|
Second Open letter to Harold Klemp First Open letter to Harold Klemp
THE TRUTH REVEALED
Frequently Asked Questions Copyright © 2002-2004 Friends of Truth. All rights reserved.
|
||
 |
Reproduced from: Confessions of a God Seeker: A Journey to Higher Consciousness By, Ford Johnson
Chapter 8 — The Origins of Eckankar Doctrine Table of Contents
Footnotes with source documents available at www.thetruth-seeker.com Footnotes (all) Chapter 8 — The Origins of Eckankar Doctrine Usurpation: To take possession of without legal claim; To seize and hold (as office, place, or powers) in possession by force or without right; to take or make use of without right (e.g. the rights to her life story) 2. To take the place of by or as if by force; to seize or exercise authority or possession wrongfully. . . .1 Usurpation may seem like a strange word to use in relation to the teachings of Eckankar, but this is precisely what happened. What was usurped? The answer is more astonishing than you might imagine. For what was usurped was nothing short of the spiritual center, the inner direction of the believer. How can this be? Let’s start with the foundation of the doctrine of Eckankar: the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master. The Mahanta, the Living Eck Master After seeing how Paul constructed Eckankar, it should come as no surprise that he also created the concept of the Mahanta from the traditions of other spiritual paths. Nor should it come as any surprise that his rich imagination added a few flourishes. The concept of Mahanta appeared for the first time in 1965, when Paul gave himself the Rod of Eck Power and anointed himself a Mahanta. He took the word, “Mahanta,” from a Hindi and Pali word that means “head of a monastic establishment” as well as “big” (Pali).2 Paul expropriated the title and gave it an entirely new meaning. In Eckankar, Mahanta (Consciousness) is: The spiritual leader, or Godman; the head of ECK; all those who come to him in the present age have been with him since their advent into the world; the body of the Mahanta is the ECK, which is the essence of God flowing out from the Ocean of Love and Mercy, sustaining all life and tying together all life forms; the Vi-Guru, the Light Giver; a state of God consciousness which is beyond the titles given in religions which designate states of consciousness; the highest of all states of consciousness.3 One of the more intriguing aspects of the title of Mahanta , the Living Eck Master is how Paul Twitchell, Darwin Gross and Harold Klemp convinced or deluded themselves into believing the myth. Given the spurious origins of Eckankar and the Mahanta concept, it is clear that this is what happened. Darwin had been indoctrinated into Paul’s mythology and knew Paul personally. Therefore, it is understandable how Darwin would accept Paul’s stories in their entirety. After all, at the time of his ascension to the Mahantaship, Darwin was probably unaware that the concept and title first appeared in Paul’s writings around 1965. Darwin’s ascension was accompanied by his close association with and eventual marriage to the founder’s wife, Gail Twitchell. This relationship undoubtedly reinforced his deep devotion to Paul and his teachings. Darwin’s comments and later ones by Harold indicated that neither of them had any outer confirmation or validation of his station as the Mahanta and the extraordinary role the Shariyat said they were to play in the operation of the universe. To be told, “He [The Mahanta] speaks for God on every plane through all the universes, from the lowest negative to the highest spiritual one,”4 is a bit much for a new, inexperienced master (in Eckankar for only two years) to absorb. And to recognize that everyone is thinking of you as the only one who “has the key to the secret kingdoms,”5 when you are still discovering for yourself the nature of the secret kingdoms, can be overwhelming. The only way that these burdens can be reconciled with the limited awareness of someone catapulted to such an exalted position is to assume that spirit (the Eck) is doing the work. The three Eck Masters have acknowledged that they have little if any conscious awareness of how these extraordinary responsibilities are being carried out in the inner or outer physical planes. This belief in the Eck as the modus operandi of the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master is reinforced by the simple fact that the Shariyat and Paul proclaims it. The strength of the Mahanta’s claim of omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence is backed by no more proof than the declaration that the sun rises every morning because we have willed it. Every morning we would receive confirmation of our power. In time, we might come to believe it. If we were then to give ourselves a title befitting our newly proclaimed power, we would only have to attract a following — true believers are always available — to have a movement. Thus, the position of the Mahanta is not only a station created by Paul, it is one that grandiosely claims to control events over which it has no more control than anyone else. When we add the essential ingredient of thousands of Eckists who believe in the Mahanta’s powers, we have a spiritual movement that is based on a fabrication, and a deceptive one at that. After David Lane’s book was published, Darwin reacted with outrage and disbelief; he simply could not understand why anyone would question the word of Paul Twitchell. Darwin’s reaction was not based on an analysis of Lane’s arguments, but was emotional in nature. He urged the chelas to destroy these vile materials (the “spiritual counterfeiter” version of Lane’s work), claiming that they were written by people who had another agenda or did not know the truth about Eckankar. Harold’s response was more enlightened but still protective of Paul’s legacy and his own position upon which it rested. Harold’s defense was perhaps more honest than prudence might have dictated. Revealing details of the records Paul assiduously kept, Harold offered a brief look into Paul’s life that revealed disturbing psychological patterns that led to exaggeration, tall tales, grandiosity, and worse — especially when it came to the position of the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master. The legitimacy of the Mahanta rests mainly on the story of the passing of the Rod of Eck Power down the long line of the Vairagi Masters, from antiquity to Harold Klemp. It should first be noted that Paul likely “borrowed” the concept of the Rod of Power from theosophy — although there also can be found Egyptian and Christian references to a Rod of Power — which asserts that the great “Rod of Power” of the Logos (God, or Sugmad) is hidden in the sun and consists of four subdivisions (functions) for which a Rod of Power exists for each. However, the Rod of Power aside, a better understanding of the legitimacy of the Mahanta can be gleaned from looking at the less than orderly transition of power between the various Mahantas. According to Eckankar lore, Sudar Singh received the Rod of Eck Power from Rebazar Tarzs. It was Sudar Singh’s responsibility to train a successor and pass the Rod of Eck Power to him. But having purportedly started with Paul as a mere sixteen-year-old, who was not ready for the position at the time of his death in the late thirties, Singh seems to have failed in this task. Another twenty-five years would pass before a candidate would be ready to assume the responsibilities of the Mahanta. Yet, the Eck works state that: [The Living Eck Master] is not allowed to retire from his field of action in this life until another is ready and trained to replace him...6 