They called him “Swami” Nithyananda; they laid their hearts at his feet as they performed “pada puja”. They laid out their life savings for a boon from him and in return he shattered their hopes and hearts. But Nithyananda’s sex scandal has also woken his devotees up from their Rip van Winkle slumber of blind faith and ignorance. The message is clear, Godmen are as human as the rest of us. Nithyananda who took his name a little too seriously, Nithya Ananda — “always happy,” is not the first nor will he be the last swami to succumb to mortal desires. As long as there is misery in the world, there will be godmen giving hope, even if it’s only placebo.
Nithyananda certainly seems to have made some people’s lives better. He smiled his “toothpaste smile” all the time. But to be happy he needed more than just “pada pujas” and money, it seems he also needed “intimate healing sessions”. Now the question is, did Nithyananda do something wrong by having sex? Legally, No. Two consenting adults had sex, it’s a non - issue. But the problem is that he said he was a swami and a brahmachari. Accordingly, he was treated like god by his devotees who now feel he defrauded them. To be sure, there are also other criminal charges of destroying evidence and the possession of illegal materials. But why is everyone so surprised? Nithyananda is a 33 – year - old man and like all men his hormones would be ravenous for a little bit of sexual intimacy.
I personally have a question, if god did not want us to have sex and enjoy it, why would he give us sex organs? He could have just put some pollen on our head instead of hair and we could have waited for the bees and birds to cross - pollinate us. In short, Nithyananda would have been a happy – go - lucky boy leading a “sexy” life with a job as a mechanical engineer had he not discovered a more lucrative “vocation” called “spirituality”. It is obvious that today being a godman is like a vocation. After all, Nithyananda came from a place Tiruvannamalai, which is infested with godmen and yet – to - be godmen. What Mumbai is to Bollywood, Tiruvannamalai is to “Goddywood”. It’s just a matter of time before the next godman superstar emerges. Like Bollywood, “Goddywood” is now big business.
Nithyananda and his inner circle of devotees have now lost their intellect considering their claims in the aftermath of the scandal. In a petition, the ashram claims that the video footage was a fake and morphed one. They have blamed an inmate of the ashram, Premananda alias Lenin Karuppan, for the morphing of their Swami’s face. Now, this is called living in denial, and if this is the kind of response these people give, then they need the assistance of God himself. How in the world could one man with hardly any equipment do what Disney and Pixar animation take years to do using more than 200 qualified graphic designers. God help these devotees in denial.
As far as the alleged handling of illegal materials, it is plain old thievery. It was seen on TV that while the Police had secured the ashram, two buildings in the ashram were on fire. The ashram spin doctors claimed that some miscreants set the place on fire but there was no one around the buildings! So who are these stealthy and surprisingly publicity-shy miscreants? Well, it is now being said that the godman's followers set the building on fire to destroy evidence.
Like religion, godmen are also a delusion. No wonder it is said, “When one person suffers from a delusion, it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion, it is called religion”. But coming to Nithyananda, the beneficial aspect of this scandal is the real awakening of Nithyananda’s devotees and devotees of other such godmen. Personally I find devotees, like religious people, quite fanatical and not open to questions and criticism. It is ok to question science and a man’s prejudices but godmen, religion and religious practices are above justification, logic and rationale.
We can also find many devotees of these god-men being modestly immodest with a sense of superiority; of being more learned in the matters of life than a regular working person. They have an attitude which states only they know the right way of living and have discovered the secret to good living.
I also find many godmen quite narcissistic. Why else would they want their devotees to wish us with the godman’s name? Nithyananda’s devotees say “Nithyanandam” before asking “How are you doing?” I have decided the next time some devotee wishes me with the name of their godman first, I will reply, “Om…Vikramanandam is happy and is doing better than you”. Also what was a little disturbing was seeing young girls being sent to these ashrams to stay overnight for weeks on end to perform pujas and take part in various healing programmes. The same parents would never dare send their daughters on an overnight trip with her friends. But a week-long stay at ashrams filled with so - called “holier – than - thou” men is safe?!
The human mind is always looking for hope and it latches on to anything that remotely promises it. When we suffer we do not understand why and hence we fear it. And this fear is what godmen exploit. One need not live a very religious life but a conscious one; conscious of the fact that it must be a life of dignity, decency and love. Oh! Was that pep - talk good? May be I too can become a swamiji then? Yours truly “Swami Vikramananda” may be? No, that sounds too warrior-like. May be “Swami Muthanna – ananda” sounds better and it translates beautifully as “kiss and be happy”.
I have visited many swamijis, but I have never felt that they were special or would deliver me to a higher level of consciousness. At best, they have given me some interesting information from books that I have not yet read. In the end, everyone must deal with their own pain and suffering, all anyone can do for you is hold your hand while you are at it. When a mortal lets you down, you are hurt but when a godman lets you down, you are devastated.
Hopefully, Nithyananda’s devotees are not so devastated that they’ll need another godman to help them come out of this mess. Society needs to stop showering over - exaggerated respect on religion and godmen and encourage expression of ordinary human respect.
Vikram Muthanna
vikram@starofmysore.com
Courtesy: Star of Mysore
