Thursday, May 13, 2010

Happy Free-Day (and new blog)

BY KLIM

There was a time that on this date, May 13th, we'd congratulate each other with a "happy birthday", and of course, move around with anticipation of the big date, event, overflowing ecstasy to celebrate the birthday of the one we considered our "guru", our spiritual master, our best friend, the one who knew our soul and loved us unconditionally, even beyond death.

Plenty of times I heard RS state the entire world would celebrate his 80th birthday. The UN would one day be singing bhajans in his honour and sing him happy birthday. In fact, coincidentally, when he turns 50, the AoL turns 25 - silver and gold jubilee - he made it a point to highlight this fact, as if it was some Divine planning and we, somehow, brain-dead, gasped in surprise and fascination.

Back then, brain-washed, brain-dead, enchanted and fooled by this "package of promises and apparent perfection", we did not question the self-centeredness and absolute narcissism of the matter. Today, when I look back, I puke in disgust at the thought of it all. How did I not figure out earlier this was about a highly self-centered man who is too enamored by his own image and whose libido depends on abusing and extracting at the expense of innocent souls? The ones manipulable because of their idealistic nature and love for serving humankind, and the ones with some degree of psychological instability, vulnerability and need? It is all about him and he rejoices in it. I guess when he talks about "stop thinking about me me me", he actually means, "only think of him him him" - from "me" to "Him" (Ravishankar "HIM") lies the key of AoL joy. The more devotion people pour on him, the more power he seems to get. He even seems bigger! And even bigger in India where crowds are larger. "Vampirism" is a term that comes to mind.

Today is a day I ponder on my own mistakes as I still struggle with the ghosts of my past and the sporadic traumatic flashbacks that hit here and there. As much as I'd love to erase those many years of cult abuse in a just a magic touch, since there is no magic that can undo that, I choose to live it with responsibility, the courage to face each challenge step by step, and the loneliness this entails. Little acts like learning to trust in people again, remembering not everyone I meet will be such psychotic "asses", learning to discern again between good and bad and trust my own intuition, trusting I won't make the same mistakes again, deleting all the psychological abuses RS himself and company churned in my mind, may be insignificant to the average person, but a leap of faith of huge distances for someone like me. I guess, above all, understanding that if one failed once, if one was fooled once, one will not fail and be fooled again. In fact, I am of the opinion that it is those who manage to make the painful exit of cult abuse that are strong. Succumbing to it is the weakness he and the system need in order to succeed.

May 13th is a date I unfortunately probably will never forget because of what it represents in my life - the deception, the abuse, the lies, the manipulation, the psychosis, the sociopathy, my years of innocence, idealism, fanaticism, brain-washing, irrationality ... mere stupidity. Thus, I also have chosen to make this my day of freedom.

I recently heard someone say, "Without freedom of expression there is no evolution."

May I, you, we never forget the beauty and value of freedom of the soul, freedom of expression, freedom of the mind, freedom of living, and to, first and foremost, value and trust ourselves. If God and one are ONE then growth, evolution, spirituality is within and does not, should not ever depend on anyone else, and even less, giving our power away. Cherish and love yourself. We were once deceived not because we were stupid or had "bad karma". We were innocent and idealist souls. Let's humbly learn from our mistakes and cultivate that mind and heart that once inspired us to find a spiritual path and selflessly serve others. Learning from my mistakes and having the courage of admitting them is a wealth that I can proudly call mine. Let's pave our path with awareness, self-love, trust, and knowledge founded in our hearts, with precious care, critical thinking and responsible freedom.

Happy Free-Day to you all! And a true "Victory to the Guru that dwells inside you", that guru which is you and only you.

And as a perfect birthday present, check out the new blog: www. aolfree.wordpress.com and, though numbers don't matter, in a sarcastic note, please note that this is the only related to AoL thing that is truly what it is and not manipulated information by anyone: "Confessions of a Guruholic" has reached more than 100,000 hits in less than 6 months. "Celebrate in silence"? ;)

54 comments:

WhistleBlower said...

Dear Klim,
Yes, a very Happy Free-day to you & all ex-teachers.Thanks for this beautiful sharing & wonderful re a new blog.
I celebrate every day the fact that I am also free of this sick, narcissist, megalomaniac & psychopath "guru", who preys on the innocence of the spiritual seekers & their inner desire for service.
What a conman, charging others to go & celebrate his birthday in Europe & fill up his coffers. What true spiritual teacher would give so much importance to his birthday?
The word conman will never come close to describe him. I have more respect for a common criminal or conman, at least they don't pretend they are spiritual gurus & lecture others about Human values!
What would RS know about human values? The only thing he knows as a psychopath is how to use other people's deep-seated human values to fill up his coffers & deceive the general public out there.
Klim, I would like to, once again publicly, thank you for the enormous service you have done to bring so much healing & understanding to so many of us.
You brought us a platform to voice our truth, to tell people about the culture of abuse within AOL & originating from Ravi Shankar himself. When I say culture of abuse, I mean all kinds of abuse & wrong-doings, legally, morally , ethically, spiritually, mentally, emotionally, financially,......the list goes on.


Klim you took the first step & I think you know by now ,that even though your blog may have started as an attempt for self-healing, but in the process, it has healed thousands & will continue to do the same for thousands more, if not millions. Your blog, was an answer to prayers of many who were hurt & suffering in isolation from culture of abuse of RS/AOL, with no one to turn to. Your blog gave a voice to them. Our voices will be strong together.
Divine worked through you & gave you the idea, energy, strength & time to start this blog. And many more will come out & will talk about the reality of RS /AOL, not the facade he & his lackeys try to portray.

My friend, this work is Divine’s work. You listened to the Divine within your heart, your soul, your conscience & this blog came to life. It will continue , as it is meant to. Time is up for RS & his lackeys & they know it & their pathetic counter blogs is not going to stop the torrent of truth getting out, but only to speed it up!

