Exposing Adyashanti's Ruse

BY: MAYESVARA DASA (ACBSP)

Dec 10, 2013 — OJAI, CALIFORNIA (SUN) — An Objective Critique of Adyashanti's Zen Authenticity


Contents

Chapter 1: Epidemic of Spiritual Ignorance
Our "Curious" Human Condition
Mayavadis In Recent History
Inspiration for This Article
Whoose yah Daddy?

Chapter 2: Hollywood Stage Names and Other Promotional Tricks
All About Appearances
Deluded Kali-Yuga Soul
More Deceptive Posturing
Commercialized Zen

Chapter 3: Let's Get Serious
Neo-Advaita vs. Classic-Advaita
It's all very Simple… NOT!
Mortified and Confused
Gita Clarity

Chapter 4: Fragments of Truth
Fumbling Around
Stop Thinking and Just "Be"
Conned into Spiritual Suicide

Chapter 5: Cheaters and Cheated
Have I Got A Deal for YOU!
Cash for Kudos.
The Same Old Stuff…

Chapter 6: Stretching Beyond Complacency
Oh My! Be Humble Prabhu!
Srila Prabhupada Got All Fired Up!
Stand and Fight!
Duty to Dharma
Addendum
Tooled Up & Ready to Go!
Personal Request
Tagline
How to Contact:


Chapter 1
Epidemic of Spiritual Ignorance

The Most Embarrassing of All Zen Făshīs? (Teachers)

"Uncultured men will accept charity on behalf of the Lord and will earn their livelihood by making a show of austerity and wearing a mendicant's dress. Those who know nothing about religion will mount a high seat and presume to speak on religious principles." (Srimad Bhagavat Purana Canto 12 The Age of Deterioration, Chapter 3 The Bhumi Gita, Text 38)

Our "Curious" Human Condition

You would think that those interested in reading articles on Vaishnava websites would already have a pretty clear appreciation for the superexcellent spotless teachings of the Brahma-Madhva-Gaudia Sampradaya Siddhanta. Yet apparently some who read our literature are still incapable of distinguishing it from and all the other incoherent propaganda being promoted to the poorly informed public as Non-dual Advaita teachings. Although it is disturbing to learn how confused some people are, in this age of Kali it really isn't that surprising to discover how many people get attracted to the impersonalist conclusions of Sankaracarya:

    "A person's spiritual position will be ascertained merely according to external symbols,… and one who is very clever at juggling words will be considered a learned scholar." (Srimad Bhagavat Purana Canto 12 The Age of Deterioration, Chapter 3 The Symptoms of Kali Yuga, Text 4)

For several years I have been proposing that the brahminical community pay closer attention to what is going on in their local community. I live in Ojai, California which can be thought of as: Nirvishesha-gram (Mayavadi Mecca). The Ojai Valley has an orgasmic attraction for any "shaman" who strolls into town and promotes their own bizarre opinions about the "Truth." Having lived here for over 25 years I have had a front row seat to observe all the havoc these pseudo-spiritualists stir up in the souls of those who get sucked into their hyperbole. Some waste years of their lives propping up very shady people. Others spend thousands of dollars buying books, tapes, and attending seminars before they realize that there was no significant content in any of it. A third group embraces the Neo-Non-dual teaching primarily because it gives them a good way to rationalize dishonest business agreements, filthy habits, gross womanizing, or such excessively egocentric attitudes that they rival the Greek God Narcissus himself!

This is why I have been appealing to the brahminical community to become more vocal about exposing all this nonsense. It is my observation that we spend way too much time bickering over relatively petty internal smarta-brahmana-like affairs. I believe His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada would be more generous about giving us his blessings if we were more serious about assisting him in his foremost mission "…delivering the Western countries, which are filled with impersonalism and voidism."

    "We have to deal with all rascals and fools." (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Room Conversation, Delhi, Dec. 14, 1975)

While we argue among ourselves the Mayavadis and atheists are extending their reach all over the world at alarming rates. We can no longer afford to be lethargic about it. The evidence is apparent for anyone whose eyes are open. I have provided just a few of the many available links here to illustrate this point:

Buddhism fastest growing religion in the West

Social Media Growing Atheism by the Millions

Although the West is not very familiar with Sankaracaryas' Non-dual (Advaita) teachings, the number of individuals who are getting infected with this insidious form of Atheism has been rapidly growing. I refer to the Advaita teachings as insidious because it masquerades as being philosophically sound. All it really does is sublimate the yearning for spiritual significance in an effective but deceptive way. It also happens to be at the root of everything that is going wrong in the world according to Lord Siva Himself:

    "The theory of Mayavadism, (The Non-dual Advaita Teachings) - though given a facade of great importance and claiming itself to be derived from the Vedas, is in truth a non-Vedic theory O goddess (Paravati) It is I, who have propagated this concocted theory which is the root cause of the world's destruction. " (Mahadeva Siva speaking to Parvati (Padma Purana)

One doesn't have to look far to find evidence of how pervasive Non-dual thinking has become in the West. At the top of the following link we find a photo of 38 red-robed "Holy Men" that would appear to naïve Westerners as very "learned."