But the Rod of Eck Power could not be passed forward to a precocious but unprepared boy. Never lacking for inventiveness, Paul had the Rod of Eck Power pass backward to the prior master, Rebazar Tarzs, who dutifully passed it on to him when he had supposedly reached the proper level of consciousness. This is the first but not the last time that the Rod of Power was tossed back to a predecessor. Following in the footsteps of his first teacher, Paul departed this world without carrying out his responsibilities of preparing and passing on the Rod of Eck Power to his successor, as described above and as set forth in the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad.7 Paul’s untimely death necessitated another reprise of the stalwart Rebazar Tarzs to save the day. Ever equal to the task, he assumed the title and quickly handed off to Darwin, a relative newcomer to Eckankar. As the story proceeds to the transfer of the Rod of Power from Darwin Gross to Harold Klemp, it becomes, as we shall later see, increasingly farcical. When all the fiction is removed from descriptions of the sacred nature of the Mahantaship, what remains are self-motivated individuals who hide the position’s lineage. Neither Paul’s nor any of his successor’s origins have much in common with the mystical births and lives of his band of Vairagi Masters. Paul writes: The Mahanta is always born near or on a large body of water. His birth is always mysterious and men of ordinary birth do not know his origin. Nor does any man know who his sires might be, their true names or their true origin.8 Paul accounted for the mysterious origins of some of the 760 previous Eck Masters in his writings and set out to spin tales about his own. He told Brad Steiger, the author of his biography, that he was born out of wedlock on a riverboat that plied the waters of the Mississippi. Paul claimed that his stepmother was a “proud, stern, half-Chickasaw Indian beauty.” In saying this, he disavowed his own mother and went on to hint that his father might not have been his real one. Paul claimed that his grandmother told him these things when he was only a teenager: . . . Grands believed that her high-stepping son had fathered the boy, who had been born out of wedlock. . . . Her son had to admit that it was entirely within the realm of possibility that he could, indeed, be the lad’s father, so he acquiesced to the demands of his wealthy mother.9 When Paul’s family learned what he had been saying about his family and parentage, there was understandable consternation in the Twitchell clan, which was quick to point out the lies in his tale.10 Paul was not born near a body of water (as in countless heroic myths), nor was his parentage ever in question, except in his own mind, as he sought to live up to the myth he created for the birth of the Eck Masters. Neither Darwin nor Harold fared any better in this regard. They were born quite some distance from any substantial body of water, and were both of known parentage. Paul laid out even more stringent requirements for the birth of the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master: The ECK enters into the womb of a virgin, the queen of heaven, who has submitted to the true spirit of the universe. The consciousness of the Mahanta state is planted as the seed, and carefully nurtured in the womb. When the embodiment of flesh is brought into this world, a man-child is born. It starts its unfoldment over a period of years until the state of perfection is reached, in adulthood. Then the chosen one learns that he is the Living ECK Master of his times.11 While this is a fine story that plays well with those steeped in the tradition of a better-known virgin birth, it has some immediate problems. Paul already attempted to establish, through Steiger, that his mother was of dubious morality, which conveniently suggested unknown parentage. Unfortunately, Paul did his job too well when he led Steiger to write, “it was entirely within the realm of possibility that he could, indeed, be the lad’s father. . . .”12 Paul then had to make a virgin-mother out of this individual with whom the father acknowledges a sexual liaison. It would probably surprise Mr. and Mrs. Gross as well as Mr. and Mrs. Klemp that the births of their sons had been elevated to the status of virgin births, and that each of their offspring was “the son of God.” A curious episode in Paul’s early experiences as the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master sheds light on his thinking during this formative period. Having received the Rod of Eck Power in 1965, Paul continued to write for various magazines, even though he was functioning as “God made Flesh,” “the Son of God,” and many other exalted titles he bestowed upon himself. Yet, Paul participated in and wrote a truly bizarre column in the Candid Press. Paul indulges in prophecy and ribald satire as he unwittingly reveals much about Eckankar’s early days and his own understanding of the “sacred” nature of his new position of Mahanta: Dear Guru: Things are so bad for this country that I must ask you to talk to God about the political future. I am asking as a loyal reader of Candid Press. Jan B. Dear
Jan: I didn’t want to make any predictions on certain events,
but you caught me on a technical point. . . . The war in Paul Twitchell Paul missed it on several points, in spite the inside knowledge his position should have afforded him. Johnson decided not to run for reelection in 1968, and the war of course dragged on into the Nixon Administration. Given the nature of free will, perhaps even “God Made Flesh” should be given some latitude in his predictions. In the same Candid Press Column, Paul engages in a disturbing form of communications, which pokes fun at spirituality, mastership, and even God: DEAR MR. TWITCHELL: My penis is too long. Can you ask god to shorten it for me? BIG PETER DEAR PETER: Why? That’s what god said when He heard you wanted a smaller sex organ. God says that we can all be happy with what He gives unto us and you shall be happy to. I HAVE SPOKEN! Paul Twitchell DEAR GURU: I have the strange desire to wear lace panties. As I am a normal man in every other way, I want to know if god thinks this is bad? FRILLY FRED DEAR FRILLY: He doesn’t think it is good. We talked over your fetish —for that is what you have. We both feel that your fetish is due to lack of female companionship. You wish to secure a relationship with a woman whose initials are P. I. Do not ask how I know nor shall you question this advice which I now sayeth unto you: call her and ask her for a date. She will accept. Do not wear your panties on the date . . . and you shall never again have a desire to wear panties. I HAVE SPOKEN! Paul Twitchell DEAR LEARNED ONE: My penis is too small for a man of my age. Can you talk to God and make my penis grow? TINY MAN DEAR TINY: God and I talked about your penis — and God has good news for you. He says that your penis is of average size and that you only believe it is too small for you failed to satisfy one woman when you were 19. Because it is of the proper size, there is no need for God to make it grow. I HAVE SPOKEN! Paul Twitchell13 As a column by the man Paul Twitchell, we can see the humor and satire here. But when we recognize that this is the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master speaking, we wonder, What is going on? Given his mission of gathering up all souls and leading them to God, why would the Mahanta indulge in such sexual banter? Make of it what you will, but it does raise somber questions about the seriousness with which he regarded his newly created position of Mahanta, the Living Eck Master. After