Klim, you have done an awesome job. I salute you for that. This work is not going to die. More people who come out & speak up, the faster RS goes down as another fake guru & his empire of deceit will crash on his own head. Hope he will enjoy his next b'day with Nithyanand in jail! We all owe it to ourselves & to others to come forward & tell the truth about RS/AOL, so no more innocent person falls into this trap or gets hurt by it.

Anonymous said...

Just to clarify, did you mean 100,000 hits daily?

Chris Williams said...

~~~~scratch~~~~scratch~~~~scratch~~~go KLIM, go KLIM, it's your birthday, it's your birthday, go KLIM, go KLIM...~~~scratch~~~scratch~~~stoooop. That was an attempt to create a DJ mix if you were wondering :P
A hundred thousand hits...boy, am I happy for you! Hope it'll be 10 times as much soon. Let people know the truth! Can't wait for you to publish RS's letters of threats n other crap. We love you KLIM! [big hug] Chris

Anonymous said...

Her is some news on Sahaj teacher Rhea Pillai:
She fleeced her former husband even when she was with her current beau Leander. She shopped for her love child with tennis ace Leander Paes using credit card of her former husband actor Sanjay Dutt. Read the complete story at
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080323/jsp/7days/story_9047075.jsp


posted by Jack Roberts

Sumana said...

This blog is an excellent service for the sake of truth and real spirituality which is the search for truth. I have seen that in my college once this blog became popular aol folks toned down their rubbish claims. it is having an effect on them. even ravi ravi has changed his speech to some extent. little less on megalomania in his public speeches now. but old habits die hard. I hope ravi ravi becomes enlightened through this blog. clearly he got struck in his spiritual journey with all those blind devotees and consinously treated like a king. has lost touch with reality. thats whay happens to most cult gurus and ravi ravi is no exception and is indeed a clear case study.

JOSH said...

Hi KLIM,

Happy free-day to you and all ex-teachers and ex-followers. Your blog is creating wonders.

Some of my colleagues [AOL activity members] planned AOL Workshop on behalf of guruji's birthday in my area. We got notice for that. Eventually, I forwarded this blog for reference to concerned department to validate the necessity of the workshop. And guess what - the workshop is canceled due to 'uncertain reasons'.

Change is here!!

Anonymous said...

I have gone through the blog. However I would definitely like to know in simple terms as to why you left AOL i.e. the exact reasons. In fact if you could put this clearly it would be useful to the readers. Thanks

Anonymous said...

Yesterday I saw live Sri Sris birthday online. And I realise kult and falsch there, where I was many times as devotee in last 9 years...Again nothing new, agitation for Arosa(expencive kourse in Alps), agitation for programm Yes we can, elementary indian songs, and less "wisdom"...

SDC said...

Dear Klim

Someone pointed me to your blog, and I read through and understand your sentiments.

What you write about here is your perception of AOL being a cult with a psychotic cult leader, and brainwashed followers.

If you dare to look beyond this veil, you will find deep truths in the knowledge explained through the discourses on Ashtavakra Gita, Patanjali Yoga Sutras, and Shiva Sutras. Look at the health benefits for millions of people who regularly practice the yoga and kriya techniques taught. It is an undeniable fact that there are measurable and definite benefits to health, state of mind and quality of life.

Don't judge the whole organization by the actions of a few fringe elements. In an organization of this size there are bound to be all sorts of people.

I am not here to try to convince you about anything. I am just sharing my side of the story. I'm not even a teacher, but an active volunteer who helps organize the basic and advanced courses. I do it not because I am brainwashed by Guruji or due to peer pressure, but because I have seen the benefits of this practice of yoga and kriya for the past 10 years.

Best regards
SDC

Svetana said...

Dear Klim,

What a great idea to celebrate Free-Day!
According to www.dictionary.com one of the definitions of the slavery is: “The condition of being subject or addicted to a specified influence.” AOL is built on this addiction; hence, people involved into it are slaves. They may not know about it, like, for example, SDC, who said “I do it not because I am brainwashed by Guruji “. But deep inside there is always this doubt, this desire of the Soul to be free. Spiritual slavery… what can be worse?

Congratulations to all AOL ex-victims, who managed to find their way out the slavery. Let's look at AOL and its leader, as obstacles on our spiritual path, or rather, as immunization that helped us grow and made our Spirit stronger. May be, that’s what we, people, have to go through not to fall into the trap of fake “ushers to God” in the future.

Below are some quotes of famous people about Freedom. Enjoy!

Ramakrishna
Bondage is of the mind; freedom too is of the mind. If you say 'I am a free soul. I am a son of God who can bind me' free you shall be.

Albert Einstein
Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom.

Antoine de Saint-Exupery
I know but one freedom and that is the freedom of the mind

Abraham Lincoln
Freedom is the last, best hope of earth.

Epictetus
Freedom is the right to live as we wish.

Kahlil Gibran
Life without liberty is like a body without spirit

Patricia Sampson
Self-reliance is the only road to true freedom, and being one's own person is its ultimate reward.

Benjamin Franklin
They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.

Jean-Paul Sartre
Once freedom lights its beacon in a man's heart, the gods are powerless against him.

AoL-Free said...

Dear SDC, many of us were involved for more than 10 years with the organization and many of us taught the "wonderful" techniques and knowledge you mention. Believe me, we have looked beyond it all and it is due to our experiences and observations that we have concluded and confirm our belief it is all a hoax that not only is deceiving people financially but also spiritually, with practices that affect people physically and mentally in the long-term. Many of us have suffered the consequences. We urge people like you to look beyond.

Flirting Nun said...

Rhea Pillai had flings with Vijay Mallaya, some of
the senior teachers have personally witnessed them
checking into hotels and spending nights together.These are the kind of people who impart precious knowledge like
the Sahaj to the herds who are taken in by the glamour if the teacher - morality and good values doesn't matter anymore.

Peaceful Warrior said...

We should celebrate May 13 as "Free Free Day" ;)

WhistleBlower said...

@ Svetana
many thanks for those great quotes re freedom.
I particularly liked:


"Once freedom lights its beacon in a man's heart, the gods are powerless against him."Jean-Paul Sartre

I am sure Jean-Paul Sartre
