Information about Frederick Lenz, aka 'Zen Master Rama' in Cult Education Institute archives. Lenz's own guru was Sri Chinmoy, who had a troubled career - to say the very least. Here is an article about Lenz from Wired magazine. A very small excerpt. QuoteLenz's small band of believers searched for recruits on college campuses throughout the nation. One ca
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Full text here with live links (Quote)American Guru Excerpts and an Update William Yenner Introduction - "a tragic situation for all concerned" Excerpt from Chapter 3 The Dark Side of Enlightenment >> Excerpt from Chapter 4 The Currency of Forgiveness >> Excerpt from Chapter 11 A Misplaced Gratitude >> Excerpt from Chapter 15 Connecti
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Note: Having an open mind is not enough. Mood doesnt equal proof. Having some sort of wonderful experience doesnt validate something. Experience can be misleading. Years ago, I was deathly ill and ran fevers that were over 102 F as measured by my thermometer. But I experienced myself as icy cold. But..I was not cold, despite experiencing myself as cold. The chemicals produced
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

caution: Ken Wilber appears to endorse this book. Learn from the book but avoid any teacher endorsed by Wilber. He has already endorsed Da Free John, Andrew Cohen, Genpo Roshi (Big Mind) and Marc Gafni
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

caution: Ken Wilber appears to endorse this book. Learn from the book but avoid any teacher endorsed by Wilber. He has already endorsed Da Free John, Andrew Cohen, Genpo Roshi (Big Mind) and Marc Gafni
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

caution: Ken Wilber appears to endorse this book. Learn from the book but avoid any teacher endorsed by Wilber. He has already endorsed Da Free John, Andrew Cohen, Genpo Roshi (Big Mind) and Marc Gafni
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

caution: Ken Wilber appears to endorse this book. Learn from the book but avoid any teacher endorsed by Wilber. He has already endorsed Da Free John, Andrew Cohen, Genpo Roshi (Big Mind) and Marc Gafni
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

We can hope this thread will be a hospitable place. Prime directive is to protect discussions from trolls who would dare to shame and jeer and invalidate someone who is vulnerable and who is trying to express concerns here that would be shouted down if they tried to discuss this elsewhere. And what makes this tough is some disruptors initially pretend to be helpful but will leave 'st
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Brad Warner began practicing Buddhadharma, not because he needed a crutch but because a life threatening genetic disease ran in his family and he had to find a way to make sense of of this awful situation. For this reason Brad has been quite tough about challenging distortions of buddhism taught and propagated for profit by Ken Wilber, Genpo Roshi and others. Because we have no idea how long w
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Q2, if you feel confortable about doing so, could you describe some of this infilitration? You're not alone in noticing this. Do a search on the RR.com message board for Seung Sahn in the all dates option and Genpo and Big Mind in the all dates section. But if you have seen additional examples of this, and feel able to describe it (if concerned about retreat centers, you n
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

A correspondant on Hardcore Zen wrote this--quoted in part Quote...with misfortune if those consequences come so late that you can no longer make the relation. But if you're a buddhist, you are even in a worse situation, because you ought to know that your deeds shall have consequences. And if you're a buddhist teacher, worse still. I agree. I am glad Brad has addressed the iss
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Another buddy of James Arthur Ray's, who used to be a guest speaker at the World Wealth Society, has disrobed himself as a Priest and Monk due to his own closet behavior with young women. You can read the full story, and his public statement/apology, here: What a shame they're all the same. I give Genpo credit for owning up to his own transgressions, but still, he basically j
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

A very wise take on this from Brad Warner "As far as I’m concerned, nearly all of this current stuff about Genpo is entirely missing the point. All of these AZTA people are getting upset about absolutely the wrong things. They should have been publicly stating that Big Mind® was not Zen Buddhism years ago. The hidden details of Genpo’s sex life had nothing at all to do with any of that.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

So in 1992 these upstanding guys wrote a letter: In August, 1992 , the AZTA teachers at the time (known in those early days as the Second Generations American Zen Teachers group) wrote a letter to Maezumi-roshi expressing our concern about Genpo’s on-going sexual exploitations and his misappropriation of funds. We asked that his permission to teach be revoked. and are today claiming:
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Clarification: The quoted material about that bad experience was not written by Brad Warner. It was written by someone else, someone who had gone to a Big Mind event, felt shaken up and wrote to Brad Warner about it. And this raises an important point: Aftercare. And given the massive celebrity status Ken Wilber and Genpo have cultivated, the hints that any interest in Big Mind in
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

