close contact with the Vatican. There are Christian Chief ministers in 5 out of 29 states. Because of the British rule of India, we have a large section of the leaders of India who look up to us. Believe me, we are the second largest land owners in India. We own and control 80% of the Indian media like NDTV 24*7, CNN-IBN ,AAJ TAK, THE TEHELKA ,TIMES OF INDIA etc and newspapers .The best example is how these media made a huge hue and cry over the Gujarat riots.Riots have happened everywhere in India.But in case of Gujarat riots, the reports were deliberately inflated,stories were built up and a systematic,planned malicious and slanderous campaign was launched against the NDA government.
Inspite of the fact that India took giant leaps in progress in every field and there was a surge in National pride and self confidence for every Indian during their tenure,India’s Most Popular Government led by India’s Finest Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was made to suffer shock defeat. We overtly or covertly have alliance with key political associations. So it is very easy for us to influence the right people.
You must have a very organized system?
Yes, we do. Have you heard about the Joshua Project? It identifies and highlights the people groups of the world that have the least exposure to the Gospel and the least Christian presence and shares this information to encourage pioneer church-planting movements among every ethnic group. The Joshua Project has identified the North India Hindi belt as “the core of the core of the core” because of its population density (40% of the Indian population- the states of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh lies in this region); it is the religious hub of India; and it has the smallest Christian presence in India. Thus detailed plans have been drawn up to target India’s 75,000 Pin Codes.
The Seventh Day Adventists owes its Indian success to Canadian evangelist Ron Watts, President for the South Asian Division. When he entered India, in 1997, the Adventist Church had 225,000 members after 103 years of operations. In five years, he took it to 700,000.
Some methods used include the 10-Village and the 25-Village Programs, which involve five sets of laymen, under guidance from a regular pastor, who identify 10 or 25 villages in close proximity. Once the villages were selected, the teams would approach the leaders of each village and invite them to send two leaders to a 10-day seminar at a nearby resort, at the organization’s expense. It is before no time that the local leaders will then start working for our faith and organization. In 1998, there were seventeen 10-Village Programs and 9,337 were baptized. In 1999, forty programs were held and nearly 40,000 people baptized.
Under the Christian Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. Samuel Rajashekar Reddy, the Adventists shifted to a 50-village plan. They began baptizing at the rate of 10,000 persons per month and have increased it to 5,000 persons per day all over India.
The US-based Maranatha Volunteers International provides buildings for the Seventh-day Adventist Church. They are committed to build 750 churches in 2 years in India. The Oregon based, Fjarli family have a goal to build 1000 churches at a rate of 1 per day.
How do you carry out conversion attempts?
You see the local people are so simple and naïve that they do not have any clue as what out motive or means are. We target mostly the poor, illiterate, tribal people because they are the easiest to convert. We do that by various means – we establish schools, hospitals that overtly or subtly promote our faith, we allure them with money or goods to the needy when they convert, we “stage’ miracle cures, we use our influence on the media, we use our experts in propaganda, we promote the influential people and so on. We use the money sent to us by unsuspecting religious and faithful Christians from all over the world. We have numerous NGO and AID organizations to funnel the money into the country. There are a great number of missionaries of various denominations who are working there, all literally competing for the most number of converts. The Southern Baptists alone are a group that has nearly 100,000 career missionaries in North India, all working to spread our “good word.”
We convince the “natives’ by our appearances and even use their own culture. A native converted person will continue to use his Hindu name so as not to alienate himself. Some of the numerous Catholic priests in Southern India dress like “sannyasis’ (monks), and call their organizations “ashramas’ (hermitage). This is to make Christianity more similar to the Vedic traditions. Bharat Natyam, the classical dance of India, is also taught in the Christian schools, but with Christian symbols and meanings replacing the Vedic. This is all in the attempt to actively sway Hindus over to Christianity. The Evangelical Church of India (ECI), established in 1954, targets the slums, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, in cities and villages. Its logo depicts a cross struck deep in a lotus, the seat of Hindu divinity.
Is the so called caste system in India an advantage?
