As everyone knows, an encyclopedia is something that must give neutral, unbiased information. On wikipedia BK article, that is not happening, as it's currently controlled by a banned user with a great ability to use many fake accounts (sockpuppets) to maintain dictatorship over the article. The current editor who wrote the BK wikipedia article is "ex-l", the owner of the misleading and defamatory site brahmakumaris.info.
He is using wikipedia as a means to portray a completely negative view of BK and also to promote his own site. The current wikipedia BK article is negatively biased from the beginning to the end, almost every single phrase carry pejorative or derogative words and the bits of information which have the priority to be shown are always the controversial. All neutral or positive information about Brahma Kumaris is omitted from the article, and the whole article is written from a very specific personal point of view, very far from neutrality.
Follows a critique that has the aim to show one by one, how every part of the article is biased.
First of all, if we look at the wikipedia article of the great world religions, we will see that at the top of the article, in the introduction, the main beliefs of the religion are explained.
Let's analyze the Introduction of the biased, current BK article to see what's wrong with it.
wikipedia wrote:
Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (BKWSU) or Prajapita Brahma Kumaris Ishwariya Vishwa Vidyalaya is a secretive, renunciate, millenarian new religious movement of Indian origin. It teaches a form of meditation adherents called Raja Yoga, differing from the Raja Yoga described by Patanjali and has been derived from teachings given through mediumship and spirit possession.
Let's look at the words that were chosen to describe the group (secretive, renunciate and millenarian new religious movement). Yes Brahma Kumaris is obviously a "new religious movement", that bit of information is neutral, but what about the adjectives chosen to describe it? (secretive, renunciate and millenarian). The similarity between them is that they all imply that Brahma Kumaris is a cult, in other words, an inferior religious movement that brainwashes people, etc. "Cult" in the context of religion is always used with a negative meaning. The reason ex-l said "new religious movement" instead of "cult" is because the word "cult" is forbidden in wikipedia for being biased, so he used 3 adjectives to leave the meaning "cult" implicit.
Now let's analyse the 3 adjectives.
thefreedictionary.com wrote:
se·cre·tive (skr-tv, s-krtv)
adj.
Having or marked by an inclination to secrecy; not open, forthright, or frank. See Synonyms at silent.
The problem is that all religions have some extent of secrecy. Each religion has its own philosophy and practices which are more commonly shared between members. For example, Christianity has rituals which only priests attend, as well as masses for the public. Brahma Kumaris in the same way, has activities for members, and activities for the public, like any other religion. So the use of the adjective "secretive" is biased, it's not an accurate or appropriate term in an encyclopedia to be placed at the introduction of an article about a religion.
For example, the major monotheistic religions in wikipedia are described in the introduction, first of all as "monotheistic". In BK wikipedia article, currently controled by a single dictator, one doesn't even understand whether Brahma Kumaris is monotheistic or not by reading the introduction. The only thing one could conclude from the current introduction is that Brahma Kumaris is a cult that cares more about controlling people than religious beliefs. Or is it what the person who wrote the article cares about?
Dictionary.com wrote:
renunciate (rɪˈnʌnsɪɪt)
— n
1.Hinduism another word for sannyasi
2.Christianity any religious devotee who renounces earthly pleasures and lives as an ascetic
Here we have the very strong adjective "renunciate", chosen as one of the three adjectives that supposedly most accurately describe what "Brahma Kumaris" is. Renunciate is a very strong word, its meaning includes isolation from society, which ironically is the opposite of what Brahma Kumaris teaches. Brahma Kumaris teaches that one does not need to isolate himself from others to practise spirituality or to connect with God. Brahma Kumaris is NOT a renunciate movement, it's the opposite of that.
merriam-webster.com/dictionary wrote:
Definition of MILLENARIAN
1
a : of or relating to belief in a millennium
b : apocalyptic 2
2
: of or relating to 1000 years
For "millenarian" I even had to search more than one dictionary - it's an uncommon word. Usually it means "referring to thousands of years", but in the context of a religion, it is litterally a synonym of "apocalyptic". But for being unusual, it becomes a "polite" way of stating right at the introduction of the article, that "Brahma Kumaris is an apocalyptic cult", or in other words "doomsday cult". Obviously that is far beyond the standards of neutrality expressed in wikipedia's guidelines.
So, as we can see, the introduction "secretive, renunciate, millenarian new religious movement", is but a polite way of saying "doomsday cult, stay away from them".
In the articles of the 2 major world religions (Christianity and Islam), it is written "Monotheistic Abrahamic Religion" (a neutral and relevant description). Why isn't the introduction of BK article "Monotheistic, Reincarnationist New Religious Movement", or just "Monotheistic New Religious Movement", which would be much more accurate description within wikipedia standards? The answer is: because who wrote the article is biased against Brahma Kumaris and wants to promote a negative view of it using the exposure and reliability of wikipedia to the public.
When a person reads negative things about BK on Brahmakumaris.info, the person may not take it seriously. But when a person reads the same on Wikipedia, they consider it a reliable source and assume a judgement based on what they read.