Advaita Vision (For the 21st Century)

One who actually understands Non-dual teachings would immediately recognize the hypocrisy of this photo. A real master of Advaita couldn't care less about participating in a photo session of any type, what to speak of one as egocentric as this "Group" photo. Who are they trying to impress and more importantly why? Remember, it is the Non-dualists who teach that there is nobody to impress and it's all a meaningless illusion,.. so what's with the photo?

Below this fraternity-like photo of Non-dualists, we find a list of the most prominent celebrity word-juggling gurus in recent history. They have made a name for themselves only because they introduced various aspects of Vedic thinking into the previously uninformed Occidental public eye. They may refer to each other as "Realized Men", but those who understand the difference between the "Flowery Words" of the Vedas and the summum-bonum conclusions they herald, would never consider this particular band of robed men as "Realized".

    "Men of small knowledge are very much attached to the flowery words of the Vedas, which recommend various fruitive activities for elevation to heavenly planets, resultant good birth, power, and so forth. Being desirous of sense gratification and opulent life, they say that there is nothing more than this. In the minds of those who are too attached to sense enjoyment and material opulence, and who are bewildered by such things, the resolute determination for devotional service to the Supreme Lord does not take place." (Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Chapter 2 Contents of the Gita Summarized, Text 42-44)

We shall now take a closer look at the specific comments and behaviors of these individuals. His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami will then explain why they are not qualified to comment about anything related to spiritual matters.


Mayavadis In Recent History

Cinmayananda Swami:

"Swami Chinmayananda says that whatever (Verses from Bhagavad Gita) is necessary we shall accept; other slokas we shall reject. This is…rascal's philosophy. As if Krsna says something superfluous. They say like that. And the other day some gentleman came (and declared), 'It (The Bhagavad-gita) is fictitious writing...'" (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Room conversation , New Delhi, December 14, 1975)

"This Chinmayananda is also like that. (Eats meat, drinks, and has a woman secretary) I know his whole mischief. Unless one is purely Krsna conscious, one cannot give up all these bad habits. This is the test." (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Morning walk, Hyderabad, April 24, 1974)

Rajaneesh/Osha:

"Some of them (Cheating Gurus) are openly declaring that 'I am for sex,' and some of them showbottle. But the objective is sex. This is the whole world… And these sannyasis like Rajneesh, they are advocating, 'This is life -- sex. By sex indulgence you get salvation. ' (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Room Conversation with Minister Dixon, State Minister for Social Services -- April 23, 1976, Melbourne)

"…they want to take the position of God. 'Everyone is God. I am God, you are God.' This is they are claiming…So many rascals. Why Rajneesh? There are many other. This is going on. What? People also do not ask, that 'How you become God?' That's also so foolish. They accept any rascal as God. That Rajneesh, what he is? He advertises 'Bhagavan,' and there are many rascals, they accept him. What he has done? (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Room Conversation -- Vrndavana, November 14, 1976)

Ramakrishna:

"Ramakrishna, how he become paramahamsa if he does not know the sastra? That is the difficulty. Everyone becoming self-made guru, self-made avatara, self-made saint. That is the difficulty. Without any reference to the authoritative sastra." (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, December 31, 1976, Bombay)

"Ramakrishna, he was worshipping Goddess Kali. It is condemned in the Bhagavad-gita that 'Anyone who is worshipping a demigod, he is lost of all sense.' – Bg. 7.20 So this man, by losing his all senses, worshipping a demigod, he became God. People do not take reference from Bhagavad-gita, that 'A demigod worshipper has no sense, and he has become God?' What kind of God? Senseless God? And God's definition is aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya yasasah sriyah [Visnu Purana 6.5.47], Jnana- God means full in knowledge. And a man who has no sense, he has become God? From logic? Jnana-vairagyayas caiva. God means He has got full knowledge. And this man is senseless, and he has become God. Logic, how you can defy? And they're accepting: 'Ramakrishna is God.' How you defend it? "(A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Room Conversation Varnasrama System Must Be Introduced -- February 14, 1977, Mayapur)

Ramana Maharshi:

"I am speaking of Ramana Maharshi. He never preached about Krsna's superexcellent position, never preached. This is going on. Everyone is taking advantage of Bhagavad-gita and he's preaching in his own way, foolish way. 'Own way' means foolish way…This is cheating." (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Discussion with Indian Guests in Hyderabad, April 12, 1975)

