April 2, 2004
Dear Harold,
It has now been
about eight months since my original open letter to you at which
time I outlined my reasons for writing Confessions of a God
Seeker and developing the New Spiritual Paradigm, which
emerged from the experiences chronicled in that book. Since
that time, we have heard from numerous Eckists and former-Eckists
hopeful that Eckankar would either acknowledge the deception
and remove it from the Eckankar works or correct the record
and reveal the fallacy in the facts presented in Confessions.
It is now clear that you and the leadership of Eckankar have
no intention of truthfully removing or even acknowledging the
historical fabrication, spiritual deception and insidious curses
that are rampant throughout the Eckankar works. This is especially
true in the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad, which you tout as the
quintessential book that Eckists should read and follow. But
what you do not tell them is that this book, more than all the
others, infuses the consciousness of the reader with an avalanche
of thought forms, which trap the seeker in an illusory and fabricated
paradigm that is ringed with a battery of curses, and psychic
control devices. They activate whenever an Eckist questions
too much or openly doubts any aspect of the teaching. In other
words, complete loyalty and the suspension of critical thought
and discernment is the price one must pay to remain a loyal
Eckists. And unlike your earlier rhetoric, which reflected a
tolerance for those who question, such seekers are now regarded
as miscreants, and in your terms, “weeds.”
This is a remarkable reversal of opinion for one who regards
himself as “God made flesh.”
Most recently,
your comments in the March, 2004 Mystic World and in the 2004
renewal letters to Eckists and Peter Skelsky’s response
in the Chanhassen Villager (November 12, 2003) and, using the
name of the local RESA, in the Ghanaian Times (February 26,
2004) reveals Eckankar’s true position on the revelations
in Confessions of a God Seeker. While I understand
the difficulty inherent in admitting to some of the excesses
of Paul Twitchell and his tendency to exaggerate and prevaricate,
Eckankar’s continued failure to acknowledge the obvious
deception and fabrication, engaging instead in character assassination
and disingenuous platitudes, only undermines the good that Eckankar
could have represented. Further, it erodes your credibility
and that of Eckankar and encourages the open exposure of this
deception, which recently occurred in a series of public exchanges
in Ghana, West Africa.
Outlined below
are excerpts from an article that appeared in the Ghanaian Times
newspaper in response to a rebuttal placed by Eckankar in that
paper. Eckankar’s Ghanaian Times response
is a restatement of the stance articulated by Peter Skelsky
and by you in several recent publications. This article, which
responded to those statements, reveals some of the hidden truth
about Eckankar. These revelations represent but a fraction of
the story exposed in Confessions. As difficult
as it may be for Eckists to confront or believe, the facts presented
below speak for themselves for they are taken from the written
works of Eckankar and as such have never been denied by or redacted
by you or by Eckankar.
· · · · ·
(Excerpted, with
modifications, from a March 15th, 2004 Ghanaian Times
article)
“Spiritual Leader of Eckankarä Claims Title Of ‘Son of God’
”
Contradicting the central
tenet of Christianity that Jesus is “The Son of God,”
the Religion of Eckankar claims that its spiritual leader,
Harold Klemp, actually holds that distinction. The written
works of Eckankar claim that Harold Klemp the Mahanta the
Living Eck Master is:
“[T]he Son of God. This same expression was
used to describe Christ during his stay on earth.” (Twitchell,
The Spiritual Notebook, 2nd Ed. 1990, p.18)
Born
of a Virgin:
“The Eck enters into the womb of a virgin, the queen of heaven….
[A] man child is born…then the chosen one learns that he is
the Living Eck Master.”
(Twitchell, Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad
Book I, 2nd Ed. 1987, pp. 111-112)
“God made flesh on earth…the representative of Sugmad
[God] in our midst today” (Twitchell, The Spiritual Notebook,
2nd Ed. 1990, p.223)
These are just a few of the
hundreds of startling claims that make up the doctrine and dogma
of Eckankar. These claims are blindly accepted by Eckists
because they cannot conceive that their spiritual leaders would
ever mislead or deceive them. Yet, the spuriousness of these
claims is obvious to all but the deceived. These are not the
words of “critics that come and go” as Eckankar
would have its followers believe, but words taken from the “holy”
books of Eckankar, which form the very foundation of this religion.