wouldn't mind if I borrow his phrase and say:

Once freedom lights its beacon in a man's heart, the guru & his lackeys & his bloggers (artoflivingfreefree & artoflivingvalues) are powerless against him!

WhistleBlower said...

@ SDC said...
"I read through and understand your sentiments. "
then why do you still deceiving innocent people & recruiting them for RS/AOL through those courses?

"If you dare to look beyond this veil,"
Jesus!! you are daring us to look beyond this veil? What do you think we have been doing last 20 years? We did look behind the veil & that is what we are now sharing with others. There are plenty good yoga courses, breathing courses, educational courses out there that teach people with full integrity & don't give the credit for any healing the people experience through their own practices to a megalomaniac Psychopath or forcefeed the picture of the "guru" to the subconscious of students at every turn!

And what pathetic excuse to justify deceiving people & enrolling them to the service of a fake guru & a fraud organisation due to some fancy knowledge.

My friend open your eyes & see the knowledge is everywhere around us. There is no need for people to get trapped to the web of a conman, with the lure of knowledge & some breathing techniques.

This happened to us & we are warning people to get the knowledge from internet, books, honest yoga teachers, etc. Nothing RS teaches is his own anyway.


And I love it when RS' lackey try to blame all the problems of the
organisation on few fringe elements!(You sound like Jim from artoflivingvalues blog!)
"
Don't judge the whole organization by the actions of a few fringe elements. In an organization of this size there are bound to be all sorts of people. "

Could you please enlighten us, who you are referring to as fringe elements? And which actions of these finge elements you are referring to? I much rather to know about these that your empty, PR lectures. Remember you are talking to ex-AOL teachers here, not the new recruits from street!

Anonymous said...

@whistleblower

So, let me understand this. Even after 20 years, you are still unable to go beyond the personal aura and the organization, to understand what he is really talking about? After reading all these, You got too much caught up, got suffocated and got out. And now starting a blog to educate others :)

I'm not a teacher, hasn't done any of those courses you did.. But for me, the take away is the valuable knowledge of the self I gained, and the awareness I'm experiencing from that. That doesn't need another proof.

And Klim, you still think 'enlightenment' is a fluke? :)

Peaceful Warrior said...

@Anon May 15, 11:36 PM

Point is not that the knowledge is defective. Point is that RS misuses his position as guru in an abusive and exploitative manner.

The knowledge is valid, but AOL does not walk the talk - especially when it comes to integrity.

If you understand dharma then you know that speaking out is the right thing to do. It takes guts, and real spirituality to become a whistleblowe and speak the truth when you know it is going to cost you - but you do it anyway, because it is the right thing to do.

So stop blaming the people behind this blog. And start talking in facts rather than opinions.

manju said...

yesterday a friend of mine called me and told me that our local AOL teacher abused her on the phone. Teacher called my friend as being a 'spiritual zero' coz she is not into seva at all.

My friend simply put the phone down, although I would have told the teacher to mind her own business and look after her own spiritual index.

I cannot understand why so many AOl teachers are abusive, misuse their so-called power (who the hell know these people- apart from the aol clan?). They turn into money-mongering maniacs only thinking numbers. All that they learnt in their own organization is lost on them! I actually feel sorry for them.

Anyway, I had politely declined the local teacher's invite to attend Guruji's birthday function since I am staying away from ALL AOL activities (else I will be sending mixed messages to these people).

My friend, who was going to attend the long kriya session on Guruji's birthday function, finally DID NOT GO since she was hopping mad at this wonderful (sic) lady teacher...

suresh said...

@whistleblower.

The knowledge is all around us ? well for something as beautiful as the knowledge and experience that this body mind called me is just a bubble in the consciousness..the true glimpse of freedom that i am not this body mind..a realization that even cant be spoken but so liberating ....first came during the ashtavakra session for me. This is so freeing that even if it came from a charlatan, it would be just a happening and it would be a waste of the freedom to focus all your energies to mudsling . I would happen to eternally feel grateful to that being who gave me that freedom. I think the adulation for Sri sri comes from that space and not from an idea that he is a "perfect human being".

can you possibly deny that those knowledge sessions didnt help you ?

i dont have access to internals of aol. But it has been personally so transformative for me . I think every organization/every human being has flaws and you guys are magnifying stuff here.
i could be wrong but i dont care. Again thanks to the knowledge above.

Anonymous said...

Yesterday I met a very humble Kriya Yoga guru. He doesn't charge anything and was very down to earth.
I mentioned to him that I have been doing Sudarshan Kriya for many years now.

He said Sudarshan Kriya is not Kriya Yoga.

(As you may be knowing SK is an invention of RS 25yrs ago. It is not part of the ancient yoga system, nor is it 1 of the traditional Kriya yogas. It is not a time tested technique like the ancient pranayamas and yoga. So no one really knows the effects of SK and while AoL is busy doing research on the benefits, no one is doing research on the cases coming up with the negative side effects. There are many including the people I have taught, and when I ask a senior teacher or even Guruji, they are brushed aside. There can never be any harmful effects of SK, something is wrong with that person.)

He said so many AoL teachers are coming to him now and other people who have been practicing for many years, who have had negative side effects. He said SK can de-carbonate you (lack of Co2).

Then he said something like "it's (AoL) a business..." and stopped short. I could make out he did not want to go further.

I learnt the basic pranayamas and meditation yesterday from him and will be initiated to the Kriya yoga after practicing for a few months. Kriya yoga is an ancient yoga - also mentioned in Patajali, so I am glad at least now I have learnt something authentic, ancient and time tested.

JIvani said...

Happy FREE day. All the best to you, KLIM and Co.
With your writing skills and soft yet firm (not a doormat) style, you should write a book! It's important not to judge oneself for being fooled once because that's where the knowledge lies. You are now a powerhouse of healing and information for others.

