Re: In any event her persona seems impeccable... -- KRIYA YOGA DISCUSSION BOARD

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Date Posted: 12:48
Author: nojdw - 23 Sep 2001
Subject: Re: In any event her persona seems impeccable...
In reply to: Brian - 22 Sep 2001 's message, "In any event her persona seems impeccable..." on 12:47

If one is associating with Ananda primarily because of a desire to study Yogananda's teachings, one should know that at the current time, all of Yogananda's ceremonies, written lessons and most of the books recomended or required for study at Ananda have been replaced by those created by J. Donald Walters:

Former members have stated that of the total material officially used at ceremonies and religious services, including qoutes from books, yoga lessons, poems and songs, as much as 70 to 80% comes from that created by J. Donald Walters, 10 to 15% is of generic Hindu or Christian sources. Only 5 to 10% is taken from Paramahansa Yogananda.

Ceremonies and religious services studied at Ananda;

-"Superconscious Attunement Ceremony", created by J. Donald Walters.

- "Purification Ceremony", created by J. Donald Walters.

- "Ananda Wedding Ceremony", created by J. Donald Walters. (replaces Yogananda's)

- "Kriya Yoga" ceremony, created by J. Donald Walters. (replaces Yogananda's format)

- "Rules of Conduct for Members", (known as "The Rule") created by J. Donald Walters. Includes directives that members should seek permission from a special comittee of community leaders before marrying, changing jobs, or even having children.

- "Membership Vows", created by J. Donald Walters. (includes vow of "coopertive obedience and loyalty, above all" to the spiritual director of Ananda. (J. Donald Walters)

-Discipleship ceremonies (Does not include Kriya Yoga, the traditional discipleship initiation taught by Paramahansa Yogananda) Created by J. Donald Walters

-Vows taking ceremonies; village member, monastic training, postulant, novice, renunciant and final vows; (most membership vows include vow of "coopertive obedience and loyalty, above all, to the spiritual director of Ananda church; J. Donald Walters) Created by J. Donald Walters.

-Ministers pledge ceremonies, for ministers and lightbearers. (senior ministers) Created by J. Donald Walters

-Astral ascenscion ceremony; Format created by J. Donald Walters, replaces Yogananda's.

-Christening ceremony; Format created by J. Donald Walters, replaces Yogananda's.

-Shiva Ratri ceremony; traditional Hindu ceremony

Other community ceremonies or holidays:

-Two day (weekend) celebration of J. Donald Walter's birthday. Theme; gratitude to Mr.Walters. Open house, people come up from centers. Some classes about Mr.Walters, Musical show of Mr.Walters music, Usually the Sunday Service for this weekend also follows this theme.

-Easter; Combination of Walters and Christ; Example; includes walk from market to Expanding Light temple singing Walters Christian style chants and songs.

-Christmass; Includes musical evening of J.Donald Walters music.

-Usually 2 or 3 Christmass parties at J.Donald Walters house by invitation only

-Music- Mr.Walters discourages music other than his own.

-Spiritual renewal week; created by J. Donald Walters. (Created as substitute for Yogananda's yearly Convocation)

-County wide open house, focus on what Ananda and J. Donald Walters have accomplished.

Schools:

An article in the Palo Alto Weekly reported that; "The Ananda School uses the education techniques of J. Donald Walters" (Swami Kriyananda)

Written teachings required or recomended for membership at Ananda:

- "Ananda Course in Self-Realization", created by J. Donald Walters. (replaces Yogananda's "SRF Lessons")

-Over 60 books written by J. Donald Walters.

-Early, incomplete version of Yogananda's "Autobiography of a Yogi", and other books.

Other examples of the role of Mr. Walters at Ananda:

"It is also vitally important at Ananda that other energies not be allowed to intrude themselves, as if to bypass Kriyananda and go straight to our gurus for guidance and inspiration...Yes, you can "go straight to Master," or to any other master in our line of gurus. Try it, please, if you like. See if they will accept you. Others have done so, however, and I have yet to see one of them flourish."