his movement grew and he began publishing his works through Illuminated Way Publishing, he never again engaged in such frivolity. Once others started believing, he started believing himself, and the fiction grew until a witty California columnist had become the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master. Paul’s integration of fiction with higher truth kept the critical faculties of most students busy deciding what to accept, what to reject, and what to hold in reserve for later consideration. This is where the higher self, that part of us that guides our decisions, comes into play. We rely upon it constantly, though sometimes unknowingly, for right discrimination. It is this part of ourselves that Eckankar attempts to replace with the concept of the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master. It is no different from looking to any other savior, teacher, master, or savant. Their role should be to empower the individual by helping him discover the spiritual power that is at his command as soul. When the role shifts and devotion, surrender and dedication are encouraged or demanded, then their role becomes one of usurpers of the inner direction and control that only comes from within. Ironically, this is precisely what Paul himself once articulated: If we get the teachings directly from the Supreme Being, by our own individual efforts, through our simplification of personal techniques worked out by our own understanding, we enter the true path in our own way.14 And as noted in a previous section: The Supreme Consciousness will appear to anyone provided the individual furnishes the state of consciousness through which it can appear. Therefore, whatever anyone is receiving or lacking in the outpicturing [sic] and expression of his consciousness is each one’s own responsibility.15 When we allow an outside agent or ideal to substitute for our own inner direction, a fundamental shift occurs. Our attention shifts to a dependency upon a person or concept who acts as a surrogate for the real force at work in our lives. Every inner experience, dream, and inner perception is constructed or selected and directed by soul, not the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master or any other pretender. After all, were we not having dreams before we heard about Eckankar, Paul Twitchell, or any of his successor masters?Initially, guidance and mentoring are needed by anyone seeking to move to a higher level of awareness; it is the way we begin to learn and progress in all aspects of our growth and development. However, when we reach the point where everything that we say, think, and do is done in tribute to or in the name of a master of some sort, we have crossed the line and denied the divine guidance and direction of our own inner selves. It is replaced by a usurper, who would place himself above the spark of God (soul) that is the essence of each individual. Eckists believe that whenever they close their eyes and see a blue light, from within or from without, it represents the appearance of the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master and is a sign that the master is close at hand, as he has promised. The truth is that the blue light is a phenomenon experienced by all humans. Paul chose this natural phenomenon to enhance and reinforce the thrall of the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master. To the degree that the word Mahanta is used as a synonym for spirit, then Paul’s assertion is accurate. But the slight of hand that Paul employed to create the union between the Living Eck Master, the Mahanta, Eckankar, Eck, and spirit always stands ready to complete the magical transformation of virtually any concept, including the blue light, into the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master. Paul successfully usurped this natural phenomenon to establish and reinforce his promise, “I am always with you.” It has long been a part of occult thought that color is a distinct part of the life of every individual. Color itself is a manifestation of sound, which changes depending upon the plane (level of vibration) on which one is functioning. Color can be simulated or evoked by the use of imagination and is the principal technique used in psychic healing through color. It is also observable during periods of rest and calm, love and well-being. Esoteric literature contains many references to a blue light body, which is thought to be part of the etheric blueprint of each person.16 Paul was not the only one to take on the blue light as his symbol. Within the Tibetan Buddhist Karma Kangyu Lineage, the Karmapa Meditation also employs the blue light: From the heart level in the centre of Karmapa’s [leader of the Black Hat (Kangyu) order of Tibetan Buddhism] transparent body, an intense blue light shines out. It fills the middle of our chest. Everything harmful now leaves our mind. Disturbing feelings and stiff ideas dissolve and our mind becomes spontaneous joy. It is space and bliss inseparable. Together with the deep blue light vibrates the syllable HUNG.17 In any case, the inner blue light has been with us since the dawn of humankind and long before Paul usurped it as the inner symbol for the Mahanta. In addition to all the other claims made for the Mahanta, Eckankar claims that Harold Klemp, the Mahanta the Living Eck Master is the Dream Master; that is, he controls our dreams and our movement into the various levels of the inner worlds. Paul writes: The only way that sleep and dreams are handled is through the direction and guidance of the Living ECK Master. No ECK chela is given freedom in the sleep state, for he must be led by the Living ECK Master through the levels of dreams until reaching the higher worlds.18 This too is one of Paul’s fabrications. It is another usurpation of our inner spiritual self (soul). In a somewhat contradictory but more truthful statement of soul’s role and responsibility in its own inner dream life, Paul writes: The Atma [soul], living in the dream consciousness of the psychic states, enjoys the subtle things of life, as thought, emotional joy, intellect, and mind stuff. All this is essential for the bodies of the psychic worlds, the Astral, Causal, and Mental planes. When Soul takes mastery over these states through dreaming, It becomes the supreme ruler of Its own universe.19 The Mahanta, the Living Eck Master, in the physical form of Harold Klemp, has admitted (several times) that he is not aware of what happens in the inner lives of all those who look to him or even in their inner experiences where his form is present with them. Yet, Harold, as Mahanta, still claims credit for the inner lives of Eckists. He often speaks of his role as the inner master, using the pronoun “I” to reinforce the image that the person standing before the chela is the Mahanta, the Dream Master, as did his predecessors, Paul Twitchell and Darwin Gross. This doubletalk allows the Living Eck Master to claim that he is a man, while providing enough fodder to perpetuate the myth of the God-like nature of the Mahanta. We have already seen how Harold has disavowed the inner experiences of one of his chelas with no apparent recall or awareness that they ever happened. As we learn more about the truth, we see that this is to be expected, for neither Harold nor other masters who perpetuate this myth have any consistent recall of these experiences, if they have any at all. In a later chapter, we will explore the remarkable life of Baba Faqir Chand. Chand is one of the few spiritual masters who admits that he is unaware of what goes on in the inner space of his chelas. Although he receives letters claiming that he has performed