A Clear-Headed Look at the Perils of Guru Worship

It's not easy to achieve objectivity when one has grown up in a tradition. One book that achieves a surprisingly objective stance is "Lives in the Shadow with J. Krishnamurti," by Radha Rajagopal Sloss. Many people are familiar with Jiddu Krishnamurti (1895-1986) as a spiritual teacher. He was recognized in the Theosophical tradition, repudiated his role as world teacher, and went on to become a well-known spiritual teacher in his own right. I am impressed with Ms. Sloss's ability to critically examine his tradition without discarding its meaningful contributions. Although she never professed Krishnamurti's teachings herself, her father was his chief editor and manager, and she grew up literally in his shadow, in a close family relationship with the man she called "Krinsh" as a young girl. The book deals largely with the double-life led by Krishnamurti as he sought family and normalcy in a sexual relationship with her mother, largely overlooked by her father. While maintaining a facade of celibacy expected by his Theosophically and Hindu-influenced followers, he sought intimacy with the wife of his close friend. The strains and deceptions caused by this arrangement are laid out well in the book, which does not however neglect Krishnamurti's genuine contributions to and influence in among the many people who sought some kind of coherence after the difficulties besetting the society's many factions after the decline of Besant and Leadbeater's leadership. I bought this book at the Theosophical History Conference in London. I think it shows strength and health when a tradition can look critically at its own history and assess the future based on the past.

Bozeman Library Book Talk and Reform of Church Universal and Triumphant

With Kathleen Stanley at the Barnes and Noble bookstore in Bozeman, Montana. December 2008. Kathleen supported my book and helped to organize the talk I gave about it at the library. She was an inspiration!

A lot has happened since I gave a talk at the Bozeman Public Library in 2008 regarding my book Prophet's Daughter--my mother has died, I decided to enter a PhD program in religion, and my friend Kathleen Stanley, who was supportive of the talk, has also died. But as I re-watched it recently, I decided it was important enough to post for several reasons.

Much of what I say has to do with boundaries and borders, inclusion, exclusion, how groups decide who's in and out, and how they treat outsiders or those who have been expelled. A lot of what I said is specific to Church Universal and Triumphant (CUT) and how I think it needed to reform in order to move into the future. I realize that a number of people who look for my work may be interested in my thoughts on the church.

I also share my view of dictations and the messengership, and set forth a list of four ways in which I think CUT should change. These are: 1) Formally abandon the practice of identifying people as fallen angels (whether or not this is a formal church practice, it has been done by members). 2) Return the Church Bylaws to their 1995 state to permit greater membership participation (one of my mother's last wishes). 3) Reinstate due process so that people can't be dismissed for minor infractions such as disagreeing with leadership. 4) Permitting members to belong to more than one church, including more than one ascended master group. I sent the church leadership a letter with several of these points but did not receive an answer. I also stated why I thought leaders of CUT should be custodians and facilitators, rather than lawgivers.

I know that a lot has changed in six years, and that the church has made some efforts. But I do not think the reforms I mention have been made. Many people are still excluded, and the church continues to be run by a small group along authoritarian lines. (Please also note that I make comments about some of the other groups that developed out of CUT, and I do not know at this time whether they are still accurate, as I don't keep up with those groups.) During the talk, I also discuss what an ideal church or spiritual organization might look like today, and how it may evolve.

Kathleen Stanley was a former member of the church's staff who tried to bridge the divide between those on the inside and those on the outside. You can't see her in the video but you can see her hat. Unfortunately, her long battle with cancer ended a little more than a year after my mother's passing. I appreciated the way Kathleen tried to encourage CUT members to listen to what I had to say, although many declined her repeated invitations to my talk. I hope that in the interim, some have become at least curious enough to know what I had to say. So I am publishing this video in memory of my mother, of Kathleen Stanley, and with the hope that it will interest those who support the reform of any church or faith.

Channeling and Creativity

Last October I gave a lecture called Channeling and Creativity at the Houston IONs meeting. Turnout was great and we had a really interesting discussion afterwards about the pros and cons, risks and benefits, and whether everyone can or should channel. There was no video but an audio version of the talk is available here.

Here is a PDF of the slides so that you can follow along pretty closely because I say "next slide" whenever I switch slides: Channeling and Creativity Slides PDF

Thanks to Houston IONs for hosting the event, and to Merrie Michaels for her kind introduction.