‘Progressvely though, the “guru’ has begun to intrude in their private life a lot, right down to advising her on day to day matters and matters pertaining to her and her family’s future.’
What you have described is classic for a cult. A genuine spiritual teacher does NOT try to take over people’s lives in the manner you have described, but will do everything possible to put people in touch with their own unique talents and get them to function as responsible adults.
Genuine Hindu gurus have many, many years of training. And they do not recruit non-Hindus! A lot of people go to India get ‘half baked’ with just a bit of training, then come back to the US and set up as gurus. Indians call people like this 'export gurus'--meaning they are never taken seriously in India, but can only gain a following in the gullible West after they 'export' themselves.
Over here, we dont know how to tell the difference between a genuine guru and a wannabe.
We don’t go to a heart surgeon unless he or she has completed medical school and has had many years of post graduate training; a soul surgeon needs just as much training—not just a few months or a couple of years.
It is possible for certain people to trigger bliss and surges of energy by laying on of hands. In traditional Chinese medicine and the martial arts, this subtle energy is called ‘chi’ and in Hinduism it is called ‘shaktipat’ or ‘kundalini.’
The ability to trigger surges of subtle energy is a neutral skill. A crook can learn to do it. An ordinary person can learn to do it and a saint can learn to do it. All too often most persons assume it is evidence of holiness. It is not.
It is possible that your friend was slightly depressed or looking for some kind of escape or relief when she crossed paths with this man—and he knew how to exploit this yearning in her. The yearnings we do not know we have are the ways con artists can most powerfully hook us.
Be there for your friend. Keep the porch light on. Try not to say ‘I told you so.’
If you can find out this person’s name, you do searches on both google and the google groups.
This article describes how one can become addicted to subtle energy.
Addiction to Shaktipat
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