J.R. Sexually Manipulates His Disciples

     Perhaps the most shocking thing to be alleged about John-Roger by a number of M.S.I.A. members is that he sexually manipulates his disciples into having a homosexual affair, claiming that it is for their best spiritual interests. According to several reports, J.R. has apparently been using his spiritual title in order to have sexual relationships with numerous male disciples.

     In this regard, Roger joins the growing ranks of gurus who have crossed the ethical borderline between religious guidance and physical intimacy. This infamous assemblage now includes the likes of Swami Muktananda, who according to William Rodarmor's article in CoEvolution Quarterly (Winter 1983), was having numerable sexual encounters with his female followers both in America and India before his death in 1982; Neem Karoli Baba, Richard Alpert's teacher, who is recorded to have had "making out" sessions with some of his female American devotees; and Sathya Sai Baba, perhaps India's most famous mystic, who is described by Tal Brooke (one-time disciple) in Lord of the Air (1979) to be a practicing homosexual.

     As sexuality is undoubtedly a personal matter and perhaps a skeleton in most individual's closets, it is not my wish to elaborate any further on this private issue which has turned public within the last decade. However, it should be pointed out that spiritual teachers by necessity must be judged by a high moral standard, for they are allowing themselves to be examples of what other humans can and should be. Though, indeed, gurus are human like the rest of us (and deserve our understanding and forgiveness), they represent a higher potential, a supposed enlightened state. Hence, when one does "fall off the pedestal" it should not be ignored or condoned with lame excuses. To do so only allows for more ethical transgressions to occur. Gurus don't hesitate to point out their devotee's weaknesses, nor should disciples be hesitant in criticizing their teacher's faults. Critical exchange is crucial and healthy for any type of relationship--including teacher/students ones.

J.R. is a Charlatan

     According to many disenchanted followers, though J.R. claims to be the manifestation of the Mystical Traveler Consciousness he exhibits many of the qualities of a charlatan. Questions have been raised about Roger's lifestyle, business practices, and way of dealing with people.

     For instance, it appears that M.S.I.A. (presumably with J.R.'s knowledge) has illegally used the Atman Travel Agency to secure discounts on flights for staff members and other interested parties. The way this is done is to introduce a staff member as a full-time travel agent. But, in most cases, the individual does not work in that capacity, thereby deriving benefit for a service never rendered.

     This type of questionable activity extends even to J.R.'s Mandeville Canyon property. When the city of Los Angeles' Department of buildings and Safety sent a letter to John-Roger Hinkins to discontinue the operation of commercial ventures on his residential property, it appears that J.R. (under guidance from his attorney) tried to hide the business dealings going on at Mandeville. This included, among other things, the claim by Roger's lawyer to Senior Building-Mechanical Inspector (J. Anderson) that "editing" on tapes and books, etc., was a "hobby" -- though obviously this was not the case.

     J.R.'s personal lifestyle can best be described as luxurious. He has at his disposal hundreds of thousands of dollars for a number of projects. Though he claims to have taken a vow of poverty, Roger lives quite expensively, having the latest in technology and comfort.

     Though the preceding sections only partially describe the hidden side of John-Roger, they do bring to focus the important question of whether or not J.R. has any genuine spiritual authority or if his group M.S.I.A. is at all a legitimate and authentic enterprise.

What About Credentials? The Traditional Analysis

     There are two major ways that one can judge the legitimacy of a spiritual movement: from inside the tradition and outside of it. Our critical analysis, therefore, will be on these two fronts, first utilizing the principles of Sant Mat, Radhasoami, and Shabd Yoga for the practical critique; and secondly, applying the evaluations of transpersonal psychology (via Wilber and Welwood) for the external appraisement.

     Since John-Roger readily admits that Sawan Singh, the late Radhasoami Beas guru, was the previous receptor of the Mystical Traveler Consciousness, it is only natural for our purposes to see if J.R. himself lives up to the guidelines of a true master, as posited by Sawan Singh and his predecessors. (It should be noted that Sawan Singh [1858-1948] was a highly esteemed master of Shabd Yoga union of the soul with the Divine Sound in North India and had a very large following. His guru was Jaimal Singh, the spiritual successor of Shiv Dayal Singh, who founded the Radhasoami path in the mid 19th century in Agra, India.) Below are the results of the comparison:

SAWAN SINGH

1. True masters never charge money for their services in any form (this, of course, includes membership or initiation). Nor do they live off the offerings of their disciples. True masters are self-supporting.