So far we have analyzed only the first 3 adjectives used to describe "Brahma Kumaris right at the beginning of the article. Let's move on:
wikipedia wrote:
It teaches a form of meditation adherents called Raja Yoga, differing from the Raja Yoga described by Patanjali and has been derived from teachings given through mediumship and spirit possession.
Why not "Brahma Kumaris teaches Raja Yoga which differs from Patanjali but it's very similar to the Gita's Raja Yoga, which says be stable in the consciousness of soul, and focus the mind on God"?
What's the point of "mediumship and spirit possession"? "Possession" is in religious context, always regarded in a negative way. At best it's used to refer to a bad spirit invading another's body, but usually it just refers to demons invading a human body. "Exorcism" is usually what religions see as solution to a "possession". Saying "Raja Yoga is taught by possession" it the same as saying "evil or obscure spirits taugh it", which is what ex-l actually believes, as he has stated many times on his website brahmakumaris.info. That doesn't mean that an encyclopedia should inform his belief as fact though.
So, "spirit possession" is absolutely unnaceptable. "Mediumship" could be ok. If the difference between BK meditation and Patanjali is noted, the similarity with Gita should be equally noted.
Even then we must also think about priority - What is placed at the top of the article must be what best and most essentially resume what "Brahma Kumaris" is.
wikipedia wrote:
A neo-Hindu religious movement, the Brahma Kumaris (Hindi: ब्रह्माकुमारी, pron. [ˈbrəɦmaː kʊˈmaːriː], abbrv. BK) pre-date the New Age movement but have developed characteristics that link them to its thinking. It advocates a lifestyle which includes a vegetarian diet, celibacy, and avoidance of alcohol, drugs and tobacco.
Again the question to be asked is: Is this the priority to be placed at the top? Other wikipedia articles about religions speak almost nothing about lifestyle, and mostly about beliefs. We can't allow BK article to be below the average standard for religion articles. The core beliefs are barely touched throughout the whole article while they should be right at the top, with clarity, detail and relevance, instead of the lifestyle which is secondary and not obligatory. Many religions have the same lifestyle but that's absolutely not what defines Brahma Kumaris as an individual faith.
It says "Brahma Kumaris" is pronounced like "Brahma Kumari"? Does ex-l hate BK so much that he even has to change its name? Taking a look at brahmakumaris.info, most of the time ex-l says "Brahma Kumari" instead of the actual name and he put that in wikipedia as the true pronunciation.
wikipedia wrote:
Historically, the Brahma Kumaris have been controversial and a range of accusations against them have been made. The controversies have involved researchers, previous members, government agency reports and the press.
This shouldn't be at the top/introduction at all. It could be in a section called "controversies" or "criticism". We are talking about a religion, not a criminal organization. If ex-l believes BK to be so, he should keep it to himself.
wikipedia wrote:
The aim of the BKWSU is to rule the world following a forthcoming apocalypse which they believe only they will survive. The Brahma Kumaris view themselves as the world’s true rulers and that 900,000 of them will be reborn during a Golden Age and enjoy 1,250 years of peace and plenty on earth.
Imagine for example, if I typed Christianity on wikipedia, and the very first paragraph about beliefs was this: "The aim of Christianity is to exclusively inhabit a heaven that is made only for them while literally every single person who is not a christian will burn in hell and suffer for eternity."
It is actually a christian belief (much more strong than the BK belief which doesn't include any hell and every soul will have about the same percentage of happiness and sorrow, which is about 75% happiness, even for those who will never be a BK). But surely it is nothing near a neutral way of making a brief resume of the main christian beliefs, or of what christianity is all about.
Now imagine if it was like this: "The aim of christianity is to provide a philosophy of loving God above all things and loving every human being as much as you love yourself."
We are talking about the same religion aren't we? But isn't the impact of that text completely different than the previous one? In fact, loving God and each human being is the most beautiful teaching of christianity and the one that makes more sense to its followers, so why should the hell version be considered an accurate representation of it instead of the universal love one?
In fact, that quote is false. That is not the main aim of BK. The main aim and practice of BK is to "be in the consciousness of soul and connect to God (without an intermediate)". That is what all BKs consider to be most important, and it should replace ex-l's false words.
Moving on to "Early History". Every single thing that is reported in this section are controversies. That shouldn't be the historical point of view. What ex-l have written belong to a "controversies section", not "history". Every term is written in such a way as to make BK appear as a cult as well as a money-making comercial enterprise. It's unnaceptable.
wikipedia wrote:
It was reported that under the guise of high sounding philosophy, a systematic ridicule of Hinduism, worship and prayer was going on and priest and preachers of other religions were stigmatised as hypocritical charlatans and that followers were being duped into the belief that salvation could only be attained through him and the Mandli and within one week.
This should not be in any place other than a controversies section. It's exclusively personal opinion and even false statements. Brahma Kumaris NEVER taught that other religions are charlatans. The Murli always gave good amount of respect to sanyasis and other religions saying, for example, that they bring peace and purity to mankind.
Regarding priority, "Early History" and "Expansion" are the first subjects and only later "Central Beliefs". That is wrong. "Beliefs", as in the other articles about religions, must come first. "History", (not "early history" and "expansion") should come later.