According to Brad's description, Genpo's Big Mind process reads like a hypnotically induced high besides it's eerie similarity to a evil version of the Parts Party. I've had plenty of them via NLP trainers. And yeah you get a high and this feeling of oneness like you won't believe, but then comes the downside. All that bad stuff Brad had, I had and more. In short Genpo
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Hal and Sidra Stone give some detail about themselves and how they developed Voice Dialogue. They claim to be the originators of the now hackneyed concept of the 'inner child.' In contrast to Genpo who has trademarked the term 'Big Mind' for his process, Hal and Sidra Stone state on their website: 'As its originators, we have never trademarked Voice Dialogue.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Genpo himself acknowledges that he developed the Big Mind process from the Voice Dialogue therapy developed by two Jungians, Drs Hal and Sidra Stone: 'In 1999, after studying voice dialogue with Hal and Sidra Stone from 1983 - 1984, Genpo Roshi discovered the Big Mind Process. This method allows anyone who wishes to open their mind to a more universal consciousness to do so in a
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteOrigin of Parts Therapy quoted from a discussion among hypnotherapists. Go here to find the live links "That said, "Parts Work" (as it's usually referred to in NLP) was first utilized in NLP by Richard Bandler & John Grinder who learned about it from Virginia Satir (Who made infamous what's called a "Parts Party")." and "That s
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

There has been one harm report, published on Brad Warner's Hardcore Zen blog. QuoteHello Brad, Just wanted to say its nice to read your stuff and it was nice to read about opposing opinions on the issues of Big Mind™, whether it is right or wrong. I have experienced Big Mind™ on two occasions, once in a small setting with close friends, and I must admit I enjoyed it and I agree I d
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Interesting, Genpo's 'Big Mind' Method is a variation of a old NLP method called a "Parts Party" and it's newer cousin "Core Transformation" but with a real sick twist, Genpo is actually creating another sub personality and have them halluncinate satori in the process. Normally this doesn't work well, but when you have a big name like Wilber and cr
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

The Real Issues--Secrecy and Favoritism IT is reported that Merzel was having this affair with someone who was supposed to be his 'dharma heir'. One person commented: QuoteHaving exhausted my little store of cheap shots... I find myself considering the 'co-respondent' in the case: Merzel disrobes, retreats into his BigMind enterprise-- what's next for the ers
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Silencing 'the Controller'. QuoteThis might seem bold, this might seem strange," he tells the group, "that you will have in one day -- before lunch actually -- the clarity and experience that a Zen master has. But Zen is seen as the school of sudden enlightenment. And we're just making sure it remains sudden." His technique to temporarily silence the "c
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Note from Corboy: Until a year to a few months ago, adverts for Big Mind showed Genpo in full Soto Zen robes, with a brown cloak. To guide readers unfamiliar with this, in Soto Zen, priests wear black cloaks (aka okesa). But if you have received what has been termed Dharma Transmission, you wear a brown cloak. It is serious enough when a priest leaves the robes and returns to lay li
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuotePeople are falling all over themselves to congratulate Genpo for disrobing and “doing the right thing.” I don’t see it that way at all. Doing the right thing would have been remaining as a monk and ending the whole Big Mind® program. By leaving the Buddhist community, Genpo has now put himself beyond the reach of the only people who could legitimately criticize Big Mind®. (Corboy italics
Forum: Celebrities associated with "cult-like" groups

Genpo Roshi is no longer Roshi, rather Genpo Merzel and he's no longer wearing his robes. Caught cheating on his wife with a successor. We knew it. Sex seems to be an important part of cult leader's motivations. I wonder if he's still trying to get an Oprah network show. He's still going to teach "Big Mind" whatever that is.
Forum: Celebrities associated with "cult-like" groups

How Does a Student Even Know That He or She Needs to Check Things Out When Relations are Underground? Quote NellaLou said... Hey Kevin @11:32 It's helpful to step back from these teachers and check out who actually publically supports them and who doesn't. I don't see many (other than Bernie Glassman) openly supporting Genpo for example. He just isn't mentioned
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Am not sure how to interpret this. Is this a venue where people try to audition to get onto Oprah's main TV show? YOUR OWN SHOW Oprahs Search for the Next TV Star Genpo's Audition QuoteGenpo Roshi's Big Mind Big Heart The Big Mind process, led by Zen Master Genpo Roshi, is a lively interactive group method that is both effective and empowering. It is a way to study
Forum: Celebrities associated with "cult-like" groups

Integral Life Practice and Big Mind/Genpo Roshi Quote Ranked #8,782 in How-To, #97,738 overall Integral Life Practice (ILP) is a modular, scalable, customizable approach to personal growth perfect for today's busy dudes and lady dudes. Designed by ultra-philosopher Ken Wilber's Integral Institute, it's the only program built on an academically-rigorous philosophical fr
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

'My gut feeling (based on what I've read and seen about Genpo Roshi, is that he's about money as well. Not obcenely so, like JAR)' My gut feeling is 'definitely obscenely so', just like JAR. A year or so ago I got numerous spam emails from Bill Harris touting a weekend with Genpo with a 'guaranteed enlightenment experience'........for the paltry sum o
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"