2. True masters must be initiated themselves while in the body by a genuine guru. Successorship, naturally, necessitates an acknowledgement on behalf of the departing master of his heir.

3. True masters are strict vegetarians and insist that their disciples do the same.

4. True masters do not drink alcohol nor take mind-altering drugs.

5. True masters do not claim psychic powers or perform public miracles.

6. True masters only have sexual relations with their spouse.

JOHN ROGER

1. M.S.I.A., under the direction of J.R., charges a yearly rate for membership. (Initiation generally can only be secured if you are a member first.) John-Roger, though he claims to have taken a vow of poverty, has used thousands of dollars of his group's money for his own uses.

2. John-Roger disavows having taken initiation from any Shabd Yoga master while living in the physical body (including Sawan Singh, who had been deceased for fifteen years when J.R. claims to have met him).

3. John-Roger is a meat-eater. M.S.I.A. students do not take a vow of vegetarianism.

4. John-Roger is reported to consume alcoholic beverages and take a variety of legal prescription drugs.

5. John-Roger, on occasion, claims psychic ability.

6. John-Roger, according to a number of disciples, has sexually manipulated several males into affairs.

     As is made obvious from the above analysis, John-Roger would not be regarded as a genuine master by Sawan Singh and the Sant Mat tradition. Rather, he has all the earmarks of a guru not to follow. This is further supported by the illuminating fact that Roger's spiritual and meditational advice is almost always opposite that given by Sawan Singh and other saints in India:

SAWAN SINGH

A) A disciple of a perfect master once initiated can never be uninitiated or disconnected from the Sound Current or his guru. He is, in the course of time, assured of his destination, God-realization.

B) form that may appear in meditation by repeating the Holy Names given to them at the time of their initiation. JOHN ROGER

A)"Your reconnections to the Sound Current did not hold and this is to notify you that you are no longer initiates of the Mystical Traveler and of the Sound Current." -- letter from the Movement Board, under the direction of J.R.

B) Advises his disciples not to repeat their Holy Tones when they encounter inner beings during their meditations.

     In light of Sant Mat principles and history, John-Roger's story about receiving the mantleship of the Mystical Traveler Consciousness and contacting Sawan Singh on the inner planes, etc., cannot be taken seriously, as it would contradict the very teachings of Sawan Singh and Shabd Yoga.Hence, in this context, J.R. has no proof or rightful demand for his spiritual authority. Likewise, neither does M.S.I.A. (as a religious organization under the direction of Roger) have any substantial claim for being a true source or lineage for Sound Current practices and doctrines.

The Humanistic and Transpersonal Critique

     Due to the pioneering work of Ken Wilber and John Welwood, it is now possible to critically analyze new religious movements and their leaders from a humanistic/transpersonal perspective.

     If we apply Wilber's scale of legitimacy and authenticity to John-Roger, for example, we find that J.R. has a very weak case for his mastership, since he lacks both a documented historical lineage and outside confirmation from other well established Sound Current teachers. Concurrently, M.S.I.A., since it springs solely out of J.R.'s own creative enterprising, scores a low rating in legitimacy also.

     In terms of authenticity (the actual transformative powers of the group), there can be no question that M.S.I.A. does ultimately aim for higher realms of consciousness and that some sincere individuals may be achieving those exalted states. However, these experiences have nothing to do, per se, with John-Roger or M.S.I.A. Rather, as I have argued elsewhere, it is the person's own inherent capability for transcendent insights that enables one to have inner visions and out-of-body experiences. This is most acutely exemplified in the reports of near-death patients who describe beautiful encounters with a being of light. The NDE experience, as Moody, Ring, and Sabom have indicated in their research, is a transcultural phenomenon, available to any person no matter what religion or country they may belong to.

     Thus, following this line of reasoning, it would be erroneous for M.S.I.A. initiates who have mystical encounters to assume that John-Roger is necessarily the cause for it. Instead, it is one's own belief, faith, concentration, and potential for further structural adaptation which has acted as the catalyst for the elevation. This does not mean, though, that true masters do not administer spiritual benefit to their disciples, but only that the individual must first allow for further insight and advancement. Enlightenment, as Wilber so aptly points out, cannot be forced upon people -- only slavery can.

     Another important appraisement of spiritual masters and groups comes from John Welwood's classic article, On Spiritual Authority: Genuine and Counterfeit, which appeared in the Journal of Humanistic Psychology (Summer 1983). Welwood draws an important distinction between genuine and counterfeit gurus by illustrating the differences between Egocentricity and Being.

Diagrams Welwood:

[EGOCENTRICITY]

concern with maintaining appearances; concern with maintaining and validating a self-image; contraction around "I-ness"; sense of insecurity and inadequacy;

[BEING]

concern with discovering truth; interest in and appreciation of the world, independently of how it affirms or negates any self-image; expansion outward toward life and the phenomenal world; basic sense of wholeness, well-being, aliveness, and intelligence

     If we accept the picture of John-Roger that has been drawn by a number of ex-followers (and outlined throughout this article) and place it through Welwood's grid, it becomes obvious that J.R. has more traits of Egocentricity than of Being. This will become even clearer when we review Roger's reactions to criticism.

The Red Monk Disease

     The most telling sign of whether a master is genuine or fraudulent, authentic or counterfeit, filled with Ego or Being, is to see how he reacts to personal criticism. It is easy to "ook" majestic and benevolent when everyone around is adoring you. But, the real test is to find out how the guru responds in a negative situation. Only then can a disciple witness the real merits of his teacher.

     How does John-Roger stand up on the face of adverse publicity? Not very well it seems. For instance, when word got out that several disciples were talking about his personal/hidden life, J.R. immediately tried to squelch it by having his lawyers send letters pointing out the possible legal ramifications if they persisted. Not satisfied with just a conventional defense, Roger also declared to his membership that certain wayward students were now embodying the Red Monk, a negative delusion, etc. Declares a letter from the Movement Board to one of these "straying" followers:

     "We will also once again be notifying those people that ask that you are once again embodying the Negative Power in the form of the Red monk and the consequences that goes with this power. Please understand that this action is not against you but for those whom you would once again contaminate with this energy field. Most of the people in the Movement who have contacted us have noticed the peculiar actions around you that reminded them of the occurrences when your egos led you into patterns of deceit and half truths in the past..."

     What does this Red Monk do? According to the Movement Board it contaminates anything which comes into its field of energy. Who are the most likely candidates for the dreaded disorder? Students who criticize John-Roger or M.S.I.A. To show to what extent John-Roger will go in defending his actions, I have included some excerpts from letters that have been written on his behalf or M.S.I.A.'s to dissident students.

     "It has come to my attention that you and other individuals have been slandering and invading the privacy of several of my clients including John-Roger, the Church of the Movement of Spiritual Awareness...and others involved therewith...As attorney for these individuals and foundations, I have been instructed to request that you immediately cease and desist from said activities.

     "I direct your attention to California Civil Code Section 43 et seq. and related cases involving the possible penalties for your actions..."
(letter from attorney Marc Darrow on behalf of John-Roger)

     "This is to inform you that I am no longer in support of you being a minister in the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness and so I am requesting that you hand in your Ministerial ordination and pocket size credentials as soon as possible. Since you have effectively placed yourself under the power of the Kal power and its field of negativity known as the Red Monk I can also no longer support you as an initiate and ask that you request to have this relationship terminated... "
(letter from John-Roger to a former minister and student of M.S.I.A.)

     What emerges from these letters is not a compassionate and forgiving spiritual teacher, but a resentful, obviously insecure individual who possesses the failings of a common man. John-Roger, and not his questioning disciples, appears to be suffering from a bad case of over-exposure to the fearful Red Monk disease. The only cure available for J.R., it seems, is to concede to the fact that he is more a charlatan than a saint.

Postscript

     This article was originally written in 1983 after I was approached by several highly placed members of M.S.I.A. who felt betrayed by John-Roger Hinkins. Since I was somewhat friendly with J.R. (we had met on several occasions at his home about my research on Paul Twitchell, shabd yoga, and Radhasoami), I called him on the telephone to get his response to the three main allegations made against him (plagiarism, sexual manipulation, and charlatanism). J.R. did not take kindly to my questions and did not want me to do any further research on him. Indeed, after that phone conversation in the Fall of 1983 I was subjected to a series of threats, including several made against my life and the lives of my friends/informants.

     The situation reached a peak the following year on October 5, 1984, when my home was ransacked and a number of my research files were purloined. Documentary evidence (outlined in a special issue of UCSM entitled The Criminal Activities of John-Roger Hinkins) implicates John-Roger with the Del Mar robbery, as well as engineering a smear campaign replete with death threats against his critics. Subsequently major news organizations began to investigate J.R. A number of provocative articles were published which exposed John-Roger in a negative light, including an extensive two part critique in The Los Angeles Times.

     It should be noted, however, that when The J.R. Controversy first appeared I had to go to press without using the names of my informants, each of whom declined to go public because they feared for their safety. Thus, even though my critique was the first of its kind ever done on J.R. and the Movement, I was more or less a sitting duck for his retaliatory efforts. J.R. waged a systematic campaign against me by setting up a phony front organization entitled the "Coalition for Civil and Spiritual Rights." In order to mail out his threatening letters, J.R. rented a mail box in West Los Angeles under three pseudonyms: Peter Davidson, Ph.D., Michael Hunt, and Kip Ferguson. J.R. made one devastating mistake, though, in creating his front: he personally paid and signed for the mail box, betraying in one stroke of the pen his claim that he was not aware of C.C.S.R.

     After discovering J.R.'s plot (and after receiving some of the stolen materials back which contained John-Roger's handwriting in the margins), I wrote another article which detailed his criminal activities. I also went on a couple of television programs, including the nationally syndicated Now It Can Be Told, and mentioned on air how J.R. was involved in a number of illegal dealings. Since all of my allegations were based upon extensive documentation, J.R. has never taken any legal action.

     The ironic twist in all of this, however, is that J.R. is now more popular than ever. This is primarily due to his co-authoring a number of best selling books, with such catchy titles as Life 101 and Wealth 101. Despite a flurry of negative publicity around the world (the U.K. press has been especially hard on John-Roger and his Movement), J.R. has shown a remarkable resilience to rebound from adversity.

NOTES

1. See Transcendental Sociology.

2. Personal interview with John-Roger Hinkins at his home in Mandeville Canyon (1978). Also refer to the May 12, 1973 issue of the Movement Newspaper which elaborates on J.R.'s association with Paul Twitchell.

3. Writes an ex-member of M.S.I.A., in a personal letter to the author (dated November 15, 1983): "You may be interested to know that years ago Roger Hinkins studied with a small group in Glendale, CA that still exists called the Fellowship of Universal Guidance. Some of us went there recently to hear one of their classes which consists of information about the 3 selves and the Christ. I believe Roger Hinkins very cleverly devised a saleable package by combining the material from [Paul Twitchell and his movement] with the material from this group. . . ."

4. An example of this is Roger's acceptance of Twitchell's unusual claim that the sound of the "flute" is heard on the soul plane and that the "tinkling of bells" is audible in the casual region. No shabd yoga tradition in India connected to Radhasoami has ever stated such a thing; rather, they make reference to the sound of a "vina" (or bagpipe) in Sach Khand and the "conch" (or drum) in Trikuti, the casual plane.

5. Paul Twitchell's group is also aware of this similarity and at one time threatened lawsuits against J.R. for his actions. Memos against M.S.I.A. have been sent out by Twitchell and his attorneys.

6. Personal interview with John-Roger Hinkins at his home in Mandeville Canyon (1978-1979). The latter interview has since been transcribed by John-Roger and copied.