Here’s another guest blog post from Anon, an ex-RSSB initiate. RSSB stands for Radha Soami Satsang Beas, an India-based religious organization headed up by a guru that I belonged to for 35 years, which explains my interest in sharing criticisms of the faith that I also found lacking. Gurinder Singh Dhillon is the current RSSB guru.
RSSB’s entire belief system is centred around one person: the guru. RSSB literature and traditional teachings state:
- Guru is a perfect living master and a perfect saint
- Guru is god in human form on earth, or messiah
- Guru has achieved God realisation
- Guru is connected with God himself
- Guru has divine authority
- Guru can go up and down between planes (earth and Sach Khan/Heaven) at will
- Guru is your saviour and saves you
- Guru is responsible for your salvation
- Guru takes responsibility for reducing your karmas/karmic burdens and clearing your account on earth
- Guru takes on the burdens of his disciples
- Guru can rescue you from Kal/Devil
- Guru is personally responsible for taking you to Sach Khand/Heaven
- At the time of your death, Guru will snatch you from the jaws of Kal/Devil and take you to Sach Khand/Heaven
- Guru just guides you
- Guru just helps you
- Guru just gives teachings about God
- Guru is friend, elder brother, teacher
Which is it?
Maybe this new update is the Indian tradition of being “humble”, modest”, downplaying your achievements and abilities and successes, self-deprecating, avoiding “bragging”, minimising superstitions like “nazar” or “the evil eye”, shyness, saying “oh no I’m nothing special!”. Maybe it’s a big hush-hush secret and he is The Real Guru and you know the real quiet unspoken truth.
Or this is the truth. You have been told.
At no point in time has the current Guru ever said out loud to anyone “Yes I can and I will do all these things for you”. You have not been told this. You HAVE been told he is a friend, elder brother, teacher. That’s all.
Good luck guys.
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He is a con man. More than anything else he is a con man.
Con man posing as Spiritual Guru/Teacher is most unfortunate thing. We have many in this category at the moment.
It is indeed interesting how the shift from “inner regions” and “sounds” and kaal and other nonsense have been slowly drowned out from the current RSSB discourse. Now its more of self-help type of religion.
It’s only nonsense for the rookies and the rookies are the people that have been meditating and never seen any of that stuff. But many people have .I don’t need to go to Spain to know it’s there. I trust the people that have experienced it. But I’m agreeing with you because it’s such a wide variety of cultures, religions and ethnic groups some people on their first life some people on their last life on the path and I guess they had no choice but to turn it into another religion. That’s what happens after a while and that’s how all religions got started
This looks like a clear attempt to bring Guru’s image down to a normal human level—like a teacher, sibling, friend—so that all the high expectations automatically reduce.
Because once you make Guru(Present GSD)“just human,” then all the wrongdoings can be justified as normal human behavior—supporting criminal drug dealer relatives, money laundering, frauds, opening shell companies, grabbing farmers’ and government land, involvement in politics, and other questionable actions.
A normal human can be involved in all this. But a real Guru—who is claimed to be God-realised, perfect, beyond karma—cannot.
Instead of addressing serious concerns, the approach seems to be: change the definition of Guru itself, lower the bar, and escape accountability.
By presenting the Guru as a “friend, teacher, elder brother,” it subtly tells followers: “don’t expect divine perfection, these are just human limitations.”
This reduces the weight of previous promises—about taking karmas, saving from Kal/Devil, or leading to Sach Khand—so that anything questionable can now be framed as normal human mistakes, not breaches of divinity.
Ultimately, this is not humility or modesty
—it’s reshaping perception to justify or excuse actions that a real, God-realised Guru could never do.
>> At no point in time has the current Guru ever said out loud to anyone “Yes I can and I will do all these things for you”. You have not been told this. You HAVE been told he is a friend, elder brother, teacher. That’s all.
Good luck guys.<<
Let me first state to for me the changes after 1990 have also been difficult to digest, given my character. but there are many ways how to deal with these changes.