countless miracles in the inner, and with his physical form in the outer, Chand unselfishly attributes these occurrences to the power of spirit working with soul. Harold has also intimated this position at times, but at other times has reinforced the illusion that he is consciously aware of what is happening. Chand’s honesty and candid presentation of the true role of a spiritual master sheds light on the pretensions of the Living Eck Master and all such masters. Further, it reveals that claims of being the Dream Master are simply another attempt at usurpation. It also shows that soul working through spirit is the true instrument, which creates the dream images we experience. This mechanism communicates to the lower self (our physical identity) the insights and wisdom necessary to expand awareness. No intermediary or outside force is needed to direct the inner life of the individual. It is spirit in tandem with soul that creates our dreams and directs our inner lives. When an individual has spent years looking admiringly at the picture of a master, it is easy to understand why this image is used as an inner vehicle for experiences and communication. But this has nothing to do with the master per se. It is acceptance of a trusted image that becomes an effective vehicle for soul to explore higher awareness. Any such image will work. The master has only allowed his image to be used in this way. However, the effectiveness of this image is enhanced or diminished, depending on how the chela relates to the personality of the master. Harold asserts that the chela’s relationship to the image and personality of the master is a crucial factor in determining his effectiveness with the chela. Yet many chelas have reported a sharp drop-off in inner experiences between the time of Darwin, who was charismatic and accessible to followers, and Harold, who has been described as somewhat insipid and inaccessible. I have come to understand the phenomenon of appearing in the inner worlds of an individual. I receive, from Eckists around the world, numerous accounts of encounters they have had with me functioning in the role of a teacher. I am certain that I am not responsible for this. Rather, spirit has used my image, because that soul has accepted it as a trusted channel for communications. There are not many people in our lives, perhaps our parents if we are fortunate, to whom we look with a high degree of respect, love, and admiration. We use their forms as inner channels to communicate spiritual truth and to lead us to the realization of God. Viewing a picture or visualizing an image of someone who can serve this purpose establishes the inner image of this person as a guide. Those who work as spiritual teachers or masters understand this principle. If they are honest, they withdraw from this role as soon as they can, leaving the seeker to her inner direction to visualize whatever form she may choose. When masters are exploitative, they try to develop dependence on themselves and their images to take credit for the individual’s inner experiences, which are actually spirit working with soul. An initiation is an outer ceremony, much like a baptism or confirmation in the Christian Church, where the individual makes a spiritual commitment and forms a bond with spirit and the Master at progressively higher levels. In the Sant Mat tradition, from which Eckankar was derived, it designates a union with the eternal light and sound of God, and the acceptance of a particular master as spiritual guide on this leg of the spiritual journey. There is a great deal of mythology surrounding this ceremony. Its true essence is the inner commitment that the individual makes by accepting the form of a master as a part of his inner reality. The acceptance of this form and its appearance within the inner space of the individual, as we have seen, provides an important channel for the spiritual instruction that the individual will receive during his time with that master. The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad (Book Two) describes the growth of consciousness and the changes in behavioral responses that an individual is likely to demonstrate as he moves from initiation to initiation.20 These descriptions are harbingers of the spiritual progress that a person can presumably achieve, if they follow Eckankar tenets. In this way, they represent goals to which the individual can strive. Initiations in Eckankar have created as much guilt and tension as they have exaltation and joy. When an Eckist receives a “ pink slip,”21 an invitation to receive a higher initiation, he is at first elated. Later, however, he may perceive a disconnect between the lofty standards he is expected to meet and demonstrate in his life and where he actually is in his attitudes and behavior. This is particularly true of those who have reached the level of Mahdis ( Initiates of the Fifth Circle). The Mahdis’s expectations of spiritual attainment are: The initiation of the Fifth Circle is sometimes known as the transfiguration . . . . From this time forth the Mahdis is an illuminated person. He knows and sees the spiritual realities and understands those around him, and his and their standards of achievements. He begins to use and control all the psychic faculties within himself for a greater cause . . . and systematically for the progress of the whole human race and those beings in every plane within the universes of God.22 Because many initiates of the Fifth Circle do not see these qualities in themselves, they are bewildered and plagued by doubt. This is not surprising, because Eckankar (unlike other Shabd Yoga teachings) gives initiations beyond the second level that are tied to the continuous maintenance of membership. This, in turn, requires the payment of an annual membership fee. While other factors are taken into account, fulfilling this requirement is a prerequisite to higher levels of initiation. It is a common belief in Eckankar that spiritual initiations are based on a display of spiritual qualities observed by and known to the Living Eck Master. However, this is not the case. Initiations are mainly based on the number of years of continuous paid membership along with written recommendations from High Initiates (HIs) regarding participation, service (not a requirement but a plus), and overall character and balance in life. Indeed, the process of selection for initiations is far more a function of the computer than the inner or outer knowledge of the Mahanta about his chelas. Harold amply demonstrated this fact in a communication during his years of conflict with the former Mahanta, the Living Eck Master, Darwin Gross. In the transcript of a meeting between Harold and a group of High Initiates held on Saturday, October 22, 1983 (which was part of the public documentation revealed during the legal dispute between Darwin Gross and Eckankar), Harold said: [M]any of the initiation records we had were destroyed, were by Darwin’s orders erased. We’ve reconstructed much of this. We don’t have very good records right now about your initiation levels I’m afraid to say. Another thing that was done and I have to be honest, that people were given 5th initiations by date and this is not the way to do it. Darwin just did a whole bunch here by date and anybody that had 5 years, they were sent a pink slip. There are some 5th initiates who aren’t 5th initiates. . . . And another issue that has to be faced . . . we’re going to sit down, as we can get to all of these things and put out a program of a checking and rechecking before a person is recommended for initiation.23 While the cavalier manner in which initiations were granted has changed since