why i left eckankar

April 25, 2023, 1:58 p.m. We zone out on lounge music for an hour and a half, then Dawn walks to the front of the room and says, Thats it. I ask Lane if hes going to introduce himself. His clothes seem to be tossed onto his rather stocky body. He had on a white turban with a gemstone right here in the middle. Yelman points to her bangs. 2 0 Share Reply More Q When it came out, I got a 25-page letter from a group called the Coalition for Civil and Spiritual Freedom. This guys pretty smart, because he knows that if he pays attention to me, thats a good way of buying me off, so he can spin-doctor my research. Probably a composite cover name for three people: Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, which was started 500 years ago; Sawan Singh, who was Kirpal Singhs guru; and Swami Premananda. After a year or so, he branched off and started his own group, MSIA, claiming that in 1963 he had a kidney stone operation and that after nine days of being in a coma he had been commissioned to be the Mystical Traveler Consciousness. At first Hinkins thought it was the legendary Rebazar Tarzs who came to him on the inner planes and passed on the keys to the Kingdom, but later, after seeing a photo of Radhasoami guru Sawan Singh, Hinkins decided that it was really Sawan Singh who had given him the mantle. The Courier-Journal magazine, to which he was a regular contributor, reported that he sold 1800 stories and articles in three years. His new title was President of Eckankar. Discomfort spreads across his face as I continue, You were the Master most of the time I was in it. Holding my hand, he looks deep into my eyes and says, Im still the Master. When I get home, my hosts greet me with a Manhattan. Browsing in a bookstore one day, Lane stumbled upon one of John-Rogers books and noticed it was very similar to Eckankar. He also does private executive coaching. Should I send this to the IRS? 'Should I send this to Eckankar? Little notes he was making to himself. I never stopped, not even for a minute even though they, pardon my expression, treated me like shit. As I walk away he yells after me, Hang in there!. If you were going to visit a new city, wouldnt you want a guide, wouldnt you want to stay away from the places where the prostitutes are, from the dark streets and the hoodlums? He was advertising in Fate magazine, Orion magazine, Cosmic Star." Through daily spiritual exercises, one can shift ones awareness from the physical world and soul travel to these higher planes. Gross actually received the mantle on the inner planes when he was handed, not a flower, but the Rod of Power. In days of old the barrier [sic] of bad news to the King was done away with. So I said, 'You guys can get out of this simply, just explain that Twitchell plagiarized. Ellen Burstyn, maybe.) The idea that people are leaving Eckankar based on what they read in a single book is IMO an advertizing tactic to sell more copies. This most incredible feeling came over me, literally like light inside of me. Nobody wins, so we just let it sit there. Id be very careful where I go and what I do and who I talk to, you wouldn 7 want anyone to get hurt now, would you? My group is for dumbshits. Driving the news: " As the only person to serve as both National Security Advisor and Domestic Policy Advisor, Susan's record of public service makes history," Biden said of the former UN ambassador and national . Toni Atkins wife Jennifer LeSar to bid on Todd Gloria's downtown project. Members are deluded into believing they make spiritual progress, while they are merely psychologically entrapped. Im sure of it. He taps his finger on the table. Thats one explanation. The Making of a Spiritual Movement is, in fact, so well documented that at times it reads like a 200-page footnote. And he didnt know anything about Eckankar., The guide was a bearded man in this maroon robe. Lane and Walsh had put a circle with a slash through it over Eckankars logo, which is EK formed into a circle. answer the question why i left eckankar, which will help you get the most accurate answer. I dont remember that second story. An Eckankar representative, claiming to be a member of the Berkeley-based anti-cult group Spiritual Counterfeits Project, asked Gruss for a copy of Peebless report. Since its early days Eckankar has always really been a religion. ET. In Eckankar, since everyone is Soul, everyone is worthy. Theyre very much like physical exercises, but theyre for Soul, to strengthen Souls connection with spirit. It is the force that sustains and supports all life throughout the worlds or SUGMAD [God]. He basically took Eckankars money, while saying it was really for Eckankar purposes. Excommunicated from Eckankar, his lifetime agreement terminated, Gross was suddenly penniless. It affects those who have an unrealistic goal in ECK; those who want to Soul Travel or reach Self-and God-realization with practically no effort. His previous associations were tainted. Remembering him in his better days, thin and attractive, I am shocked by the corpulent, aging man standing before me, coughing. Source: mallsofamerica.blogspot.com. May 1, 2023 6:30 AM. Understandably, he changed the names of his sources, because he didnt want people to know about his past. As Eckankar filled my life, I felt like I was entering Shangri-la; a new glistening world of love, of possibility opened before me. Eckankar set up a meeting with Lane at its international headquarters in Menlo Park. As I stroll toward the ocean, through a lush, affluent neighborhood, disappointment creeps over me like the tide. I have been an official member of Eckankar for 10 years. This must not be true. He and Gross have been sparring since 1977. One exclaims, Arent you afraid of those Eckankarists, arent you afraid what theyre going