why i left eckankar

I was very naive. I think that in Eckankar skepticism is healthy, he continues. Then his whole manner changed he leaned forward in his chair, his voice emphatically rose and fell. I actually kept my phone for years, explains Lane, untilone night when youre asleep and youve got to get up at four in the morning and go to school, you get a phone call saying, Were going to fucking kill you. You know what I mean? Grosss rise to power was steeped in controversy from the beginning. He went nuts. Im worried about getting lost, he says, exasperated. The experiential aspect to Eckankar really interested me, and thats how it started.. I left Eckankar because I was able to prove the concepts of Soul Travel to myself. 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. If I were any of you. Anyway, there was an intensification of that, and I knew undoubtedly something was going on. 1:08. Those who become disheartened quit ECK for other paths that seem to require less drive and responsibility of them. When Paul Twitchell suddenly died in September 1971, he left no word as to who his successor should be. After reading Eckankar books for a year and a half, Yelman went to a seminar in Las Vegas. It was hard to leave Eckankar too. Lane leans across the cafe table, excitedly tapping his straw. It was difficult coming to this country, trying to figure out the language, the new culture, and what to do. Since its early days Eckankar has always really been a religion. No, I sigh, Im not afraid of those people.. He never had much money. In the meantime, Lane graduated from Northridge, visited India, and enrolled at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, where in 1979 he met Brian Walsh. You are wondering about the question why i left eckankar but currently there is no answer, so let kienthuctudonghoa.com summarize and list the top articles with the question. Sri Harold Klemp has immense financial resources available to guide the spiritual lives of his tens of thousands of believers. 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. My hobbit-like suburban existence was agitated by these chemicals of consciousness, and like any powerful initiatory . Lane tells me that former Living Eck Master Darwin Gross is appearing February 11 at the Best Western Hanalei Hotel. Hes a character who has seized the imaginations of Eckists as completely as Ahab or Falstaff has seized ours.) Signed, The Master. Another former Eckist named Gary Olsen started the MasterPath. The think any actual activ long time member of Eckankar is very happy with Eckankar. Do you know what I mean?. 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. In another lifetime I may have had a connection with Rebazar Tarzs, and so that would be a good way of linking me back in. Lanes still a member of Kadhasoami, but hes been reluctant to talk about it, beyond mentioning that his guru Charan Singhs death in 1990 has thrown him into a state of crisis. Everybody has an IQ of 80 or loweruuurrrrrrrrrr, lets go, lets start a religion. , Our pizza arrives, and Lane politely allows me to take the first piece. The Living Eck Master acts as the organizational head and as a guide to the aspirants spiritual journey. If you left Eckankar because of the lies of the founders and their actions, don't spread garbage about totally unrelated things that were largely debunked after the 1980s "Satanic Panic". Nobody wins, so we just let it sit there. I said, 'Where was John-Roger yesterday? The guy turned totally paranoid. I want Eckankar in some weird universe to keep going, because its fun for me. The minute he saw me he canceled all of his appointments and spent six hours with me., Lane leans across the table toward me and grins. I dont think Twitchell imagined that Eckankar would blossom the way it did. Rosanne Cash sings, Some dreams die with dignity. Twitchell was living in Point Loma in 1965 when he started teaching workshops and selling booklets on how to leave your body. Lane and I drive to La Jolla for leaden upscale Mexican food. Im under your spell, but how can I help it. There is a double edge to this torch song; from the way she keeps glancing affectionately over at Gross, it is the Masters spell that Driggs cant be blamed for falling under. People typically define cults, first of all, as based around worshiping a personality. And who knows? In a way it was like an abandonment. Spirit can express itself as sound or as bright or even colored lights. He offshooted from Eckankar and founded this religion called the Divine Science of Light and Sound. Hi, Im Dave." Several hundred members of Eckankar live in the San Diego