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SRF Walrus

Mt. Washington, Ca

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SRF Walrus > Dealing with my doubts > Distance is only cure
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Concerned Unregistered User (10/5/01 10:44 am) Reply	Distance is only cure I don't feel there is anything that can be done at this point to recover SRF from the dark side. As I see it the conditions are probably an indication that the direction it was taking was not the right direction. It was not supposed to be a centrally managed organization dictating things to millions of students. Probably a much more diversified approach is what is being indicated. Small groups of people getting together and individually studying. Not a massive Guru replacement Catholic/Mormon organization. That was a Kali org structure. To deal with your doubts, cut off contact. That seems the only way to do it. Staying in contact you just are reminded over and over and over and it can't help but reflect on your spiritual life.
Raja Begum Unregistered User (10/5/01 12:11 pm) Reply	Wrong direction You are right. This is how SRF will develop in the future. Master alluded to life being somewhat of an experiment, and the one on Mt. Washington has tanked. Still Master's spirit is alive in the hearts of every seeker who cultivates a relationship with him. Who said growth was going to be easy? Master didn't come to establish a spiritual resort hotel. He came to teach us how to "stand unshaken midst the crash of breaking worlds." Our troubles in SRF are part of a greater cycle of challenges to the planet where the final crude vestiges of the Kali Yuga are being sluffed off. Those in Mt. Washington who have lost their trust and love for common humanity have brought upon themselves this polarization. They are now in Shiva's crosshairs (and for that matter, so are we). Ours and their best laid plans come tumbling to the ground, and, if we don't kill each other first, a new order will suggest itself in time. Never shall I allow a bunch of self-proclaimed spiritual authorities beneath my guru's stature to override my thinking. I can only live by the light of my highest understanding however imperfect that may be. And since the Matas on the hill would probably claim the same, I can see no reason for this conflict to escalate until something good arises out of the dust or their foibles and our resistance.
Spi Unregistered User (10/22/01 8:15 pm) Reply	To Concerned Concerned, For myself distance has been the only cure. There is a barrier between those who have seen behind the curtain and those who have not. There has always been a barrier between the leadership and the membership, at the leadership’s choice. But continuing to be around the SRF places and people who feel they are insiders just wears away at you. Get some distance. Pick up some of Master’s original books, meditate, and hang onto him.
mangomoy Registered User (12/19/01 12:35 am) Reply	Clinging to Master independent of SRF? It's tempting to think about "clinging to Master" while distancing ourselves from the influence of an off-track SRF headquarters organization. It sounds good. It may in fact be good during a monastic's post-separation settling period. But I don’t think there’s any real escape from their influence as we continue following Master. Why? Because we mostly know Master through books, lessons, tapes, etc., which have all been "processed" under oversight of these people who exercise control of our SRF. It’s suggested in another thread on this board that even our kriya techniques may have been altered from what Master taught. As I heard it, our SRF lessons were not written by Master, but by Swami Dhirananda (B. Kumar Bagchi), recompiled by Louise Royston and/or Richard Wright, with more editing by perhaps several others. If true, we’re only looking through the filter of these other people’s interpretations, rather than studying Master’s straight teachings. We can see for ourselves the aggressive editing of Master's writings (Whispers), the strangely altered photos (Premamanda’s deletion, etc.), the monastic names given to some people by Master personally having been later changed by Daya (Ma Durga to Durga Ma, etc.), altered story of SRF history, the lore (sometimes I think fantasies) floated about who in SRF history was saintly (Tara the astrologer), etc. Yes, I’d like to cling to Master while decoupling from a cattywampus SRF organization, but it’s really not possible while following Master. Even those in the break-away organizations know Master mostly through the same materials we have, all of which have been "improved" by these leaders. Sarvananda, who left, once 25 yrs ago admonished me, “Don’t try to go it alone!” I think we need to help rescue our SRF, instead of turning away to go it alone. The question is, “how?” can we disconnected individuals effectively encourage beneficial changes, against a despotic demi-guru president who nests in an insular reality. I don’t see the answer yet, but let’s keep thinking about it. I envision the rebirth of a refocused SRF organization.
KS Registered User (12/19/01 8:50 am) Reply	Agree I agree with the above message that turning away doesn't solve our problem. It may help us individually, but others will follow us into the same swamp. I also feel we benefit from the "fellowship" or other seekers, just like the Walrus is helping some of us. One positive influence is getting the word out on SRF management’s behavior. Shedding a light on it can help move it toward change. Not very quickly, but it provides momentum for change. Change can only come from within. Outside lawyers can’t grab SRF and make it right (like Mr. Flynn tried to do with Scientology). We have to raise awareness and hope that some real leaders come forward. Right now the bad ladies are killing off anyone showing leadership, so this is dangerous. (Note this is much like a Christmas story we all know where the leadership in Jerusalem was trying to kill off future threats to himself by killing the first born, but one in a tiny manger survived!) Merry Christmas