Is
Eckankar Anti-religion and Anti-Christian?
In
a recent article in the Ghanaian Times, Eckankar portrayed the
author of the new book Confessions of a God Seeker, as
anti-religion and anti-Christian. In truth, Confessions
consistently portrays an anti-deception, anti-mythology (as
religion), anti-lie perspective while recognizing the need for
and the role religions have played in the world. Eckankar, on
the other hand, portrayed itself as a supporter of religions
when it wrote, “Eckankar
respects all religions. Each of us must decide our own path
home to God….” This
is the benign face of Eckankar that is shown to the world and
those new to its teachings. But the hidden face of Eckankar,
which often remains hidden from the faithful even after they
have been indoctrinated, is quite different. These passages
¾ with references ¾ are taken directly from Eckankar’s
“Bible” called the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad.
“[T]he mission
of the Mahanta [Harold Klemp the Spiritual Leader of Eckankar]
on this earth is to stir the millions of non-initiated [followers
of other religions] into revolt against all
orthodox religions.” (Twitchell, Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad Book I, 1st Ed.
1982, p. 181)
“Those
who listen to Niranjan [Satan] are listening to the
false prophet. The sweet whispers of this negative genius
[the Devil] are heard in the voices of … the
preachers, clergy and priests who represent the old orthodox
religions [e.g. Christianity].” (Twitchell,
Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad Book I, 1st Ed., 1982, p. 44-45)
“[P]riests and clergy have …
joined religious orders for the sake of their livelihood.
A true seeker of the Eck cannot have much regard for such
persons.... Such persons do not belong on the same level
as the chelas [followers] of Eckankar.” (Twitchell,
Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad Book II, 2nd Ed. 1988, p. 225)
Here
is the real Eckankar doctrine, taken from their own “Bible.”
The truth about Eckankar and its religious tolerance could not
be more opposite their public platitudes.
Are
There Many Paths To God?
Another
misrepresentation presented by Eckankar in its Ghanaian Times
article is: “There are many paths that lead you to God. As
children of God, we each have the spiritual freedom to choose
the path that works for us. This freedom is given us by God.”
This is the public face of Eckankar. Here is the
private face, the one found in its written works. These quotes,
(with references) are also taken from the Eckankar “Bible”
and other books by Eckankar’s founder, Paul Twitchell.
“It
is not possible to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven except
through the teachings of Eckankar” (Twitchell, Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad Book I, 2nd
Ed. 1987, p. 96)
“All
these things can be learned through the medium of ECKANKAR,
the only and universal path to God” (Twitchell, The Spiritual Notebook, 2nd
Ed. 1990, p. 15)
“Again
and again I have pointed out that there is no other path than
ECK[ANKAR]…. [A]nyone who tries another path is trying to
start on a lower rung. It seems so foolish for anyone…to
select a spiritual path…when it is laid out for him
to move on to the original and only path to God.”
(Twitchell, The Spiritual Notebook, 2nd
Ed. 1990, p. 221]
This
is the real Eckankar with its masks removed. Eckankar’s
disdain for Christianity and all other religions could not be
clearer or more duplicitous.
Eckankar
“Invented” In 1965 By Paul Twitchell
It
is now reasonably apparent that Paul Twitchell, the founder
of Eckankar, suffered from a condition known as mythomania (pathological
lying). This condition explains how a novelist turned spiritual
leader could claim that his new
religion, created in 1965, was the oldest religion in the world.
Paul Twitchell, according to his wife and co-founder,
“made up the whole thing.” Perhaps that is why she has
had nothing to do with this teaching since. Twitchell magically
transformed a 1965 for-profit company into a religion and bestowed
upon himself the exalted title of Mahanta the Living Eck Master.
He even invented an absurd story for how this all happened.
According to Twitchell, he received his title and a mystical
Rod of Power — another Twitchellian fiction
— from a 400-year-old master named Rebazar Tarzs, who supposedly is still living
in the flesh, in the Hindu Kush Mountains of Northern Tibet.
But this fictionalized master, as well as all the others created
by Twitchell, was part of an invented ancient spiritual sect
known as the Vairagi Order (a name that he stole from an order
in India). These invented “masters” first
appeared in print around 1965 as he substituted their names
for those of real spiritual teachers he had included in earlier
versions of the same books.
But in the early years, before
Twitchell claimed that his new religion was “the oldest
world religion”, he was more candid about its true origins.
He wrote:
“Eckankar, which I formed out of my own experience…
is the term used for the philosophy I
have developed
for the Cliff hanger. It is based on Shabda-Yoga, a way out form of Yoga”
(Twitchell, “The Bilocation Philosophy,” p.
52; Johnson, Confessions of a God Seeker, p.132, 142)
Even the current leader of
Eckankar, Harold Klemp had to acknowledge the recent beginnings
of Eckankar, and therefore of the fiction of the Mahanta, the
Living Eck Master, when he admitted:
“[Eckankar] was not used to describe
any religious doctrines [the Mahanta, a necessary
inclusion] until
the mid-1960's when
it was coined, adopted and first
used by Paul
Twitchell " (From Court Records in
Darwin Gross v. Eckankar, see: www.thetruth-seeker.com)
In
spite of conclusive evidence
to the contrary and written
admissions
by both Paul Twitchell and Harold Klemp, Eckankar history and
doctrine carry the staggeringly false claims that:
-
“ECK[ANKAR] created and comprises
all the religious ideas of the lower worlds. Art, writing,
and sculpture are only developments of the higher ideals
of ECKANKAR…. The
major religions of the world have sprung out of ECK[ANKAR].” (Twitchell, The Spiritual
Notebook, 2nd Ed. 1990, pp. 11)
-
“Practically every man who has contributed to civilization
has spiritually been a … student...of ECK[ANKAR].” (Twitchell, The
Spiritual Notebook, 2nd Ed. 1990, p. 1)
With such obviously deceitful
and fabricated pronouncements still a part of Eckankar doctrine,
it is little wonder that Eckankar tries to minimize the effects
of its exposure to the world. But Eckankar’s deception
does not stop with its history and the claims that its leader
is “God made flesh.” It infects every part
of the teaching. Here are but a few of hundreds of examples
of deception and lying —not to mention plagiarism—that
find few parallels in religious history.
How
the Myth of the Mahanta was Fabricated
In
spite of what is now known about Twitchell’s condition
of mythomania, Klemp continues to delude himself into believing
that Twitchell’s 1965 creation of the Mahanta myth is
actually true. Klemp seems oblivious to the fact that Twitchell
stole even the name from another spiritual path. When it made
its early appearance in his book The Flute of God(pp.
46, 55), it was merely a synonym for spirit and a state
of consciousness like “love” or any other thought
form This was easy to accept, for most people believe in some
universal force whether called “spirit” or by some
other name. Twitchell later associated the word “Mahanta”
with the “man” and added it to his exalted title.
With this verbalfusion of two words, he was able
to transform himself into spirit itself ¾since spirit and Mahanta now meant the same thing.
He then diffused the word “Mahanta” throughout the
Eckankar teachings, and reinforced the Mahanta/Spirit connection
by making it part of “every word, thought and action”
of his followers.
Therefore,
it is not difficult to see how Eckists came to associate Twitchell,
Gross and Klemp with spirit and God itself. This verbal alchemy
is actually how a single word ¾ Mahanta ¾ first used, according to Klemp, in 1965, transformed
a mortal man into “God made flesh.” As if
this were not enough, Eckankar’s history is further clouded
by documented evidence (see: www.thetruth-seeker.com) that one
Mahanta (Darwin Gross) misappropriated $2.5 million (he also
bought a Lear jet) of Eckankar funds. Not only that but one
Mahanta (Harold Klemp) even claimed that the other Mahanta (Gross,
also a purported “Son of God”) was actually a Black
Magician. This is part of the sordid if not farcical history
of Eckankar revealed in Confessions of a God Seeker.
Though it is important to see this history, it is hidden from
the Eckankar community, because it reveals just how shallow
and contrived Eckankar’s “house of cards”
actually is.
Realizing
that the Mahanta construct was fabricated but legitimized through
verbal trickery and indoctrination, James Davis, author of a
book about the Mahanta, The Rosetta Stone of God, disavowed
his own book and the Mahanta concept. Davis independently
reached his decision, based on his own inner and outer experiences.