I liked Skywalker's new post "It's Okay For Victims to Feel Victimized"
http://aolfree.wordpress.com/
She says:
"That is like telling a rape victim that “you probably asked for it yourself.”
Women have come a long way in educating people about abuse so many people realize it's no longer okay to hold this ignorant attitude. But, I don't think most people understand cult abuse well. They ask "why do you call it spiritual rape?". It's just not something one can explain well to someone who hasn't experienced it. But, you've done a great job relaying your experiences.

May you be free.
May all beings be free.

WhistleBlower said...

@Suresh & Anon 11:36 PM
It doesn't fail to amuse me how boring RS's lackeys are & what defective logics they use.
As if a piece of knowledge (in case of SriSri all stolen from other organisations) or any spiritual experience or insight is a good excuse for anyone to become enslaved to a psychopath guru!
Read my recent posts in http://aolfree.wordpress.com/ ,just in case there is even a slight chance of anyone as brainwashed as you can free himself from all that trite dogma, regurgitated & propagated a million times by RS & his lackeys.
Also I wonder why all the RS PR agents frequent this blog all the time, rather than spending their time furthering their studies in that precious knowledge they talk about all the time. And they should share all their experiences & gratitude to RS in http://artoflivingvalues.blogspot.com/ or http://artoflivingfreefree.blogspot.com/ counter-blogs. Both blogs look as good as dead to me & need all the support they can get! AOL US president even sent an email to US teachers telling them about artoflivingvalues blog & begging them to support it, to contribute to it & share it. Even after that presidential order the blog has stalled at 6 posts & the same board members & their lackeys had to write all the posts & comments. Don’t tell me all AOL teachers too busy to read Klim & Skywalkers blogs & ignoring RS’ counter blogs!!
And don’t you find amusing all the AOL PR agents who visit this site insist that they are not AOL teachers or insiders, but then they claim that they know more than us (the ex-AOL teachers) & even go on to preach us (So passionately too!!) about how wonderful AOL & RS’ knowledge are!!! Such pathetic liars !

Anonymous said...

Meaning of "JAIGURUDEV" aka JGD

Is this to announce Iam part of the club (lowerlevel inner circle) ?

Or is there another buzzword in the true inner circle like "Abracadbra" aka ABCD ?My question is because I don't see the senior teachers using this freely just the passionate bottom volunteers.

I assume "Jai" means victory, is this victory to Gurudev (RS)?
How is this different from "Hail Hitler" ?

One of the AOL PR lackeys made a comment that it was victory of the little mind over the big mind.They just don't translate that way in any language. Amazing spin

What is the scoop on this?

Nagesh said...

I was present live when Ashtavakra and Shiva Sutra was discoursed by Ravishankar in the 90s. I could easily find that he was influenced by Osho. During the time of the Shiva Sutra discourses which Ravishankar used to give in Vyakti Vikas Kendra center in Jaynagar 4th T block bangalore in 1993, I even chanced to see books of Osho and Venkateshanada in Ravishankar's room while I was cleaning it. We could predict every word he would say in this great new(?) discourse series. However I agree knowledge and insights can be uplifiting. But Ravishankar is a marketing genius who created an ashtavakra course out of these discourses by charging a huge amount. The ashtavakra CDs are now available in the shops but heavily priced at 3000 rupees. How ridiculous if his real aim is to spread knowledge he could have put these on youtube or he could have priced them like how Ramdev or Osho folks price their CDs at say 50 or 100 rupees per CD almost at cost price. If there is any thing really worth in the knowledge he talks about it will stand or fall by itself. But unfortunately Ravishankar knows it better, he knows how to create hype and mystery so that he can sell well. I personally feel that there are far more insightful masters like Nisargadatta and Eckhart tolle who can give an experience of non dual conciousness without all the guru, grace and cult hype.

Vishal said...

Ravi Ravi's art of living values values blog has not taken off primarily because they do not have any stuff to tell or counter this blog. All they have is a few devotees with devotion ($$) to Ravi Ravi's placebo grace cooking up their usual guru miracle stories. The members in the values values site are AOL teachers who make a living out of this scam scam. They want to save their business & livelihood from the threat this blog poses to them. Sudarshan kriya and their cult indoctrination have made them unthinking robots and they do not have anything logical or creative to write. Forget about vitarka and tarka and kutarka these people do not have plan logic or even common sense. Their harping on the guru's grace and writing silly made up guru stories will not help counter anything in this blog. Maybe they will now start hiring some professional writers.

Anonymous said...

happy free day . i am following your blog for last five months and i am sure this blog will definitely be able to clear the doubt from the minds of confused aolites. being ex teacher myself i believe that course content is good enough to calm a distressed mind.
Now that more than 25 yrs of patenting the sudershan kriya is over i urge you all to create your own sudershan kriya. i am sure it will not be violating patent laws of your country

Anonymous said...

Here is my experience with the organization


AOL is nothing but guru, grace and cult hype.

Follow the technique, teachings to spiritual growth and enlightenment
and not blind faith in a guru to bail one out.

Stop laughing to silly jokes because people around you are laughing or that you want to be hollow and literally empty.Now reevaluate when given the same message over and again and ask to donate over and again in innovative ways. AOL knowledge today is like playing the same old scrached tape.
SK wears out or practically has very little effect overtime.For the new comer it is a new experience before value fades out.
After that faith is what will make one do SK.By then intellect stops working and the mind is on spreading the knowledge (hounding down relatives,friends,coworkers), by then the karma, grace and guru stories and the manipulation of the local teachers will keep the idiot going for many years.


What to watch out for ?

There is usuually one main local teacher who maintains all the high level contacts with the center, board and keeps tab of everyone. Stay away from this guy and stop sharing anything personal. And also watch out for new teachers who would getting direction from this guy to manipulate every volunteer to his agenda.
Never expect to make any true friends from AOL in outside world.

It is either a Jaigurudev party or it is not. One just pays a ultra premium for the jaigurudev party.

ND said...

Nagesh,