area, but not all of them participate in local events. Lane leans down to better peer through his window. In Eckankar, since everyone is Soul, everyone is worthy. Six members of Washington, D.C. Fire and EMS have been placed on administrative leave after a video showed multiple emergency personnel punch and kick a person in an apparent brawl while on . So, Im not scared of attorneys. He basically took Eckankars money, while saying it was really for Eckankar purposes. Excommunicated from Eckankar, his lifetime agreement terminated, Gross was suddenly penniless. With the popularity of the Ghostbusters logo. Theres certain things I left out of the book, and one of them is the night Twitchell died. Its basically, check your brains at the door when you join a religion.". Eckankar has members in over 120 countries around the world, and its teachings have been translated into more than twenty-five languages. I noticed in Baja a highway sign that said Rebasar. I said to myself, I bet this is where Twitchell got the name Rebazar Tarzs! Browsing in a bookstore one day, Lane stumbled upon one of John-Rogers books and noticed it was very similar to Eckankar. Many events are open to the public, including the Sunday worship services, which tackle spiritual topics of broad interest. In one article Lane shows me, Twitchell is reported to have piercing blue eyes, to sleep only four hours a night, to read 5000 words a minute, to eat little, and to have the ability to be in all places at the same time.. When I came back to the States, I read a book by Paul Twitchell called The Tigers Fang. He wanted to make my research more available. He looks professional but not stuffy in his blue suit jacket, gray shirt, and black boots. Eckankar Pre Philosophy. It was like an outpost of spirituality. Thats really what it is for me. The way to get more income is to have new material, speculates Lane. He also gave full accounts to the San Diego Sheriff s Department and to numerous news agencies. Lane tried in vain to place his controversial book with a major publisher. So you were awake when you had this experience? I ask, intrigued. They fade out clean and quietly. In a husky voice, smooth as malt whiskey, she sings, Dont blame me for falling in love with you. After Id talked to him for a couple of hours, Jerry said, Dave, why dont you start your own religion? Houdini longed to communicate with her beyond the grave. While Lane is in the bathroom, I try, to no avail, to get permission to photograph the event. Another man named Sri Michael Turner, in Tucson, claims to be the 974th Living Master of the Midnight Sun. Moreover, a free left arm could be used to deflect spear strikes in combat. Members are deluded into believing they make spiritual progress, while they are merely psychologically entrapped. Then he mailed some of the stolen documents anonymously to Eckankar under the assumption that they would use it against me and I would think Eckankar robbed my house. This feels like all the atoms in the universe moving around, its like a rushing sound in the background. A representative at the Eckankar international office assured me that no one is turned away for lack of funds. This was 79, 15 years ago. The bed was overturned, drawers were everywhere. Friday afternoon I visit 22-year veteran of Eckankar Kevin McMahon in his Cardiff home. I dont mean just an idea or a thought, Im talking about the reproduction of grammatical mistakes, semicolon misuse. So I may Ik damaging the organization, but the real essence of Eckankar is not the organization, its the Eck, that inner spirit., They read my book. Three local Eckists agreed to speak with me. I dont remember it being this nice. 'Ohoh! Geraldo was in New York, and I was on satellite hookup at Universal Studios in the San Fernando Valley. He is a reserved man whose dimpled smile betrays a sense of humor. I just arrived here because the cult Eckankar was mentioned by someone, along with a few other cults. "Actually, Eckankar is the one who has kept me going because they keep [after] me every time I try to come out with something. You need a guide who knows the city. Actually, Eckankar is the one who has kept me going because they keep [after] me every time I try to come out with something. I dont remember it looking this way, he says pensively. Eckists have said that detractors (critics of Eckankar) are people who quit Eckankar because it didn't work for them, or because they failed at the path, and thus can't be taken seriously. Eckankar set up a meeting with Lane at its international headquarters in Menlo Park. If theyre going to sue you about a 120-page term paper when youre 20 years old, you know somethings up. A lot of people have. It was like in my imagination. This most incredible feeling came over me, literally like light inside of me. Eckists are all over the world, and in different walks of life, and from different political orientations, different socioeconomic levels. This is not seen as coldness or indifference but as a precursor to unconditional love. Do people get mad at Ralph Nader for saying that a Pinto blows up? 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. They say you can never damage the Eck spirit, because its life. Shes very clean and clear about her business acumen. Del Mars beach is amazingly clean. or call 1-888-L0VE-GOD (recorded message) 952-380-2200 (Eckankar Spiritual Center) You may write us at: ECKANKAR PO Box . The vivid orange-pink horizon stretches on endlessly beneath a nearly full moon. But Eckankars attorneys mailed the package back to me. 2 0 Share Reply More Q Gross and Kurz are joined by vocalist Kim Driggs, an attractive woman with dark shaggy hair. Dont miss out. Twitchell told his second wife, Gail, that he was born in the early 20s. (Such a quake did occur in 1812.) The Kal is similar to Satan, representing everything that is materialistic and evil, a being of vileness, wrath, and vengeance. 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. ECKANKAR was founded by Paul Twitchell (1909 - 1971) in California in the mid-1960s. They sent letters about me claiming I was the negative force, that I. . I wrote to him, and he wrote a real nice letter back, saying that we should get together and talk. Lane attributes the initial success of Eckankar to Gails organizational abilities. Lifes kind of sad. Paul was an avid reader. I think of Rumi, the great Persian poet, who said, with all these false coins abounding, theres got to be something genuine in the midst of it.. In 1983 Lane and Brian Walsh issued a glossier version of The Making of a Spiritual Movement through their own Del Mar Press. Her enormous eyes seem to sparkle. I dont think so. "Race me!" 4-year-old Lucia demands. I was 21. He resigned in June 1993 following a direct threat to kill from another member, Ebenezer Egunjobi, and a series of violent and disorientating mind control attacks emanating from the leader, Harold Klemp. Its difficult not to resent Lane, that temptress, that town gossip, that snake in Eden. And he didnt know anything about Eckankar., The guide was a bearded man in this maroon robe. All that junk you gave Lane to write down came out of your own filthy minds, and mouths and you know filthy mouths must be cleaned out don't you. Gross continues to work as a spiritual master, with a small group of devoted followers, many of them former Eckists. I am skeptical of paranormal claims, because I believe we need to shave more with Occams Razor. Occams Razor?, The principle of competing theories, developed in the 14th Century by a guy named William of Occam, who said that if you have competing theories, go for the simplest theory first if it explains the issue fully. The waiter arrives with our check, and Lane and I bicker over whos going to pay for it. The lover has lied to you, but the lover is oh so seductive and satisfying, and submission is so thrilling. But some wont let you let em go. Its raining. This must not be true. ", The following year Lane wrote a second paper, The Making of a Spiritual Movement: The Untold Story of Paul Twitchell and Eckankar. I was obsessed, Lane admits. Recently I have had a spiritual crisis where I stopped believing in the concept of the Abrahamic God. Finally, as a last resort, Lane suggests we exit the parking garage and then walk down the ramp where we drove in. He may like the trappings, but not the actual duty of it. 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!. Murdochs obsession with water suddenly makes sense. Lane looks like hes swallowed a mouse, grinning and biting his finger. 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. The following evening, when the airport shuttle drops me off in front of my apartment, five guys are smoking crack beside a dumpster. Lane has countered with a point-by-point rebuttal, When God Responds: Sri Darwin Gross versus David Lane, which hes including in his new book, Gakko Came from Venus. I called John-Roger immediately. Aside from the fact that Eckankar has techniques and tools that are incredible and not really matched by other groups, I think the freedom that is allowed to the members is a wonderful thing.". I get the sense his gentleness does not comes naturally, that it has been worked at, with great success. I think they expected somebody who was more academic looking. David Lane has his own personal agenda. Eight years later he broke with Kirpal Singh and thereafter denied any involvement with him. Im greeted by a tall, handsome black man with a mustache and short-cropped hair graying slightly at the temples. As I stroll toward the ocean, through a lush, affluent neighborhood, disappointment creeps over me like the tide. Writing this summary of beliefs, I consulted Eckankar materials, but I didnt need to. They were dressed up in suits. The human soul is eternal and is on a spiritual journey of reincarnation to discover and improve the true self thereby realizing his own true inner divinity. 