Nearly 200 years ago, Richard Francis Burton, an Englishman who was familiar with the Islamic world, wrote that there was a warning proverb for travelers:

"Conceal thy tenets, thy travel(itinerary) and thy treasure."

Banditry in cities and outside of cities was rampant. No effective policing.
You did not tell anyone about your funds, wise travelers pretended to be poor and unprofitable to bandits-bandits in the caravan and bandits on the road.

You concealed your beliefs or lack of beliefs because sectarian hatred was rampant and murderous.

Lastly, you did not reveal your itinerary or intended destination. You did not want your enemies or thieves to know where to set an ambush on the road.

Via social media, we risk setting ourselves up for plunder.

Today, via your trustful openess on social media, guru recruiters can learn all sorts of things.

* Your tenets/beliefs. You mention advaita, yoga, your interest in Ramanaashram
on social media. Bang, you've revealed you are a worthwhile prospect.

* Your travel itinerary. You mention which places you want to visit or have previously visited, places you hated, places you loved. Suppose you give lots of postive reviews to ashrams, mention bliss openings you experienced on yoga retreats, how you hope to make a career as a yoga teacher. A guru recruiter can tell the guru all about this. The guru will mention his yoga teacher training program or tell you he needs someone to help him create a yoga teacher program and asks you to help. Bang, you are hooked!

* Your treasure. The hotels you mention on social media, yoga retreats, events you attention will reveal your funds. You mention staying multiple days at Oberoi Hotel in Mumbai, that instantly reveals you have more funds than someone
roughing it in a backpackers hostel.


5 Disturbing Ways Narcissists Use Social Media To Terrorize You

[thoughtcatalog.com]

A small excerpt.

Quote

Imagine that narcissists are like trained spies in the figurative Trojan horses that are social media accounts. They want to know anything and everything about you, so that they can later use your wounds against you. Having access to your social media accounts can give them an easy way to find out more about your likes, interests, hobbies, and desires. Remember, it’s possible for even a complete stranger to find out your life story should they do the due diligence of looking through your photos, your tagged posts, even your ‘About Me’ section. These investigative digs are crucial for the narcissist’s love-bombing stage, where they are first pursuing you with ardent fervor and need to unearth your vulnerabilities to do so.

It is also valuable for the devaluation stage, as it allows them to assess whether you’d be a viable target for their pity ploys and mind games. Solution? Don’t give them much access in the first place. Be selective about who you allow into your online spaces and make your privacy a top priority. It’s a good rule to have regarding anyone, regardless of whether or not they’re toxic, because it allows intimacy to unfold naturally at its own pace. By doing this, you communicate an important boundary to those around you: trust has to be built organically and cannot be earned blindly.

“Manipulative love bombers don’t just walk up and say: ‘We belong together.’ They have to give you evidence that it’s true. That’s why they target the vulnerable. Masquerading as ‘good listeners,’ the bomber gathers intel on your likes, dislikes, insecurities, hopes, and dreams. Before you know it, they’re saying you have so much in common, therefore you must be soul mates.”- Dale Archer, M.D., Why Love-Bombing In A Relationship Is So Devious

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/05/2019 07:54AM by corboy.

Another email from James Swartz

Mooji is small potatoes, Anette. He has no real power. But he knows how to intimidate devotees. If you stood up to him, he would leave you alone. I have known him for about 15 years. Two women from his sanga told me about his attempts to get them in bed many years ago. He's basically a small time Osho clone who has created a cult of personality. Anyway, you're on the right track now. Always think for yourself and look into your feelings positive and negative in light of the teaching that we are all the same being.

I don't recognize much of the content of his emails in the article on his side, in which I am Shanti. First time just reaching out and he decides to make a teaching of it without his actual responses to me.

Lucky me! Saved me a lot of time going down another DEAD END. He doesn’t pass the gut test and “I am thinking for myself” thanks James Swartz!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/05/2019 08:52AM by AnnetteChappelle.

Good on you, Annette.

While we are in the business of exposing questionable spiritual teachers, we may as well take a good look at Old James, who seems to delight in sharing private emails for personal gain....

Strange how James compared Moo to Donald Trump, and claimed they are both victims of their own- what was it? Urges? No.... subconscious leanings? I don't know. James sounds like a cult apologist.

A pathological narcissist is not a victim; he is a perpetrator.

Well Sahara71,

It would take one to know one. Maybe it’s projection.

His article says once m ran up to him to give him a hug at the airport.

Hmmm???

If James has been FALSELY accused, and if he is awake...IF

Then why would he believe rumors about someone who ran up to him and gave him a hug who he says he likes?