Darwin’s time, their nature and the procedures by which selection is made remain essentially the same. Certainly, the process has not become more spiritual, only more efficient and protracted. There is still no relationship between each initiation level and the spiritual characteristics outlined in the Shariyat. Only with HI recommendations and the individual’s computer record of membership payments can a determination be made to elevate a members initiation level. This is puzzling to those new to the teaching. They observe some HIs acting haughtily, mistreating those under their authority, and otherwise behaving inconsistently with their, presumed, high spiritual station. This has occurred with such frequency that Harold often makes statements that denigrate the spiritual attainment of HIs. Basing advancement in Eckankar on years in service makes no spiritual sense. Each individual comes into this world having lived through many past life experiences. These define the state of a person’s spiritual attainment at the start of each lifetime. Thus, each of us begins our spiritual journey at a different level of spiritual awareness. We progresses at varying rates as our spiritual lessons are learned (or not). If initiations represent levels of spiritual attainment, which as we have seen are variable, how can a group who has participated as members of Eckankar for the same number of years receive initiations at the same time and at the same level? Certainly everyone in the group could not be at the same level spiritually. We observe this everyday, in all walks of life. People are different, and they progress at different rates. What does this mean in regards to Eckankar and its system of initiations? Simply put, initiation is a form of reward and control. Eckists below the level of Fifth Initiate are unaware of the mechanical process by which initiations are decided. No one wants to jeopardize his standing and opportunity to move up in Eckankar. Receiving a pink slip denoting eligibility for another initiation might thrill the recipient, but it has nothing to do with one’s level of spiritual attainment. As Paul sometimes acknowledged, a master cannot give spiritual attainment to a chela; all he can do is plant the individual’s feet on the path and the rest is up to him or her. However, by relinquishing this authority to the Mahanta, we have effectively surrendered our divine power to someone else and abdicated our responsibility as soul. The corollary to this is that the admonitions scattered throughout the Eckankar teaching, holding that certain actions and practices can cause the individual to lose initiations or otherwise be required to incarnate over and over again, is equally fallacious. Remember the true advice Paul gave in The Flute of God: nothing can come to you or be taken away from you except in accordance with the state of your consciousness. This includes initiations or any other acknowledgement of spiritual attainment. The spiritual unfolding of an individual does not diminish by removal of an initiation any more than spiritual enlightenment comes from receiving one. After all, it is still up to the individual to chart his own spiritual course and never to surrender that responsibility in exchange for a pink slip. The Mahanta, the Living Eck Master or any other spiritual master can only teach and guide. He cannot nor should he be allowed to determine the speed or depth of our spiritual growth. If outer initiations have any value, it occurs when the individual makes a study of the high standards expected at different levels of initiation. If then the individual embraces and embodies these characteristics, the initiation, like any promotion or other form of outer recognition, will have a positive effect on the individual’s sense of self, supporting both inner and outer growth. People often grow to fit the vessel in which they are placed, just as they grow to meet the expectations they or others set. Initiations above the second level are of this nature. If the individual embraces them and shapes his life accordingly, the initiation has a salutary effect. On the other hand, if this practice is not assiduously followed, then initiations become like the garments worn by actors on a stage, mere coverings for a reality that is only pretended. It is entirely up to the individual. Consequently, there are many who may come to a spiritual teaching who are more spiritually advanced than those who have attained high initiations within that teaching. Graham, our English colleague, is a perfect example of this. He obviously brought from past lifetimes a degree of spiritual attainment which, when activated in this lifetime, propelled him to a high level of inner awareness and experience. In the outer, Graham was a Second Initiate in Eckankar — as was Darwin Gross when he became the Living Eck Master. But, having written his journal and sent it to the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master, he was summarily demoted to a First Initiate. Graham often joked that he was “staring at the door to excommunication” for having inner experiences with the Mahanta and having the temerity to apprise the Eckankar organization of them. Rather than help this chela understand these experiences, Harold simply dismissed them as the work of the Kal and removed an initiation without further explanation. But, does the removal of an initiation cause a person to lose his present state of spiritual awareness? Does removal impact his ability to soul travel? Will the forces that worked with him on the inner planes be less inclined to expose him to more spiritual wisdom? Of course, the answers to all of these questions is a resounding NO! One of the promises of many spiritual paths is that under the direction of a true spiritual master, she no longer has to incarnate into this physical universe. Paul took this idea from Radhasoami and Kirpal Singh. A true spiritual master is supposed to take on or manage the karma of the individual chela so that she bypasses that fateful meeting with the “lords of karma,” and continues under the direction of the master on some other plane of reality. Paul wrote: The Angel of Death is the agent of Kal Niranjan, who is relentless, merciless, and administers absolute justice to each and all, regardless of their position in life. But he who is under the Mahanta’s guiding hand will be free of all this; he will be met at the time of death by the Living ECK Master and be escorted to the place where he is to enjoy life in the spiritual worlds. He will never have to return again to the physical plane.24 This promise has held great appeal to spiritual students around the world who relish the thought of finally being done with this plane of existence. But the “promise of escape” is dubious. The physical plane provides opportunities for growth not found in other worlds. Specifically, the action-reaction sequence of thought to manifestation is slowed down to permit the individual, through trial and error, to learn the importance of and how to control thought. Aside from the promise of not returning to the physical plane being a false and unsupported claim, no more benefit would be derived from such an escape than would be achieved by a third-grade student being placed into college. The lessons of the third-grade are precisely what the student needs at that time. Elevation in academic level without the prerequisite demonstration of proficiency would be counterproductive. Baba Faqir Chand, the Indian sage and practitioner of Surat Shabd Yoga, points to those who claim mastership and hold out this promise but are nothing more than fakers seeking to maintain control over their followers.
