to links pageThis document contains posts 301-400 from the August 2001 Anthony Thomas Quick Topic discussion board. Posts are in reverse order. To follow the conversation, read from bottom to top.
Andries 400 9-04-2001
Re 397
Terrie,
It's much better now than it used to be a few months ago but your story that is confirmed by Sparrow and Beth about the void is really bad news.
I don't think it's worse for men. It simply depends on your emotional involvement imo.
Men may have more difficulty to believe the stories.Andries 399 09-04-2001 02:28 AM
Re: 398 I noticed that Sunrise/Snowcrest was down too. But now it's up again.
Terrie 398 09-04-2001 01:13 AM
All of Snowcrest seems to be down tonight. I couldn't get the site to load at all and couldn't even get to "snowcrest" (without the Sunrise) when I tried.
Terrie 397 09-04-2001 01:11 AM
Forgiven. I feel really bad that you are having such a hard time, Andries. And when the pain finally goes, it's almost worse. For there is indeed a real void there. It's just like the psychic told Beth. I really do believe that our brain cells have to be re-programmed after leaving sb. All sensations are linked to the brain. We just have to wait patiently while the re-programming takes place. New circuits and all....
I've also wondered if men have a harder time detaching because sb really cares for them in a perverse sort of way, and he doesn't seem to like women at all.
Andries 396 09-04-2001 12:12 AM
Edited by author 09-04-2001 12:13 AM
Ref 392, Dear Terrie, Sorry. I sometimes forget that there have been and still are many full time devotees.
Balaraman Suresh 395 09-03-2001 11:10 PM
Dear Terrie,
What is going to happen to Parthi Baba is the same that is going to happen to all of us.We will be either born again as Human being's or if our Karmic Credit's and Debit's in the Savings Account are either way's,then we will be born as a lesser species or a higher species.
For me to tell exactly what Parthi Baba will be born,it's a no brainner - he will be born as an "Amoeba".For he has done too much atrocities in this lifetime. :) :)
As per the Vedic Shastra,Gayathri Mantram should be initiated thru a Guru,who could very well be your father,priest.In fact women are forbidden to chant this mantram as it will have negative effect's.Of course,i leave it to your better judgement as to do exactly what you want to do and the other ladies can follow the same.
One really has to just compare what Parthi Baba speaks and what he does in action?While in the subject of comparison,how did Jesus Christ live?How did Baba from Shirdi live?How did the Shankaracharya, Adi Shankara live?If you compare,Parthi Baba cannot even raise to these above mentioned spiritual Gnani's feet.And may be i am committing a SIN even just comparing Parthi Baba with them,so Lord do forgive me.
Terrie 394 09-03-2001 09:06 PM
Ref #385, Suresh,
O.K., so asuras (demons) can have the ability to chant divine hymns and mantras. Understood now.
"Parthi Baba's disguise is blown off,and now we know that he is an "Asura Kunju" meaning Demon Kid.He is still not a grown adult Asura for people to be afraid of."
Do you mean he's going to come back STRONGER next time!!??? What IS going to happen to Parthi baba after this lifetime?
Did you mean also that the Gayathri Mantra is so sacred that it should only be chanted by an initiated disciple of a true Guru?
393 09-03-2001 08:48 PM
Terrie 392 09-03-2001 08:47 PM
Andries, so many of us (including Sparrow, myself, Contessa, etc.) also lived and breathed sb for so many years. I don't think you are any different than the rest of us, except that somehow you're having more trouble letting go. Part time devotee?? Not us!! The whole of our life was sb.
391 09-03-2001 08:45 PM
Terrie 390 09-03-2001 08:44 PM
Sparrow, I remember a few more details about your son and the psychic ,like why he was seeing a psychic in the first place. Also, your own reaction to what the psychic said. Please tell us the story? p.l.e.a.s.e??
389 09-03-2001 08:24 PM
388 09-03-2001 08:20 PM
A Sparrow 387 09-03-2001 08:12 PM
Beth, I loved reading your posts about what the psychic told you. The words "void" and "state of limbo" are the exact words I would use to describe the state I'm in now. Sometimes I miss that high of being devoted to someone and I question what God is (not whether or not there is a God, but WHAT he/she is).
Terrie, what you said about my son is about all there is to say. There's nothing to embellish it with.
I do want to share one small story, though, while we're on the subject of psychics, although I know I told it a few months back. I myself went for a psychic reading and I asked if the psychic could "see" anything about a "guru" whom I had followed for many years and recently broken away from. The psychic asked his name and I told her. She had never heard of him. After a moment she said (and I'm not quoting verbatim because I didn't make a recording or write anything down ... I'm doing my best to reconstruct) that his teachings were very good and his understanding of the laws of the universe were tremendous, but that all this was tainted by his craving for power.
