Thank you Rrmoderator and Corboy. ( Hope the flight went well, and we appreciate all the time you put into moderating.)

Also thanks to everyone who helped stand up for Diddly.

Apparently Swami G. is quite troubled by the disclosures and discussion on this thread.

Otherwise she would not have gone to so much trouble attempting to subvert this thread and attack people posting here.

In my opinion Swami G. behaves exactly like a typical paranoid "cult leader," which is hardly an enlightened state of being or "realized." Instead, most cult leaders seem to be deeply disturbed people.

Friends, all citizens should be aware how America's generous tax exemption for spiritual projects can and has been used to create personal fiefdoms of the sort presided over by G.

Thanks, rrmoderator, corby!

I do think there is a valuable lesson that can be learned here, though. It shows in addition to all the other information learned about this group, that the leader does not tolerate criticism and will use her "student's" private disclosures against them. This is almost like blackmail. The message is to say in the group, or at least not oppose it, or have whatever "dirt" the leader has on you plastered all over the internet. By dabcult's own admission, the Guru asked him to post what he did. She might not have done it herself, but it's the next closest thing. Clearly she was able to manipulate dabcult into doing her dirty-work for her. I'd imagine the youtube video she put up was likewise a "suggestion" from one of her followers.

Anybody considering joining her group and reading this thread should consider carefully whether they want to risk entrusting their private information to somebody who has a history of disclosing it publicly. From what i'm seeing on youtube, it's not just Diddly she's bashing. It's multiple people. She also spoke of a male member and insinuated that because he left, it must be because he was drinking and doing drugs again.

I'm watching some of her more recent youtube videos and there is always this guy with her (seems to be the same from earlier in the thread). I'll link to the video since it doesn't name anybody so you can know what I'm talking about. He's talking in the background. I imagine it's her closest follower. His role in the videos seems to be to provide legitimacy to everything he says by agreeing constantly. She certainly doesn't seem to like Rick Ross. According to her, his entire motivation for going on an anti-cult "tirade" as she puts it, is because he's Jewish and doesn't like any other religions. She also claims there are no Judaism-based groups listed on Rick Ross, which I know not to be true. She also calls him a "con man" and insinuates that he has a financial motivation in fighting cults (since fighting cults is liable to get you sued, it's not exactly a profitable business). She also says he's on medication and has been evaluated by a shrink who says he's "arrogant" and "hostile". I don't know enough about Rick Ross to say whether that's true or not but I highly doubt a psychologist would say something like that in public. Perhaps it was one chosen by a cult during a court case. Then I could understand it, but if that's the case, I can totally understand the hostility. Oh. Now she's citing Scientology front, "Religious Freedom Watch".

She keeps insisting that nobody pays her that much money and that she woudln't even be able to afford food on what she gets as donations, but on her website she states as a condition for initiation: "Any taking Diksha SHOULD be sending in Monthly Donations as a way of honoring what is being given by Guru and as a way to aide in keeping a Community in place... Every spiritual tradition has this admonition of paying tithes - most say 10 % of your salary but here there is simply the admonition to give what you can... Look at what you have and then make a commitment as to what is appropriate... This aides in not taking things for granted and for keeping the flow in place....". Ten percent of one's salary is not a small donation.

She insists again and again that people can leave at any time but keeps making statements that the vast majority will fail or somehow get back to their own ways. Even in writing. The same website from above, in the requirements for initiation also state: "If you leave this path once there is a bond with Guru - ALL the Karma that has been Transmuted by Guru will return to you... AND you will face the karmic consequences of reneging on the commitments made..."

Back to the video. She does admit that students are told not to read other material because they will be "in confusion". She again implies that "9 out of 10" who leave will be back where they started with all their problems. She claims that she doesn't "force" anybody to say anything. Perhaps not, but she did manipulate dabcult into posting what he did about diddly and I highly doubt that's a one-off. 25:07 Guru G states "I am under no obligation to keep anything quiet. I did not sign a non-disclosure agreement with you so I could disclose anything I wanted and there would be absolutely nothing you could do about it. But i'm not that type of a person." Well. It didn't take her long to break that little rule of hers. Apparently she is that kind of person. Not only did she publish letters about a former member, she had a poster here publish private details of her sex life.