J. Donald Walters, in a twenty-three page letter to the Ananda community, posted on Ananda's website in December of 1998. (And removed, without explanation, several weeks later)

"I've heard that some of you have decided to go to Master directly. This is wrong. You can't get to Master, except through me."

Mr.Walters, while speaking to a group of Ananda members by phone from Italy, during a meeting, Sunday, 9-13-98. As reported by an eyewitness.

"If you wish to stay on here, you will need to attune yourself to this expresssion of Master's ray, through Swami as the spiritual director. If you don't wish to do that, then you will need to move on. Also, if you think about it, even a little, you will come to realize that the idea of "loyal opposition" has no valid place on a spiritual path that holds as one of it's prime tenents, the ideal of attunement."

Parvati Hansen, Long time Ananda member, March 20, 1996, in an open letter to the Ananda community.

"Simply stated, most of us living at Ananda Village have chosen to remain loyal to Swami Kriyananda as a friend, teacher and spiritual guide."

Ananda member Steve Webber, in the "Other Voices" section of The Union newspaper, July 2, 1998.

In 1975, in answer to a visitor's question about his yoga home study course, "14 steps to perfect joy", Mr.Walters stated,

"My lessons are better than Yogananda's"

- Contributed by S.N.

"Swami (Kriyananda) is so highly evolved, that there is no need to go anywhere else; Ananda has it's own living guru"

Ananda minister "Prahlad" Levin, during a Sunday Service, 1995 or '96, as reported by an eyewitness, now a former member.

From the Ananda Final Vows of Membership: (written by J. Donald Walters):

"...As a means of attaining Self-Realization, I pledge my cooperative obedience and loyalty to Ananda, to those members who are responsible for guiding the community in it's various aspects, and, above all, to the living representative of the Ananda line of gurus: the Spiritual Director of Ananda World BrotherhoodVillage." (J. Donald Walters)

From "Rules of Conduct for Members" pg. 27

Mr. Walters in a Community meeting, 1-15-96: (from audiotape)

"Master comes to you through me."

Mr. Walters, in community meeting attended by former member, (K.J.) 2-23-96:

"Master has unconditional Love for you, and that unconditional love comes to you through me."

One former member testified in court that;

While he was a member in training, ministers and teachers would lead group prayers that included Mr.Walters name;

"Heavenly Father, Divine Mother, Friend beloved God; Great Gurus, saints and sages of all religions, friend and guide Swami Kriyananda...."

That a pair of Mr. Walters slippers was put on the altar in the monastary temple, where members would sometimes touch them to absorb 'spiritual energy' from them.

That at a public Sunday Service in 1983, he remembered minister Anandi Cornell giving a sermon entitled "Aspects of discipleship; Faith and Loyalty", where she stated;

"Sure Yogananda's the guru, but he sent us to swami, (Mr.Walters) so we have to have faith in that, and be loyal"

Statements from former members regarding Mr.Walters role at Ananda;

"Walters was THE ray...all social strata revolved around Walters ; he was THE channel for God; the more contact, the closer to God you were. People would eat off his plate, when he was done and had left, because it was 'prasad', or specially blessed food". -T.R.

"Kriyananda once said to me, "Submit to me, you've got to submit to me!"

"Because I was relatively outspoken about community decisions, as well as not "submitting" to Kriyananda, as he asked me to do, I was denied opportunity, ostrasized, and treated with a mixture of coldness, contempt, and hostility" -J.H.

"Walters told us that if we want to be in tune with him, we should listen only to his music" -T.R.

"Anandi kept telling us to "tune in with Swami". When we asked, "What do you mean? what about Master?" (Yogananda) She would say, "just tune in with Swami!" -S.S.

"It became clear after several years of living at Ananda that the many of the leaders saw Swami as their guru." -J.H.

"After talking to one of the ministers about my decision to leave Ananda, he stated, "But, maybe you need a guru in the body." (Mr. Walters) -D.T.

"A senior minister once told me;

"All my spiritual growth has come from Swami"

"Shocked at this statement, I asked; What? what about the SRF Lessons, what about Master?"

The minister replied, "No, it's all come from Swami" -T.S.

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