They confirmed what the author of Confessions, Ford Johnson,
and thousands of others have come to realize: Spirit is the
non-exclusive power of God and works in the lives
of everyone. But, when a single “man” claims he
is the exclusive channel for that force in the universe, indeed,
God itself, both he and those who follow him are deluded. The
Mahanta is a false [and fabricated] paradigm.
It works only because of the “power of belief.”
But belief in a false paradigm ultimately limits the spiritual
unfoldment of that person until it is replaced with an awareness
of God-soul that lies within each person. This is the
real source of love, guidance and protection.
By
repeating the expression: “I am one with ALL THAT IS”, “I
surrender to my higher self”, “God-soul that is me”, a person
is able to take the next step in spiritual unfoldment.
The power of this concept replaces a false spiritual paradigm
with the truth about their existence. This is the lesson
that our journey through countless religions and spiritual paths
has been designed to teach. We are a spark ¾ a replica ¾ of God Itself, no greater or less than any other
being that ever inhabited this earth. We have learned, through
many life times, the lessons needed to expand our awareness
to encompass this reality. It is summed up in the axiom, I
AM, GOD IS, WE ARE ONE. Teachings like Eckankar will move
heaven and hell to prevent us from reaching this awareness.
They know that it will deprive them of control and thus a central
role in our lives.
Fraud and Deception In Eckankar Initiations
Even in the sacred
arena of initiations (stages of spiritual unfoldment),
we find that there is no intrinsic truth or validity.
Like everything else in Eckankar, they are part of Paul Twitchell’s
invention. They serve as a mechanism of control and to insure
the steady flow of revenues. The “Mahanta” does
not determine through some “mystical spiritual process”
to whom or when initiations are granted, for we have already
seen just how “earthly” this invented position is.
Instead, a very mundane computer accomplishes this feat. Initiations
are based on the number of years of continuous paid-in membership
plus recommendations from local leaders. Harold Klemp admitted
as much to a group of high initiates:
“[M]any of
the initiation records we had were destroyed,…were 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…anybody
that had 5 years, they were sent a pink slip. There are 5th
initiates who aren’t 5th initiates….”
(An exhibit from the Case Darwin Gross vs. Eckankar, 1985.
See original at www.thetruth-seeker.com)
Harold Klemp
and The Cover-up
In spite of the
mountain of lies and fabrication, which Klemp found when he
took over Eckankar, he was not prepared to see the truth and
act on it. Instead, he fabricated incredible tales to explain
to himself and others what Twitchell had done. To explain Twitchell’s
plagiarism, for example, Klemp rationalized that Twitchell had
copied the thousands of stolen and plagiarized passages from
an astral library that he visited during his dreams.
In other statements he said that Twitchell’s habit of
lying about his accomplishments was “without realizing
it, just practicing [to eventually become the Mahanta].”
Eckists and Eck leaders in the field are not aware of the thousands
of lies that riddle this teaching. But worst, many appear afraid
or unwilling to learn the truth, which only delays spiritual
unfoldment. Instead, they follow a teaching that is based on
a carefully interwoven set of lies.
Eckankar Techniques of Spiritual Entrapment ¾The Use of Fear To Control Eckists
Another
example of the intentional and knowing deception fostered by
Twitchell and Klemp and covered up by the current leadership
is found in a series of warnings about how spiritual students
are trapped and deceived. Twitchell wrote these warnings for
the enlightenment and protection of his followers. Then he used
the same techniques of entrapment on his own students.
Twitchell writes:
“The oldest
technique of keeping the loyalty of the chela by many teachers
is with fear…. Because they grow afraid of losing their
chelas to a Master on the higher level, the old fear tactics
will be drummed into those who desire to move away…. These
threats are very common. They usually go like this: [1]“If
you leave me, you will get caught in the astral and won’t
get out.” Another cliché is: [2]
“I’ve got the only path and if you leave it, you’re
in deep trouble.” Another one is: [3]
“I’m the true Master, and having initiated you, will be with
you until the end of eternity. I’m your Master always.”
These are a few of the techniques of fear used by most teachers
of the psychic worlds. We can easily recognize them.
“ (Twitchell, Eckankar, Illuminated Way Letters 1966-1971,
pp. 93-94)
Having warned
his students of the spiritual traps to look out for, Twitchell
proceeded to utilize these same entrapping techniques on his
own followers, harming thousands of seekers who believed and
trusted him.
There is no intrinsic
truth or power to any of the curses and fear devices used in
Eckankar. Twitchell has already admitted that they are simply
devices of control. They work only if the individual accepts
them as true. Here are just a few of the many curses that Twitchell
and Klemp have placed in front of Eckists to keep them in line.
They wrote:
“The
wrath of the ECK crashes down upon anyone who …deserts
the Master….Not once will he see the connection between
his betrayal …and the horrendous troubles that strike
him down like a plague on every hand. And thus he goes
downward…until he leaves his body in hopeless despair….
“ (Klemp, The ECK Satsang Discourses, Third Series,
Letter 8)
“Whosoever…shall
divulge the secrets of his initiation… shall be deprived of
his sight and tongue in order to never again be able to say
anything about the degrees of initiation in ECKANKAR” (Twitchell,
Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad Book II, 1st Ed. 1977, p.150)
“To
ridicule, to scorn, to speak mockingly of the words of the
Mahanta, and not to have faith in him and the cause of ECK
is to bring woes on the advocator of doubt.” (Twitchell,
Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad Book I, 2nd Ed. 1987, p.107)
For
a teaching that professes to be about love and spiritual unfoldment,
these curses are nothing more than a not-so-sophisticated form
of black magic. Klemp and Eckankar use “curses”
to frighten their followers into remaining silent, obedient
and entrapped. While it is despicable to subject loving and
trusting followers to the threats of eternal wrath, that is
precisely what Eckankar is doing. On this point, Ford
Johnson explains:
“A
‘curse’ is ‘a prayer or invocation for harm or injury
to come upon another. It is a denunciation that conveys
a wish or threat of evil.’ What Twitchell and
Klemp have working here are the same techniques employed by
the local Juju man — the witch doctor — who knows the
power of planting a seed-idea of harm or self-destruction
in the mind of a victim or group. It is unmistakably
a form of black magic or psychic attack widely practiced throughout
the world. Once believed, a curse can have a disastrous effect
on an individual. We receive numerous e-mails from ex-Eckists
who believed Eckankar’s curses and suffered as a consequence.
We show them that it is only fear or anger that allows these
negative psychic thought forms to have an impact on their
lives. Sending love, reacting with humor (after all, they
are hardly pronouncements from God), and reflecting (mirroring)
the curse back to the sender nullifies its effect. Doing
this also sends the consequence back to the perpetrator. All
of these techniques and more are spelled out in Part IV of
Confessions of a God Seeker, which deals with the actual
Journey to Higher Consciousness. We have helped many
people harmed by Eckankar’s curses, to take back control
of their lives. Thousands have already stood up to Eckankar’s
many deceptions and have emerged stronger, happier and more
enlightened.”
The
use of psychic attacks, exposes Eckankar as a harmful, even
dangerous, cult because of the blind obedience of its followers
to a person they mistakenly consider “God made flesh.”
Eckists have surrendered their will and remain happy and content
so long as they are obedient and never question. However, having
pulled back the curtain and revealed the sorcerer’s tricks,
Eckankar is left with only the devices of fear, name-calling,
denial, misrepresentation and more lies to defend itself. The
evidence of this can be seen in recent communications from the
leadership of Eckankar to its members, which stated in part:
“He
(Paul Twitchell) was quite frank about the effects that hit
a Judas in Eck. Any overt act against
the Mahanta, the Living Eck Master evokes the full fury of
the divine power. It stops acting in the troublemaker’s
behalf, and misery is the outcome.” (Excerpt from
membership renewal letter from Eckankar, 2004), and
“These
betrayers of ECK will pick up all their old karma once more.
More, the karma of all those whom they’ve fooled is inscribed
into their karmic log too. Hard times lie in store for them.”
(Mystic World, Ask The Master by Harold Klemp, March 2004)
Aside
from being just another fear tactic about which Twitchell has
already warned us, it is false and has no spiritual
validity. Karma (cause and effect) is to teach not to
punish. Once one has learned the lessons that the karmic
experiences were designed to teach, how can he lose the expanded
awareness he has gained? The Twitchell/Klemp curses are absurd
on their face. To the contrary, when one exposes truth or
learns from it, he experiences freedom and growth, for he has
escaped the entrapment of the lie. Once free, his life is filled
with love and light for he is empowered with the realization
that he is a part of God itself and can tap the power of the
universe.