Now if sb were God, why would he crave power as all power would be his to begin with?
Re the Gayatri again: I read somewhere that David Koresh, the leader of the Branch Davidian sect in Waco TX that met with such a gruesome end (DK was also a molester of children; in his case young girls) had MEMORIZED THE ENTIRE NEW TESTAMENT!! So, these less than holy fellows are quite capable of associating themselves with and using to their own ends ... holy material.
For me, the Gayatri will always be associated with sb, but that's purely subjective. For someone else it would be fine.
Beth, I totally agree that being with sb was important for our growth and was all part of God's plan. I have never felt any hatred for him and I'm happy about the good stuff that came about during my years with him. I know I'm a better person, but I don't know if that's because of the man himself, or because of my own devotion that made me want to change, the way a child would want to be good too please a parent.It doesn't matter. The one reason I speak out against him is to help prevent other people (especially young boys) from being hurt.
386 09-03-2001 08:06 PM
Balaraman Suresh 385 09-03-2001 08:02 PM
Dear Terrie,
In one of your post,you have asked as to how an evil person like Parthi Baba can chant and allow people in his congregation to chant all that holy stuff?
Well,my understanding of Hindu Culture is that to explain values in the form of stories.Take for example King Ravana of Lankeshwar of Ramayana.He was a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva and by virtue of his sincere prayer to Lord Shiva,he obtained BOONS.
Despite being an a ASURA,the Chanting,the ASCETIC practices,was done by Ravana,unlike in Christanity,where the ASURA SATAN cringes even at the sight of the CROSS and HOLY WATER.
Parthi Baba's disguise is blown off,and now we know that he is an "Asura Kunju" meaning Demon Kid.He is still not a grown adult Asura for people to be afraid off.
As for the potency of Gayathri Mantram in my humble opinion,knowledge being shared to all and sundry is never a good thing.One must have a way to test aspirants before being initiated to any yogic path.That is the main reason you have spiritual guru's who with their Gnana Dhristi know which "one" of us is the chosen one.Very similar like the GRE<GMAT<TOEFL<SAT<CAT etc of measuring intelligence of human being.
384 09-03-2001 07:45 PM
Andries 383 09-03-2001 07:29 PM
Ref #359,362, 372,378
Dear Terrie,
Andries wrote
> >It still works when I chant the gayatri.
Terrie wrote
> What works?? This wasn't clear to me, Andries, what you meant here. <
More or less automatic contemplation on the meaning of the gayatri while chanting it as taught to me or actually drilled to me by Jagadeesan.
Terrie wrote
> I think it's just mental rationalizing about sb not really being "evil." I go along all the way with Anthony's "A Very Clever Setup." This is a very powerful DARK LORD we're dealing with. No question about it in my mind. <
You know that I prefer an explanation that is the most down to earth one. I have heard no convincing confirmation for Anthony's inner experience. On the contrary many people have inner experiences as SSB as an avatar. So now I tend to distrust all inner experiences. Are there more people apart from Anthony, Tal Brooke and Barbara Szandorowska (See 'A Guru Accused') who believe that SSB is a 'Dark Lord or Anti-Christ? And what are their reasons?
Terrie wrote
> Pardon me, Andries, but I think its this type of rationalizing that is preventing you from making a clean and healthy break from sb. I think it's possible that you're still in there a bit. Still trying to give him a chance. And it's causing you a lot of unnecessary pain. <
Terrie, I was not a parttime devotee. When I had a short moment spare time I did my japa with the mantra 'Sai Ram'. Whenever I met anybody (colleague, friend, acquintance or stranger) I would say to my self 'Sai Baba' I love You. I even had a self-improvement diary as recommended in Lt Gen Chibber's book "Sai Baba's Mahavakya on Leadership" . My diary's first item of attention was the amount and intensity of thoughts spent on SSB/God. I hardly had any ambition than being a good devotee which puzzled even some devotee-friends.
When I had a 'weak' moment of doubt because of the 'calumny' I tended to intensify my prayers and japa to get rid of it. Or trying to find good explanations for the 'calumny' except the most prozaic one until I ran out of explanations. It was a struggle to postpone the disenchantment.
In short I had almost completely identified myself with SSB. Although an outsider could not easily see this.
With such a background I think it will be clear that losing my faith was extremely painful. And I will need quite a long time most probably to recover with or without "rationalizing" something.
Kind Regards, Andries K.D., the NetherlandsTerrie 382 09-03-2001 07:25 PM
Beth...another great post!! Sunrise, are you out there?? Capture these posts. I've got to run now...dinner time and work and all that. See you later tonight, Beth.