The whole section about history should be re-written in a way that doesn't give priority to the controversies, and also, without the intention behind every phrase and word to portray BK negatively.
It should be noted that on the section "Expansion", more than fifty percent of it is dedicated to splinter groups.
First of all, There is no group that could really be called "splinter group", in the way exists in other religions. Usually, in other religions, "splinter groups" are created when part of the believers disagree with the current leadership and some interpretations of scripture, but maintain the core beliefs. PBKs (and all BK "splinter groups" are derived from PBKs) do not keep the BK core beliefs at all. They are a completely different group, completely focused on their leader, who is said to be the "personified form of God". For that reason of being too distant and even opposite from the core beliefs, they shouldn't be there at all, except possibly at "controversies" section or at their own article. But certainly NOT at "History" section where it currently occupies almost half of it.
Most of that, by the way, is a narration that seems to portray Dev Dixit as some kind of revolutionary hero seeking the hidden truth while Brahma Kumaris, the evil tyrants, tried to prevent in every way. All I can say is thank you for a few laughs.
Speaking about that, I would have banned Dixit myself if I was the coordinator of his center. Pbks are already annoyingly repetitive and insistent preachers on the internet, imagine their creator in person interrupting the Murli every five minutes to inform everyone else about "the one and only true interpretation of God's words that he exclusively figured out".
Simply, BKs (or adherents of any religion) have the right to listen to the Murli (or scripture, prayer, whatever) without such interruptions, so banning someone for insistent inappropriate behaviour is nothing more than the obvious.
Wikipedia wrote:
Some members of the local Sindhi people reacted unfavorably to the movement because of immoral and intimate behaviour between the founder and the young women who attended his ashram
Here it is obvious that ex-l wants to imply Lekhraj sexually abused the girls in the ashram. What else could you understand from "immoral and intimate behaviour between the founder and the young women"? However, the source for this view towards which ex-l is all so enthusiasthic, was an accusation made by a single person, who had absolutely no proof of it being true. There is not a single evidence that suggests such a thing has happened, therefore it's unnaceptable it could be on the history section of an encyclopedia article.
An encyclopedia is a compact source of reliable and relevant information and most of ex-l's points do not qualify as such.
Wikipedia wrote:
According to the Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements,[36] in 2000 there were about 450,000 people affiliated with the Brahma Kumaris but many were probably not committed to the group's worldview.
Probably? What do you mean, in other words? Maybe you mean "Don't be impressed that so many people joined, because I'm sure not many were stupid enough to buy into their ****".
The problem here is that one's personal views, opinions and "probably"s have no relevance to an encyclopedia.
Moving on to "Central Beliefs", here are the 4 main points that are supposed to resume BK's central beliefs:
wikipedia wrote:
1- The human being is an eternal soul living within a physical body. The soul is regarded as something distinct from the body.
2- In reincarnation, the soul moves from one human body to another. There is no reincarnation into non-human bodies.
3- Humanity is now reaching the end of the current cycle. Soon the world will be destroyed, at a time referred to as "Destruction".
4- The Indian subcontinent will be the site of the future Golden Age paradise. BKs regard Hindi as humanity's original language. Only BKs who have purified themselves spiritually will be reborn into the Golden Age as Gods and Goddess.
First of all, why isn't "God" one of the "4 central beliefs"? Added to that, "Only BKs who have purified themselves spiritually will be reborn into the Golden Age as Gods and Goddess." What is this trying to say? That BK is some sort of Neo-Paganism? No God, but Gods and Goddesses? And with capital G! I'm appalled as a BK to read such a thing as a representation of my religion. The Murlis never refered to deities of golden age with capital G gods. In fact, "gods and goddesses" is mentioned in very few Murlis, and it's a way to illustrate the greatness of deities, it's absolutely not a literal belief. Brahma Kumaris is a MONOTHEISTIC religion.
"Only BKs will inhabit golden age" or the like cannot be anywhere in the article because, it's not true. The Murli says even some non-BK scientists may be reborn in golden age, so in this way there are exceptions, so exclusivity cannot be stated.
Also, what does it matter which subcontinent will be golden age? That is absolutely not relevant in the context of belief in golden age, instead the core meaning of the belief is what matters.
Number 3 is "destruction". That means in ex-l's mind, the third main belief of BKs is destruction. "Karma" is not mentioned. "Cycle" is not mentioned. Instead, ex-l wants "destruction" to be highlighted. That's absolutely not the case. "Destruction" is not one of the main beliefs, it's a detail inside the idea of cycle, and there is no reason why it should be highlighted or emphasized.
Number 1 - soul, is ok. "Non-physical" or "metaphysical" could be added to "soul" for additional clarity.
Wikipedia wrote:
In 1952, after a 14-year period of retreat during which they published numerous pamphlets, newspaper articles and wrote letters to important national and international figures, a more structured form of teaching began to be offered to the public by way of a seven lesson course.[9] The movement has distinguished itself from Hinduism and projects itself as a vehicle for spiritual teaching rather than a religion.
This part is out of place. It belongs to a "history" section, not "beliefs" as ex-l placed.