The
Law of Cause and Effect Is Still At Work
Tragically,
the Leadership of Eckankar seems to have forgotten the law of
cause and effect. It is still at work and applies equally to
everyone, even the Mahanta the Living Eck Master. When
anyone engages in black magic, curses, threats of evil, and
hardship, they are setting forces in motion that will boomerang
to them. It is little wonder that the Living Eck Master himself
continues to suffer a string of personal hardships and set backs
including, perpetual sickness and weakness, which prevent him
from even traveling. While Klemp attributes these calamities
to taking on the karma (sins) of his chelas and because he has
chosen his affliction, one might well ask, “then why so
many physician visits?” “If one chooses to
suffer, then why seek a cure?” In truth, Klemp is only
reaping the consequences of his own states of consciousness
and the curses he has set in motion to control others. For,
as Paul Twitchell, in one of his most truthful and enlightened
statements during his pre-Eckankar days wrote:
“Whatever
anyone is receiving or lacking in the out picturing and expression
of his consciousness is each ones own responsibility.”
“Until you can understand that nothing can happen to
you, nothing can ever come to you or be kept away from you
except in accordance with the state of your consciousness,
you do not have the key to life.”
So
much for the curses! While this drama unfolds in full view of
the world, the information is now available for all to see and
to make their own decisions.
Does
Eckankar Still Work For The Eckist? How Spiritual Deceptions
Work
Most
Eckists have grown and learned while in Eckankar for it does
contain truth, but it is important to remember that all deception
is performed by a clever interweaving of the truth with lies.
The question and the dilemma for the Eckist is, which is which?
In its article for the Ghanaian Times, Eckankar spelled out
a test for whether a religion or path was still working for
the individual. The test included whether the religion
or teaching: “brings you closer to God’s Love”;
“brings more charity and good will into your life,”;
“brings about a growth in spiritual awareness”;
and “leaves you happy in your faith. ” All these
are important and fair questions. However, this test fails to
ask one critical question, the answer to which can render
all other answers meaningless. That question is: Do you
know the truth about that religion or path? If you have
taken the time to learn what lies behind the curtain, the façade
that is presented for public consumption, then you have answered
this all-important question. If after being exposed to the truth
— e.g. reading Confessions of a God Seeker — you
can still answer the initial questions in the affirmative then
you are indeed where you should be and you should remain. But,
to answer these questions in the affirmative while still
ignorant of the truth behind Eckankar is to knowingly engage
in self-deception, for eventually you will have to confront
the truth. Eckankar has worked for the Eckist for the same reasons
that all other religions and teachings have worked for their
followers. Namely, a strong love bond is created along with
a fear of separation. Added to this is the power of belief that
resides in the believer not the object of that
belief. Belief in anything produces results. But the goal
is ultimately to develop belief in the divinity that lies
within the individual not in an intercessor. Paul
Twitchell was quite eloquent on the question of how the attachment
of a seeker is gained and the dangers associated therewith:
“We
are concerned with the two ways that anyone [or any religion]
can hold another; first is by the loyalty of Fear,
and secondly is by the loyalty of Love. These are the
basic ways by which one is attached….When one is loyal…because
he is afraid…then the whole foundation of spiritual
growth is nil… In the loyalty of love…he who intensely
loves another is somewhat trapped by the negative power….What
I am getting at here is that we cannot live with fear and
at the same time we cannot live with an over-abundance of
sentimental love…either will pull us down in the depths of
despair sooner or later.” (Twitchell, Eckankar, The Illuminated
Way Letters, 1966-1971, p. 93)
Twitchell’s
statement speaks directly to the dilemma now facing Eckists
worldwide. These challenges to Eckankar’s veracity will
not go away, they will only intensify. For, a teaching based
on lies will eventually fall by the weight of its own
deception when exposed to the light of truth.