I was making the same point raised by You. He has copied others in Knowledge, mostly Osho. I have heard few examples given by RS in Osho books.
Ashtavakra Geeta discourses given by Osho at the time when he was at his best. These are available for free download on Osho site.
Today if want knowledge, listen Osho, wants Yoga & Ayurveda go to Ramdev. But, want to throw your money and time, welcome to Art of Living.

Anonymous said...

@Nagesh
regarding Ashtavakra CDs/DVDs -
forget 3000 Rupees, earlier they were only available to teachers (up to 2005) then they came for sale @"Divine Shops" for 7000 Rupees and in European Divine Shops for 700 Euros (2 Volumes - each 350 Euros) and now they are priced at 500 Euros (2 Volumes - 250 Euros each!!!!) and respective prices in US - $$$...
so almost 10 times more outside india...

Chtehan said...

@Nagesh,
Interesting abt VVM at Jaynagar 4th Block. I used to frequent RSVK (Rishi Samskruthi Vidya Kendra) started by Rishi Prabhakar around the same time as SSRS, and 2 or so roads down. In fact, both were erstwhile devotees of MM Yogi. IMO the Siddha Samadhi Yoga was way more genuine. AOL shared several similarities with SSY, though was watered down (atleast in the U.S).
Just memories - thought of sharing.

Anonymous said...

Signup for MBA


From: Resha D

Dear One,

Jai Gurudev! You are requested to please introduce the launch of the 'Sri sri University's Sri Sri Institute of Management studies' at satsangs, knowledge sessions etc. Please read below for details and PFA the write up on the business school which can be circulated among devotees and put up on blogs.

The Sri Sri University- Sri Sri Institute of Management Studies

On this auspicious day of our beloved Gurudev’s birthday, the Sri Sri University takes pride in introducing the Full Time Post Graduate Program in Management to be offered under the aegis of Sri Sri Institute of Management Studies (the first session to start in June 2011).

One of the cornerstones of SSIMS will be the integration of Art of Living leadership and self-development programs that will create socially conscious, ethical, dynamic and resilient managers. By leveraging our strong industry network, the rigorous two year program will open doors to new opportunities and challenges for students.

Vision Statement: A global centre of learning that creates exceptional Business Leaders of Character.

Program design:

· 22 month program.

· First session starting- June 2011.

· 1st year for compulsory core courses to create a functional foundation

· 2nd year for elective courses and dual/single specializations

· Batch size of 120 students only

Message to be communicated:

· Gurudev’s vision- to revive India as a seat for learning, SSU will be a university along the lines of Nalanda, Taksh-shila

· SSU situated in Bhubaneswar, Orissa. SSIMS will be the first cell of the SSU to be launched

· World class campus spread over 185 acres, being designed by the best architects of the world

· Grand project for which Gurudev would like all His Devotees to come together and participate- could be as a prospective Student, Faculty, Recruiter, Donor or Employee staff (general management and administrative staff)

· Is this different from our Goa b - school? SSU-SSIMS is one of the schools at SSU, Bhubaneswar. Going forward, we may design a way to link the two programs (i.e SSIMS, Goa and SSU-SSIMS)

· What’s different about SSIMS? Besides the regular offerings of a Business school such as a well networked placement cell, a strong alumni base etc, the program will add value to each stakeholder of the school i.e. the Students, Faculty, Recruiters, Board Members & Donors, Employee staff and the Society

· To know more please connect with the SSU-SSIMS core team at ssu.bschool@ssrvm.org



Warm regards,

Arpita.

(On behalf of the SSU- SSIMS core team)




--
Resha Desai,
Co-ordinator
International Website Administration
The Art Of Living
21st Km Kanakpura Road
Bangalore-560082
Karnataka
India
Office:+918028432274
Cell:+919986030106
www.artofliving.org
www.srisri.org

Anonymous said...

Sri Sri should seriously improve the quality of his teachers. Any if his lackneys reading this comment please advise him that it is not the numbers that matter but the quality. The TTC applicant should have some strong educational background. We have illiterates who cannot read or write but who are dishing out higher knowledge. Anyone can be an AOL teacher, if you can afford to pay the ttc fee in U S $ you have fulfilled the requirements.

I attended the TTC in Bali last year and all the hundreds
who attended became teachers . There were applicants who had just competed their basic course and were accepted for the TTC. Amongst my course mates were hawkers, odd job workers, hairdressers etc. I am glad that I attended the TTC as it opened my eyes to what a scam AOL is, I have since then left the organisation after wasting five years of my life doing Seva for an organisation which is only interested in money and fame.

If Sri Sri continues churning out sub standard teachers he is just expediating the demise of his organisation.

JCD said...

I did my basic course in 2009, the kriya used to make me dizzy so I left. Now I see one of my ex-classmates from less than a year ago has become a part-1 teacher.

I've known this guy well for 9 years and I still meet him every few days. He's always been a very angry, frustrated and depressed person, and still is. We used to meet for beers every Friday evening and he'd talk about his unhappy marriage, mother in law "pest" and his two sons who've turned out to be spoit brats thanks to mom in law.

I was shocked when he called me a couple of weeks ago and asked me to help (volunteer) with the logistics for a part-1 course. His marriage was already on the rocks, and now he's spending even less time with the family and all weekends at AoL.

He now plans to take a 6-month hiatus from work and spend his time at the Bangalore ashram. This will surely push the family to separation.

It looks to me like many AoL teachers get in as an escape route from life. They can live in their fantasy world, with adoring students, power over others, and a fantasy life goal created by a schizophrenic guru. It sure is the case with my friend.

Anonymous said...

Talking about Ashtavakra Gita -
RS will be giving Hindi commentary on Ashtavakra Gita starting 19may to 19 june in banglore ahsram.
A very well marketted and advertized event that too month long..a fairly good money churning event...for the first time ever ashtavakra in hindi.Stay for one whole month in ashram / resorts around ashram wow and one can go for panchkarma treatments during the days...wow..how enlightening..blah blah
I wonder who are these people who can take a month long break from work / studies...n all this so often cos anyway AOL keeps coming up with event after event like risikesh then bali then germany/arosa then this one followed by summer break for yes+ followed by navaratris sometime in october...n most of the people who attend this are same...
talk about people who have nothing to do in life or are so rich that all they can do is travel for fake knowledge.