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 . I keep discovering more and more offshoots, in India as well as here its like a virus, it keeps reproducing itself., You know the ins and outs of how religions are organized, and you're a charismatic person. You got it. The ocean was rushingusually I hear a sound that is like electricity, kind of high pitched, but richer, fuller than just electrical buzzing. James Peebles, an Eckist and fellow classmate of Lanes, also wrote a paper on Eckankar. Apparently Lane has equally conflicted feelings about me. My research has helped because its made me more discriminating, more critical-minded. Sure! But when we go to the Hillcrest Village parking garage to retrieve Lanes car he cant find it. Dropping out, of a religion, one in which one attempts to focus ones every thought, every action on those teachings, is a horrible experience. The term God no longer had use for me. I'd heard rumors about why he left but I wanted to see for myself. With all this information you have, you could start your own thing. I go, Jerry, I cant do that third-eye patch, turban, the flowing robe I cant do it.. Everything is mauve and cream: the water cooler, the paper cups, the walls, carpet, chairs, and even the stereo. I never thought he was gay until everybody said, 'Heilo-o, looks like he likes you a little too much, Dave. One of his major disciples, Victor Toso, later revealed that he had kind of a quasicrush on me., Did John-Roger ever make any moves on you?, I was flattered that here was a spiritual master who was spending hours with me instead of dissing me or suing me. Every thriller these days has a false ending and then a real ending, to the point that when I watch a pre-Carrie film, I am disappointed at how easily chaos is defeated. Lane shakes his head. At the time I didnt know who he was. Lane drives me back to Hillcrest. Dr. Bluth, Twitchells personal doctor and vice president of Eckankar at the time, has confirmed that he gave Twitchell books from the Radhasoami library. Understandably, he changed the names of his sources, because he didnt want people to know about his past. "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. She was a Buddhist, and I became interested in Buddhism. I had heard about this ability to get out of the body, where one can have an internal spiritual experience. During the 30s and 40s, Twitchell was a prolific writer. When the Vietnamese fellow was in San Diego, he saw a poster for an Eckankar event that had a picture of Rebazar Tarzs on it, and he recognized him. We close our eyes and chant Hu together for several minutes. An example: I claim the reason I missed our appointment last night was because Elvis was on Venus and sucked me up into a space capsule. Hes now in Scottsdale, Arizona. The mastership of Darwin Gross is a black cloud in Eckankar history, a history that Eckankar wants to erase. Not long afterward I joined Eckankar, unaware of the dissension. The problem is that nobody uses Occams Razor when it comes to spirituality. Simply put, Twitchell cut his connection with Radhasoami for good marketing reasons. It doesnt make sense. And all the people kind of looked at me as if to say, Well, jeez, he doesnt look evil. Lane came up and he talked to me and thanked me for coming. On tape Twitchell is asked about Rebazar Tarzs. There was a lot going on. She speaks so softly, I move the microphone closer. So you get this juxtaposition, Lane really going off on John-Roger and McWilliams trying to protect J.R.s reputation. *, After such an exhausting chronicle, I feebly inquire, Are you still doing research on John-Roger?. Fie has a personal thing against Eckankar, he briskly replies. Incredibly, I was awake, but still in my inner world at the same time. It is the force that sustains and supports all life throughout the worlds or SUGMAD [God]. He said, 'Some of us live the spiritual life, others intellectualize it. He has no phone. Garland decided to withdraw it. Lane