How The Local
Leadership Has Been Misled
In
responding to the role of local leadership Johnson commented:
One of the
unhappiest aspects of exposing Eckankar is that many local
leaders have been close and dear friends of mine for many
years. But because many of them have apparently refused to
read Confessions of a God Seeker , they are being misled
and don’t realize it. How can anyone lead when they
don’t have the facts and refuse to enlighten themselves
to the deceit and hypocrisy that infects this teaching, no
matter how painful the truth may be? Whether the leadership
of Eckankar points the Eckists further into the trap or opens
a dialogue where questions can be asked and truth discovered,
remains to be seen. But without discovering truth and then
moving to where it leads, it is like ‘the blind leading
the blind.’ Whatever anyone ultimately decides
to do is fine. But, the reason we have gone to the expense
and effort of presenting this information is that the wall
of silence and fear is so high that even those who wanted
to know the truth could not find it or were afraid to look.
So we have revealed some of the findings in Confessions
to let everyone see for himself or herself, a small fraction
of this truth. Perhaps it will be enough to encourage truth
seekers to look more deeply.”
The Higher Consciousness
Society and The New Spiritual Paradigm
The Higher
Consciousness Society (HCS), a non-profit spiritual education
society, is the outgrowth
of Confessions of a God Seeker. It is based on The
New Spiritual Paradigm, presented in Part IV
of Confessions of a God Seeker, which embodies the principle
that every soul is a reflection of GOD,
possessing the attributes and characteristics of ALL
THAT IS. Our journey through life in many dimensions
of reality is to come to the full awareness of this truth. HCS
recognizes that true inner guidance comes from the higher self,
God-soul that lies within each person. It accepts the
guidance of others as teachers but never as masters, saviors,
messengers, or any other title suggesting spiritual superiority.
Instead, it views every person as both teacher and student differing
only in the degree to which they understand, accept, and live
by the heart of all spiritual truths: I AM,
GOD IS, WE ARE ONE.
HCS rejects doctrine, dogma, and spiritual hierarchical
paradigms. Instead, it teaches that all sentient beings are
an equal part of the whole. It provides insight, instruction,
guidance and support that lead to souls liberation from religious
entrapments. Through continued instruction and support, the
individual as God-soul learns their innate power as soul and
how to use it for their own happiness and to assist in the enlightenment,
liberation and empowerment of all souls. HCS
teaches the Master Principle and the Master Techniques, developed
and first presented by the HCS founder and author of Confessions,
Ford Johnson. These techniques teach each individual how to
use the power of spirit to bring into their life the abundance
and happiness that is their birthright as soul. Classes and
an active bulletin board with contributions from seekers around
the world can be found at www.higherconsciousnesssociety.org.
Everyone is invited to visit this interactive web site, ask
questions, seek spiritual help and fully participate.
·
· · · ·
These revelations
will continue to be presented in newspapers across the country
and the world so long as Eckankar persists in the use of entrapping
and fear tactics, which do incalculable harm to innocent and
loving God Seekers. They come to Eckankar’s doors
with an open heart. But when they ask too many questions or
discover the trail of inconsistencies and deception, they are
met with a wall of silence and rejection, which leaves them
baffled, distraught and scarred. We deal with such people every
day and collectively work to undo the harm that Eckankar’s
treatment of them has caused. Certainly you must know these
facts for we see many of the letters that Eckists send to you.
We also learn of the silence with which they are greeted.
The impact of
fear tactics and curses employed by Eckankar will diminish as
more become aware of the manipulative nature of these control
devices. To continue to use them, as you recently did in your
March 2004 Mystic World Q&A response, exposes Eckankar as
a truly dangerous cult willing to infect the thinking and consciousness
of its followers with threats and curses that rival the worst
of the “hell and damnation” proclamations that many
thought they were escaping.
Eckankar is not
blessed with the thousands of years of historical dust that
have allowed other religions to escape the truth of their origins
and history. Too much is known. Too much has been revealed.
Far better to clean it up and salvage the truth and integrity
that it still can. Otherwise these challenges to Eckankar’s
veracity and integrity will never end.
Like thousands
of other truth seekers before me, I have transcended Eckankar’s
fear tactics and curses, which your words and pubic declarations
suggest is what Eckankar regards as its last line of defense.
More and more will follow as they see the truth and the deception
that you and the leadership of Eckankar have fostered.
To say that Eckankar
is “between a rock and a hard place” is not an exaggeration.
But truth is always the best course. It is what you profess
to stand for. Can Eckankar afford to do less?
Respectfully,
Ford Johnson
See:
First Open Letter to Harold Klemp
See:
Confessions of a God Seeker
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