Been there Unregistered User (12/20/01 12:10 am) Reply	Who is SRF for I understand what you are all saying. But do you not think that, like the Catholic church, SRF fulfills what many members need? Those who want it will find security in SRF. The ritual will be there, the ochre outifts will be there, the prescribed behaviour will be there, the fool-proof explanations of the purpose of their suffering will be there. You cannot rescue someone from something that gives them comfort. Even the most corrupt leadership of SRF is preferable to them than a world without it. Maybe the leadership is right -- the "housecleaning" has been good. What is left in the monastic community and in the lay community are the individuals who are happy (or resigned) to buy or to "serve" the reality of what SRF has become. You cannot awaken anyone who is happy to be asleep.
Raja Begum Unregistered User (12/20/01 3:37 am) Reply	Hi Been There These are very good insights. I'd like further comment on them in the light of some insights I've gained in the study of temperaments... *Quote:* But do you not think that, like the Catholic church, SRF fulfills what many members need? Those who want it will find security in SRF. The ritual will be there, the ochre outifts will be there, the prescribed behaviour will be there, the fool-proof explanations of the purpose of their suffering will be there. I agree here. 40-45% of the world's population are what Keirsey calls "Security Seeking" Guardians.* Since they are the largest group, it makes sense that a large worldwide religious movement should cater to their type. Ritual, rank, hierarchical organization, neatly packaged cosmologies are all part of the Guardian aesthetic. The message of Jesus was coopted by the Guardians in the form of the Catholic Church. But that doesn't mean that other expressions of his message aren't valid. (The other types are in the minority: Artisans 30-35%, Idealists 8-10%, and Rationals 5-7%) Quote:* You cannot rescue someone from something that gives them comfort. Even the most corrupt leadership of SRF is preferable to them than a world without it. Again, since Guardians are Stability and Security Seeking, they thrive when set in clearly delineated organizational patterns. Since they are ruled under a different ishta (deva) than the other types, they know how to handle corruption of a Guardian nature. Such corruption follows very identifiable patterns. On the other hand, what is threatening to them is exposure to other patterns not in conformity with their natures. Quoting Kiersey: "Change for a Guardian is unsettling" Guardians are the " keepers of tradition, of custom, of continuity with the past.....the new, the improvised, and the innovative, seem almost an affront to time-honored traditions, and are certainly unsettling." *Quote:* Maybe the leadership is right -- the "housecleaning" has been good. What is left in the monastic community and in the lay community are the individuals who are happy (or resigned) to buy or to "serve" the reality of what SRF has become. Well from their perspective they are right. The Guardian system has to be quite airtight in order to work. Keirsey calls them the "gatekeepers"... "Guardians naturally assume the role of society's gate-keeper, standing guard at the door and keeping a watchful eye on the coming and going of the people under their jurisdiction. Those without proper credentials (outsiders) cannot be allowed through, those who ignore boundaries (trespassers) must be caught and reprimanded, and those who think they have the right just to barge in (gate-crashers) need to be stopped and expelled --- 'shown the door' as [they] tend to say." *Quote:* You cannot awaken anyone who is happy to be asleep Or are they asleep? Assuming they are living out a different life pattern than ours, they may be fully awake to theirs but asleep to ours. And visa versa. The main reason why Isabel Meyers and David Keirsey got into this research was to foster understanding and communication among the diverse people in the world. The title of Keirsey's book explains it all: "Please Understand Me." Most often, people, drunk with their own energies, do not want to understand others of a different nature. They want to get people to conform to their vision of the world --- this form of coercion among the types is what is known as a Pygmalion Project. To be quite honest, I'm puzzled by how we all expect to become one with God -- who is the synthesis and transcendence of all types -- if we still insist only living in miscomprehension of each other. To me, that's the ultimate slumber. Some links to explore.... Temperament Website GridofFourTemperaments EzCodeParsingError:=http://keirsey.com/person"> EzCodeParsingError:=http://keirsey.com/person Grid of Four Temperaments EzCode Parsing Error:=http://keirsey.com/person
Raja Begum Unregistered User (12/20/01 3:41 am) Reply	Corrections Sorry about the sad blue icon at the top. I keep forgetting to change it. Also the links didn't come out right. Here they are again... Temperament Site... keirsey.com/ The Four Temperament Types... keirsey.com/matrix.html Have fun exploring!!! Try taking the test and see what type you are. RB

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