The starting packing for this ashtavakra was Rs 15000 , this would escalate to Rs 20000 after a certain date and eventually the mail was circulated all seats are booked but luckily they got one more accomodation some hotel or something for this package you pay Rs 300000.
Okie Great going..it sounded as if it was a jam packed event...people dying to attend.
And then suddely a day or wo back a new mail come-
Dear ones,
Much awaited Ashtavakra Gita discourse by Guruji (in Hindi) will happen from May 20th at Yagnashala, Art of Living international center during Satsangs from 7.30 PM onwards.
To make this event a grand success, Ashram team has come up with some Guidelines.
Request please circulate in your satsang groups, email groups & followup centre.
1. All Art of living teachers will be allowed inside the venue with Valid teacher's id card provided by VVKI.
2. For others, entry pass will be issued at ashram information center ( 200 numbers per day on first come first serve basis)
3. All participants are requested to be seated 15 minutes before Guruji’s arrival
4. No one will be allowed to enter & exit Yagyashala once the session starts
5. All Mobiles are to be switched off during the discourse, All types of Recording devices i.e digital / handy cameras & mobile phones are Strictly Prohibited inside Yagyashala
We solicit your help and complete support to make this event comfortable for all
Look forward to hosting you at ashram!
|| Jai Guru Dev ||
Team Ashram

So possibily
1.it had too many ppl still wanting to attend and so they decided 200 lucky ones wil get pass..but do they get the pass for free.
2. teachers go in with their id cards but wat about those teachers who paid n registered to attend..neway who cares its all bout donations.
3.again number crunching - no. of heads more more ppl more n more money. after all it wil be recorded and no. of heads wil be mentioned so as to advertize the popularity n mass following
OR there werent as many ppl as they expected so now its open for many more

Anonymous said...

@ JCD

AOL and family do not go together.
This has been seen time and again.
AOL is about getting headcount for events at the fastest rate.
I can only imagine the plight of the suffering wife and children for this AOL teacher friend of yours.
AOL will decimate the family fabric and accelerate the breakup unless the couple have met through AOL marriage bureau.

Vishal said...

The sage ashtavakra had eight physical abnormalities. The young ashtavakra was even stopped in into entering the court of King Janaka because of his awkward physique, but after his erudition and realization became clear he was let in. The essence of ashtavakra Gita is a deconstruction of all the obstacles which prevents self realization.
It takes a crook like Ravi Ravi to use a freely avaialable enlightening scripture and make truck loads of money. I wonder if Ravi Ravi has understood ashtavakra at all. Just repeating empty words for entertaining fools.
There is a story by Khalil Gibran on how jesus returns to a church after twently centuries and he is not let in by the priest. If the sage ashtavakra comes in to Ravishankar's ashram he would not even pass the first gate security check unless of course he coughs up the Rs Rs $$ to AOL's heavy coffers.

Anonymous said...

I am from India. I attended a DSN course of art of living. I have never been involved deeply into the art of living courses, but took the DSN course at a whim. I was shocked and appalled by it, and searched for anyone else online who had a similar experience and reached u. Let me leave personal experiences aside, I want an answer to a few questions, if u can guide me.
1) How can i get the financial statement of the organisation of last year. It has been given NGO status in India, and I am sure NGO's have to file financial statements. In the DSN course i was attending, the participants pledged around 40-50 lakh rupees, which is approx 100000 dollars, in a couple of hours. And the thing that shocked me was, they accept cash! There is not any NGO i know of, which accepts cash.
2) How can I get details of the charity programs that are going on in AOL? can u provide me with any email address which will give me a decent reply?
3) The DSN teacher was boasting a lot abt a one week cruise to alaska etc that was sponsored by devotees. Can i get details of any other such events that u know of?

You are doing a wonderful job. I still do not believe that Sri Sri is a conman, but there are large scale financial irregularities extending upto billions of rupees just in India. Someone told me a DSN course made around 1500 million rupees in an hour.

3) Please keep my email address confidential. The clout that these guys seem to have, i do not want to land up in trouble, esp in India, where every third person seems to be a devotee.

ND said...

So, Next Time when Devotees goes to Banglore Ashram, he/she will be given the 'Divine Opportunity' to buy (sorry, donate) 'Greatest Knowledge on Earth' given by 'Greatest Living Being (RS) on this Planet" -
ASHTAVAKRA GEETA (IN HINDI)
30 CDs Set - Cost Rs. 10000.00+ (In India) Rs. 50000.00+(In dollars value)
Precautions -
1. Don't Share the CDs. Because you know money from Divine Shop is used for our Rural Development project - we have adopted more than 50000 villages in India - you should know that (How dare you to ask the names and details of work undertaken?)
2. Don't even think to copy, you can be in deep trouble. (Physically, emotionally, financially etc. You should know that few people have tried to copy Sudarshan Kriya secretely during Basic Course, you should know how they are suffering. Hey, who is here, Is it KLIM & Co., why you always take doubt about Our Guruji is full of Compassion and love? He is full of Love but, he must punish the guilty, else everyone will copy our Kriya, then I have to quit this good job at Ashram and work as waiter in some hotel at Banglore, will you give me good tip? I don't think so, Atleast think of me, dear)
3.It should be listened by person who is doing daily Sadhana for preceding 45/60 days.(Dont sleep while listening.)
4. If you don't understand what is being said, just keep quite. Your Prana Energy is very Low. You should do Sudarshan Kriya daily. You should attend 10 more Advanced Course and 4 DSN, 2 Blessing Courses, 1 Gurupuja Course and All other future Courses we will launch in meantime. Its better if you get the Management Degree from our Newly Formed Institute. We want Divine Corporate World.
5. For Teachers - If someone is comparing this with OSHO Ashtavakra Geeta -, throw him out He is full of Negative Energy and Bad Karma. If you find some similarities between these two analysis, You should know that OSHO must have copied our Dear Guruji. (How dare you to think that Osho given this discourses in late 70s. Our Guruji is Avtar and he can be in any period in any form, you should know that)
Also after each Basic Course, advertise about this material, you should able to sell atleast 4 Sets in One Course. (Don't worry, if you do not get what Ashtavakra is saying, who cares, else All world would have been enlightened)