Over time I have stepped back and instead of focusing on my personal feelings and thoughts, have tried to understand how these changes came to be, how they are related to the narrative itself and the changes in the world at large.
What i found was that the changes in the RSSB community reflect the changes in the world.
The youth of 1968 up till say 1980 believe in the coming of a new better world after WWII and for that reason was called the NEW AGED . …FLOWER POWER etc etc.
What remained of that sentiment?
Just have coffee and ask yourself!
In my opinion NO-THING.
\
What did we get in return for the ANTI – AUTHORITARIAN movement?
General speaking ..the opposite!!!
Have a look at the growing repressive activities of governments all over the world. The world has become a grim place. Solidarity in any form has gone and we face the most blatant forms of individualism and capitalism.
THAT sentiment ..is to be found in the changes seen in the ressb organisation.
The teachings have not changed, the focus on what is important for this time has just changed. You see you cannot be "breast fed for ever" .. times come that you have to be weaned from being fed without effort. if the weaning is not led by the child itself it is time that the parent takes the lead and "forces" the proces on the child …. ity is the parent duty .. and yes not all babies will be pleased and they will grumble that they have to cater for themselves.
Just wander through social media land and you will understand that the youth is so spoiled that they can hardly upheld their own weight, their muscles of the legs being to weak.
This exaggerated anti-perfect-guru is of the same quality as the exaggerated perfect-guru sentiment of the NEW AGE people.
Just read the story of the owner of this blog and you will understand how he changed in this way over time.
If you want something in life you have to work for it yourself …. psychologist might tell you how it works. If you think that you can bring yourself to him as you bring your car to the garage for repair, and leave it there you are wrong.
NO-BODY and NO-THING is responsible for YOUR welfare.
No government, no president, no guru
Live is given to you and you have to look after it
Good luck with it.
MCS said thet what the student has to do the guru cannot do for him and what is that what the student can and should do?
Those things you put your signature under at the time of initiation.
These are all things you can do and should do on your own.
NO-THING is needed
NO-BODY is needed…no sangat, no guru, no RSSB nothing
Let alone this endless lament of being taken away the social pleasures of the community and the cosy charisma of the guru
Even if all claims can be proven to be correct before the court, you still can and should keep your own promisses.
It’s often been said about teachers that those that teach about any given subject are teaching because they can’t actually perform the tasks that they’re teaching about so they get a job teaching. I’m sure he’s doing the world a world of good especially in India giving the youngsters a reason to use their legs and go to a meeting and the adults a reason to get away from their spouses but you’ll never see them without their phones anymore 😆 that’s their true guide, it has maps and GPS and everything. The current gurus of rssb are nothing more than internet influencers.
At no point has any Master, including Jesus Christ, suggested that YOU do not have a major role to play in your own salvation.
*but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live”
Romans 8:13
He gave you the Spirit.
Now you must use it.
That’s not His job,
It’s not your wife’s job..
It’s YOUR job.
IF…
Not guaranteed..
BY THE SPIRIT..
Thats Shabd practice. He did His part giving you that and encouraging you..
YOU..
Your job, not His…
PUT TO DEATH THE DEEDS OF THE BODY
The deeds generated by body and mind, Karma…through the practice of Shabd..Nam, Word of God…
YOU WILL LIVE
So simple. Everyone wants an easy way out. Maharaji said there is no other way. Only through Christ.
“Sister, we are all following Christ”
He said in a Q and A.
But if you need to blame someone, and you have blamed, then why can’t you let it go?
What’s holding you here stuck between blame and responsibility, not able to move from one to the other, always clinging to blame?
Think what you will. Reality won’t bend for you, though Master is bending all the time.
And let this go if you can. Move on to something else. And if you can’t, if nothing else gives you the strength to do so, accept it, and accept your duty.
A career of complaint is an income source, a career choice for many. But it isn’t healthy.
If you can’t follow the vows, why complain?
@ Spence
>> A career of complaint is an income source, a career choice for many. But it isn’t healthy.<<
WOW .. that sounds as Manager talk …. a manager talking with disgust about some body that fails to participate as a worker.
employer, government, and insurance jargon
@ Spence
>> If you can’t follow the vows, why complain?<<
Why blame yourself if you can blame somebody or something else.