Beth 381 09-03-2001 07:22 PM
Terrie...that was nice from Summer Rain and also I just read the posts between the women. All of this is clearing up my head I think finally, realizing that many have had the same inner experiences as I have. I just never dared to speak of them before.
I had a dream about 4 years ago. I had been writing to and praying to sb for many years for my health problems. I had a dream that sb came to me with an arrogant and disgusted attitude and said in a demeaning way to me : "WHAT DO YOU WANT? DO YOU WANT TO BE HEALED? SIT DOWN !" and he proceeded in a very uncompassionate, unloving, begrudging way, not at all concerned with my welfare, just COLD !! ICE COLD !!!
This entity did give me advice though in the dream that might have been accurate. I was having thyroid imbalance at the time and he put a gemstone on my thyroid area.
After I woke up, I could not shake the dream off. I didn't like sb at all after that and that feeling lasted for months.
Before this dream, I had many inner feelings that sb did not like women and I called him on it many times...asking him why he treated woman so aloofly (sp). I do not even remember now why I felt this way, but I have felt this way for a long time. I'd love to hear from women on what they have experienced. I, too, came to the conclusion that he was a "woman-hater"...but cannot pin point why now.
I've often had the feeling that sb knows that I'm on to him (his woman-hating)and he really did not like me at all. I ignored those inner feelings and chalked it up to low-self esteem and my "imagination".
Terrie 380 09-03-2001 07:22 PM
Also, Beth, it's very much open to question whether sb has really done GREAT miracles. There's a very good on-line book that covers this subject by Dale Beyerstein. It's referenced on Sunrise...I think (not sure) on the "What's really going on with sai baba?" page.
I think maybe there's information on the rumored but false miracles on the http://www.sathyasaivictims.com site also.
Marswalker has posted a lot on the relative unimportance of so-called miracles. Dennis, do you know the post numbers? Those posts should also be on Sunrise.
I posted something myself on the non-existence of miracles (they're only work with natural energies that we know nothing about) in the discussion "Sai Baba can't fool the ladies." Reference: Sunrise on the Inner Planes page...I think, not sure of the page. But I've seen it somewhere on Sunrise.
379 09-03-2001 07:14 PM
Terrie 378 09-03-2001 06:55 PM
Beth, the Christian Bible speaks of evil persons speaking with the tongues of angels and deceiving many. Else, how would the evil ones have any effect on the human race? One of my favorite responses to your question comes from my own favorite "prophet," Mary Summer Rain:
I heard the adulations as the
Excited hoards of people rushed
Past me.Did I hear them murmur that the
Chirst was over there?Had my Advisors been wrong on
The Forseen timing?
Surely I would know if this was so.I observed thousands flocking
About the gentle speaker.
More and more came running.Standing far back I waited to
Spy the one who instilled such
Intense adoration and honor.And when the crowd lowered
Themselves on bended knee,
My soul gave a jolting shudder.For at that horrid moment did
I see the one standing tall
Above the crowd.As he spoke his gentle words
My spirit did see his serpant tongue.
Did no one else see it?With his arms upraised in holy
Blessing, my eyes did rest upon
The antichrist's disciple.My advisors had not been wrong.And with a heart that felt as ice,
I slowly, very slowly...backed away.From America's modern mystic and spiritual messenger:
MARY SUMMER RAIN in WHISPERED WISDOM, page 40
Hampton Roads Publishing, 1992
(Available from any book store) 377 09-03-2001 06:50 PM
Beth 372 09-03-2001 06:28 PM
RE: SB- evil entity or not...
I cannot fathom ( with my limited human intelligence) how teachings of love, good will, universal thinking, gayatri mantra , healings, miracles ...GREAT miracles, not trinket magic...etc...can possibly come from a man who engages in the alleged activities that he is accussed of. This is the ULTIMATE question for me.
I have resigned myself to the fact that I will never know who and what this being is. I can not judge...but I can move on.
I think this is why many devotees refuse to budge or comment or even look at the allegations...they have been told so many times by sb "You can not possibly understand Me (judge ME) or MY WAYS...so don't try, just accept."
Seems to me if he were a Light Being, that he would do something to ease the doubts and suspicions around him besides just using the excuse that jealous people are paying people to slander him. I feel A much greater explanation is due his devotees, because that just does not appear to be true.
371 09-03-2001 06:26 PM
Terrie 369 09-03-2001 06:23 PM
Ref #364 Beth, you said,
"Yes, please Sparrow share this story. These are the kinds of things I would like to hear if anyone else has a psychic story, dream or inner experience to share..."
