You are currently viewing Mass Followers – Following Celebrity Gurus – 13 Jun 11

Mass Followers – Following Celebrity Gurus – 13 Jun 11

Mass Followers

Today I would like to write about a type of followers who like to be one among many, the mass followers. They like to be among thousands of other people when they go to their guru. They rarely or never see their guru up close because there are hundreds or thousands of other people sitting in between them and their guru. Nevertheless they are happy and satisfied.

These followers like to talk with other followers about their guru and like to tell how many people have come to his events, proud that they have been one of them. Their guru will seldom or never know their name and will never be aware that they are supporting him continuously with donations and by buying his products. These mass followers like it and the bigger the crowd around their guru, the happier and prouder they are.

They are even more proud if they see that celebrities go to these gurus, too. And celebrities mostly go to such gurus who have thousands of followers – they get publicity, too! So it is not rare that these gurus can call politicians, film stars and other popular members of society their followers. Mostly they and very rich business owners are the only ones who get close to this guru. A normal mass follower with an average income does not have a chance to really get close.

Rich followers however, who have a big name and palace-like houses, can even invite their guru. They have enough space to accommodate the guru and whoever is coming with him. It is very expensive to invite and organize the program of such a guru and the higher his standard, the prouder are the mass followers that he is their guru.

The regular and not-that-well-situated followers are very happy if they sometimes get a glance or a smile of the guru. They do every effort they can to get close to their guru and if they have only a small success, if they only get a small sign of recognition, they believe themselves to be very special. They think ‘Oh, I was in every lecture in this area, now he knows me, too.’ And of course, the more people there are, the more special such recognition is! They are a little bit like groupies for a rock star. They cannot really sit and have dinner with their star but they feel special among all followers.

Whenever you meet mass followers, they will talk about their guru because they think everybody should know this great person. If you don’t have any interest in their guru, they wonder very much why. They believe he is such a great personality, how can it be that you are not interested?

I also compare them with people who like to go shopping in big shopping malls. Mass followers like to be a part of that crowd. The more the better.

 

We have spent a very nice weekend with Jochen and Renate here in Wiesbaden. We even did some sightseeing in Wiesbaden and discovered yet another great ice-cream parlour.

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This Post Has 10 Comments

  1. Deniz

    Very true. I believe the most meaningful teacher-student relationships are those in which both know each other very well, and which as I understand was more the normal way teachers and student related to each other in pre-modern and traditional times, knowing each other very well. The celebrity gurus with mass followings we see now seem to be quite a relatively new modern phenomena. They are really just writers and speakers, not gurus. It would be a lot better for both their audiences and for the karmas of these writers and speakers if they only presented themselves to their audiences as writers and speakers, nothing more. If people are good enough writers or speakers, they can often make a fine living at that, and there should be no need to present themselves as anything more. If the writers and speakers also feel needs to present themselves as great gurus, they must be on an ego trip.

  2. Swami Balendu

    Thank you dear Deniz for your words. I have been in this scene in India a lot and have seen the lifestyle of celebrity Gurus. You gave them a wonderful name, they are good writers and speakers who can hypnotize the audiences. Cry themselves and can make thousands of people cry. I would like to tell a story here without revealing the name of anybody. One very big celebrity star from Bollywood, the Indian film industry, went to hear the lecture of a big celebrity Guru and after the lecture he said: I feel we are nothing even though we are professional actors. After seeing this, I think this Guru is a greater actor than all Bollywood actors.
    There are not only good writers and speakers, we have a lot of wonderful actors in this area, too. There are good teachers, too, but most of the time you will find much fraud. There were many video sting operations of such so-called big Gurus. If you take out the holiness from some gurus, then they are good teachers, no doubt, but I don’t understand why they cannot live in reality. This scene is full of hypocrisy.
    Anyway, i hope the coming generation will not follow such kind of celebrity gurus. So our future is good and I am positive about it. Sending you lots of Love.

  3. Deniz

    In the US we had the example of Alan Watts, who was a Christian minister turned Zen Buddhist and who was a great writer, speaker AND performer too! But he never showed the least inclination to be a guru or to have disciples. He proved it could be done well, just be a good writer, speaker, and performer, but don’t get on the guru trip. That way he was honest, and didn’t have any scandals or disenchanted disciples when he died at 58 of complications of alcoholism. He never claimed to be perfect, so nobody was very surprised that he wasn’t.