then quotes these same passages as they were later reproduced, usually word for word, in Eckankar books, with the names changed to the o Eck Masters Sudar Singh, Fubbi Quantz, Rebazar Tarzs, Lai Tsi, j and Gopal Das. Eckankar first caught my attention by how matter-of-fact and logical it was. Many Eckists regard this death with the same mixture of awe and curiosity with which we regard the death of JFK. I would raise my head to the stage in rapt silence, devouring every word the Grosses spoke. The Far Country, Lane claims to have found more than 400 plagiarized paragraphs. I would ask a question and get an answer, and I would jot it down. Lane phoned Hinkins to ask him about these charges. Although no meetings are required, the local Eckankar newsletter lists a variety of classes, book discussions, Hu chants, and lectures. In 1979 he called me from Northridge, where he was living at his girlfriends aunts house. As late as December 1993, Gross sent out a memo to all his readers defending Paul Twitchell and the corporation he started against Lanes attacks. We talk about the Hu as a prayer song or a love song to God, instead of saying its a chant or mantra. Its membership today is primarily in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. You can imagine how I felt, exclaims Lane. Saturday afternoon, when we arrive at the hotel, Lane keeps disappearing into the bathroom. Clearly he is more comfortable with the fluid topography of waves, of meditation, of philosophical inquiry. Then his widow, Gail Atkinson, had a vision in the night in which Twitchell named Gross. Here it is. I had huge phone bills, because I had called this professor or this person. As we wander aimlessly back and forth between the second and third levels of the garage, I smile at my surfer companions inability to negotiate this concrete urban maze. I would not put it past Twitchell to have simply coined the name from one of his trips to Baja.. Sex. The Temple of Eck in Chanhassen [Minnesota] is open to people of all faiths to come, to attend the worship services, maybe just to enhance their own beliefs. box that John-Roger had personally paid for. Peoples experiences dont matter to David Lane. The 69-year-old joined the broadcaster in 2008 after 22 years in football management. Eckankar does not help people find God. The next day Channel 8 news came out and did as their lead story Cult Researcher Robbed. They took a copy of my article The J.R. Controversy. But they didnt name John-Roger.. So I do. I was excited 20 years old, in the moment of discovering something new. Lane smiles to himself as if he were envisioning Paul Twitchell hunched over some Radhasoami text, scribbling away. For a hundred bucks per year he gives you the divine connection. In 1978 Richards moved from North Carolina to San Diego to pursue his graduate training in psychology. On the Marie Vega [TV] show in Los Angeles, I said, John-Roger Hinkins robbed my house. He threatened to sue the TV station for a million dollars if they ever ran the program again. That i owed it to myself to know for sure that what i. The similarities are there because they are both cults. The perplexed beggar was in hog heaven. His new title was President of Eckankar. Through daily spiritual exercises, one can shift ones awareness from the physical world and soul travel to these higher planes. Soul, being a spark of God, is on a journey to find its way home to God, or the Sugmad. I think it would be wrong of me to say that Eckankar is unique. The term God no longer had use for me. 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. The former members of Eckankar make a mistake in here thinking procedure. He was obsessed. Their divorce was final in 1960. You can get in a debate over whether one paragraph in one of Paul Twitchells writings looks like a paragraph in somebody elses writings, but that has nothing to do with your spiritual experiences and the confirmation you get personally through the teachings and your work with the inner master. But the woman I remember was mousy, with a broad smile; no Bond girl was she. 0:53. In their own words, "The ECK is spirit. While a few people I met were off-the-wall, Eckists in general make wonderfiil friends, kind, caring, nonjudgmental. But even in his formality I instinctively trusted him. A job as a correspondent for Our Navy took him to Washington, D.C. in 1945. Lane says, He got them from his Indian books on Radhasoami, or Julian Johnsons The Path of the Masters, or from With a Great Master in India. Eckankar believes that God exists in two parts, the Light and Sound, known as ECK. It has its positive aspects, a