The “Caste-ism in India’ is a boon to us. Though Varna or caste was once an essential part of the culture, based on occupation and vocational skills, which kept the civilization going for over 5000 years, caste-ism is a degenerated socio-political system now that has been declared illegal. However it is one big weapon against Hinduism. We have learnt from the colonial British that it is very easy to divide the population on the basis of caste and religion based politics and we use it to our own interest to the maximum. We join the anti-Hindu forces and help to keep the stigma of caste-ism alive for our own benefit. We target the “untouchables’ (the unprivileged people, that has so marvelously crafted to be a result of the Hindu religion and not the social system) and convert them in the lure of “liberating’ them. However I must confess that we maintain their “untouchability’ by not allowing them to mix with the general Christians, maintaining separate entry to churches and even giving them separate churches and cemeteries.
We also use opportunities that God gives us. During natural disasters like floods, earthquakes and the recent Tsunami, taking advantage of the need, we were able to convert successfully entire low caste villages in Tamil Nadu to Christianity with the lure of money and aid.
How successful are you in your conversion attempts.
Oh we are doing a good job. The Northeast Indian states like Assam, Nagaland, and Manipur, have witnessed a surge of nearly 200% in their Christian population in the past 25 years.
Their grasp is so strong now that practicing Hinduism is forbidden in some areas. Hindus can no longer do worship or “puja’ in the open because of our influence.
In another northeast state, Tripura, where there were no Christians at the time of India’s independence, 55 years ago, there are now over 120,000 today. The figures are even more striking in Arunachal Pradesh, where there were only 1710 Christians in 1961, but over 1 million today, along with over 780 churches. In the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, churches are coming-up every day in far flung villages and there is an attempt to set-up one near Tirupati, the world famous Hindu temple. Many of the North-East separatist movements, such as the Mizo or the Bodos, are not only Christian dominated, but also sometimes function with the covert backing of the missionaries. Christian Nagaland terrorists have been killing non-Christians for decades on end. More than 20,000 people have lost their lives to insurgency in Assam and Manipur in the past two decades. We understand that there are some social problems that crept up – the northeast states are the highest in India in terms of drugs and AIDS related problem – but we accept that as “casualties of war” –that should not deter us from our goal.
Do you face any resistance?
Of course we do. But we brand any resistance as “Hindu fundamentalism or militancy” and the media and our favorite leaders take care of the rest. We have set the mind of the unsuspecting population in a way, that whenever any of our people are harassed, attacked or killed, from any reason including their own faults, the blame automatically goes to these so called “Hindu fundamentalist and Communal Elements” and even though almost all of these instances are later proved to have nothing to do with these Hindu groups, the initial hue and cry that is raised makes sure the memories persist in the mind of the populace and the sympathy stays with us. There are instances when nuns have been proved to be raped by Christians, but the blames continues to stay with the Hindus.
Is there any legal barrier?
Yes there are some rules and laws that sometimes impair our activities. The Indian Supreme Court had declared that: “The right to propagate religion does not mean the right to convert… Conversion done under allurement, use of force and fraud in which the poverty or ignorance of the individual is taken advantage of, is not only undemocratic but also unconstitutional…Respect for all religions is the foundation of secularism whereas the seeds of conversion lie in religious intolerance.”. Anti conversion laws have been passed in various states. But as I said, we have our ways.
Sometimes the law does get us though. We had some instances where members of our faith have been convicted with resultant imprisonment or expulsion. As in churches all over the world, some clergymen have been penalized for cases of sexual exploitation, including pedophilia. But that does not deter us from our goal and our almighty Lord takes care of our soul.
How satisfied are you with the progress of the missions?
It is really satisfying. We find enormous pleasure in converting the Hindu “pagans’. However I wish we could do more. I wish I could say like St Francis Xavier, during the Goa Inquisition in 1560, “When I have finished baptizing the people, I order them to destroy the huts in which they keep their idols; and I have them break the statues of their idols into tiny pieces, since they are now Christians. I could never come to an end describing to you the great consolation which fills my soul when I see idols being destroyed by the hands of those who had been idolaters.”
Thank you, Father for your time and honesty.
Thank you, my son. God bless you.
Epilogue
“Christianity offers nothing that is not already available somewhere in the many forms of Hinduism. Hinduism never rejected the teachings of Jesus. Those who have converted either agreed with a gun pressed at their skulls as in Goa, or because it provided an escape from caste tyranny, as well as a guaranteed professional advancement. Through its Vedic legacy, Hinduism respects all faiths. It clearly states that God is one, but has many forms”.
(Paul William Roberts, author of, “Empire of the Soul: Some journeys in India’)
I don’t know if the following is going to replace the celebration in June 2011 in Berlin or is another one. Also I wonder how much those 100 blessed devotees have to dish out to sit on the stage!
where is the programe