In spite of these obvious problems with the claim of avoiding
physical incarnation, there remain those who assert that it
is possible if only the student finds a true master. A true
master is thought to be one who has been “anointed” through
a process of succession involving a bestowal
of authority from ones predecessor. This is the claim
made by those in the Radhasoami
Satsang tradition and their progeny.
The Radhasoami Satsang Beas is slightly more that one hundred years old, and its
progeny, the Ruhani Satsang
started by Kirpal Singh (Paul’s master),
is of an even more recent date. While ostensibly representing
a line of masters with uncluttered lines of succession, nothing
could be further from the truth, as we will see in Chapter 11.
Indeed, by this definition of true mastership, the evidence
is that none of the masters of the Radhasoami Satsang Beas tradition is a true master.25 Today, there
are hundreds if not thousands of Vi-Gurus peddling their teachings
throughout Assuming for the moment that there is some validity to the claim that a “true master” can shield his chela from another incarnation, Paul’s claim to mastership is even more dubious than that of his own master, Kirpal Singh.26 Paul was never given the authority from him to give true initiations. So, he invented his own master, Rebazar Tarzs, from whom he received the fictional Rod of Eck Power. Having established himself as an exalted leader, Paul wasted no time in putting forth the historic promise of all Radhasoami masters. Paul asserted that all who receive the Second Initiation in Eckankar would have their karma worked off, and would no longer be required to incarnate in the physical world. But as we have seen, no initiation by a master, especially under the dubious origins of the Radhasoami Beas tradition, and even more so of Eckankar, can relieve one of his karma. It is much like the Christian promise of relief from sin by the intercession of Jesus Christ. We have heard this claim before. Just as no one can take away the sins of the world, no one will or can take on all the karma of another individual —though we can help out at times. These so-called sins are experiences that are essential to spiritual growth. It is imperative that we learn from them for they are created by our own actions. Nothing can short circuit this process, except the accelerated learning of the individual followed by a change in behavior and attitude. True to Paul’s penchant for ascribing supremacy to anything related to Eckankar, he wrote about the preeminence of the Mahanta and Eckankar as they pertain to karma and reincarnation: The Mahanta is the distributor of karma in this world and what he says is the word of the SUGMAD. All the Lords of Karma are under his hand and must do as he directs. . . . He has been the spiritual head of the world since its creation. . . .27 Eckankar’s claim to shelter its initiates from further incarnations in the physical are improbable if not disreputable. The God-seeker should follow the sounder advice that soul must look to itself for the responsibility of elevating spiritual consciousness. As soul is exposed to and embodies truth, it moves to a level of spiritual awareness where it serves no purpose to incarnate on this plane of existence: this is when physical incarnations cease. To achieve this, the individual must sit in silence, contemplating the inner realities of God and how it relates to daily existence. With time, this practice results in subtle yet profound changes in the individual and a distinctly different mode of operation. There is no question of avoiding incarnations, for soul must exist somewhere in some dimension of reality/illusion until it is able to encompass and dwell eternally in the here and now. Unitl then, where soul will continue its experiences depends entirely on what it needs for spiritual unfoldment. Its destiny is determined by how it has lived its past life and how it has served the universal cause of love and spiritual growth. A master wins no prize for relieving a student’s karmic burden and need to reincarnate in this dimension. Experiences on any plane are absolutely essential for the spiritual growth of a God-seeker. Learning to read is more rapid with a teacher than by teaching oneself. However, if the student doesn’t study, if he doesn’t follow the teacher’s guidance, he cannot expect to progress very rapidly. The same is true with study under a spiritual teacher. If the student does not apply the lessons of daily contemplation, recording inner experiences, and following other fundamental practices, he cannot expect his spiritual progress to be substantial. There is no free ticket to spiritual growth, and this is how it must be. When the God-seeker knows that the responsibility is on his shoulders, he views things quite differently. He realizes that participation in a religion such as Eckankar, paying yearly membership fees and receiving a Second Initiation is not enough to escape the responsibilities of life on the physical plane. He then awakens to the truth that it is and always has been in his own hands. Instruction and guidance are always available just for the asking. We are never alone, for our higher self, working with spirit and other entities dedicated to our spiritual growth, are always there. They are ever providing for, protecting, tutoring, and directing us. It is not that we cannot surrender and must shoulder the burden of life by ourselves. The test and the lesson, however, are to learn to surrender to and rely upon our higher self working with divine spirit rather than some intercessor who only blocks our direct connection to the ONE. The God-seeker must never be deluded into thinking that a master will relieve him of the burden of life and growth, no matter how appealing it may sound. The current Living Eck Master emphasizes the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad as the Bible of Eckankar, and urges his followers to read it often and to follow its tenets. When he does this, he is essentially accepting and propagating every exaggeration, deception, and misstatement Paul ever made about Eckankar and the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master. A continued reading of this text leads to an unprecedented level of indoctrination into all the threats, hyperbole, and distortions it contains. This is precisely what Harold continues to recommend to every chela in Eckankar by his endorsement of the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad. Harold’s prescription for my transgression of sending Graham’s journal to him was precisely this, to read the Shariyat for six months. On the one hand, Harold acknowledges that, “Paul got into his early efforts to present the teachings of ECK even before he called them ECK and ECKANKAR.” Harold makes this point because he has read the evidence revealing the truth about Paul and the origins of Eckankar. He knows that Eck and Eckankar were