Wikipedia wrote:
God
The Brahma Kumaris claim their spirit guide, who they call Shiva Baba, is the God of all religions. Shiva Baba is an eternal soul and a point of light just like human souls but the Supreme one. Adherents claim it speaks to humanity exclusively via the Brahma Kumaris' spirit mediums. They claim Shiva Baba is the same spirit being known as Allah or Jahweh and its purpose is to awaken humanity, destroy other religions, and to eliminate evil and negativity. He is not the creator of matter which is itself considered to be eternal.
God, they believe, possesses the religion's spirit mediums at mass seances at its headquarters in India and speaks to its followers in person. These messages called "Murlis" becoming the scriptures of the religion but are available to members only. Hidden from outsiders, they are continually being re-edited by the leadership.
This one is very biased. The core, most important beliefs BKs have about God were completely ommitted, to intentionally show a version that, in the way is written, seem like a childish belief.
Why is it not written "BKs believe God is a metaphysical entity, like the human soul, but who do not incarnate in a physical body. God is regarded as the ultimate source of values such as peace, love, purity and bliss. The connection between the human being and God is considered the most important practice and is the main aim of the BK meditation." This is a neutral and accurate representation of how BKs believe in "God", certainly the most important of all beliefs, as is stated in almost every Murli "the most important thing is remembrance (of God)".
Ex-l hides the most important CORE beliefs, and wants to present a caricature as reliable fact, expecting that some secondary beliefs will seem shocking enough if presented as primary, and in fact they do. Because they (destruction, etc.) are not main and core beliefs.
For example, "its purpose is to... destroy other religions". That's outright false. BKs do not believe God has the purpose of destroying other religions at all.
The word "possess" is used frequently by ex-l. That's unacceptable, "possession" is used in the religious context referring to evil spirits. It's a very negative word, contrary to the neutral standards of any encyclopedia, including wikipedia.
"Hidden from outsiders, they (Murlis) are continually being re-edited by the leadership." - True or not, it does not belong in a "beliefs" section.
wikipedia wrote:
Self
Human and even animal souls, called atmas, are believed to be an infinitesimal point of spiritual light residing in the forehead of the body it occupies. Souls are believed to originally exist with God in a "Soul World", a world of infinite light, peace and silence called Nirvana. Here souls are in a state of rest and beyond experience. Souls enter bodies to take birth in order to experience life and give expression to their personality. Unlike other Eastern traditions, the soul is not thought to transmigrate into other species and does not evolve but rather devolves birth after birth. Within this "point of light" all aspects of the personality are contained and is said to enter the human body in the 4th to 5th month of pregnancy.[45] Brahma Kumari adherents believe that a soul can inhabit the body of another, or possess them, against their will.
Wikipedia wrote:
"Human and even animal souls, called atmas, are believed to be an infinitesimal point of spiritual light residing in the forehead of the body it occupies. Souls are believed to originally exist with God in a "Soul World", a world of infinite light, peace and silence called Nirvana. Here souls are in a state of rest and beyond experience. Souls enter bodies to take birth in order to experience life and give expression to their personality."
- This part is not bad, but also not very clear. Again, it should say soul is believed to be non-physical and eternal. Also, it should say that soul is believed to have, experience and express the original qualities: purity, peace, love, etc. but for ex-l standards, that's forbidden, because nothing positive can exist in such a doomsday destructive cult.
"Within this "point of light" all aspects of the personality are contained and is said to enter the human body in the 4th to 5th month of pregnancy.[45] Brahma Kumari adherents believe that a soul can inhabit the body of another, or possess them, against their will." - This part is very innacurate. There is no fixed belief of BK regarding in which specific month does a soul enter a body. Possess body of another against their will is absolutely not a core belief of BKs and there is no known case of such a thing. "All aspects of personality" do not necessarily have to be inside the soul. Certainly BKs do not deny that some aspects of personality can be neurological.
Wikipedia wrote:
Cycle of time
Time is considered to be cyclic, repeating identically every 5,000 years, and is composed of five ages (yugas): the Golden Age (Sat Yuga), the Silver Age (Treta Yuga), the Copper Age (Dwapar Yuga), the Iron Age (Kali Yuga) each exactly 1,250 years long, and the Confluence Age (Sangam Yuga).
During the first half of the cycle, which the Brahma Kumaris will rule, procreation is believed to be possible through the power of yoga without sexual intercourse. The Universe is never transformed into primordial or atomic state matter, nor does the world ever becomes devoid of human beings.
Again, careful choice of only information that seem shocking to the public. The priority is not to the main or most relevant information, but to that which helps to portray the BK as ex-l wants it to be portrayed: as negative as possible. Any philosophical logic, or the main understanding of BKs about the cycle is completely thrown out to give place to a highlight of the distorted detail of BKs ruling golden age. That's not even accurate. It's believed that some BK souls will reincarnate as the rulers of golden age, but they will not be BKs at that time. So "During the first half of the cycle, which the Brahma Kumaris will rule" is outright false information, it's mocking the belief, in a sense that "it doesn't matter if I'm saying it right, what matters is exposing this nonsense so as to keep people away from it".