27:16 Guru G states: "These people come, scared shitless. I take them in, work with them, get them stabilized, and this is the thanks I get." I wonder from this statement where she is getting her recruits. It sounds like she picks those who are vulnerable. She's now claiming that she doesn't ask anybody to leave their families. I wonder if she ever implies that their lack of celibacy might be a roadblock to the road of enlightenment. According to dabcult, her practices have changed recently on that regard, but her claims that she would urge a follower to choose family responsibilities over "enlightment" would seem to conflict with what we've heard from Diddly. She's now implying those who have criticisms are in "denial" and afraid to face their own "truths".

I'll continue this tomorrow form 39:00 since I have stuff to do, but the video does seem to contain quite a few red flags so far.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 07/05/2013 11:17PM by psyborgue.

Psyborgue, thanks for your thoughtful posts, most especially the last one. As someone who's watched all of Swami G's recent videos, I agree with your assessment. The multiple references to Rick Ross being Jewish are not only bizarre but borderline antisemitic. And the constant references to Rick's past legal troubles, which are not as black and white as she keeps characterizing them (in fact she may be slandering him too), are quite precious.

She and her followers are outraged that posts are moderated here. Hmmm. That's more than a little hypocritical when she allows NO comments on most of her videos, and when she does allow them, she deletes any that question her and block the commentator. It's interesting that now that she's having a bit of her own medicine here she is spinning with ego and anger and extreme bitterness. You might want to take a look at her "Guru Swami G" Facebook page. It's now basically all about how Holly is so terrible and Rick Ross is a felon.

Even if Rick were an ex-felon, does Martha Stewart being an ex-felon mean that she can't still bake a great cake or host an interesting talk show? Please. Swami G and her folks speak as if all of us posting here were Rick Ross. We're not. This is just Rick Ross's platform. But the voices are our own.

Finally, I so appreciate your quoting the precise language that she used about not having signed a confidentiality or "non-disclosure" agreement for Holly or anyone else, and that that then makes it possible and legal for her to take revenge against the departeds by plastering the Internet with dissident followers' personal and private information disclosed during "spiritual" counseling and other contacts with her. Her handful of followers are echoing her argument that this sort of revenge by means of public disclosure of all confidences is merited by Holly's going public with her (very reasonable and tame) criticisms of Swami G's approach. They all should be ashamed of themselves. Do they not realize what they are saying and doing? They should consult with a lawyer since they appear to be extremely, dangerously misinformed.

I wonder who would dare go to her for "counseling" now. Has she received any education whatsoever in mental health counseling? Does she have a license from the state to do the kinds of mental health counseling that she is advertising? (She doesn't need one for "spiritual" counseling, but is that all that she is providing?) Holly has told us that she has no such credentials. Not only might one be seeking mental health counseling from someone with dubious or altogether nonexistent mental health professional credentials, but also from a "counselor" who apparently does not respect the confidentiality of the counseling relationship. And not just by disclosing private, personal and confidential details of a client's life (which were revealed in the confines of that relationship), but by disclosing it by means of worldwide online publication -- boasting about doing it as revenge. Is revenge part of her "path?"

To Swami G's current followers and defenders: Are you comfortable being complicit with this extreme lapse of decency and professional judgment? Especially those of you who are in the mental health and human services profession yourselves? One is a hospice worker. Another close-in follower of Swami G's, who appears in many of her videos, is a case manager/mental health counselor at a Delray Beach, Florida, substance abuse treatment center with access to vast amounts of confidential client data. Swami G has revealed this fact in her videos, and a simple search of YouTube ("case manager and Delray Beach") would bring you to a revealing (and somewhat odd) 4-part interview with this follower and one of her colleagues at the clinic. This follower comes across as VERY smart and VERY professional and someone I'd think would be a terrific counselor. She is, however, defending Swami G's violation of Holly's reasonable expectation of confidentiality by parroting Swami G's revenge-rooted justification. I wonder... would she ever apply that same faulty reasoning to her own clients' HIPAA-protected confidential information? Is confidential counseling information as insecure with her as it is with Swami G? (I suspect and would hope that she would treat the information with great care and discretion, unlike her teacher.)

I'd recommend that before Swami G and her groupies continue throwing mud at Rick Ross and Holly and other departed followers, they examine their own actions and the justifications they are giving for them. Choose peace. Choose equanimity. Choose truth and compassion.

Finally, this whole thing has become a train wreck, but Psyborgue is right that it is rich with lessons. Swami G can learn a lot from this experience -- about humility, about her own remaining ample and hungry ego, about fairness, about decency and about the law. Her followers, current and departed, can learn many lessons too. I've certainly learned a great deal and I'm just an outside observer. My appreciation to Rick Ross for this forum.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 07/06/2013 04:25AM by Icarus.

