Hello Annie,

Thanks for your gentle reply. You were quite right -- I couldn't resist looking for replies to my post. Hope I am not now addicted. I really am a total newbie to forums, and apart from their posting my ashram story, have nothing to do with One-reality or any other forum. I also don't know what a "troll" is. Is it someone who posts aggressive and defamatory writings about others? Gerry called me a "vermin." I shall respond by striking him from my christmas card list!

I think your statement that "Anyone can create any experience they want with enough 'effort'" strikes at the heart of the matter. I must disagree. Maybe some people can, maybe many people can, but not "anyone." I cannot. I have tried in the past to put myself into a positive frame of mind and thereby improve my life and demeanour, but for me it doesn't work. Knowledge does, though I know very well that it does not work for everyone. I also know that I cannot tell who it will work for, and who not. I do not think everyone needs Knowledge, many people are quite OK without it, and I think MJ acknowledged this long ago. This does not mean that when someone else claims it works for them that they must be utilising a "belief system". I consider myself one of the least "believing" people I know, to the annoyance of most acquaintances, most of whom seem to have hitched on to astrology or diet fads or Mormonism or some equally execrable mental straight jacket. I test Knowledge out every day and it doesn't fail. I go to videos once a fortnight and MJ comes through there as well.

I regret if I appear unsympathetic to anyone who has suffered from any cause at all. I have been through some hair-raising garbage in my own life, most of it caused directly by me, but some the inevitable result of being born into a turbulent, Irish-German-English-Scottish, immigrant family. I have found that eventually the only response is to say OK, that happened, and go on enjoying what can be enjoyed. I consider myself fortunate in that I never seemed to have anyone around saying "You poor little thing," and I think that made my recovery quicker. Just a small point.

But I am truly sorry that you came into the ashram under pressure, it must have been ghastly. I had some pretty rotten times myself (among the good) and I wanted to be there! Regarding people living there and suffering untreated mental disorders, as I said, I agree that it happened. I just don't think the alternative in 1976 (pre-Zoloft and just about everything else, except Freudianism) was that attractive either. Please don't misquote me. I didn't say there IS no treatment. I just said I didn't think what was available and affordable in those days was up to much. And I don't think it should be forgotten that many ashrams -- I could name a couple of exceptions -- were places of great peace and kindness, that people were quite determined to get into.

Your statement that Rawat is anti-scientific leaves me going Huh? Please explain.

I disagree that "Ashrams started out poor because all the money was sent to Rawat." I was a Community Coordinator in Australia for several years, and it didn't happen. The separation was meticulous. I can't speak for the whole world (and perhaps neither should you!) but we were poor because we didn't have any money.

I think all the criticism you level in the rest of your post would be entirely valid if Knowledge were worthless. I can only say that if you really WANT it, and not the fear, status and approval-driven rewards you seem to mention, it works. And he is important to that process. I have tried it both ways, with and without. With is better.

Oh, a final thing. In my opinion, in the entire collective canon of literature since the English language first evolved, MJ's poetry is the worst that exists, or has ever existed. I trust that I make myself clear. Actually, Sandra's, over at Catswhisker, is not too good either. This second criticism could get me into trouble. I don't think the first will. 

I fully agree that all this is just my personal experience, but it is very valid for me and probably for other people like me. Did I leave anything important out?

All the best,

Quoll.