sense of community, a sense of focusing on the individual and his or her experiences of the divine. In my copy of The Making of a Spiritual Movement, he signs himself the Kal force, Dave. The Kal force, remember, is the power of negativity. We would like to show you a description here but the site won't allow us. I wonder how long it takes new Eckists to even learn of his existence. On the wall to my right is a framed print of the yin-yang symbol with a feather fixed to it. Everybodys sexuality is different than everybody elses. April 25, 2023, 1:58 p.m. I would just close my eyes and he would be there, and I would be there with him too. Before founding Eckankar, Twitchell was involved in yoga, self-realization groups, and Scientology. Lanes research indicates, however, that Twitchell was born between 1908 and 1912, in Paducah, Kentucky. He and Gross have been sparring since 1977. . So I asked, 'Who is this enlightened being? It was Jerry Mulvin! But her email was the exact reason why i left. Eckankar is one of the New Age religions, started in 1965 by journalist Paul Twitchell. I feel like Ive stumbled into a New Age greeting card or a novel by Iris Murdoch, try to imagine experiencing this extravagance on a regular basis. McMahon looks as Irish as his name, with a large, soft face and a sad mouth that bends pleasantly when he smiles. Whereas Sudar Singh [another memorable character in Twitchells cosmology] isKirpal Singh. In The Making of a Spiritual Movement, Lane quotes many passages from Twitchells magazine articles written in the 60s in which Twitchell cites Swami Premananda, Kirpal Singh, Meher Baba, Guru Nanak, Kabir, and even Jesus. Now, Jagat is actually the first name of a Radhasoami guru named Jagat Singh. What it means is that I ultimately dont know. One time he said, I want to take you someplace. I said okay! We figure, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, we might as well call it a duck.". He invited me to his house in Mandeville Canyon, a beautiful house, a mansion. Why do you make a point of fingering Eckankar?, I do think Christianity has fucked up more people in its history than Eckankar ever has. The disciples felt used and manipulated for spiritual reasons., After the secret meeting. But Lane had the jump on all of them when back in 1984 he wrote The J.R. Where do you think Twitchell got these names?. All, I have been an official member of Eckankar for 10 years. No part of this site may be reproduced without our written permission. He took my wifes diaries and made hand-written notes in the margins. Last April the current Living Eck Master, Harold Klemp, spoke at a three-day major seminar at the San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina. Im talking about the very form of that truth being copied. After dinner, she confides, I walked along the beach and sat down beneath a tree to do a contemplation. Shortly after . Eckankar, the Ancient Science of Soul Travel, was officially founded. Followers of Eckankar believe that beyond the physical world there are many other realms existing at higher vibratory rates. Hes touring the Southwest, as we speak. The maker of Bud Light, Anheuser-Busch, said on Tuesday that two of its executives were taking a leave of absence after the beer was featured in a social media . Yelman is stunning tall and extremely thin, clad in a pale-beige pantsuit, her natural blond hair pulled back into a bun, the bangs teased like feathers across her forehead. After giving lectures and teaching Eckankar classes for ten years, I already knew them well. As Eckankar filled my life, I felt like I was entering Shangri-la; a new glistening world of love, of possibility opened before me. I wanted Bettina Yelmans calm, I wanted Charles Richardss benevolence, I wanted Kevin McMahons assurance. Theres no calm center to this storm. And it continues to rain. Some left the movement. When he finishes the song, he takes off his shoes to be closer to the keys. The atmosphere in the room is homey and protective. ET. Besides working as a therapist, Richards has taught at the University of Humanistic Studies and is an adjunct staff member of the Center for Creative Leadership in La lolla, an organization that specializes in executive management training. Around the same time, the Spiritual Counterfeits Project published its own journal, Eckankar, a Hard Look at a New Religion, based largely on lines manuscript, which they distributed to nearly every Eck center i in the world. No. 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. Youre right, every world religion has got its problems.
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