The pursuit of power and the female perspective

One of the most alluring things about pursuing a spiritual journey is the the attraction to beings who appear to be very powerful or 'special' in some kind of way. Speaking from the female perspective, this is where many women get side-tracked and probably even duped. Even the spiritual world is still relatively male-dominated and one needs to be pretty 'street-wise' even here. But rather than focus on the obvious concerns of being encouraged towards the many male gurus that thrive in communities where hero-worship can still be found, I prefer to look at the role of women directly and what may motivate them in their pursuit of power. Men can usually get away with much more but now and then even women prove to be subject to the same attractions.

In terms of this whole 'guru' phenomena, I can say that if you are connected directly to an avatar or direct incarnation of God, then you are likely to be on a safe track although even this is not certain. To clarify, an avatar would not have taken any previous birth unless that birth was of the same stature e.g Shirdi Baba's reincarnation as Sathya Sai.

From my own personal experience, I initially relied on Sai Baba to give me direction and by the end of 2003 I trusted that he was guiding me spiritually as I had a dream of him touching me on the forehead or more specifically on my third eye. After that I started to experience a great deal of third eye activity including visions, some past life images and a very profound inner experience. However, as I said in another blog, Sai Baba is still remote at a physical level and for more personal guidance, I have found Amma Karunamayi to be more accessible - your 'Sat Guru' or inner voice will guide you here as well.

One of the more interesting things as I moved deeply into a spiritual journey, was the huge attraction to spiritual power - women have definitely not been exempt from this. An alarming story that I came across subsequently was about a women who seemed to be attaching herself to those she perceived as very spiritual and even powerful. The purpose of meditation seemed to encourage more of a need to acquire mental power rather that focusing on inner union. The questionable thing was a tendency to reflect the spiritual journey of others without necessarily have the natural personality or attitude to life as they might have based on their own characteristics and upbringing. One of the questions was whether this was a subconcious tendency or a physical tendency which the person may have been practicing through the meditations especially since there appeared not to be a close personal bond with the 'spiritual' people that she was forming an attachment to. Where it really became a matter of concern is when karmic issues were also being reflected from this person towards others and hence causing various stressful situations. Anyway she is also on a genuine spiritual journey where lessons will be learned as is the case with all of us as we all continue to evolve.

These kind of issues are very complex and I will be continuing with this article shortly.......

Jan 2007

Coming back to the role of 'gurus' in contemporary society, my personal opinion is that this has to be a redundant concept. The very nature of the word 'guru' implies a surrender of personal power. If most 'gurus' are leading followers to believe that they are being empowered through various technical practices, this is another double-edged sword as power is still afforded to the 'guru' alone. In a book that I completed a few months back, I examined the concepts of power and sex in dealing with the individual ego. Although I did not look specifically at the role of gurus, there was some emphasis on matters regarding emotional intimacy and a related attitude to sex. Going back to a paper that I read a while back on the authoritarian nature of gurus, the issue of emotional intimacy was also covered - obviously this would highlight the problems associated with power and sex. The same is true for the followers - there has to be a deep underlying insecurity or the propensity to be very easily influenced to view impersonal sexual relationships within the spiritual context as acceptable. This does not just hold true for women in these situations but almost certainly for men as well. Other complexities also arise; for example, how are 'gay' relationships viewed? My understanding is that all relationships are a karmic journey anyway and an adherence to any faith would be a personal matter between individuals and their 'God'. But how do these 'gurus' address the diverse social predicaments that most of us are subject to!? The reality seems to be a loss of individuality on the part of the follower and an absorbing of the 'guru's' tendencies - the long term psychological effects may be overwhelming if not recognised.

I hope to research and write on the range of issues surrounding personal power on my return to South Africa before the end of this month. Too bad there are not any reputable gurus in the vicinity to pose the various questions. Then again we would be expected to dress up - some of us have barely left our student years. Prashanti was a real challenge in this regard - hopefully jeans will be allowed there soon.....maybe there is hope for Whitefield in the near future though.