No, it’s not passing the smell test.

Do these emails sound like the response to my supposed emails?

[shiningworld.com]
A cult of Personality

I’m sorry this took place Annette. You are really strong to show all this here. It speaks to your passion for truth. Please know many here respect you even if apparently James Swartz did not. Take care of yourself.

Oh wow Annette, sad that experience with James. I don’t know the guy, thankfully God speared me of that experience.

Seems like, unfortunately, the spiritual world is full of wolfs in sheep’s clothing.

How is a novice supposed to choose wisely when going on this path?
Most people I know, go on that path after or rather while in the process of experiencing a great deal of hurt in their lives and are in very vulnerable states. They make perfect prays for those unethical teachers. As far as of my experience most of those teachers are very questionable.
How to discern? It seems like a very clouded path and probably, in my opinion one that bears the most darkness and traps. I think the misconception is that most people believe, spirituality is all “love and light” and just put their guard down, making it very easy for such twisted teachers to benefit from them. And it is natural to have such beliefs and expectations since there is always a need for hope.

Isn’t it funny? I can only think of one other field that feeds of people’s pain and issues, in a way, the law. If 2 are in distrust and disagreement, the third is always gaining, the lawyers. In our case the teachers. The big difference is that the first category is only benefiting financially, but those teachers are ripping you completely off in every term possible, leaving you not only in financial difficulties but in complete disillusionment.
If the world would be a better place, there would probably not be a great need of lawyers and spiritual teachers. Of course there are ethical ones, but it seems like looking for a needle in a haystack...

ASI seems to be a great help in protecting seekers, but at the very beginning at this time. Hopefully more teachers that are sincere will adopt their suggested ethical code!
And I also hope very much that those sites promoting teachers, stay up to date and give proper information.

I really pray to God that this whole Guru business gets crumbled into pieces, for the sake of so many souls!
Maybe it works in India, as being part of their tradition for such a long time, I don’t know, but the Western world doesn’t have such a tradition! Why adopt it now in the 21st century??? After hundreds of years of suppression by the church, adopt now another type of patriarchal, hierarchical system? It just seems like a silly joke somehow.
The fact that m is not addressing any of the issues directly shows very clear his instability.

That guru business is one of the lowest order possible on this planet at this moment in time and has absolutely nothing to do with truth and freedom. It is just the opposite.

Sahara71:
A pathological narcissist is not a victim; he is a perpetrator.

Indeed! I do deal with someone like this in my close proximity. They are perpetrators! Playing out the victim role sometimes to achieve their goals.

This role is what m was playing in his “apology” video.
It’s just another “mask” that fits the situation.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/05/2019 03:57PM by Joyfree.

Corboy:

"Catherine d'Medici was queen of France in the 16th Century.

A diplomat said this of Catherine:

"She lies even when she is telling the truth."

How is such a thing possible?

When that factual utterance is part of a larger ongoing pattern of deceit.

Some people are like that. Pray you never meet them, and can flee ASAP if you ever do meet them - or the organizations they design.


This is a excellent quote to contemplate on!
It is a great eye opener on how sick such individuals are!

The thing is, that they themselves start to believe and fully identify with that pattern!
May we dare to even call it evil?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/05/2019 04:17PM by Joyfree.

Joyfree Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

>
> Seems like, unfortunately, the spiritual world is
> full of wolfs in sheep’s clothing.


YES, that is painful to realize...I really "throws" you back to yourself and I guess helps you to grow up spiritually.


>
They make perfect prays for
> those unethical teachers. As far as of my
> experience most of those teachers are very
> questionable.


Exactly!


Of course there are ethical
> ones, but it seems like looking for a needle in a
> haystack...


Big yes! I for my part stick with Ramana Maharshi.




> Maybe it works in India, as being part of their
> tradition for such a long time, I don’t know, but
> the Western world doesn’t have such a tradition!
> Why adopt it now in the 21st century???



Yes, in India there is a complete diffrent foundation in culture, ethics etc which CANNOT be compared to the west (of course there are also fake gurus in India, but it does not work to bring one part out of a total diffrent cultural context into another. That opens up for abuse big time as we see with m...)




> That guru business is one of the lowest order
> possible on this planet at this moment in time and
> has absolutely nothing to do with truth and
> freedom. It is just the opposite.


yes, opposite of freedom, I agree.



I think it is good for everyone who reads here that we now know that James S. is to avoid if we want "to drink from a clear source". Especially as he seems to be ready/hoping to benefit from the m overflow into his field. Corboy has pointed out many times that we should be careful with other teachers who want to benefit from the situation...and there we have it.