Lessons:

Even if person A disapproves of the same guru or cult that you disapprove of, does not by itself mean that person A is reliable. Its possible to form 'battlefield bonds' when dealing with a shared concern.

But a battlefield ally (in this case A) may not be fundamentally trustworthy, even if the two of you have spent a long time assisting each other to battle the same adversary.

Even if the two of you have spent a long time assisting each other to battle the same problem, does not mean you truly know each other.

Do NOT allow person A to persuade or charm you to post here by proxy - and never, at the expense of another person.

On the private messaging scene, things are not public. It is a unique resource. Be careful. Dont let anyone charm you or seduce you to do anything to violate the rules of this board.

Persons in the guru business have had years of experience beguiling people and the internet is just another new venture.

Never disclose your above ground name or address.

Never post material for anyone else. Only post material from your own life or research.

Remember you are responsible for your posts. It is in the rules.

**Those of us who have been on the board long enough to have earned auto approve status are in a position of trust and responsiblity.

Autoapprove status means that a persons posts go through automatically. That is why some persons posts are delayed while others go through immediately--the latter are persons who earned autoapprove.

Anyone who has earned autoapprove should beware of somoene trying to subourn them to post information by proxy. If you get a Private Message from someone asking that you post on their behalf, do not do it. Send that PM to Rick Ross.

Even if person A has said that person X gave permission to have material posted by proxy, that is not good enough.

Let X post it. Dont be a proxy for A. Instead of posting publicly, check with X who reportedly gave permission. You may discover that person X did not give permission. If so--you and person X should report to the moderator that person A made that request and it wasnt true.

Social media has added a new twist. Even if something is reported on social media elsewhere, if its cruelty, dont repeat it here. Warn the victim that it is out there by PM. That way, the victim can decide how to take action. Feel free to check with the moderator (Rick Ross) how to describe this on the message boards without violating anyones confidentiality.

Any entity who punishes dissidents by using social media will do this to the next persons who fall from favor.

Finally, this message board has been around for a long time and so have some of us.

If anyone here has been a long time good citizen and starts writing disruptive, hurtful things, please, please contact Mr Ross.

The human personality has quirks and can change with age, or with illness and I am no exception.

If I ever behave in ways that are disruptive or hurtful, notify the moderator.

This board is not a personality club.

Its to serve as a sanctuary for persons who have been used, pursued, and bullied by those who presume to believe that by being gurus, students, human beings, become private property lose their voices in the process.

The sanctuary doors have to be kept open for refugees from guru oppression.

And...friends, all who read just this thread can see just what horrors occur when absolute power is exercised with zero accountablity.

By the way, my raising the question directed to Swami G's inner circle followers who are in human services/mental health jobs is by no means meant as a threat to expose or sully any followers to their employers in any manner. To the contrary, in fact. The student is not the teacher, after all. That's the point. What I am doing is appealing to your professional sense of right and wrong. I would plead with current students who have expertise in the handling of confidential information to look critically at what's just transpired. Does it not bother you? Do you not view it as ethically troubling? Or are you going to continue to defend your guru's actions unquestioningly?

And, anyone with a state license to practice social work or psychotherapy violates state law if he or she allows adherance to a guru to come ahead of client welfare and client confidentiality.

If you have a license and violate its terms by following orders by a guru, you are held accountable--you have the license.

Clients who come to access social services are vulnerable and many are not aware of the rules and boundaries that govern social work and therapy.

A licensed therapist or social worker is analogous to one who has the role of designated driver. You are obligated to protect others by staying sober and maintaining clear boundaries.

You cannot allow intoxication by a guru's influence to come ahead of your professional prime directive to serve your clients' welfare.

In event of having to choose between following a gurus orders and doing what professional guidelines mandate for your client's protection -- your clients have to come first.

If you cannot do that, refer your clients to a therapist who will stick up for them.

