The Cult Culture Of Godmen
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Devotees can die for their gurus. Literally and metaphorically. Especially if the guru forms a cult, offering followers life-transforming experiences. The guru, as the god and guide, governs their lives.
Paramahamsa Nithyananda set up his first ashram in Tamil Nadu in 2000 when he was still in his early 20s. Thanks to his claim to miraculous powers like levitation and televised sermons, his empire spread fast and had ashrams, gurukuls (students’ residences) and other institutions across south India, apart from the US and Europe, by 2009.
All hell should have broken loose on him in 2010 when a series of scandals hit him —two videotapes showing him in a compromising position with women, an allegation of repeated rape brought in by a US citizen devotee, and the recovery of bunches of condoms and ‘non-disclosure agreements’ from Nithyananda’s ashram in Karnataka during a police raid.
Content retrieved from: https://www.outlookindia.com/national/the-cult-culture-of-godmen.