Did you read all the articles on the "Inner Planes" page of Sunrise? There's an interesting discussion there between some past women ssb devotees and an interesting dream or two as I remember.
http://www.snowcrest.net/sunrise
Yes, the little prayer you posted was a nice one. I hope that 7 people saw it. I never know what to do when a "nice" chain letter comes to my mail box. I think if I send it out, then all those people will wonder what to do with it. Well, it was a warm little prayer. Thanks.
368 09-03-2001 06:19 PM
Beth 365 09-03-2001 05:46 PM
RE: deleted post...Very sorry, Beth, I'm guessing that maybe Anthony might not be crazy about a chain letter on the board. I'm subbing for Anthony Thomas this week...it's his board.
LOL...That's OK...I sort of didn't expect it to hold up for long. Thought it was a nice simple prayer though.
Beth 364 09-03-2001 05:44 PM
re: Terrie says...Sparrow also told a story about her son whom a psychic told that his family was somehow being influenced by dark forces. Sparrow, can you post that story here??
Yes, please Sparrow share this story. These are the kinds of things I would like to hear if anyone else has a psychic story, dream or inner experience to share...
Deletion #354 363 09-03-2001 05:40 PM
Very sorry, Beth, I'm guessing that maybe Anthony might not be crazy about a chain letter on the board. I'm subbing for Anthony Thomas this week...it's his board.
Sincerely,
This week's Board AdministratorTerrie 362 09-03-2001 05:17 PM
Ref #359, Andries,
". It still works when I chant the gayatri."
What works?? This wasn't clear to me, Andries, what you meant here.
I think it's just mental rationalizing about sb not really being "evil." I go along all the way with Anthony's "A Very Clever Setup." This is a very powerful DARK LORD we're dealing with. No question about it in my mind.
Pardon me, Andries, but I think its this type of rationalizing that is preventing you from making a clean and healthy break from sb. I think it's possible that you're still in there a bit. Still trying to give him a chance. And it's causing you a lot of unnecessary pain.
Love,
TerrieHari Sampath 361 09-03-2001 05:03 PM
To Dragonslayer Ref : 358 :
Yes, seems to me that time is not really a good way to measure whether or not a specific prayer ( in the form of Gayathri Manthra) works or not.
And then, we could also say that it has " not worked" so far for those SB devotees of 30 years or more, who are still in his fold, and still chanting the Gayathri Manthra.
I don't know what to say to this, except that , I am 100 % SURE the Gayathri Manthra would ALWAYS work, but I am unable to say when and how. Obviously in matters of belief, it may not be possible to explain everything in a time frame or with concrete proof.
This is just my personal conviction, and one that I would heartily recommend to anyone who asks me ( all I would say is please chant the Brahma Gayathri, and NOT the Sai Gayathri).
One more reason for a "Manthra" to work is, Manthras are reputed to work literally the way they are chanted.
So, if a devotee is chanting the "Sai Gayathri", what he/she is doing is , in effect , hailing SB as the ultimate effulgence and praying for enlightenment and grace. This precisely is what will happen, and the "Real Light" would certainly enlighten them, but through the form of SB ( although SB himself is a fraud).
This explains too some of the inner transformations, and a lot of the phenomena that takes place miles away from SB ( of which a lot are genuine, I have no doubt, but NOT has anything to do with SB himself)
Whether these people will awaken to the fact that SB is a fraud, upon discarding "Sai Gayathri" , remains to be seen. But I am convinced they would be.
Hari Sampath 360 09-03-2001 04:52 PM
Andries 359 09-03-2001 04:48 PM
Edited by author 09-03-2001 04:56 PM
Re SSB & Gayatri 327, 332, 336, 338
Dear Terrie,
You wrote
>I still don't see how a being of evil (as we believe sb to >be)can chant a prayer of >light. Can someone (Suresh, Hari, >Tony?)given a good explanation for this?
May be SSB is not exceptionally evil. Only overpowered by sexual urges sometimes that gradually enslaved him. Probably he is hardly aware of or indifferent to the traumas of spiritual and sexual abuse that he has inflicted. Or may be his words are totally disconnected to his deeds. In this case he may chant the gayatri without ever contemplating on its meaning.
May be ex-devotees tend to see SSB as more evil than he actually is because they feel betrayed. Don't forget in some respects he has absolute powers and as the saying goes absolute power corrupts absolutely.
Anyway SSB's personality seems to be exceptional but far from unique when reading about other perpetrators in the newspapers.
Btw I know SSB devotees who chant 1 japamala (108x) gayatri per day or even more. But they do it very quickly most probably without concentrating on the meaning.