"Once the famous impersonalist and monist sannyasi Ramana Maharshi of Madras was asked by a foreign disciple, 'What is the difference between God and man?' His cryptic reply was 'God plus desire equals man, and man minus desire equals God.' We say that man can never be free of desire. In his eternal conditioned existence the jiva is full of the desire to enjoy matter, while in his eternal liberated state he is full of the desire to render devotional service to the Lord. Thus the jiva can never become God. It is sheer insanity to equate man with God, or vice versa. The Mayavadi's unnatural desire to deny the inherent characteristics of his conscious self is the very same desire that keeps him from attaining liberation. Hence the Mayavadi's false and arrogant claim of liberation is merely a demonstration of their perverted intelligence… Ramana Maharshi has more or less tried to completely choke the life out of desire. This forcible elimination of desire is spiritual suicide." (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Renunciation Thru Wisdom 3.4: Constitutionally, the Jiva is an Eternal Servant of Krsna)

Vivekananda

"Vivekananda has preached, Yata mata tata patha, 'Whatever you think is right, that is right.'"

"People have been searching for some kind of spiritual realization. And to answer that kind of need there have been many men, so-called holy men or swamis, who have come from mainly India. This began with Vivekananda. It is coming through these last hundred years, more and more men trying to answer the need of American people especially, for some kind of spiritual growth, spiritual realization. These men, unfortunately, are cheating the public. They are presenting the teachings that everything—all people, all objects, everything—is God, and that to enjoy, enjoy in this world, this is the world to enjoy. To increase your consciousness so that you can enjoy more, that we are all God, that all things are God. This is nonsense. No revealed scriptures ever stated this. All scriptures are in agreement with one single thing: there's a supreme lovable person, the Lord, and it is the business of all entities to develop a love for Him. That is our connection with God. We are part and parcel of the Lord. We are connected to Him but we are not Him. (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Lecture to College Students -- Seattle, October 20, 1968)


Inspiration for This Article

One of the other contemporary Mayavadis that is on the above mentioned list goes by the name Adyashanti. He was just a 15 year old kid tinkering in a bike shop when His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami entered into his aprakata-lila. So there was no opportunity for Bhaktivedanta Swami to comment on his particular flavor of voidist teachings. However based on the silly things he says, I did recently lampoon him in my presentation, "Wisdom of the Wise".

What motivated me to write this article was an email I received from one of Adyashantis' zealots. He commented that Adyashanti is: "…more respected than anyone in your Hindu cult."

It was evident right from his first email that I was dealing with a very poorly informed individual. Although I did attempt to communicate with him, it was clear he preferred to hide behind the charade of the Neo-Advaita teachings than engage in any type of serious philosophical discussion about the Gaudia Vaishnava tradition. In fact, it became quickly apparent he was completely incapable of any form of non-emotional objective reasoning.

His familiarity with devotee lingo suggests that he had at least read some of the BBT books but it was apparent that he was either unable to understand them or too proud to accept them. Instead of surrendering to a bonafide lineage that extends back to Lord Brahma and Narada Muni, where our "Hindu Cult" originated, he chose to take shelter of the self-deluded so called Zen-Master who prides himself in being called Adyashanti.


Whoose yah Daddy?

Devotees who re-read the bombastic quote I used in my presentation to lampoon Adyashanti will immediately perceive the extent of his vanity and astonishing ignorance. This comment is laden with such an abundance of dizzy-headed, unsubstantiated, pompous opinions that it's actually quite alarming that so many people seem to think this guy has anything credible worth listening to! However the frightening fact is that many people are listening to this Zen carpet bagger and many others who are saying similar things. That's why we need to become more vocal about exposing how deceptive all these rogues are.

For thousands of years millions of individuals have revered what Krishna declares in the Bhagavad-gita about the nature of karma:

    bhuta-bhavodbhava-karo visargah karma-samjnitah

    "Action pertaining to the development of the material bodies of the living entities is called karma, or fruitive activities. " (Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Chapter 8 Attaining the Supreme, Text 3)

Then in 1962 a kid called Steven Gray was born in Cupertino, California and studied Zen from the Bhikkhuni (Female Buddhist monk), Arvis Joen Justi and the roshi Hakuyū Taizan Maezumi who mentored them both. Arvis is not so well known but while Steven was studying under the Zen monk Hakuyū Taizan Maezumi his teacher was publically disgraced for such a sever alcoholic addiction that he had to attend the Betty Ford clinic for recovery! Maezumi was further defamed for having sexual relationships with some of his female followers at the Zen Center of Los Angeles despite being married to his wife Martha Ekyo Maezumi!

So how much can we expect from a disciple of a drunken womanizer? Foolish comments like:

    "There is no Karma" (Adyashanti)

Adyashanti is such a text-book caricature of the typical New Age nonsense, self-ordained, unqualified, babbling, charlatan priest it's hard to decide where to begin exposing how fraudulent he actually is.

End Chapter 1: 'Exposing Adyashanti's Ruse - Epidemic of Spiritual Ignorance


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