With Love
&%^
JGD

Anonymous said...

Klim, what is your opinion about Sri Sri Yoga. I was told that it is the most powerful and purest discipline of yoga as there is more focus on the knowledge than on asanas.

I have been a yoga practitioner for almost a decade, it took me four years to complete my teachers training in Hatha and ashtanga yoga. What perplexes me is how one can complete the yoga ttc in 10days,is given a manual and can start teaching. The requirement is only one basic course, the aol teacher in my area has been persuading me to go for this TTC but when I heard about the requirement I could not believe my ears. This local AOL teacher who btw is also a certified SSY teacher is so fat with a huge belly he can hardly sit on the floor. Isn't this mockery of authentic yoga?

I would really appreciate your views on this.

AoL-Free said...

Sri Sri Yoga is the imitation of another school of yoga. Apparently even the manual was copied verbatim. Anyone can become a teacher and in just 15 days of training! Most teachers in AoL should not even be teaching yoga but actually start to learn real yoga. I myself am embarrassed I even led yoga for so many years in the courses! But of course, AoL always declares everything about them is "the best", "the highest", etc.

AoL-Free said...

Anon@7h44PM
It is a scam. We have all been requesting for reports and even the ones we see do not make sense. All your observations are accurate.

JIvani said...

Anon 11:47 AM;
I was also told that it was a more powerful yoga than others because of the emphasis on higher practices rather than asanas. I've been doing yoga since I was a kid and didn't believe it. Seemed arrogant to me. I love asanas!


I was told by another person that other forms of yoga he was taught are no longer "good for him and not his style". Like this one is so superior or something? The impression he gave me was that any yoga other than AOL is seriously inferior. It made me feel uncomfortable. He seemed fanatical about this type of yoga and I don't like to teach in that way.

Uttara said...

Sri Sri Yoga was started quite late as a result of getting more market cap. It has the regular suryanamaskara followed by standing, sitting and lying postures. It is no different or purer than other popular yoga seqences. In my experience most of the SSY teachers have no clue about teaching postures and have hardly any experience in practicisng them. Like all AOL things these are hyped beyond realistic proportions. Sri Sri Yoga and pranayama is now available in DVDs. Ravishankar had to do this because he was losing out due to the influx of too many yoga cds and dvds. AOL could not afford to keep their practices secret and had to release these poorly shot CDs and DVDs.

Anonymous said...

@Anonymous
Regarding 40-50 lakhs collection (donation commitments) during your DSN...

in india there is a law called RTI
http://rti.gov.in/

here you could request regarding your question...
"but there are large scale financial irregularities extending upto billions of rupees just in India"...

I also request KLIM and CO and group together to file a suit to get information out through Indian Law system. RTI law is very effective and has been working fine since it's in action.

Anonymous said...

KLIM,
There is course for Children 8-14 age group. There is some different version of Sudarshan Kriya, not on tape but taught by Teacher directly. Its like two small breath in and two small breath out.
Is there Any Story attached to this Version of Sudarshan Kriya?

AoL-Free said...

SK for children: hmm hmm (2 inhalations), haah haah (2 exhalations), hmm hmm (2 inhalations), hooh hooh (2 exhalations) for 1 to 3 minutes, opened or closed eyes. Whatever it is, it is scarier to think of children getting involved at such young age in a sect where brain-washing, trance induction, manipulation, corrupted values, abuses, go on in the name of higher cause and higher knowledge. SK for teens: 10 minute SK. All tranced out and ready for easy brain-wash, plus, not to mention, hyperventilated at a young age. I am not that young and I am still suffering the consequences of over a decade of hyperventilation in the name of a little bit of relaxation, present moment and peace in the world, and meditation that only tranced me out. Scarier even is the new course they have created for parenting children. What can SS really contribute for a good parenting if he does not even care nor take care of his devotees, unless they bring money and numbers? (or until they do so, actually) Bad example, bad role model, bad idea. It is nice to raise children in spirituality and if you find a path where to raise the children, even better. But raising children in a sect and a path of lies, deceit and abuse, imagine the models they will grow up with, when corruption is seen as "greater cause", and where everything if it justifies the end? Raising children in a world of psychopaths but call it "unconditional love". Sinister.

doc said...

@klim:
The other thing that bothered me was a lot of crap that goes on in the name of medicine and by taking pills of ayurveda... It is seriously harming the devotees, since they believe that their ailments will be cured by kriya, and do not take proper medications. They even went to the extent of claiming that a photo of sri sri in a dentists clinic alleviated the pain completely of a patient... Not even qualified ayurvedic practitioners claim that. I am the same anon@744am. If u do have an email address, please forward it to me.
The DSN teacher made the claim that Sri Sri had told him that Nostradamus has foreseen that in 2016, India shall become a superpower, and the main person leading India will be a gentleman from South India wearing white robes! They r going to organise an event in 2011, which will supposedly invite 25 million people. The whole thrust is on making new teachers, and they are saying like george bush, "either u r with us, or against us!!"

AoL-Free said...

Hi Doc, yes, a lot of blablabla. He himself said to me Nostrodamus predicted that and he is that person who will be bringing about the spiritual revolution. Humble enough to be a so-called enlightened spiritual master! I wonder if Galileo Galilei was such a prick boasting about his revolutionary discoveries! He also told me once about a specific country, that it would be corruption free after 2009 because AoL would take over politics. I won't mention the country but it is known that corruption escalated three-fold there! He's also been saying for ever that India will be THE super power of the world and take over (and many people, even back in the 90s, started investing in India - property, rupees, etc.) ... come to think about it, maybe it was just a way to encourage donations and purchase of lands in India for him? Why not? Well, the world is taking wild turns, and India has surprised us with its fast progress, but before that happens, they need to beat China, and even Brazil. Everything about AoL is they are the best, they hold the best, that is part of their marketing schemes. Also, being an AoL teacher will be the most respectable profession in the future times (he said in the 90s), "people will fight to become AoL teachers". Well, yes, AoL teachers fight, but about everything except something good. He just has a little issue with his ego. Maybe it is so big he does not know where to fit it.