In the youth conference in Denmark Jagadeesan drilled us to chant the gayatri while concentrating on a simplified version of its meaning. It still works when I chant the gayatri.
Kind regards, Andries K.D.Dragonslayer 358 09-03-2001 04:43 PM
Hari, you said, "The Gayathri Manthra seems to have worked, because it has shown you the light about SB eventually."
It took more than 25 years!! There may have been no relationship to the Gayatri at all, or else it would have worked long before that, I would think. Hari Sampath 357 09-03-2001 04:31 PM
To Dragonslayer : ref msg 352 :
The Gayathri Manthra seems to have worked, because it has shown you the light about SB eventually .
Hari Sampath.Dragonslayer 356 09-03-2001 04:27 PM
Edited by author 09-03-2001 04:28 PM
An additional thought. The spammers seem to be especially active these days. We should expect it. I like the theme of Sunrise "the call to battle".
The empire of the false god is falling apart as more and more fine spiritual people discover what is going on. We should expect a furious fight. The pit bulls are threating us and snapping at our heels. They are only trying to defend their corrupt master. We had hardly blame these attack dogs who believe their master will feed and protect them. Even the pit bulls trained to fight and kill believe their cruel master is their god.
We make a mistake if we think we are fighting just a dirty old man. True, this creep is that. But he is also the ugly head of Evil, and to expose and defeat this evil is our mission. God Bless 355 09-03-2001 04:22 PM
Dragonslayer 352 09-03-2001 04:13 PM
I believe the Gayatri is a holy and blessed prayer. But true devotion relies on the intent of the one who prays. No doubt the many including those who have spent time at the false god's ashram have been blessed with this prayer. However, as we well know from our own experiences, this holy prayer did not keep us from delusion when we were followers of that dirty old man.
Terrie 351 09-03-2001 04:03 PM
Ref: #346
Wonderful post, Beth! Thank you. If Sunrise is true to form, we will see your post (and perhaps others) permanently archived on that site.
Sparrow also told a story about her son whom a psychic told that his family was somehow being influenced by dark forces. Sparrow, can you post that story here??
350 09-03-2001 04:02 PM
Beth, posts 343, 344, and 345 are examples of posts by "Dutch" and his alias identities. In case you have not seen these posts, I am leaving #344 on the board for a few hours as an example of an outright lie regarding Suresh Balaraman, a very devoted Hindu who is working to expose Parthi baba. This individual (Dutch, etc.) has also accused Terrie of running a pornography site. Terrie is a California grandmother. Sincerely,
Board AdministratorBeth 347
09-03-2001 03:58 PM
The psychic instructed me this way: When you are removing old stuff and giving away books, gently and sincerely say a prayer, thanking this entitiy ( your teacher) for all that he has given, but say that you would like to move on and be released. (I took that to mean, no anger, no judgement...just time to move on...with gratitide for all that was done for me or given to me) That was it.
09-03-2001 03:58 PM Beth 346 09-03-2001 03:46 PM
I have a recording of the Gayatri by Karunamayi...Somehow my sb recording got lost. Interesting posts on the Gayatri, thank you.
Around Feb.2000 I accidently discovered the allegations against sb while innocently surfing the net one night. Went into shock for a week or so. Spent several months on the internet talking to people. Could not come to any absolute conclusion, so I just tried to stop thinking of sb and moved on...and I did stop thinking of him until just recently.
Anyway...around Sept/Oct 2000 I happen to go to a psychic. I didn't say anything about my life to her. She suddenly said "your guides are telling me to tell you to take down your altar, clean up your altar...remove all pictures, etc...and give them away" I knew she was talking about sb.
I don't really have an altar, only a pic of sb and maybe some vibhuti next to it and a candle..so I know she was saying get rid of all sb material. Then she said "get rid of all the books too"...so then I knew she was instructing me to end my asociation with sb.
She never mentioned sb...she did not know who my spiritual gurus were....and I didn't tell her...she just got this message from MY GUIDES. I think I asked her why I should do this and she said because many souls right now are going thru a huge spiritual SHIFT..(maybe not all souls) She said something like "a new spiritual energy is entering the Earth, new spiritual Masters/teachers entering and people would be linking up with NEW teachers...old teachers going out...
I thought this was very interesting. She also said that people would experience a VOID for a while until the new replaces the old. So she said many of us would feel "in limbo" and kind of lost because all that we were holding on to would be suddenly removed from us. That's exactly how I feel. And probably how a lot of you feel too.
A sb devotee was visiting me from Arizona at the time I got the psychic message...so I loaded all my sb books, vibhuti , pictures etc...in her car (some without her knowledge) lol.. and she swept them away to AZ. She just couldn't understand why I would get rid of them.