History books are filled to the brim with these complains and the following massacres.
That is how Christ became murdered
@Spence@ “But if you need to blame someone, and you have blamed, then why can’t you let it go?”
The question itself answers the question being asked.
No difference between blaming the teacher or the students.
Critics are our best friends but I was told that he initiates people that have no intention on following the vows , he initiates them for their next life. They will be put in a better environment for their advancement. Like me, I’m in a better place now than I was in my last life. I’ve decided that if you look at all of Gurinder’s mental and psychological issues you’ll see he’s nowhere close to what would be considered a renaissance man or enlightened but we’re only here to pay off our physical karma. Once that’s done , no one has to come back no matter what their religion is.
Therefore you don’t have to follow this path or any path or even be a vegetarian and meditate for final release ( Parinirvana) but if you do follow the path, that just speeds it along and helps it along easier. It’s mind over matter. And if you don’t mind it doesn’t matter 😂
Hi Um
You wrote
“WOW .. that sounds as Manager talk ….”
Yep.
As a management consultant to hospital executives and programs for the disabled since 1980 we taught building and moving participation and decision-making right down to the front line. Every employee could participate in a team where that team made final decisions. They didn’t suggest trying things to upper management. They tried stuff and made final decisions for their departments.
The catch? They had to follow some basic rules of team participation.
Those included saying without repercussion whatever was on your mind.
Whatever said in the team in confidence stayed there.”What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”
You could make any complaint so long as you were willing to take responsibility with the team to fix it and confirm it is now fixed.
Your idea might not get chosen, but whatever the team decides everyone needs to own and support it as it is was their idea.
This works because a real PI team is about progress. Every thing says it’s for the prize of making things better, same when you speak you carry the responsibility to help.No whining.
@ Spence
yes, yes .. managers are the modern slave masters.
One of the senior staff members of an consulting organisation, came to visit me regularly and have coffee with me. Through him I came to understand many tricks of the trade .. HE thought it was progress and i told him that it was cruel .. cruel because most people have no idea how they are manipulated.
Um
I just explained how people can be given complete control over their work and you responded,
“yes, yes .. managers are the modern slave masters.”
To work with everyone takes a lot of trust and effort. It’s noble.
To manipulate, to be insincere is no monopoly of management. Bad character exists at all levels.
But that isn’t very interesting. It is the effort to help, to work together, to listen, to trust that generates incredible results.
We saw errors in hospitals evaporate. We saw patient satisfaction scores skyrocket. We saw hospitals deep in debt climb out without laying anyone off, but instead serving patients better.
So, it’s no surprise to walk into places with a lot of cynicism. But when managers offer an olive branch, a desire to listen, and a willingness to relinquish control in favour of collaboration, those things really do work.
It’s where people don’t believe it you see the highest patient harm.
# Spence
>> I just explained how people can be given complete control over their work and you responded,
“yes, yes .. managers are the modern slave masters.”<<
You see Spence … the secret is in the word ..GIVEN
That so called control is given for a reason and that reason is outside the sight and controll of these people and not in their interest. .., haha…. they are made to believe it.
One time Gurinder Singh Dhillon told me that he was a very humble man. So I asked him what kind of humble man says something like that? And So it goes… He was literally worried about the wrinkles around his eyes from laughing so much with me. Those were the days. But what kind of man is worried about the wrinkles around his eyes? I guess a very vain man. And I’m not criticizing him or even wanting him to change, I’m just laughing at him . He had a derogatory thing to say about just about everybody or praise. He told me he would be amazed with himself if he was Bob Dylan and he said the same thing about Mick Jagger. I swear to God. I told him that’s Bob Dylan’s problem is that he’s so amazed with himself. He said it was a real big deal when he ordered and bought a Bob Dylan record I guess from Amazon or somewhere and he asked me what some of my favorite Bob Dylan songs were so I just went on and told him . Those were the days my friend we thought would never end. He loved that Led Zeppelin song. In My Time of dying
Hi Um
You wrote
“You see Spence … the secret is in the word ..GIVEN
That so called control is given for a reason and that reason is outside the sight and controll of these people and not in their interest. .., haha…. they are made to believe it.”
It’s given to everyone, Um, even the CEO. And most CEOs understand that if they don’t share it, they will lose it. Most CEOs understand that official authority is not really full authority to do anything and can disappear in a heartbeat. Just like Trump’s lost second term attempt. Turns out he didn’t have all the cards..
But foolish employees can give a bad boss power they never had.
And so a tyrant gets a second opportunity to flail and fail,
Everyone makes the decision to come to work. The great CEOs know this. The poor CEOs think they hold all the cards, just like the poor employees believe they have none. But the excellent CEOs and the excellent employees know they are there for an important purpose, they each have a responsibility to treat each other well, and everyone has limited wiggle room.
Let me put this another way, Um. Let me spell it out for you.
The people who put Tyrants into their jobs are people who have convinced themselves they have zero choice and zero power. They are idiots. They do terrible harm.
Meanwhile under “soft” Democratic presidents, leaders who believed in collaboration AND the inherit power of the individual for example, 92% of all new jobs were created. Under Democratic presidents federal deficit slows or reverses. Under Republican tyrants, the federal deficit explodes.
The vast majority of new jobs in America happened under liberal Democrat presidencies.
Under Biden America saw the largest economic boom and the highest enjoyment since WWIi.
Anyone who knows anything about economics knows that when you get full employment you get a temporary bubble of inflation. And then it comes down, as it did before Trump took office.
So when you see people who can’t trust, can’t collaborate, even if they are in charge, or if they are your fellow employee, and you say to yourself “I love you like a brother/ sister but you are a moron and no fricking way will I EVER give you the keys to the car! Or let you anywhere near this patient! ” you practice wisdom.
I voted for Biden but he didn’t run in this last election. He was mentally incapacitated and he also okayed the slaughter in Palestine and got that going. You know what George Carlin used to say about both of those parties. Trump’s dementia has just reached a stage of no return and the voters that think he’s God or sent by God still believe it because God is incomprehensible so he really must be the Lord now frfr. What pathetic intelligence and military leaders we have now not to mention the lawmakers. I don’t think there’s going to be another election in fact I think they’re going to trim away two branches of government that are in the way of our dictator. And I do think Gurinder’s cancer treatment affected his mind greatly in a negative way too.
@ Spence
Divine providence must have wanted my reaction to be deleted, as it made me push the wrong button so that my labor was blown away in the wind.
Hi Um
No problem. That was a blessing. How often I wish I could retract my own opinions…They are worth very little, and if they offended you, please pretend for my sake that they were also never shown. Every day is a restart, and occasionally a step forward.
@ Spence
Do not worry, I am not offended.
You are quite skilled at hiding your emotions but sometimes, intentionally or unintentionally they seep through and I become aware of them .. as being your feelings .. so there is no reason to be offended
rest deleted
So what are we supposed to believe now? Is GSD a saviour, just a guide—or nothing at all?
And isn’t it misleading to those who were brought onto this path by being told that the Guru is God in human form?
@ Rinku
If you have inner experiences, probably you do not have to ask anybody or anything
If not iit is up to yourself what you want to believe, think and do with your life.
NO-BODY in rhis world ..NO-BODY is able to to do that for you
It is up to YOU to go to an bookshop
It is up yo YOU to chose a book
It is up to YOU to act upon it
AS ..YOU are the one that ATTRIBURES ..[1] meaning and [2] Value to what you read or otherwise said MENTALLY CONSUME.
No teaching, no practice stands in need of you.
This life is YOUR life and it is up to YOU what you are doing with it ..AND .. bear THE CONSEQUENCES.
There are so many regional cuisines, all screaming that their cuisine is the best, in the end you have to eat something and what you eat is up to you, you, your body has to digest it.
If somebody offers something to eat that others label as “delicious” and it makes you vomit .. why eat it?