entirely of Paul’s creation. Despite being aware of these facts, Harold encourages the chela to continue to read and be indoctrinated into the false claim that Eckankar is the most ancient spiritual teaching known to mankind. Harold as much as admits that Eckankar was built, brick by brick (or perhaps card by card), during these early years, and had no ancient history, except what Paul invented. Indeed, during these early years he didn’t even call it Eckankar — that came later.28 Yet Harold leaves the Spiritual Notebook and the Shariyat unchanged and in print, continuing to spread the false history and dogma of Eckankar with no warning or revision. Even though Harold presents the benign face of Eckankar to an unsuspecting public, the longer one stays in the teaching, the deeper the indoctrination. Such is Harold’s skill, a skill made inevitable by Paul’s actions, and honed by Harold during his twenty years of protecting the pernicious legacy of Paul Twitchell and Eckankar. As recently as June 2002, Harold continued his emphasis on reading and studying the Shariyat. Harold’s new strategy is to promote the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad as a kind of self-help book for change: The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad means the Way of the Eternal. Its descriptive title could well be the “Book of Change.” It’s all about change. The spiritual benefit of the Shariyat is that it’s a guide to better living. “To improve is to change,” Winston Churchill, the British statesman, once observed. “To be perfect is to change often.”29 In this clever recasting of the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad, Harold ties its content to the powerful idea of movement toward perfection. Accordingly, he mandates regular reading of the Shariyat, which will lock the unwary deeper into Eckankar. To help to ensure this, Harold concluded his comments in a Wisdom Notes article: The Shariyat is our holy book. It is a guide for all who desire to be true to the eternal teachings of ECK. Base your talks and actions on the words in the Shariyat, and you will reach those who are ready for Eckankar.30 Harold knows that if he can turn the attention of chelas to the subtle influences incorporated into the Shariyat, then the doctrine of Eckankar is strengthened in their minds. While there are uplifting and valuable insights in these books, we must never lose sight of the fear tactics, falsehoods, exaggerations, and dependency factor that the Shariyat promotes. As to the fea r tactics, the Shariyat uses the age-old methods of fire and brimstone when, as we have seen earlier, this holy book and its derivatives warn of: dwelling in the astral hells,31 spiritual decay and swift death,32 horrendous troubles that strike like a plague,33 and increased incarnations in this world.34 Other exaggerations subordinate all other paths and religions to Eckankar for the Shariyat promotes the distortions that: Eckankar is the only and universal path to GOD.35 [T]here is no other path than ECK. . .[it is] the original and only path to God.36 It is not possible to enter . . . Heaven except through the teachings of ECKANKAR.37 Adding to the hyperbole, the Shariyat deifies the spiritual leader of Eckankar: [T]he Mahanta, which is God made flesh on Earth38 The Sat Guru [the Living Eck Master] is the Son of God 39 [A]ll the power of God must reach these worlds through. . . the Mahanta, the Living ECK Master.40 No man comes to the Sugmad (GOD) except through the Mahanta.41 This is just a sampling of the snares that await the devoted student of Eckankar. No wonder Harold wants the Eckist to make the Shariat her major source of reading and contemplation. Without altering or modifying its content or recommending passages that might promote the “change,” “perfection,” and “better living” that Harold advertises, he simply invites the chela inside. Harold knows the impact that such entry will have and the entrapment that lies in wait. The result is clear. Everyone who follows his entreaty will fall deeper into the indoctrination. By simply directing the chela to this book, Harold has insured the perpetuation of the doctrine and the future of the teaching, for this is the nature of indoctrination. The Spiritual Exercises of Eck and the HU Origins of the HU Fortunately, there is one aspect of the teaching of Eckankar that is based on tradition and practice, and is as ageless as humankind’s search for the direct experience of God. Paul’s master, Kirpal Singh, who founded the Ruhani Satsang, taught him the techniques of meditation and contemplation. Singh taught his chelas the practice of going within to contact the light and sound of God. The Ruhani Satsang taught the HU as the most sacred of all sounds and the “word” that was behind all other sounds. In Islam, from which the word HU is more recently derived, it is considered the divine pronoun42 and is translated by some literally to mean “he.”43 Recognizing that God has no gender, many prefer, in remembrance of the divide creator, to sing the word loudly as “WHO” or “Hooooooo.44 The Sufi tradition of Islamic mysticism teaches that sound manifests in different forms as it proceeds through “ten different tubes of the body.”45 These sounds take on the form of thunder, the roaring of the sea, the jingling of bells, running water, the buzzing of bees, the twittering of sparrows, the whistle, and others, until it merges into the HU. From this, it is concluded that all sounds are derived from the HU, making it the most sacred of all sounds, the sound behind all sounds, the Word. This interpretation is disputed by other world religions that claim the sound “OM” or “AUM” is the Word. Indeed, all of the attributes of HU are ascribed to OM including that it is the sound behind all sounds: OM moves the prana [spirit] or the cosmic vital force. In man, OM expresses prana or the vital breath. . . . In every breath, man utters it, repeats it unintentionally and inevitably. Every vibration in the body and in the universe emerges from OM, sustains in OM, and returns to OM. Every humming emerges from OM, sustains in OM and returns to OM. A child cries, “OM, OM;” musicians hum, “OM, OM;” bees buzz, “OM, OM” the ocean roars, “OM, OM.”46 I would venture that God has no preference and also that all sounds and words are part of ALL THAT IS, and serve equally well in garnering God’s attention. The True History of the HU As we have seen, Paul’s basic writings on the HU are derived, word for word, from the text of Hazrat Inayat Khan. But Paul not only took the words, he virtually kidnapped the HU and made it the sole property of Eckankar. Most Eckists today believe that this is one of Eckankar’s principle contributions to the world, and that it emanated from the tradition of the Vairagi Eck Masters. This, of course, is not true. However, Eckankar must be given some credit for popularizing the HU sound and explaining its use to the public. But, Eckankar has never acknowledged HU’s origins in the Islamic or Egyptian traditions: The Egyptian god HU was one of the minor gods in some respects, but he was one of the most important gods for those serious about Egyptian deities. HU is the power of the spoken word. He personifies the authority of utterance.47 Harold put forth an entirely different version for the origins of the HU: [T]he teachings of ECK predate even the Aryan civilization, which
