Ching Hai and Jasmuheen [
en.wikipedia.org] are cut from the same cloth.
Ruthless profiteers at any cost, even unto (others) deaths or permanent injuries.
These persuaders have learned that in fact advanced persuasion skills used in this context, can drive people to the point of sacrificing their own lives.
4 people died at recent new age seminars for James Arthur Ray [
forum.culteducation.com]
He is now on trial for the deaths of 3 of his followers in a "sweat lodge" seminar, after people had subjected themselves to severe food, water, and sleep deprivation, after extreme psychological persuasion. 3 people died, many others were injured.
The New Age Guru knows if they apply the most powerful group persuasion tools known, then they can in fact get people to believe and do literally anything.
Even to the point of risking their own lives.
This gives the Guru close to absolute power over their followers, as if the followers will risk their actual life to try to win the Guru's approval, they will do anything else.
Like give them all their money, work for them for no pay for years on end, leave their families and husband for the Guru, and become a loyal follower and soldier of the Guru.
That is the dream of these disturbed Gurus, to have a core of followers who will willingly risk their lives for the Guru.
That is why they are grooming them for the lethal fraud of Breatharianism.
Do most "sane" Gurus want people to actually die for them? No, they just want the POWER it gives them, when the follower will do anything for them, even risking their own life. This gives the Guru the power to issue commands, and their followers will do them, no questions asked. They will hand over all of their money, they will leave their families, they will work 18 hrs a day for no pay, they will do anything for the Guru's approval.
They will even Breatharian starve themselves for days on end, to try and win the Guru's approval. Of course, this self-starving also makes the person weak and more suggestible. Then when they eat again, they feel like a failure.
Just read what these Gurus think. They literally don't care if followers actually die from following their instructions, they blame the victim.
Then some insane Gurus take it one step further, and those are the ones you read about in the paper.
But the other Gurus, just take followers to the point where they 'would' die for the Guru, if asked. That is power.
That is Supreme Master Power, over other people.
That is what the Breatharian fraud is really all about. Is the follower willing to risk/forfeit their life for the approval of the Supreme Master?
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/16/2011 05:27AM by The Anticult.