Ladies and Gents,

Mike here.
I'm the guy being referred to in previous posts that spent time with Sharon in Florida to try and come off meds for anxiety/depression.
For the record, I initially raised the alarm during the Sage debacle - where I knew in my gut that things were not at all right with
Sharon and her actions.
My gut sense has rarely let me down, and I should've listened to it from the beginning.
Actually the beginning was coming across the site and videos and preliminary look at the forum.
I knew it wasn't right from the very beginning.
Anyway, so I challenged Sharon publically during the Sage debacle - where she was anointing several people as awakened (what is a Sage after all - by any
definition I have ever come across)
In a relatively short time, a few came to blows with Sharon and either left or were kicked out.
Others took longer, but same thing in the end.
But things settled down, she didn't boot me out, and then came some Skype sessions.
I was never comfortable with her insisting they be recorded and shared with inner circle - supposedly to help learn her brand of counseling.
When I finally confronted her, she said either I accept the conditions or we stop the sessions.
I accepted reluctantly, and at some point it was decided that I should come to Florida and stay with her and/or Hridaya (her right-hand man) to wean off meds for a long-standing anxiety disorder and depression.
I agreed and stayed with Hridaya for a while, then her for a while, and then a motel for a while.
What I saw/heard/felt during this time would prove to me without a doubt that she was a fraud.
However, I was in a delicate position, as I was coming off meds and feeling very fragile and anxious.
So I while I was processing things, I only allowed the full implications to hit me when I was safely back home.
At that point, even though I was in a fragile state, even then, I had enough clarity to know that I had to speak out about my experience and what I had gleamed from my stay there.
I knew this would draw all kinds of backlash, and most everyone would turn on me.
But I decided I had to speak out.
So I got a hold of every email I could get my hands on and send out a carefully written email to most everyone including Sharon and inner circle.
Admittedly, I felt angry/betrayed at the time, so those exchanges carried some of that energy, but I think I expressed myself fairly well in spite of that.
And in spite of the nasty backlash.
Basically, I saw very clearly that Sharon was a fraud, that most everyone was going to drop like flies in a relatively short period of time, and that she was going to end up hanging herself ultimately (figuratively speaking)
Predictably, several students came to her defense, publically and/or privately - I was made out to be unhinged (I promise you not true) and ungrateful that I had spent all this time there and was now biting the hand that fed me.
Sharon instructed everyone to block/delete me and not have any interaction with me from that moment on.
And in true form, proceeded to continue jabs/defense in her forums where I could not defend myself in a fair way.
It was only because a couple students made me aware of certain threads that I knew the details, but I was not at all surprised.
In response to my exchanges, she suggested that since I had crapped in her backyard, why shouldn't she share my recorded Skype "counseling" sessions and expose things about me, since I had done the same for her.
Thing is, I wasn't the one claiming to be an enlightened kundaini satguru - starting an online ashram, taking donations/gifts from students, telling people how to run their lives...
I was just a guy, who wanted to work on things, and was caught up in a whole pile of garbage because I didn't listen to my gut from the very beginning.
I was in a unique position, to have been allowed into the inner circle, to spend considerable and intimate time with Sharon, Ron, Jane, Sachi (name?)
To see how she lived, how she ran things, how she acted with close students, what she did with her time, where her energies/focus were etc
Most students didn't have this perspective, and likely would not ever.
I decided that I owed it to those students, and potential future students, to lay it on the line and make it public record.
Well, soon after I left, I got word from a few students, that things were unfolding exactly how I had called it.
And now, it seems that we may well be coming to the part where she's left with a few blind loyal students and sinks back into obscurity.
At least I hope so anyway.
Karma has a way of leveling the field sooner or later.
For those that are left, or are considering joining, I can only say read the threads, watch the videos, listen to your gut.
If you still choose to remain, who knows, maybe you were just meant for each other in this life :) And all the best.
For details, you should refer to micro-macro's posts (I stand behind his remarks because I gave them to him :)
And also much of diddly's posts (formerly Sarojini - real name Holly)
Although I can see she is going through what I went through shortly after leaving, and some of the energy/perspective behind it are still laced with anger/betrayal etc - totally normal - just saying.
Holly was among those who jumped to Sharon's defense when I spoke out - and carried on until fairly recently - but I don't hold anything against her.
I'm just glad she's clear of Sharon now.
Holly, all I can say is, this too shall pass.
Work though it, but then move on and don't look back. Please don't give any more energy/time to this than you need to process and let go.
I always liked you and I know you'll do just fine.

To John L., Sachi, Hridaya, Siddha, all those still remaining, and those thinking of joining:

Wake up.
Don't waste another moment with this fraudulent, neurotic, drama queen with a god complex.
Brake free and don't look back.
You will thank yourself for doing so (sooner or later) I promise you.
You don't need her negative influence in your lives.
You will do just fine away from all of that garbage.
Truth is within you.
And life is waiting patiently for you to take hold of the reigns again.
I wish you all the best.
Sharon included, even though I doubt she will make space for grace :) and humble herself to the reality of what is unfolding all around her.
Feel free to PM me if you have any questions, comments, etc