I don't think anyone should chastise themselves for ever being a sb devotee. It was not out of naivite that we ended up there..I think it was all part of the plan. I have felt that some of the most evolved souls that I've met, the most spiritually intelligent and thoughtful, have been the sb devotees. We aren't a group of dummies.LOL
So maybe we need not be concerned at all whether "his" energy is still ingrained in us...new energies will be replacing. Somehow I feel what this woman said to me is true.
private email 343 09-03-2001 03:34 PM
For Beth 342 09-03-2001 03:27 PM
Beth, please note that I have left message #337 on the board for you. This message may be from "Dutch" who uses a number of different alias identities. If you write to this person, watch your emotional/intuitive reactions to his e-mails carefully. God bless. May the angels of light surround you. Sincerely,
Board AdministratorTerrie 341 09-03-2001 03:18 PM
Edited by author 09-03-2001 03:18 PM
I still don't see how a being of evil (as we believe sb to be) can chant a prayer of light. Can someone (Suresh, Hari, Tony?) give a good explanation for this?
You know, just like a vampire isn't supposed to be able to be in the presence of a curcifix? (legend)
Balaraman Suresh 340 09-03-2001 02:47 PM
Further,the Gayathri Mantram is chanted as part and parcel action in Sandhya Vandanam.Sandhya Vandanam is to be performed by the Twice Born people in the Morning,AfterNoon,Evening at the time when the night to day breaks in the morning;day to noon in the afternoon;noon to dusk in the evening;as his moral duty towards the welfare of MAN/WOMAN Kind.
Balaraman Suresh 339 09-03-2001 02:31 PM
Gayathri Mantram is probably so ancient that its equal to Primordial Sound "OM".
To even associate the chant to a horrible person like Parthi Baba is a "SIN".
Parthi Baba came into existence only from 23 Nov 1926.What he claims are his claims only?Why to believe it?
The Gayathri Mantram in its traditional form is chanted to the Twice born People,by the spiritual father,the priest,in the ear's of the young lad wherein he starts his Brahmacharya.
Even the women were not privvy to this ceremony of uttering in the ears.This ceremony is like the Jews Bar Mitzvah and in the Christian like Baptism.
Parthi Baba changed all the traditional trappings and claims that the Mantra is common for all irrespective of caste,creed,color,religion.This was one of the primary reason why i liked Parthi Baba and fell for his teachings like ton of bricks.
But for people who have been indoctrinated to the chant by Parthi Baba and now wish to disassociate or have dis- associated from him,it definitely poses a dilemna.
There are plenty of slokas,mantras,that Parthi Baba has poked his nose,are we then to ditch all those,just because Parthi Baba made you aware?Definitely not.The reason why we all left Parthi Baba is not because of his teaching's but because of his Immoral and Un-natural acts towards Male devotee's.The teachings that Parthi Baba teaches are age old wisdom which come down from generation to generation for centuries together,with his own brand of interpretation which many scholar's and eminent authorities have proved to be un worthy.
So,in conclusion,it's left to the individual to apply his viveka and follow his/her path.Throw Parthi Baba in the dust bin and chant and be happy.
Terrie 338 09-03-2001 02:11 PM
Also, isn't it the Gayatri that is chanted in the mandir after bhajans twice a day? It seems to me that there is something wrong here: Either the Gayatri doesn't always purify the devotee, or it DOES purify the devotee, so most devotees who sit for darshan at PN are still keeping their connection the the Divine within...dispite sb!!
Have the angels of light assured the protection of devotees by influencing sb to keep the Gayatri at the ashram??
tobeth 337 09-03-2001 02:10 PM
Beth if you mail to prayforfoes9@yahoo.com
I will reply to you.. I cannot reply on this board
without being quickly deleted by the enemies of light 336 09-03-2001 02:08 PM
Tony O'Clery 332 09-03-2001 01:44 PM
There are plenty of tapes of the Gayatri without the little deviants voice on them. Hari is right the sabda vibrations would be a cleansing effect.
Terrie 330 09-03-2001 01:41 PM
Edited by author 09-03-2001 01:45 PM
Ref #327,
Hari, did you know that there is a tape recording of sb chanting the Gayatri? I used to play the tape all the time prior to my meditation. What would this mean that a dark Being would chant the Gayatri?
Also, did you know that there is now a Gayatri shrine (Murti) at Prashanti? Devotees walk around the structure chanting the Gayatri and giving flowers. I did this myself in 1999...also maybe 1997. I don't remember exactly when the shrine was constructed.
