"One of the longest experiments in
history, the approximately 3,000-year-old Eastern
ideology of Oneness, was first developed in the
Upanishads. . . . The failure of its renunciate
morality to diminish self-centeredness is a powerful
statement that something is amiss. . . . It is our
contention that this morality has failed not because
there is something wrong with people, but because the
framework constructs ideals that are impossible to
achieve, thus setting people up for failure and
self-mistrust." "The ideal of enlightenment at first
blush seems completely innocent of human corruption
because it is defined as being totally selfless. Yet
it is this sacrosanct concept of perfection that
allows authoritarianism to manifest, and indeed
flourish." "Monotheism with one God on top is
obviously authoritarian. The authoritarianism embedded
within the Eastern ideology of Oneness is less
obvious. . . . Whereas monotheism makes the revealed
Word of God sacred, Eastern religions make presumed
enlightened beings sacred. Thus the concept of
enlightenment brings authoritarianism at the personal,
charismatic level (gurus, masters, avatars, and
buddhas)." "Accepting selflessness as the highest
value is where the insidious authoritarianism of the
old order unwittingly seeps into many modern paradigms
that attempt to be new." "Are gurus...filling deep needs and thus
inadvertently pointing to trouble spots and lacks in
the fabric of our culture, as well as revealing the
depth of our conditioning to want authorities and
mistrust ourselves?"(p.32)
Quotes
from
The Guru Papers: Masks of Authoritarian Power
by Joel Kramer and Diana Alstad
"...Behind much of the appeal of such authorities lies
the primitive and essentially childish hope of an
external and magical answer to the existential
problems and fears around living and dying. The
guru/disciple relationship is a formal structure of
extreme authoritarianism. It thus offers a
quintessential exemplar of control and surrender,
displaying mechanical processes that reinforce
predilections toward submission."(p.32)
"THE GURU PAPERS critiques the guru/disciple liaison
because it is a clear-cut example of the old, no
longer appropriate paradigm of spiritual authority. It
is not that we doubt that some who are considered
gurus have deeper insights than their followers. Yet
even with the best intentions, assuming the role of
spiritual authority for others sets in motion a system
of interaction that is mechanical, predictable, and
contains the essence of corruption. Another purpose of
this book is to show that corruption is not simply the
failure or weakness of a specific individual, but is
structurally built into any authoritarian
relationship, and less obviously, any renunciate
morality."(p.35)
"...Asserting that one human being fundamentally knows
what’s best for another is authoritarian. If this
is accepted, it sets up a chain of inevitable
relational patterns that are detrimental to all
players of the game."(p.36)
"Now through media images, leaders of all sorts can
charismatically control far more people than ever
before, without having any personal connection with
them"(p.43)
"The need to appear right when presenting oneself as a
spiritual knower is greater than in any other arena
because knowing is what makes one essentially
different from seekers. Admitting any fallibility not
only removes one from that exalted place, but makes it
difficult to compete with other presumed knowers who
do claim infallibility."(p.47)
"The ostensible reason for fostering surrender is it
detaches followers from certain deep conditionings
presumed to be obstacles on the spiritual path. But it
does not detach them from one of the most insidious
and powerful conditionings of all- the predilection to
look for an authority that one can trust more than
oneself." (p.50)
"A number of gurus have made statements to the effect
that disobedience or disrespect
of the guru has...severe negative spiritual
consequences...One even said that such disrespect can
bring thousands of lifetimes of pain and suffering.
Whatever else is involved, it should be obvious that
fear and threats are being used here for
control."(p.67)
"When magic lies at the base of authority, no matter
how elevated the people appear, they are engaged in
perhaps the oldest ploy of authoritarian mind
control." (p.68)
"To maintain mental control it is necessary to
undermine self-trust. This is insidiously done by
removing the ways people can build trust in
themselves."(p.73)
"Cults need a continuous stream of recruits and
potential converts to reinforce the belief that
they’re "where it’s at"- the vanguard of
spirituality on the planet."(78)
"What most proselytizing groups face is how to sell
their beliefs without appearing to do so. Recruiting
is therefore always done in the name of helping or
doing some kind of good....to care about others is to
get them to join."(p.79)
"When dealing with others who are less certain, simply
having certainty gives dominance." (p.80)
"When the popularity and power of the group plateaus
and then begins to wane...the apocalyptic phase enters
and the party is over..."(p.80)
"The attitude of benign superiority toward outsiders
characteristic of the expansionistic phase
dramatically shifts when the group turns apocalyptic.