Zen, Rssb and all the other schools an practices are a way of life. The quality is not made of the teaching but your own investment.
Taste is in your own body .. the best apple pie becomes only best by your taste … if you do not like its taste, it is just not bringing pleasure to you.
It is all about YOU and nobody else to make up your mind, to give your life to whatever suits you and the way it suits you.
Love, devotion, dedication are all GIFTS to be made by YOU
There are so many things people can focus their attention to in this life ..the choice to look at what others are doing doing wrong etc etc ..is nothing but YOUR choice ..ask your self if it makes you happy
Dear Rinku,
You are not “supposed” to “believe “ anything.
Nothing at all has to be “believed”.
.. — .. — ..
What you are “supposed” to do is develop the latent ability to reverse and invert the outward flow of your consciousness and focus it ‘within’.
Once you are able to do that your conscious awareness will undergo a profound shift. THEN you will have to learn how to navigate the layers of your own conscious awareness at their deepest and increasingly purer levels.
What the ‘guru’ is in essence and the absolute necessity of guru’s help in doing that will then become clear to you.
‘Belief’ in intellectual concepts will NOT be required then.
People who ‘go within’ KNOW this.
People who can only play ‘without’ either ’believe’ it or disbelieve it. That is their free choice.
It has always been like this. Nothing has changed.
This is Anon.
I felt compelled to respond to this comment. I’m just so sorry. I can feel the hurt and outrage. You don’t deserve to feel like that. May you find with truth and answers, always, and receive the clarity you deserve.
@ ANON
How to look upon a human being in the role of guru depends on the relationship and and the quality and quantity that has to be transmitted.
There are teachers and students at level o:
– kindergarten
– elementary school
– secondary school
– academy
– postacademical teaching and research etc
They are all teachers and students.
Sant Samarth Ramdas, describes in his DASBODG, how a person has to be looked upon by a student depending on the level. The highest grade of students have to look upon their guru as GOD and act blindly on his commands. BUT .. that is not demanded of others.
The same is to be found In books like “Heart advice from a mahamudra Master” by Gendung Rinpoche, or books by the founding Yogi’s of that lineage, like Milarepa and Naropa.
The same is to be found in the literature in the lineage of Shri Nisargadatta.
That demand with respect to how to look upon a spiritual teacher, is not in the interest of the teacher but of the student ..AND .. what HE wants to achieve.
If you do not need anything from him as teacher .. well you can look upon him as any other human being.
P.S.
A while ago I saw a video of an “guru paranima ceremony” with regard to the famous sarod master Amjad Ali Khan. One after the other would come forward to greet him. Some would just fold their hands, others bow, others touching his feet and yet others would lay flat on the ground before him. In all these case he did not react and payed the same attention to the person coming to greet him. It was not about him, it was all about the attitude of his students .. it is functional to THEM. He, te teacher doesn’t need anything from them
Respect, love and devotion are all GIFTS, .. FREE gifts of a free person. The effect of giving, the quantity and the quality is not upon the teacher but upon the student … and some have more to give than others, etc .. it has nothing to do with DESERVING.
Amjad does not DESERVE the respect of anybody .. but it is given to him for a good reason.
All the schools I referred of Guru Bhakti as a necessary tool for transmission.
If you read what the first yogi’s in the Mahamudra lineage had to face under the regime of their teachers and keeping up their love and loyalty to them, you might understand what it is all about .. especialy Milarepa.
Hahaha …. they are not YOUR guru, they do not owe you anything .. it is up to you whether you can and will honor them, respect them without any condition. … again they are not YOUR guru and THEY, they do not need anything from you
@ ANON
Whatever person, human being I came across in my life that was a teacher, did not rejoice in the person of the student but in the development of their talent.
Who and what you are etc doesn’t matter to any teacher you ever had, thet were all interested in the dedication of your work and the fruits of that dedication
Let alone that they were interested in what YOU feel and think certainly not about them.
You are unimportant.
Gurinder appointed Gill so that the State wouldn’t sue him for all of the RSSB property. That’s the only reason there are two gurus now.