In my mind that chant would always be associated with sb, so I would not use it now. The voice of sb is ingrained in my mind as being associated with the Gayatri.
Hari Sampath 327 09-03-2001 01:23 PM
Dear Terrie,
The Vedas, Gayathri Manthra etc are too holy and pure to be ever "contaminated" by an evil force like Sai Baba. Just because SB talks of Gayathri Manthra, or Lord Krishna, Jesus etc, how can these great principles and personalities ever become any lesser ?
In fact , chant of the Gayathri Mantra would undoubtedly lead one to the Truth , and away from SB, for this is a prayer to the Highest effulgence, asking for crarified intellect and Grace ( this certainly is NOT SB, so the Gayathri Mantra should certainly be chanted, if one is already doing so )
Hari Sampath
A Sparrow 325 09-03-2001 01:21 PM
Andries ... I agree that it's very diffucult to get "inner guidance" when one has strong emotional feelings, prejudices, or preferences. That's why it's important to get "outer guidance", which, in my case, was a receiving the boy and Mom's letter. We had to have it spelled out for us.
I think there were some letters a while back about how one's intuition can't work when one has a vested interest in something.
Looking back, although I always thought that I had a spiritual connection with sb, I now see it as being more of an emotional attachment. I wanted so badly to believe that he was who he claimed to be.
I certainly agree that praying to the formless God is the best way to pray; I have the feeling that otherwise you can get caught up with astral entities that might seem to be divine, but aren't neccessarily.
Beth, so much of what you say resonates with my own thinking. One big dif is I was totally immersed in sb at one time. I thought he was my reason for living. Be glad you never went that far.
Re: the Gayatri Mantra: For Indians who have known it for their entire lives it's probably fine, but for Westerners who were familiarized with it through sb, it will probably always carry the sb influence. That's my take on it, but it would have to be an individual thing.
Terrie 320 09-03-2001 12:11 PM
Edited by author 09-03-2001 12:26 PM
Ref #305
Dear Beth,
One comment: Your posts are really interesting and thought provoking. Can you please double space between paragraphs to make reading from the screen easier? I would really appareciate it. (My eyes are in the upper age group!)
It seems that your intuition was working just fine because you said that "Clever Setup" suggested ideas you had already been wondering about. The still small voice...so quiet that we often miss it or push it into the background.
"I'm going to play devil's advocate for a minute... because this just occurred to me....ssb advises people to chant the Gayatri Mantra...."
(My message just got accidentaly sent, so if this post is in your mail box, I'm editing it now. Please check the board for the completed message.)
I'm extremely suspicious of the Gayatri Mantra now, becuase it is indeed linked to sb. No doubt, it was once a spiritual prayer, but I think any ex-devotee is wise to discard the Gayatri as it must be contaminated.
"my conclusion: it is much better to pray to a formless God, to Angels of Light, than take a chance."
Focusing at the point between the eyebrows (gently)...that is, the spiritual eye in the location of the putitary gland will insure that you are directing your prayer directly to God/Goddess, especially if you visualize white light while praying.
"I do know one thing, and that is that no TRUE GOD BEING/AVATAR would ever ask his devotees to have blind faith in him, or ever threaten to withdraw protection or blessings from anyone who decides to go one's own way and not acknowledge the AVATAR. Those kinds of tactics would never be used by a Godman. They would be used by a being of darkness. "
This is true, I believe. Yogananda also says that God would never use miracles to obtain devotees. Although it's true that sb says that his miracles are only his "calling cards," yet if you read the books written by devotees, you will find so-called miracles by sb preceded their "conversion" to becoming his followers.
Yogananda also says that God has never been known to take a human body called "God" and walk among men. Marswalker, you have these exact references somewhere. Can you post them here?
Love,
Terrie
Deletions 318 09-03-2001 12:00 PM
Some spam messages have just been deleted as well as two short messages from "Bethreply." If you want to talk about your spiritual experiences, that is fine, but please use your real name or a constant alias. For example, "Sparrow" always posts as Sparrow and not as 20 different alias names.
A so-called spiritual experience could simply be a bogus story without an author who identifies him/herself. On this board most people use their real names, which makes the conversation more genuine. Thank you. Board Administrator 317 09-03-2001 11:58 AM
dear Andries,
Never considered myself a devotee (not a very true devotee) Was always just a little too unsure to be totally involved...I stayed on the outside. but when I was in trouble, I prayed to him, or wrote letters...and I did it with full faith and heart. My disillusionment took place Spring of 2000...took me a couple of months to get over the impact of the shock...then I had to give up trying to analyze the situation and trying to figure out what was true or false. Now, I came back to the internet after a long break to see if there was any more new information and to see if I can come to some kind of closure...and I actually think that it has already happened for me...just in a matter of the last few days.