It is the outsiders who will receive the brunt of
whatever cataclysm the guru claims will come."
(p.81)
"The glorification of work always involves improving
the leader’s property (the commune or ashram),
increasing his wealth, or some grandiose
project."(p.82)
"The potential for violence and abuse in an
authoritarian cult is always there, not only because
whatever the leader says goes, but also because
outsiders are made into "the Other," which has always
been used to justify violence."(p.83)
"Both gurus and disciples use hierarchical
relationships for power. Everyone on the hierarchy
gets their feelings of power and specialness from
where they are positioned." (p.85)
"authoritarian hierarchies are propped up with an
authoritarian worldview and morality. No matter their
stated rationale, their main purpose always becomes
self-perpetuation, which inevitably corrupts them."
(p.86)
"...proselytizing and advertising are cut from the
same cloth. The enormous attention given to appearance
leads to a concern for packaging rather than
what’s inside the package."(p.88)
"Gurus do give special attention to those with wealth
or power; having celebrities in one’s entourage
increases coffers, influence, and
membership."(p.89)
"In the realm of sexuality, the two prevalent ways
control is exerted are through promulgating either
celibacy or promiscuity...both serve the same
function: they minimize the possibilities of people
bonding deeply with each other, thus reducing factors
that compete with the guru for attention." (p.92)
"Celibacy does allow one to maintain a certain kind of
control of one’s energy and emotions. It also
conforms with images of purity. Therefore, it is far
easier for a guru to gain and maintain power if he is
celibate - or pretends to be."(p.92)
"Gurus who preach celibacy while secretly engaging in
sexuality present sex as an esoteric initiation ritual
or advanced spiritual exercise that must be kept
hidden... But it is the lie, not the sex, that’s
the real issue. The lie indicates the guru’s
entire persona is a lie, that his image as selfless
and beyond ego is a core deception."(p.95)
"The standards of purity necessary for the role of
guru must bring unconscious repression and filtering
mechanisms that ensure deceit and hypocrisy around
self-interest,"(p.106)
Being a guru "...creates a feedback-proof system where
the guru always needs to be right and cannot be shown
to be wrong - which is where learning comes from."
(p.107)
"Why would even the most realized of beings want
people to become reliant on his wisdom instead of
their own?" (p.108)
"The myriad scandals around sex, money, and power that
have tainted so many gurus are not surprising, given
the structural corruptibility of the role."
(p.113)
The..."guru role makes it extremely difficult to
escape the traps of power - the ultimate trap being in
the end, gurus lose their humanity." (p.114)
"...The ex-disciple’s world has turned on its
head: What the guru and group presented as
unconditional love was conditional upon accepting
their authority; the egoless guru was found to be on a
manipulative, even crass, power trip. For people who
surrendered totally to a guru and thus experienced
passion more deeply than ever before, seeing "The
emperor wears no clothes" can be devastating. So
it’s no wonder people have tremendous resistance
to anything that causes them to doubt the veracity of
the authority." (p.152)
"The most extreme form of mental control occurs when
the authority is trusted completely and becomes the
center of one’s identity. Sadly, society and
parents insidiously put out messages from childhood on
that others know what’s best. Many people are
deeply conditioned to expect and hope some outside
agency, power or person will solve their problems.
Letting go of expectations or even wanting this is
difficult, partially because what one is left with is
oneself and all of one’s limitations."(p.154)
"True healing can be accelerated by understanding the
deep mechanisms of what happened, and of authoritarian
dynamics in general. Then people can be more confident
they won’t be taken in again."(p.154)