stripping the gurus - Brahma Kumaris Info

GURUS AND PRISONERS 391
The guards in Zimbardo’s study had further been instructed to
maintain order in the prison by an authority-figure. Thus, it is also
quite possible that a significant part of their behaviors might be
traced to attempts at winning the approval of that authority. If
they were going to do their jobs well in the eyes of their own bosses,
after all, they could brook no discontent or disrespect from the
prisoners.
The extracting of respect and obedience, in any case, will be
done via whatever means of psychological and physical manipulation
and abuse the upper echelon can get away with. And that will
again be done under pretenses (in religious communities) of “killing
the egos” of others for their own spiritual benefit. Further, it
will be enacted within a group mentality (at all levels of the hierarchy)
where to resist what your “elders” are telling you is to invite
ostracism from the rest of the community.
* * *
In Zimbardo’s study, the early rebellion of the prisoners both created
a solidarity among the guards, and reinforced the awareness
of the latter that they might actually be in danger. I know of no
ashram that has ever had such an acute, concerted rebellion—
Kripalu at the end of Desai’s rule perhaps comes closest. Nor are
the guru-figure or his inner circle ever in any physical danger from
their followers. Yet they reportedly behave sadistically all the
same, with no more tolerance for disobedience or disloyalty than
Zimbardo’s guards exhibited. That is, the “steady state” of the environment
is remarkably similar even if, in the absence of acute
transients, it may have taken longer to get there. (It took all of a
few days in Zimbardo’s prison study, even though both the guard
and prisoner participants in it were perfectly normal and healthy
individuals going into that.)
Nor would even a genuine “perfect master” (if there were such
a thing, which there absolutely is not) at the head of such a community
be able to avoid those problems. For, as much as disciples
may transfer their own hopes for perfection onto the guru, no such
perfection was ever ascribed to Zimbardo or to his guards. Nor did
he or his guards promulgate any “weird” system of beliefs. Nor
were those guards in any way apprised of or intending, at the
start, to enact any means of “mind control.”
Yet, in spite of those innocent beginnings, Zimbardo’s guards
actually ended up effecting sleep deprivation and controlling even