Why is cycle not shown as the metaphor of 4 seasons? Why is entropy not mentioned? Why is it not compared with the Indian idea of cycle, as ex-l so much likes to remind everyone that BK Raja Yoga is not Patanjali Raja Yoga? Comparisons are only used to show "it's not really Raja Yoga, it's falsified". These ARE relevant to "core beliefs" because it's how all adherents see the cycle, there are reasons and a philosophy behind the belief and there is no point in throwing the shocking information (how it differs from beliefs of modern science) in the face of the public like that, making it appear as blind, arbitrary and pointless beliefs.
The real process of the cycle how is believed by BKs is barely touched, it's very unclear what exactly is the cycle in BK view, because all that was said were some carefuly chosen, specific details which happen to differ the most from the current predominant beliefs of people.
Wikipedia wrote:
Destruction
The Brahmakumaris are fervently apocalyptic. According to them, the age between hell on earth and heaven on earth is said to be 100 years long, and believed to have begun again in 1936 when God entered their mediums. During this time, present day civilisation is to be completely destroyed by natural disasters, civil and nuclear war which followers call Destruction.[51] This event is generally hidden from non-members or downplayed. Numerous false predictions of the date of Destruction have been made, such as World War II, 1950, 1976, 1987, 2000 failures after which many adherents left. The philosophy has been re-written to suit but followers are still being told it is extremely soon and now called "Transformation". The current expected date for the beginning of the Golden Age is 2036.
"The BKs are fervently apocalyptic". You mean, like a terrorist group? Are BKs the new Al-Qaeda? The authorities should be worried, what if a BK gets his hand on a nuke? Oh what a beautiful neutral, professional encyclopedia writing.
Again, ex-l wants destruction to have the biggest highlight. Why not God, which is a more important BK belief? Why not soul? Karma? Cycle? Karma is not mentioned AT ALL, even in the beliefs section or anywhere in the article. Why not explain the aim and process of BK meditation - we will get to "meditation" in a minute, one of the worst and most misrepresented sub-sections of beliefs by ex-l.
Wikipedia wrote:
Tree of humanity
It is taught that all of life will die and return to Nirvana, then take birth in the forthcoming cycle at their predestined time and place. This is portrayed as the "Kalpa Vriksha Tree", or the "Tree of Humanity", in which the founder Brahma Baba (Dada Lekhraj) and his Brahma Kumaris followers are shown as the roots of the humanity. A new world order starting with the birth of Krishna and a population of 900,000 is believed to go on to enjoy 2,500 years of paradise as living deities before humanity splits and the religious founders incarnate. Each creates their own branch and brings with them their own followers from the Infinite Light, until they too decline and splits, schisms, cults and sects appear at the end of the Iron Age.
The aim of the individual Brahma Kumari is to gain a high status in the coming paradise, perhaps even a select 108 who are 'totally victorious' and will rule there. Members of the physical families of Brahma Kumaris who have contact with the University are said to become members of the 16,000 top souls and at the end of each Cycle, everyone will see visions in which their personal destinies will be fully disclosed.
Ex-l's show of amateurism goes on as he tries to draw his caricature of BK to be presented as fact. "Tree of humanity" is NOT a core belief at all. It's just one of the metaphors BKs use to understand the "Cycle", which is the actual belief. There could never be a sub-section named "tree of humanity" on "Beliefs" section. Instead it could be just a detail inside "Cycle" stating that "tree" is a metaphor also used to illustrate the cycle, why and how it is used. Even then it's a superfluous and irrelevant detail for an encyclopedia, as the beliefs itself, not the details or metaphors, are what matter.
"Each creates their own branch and brings with them their own followers from the Infinite Light, until they too decline and splits, schisms, cults and sects appear at the end of the Iron Age." - Infinite Light? What the heaven is that?
"Members of the physical families of Brahma Kumaris who have contact with the University are said to become members of the 16,000 top souls and at the end of each Cycle, everyone will see visions in which their personal destinies will be fully disclosed." - As in the whole article, ex-l takes a completely arbitrary choice of the information he sees as more shocking. Why not "the Murlis state that what each soul will become in the future is incognito and is a direct result of karma - a law of cause and effect"? Oh wait, karma is not even mentioned anywhere in the article! We are trying to portray BK as something else to keep people away, remember? No matter how much information is ommitted or distorted, it's for a noble cause! We have to keep innocent people away from those fervent apocalyptic dangerous terrorists!
Wikipedia wrote:
Meditation
The Brahma Kumaris teach a form of meditation called Raja Yoga, which is not be the same as classical Raja Yoga as described by Patanjali, through which members are encouraged to purify their minds. This may be done by sitting tranquilly in front of a screen on to which Dada Lekhraj's image is projected, then making affirmations regarding the eternal nature of the soul.
Lawrence Babbs described another practise where "the student or students sit in a semi-darkened room facing the teacher (usually a woman). Just above and behind the teacher's head is a red plastic ovoid that glows from a lightbulb within, in its center is a tiny hole which appears as an intense whitelight against the red glow.[4] This device represents the Supreme Soul (known as Shiv Baba) who is God. With devotional songs playing softly in the background, student and teacher gaze intently at each other, either in the open eyes or at the forehead. While doing this the student is supposed to imagine him or herself as a soul and not as a body, separate from the body and as light bathed in the love and light of the Supreme Soul Shiva, and so on.[41] Babb also states that while staring into the eyes of the teacher, many students experience visual hallucinations involving lights.
