Pissecism

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Akhtar laughs off Laughing Guru

Author: Kounteya Sinha

Publication: The Asian Age

February 27, 2005

 

He teaches people Sudarshan Kriya - breathing exercises that help

them stay calm.

 

The techniques came to his rescue too on Saturday afternoon.

 

In a duel between an aggressive, passionate poet and a smiling

guru, Javed Akhtar went up against Art of Living chief Sri Sri

Ravi Shankar (founder of Sudarshan Kriya) to produce what was

definitely the India Today Conclave's most entertaining session

in New Delhi on Saturday.

 

Talking on " Spirituality - Halo or Hoax " , Akhtar took on " modern

age gurus " from the word go. Taking a direct dig at Sri Sri Ravi

Shankar by saying " that spirituality should be more than teaching

the rich how to breathe " , the poet claimed that " modern day gurus

have opened a chain of ashrams where the restless elite buy

spiritual fast food " .

 

Refusing to compare old Indian saints with modem age religious

teachers, Akhtar said, " Gautam Buddha and other great spiritual

leaders left their palaces to go into the wilderness. Modem age

gurus, however, are coming out of the wilderness to enter

affluent palaces. "

 

With most of his arguments being received with thunderous

applause by a packed hall, Akhtar continued to steal the show by

comparing today's spiritual leaders with the film fraternity.

" Cinema and modem day gurus do the same things. We both sell

dreams, create illusions and create icons. Fortunately, cinema

has a 'The End' board after three hours, " he said.

 

Claiming that " spirituality was the tranquilliser of the rich " ,

Akhtar also took the example of unhappy rich wives who needed a

shoulder to cry oil after being ignored by husbands " who were

either busy with work or with other women " . " So they seek the

help of modem age gurus, who promise to rid them of all miseries.

The spiritual get-togethers today are nothing less than points of

contact and network building exercises for the elite. Like all

corporate honchos found on a golf course don't necessary love

golf, similarly, all those found at spiritual get-togethers aren'

t necessarily spiritual, " he said.

 

Pointing out that people must think with their brains and see

through the garb of these gurus, " who themselves claim to have

achieved nirvana but can't promise to take you there, " Akhtar

added: " Spiritual leaders need to do more than teach about cosmic

consciousness. Where are the spiritualists when there are

communal tensions? How many have taken dalits to a temple where

they are not allowed to enter? Gautam Buddha, Krishna and Kabir

had all raised their voices against social injustice. "

 

{Ah! The promise Spiritual Utopia ->Segway->class warfare->caste-

>Hindusim BAD BAD->India Worse->Welcome CommiePakis}

 

Sri Ravi Shankar, who just sat, smiled and waited for his turn to

refute Akhtar's arguments, then joined the argument. " To say that

all spiritual leaders are hoaxes would not be right. Similarly,

to claim that the over two lakh religious gurus ill this country

have attained halo wills be equally erroneous. One should not

accept anything that is irrational. Indian spiritualism, which

goes back as long as time, is based on science. Today, in the US

alone, spirituality rose 500 times more in one year. Yoga alone

is a $27 billion industry there. Spirituality binds India,

without which there would be no India. It would become like Congo

and the former Yugoslavia, fraught with ethnic conflicts. Studies

have shown that violence is highest where spirituality is the

lowest, " Ravi Shankar said. Akhtar continued, claiming that arms,

drugs and spirituality were today the world's three biggest

industries. " Most of the modem day gurus have affluent clientele

that provide him power, status and money. In return, the rich get

a crash course in spirituality, nirvana and cosmic consciousness

in four easy lessons. "

 

To this, the guru promptly replied: " There is nothing wrong in

including the rich in popular spiritual practices. They go

through tremendous stress. We help them relieve it. Not only are

my followers rich, there are a few million prisoners benefiting

from my programme. Mr Akhtar's views reminds me of 135 Naxalites

who recently visited me with the same doubts. I think the world

has stopped trusting teachers. "

 

SRI SRI's work (Letter to Editor)

 

 

Author: Vikram Hazra

Publication: The Asian Age

March 8, 2005

 

Sir, I was deeply saddened to read about Mr Javed Akhtar's

denigrating views on Indian spirituality at the recent India

Today Conclave (Akhtar laughs off Laughing Guru, The Asian Age,

February 27). Mr Akhtar had clearly not done his homework before

coming to the meeting, and was out to establish an agenda. Did he

not know, for instance, that one of the biggest meetings of Dalit

leaders was hosted at Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's ashram in Bangalore,

and that thousands of Dalit as well as tribal youth are not just

beneficiaries but active organisers of the community service

projects initiated and run by Sri Sri's Art of Living Foundation

(AoL)? Perhaps Mr Akhtar would do well to visit one of the nearly

25,000 villages across India that have been touched by this

humanitarian's efforts; or maybe trek through the dusty paths

that lead to one of the 40 free schools run by the rural youth

trained by AoL in the impoverished areas of eastern and

northeastern India. Sri Sri himself has visited these places,

including the tsunami hit areas of Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka,

where dedicated volunteers have been working to alleviate people'

s misery. These visits (and the work) have been going on in

various parts of the world for well over 10 years, but have been

conducted with the participation and empowerment of the local

populace, and without any media hullabaloo. The media would focus

on how many Bollywood personages do the AoL course rather than on

instances such as Sri Sri's visit to Dharavi. Over 22,000

prisoners in Tihar jail have benefited from AoL programmes in the

past four years alone, and 120,000 prisoners worldwide have

undergone the programme in countries such as South Africa,

Germany and the United States to name but a few. The money paid

by the so-called elite to learn stress elimination is channelled

totally into these seva projects. In addition, Sri Sri's

Sudarshan Kriya technique has been widely documented to be one of

the most effective and practical tools for eliminating fear,

violence, stress and negativity from the human mind. It should be

clear to the meanest intelligence that Sri Sri has created that

most unusual of phenomena in our times - a win-win situation for

all, one that can bridge not just the communal divide but which

also bridges the urban-rural divide. I was especially glad that

Sri Sri did not stoop to take issue with Mr Akhtar at the

conclave. Mr Akhtar, however, has lost face and respect; a

vitriolic outburst to draw applause from a small audience would

not fool any thinking mind. Mr Akhtar is probably representative

of that increasingly popular brand of " fancy-dress activists " who

hog media mileage in elegant Fab India ensembles; they have it

easy, they never run out of causes to shout about, and are spared

the responsibility of actually taking action or providing

solutions. I am sure that many dedicated volunteers who have

risked life and limb to work for the upliftment of their

community in remote villages do not see Mr Akhtar and his ilk as

their voice; however, these same masses come together in service

when spiritual leaders like Sri Sri reach out to them with so

much love, responsibility, pro-active attitude, compassion as

well as practical solutions. Lastly, does Mr Akhtar feel that a

spiritual teacher is credible only if he lives cloistered in a

forest hermitage and travels on foot? Does he imagine his own

poetry would be richer if he were a penniless alcoholic? Such

stereotypes exist only in books.

Vikram Hazra

Programme Director

International Art of Living

Foundation