to do?, I take a guilty sip of my drink. To top it off, their white helmets bore an insignia that was remarkably similar to Eckankars circular EK logo. Harold Klemp. If he cant take your soul back to God, he improves your bowling game, money-back guarantee. We both laugh so loudly at Lanes joke, the couple at the next table, who have been covertly eyeing the tape recorder, stare at us openly. Im an extremely intuitive person, she says, so I feel things long before I understand them in my head. Previously, my understanding of reality was contoured along the lines of the cultural landscape I was born into. Rebazar Tarzs, yeah, that Rebazar Tarzs. So, Im not scared of attorneys. Those answers were so far-reaching in their depth and breadth, they still help me today, nine years later. I could almost picture the legendary Rod of Power in Darwins hand. One of the reasons he may have relinquished his spiritual role to Harold is that it didnt jibe with him. and is being financed by them to do his dirty research. Maybe it was just some neurons firing in the right part of your brain or maybe you had too much dopamine in the frontal lobes or maybe you took an Excedrin four hours ago. We dont want that kind of explanation., Its a beautiful, sunny day. In her Golden-Tongued Wisdom, Rosanne continues to sing, A cold hard rain comes pouring down. Its difficult not to resent Lane, that temptress, that town gossip, that snake in Eden. Imagine it youve got a lot of new clientele out there ready to buy your stuff. Yelmans studies at UCSD brought her to San Diego in 1974. Houdini longed to communicate with her beyond the grave. David Lane has his own personal agenda. In order to burn off all their karma in this lifetime and to be released from the cycle of death and reincarnation, Eckists practice detachment from the vagaries of life. I said to myself, I bet this is where Twitchell got the name Rebazar Tarzs! Soul, being a spark of God, is on a journey to find its way home to God, or the Sugmad. Eckankar is a classic case in point. I used to be in Eckankar, I tell him. Eckankar is still very much open to and supportive of whatever religion a person belongs to. Hi, Im Dave." Twitchell coined the word Eckankar (a Punjabi word meaning "One God" or "Supreme Reality") from Guru Nanak's Japji, as found in the Sikh's holy scriptures, Guru Granth Sahib. We take our seats among the 50 or so other seekers, many of whom have flown in for the event. The term God no longer had use for me. Accompanied by keyboardist and devotee Ron Kurz, Gross begins with Blues in E Flat. The music is great, lethargic and soothing, the kind of music one should listen to in a cocktail lounge with an umbrellaed drink. Seriously, what could one say about anybody that left a long held teaching based solely on words in one book? Classic. Dont you feel like the Great White Hunter attacking the endangered rhinoceros? Lane responds with animation. I think they expected somebody who was more academic looking. Now, Jagat is actually the first name of a Radhasoami guru named Jagat Singh. They say, the message works for me, the contemplation works for me. In one he refers to me as Lane the widower. So then I wrote The J.R. Controversy for a new journal called Understanding Cults. With the blink of an eye, he could vanish forever. Del Mar Press agreed to change the cover on future editions. His quest for knowledge and experience of God is without question. I gave up drugs, and my grades went down. Disillusioned Eckists left the movement in droves. Other students of Radhasoami have objected to Lanes critical stance in The Radhasoami Tradition: A Critical History of Guru Successorship, published by Garland. I have nice feelings toward Eckankar. The reason I turned my back on Eckankar for good was discovering the plagiarism in their bible, which other Eckists told me was divinely inspired. Last April the current Living Eck Master, Harold Klemp, spoke at a three-day major seminar at the San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina. It wasnt like this last time around. "We use more discriminating intelligence when we buy a used car than when we buy a religion, says philosophy professor and cult-buster David Christopher Lane. The skies themselves seem to be weeping with loss. I would just close my eyes and he would be there, and I would be there with him too. But Im amazed that after all the dirt hes dug up on religions, he could be seriously involved in any spiritual path. The Far Country, Lane claims to have found more than 400 plagiarized paragraphs. Initially he refuses to come to the Hillcrest home where Im staying, preferring to meet in a nearby restaurant. But even in his formality I instinctively trusted him. I stood up and said, You know, Im a member of the community, Im a coach in the Little League, Im involved with the schools. I gave a list of my involvements with the community, and then I said, Im an Eckist and I believe in God. For the past 20 years, Lanes books and articles accusing several new religious movements of plagiarisms, lies, inconsistencies, and scandals have raised a fury among true believers. Collectively, this means that right-handed humans might be more protected from a deadly strike. Many Eckists regard this death with the same mixture of awe and curiosity with which we regard the death of JFK. Sitting at our outside table, high above Camino Del Mar, surrounded by sky and ocean, I feel as if were gods feasting on petty human concerns. A representative at the Eckankar international office assured me that no one is turned away for lack of funds. If thats his focus in life, then he has a very limited view of life. McMahon explains that plagiarism isnt always what it seems. Theres certain things I left out of the book, and one of them is the night Twitchell died. So Harold said, Hey, why should we make this difficult for people? A line will leap out and inspire you. As he fetches me a glass of juice, I sit in his cozy living room, which is decorated with family photos, relics from Thailand, and McMahons own paintings, imaginary landscapes with lots of vivid blue. I left eckankar because it simply didn't work for me and I didn't realize that for a very long time. I wonder how long it takes new Eckists to even learn of his existence. Shortly after . Gross was in the habit of wearing light-blue leisure suits, and men throughout the audience mimicked his attire. On the wall to my right is a framed print of the yin-yang symbol with a feather fixed to it. I turn on the stereo and stare out the window. The following evening, when the airport shuttle drops me off in front of my apartment, five guys are smoking crack beside a dumpster. "Actually, Eckankar is the one who has kept me going because they keep [after] me every time I try to come out with something. JN Sykes was a member of the Eckankar cult ('the cult') from February 1980 to June 1993. But Lane had the jump on all of them when back in 1984 he wrote The J.R. When I called to sign up, they told me that I never had to go to a class if I didnt want to. Sipping his virgin strawberry margarita, Lane says, I got a sense of authenticity when he played his vibes, like thats who he really was, a musician, instead of trying to be a master. The term God no longer had use for me. He went nuts. Although i had forgotten my. Saturday afternoon, when we arrive at the hotel, Lane keeps disappearing into the bathroom. . Second, everybody has to dream at night, or most people dream at night, and Eckists dream about Fubbi Quantz or Rebazar Tarzs or Paul Twitchell. Twitchell died of a heart attack around one oclock in the morning on September 17, 1971, in Cincinnati, Ohio. He wanted to make my research more available. About four weeks later Lanes guru in India, Charan Singh, received a letter, supposedly from another follower in San Diego, criticizing Lane and quoting from his wifes stolen diaries. or call 1-888-L0VE-GOD (recorded message) 952-380-2200 (Eckankar Spiritual Center) You may write us at: ECKANKAR PO Box . Paul was an avid reader. I like you and Im enjoying our talk, but nothing youre saying is very seductive. Home study discourses and musical tapes are also available. Sizing up his clean, homogenized attractiveness, I think, Tuck in his shirt and he could be on one of those infomercials, beside a pool selling motivational tapes how to lose weight, gain friends, make it rich in real estate with no money down. We spend roughly nine hours together, spread over two days. What I found was so obvious that anybody could have discovered it. And so I had handwriting analysis done on the writing on the diaries and on that NO MORE sign. Eckankar took off like wildfire, growing from three students to thousands in less than three years. We dont do that in Eckankar. The suggested annual membership donation for individuals is $120, a bargain in the miracles-and-freedom market. I imagine we have a wide spectrum. Whenever I saw Gross and Atkinson, I would be seated in an auditorium, surrounded by thousands of avid followers, each hoping at some point to receive the darshan, the Masters gaze. Hed read the book and wanted me to visit him. Eckankar took off like wildfire, growing from three students to thousands in less than three years. Its membership today is primarily in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. Yelman received hers while at an Eck seminar in Hawaii. He seems gently ecstatic, but so tired. Lane, like his counterpart Houdini, seems shackled. His only interest was getting the message out about the light and sound of God., McMahon doesnt blame anyone for being skeptical. Although no meetings are required, the local Eckankar newsletter lists a variety of classes, book discussions, Hu chants, and lectures. Eckankar is a religion first founded in 1965 by Paul Twitchell, who served as the first Mahanta, or living ECK Master, who acts as a teacher for ECKists. Lane looks like hes swallowed a mouse, grinning and biting his finger. Operating, as I do now, in a professional arts world in which people want a rsum before deciding whether to talk to you, I miss the support of the Eckankar community. That i owed it to myself to know for sure that what i. They looked just like the Rod of Power! The Living Eck Master descends from an unbroken line of Vairagi Masters. And there was a big note on a box that said, NO MORE. No jewelry was gone only research stuff, including materials for my doctoral dissertation., He took my wifes personal diaries, a camera which he must have thought had film in it, videotapes, an address book, and my recipe file containing my favorite recipe for Del Mar lentil loaf. And curtain after curtain of gauze was quietly removed, and I saw stars behind stars behind stars, as in the magical Odeons of my youth. In the Army he traveled to Thailand, where he met his wife. We actually challenge our inner experiences in the name of God, to make sure that theyre not phony, not of the negative world of Kal. Many events are open to the public, including the Sunday worship services, which tackle spiritual topics of broad interest. Hes told me he surfs, and in his knee-length khaki shorts, plum-colored T-shirt, and sandals, he looks like a surfer. One interesting guy I met was Jerry Mulvin. In 1942, after a stint in the Navy, Twitchell moved to New York, where he continued his journalism career, attended many churches, and read extensively on spiritual subjects. It has its positive aspects, a sense of community, a sense of focusing on the individual and his or her experiences of the divine.

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