Here we get to what is maybe the worst and most misrepresented sub-section of the whole article. Do you think it's by chance or coincidence? Not at all. People come to Brahma Kumaris mostly because they want to learn meditation. If you want to keep people away, which subject you have to distort the most? You guessed right - "meditation"!
Honeslty, I don't recognize the practice I have been doing daily for many years here. It seems like a completely different thing, and really a psychopathic activity which would make me want to throw my last meal out through my mouth.
If I had read this article before coming to BK, maybe I would not be a BK today.
"Babb also states that while staring into the eyes of the teacher, many students experience visual hallucinations involving lights." Seriously, hallucinations? Does the person who wrote this even know what a hallucination is?
thefreedictionary.com wrote:
hal·lu·ci·na·tion (h-ls-nshn)
n.
1.
a. Perception of visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, or gustatory experiences without an external stimulus and with a compelling sense of their reality, usually resulting from a mental disorder or as a response to a drug.
b. The objects or events so perceived.
2. A false or mistaken idea; a delusion.
Note "with a compelling sense of their reality, usually resulting from a mental disorder or as a response to a drug.". What ex-l means is that while meditating, BK's see lights around them with physical eyes while having the perception that they are physically real. Really? You mean like someone who took LSD? Because that's the only meaning of "hallucination".
What BK meditation really is, is not even mentioned once. That the main aim of BK meditation is to consider oneself a soul and connect to God to experience the original qualities, is avoided at any cost and completely absent in the whole article. There is no way by reading this article, anyone could even understand that BKs consider the connection with God through the mind, to be the most important thing, or that they even consider it to be a thing in the first place.
To say that a red bulb is a pre-requisite for BK meditation is so ridiculous and amateur from any mundane point of view of reporting a religious belief. Some very small details that aren't even part of meditation were put together and amplified to make BK meditation seem as a psychopathic delusional hallucinatory supertitious brainwash. Ex-l didn't moderate himself at all, he portrayed it as negativelly as he could at the cost of any truth or accuracy.
And saying that a lightbulb represents God, in a "beliefs" section, elevates the lightbulb to the status of religious sacred object, through which adherents believe comes the light of God, like christians believe that bread becomes Christ's flesh. Except that NO, that's absolutely false. BK meditation is supposed to be a non-physical perception of the soul and God, that's all! It can be done anywhere! With or without light of whatever color!
Wikipedia wrote:
Murlis
Unlike traditional forms of Hinduism, the Brahma Kumaris' teachings come not so much from ancient scriptures but from revelations given in trance states. However, the mediumistic messages known by Brahma Kumaris as "Murlis" read at the 6.30 am meetings are slowly developing the nature of potential scriptures. The earlier ones channelled by Lekhraj Kripalani while he was alive, are now repeated in a five-year cycle. They are supplemented by later murlis channelled by Hirday Mohini of Delhi in while possessed, and these too are written down.
There are two types of mediumistic messages; sakar and avyakt;
Sakar Murlis refer to the original classes said to be spoken by "Shiva" through the medium of Lekhraj Kripalani in the 1960s, before he died of a heart attack on 18 January 1969. These include teachings of God Shiva and the life experiences of Kirpalani.
Avyakt Vanis, or Murlis, refer to the teachings of Shiva and the soul of the deceased Lekhraj Kripalani speaking together through a medium named Hirday Mohini, or "Dadi Gulzar". The Brahma Kumaris believe that the soul of Lekhraj Kripalani has become perfect and now has the role of an angel. These messages are understood by members of the BKWSU to be the words of God. The Murlis are what the Brahma Kumaris use to direct their personal spiritual effort and institutional service.
Followers must complete the Brahma Kumaris foundation course and start by attend morning Murli class before visiting the headquarters in India during the period when the deceased founder and God communicates to them via trance mediums.
Ok, this part I don't find as bad as most of the others, except for some words and details.
"Unlike traditional forms of Hinduism, the Brahma Kumaris' teachings come not so much from ancient scriptures but from revelations given in trance states. However, the mediumistic messages known by Brahma Kumaris as "Murlis" read at the 6.30 am meetings are slowly developing the nature of potential scriptures." - I would disagree with "trance state". Actually Lekhraj was not in a trance state when spoke the Sakar Murlis, so that doesn't apply.
"...are slowly developing the nature of potential scriptures. The earlier ones channelled by Lekhraj Kripalani while he was alive, are now repeated in a five-year cycle. They are supplemented by later murlis channelled by Hirday Mohini of Delhi in while possessed, and these too are written down." - "Possessed, as explained before, is a negative, biased word. Other than that I don't disagree with what is written.
"There are two types of mediumistic messages; sakar and avyakt;
Sakar Murlis refer to the original classes said to be spoken by "Shiva" through the medium of Lekhraj Kripalani in the 1960s, before he died of a heart attack on 18 January 1969. These include teachings of God Shiva and the life experiences of Kirpalani." - I'm not sure if there is enough evidence that Lekhraj died from heart attack, that must be checked. Even if true, "died from a heart attack", could be replaced by "passed away".
