Decoded: How to become a successful godman in India

Its been a peculiar time for India In the last few years some of the countrys most wellknown gurus have been charged with corruption and harassment and in the case of Asaram and Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh convicted of sexual assault Every other week a new yetunheardofguru springs up Its perhaps in this context that a talk at Khars The Habitat gained much curiosity this weekendTitled Conversation on Gurudom the talk held by Nidhi Chaitanya a subjective scientist and idea archaeologist aimed to breakdown this question When we look at Saint Dr Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Insan I ask what all can a guru be Actor director rockstar action director choreographer scriptwriter singer lyricist costume designer director of photography voiceover artiste sound designer publicity designer creative director DJ headIn April this year self styled godman Asaram Bapu was pronounced guilty of sexually assaulting a 16yearold girlIts an interesting question as considering Indias own history with gurus there seems to be no clear mandate on how and when someone becomes a guruChaitanya seated in a room at her Vile Parle office with one wall lined from top to bottom with books most of them pertaining to the subject of spirituality points out that theres no organised structure to who can become a guru in India Theres no licence system or checks on quality Theres also no check on lineage Questions like what is this gurus philosophy where is heshe coming from are rarely asked For instance if we look at Plato his teacher was Socrates and Aristotle was Platos studentBhavdeep Kang a journalist who in 2016 wrote the book Gurus Stories of Indias Leading Babas adds over an email interview Theres no one path to becoming a guru Some like Chandraswami may have been predisposed to spiritualism from an early age Others like Bhayyuji Maharaj may have found their spiritual calling later in life For some enlightenment or selfrealisation may have been the result of intense effort No two stories are the same After a guru becomes established and acquires a following a mythology develops around him or her Anecdotes are told about their birth and childhood seeking to establish that they were special and enjoyed divine favour from the very beginning Theres no way of sifting fact from fictionFor her book Kang interviewed Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Baba Ramdev Bhaiyyuji Maharaj Mata Amritanandmayee and Morari Bapu On the question on how these gurus have gained a massive following over the years she says A guru who is charismatic intelligent and widely read and is highly perceptive and empathetic will find a following very quickly Morari Bapus path was different He is a kathakar and a deeply spiritual person but he didnt set out to become a guru Thats the key thing If people perceive you as a guru you are oneOver the years Chaitanya has come across several people who have proclaimed themselves to be gurus She narrates an incident of a student from Florida who had come to her to study philosophy a few years ago She was there only for a short while It had in fact not even been two months when she said she was done with studying and left the course says Chaitanya Two years after this on a visit to Chennai Chaitanya found that the student had an ashram in south India But she had no philosophical depthHow then does someone become a guru and set up an ashram The first step is finding a following And it may not be the most difficult thing to do Once you espouse a certain view of the world you will find someone who will be ready to follow your path says Chaitanya remarking that faith is an illogical thing And setting up an ashram is just a matter of money Once you set up a trust mdash and theres no regulations or checks on who can set up an ashram as its a religious matter mdash people will donate money That there are tax benefits involved also blurs the linesWhere then does the public need to step in and judge whom to follow and whom not to Chaitanya says that aside from lineage the other thing to watch out for is whether the guru is living the life that they espouse They cant be making everyone slog in the ashram while they sit all day watching television Watching TV in itself may not be indulgent says Chaitanya But she says that she has seen many gurus who are TV addicts And never to spirituality channels such as Aastha but serials How do the followers react to this Some are so blinded by faith that they say even when he is watching TV he is completely detached she laughsNot all the gurus are unauthentic Chaitanya gives the example of Swami Chinmayananda who used to be a journalist and a nonbeliever During an interview with Swami Shivananda in Rishikesh he felt those in the city plagued by material life could benefit from this philosophy He never demanded faith Instead hed tell us to constantly question himTodaysworld says Chaitanya doesnt need to look for a guru Read books scour the Internet for different philosophies and finding a philosophy can help connect with the philosopher behind it she saysCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates