Dwapara Yuga: Free Speech and Sacred Cows

• Researcher - The average radio listener listens for eighteen minutes. The average Howard Stern fan listens for - are you ready for this? - an hour and twenty minutes.
• Assistant - How can that be?
• Researcher -Answer most commonly given? "I want to see what he'll say next."
• Assistant - Okay, fine. But what about the people who hate Stern?
• Researcher: Good point. The average Stern hater listens for two and a half hours a day.
• Assistant - But... if they hate him, why do they listen?
• Researcher: Most common answer? "I want to see what he'll say next."

(Dialog from the movie "Private Parts", a biography of Howard Stern).

For younger or non American readers, Howard Stern is a 'shock jock' radio host in the US one of many who provokes his audience by not simply parroting back to them what they expect to hear but challenging their preconceptions, attitudes of provincialism, puritanism and hypocrisy and most especially lampooning sacred cows.

Amusingly those who disagree with him, especially his right to express his opinions at all, are the most loyal listeners. In their sometimes exaggerated positions, Howard Stern and Rush Limbaugh are two book-ends of the political and social spectrum in America, having both carved out unique artistic formulae, reaching millions. The author is a listener of neither but respects their right to free speech. A mark of dictatorship is a single voice and suppression of dissenting viewpoints however propagandists choose to dress it up in nationalist, patriotic, true believer colors.

In the 20s and 30s, Yogananda was one of the most popular speakers in the US, with a mission not of entertaining but propagating the message of simple living and high thinking with realization of oneself as the religion of Dwapara Yuga. In his lifetime, angry mobs of religious zealots and even two lawsuits by once close associates were raised against him. That tradition seemingly continues with different branches of Kriya Yoga raised against one another.

• If you wish to hear only from one particular Kriya Yoga Group, why not simply go to their site or a sponsored forum and discuss how much it works for you?
• If you are wishing to put down a particular Kriya Yoga Group, why not simply go to their anti-site (it's rather like atomic theory!) or anti forum group and discuss how bad they are and how they don't work for you?

Group sites are listed here. Anti group sites can easily be found using Google or Yahoo.

The author would like to thank everyone for reading this blog, especially for those most loyal of readers who disagree with every word, asking for on one hand censorship and on the other, publication of their polemical views always expressed as 'against' and never 'for' anything!

The blog author humbly repeats Babaji's advice to anyone excessively, obsessionally 'for' or 'against' any particular group or organization: "Everything on earth is of mixed character, like a mingling of sand and sugar. Be like the wise ant, which seizes only the sugar, and leaves the sand untouched."

Apply the science of religion - question everything, verify everything and meditate! You will be tuning more deeply into Dwapara Yuga and Yogananda! As the Chinese Proverb has it "Be careful what you wish for - you might just find it!"

Friends - Free speech is truly a wonderful thing. I thank everyone for comments and reviews. It is such a pleasure to be able to discuss Yogandaji's teachings, even with those who from their actions wish only harm to those who do not agree with them.

"Thou art our Father. We are made in Thine own image. We are sons of God. We neither ask nor pray like beggars, but demand as Thy children, wisdom, salvation, health, happiness, eternal joy. Naughty or good, we are Thy children. Help us to find Thy will in us. Teach us to use independently the human will (since Thou gavest that to us to use freely), in tune with Thy wisdom-guided will."

Bless you all