"Avyakt Vanis, or Murlis, refer to the teachings of Shiva and the soul of the deceased Lekhraj Kripalani speaking together through a medium named Hirday Mohini, or "Dadi Gulzar". The Brahma Kumaris believe that the soul of Lekhraj Kripalani has become perfect and now has the role of an angel. These messages are understood by members of the BKWSU to be the words of God. The Murlis are what the Brahma Kumaris use to direct their personal spiritual effort and institutional service.
Followers must complete the Brahma Kumaris foundation course and start by attend morning Murli class before visiting the headquarters in India during the period when the deceased founder and God communicates to them via trance mediums." - I'm not sure if I find this to be the most clear and relevant information. Maybe it could be re-written in a more clear way.
Wikipedia wrote:
Lifestyle
Brahma Kumaris follow a lifestyle of disciplines in order to achieve a high social status in the paradisiacal world which they believe will follow the apocalyptic calamity soon to befall humanity.:
Complete celibacy in or out of marriagein order to focus energies on the world to come.
Sattvic vegetarianism, a strict lacto-vegetarian diet (excluding eggs, onions, garlic and/or spicy food) cooked only by the self or other members of the BKWSU.
Abstaining from alcohol, tobacco and non-prescription drugs.
Daily early morning meditation at 4:00 to 4:45 am, called 'Amrit Vela'.
Daily morning class at approximately 6:30 am.
Men and women traditionally sit on separate sides of the room at the centers during classes.
Brahma Kumaris can be identified by their frequent adoption of wearing white clothes, to symbolize purity.
Only having other Brahma Kumari adherents as companions as opposed to non-BKs given over to worldly pleasures known as bhogis.
This part is mostly a complete caricature of BKs.
"Brahma Kumaris follow a lifestyle of disciplines in order to achieve a high social status in the paradisiacal world which they believe will follow the apocalyptic calamity soon to befall humanity" - Wrong. That's the reason ex-l wants to be true, but it's not. The reason BKs have principles is not because they will magically grant them a status in paradise, but because they believe the principles to bring benefit at the present moment and increase the quality of meditation.
"Complete celibacy in or out of marriagein order to focus energies on the world to come." "in order to focus energies on the world to come" is false, totally made up by ex-l.
"Sattvic vegetarianism, a strict lacto-vegetarian diet (excluding eggs, onions, garlic and/or spicy food) cooked only by the self or other members of the BKWSU." - I think this one is ok.
"Abstaining from alcohol, tobacco and non-prescription drugs.
Daily early morning meditation at 4:00 to 4:45 am, called 'Amrit Vela'.
Daily morning class at approximately 6:30 am." - This is partially ok, except that not all BKs do meditation every day at 4 o'clock and watch the morning class every day. It could be specified that some do so, not all.
"Men and women traditionally sit on separate sides of the room at the centers during classes." - Wrong. In some classes there are separate sides, but not every class.
"Brahma Kumaris can be identified by their frequent adoption of wearing white clothes, to symbolize purity." - I disagree with this one, because wearing white clothes is not part of BK principles and in the west many BKs don't bother about what color they are wearing.
"Only having other Brahma Kumari adherents as companions as opposed to non-BKs given over to worldly pleasures known as bhogis." - This one is laughable, not true at all.
Wikipedia wrote:
Activities and recognition
The Brahma Kumaris' primary aims and objects is to gain popularity and to spread over the message of their Guru who they consider to be God the Creater or Shiva rather than giving any education to the masses. As an initiation process, it conducts seven one-hour-long courses in their philosophy and open-eyed meditation technique. The organisation also offers courses in "positive thinking", "self management leadership", and "living values." They also have a number of voluntary outreach programs in prisons. Followers' total dedication to BK activities causes conflicts within their families.
Concluding that "doctrinal assertions are socially divisive and thus counterproductive to their primary goal" the Brahma Kumaris have starting building coalitions and leading conglomerated networks of cooperation. One such example, with the support of Vicente Fox, was carried out under the guise of a commercial enterprise introducing Brahma Kumari teachings and practises to the Government of Mexico through the "Self Management Leadership" course which grew out of Brahma Kumaris beliefs and is the backbone of Brahma Kumaris management philosophy. 90 trained facilitators ran programs through which 25,000 people at the top level of government have passed.
In India, the BKWSU runs a charitable Village Outreach Programme in Mount Abu and administers the Global Hospital and Research Centre (GHRC), established in 1991 and funded by the J. Wattammull Memorial Trust. In 2004, the Brahma Kumaris established the G.V. Mody Rural Health Care Centre & Eye Hospital, located at the base of Mount Abu. The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University is an international non-governmental organisation (NGO) in general consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations and UNICEF. It is associated with the UN Department of Public Information.
The Brahma Kumaris have undertaken two major international projects; ‘The Million Minutes for Peace’ in 1986 for which they received 7 Peace Messenger Awards and ‘Global Cooperation for a Better World’ in 1988.