began shortly after Atlantis went into the ocean. The Living
ECK Master at that time was a man named Rama,
who came from the dark forests of Harold’s account of the origins of the Eck teaching and of the HU is as false as many of Paul’s tales. It must be viewed in light of Paul’s penchant for grandiose claims. Harold’s account conspicuously avoids any mention of the origins of the HU from sources that are known to recorded history — Islamic and Egyptian — in favor of a parallel history whose provenance cannot be ascertained. It is true that
the word HU was known within Druid history, but as the name
Hu Gadarn, the Joshua of the Old
Testament, who purportedly came to Harold’s attempt to insert Eckankar into the history of pre-Aryan civilization and the Druids’ use of the word HU is disingenuous at best. Harold published this passage in 1988 in his book, How to Find God. However, in moments of truthful reflection, Harold acknowledged that: But without realizing it, he [Paul] was just practicing. Someday he would have a chance to take this teaching called Eckankar — maybe he didn’t even know the name then — and put it in front of people. . . .52 The ECK [spirit] teachings have been here from the earliest times, but they haven’t carried the name of ECKANKAR [or ECK]. They have been brought out under different names at different times. . .53 The word “Eckankar” [and ECK] . . . was not used to describe any religious doctrines [or ECK Masters] until the mid-1960’s when the term was coined, adopted and first used by Paul Twitchell, Eckankar’s modern day founder.54 Obviously, these declarations invalidate Harold’s 1988 reiteration of Paul’s redacted history. Indeed, Harold’s statements constitute an admission that a Living Eck Master named Rama never existed — much less influenced pre-Aryan and Druid civilizations. Along with the invalidation of these historical fabrications goes Eckankar’s claim that it was the first to impart the HU to early civilizations. The origins of the HU are, ultimately, not important to the God-seeker. The important point is that all sounds or mantras can enable the individual to transcend the physical dimension and experience the ecstatic states and the inner planes. I have personally traveled into regions where I have heard the inner celestial sounds using the mantra of HU, AUM, and many others. They all work and can enable the individual to hear the remarkable and awe-inspiring sounds of the inner worlds. Ascribing greater magic to one sound or mantra over another is much like arguing whose God is greatest. It is a meaningless debate for everything is part of the ONE. Further, when the practitioner has had some experience with these mantras and the inner experiences that follow, she will come to the realization that these are not outside sounds; they are a part of her. The Validity of Spiritual Exercises The basic spiritual exercise of Eck, which Paul called “the easy way,” is also the basic exercise of the Shabd Yoga tradition, and, as such, carries with it the intrinsic validity of this practice in the Yoga tradition. In these teachings, the HU is sung “Hooooooo,” whereas in Eckankar, it is sung “Huuuuuuuu” or “hugh” — Paul’s effort to make it unique. The difference is of no real significance. Each sound will work and should be continued if it works for you. Paul outlined many techniques by which the individual could transcend the physical and experience the inner realities. These are discussed in one of his earlier books, Eckankar – The Key to Secret Worlds. For the most part, this book imparts techniques that have been tried and tested within Eastern teachings to great effect. Paul articulated them in a way the West could better understand them, and, in this regard, Paul made an important contribution. The endless parade of unpronounceable Hindu, Pali, and Sanskrit words is quite off-putting to most in the West, and this is one of the main reasons these practices have gained so little ground here. If one removes the hype and fiction from Eckankar – The Key to Secret Worlds, there is still much to recommend it. Ultimately, however, Paul defiled this book, as he did all those that preceded and followed it, with an assortment of falsehoods mixed with smatterings of spiritual truth. In later years, Harold created and presented many additional techniques, most of them based on the principles of Shabd Yoga.55 They all work, and generally are useful techniques with which to have inner experiences. However, one must be cautious in practicing Eckankar’s exercises, because they are filled with imagery and fantasy that can sink the practitioner deeper into illusions and lies, especially when involving the Eck Masters. Only by realizing this, can one escape Eckankar’s traps and regain his true footing as soul and continue his journey to God. The Principles and Precepts of Eckankar The student of Eckankar is taught that there are four principles that should be imprinted upon his heart and mind. Having seen the truth about Eckankar, it is not difficult to see how a subtle brainwashing is at work as the student incorporates these principles into his very being. There is but one God and Its reality is the SUGMAD. The Mahanta, the Living ECK Master, is the messenger of the SUGMAD in all worlds, be they material, physic, or spiritual. The faithful, those who follow the works of ECK, shall have the blessings and riches of the heavenly kingdom given unto them. The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad is the holy book of those who follow ECKANKAR, and there shall be none above it. Spiritually, therefore, cannot be taught, but it must be caught.56 Once accepted and absorbed, these four principles speak for themselves as final evidence of the entrapping nature of the dogma and doctrine of Eckankar.
1. Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition (Springfield: Merriam-Webster, Inc., 1993), p. 1302. 2. See “Mahanta” at http://209.238.146.143/m.htm. 3. Paul Twitchell, Eckankar Dictionary (San Diego: Illuminated Way Press, 1973), p. 92. 4. Paul Twitchell, The Spiritual Notebook (Golden Valley: Illuminated Way Publishing, 1990), p. 18. 5. Ibid., p. 39. 6. Harold Klemp, A Cosmic Sea of Words: The Eckankar Lexicon (Minneapolis: Eckankar, 1998), p. 125. 7. Paul Twitchell, Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad, Book One (Minneapolis: Eckankar, 1987), p. 191. 8. Ibid., p.111. 9. Brad Steiger, In My Soul I Am Free (Menlo Park: Illuminated Way Press, 1968), pp. 33-34. |