Anonymous said...

SDC, don't even try talking to these people. They are so utterly lost. They do not want to engage in any sort of reasoned discourse. They had no spiritual discernment when they were in AOL because they suppressed all their doubt and now they have flopped to the exact opposite side and deny any sort of benefit or value from their involvement in AOL. I just feel bad for people who stumble upon this blog and think this has anything to do with SSRS or the AOL. I assure you, it doesn't! These people, almost all of them refusing to accept responsibility for themselves, portraying themselves as victims of big mean AOL have, amazingly, learned nothing. Professional victims claiming to be trying to help others. Ridiculous. Be very suspicious of people who think in simplistic, black and white terms. Their ego ideal was not fulfilled in AOL and now they are trashing it instead of simply moving on to something else. They will do the exact same thing with any other spiritual teacher they get involved with. They will love him/her for a while and then when any sort of conflict occurs it will be repressed until it explodes and then they will trash the teacher just like they are doing here. Notice how they will respond to this post, it will reveal volumes!

Anonymous said...

Nagesh,
You're quite correct that Dollar Ravi has stolen from many sources, predominantly from Mahesh Yogi, Osho and from Rishi Prabhakar. You see, Rishi P himself learnt a few tricks from the TM guys while he was living in Canada and married to a Canadian woman. In the late 80s,they separated and Rishi P began cultivating a small meditation group around him. I stayed with him at my cousin's house in Houston sometime around 1988 and during that time he was all dressed up exactly like Sri Sri is now. He was espousing some incoherent Kriya philosophy, meditation etc. In the early 90s, Dollar Ravi became pals with Rishi at Rishi's Jayanagar, Bangalore and slowly began establishing his small outfit, entirely modeled after Rishi's ideas. They eventually split and Dollar RAvi took the Dollar route to Enlightenment, while Rishi stayed a bit low key and started SSY. I tell you that this Dollar Ravi is a leech, who can suck money out of anybody any which way he can. This "secret" Ashtavakra Gita business is just another scam that he's peddling.

Unknown said...

@Anon May 22, 2010 4:57 AM
"I also request KLIM and CO and group together to file a suit to get information out through Indian Law system. RTI law is very effective and has been working fine since it's in action."

RTI, as you mentioned has been very effective , but unfortunately it can only be used for obtaining information from Government bodies. In case if the body is an NGO, it should be directly or indirectly financed by the government.

Hence,I think it may not be possible to gather information about AOL activities, using RTI.

Anyways this is my opinion, but a good RTI activist can help interpret the law better.

Sanwani said...

Dear Klim

This may interest you

(In this state of shock coz of the unfortunate mishap, AOL is always ahead in providing trauma relief & respite from Depression)

Mangalore, May 23 (IANS)

The “young” cabin crew of Air India is so traumatised after Saturday’s plane crash, in which 158 people were killed, that volunteers from Art of Living have been sought to counsel them, Air India chairman and managing director Arvind Jadhav said Sunday.

“Our cabin crew is very young, they are in the age group of 19-25. And they have never seen a tragedy, a situation like this before. They are traumatised. That is why we have roped in doctors and counsellors of the Art of Living to counsel them,” Jadhav said. Art of Living is a voluntary socio-spiritual organisation, headed by Sri Sri Ravishankar.

“The counselling centres will not just be in Mangalore, but also in Delhi, Mumbai, Kochi and wherever we have our offices,” he added. The counselling will also be done for the rest of the staff.Jadhav said that a foreign agency’s assistance has been sought on emergency response and disaster management.

“The team will come here and also counsel the relatives of the deceased. We are counselling the families too,” he said.He announced that an aircraft has been kept on standby for the families and relatives of the victims in Mumbai.“We are keeping an aircraft on standby for the families of the victims who need to travel to Cochin, Kozhikode. As and when there is a demand, the aircraft will fly them,” he said.

" Words are too small to convey the truth, yet they can trigger the Flames of Wisdom, Shower comfort on the Intense Longing, raise Cheers of Joy and make you know..... I Treasure your Love for me. Unknown, Unheard, Unseen, in the silent chamber of Heart, I am in you as You and you are in me as Me"....... H. H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar !

Anonymous said...

No-one can doubt how clever with words and sentiments SriSri is. I wouldn't be surprised if he has done black magic spells in order to give himself more articulateness and charisma.

But lordy, what a scam artist he is! He is the King of liars and hypocrisy. He makes Enron executives look honest. Yes, Happy Free day every one. It is thanks to this blog that I realised how I'd been fooled by AOL and their conman of a master. My thanks to Klim, Whistleblower, Humble witness and the many others who have contributed so wonderfully to this blog.

This stuff about SSRS predicting (hoping) India would be the world's Superpower is interesting. I know he has said publicly that India should be nuclear. He has said some puerile nonsense about how once nations become strong they become peaceful. As we say in New Zealand, "Yeah, right". The USA is so peaceful it has invaded or attacked another country for just about every year since WW2!!! It is continually on the offensive!(Korea, forged coups in Iran, Chile, Guatemala, Honduras, invaded Vietnam, Panama, Iraq, attacked Libya, Afghanistan, etc.) It is so peaceful it spends 40% of its GDP or something on armaments. So I guess this is what this Godman of peace and love wants for India....totally weaponised, its own military-industrial complex, threatening other countries. Truly he is a megalomaniac.

India has a much more beautiful and peaceful side to it....the heritage of Gandhi, of ahimsa. I am not saying India should not have an army etc. but Superpower equals imperialism equals violence and exploitation. Why would India want to do that? India should aim to be a superpower of peace, of love, of integrity. Not to be a high tech military power, another imperialist state. ~New Zealand ex-AOLite "Victor".

Anonymous said...

@anon 6:26pm
Why would India want to do that?--who said you that???please don't bring India into this nonsense...