Andries 308 09-03-2001 03:21 AM
Edited by author 09-03-2001 09:31 AM
Dear Beth,
I thought you were an ex-devotee but now I understand you're more or less a doubting devotee.
It may be important that you try to assess your emotional involvement with SSB, the SSB organization and your devotee-friends to find out how much time and energy you need to process your dissillusionment.
There are very useful links on the 'cults' section of the sunrise website. See http://www.snowcrest.net/sunrise/cults.htm
I was deeply emotionally involved but it still was an unpleasant surprise to see how much time I needed and still need after 4.5 months now.
Kind Regards, Andries K.D.Beth 307 09-03-2001 03:06 AM
not to be facetious, but I do believe my "codes" have been contaminated. This thought, that somehow I'm being thrown off coarse by ssb association has occurred to me several times. This is why my interest in him has never been steady...got the feeling I was not being true to myself...or was being "controlled" in some way (subtlely) (...good nite!)
Beth 306 09-03-2001 01:50 AM
Andies says: Inner guidance may be way but I find it incredibly difficult to prevent my 'inner guidance' not to be deluded by my wish to believe, prejudices or other forms of wishful thinking.
Dear Andies,
ME TOO !!!Beth 305 09-03-2001 01:46 AM
I just read Anthony Thomas' "a very clever set-up"...very good!! Certainlysomething to ponder for sure and something that I have been thinking about in the back of my mind. many thoughts have come up from reading this article. I'm going to play devil's advocate for a minute... because this just occurred to me... ssb advises people to chant the Gayatri Mantra. He says that it is the only mantra that is universal and goes directly to The Universal Source (God), not to any particular "sect" religious figure, "god" or master...If this is true, as some Indian people would be able to confirm, then it would protect from any kind of "takeover" (overshadowing) of the will of a devotee by anything that is not of the LIGHT, wouldn't it?
Bottom line, best not to take a chance and pray to something/someone when one is not absolutely sure whether it is of THE LIGHT. If you are in doubt about what you are aligning yourself with (and I think I can finally admit that I am), common sense says to drop it, nevermind, bye bye. My conclusion: it is much better to pray to a formless God, to Angels of Light, than take a chance. I've never been to India, so I do not have a physical sense of Puttaparthi, the vibrations, the people, or the man himself.
I have not experienced going to India and judging (sensing and feeling) for myself. I've only had the inner feelings and experiences...which I don't always trust. In my case, I've gone back and forth, trusting, then mistrusting this entity for many many years. I've had some good dreams and some unpleasant dreams myself... about him. I do know one thing, and that is that no TRUE GOD BEING/AVATAR would ever ask his devotees to have blind faith in him, or ever threaten to withdraw protection or blessings from anyone who decides to go one's own way and not acknowledge the AVATAR. Those kinds of tactics would never be used by a Godman. They would be used by a being of darkness. If this is happening, (and I've not seen evidence of this), then that would be an instant "sign" to me that ALL is NOT RIGHT.(I'm sure I'm going to get lots of responses with "evidence" from this statement)
Andries 304 09-03-2001 12:55 AM
Edited by author 09-03-2001 01:03 AM
Re 302, 303 Dear Beth & Sparrow,
Beth, thank you for posting here. For years I had been praying to help me to find the truth regarding to SSB but I think it didn't work because I wanted desperately to continue to believe.
Inner guidance may be way but I find it incredibly difficult to prevent my 'inner guidance' not to be deluded by my wish to believe, prejudices or other forms of wishful thinking.
See also http://homepage.ntlworld.com/anthony.campb...eptic/casaubon.html
Hope to hear your or other people's opinion.
Kind Regards, Andries K.D.Beth 303 09-02-2001 11:44 PM
yes, inner guidance is the only way, really, any of us can go. Thank you for your responses.
A Sparrow 302 09-02-2001 09:36 PM
One more thought, Beth. I just wanted to add that like some of the people Terrie mentioned, I prayed very intensly to "never be deceived in the name of God", never thinking that that prayer would take me where it did. But I'm glad, because truth is more important than the contentment of thinking that I had found the answer.
A Sparrow 301 09-02-2001 09:30 PM
Beth ... I didn't mean that devotees shouldn't post here as long as they have something worthwhile to offer. I'm just talking about the rambling yackety-yacking about such things as the oil, meat, and lumber industries that are not pertinent. And the lengthy discourses of sb himself that are put on here from time to time. Anybody can read those in sanatana sartati or ss speaks or a dozen other publications. It's just a form of harrassment.