stripping the gurus - Brahma Kumaris Info

430 STRIPPING THE GURUS
My mind was filled with joy to be able to eat some of Gurudev’s
[i.e., Nityananda’s] leftover food. I would rub on my
body particles of dust from where he had sat (Muktananda,
1978).
[C]ommon forms of homage to one’s guru include drinking
the water with which his feet have been washed (Kripal,
1995).
[A] discarded toilet seat from Jetsunma’s house had been
rescued and saved by her students as a relic (Sherrill, 2000).
Likewise, among the sacred objects offered in a recent auction
of items which had been blessed by being touched by Adi Da was a
used Q-tip “stained with Adi Da’s precious earwax.” Minimum bid:
$108 (Elias, 2000). In a previous auction, a half-smoked cigarette
butt reportedly sold for $800 (Elias, 2000a).
As Tarlo (1997) then finally noted:
It was embarrassing to see these supposedly serious seekers
behaving [around Andrew Cohen] like a bunch of rock-star
fans.
Or conversely, as a woman once said to me at a David Bowie
concert, with regard to the headliner: “This man is God.” (Cf. “[Adi
Da] is utterly God” [in Da, 1974; self-published].)
The psychology of the “believer,” then, is obviously the same,
whether the object touched by the “holy sage” is sand, a bowling
ball or a toilet seat, and regardless of whether the sacred butt (on
toilet or cigarette) in question belongs to Jetsunma, Adi Da or Ringo
Starr.
For my own part, I would have more faith and trust in Sri
Ringo.
* * *
Frances Vaughan (in Anthony, et al., 1987) gives the following set
of questions, which potential new members of alternative religious
movements are advised to consider before joining:
Does the group keep secrets about its organization and the
leader? How do members of the group respond to embarrassing
questions?.... Do members display stereotypic behavior