Posts by Brian Hines

A few days ago I talked about how I came to have doubts about the guru-centered faith, Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB), that I followed diligently for over thirty years.

One of the commenters on that post asked a question about why I was so gullible in accepting teachings that, in retrospect, seemed so unlikely to be true.

I responded that all of us believe things which we’re mistaken about. Discarding worn-out beliefs and accepting new ones is part of life’s maturation process. I also said that to attempt to answer that question I’d need to tell the tale of how I came to be initiated into the RSSB fold.

This is a strange story. I don’t think I’ve ever shared it on the Internet, though I’ve told it verbally quite a few times.

Satsangis (which is how RSSB initiates describe themselves) like to talk about how they came on “the path.” You get bonus points for the unlikeliness of the events that led to applying and being accepted for initiation by the guru.

For example, moving in to an apartment that was completely vacated by the previous owner except for a single RSSB book, which, when opened, instantly speaks to the eventual initiate.

I’ve heard many stories along these lines, as have other satsangis. Yet often when I’ve finished telling my own, I hear: “Wow, that’s the strangest initiation story ever.”

Not having made much progress in losing my ego, that gives me a certain satisfaction. Guess I’d rather be strange than nondescript. So I’m pleased to retell my tale, attempting to be as brief as possible (always tough for me, given my writing style).

I can justify the likely rather considerable length of this post by the lesson that it may hold for others. However, I can’t say what that lesson is, since people will look upon this story in idiosyncratic ways.

A RSSB true believer, which I no longer am, will probably think, “Ah, the guru works in such marvelous ways.” A skeptic’s thoughts will run more along the lines of, “Fooled once, fooled twice.”

Whatever. I’ll just tell it like it was. You can decide what to make of the telling. Read on, if you like.

I don’t know much about astrology. I know even less than that about Jyotish astrology, which is a Hindu/Vedic system.

So I was intrigued when I got an email from Catherine, a South African who is deeply into this stuff.

By "intrigued," I mean interested in an unfamiliar subject.

I’m highly skeptical of astrology. I’ve never heard a reasonable, or even semi-reasonable, theory about why it might work.

Still, I’m open to the notion that forces beyond our usual understanding could impact us. And I’ll admit to liking the one indepth chart that was done for me quite a few years ago (a friend recently did another, but I haven’t learned the details yet).

Catherine is an initiate of Radha Soami Satsang Beas, as I am. However, I’ve become a RSSB heretic as regards the dogmatic religious aspects of this India-based organization.

Catherine is considerably more positive about Radha Soami Satsang Beas, including the current guru of the group: Gurinder Singh Dhillon. As you can read below, she prepared a Jyotish analysis of Gurinder Singh and found that astrology confirms his guru status.

My reaction: interesting. And I’ll leave it at that.

I don’t see much of a downside to believing in astrology. The people I know who do believe in it clearly enjoy this art (I can’t call it a science) and consider that it enriches their understanding of life.

That’s great.

But as to whether what follows should be accepted as truth, that’s a whole other question. I simply am sharing (with Catherine’s permission); you decide. Read on…