  4. JagdeepK

    i think it’s also to do with the times. the population is so large, that it becomes difficult for people to find a true guru. and in this crazy chaos of what we call the modern world, the dismal, the tired, latch on to even a smallest ray of light, even if it’s coming from a cheap torch. i feel exactly the same about some of these current “gurus”. but recently i met this person, completely immersed in one such name. he was so devoted, focused, and believing, ever so strongly. i didn’t know what to say to him, but was happy, that he was at peace, even though i may think that it is temporary. so now i try and not feel what i used to feel earlier; derision. after all, it just goes to show that i am lost. but i pray, for all the followers of the lost gurus, that they may find the true path someday. i hope and pray that i do. 🙂

  5. Swami Balendu

    Dear Jagdeep, Thank you for your comment. It’s great if you find a great teacher who can teach you or show the way but I do not approve of the idea or necessity of searching a Guru or that you must have a Guru, that there is no way without a Guru or that you cannot get liberated without a Guru. In this way I feel you are your own Guru. Search inside you, your Guru is there and God is there. You don’t need to search outside. You are right, these Gurus are lost, what will happen to their followers? We can only pray for both. Sending you much Love.

  6. Archana Pandey

    Well said, Swami ji. I guess you are being polite to those Gurus by not opening their names. It is your wish but I would like to share one of my experiences: I was also one of these mass followers of one celebrity Guru of India, Asaram Bapu, who always has thousands of people in his lectures. I used to go to his lectures with my parents and we were worshiping him as a God at home and we never had a chance to get close to him.Only in 2005, when I went to his Ashram, I finally met him and his son Narayan Sai in person.
    I really do not know whether I say that meeting them was good or not but it surely changed my view on them. If I had never met them, I would still worship them today. I am very happy now that I got see them and their true faces.
    When I went to their Ashram in Ahmedabad, I was so happy to see them from close-by and the moment came when in the public meeting I got to see them and could touch their feet. Narayan Sai showed more interest in me and asked from where I was and where I was staying? While talking I told him I have come with my husband, we recently got married and we wished to get their blessing to have a child. He said it was very good that I have come to them at the right time.
    He assured me that we would get special blessings from his father and him, I should visit him by the evening, on my own and not with my husband as he wanted to tell me some of secrets and give something special to me. I agreed blindly and went there by the evening. I cannot even say what happened but he wanted to have sex with me and said until I wouldn’t agree to sleep with him ,I could never become a mother. I was so shocked that I just run away to my husband and told him everything. He was also very shocked and angry and we decided to tell this to his father the next morning but before we could, we were kicked out and told that Asaram does not want us to be there anymore.
    We left the Ashram and I was crying the whole time but now when I think of this all and especially when reading your wise writings, it makes me think that I was really stupid myself that I was following them. I did not know them, i had just seen their photo and heard about them. When I made a personal experience, it was horrible. It was my fault of course but they are also not the people who should be worshiped or considered as Gurus. They are worse than any other normal human being who is living among us. I really thank you for your heart- and brain-opening writing.

  7. Ruchi Mishra

    Why did you not open their names? Well, I guess you may be hesitating to tell their names but I would like to open them as I think people should know their names to be aware of them. I don’t know, maybe you will not even post my comment but I would still like to write it. If you do not publish it, I would like to ask you in person why you do not want to show their names? Are you still in contact or somehow associated with them?
    I want to give the list of these celebrity Gurus who are famous on national and international level:

    1 Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
    2 Acharya Rajneesh (Osho)
    3 Sathya Sai Baba
    4 Mata Amritanandamayi Devi (Amma)
    5 Sri Sri Ravishankar
    6 Morari Bapu
    7 Asaram Bapu
    8 Sudhanshu Maharaj
    9 Baba Ramdev
    10 Ramesh Bhai Ojha
    11 Anandmurti Gurumaa

    There are many more who are mainly known in India. I can’t write all their names as there are so many. Most of them have many allegations on them for different things.

  8. JagdeepK

    thank you swamiji, for saying that the guru, the god, is within us. but it is so difficult, some times, reaching inside. bless us, so that we may.. 🙂 ..everyday, every moment..

  9. nothingprofound

    All these so-called gurus and spiritual teachers are just ordinary people playing a role. They are all pretending to possess answers and a knowledge they don’t really have. It’s sad so many people spend so much time worshiping these fakers and not believing in themselves.

  10. Swami Balendu

    Thank you Marty, you are absolutely right. They are playing a role and most of the time telling about what they are not sure themselves. Asking people to do that what they don’t do. But you will see all over world how many people come to their show. Actually they don’t want people to believe in themselves, otherwise how would their business go on? They want people to be doubtful and weak so they can have more and more followers. Sending you lots of Love.

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