Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Is Mr Jagadish Vasudev saying anything new?

Considered by his followers as the most brilliant new guru on the terrain, Mr Jagadish Vasudev (or Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev) has the following insights to offer:

You are not the body.

"These states are maintained for certain periods to establish the distinction between you and the body."

"To start with, you work with the body, then you move to the breath, then to the mind, then to the inner self."

"Those who go into Samadhi states beyond pleasant or unpleasant, or nirvikalpa, we always keep them in protected states as their contact with the body has become very minimal. The smallest disturbance, like a sound or a pinprick would dislodge them from their body."

Liberation is in a non-sensory world.

"Liberation means becoming free from the very process of life, birth and death. Liberation means becoming free form the basic structures of body and mind. For all these, the karmic structure is the string which holds them together."

Leave your intelligence at the door.

"You cannot understand the other dimension."

"The whole effort is to move to a different dimension. If that needs to happen, first you must stop understanding. You have to see that you cannot understand, and that there is no need to understand."

"As you get closer and closer to a master you become an utter fool."

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Seems like you do appreciate Jaggi otherwise why would you focus so much on him.

Harmanjit Singh said...

A few reasons:

- He is attracting the cream of Indian intellectuals these days.

- He is one of the most savvy gurus available today, his courses and his website attract a lot of well-educated Indians and foreigners. He talks in flawless English, is well-traveled and he is more intelligent than most spiritual teachers available today.

- One of my closest friends is one of his ardent devotees, unfortunately.

- He claims to be a very special kind of guru, a sadhguru.

Anonymous said...

Well he does seem quite intelligent/rational actually. I can see him gaining a lot of popularity among the intellectual classes.

Your attacks will have little effect on your friend as he will think you are taking quotes out of context and twisting his words.

Kannan.V said...

As said by Einstein...

Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds...

So now u know who u r.?

Harmanjit Singh said...

"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds..."

# So any opposition can be considered by the defenders as the violent opposition of mediocre minds towards great spirits. Bravo.

"So now u know who u r.?"

# Yes, I know now what I am to you: a mediocre mind violently opposing a great spirit.

Anonymous said...

Dear sir,

I am writing this in the larger interest of the people.

Recently about a month back I was watching Walk The Talk show in ND TV in which was with Jaggi Vasudev at their Isha Foundation, Velliangiri, Coimbatore.

In that they showed a site "Thirthkund" in which 700 Kg weighing Mercury linga is immersed in the water and people such as devotees and visitors go inside bare foot dip inside for spiritual receptivity. More you stay inside Thirthkund better you get spiritual receptivity.I am attaching a write up downloaded from their web site in which Jaggi Vasudev gives relevance of Thirthkund.As per their web site even their Dhyanalinga has Mercury in it( Refer their web site http://www.dhyanalinga.org/theerthakund.htm )

Mercury is a dangerous metal and it can vaporise even at room temperature.If inhaled it can affect nervous problem such as personality change, lassitude, dimentia, lever and kidney failure,even death. If Mercury react with bacteria, it can form Methyl Mercury which is most dangerous.If air or water contaminated with Mercury is let out it can damage surrounding environment and people around it.If a person is exposed to even 4-5 minutes in a very low level of Mercury environment, it can effect.We donot know what would happen to those people who are visiting that place and to people and ecosystem surrounding the area.Mercury is odourless and it is difficult to say if one is inhaling Mercury lased air/water.Mercury is more detrimental in children and pregnant women since it easily gets absorbed in them.

Even as per Industry norm 700 Kg of Mercury at one site that too frequented by many people without proper gear is a large quantity. Mercury in air/water/as compound in what ever packing,it is disaster waiting to happen may be days, months or years.Given a chance, industry is looking at Mercury free alternate due to Mercury related danger.

Lot of European countires and many states in US have banned buying ,selling and storing of Mercury products.In some countries Medical prescriptin is required for buying thermometer.They have also system and procedure for recycling Mercury and Mercury based products. I am attaching herewith WHO's policy paper on Mercury for your reference.

In early 80's Hindustan Unilever Ltd(earlier Pond's India Ltd) dismantled their Mercury Thermometer plant from US( due to Mercury legislation and local protest) and set up the unit in Kodaikanal,T.Nadu. In short time people working in the plant and neighbourhood realised danger associated with Mercury.Atleast 45 Mercury related death and innumerable Mercury related diseases are reported and finally this unit was closed and I believe still compensation litigation is going on.Tamil Nady Pollution Contrl Board ordered HUL to send back Mercury inventory lying at the site to a US Mercury recycler.Refer Greenpeace press release which is attached herewith for more information on it. Even a company of Unilever stature could not handle Mercury properly and handling of Mercury in a place like this is questionable.

Having known the consequences, I though I would write this piece of information to you.

I hope you would take up necessary steps to avoid disaster to happen.

Anonymous said...

Thank you Harmanjit for your focused discussion on this particular guru who seems to be taking the U.S guru circuit by storm, and now the subject of a lot of discussion in Tamilnadu also.
I had attended a few of the man's programs. It has to be seen, how gradually one is made to shed one's logic and reason resulting in blind faith in the guru.
What still intrigues me is how so many 'normal' people are able to 'experience' the paranormal: euphoric states, thoughtless mind etc., in his presence. It is these people who become the most committed in the organization. These and those longing either for such exalted experiences, who need a personal guru. The desis usually vie with the 'natives' for the guru's favor and recognition. Of course everything seems so normal when you are in it.

