"Carl" <saints@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:fva6d5$7ep$1@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Recently a character using the nick "Gopal Das" arrived on Usenet
> promoting the new age cult known as Eckankar (a cult founded by Paul
> Twitchell in the late 60's). Incidentally, in Twitchell's fictional
> writings "Gopal Das" was a "Living ECK Master" in 3000 B.C., in Egypt
near
> Luxor. It seems that Twitchell, a hack writer and former Scientologist
> hired by L. Ron Hubbard personally to be in charge of selecting articles
> on Scientology submitted by pari****oners to be published in either
> Scientology publications or elsewhere as a testimony to the worth of
> Scientology, tried to emulate his mentor L. Ron Hubbard in creating his
> own religion to make money. Also Paul Twitchell has written in his
fiction
> that chanting the name "Gopal" can actually trans****t one's inner, true
> self, i.e., Soul - to the Temple of Golden Wisdom, where one can hear
> Gopal Das give lectures.
>
> From Apologetics Index, here's a brief background into the Eckankar cult
> (http://www.apologeticsindex.org/e13.html):
>
> ECKANKAR
> A New Age religion founded by Paul Twitchell, who led the group from
> 1965-1971. He was followed by Darwin Gross (1971-1981), and Harold Klemp
> (1981-present). Leaders of Eckankar are called 'ECK Masters.'
>
> ECKKANKAR was "born" (or brought into public view) in 1965. Its founder
> and formulator as Paul Twitchell ("Paulji"), who proclaimed himself the
> 971st Living Eck Master - the living oracle of God ("Sugmad") - the
> "Mahanta" for this age. Twitchell was a dabbler in things mystical and
> occult, a former Scientologist, initiate of the Kirpal Singh of the
Ruhani
> Satsang branch of the Radhoasoami tradition on India, and excommunicated
> staffer of Swami Premananda's Self-Revelation Church of Absolute Monism,
> an offshoot of the Self-Realization Fellow****p.
>
> Sometime around 1960 Twitchell began to formulate the idea of founding
his
> own religion.
> [...]
>
> Twitchell claimed that he did not borrow ideas from any human source,
but
> experienced his own "God realization" in 1956 and was initiated by a
group
> of spiritual masters called the "Order of Vairagi Masters" as the Living
> Eck Master in 1965. The exact nature of these extraordinary beings is
left
> vague in Twitchell's writings, but they seem comparable to the "Ascended
> Masters" of Theosophical lore.
> [...]
>
> Twitchell claimed that ECKANKAR is the oldest and most original religion
> in the world. All other religions are derivative from it and in some
sense
> inferior to it. Whatever truth is in them belongs to ECKANKAR. According
> to some careful scholars of Twitchell and ECKANKAR, however, the
> self-proclaimed Mahanta simply borrowed and reworked the cosmology and
> spirituality of the venerable Radhosoami tradition of India as mediated
to
> him by Kirpal Singh and the American Radhosoami adept and writer, Dr.
> Julian Johnson. David Lane's exposé of Twitchell's dependence on these
men
> (and others) is convincing.
> Source: ECKKANKAR: From Ancient Science of Soul Travel to New Age
> Religion, by Roger E. Olson, in America's Alternative Religions (Edited
by
> Timothy Miller), State Univ of New York Press, July 1995, p. 363
>
> A member of the new age family of cults, Eckankar teaches a process
which
> after a series of reincarnation culminates in a god existence, or Christ
> Consciousness.
>
> The process itself involves the adherent progressing upward through
twelve
> astral planes through the attainment of classified levels of knowledge
> (gnosticism).
> Source: Eckankar by Watchman Fellow****p
>
> Beliefs
>
> Eckankar believes that God exists in two parts, the Light and Sound,
known
> as ECK. This is held to be the sustaining force of all life and the
> equivalent of the Holy Spirit. Eckankar teaches that it is possible to
> experience the Light and Sound through the proper use of spiritual
> exercises.
>
> Spiritual exercise is im****tant as the initiator of Soul Travel and for
> achieving spiritual growth and a deeper appreciation for one's pas
lives.
> A key spiritual exercise is the singing of the word hu, which is
> supposedly the name of God.
>
> Adherents believe in karma and reincarnation and hold that ECK helps to
> purify a person of karma. They emphasize a cooperative relation****p with
> God. Humans are considered a spark of God sent to earth to gain
spiritual
> experience and to serve others.
> Source: Charts of Cults, Sects, & Religious Movements, H. Wayne House.
> Page 105
>
> ----------------
>
> Also, here are some URL's with useful information concerning this new
age
> cult:
>
> The Center For Twitchellian Plagarism
> http://vclass.mtsac.edu:930/phil/center.htm
> Although Twitchell claimed to not have borrowed ideas from any human
> source, research has discovered that many of his materials were
> plagarized. This site do***ents them.
>
> The Unauthorized Eckankar(tm) Page
> http://www.geocities.com/eckcult/
> This website has useful info.
>
> SURVIVING THE CULT ECKANKAR
> http://www.angelfire.com/hi2/eckankarsurvivors/
> Website created and maintained by ex-Eckankar victim. Also contains
links
> to other related site worth checking out.
>
> THE MAKING OF A SPIRITUAL MOVEMENT: THE UNTOLD STORY OF PAUL TWITCHELL
AND
> ECKANKAR
> http://www.geocities.com/eckcult/chapters/preface.html
> Online book (hard copies out of print) exposing Eckankar and
> founder/creator/plagarizer Paul Twitchell.
>
> On overview of the Eckankar cult
> http://www.eaec.org/cults/eckankar.htm
>
> There are many more sources showing the unChristian nature of Eck****ar
and
> the false, unBiblical teachings of the cult. They believe in a different
> god than Jehovah God of the Bible and deny essential Christian doctrine.
> Please take the time to educate yourself on this cult so you may also
warn
> other Christians to avoid it.
>
> May God bless,
> Carl
> my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
> my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
>
I am pleased that you have taken the trouble to discover more about the
Eck-
it is a worthwhile thing to study, but I am troubled by the fact that you
appear to fear its enlightenment greatly.
Open your mind and your soul - there is very little difference between our
beliefs, and there is no cause for you to be afraid.
You should also consider the idea that bearing false witness is bad for
the
soul.
I wish you well on your path to enlightment, by all means please continue
in
your quest for the truth, I can oprovide you with additional information
oif
you need it.
--
Love, light and guidance,
The road to God is the adventure of a lifetime
Gopal Das
www.eckankar.org/index.html
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