The organisation now has hundreds of branches internationally and
was awarded 7 UN Peace Messenger Awards 1987 for its co-ordination of the ‘Million Minutes of Peace’ project.[81]
Pioneering work in solar energy and sustainable energy, including developing the world's largest solar cooker.[82]
Chief administrator Prakashmani awarded Peace Medal of the United Nations for the year 1981 for the ‘Million Minutes of Peace’ project.
granted International Peace Messenger Initiative status by the U.N.for the Global Co-operation for a Better World campaign.
UNESCO special award for collecting 35 million signatures from all over India and 120 other countries in support and promotion of the UNESCO’s ‘Culture of Peace’ Project entitled Peace Manifesto-2000 in the International Year of Culture of Peace −2,000 as proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in the year 2,000.[85]
The Governor of the Indian state of Uttarakhand; Margaret Alva (First woman governor of that state) commended the Brahma Kumaris: "The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University had influence on changing cultural opinions of women, and its teachings and practice has brought about a significant change in the status of women and the regard that men hold for women."
BKs are known for charitable activities. Ruth Broyde Sharone, the Co-Chair of the Interfaith Ambassadors for a Parliament of the World Religions (IAPWR) and journalist; wrote: “BKs are also well-known for their charitable acts, especially on Mount Abu, where they have established themselves as teachers and healers. A modern hospital provides low-cost care for not just the BK community but the entire population of Rajasthan. (A visit to the dentist and an ex-ray for an infected tooth cost me only $10.) Several years ago Dr. Vinay Laxmi, a charming gynaecologist, launched a program in several surrounding villages to provide natal care for mothers and good nutrition for their children. I visited one of the villages and met ‘miracle children’ who would have died or been severely crippled from malnutrition and sickness were it not for the BKs’ dedication.“
Current chief administrator, Janki Kripalani, received an honorary doctorate from the Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management.
The Brahma Kumaris Youth Wing was award a place in the Guinness World Records for the "largest sand painting in the world" on 26 November 2010.
"The Brahma Kumaris' primary aims and objects is to gain popularity and to spread over the message of their Guru who they consider to be God the Creater or Shiva rather than giving any education to the masses." - No. Brahma Kumaris is a religion, not a comercial enterprise and if ex-l sees like that, it's nothing more than his personal view.
"Their Guru who they consider to be God the Creater..." - Wait, hadn't you said on beliefs section that BKs DON'T consider God as the Creator? Oh I get it, they consider God to be the creatEr, NOT Creator... erm... ok.
"rather than giving any education to the masses." - Rather than curing cancer... Rather than curing aids... Rather than arresting criminals... Rather than putting down dictators... Rather than protecting the dolphins... etc. etc. etc.
"Followers' total dedication to BK activities causes conflicts within their families.
Concluding that "doctrinal assertions are socially divisive and thus counterproductive to their primary goal"" - Wow, this came from encyclopedia to a personal and collective analysis to social science and philosophy, all in two phrases, what a genius!
Regarding the report on activities, I won't comment on it, someone who understands about the subject could check whether or not the information is accurate.
Wikipedia wrote:
Use of mediumship
The BKWSU is believed by its members to have been established by Shiva Baba (God-Father Shiva, described as the Supreme Soul and conceived as the one God of all religions) through the medium of the group's founder Lekhraj Kripalani. From the beginning, a number of trance-messengers have received messages and teachings. According to an account by Sister Denise, who was at that time Director of the San Francisco Center, a medium has been used to directly channel a message from a deceased senior Brahma Kumari, Didi Manmohini. In its early days, children would commonly go into trances, having visions of Krishna and Vaikunth (Golden Age Heaven) and engaging in ecstatic dances for as long as 7 days. A number of mediumistic female followers known as Sandeshputris (trance messengers) also helped add to the group's spiritual knowledge through psychic visions.
The deceased human founder Lekhraj Kripalani continues to be channelled through a senior sister (Hirdaya Mohini, referred to familiarly as Dadi Gulzar) at the organisation's Rajasthan headquarters. The combined presence of the BKWSU's human founder and the spiritual being the BKWSU believe is God are referred to as BapDada (meaning father and elder brother) by BKs, especially in the context of their manifestation via this trance medium, through which the pair continue to direct the organisation to this day.
Pratibha Patil, the UPA-Left candidate and former president of India said on camera during the Indian presidential election, 2007, that she spoke to the spirit of the deceased leader of the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University at their headquarters in Mount Abu, Rajasthan. Patil stated that she had received a mediumistic message indicating great responsibility coming her way during the last season in which the spirits called "Bapdada" communicated with the faithful of the Brahma Kumaris sect. She had gone to seek the blessings of Hirday Mohini, also known as Dadi Gulzar or Dadiji.
The same rules of non-bias should apply here as in the whole article. For the reason of the article being totally biased, it must be completely re-written to achieve an acceptable, neutral and less amateur approach.
The person who wrote the article as in its current state was banned from Wikipedia but continues to exclusively control the article using fake accounts (sockpuppets). In order for the article to be re-made, his sockpuppets must be denounced so that ex-l loses control over the article, allowing it to be rewritten in a non-biased, just, accurate, relevant way.
Statistics: Posted by EasyMeditation — Mon Aug 12, 2013 3:53 pm