Anonymous said...

Dear Haramnajit etal:
How can Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev (SJV) say anything new ? Truth is eternal and any body including SJV can only remind you of the ageless truth.
I think too much of emphasis is made on logic and offering something "new". Nothing new can ever be offered. Even the great scenitific discoveries including the classics like Archimedes Princpile or the Newton's theory of gravity or Einstein's Theory of relativity are not new inventions. They were all there only Archimedes or Issac Newton or Albert Einstein only perceived whatever was already there.
Second what a guru like SJV says is not very important. Words like what Osho used say or what Eckhart Tolle had said in " Stillness Speaks" are only signposts , it can only show the way , it can never take U there. So what SJV or any Guru says is not that important. For instance Ramakrishna was not very articulate but he could inspire and produce a Swami Vivekananda. What the Guru offers for your self transformation is more important than his words. In that respect SJV is an absolutely great master and he offers very powerful and potent tools. I can say this on behalf of hundreds of thousands of people who have done the Isha Yoga programs. On more aspect to be understood is that logic seem to be given too much of primacy. Logic is required for conduct of wordly affairs and is at best a survival kit. For seeking some thing more than survival, intelligence is required and not logic. History is replete with great beings like Mirabhai, Kabir, Saint Composer Thyagaraja, Ramakrishna who were extraordinarily intelligent but utterly illogical people. They realised their greatness partly because they went beyond logic. The other thing I want you to realise is that Guru - Sishya relationship may look a illogical and stupid for an outsider (the way U are talking about your friend). This relationship is based on the wise compassion of the guru on one side and the devotional receptivity of the disciple on the other axis. The disciple goes devotional because he has experienced some being (guru) who is far more than greater than him. I would like to close with the lines from one of the SJV verse " In the world of the beyond, clueless is the scholarly dud" Do not become a dud by too much of intellectual dissection. Life is in living and not in thinking.

OSU Econ Guy said...

Harmanjit, thank you for making Isha debate available on the internet. It's not easy to find this information in my experience. I have an American friend who has moved to India to follow Jaggi and am concerned. I'm quite well versed in these groups (self help groups of virtually any nature - not just gurus) and am wondering if you can direct me to more objective (if such a thing is possible) info. Thank you.

Unknown said...

There is nothing new in this world. Sadhguru never claims that he is doing something new.

At some point of time, world need someone who can remind them about whats there, just for awareness to those who need it.

Sadhguru does that for the world!!

Gigi said...

Okay, people need reminding. There are countless ways to be reminded....of whatever. My personal favorite - open eyes and open ears. There are plenty of people out there talking. But people only listen to what they feel comfortable with. No one questions anymore.

If sadhguru were simply reminding people (of whatever), then why the messiah complex? Why the followers who faint when he walks by? Why the millions of dollars to build up ashrams? Why not listen and move on? If his message truly reminded (of whatever), people would take the info and move up and on. But that's not what happens in isha. They become more dependent and deluded. So he musnt be doing a very good job of helping people when they follow him around like lost children looking for a parent to love them. Who's using who?

Anonymous said...

To the Anonymous person talking about "Nothing is New about the science part" - You are just pointing out the "discoveries" not scientific inventions. Newton's laws, Archimedes principle, Einstein's theory......these all are discoveries of laws followed by the Universe. Of course, these have to be already there. "New" is invention - computer, mobiles, satellites, airplanes...these are inventions - these did not exist before and are NEW.

Erique said...

After all this can anybody tell how to solidify mercury at room temperature ??? It is a contradiction to modern science.

Unknown said...

Blindly folowing so called 'gurus' are a sign of stupidity.It seems Jaggi is a clever manipulator and a shrewed marketing man.Look at the amount of money he earned within a short time.

Hey gays, why don't you use your brains, and most importantly, listen to the GOD residing within you.

Anonymous said...

His wife died under suspicious circumstances. A longtime Isha member died mysteriously near the compound in Tennessee. Isha members who have questioned the environmental impact of the compound's contruction have been banned.

Ask Mony said...

Jaggi Vasudev is enlightened, there is no doubt as far as the science of body features go, he has all the signs that show that he has gone through the process.

However, As Osho said in one of his discourses, enlightenment does not make one super intelligent, you remain what you were as far as your abilities, your intellect and your level of understanding goes. If this was not true than Narsingdatta ji maharaj would have dropped making bidis (Indian Cigarettes) because why would an enlightened master pump negative stuff into the society that causes cancer?

Narsingdatta should have dropped making bidis, should have opened up an ashram like Jaggi vasudev and should have lived lavishly on seekers money.

Even if Jaggi Vasudev has something to offer to the real seeker, the problem is that Isha foundation is set in such a way that unless you show them that you are a multi millionaire from the west, you will never get a chance to be in front of Jaggi Vasudev, ask questions or taste the Buddha field that can help you come closer to self realization.

For seekers, I would strongly recommend to listen to Osho without bringing in your conscious/active analyzing mind and let your unconscious steer you in the right direction. Just as Buddha said: appo divo bhavo (Be your own light). After all, for all meditators the goal is to reach a stage where the "Watcher Becomes the Watched". From this point onwards all you can do is wait and let it happen without desiring or contemplating on it.