Categories: Benefits of Meditation
May the blessings of the Triple Gem be with you all!
Today, I wish to share a word of caution and guidance with all of you who engage with our spiritual teachings. It has come to my attention that many people have become lost and trapped in various worlds of fantasy. After watching certain videos and listening to individuals who claim to be spiritually advanced, many are being led astray by predictions about the future. This is not just a simple misunderstanding; it has become a serious problem.
People’s present lives are being disrupted. Some have stopped working, while others have begun to neglect their families, abandoning their duties and responsibilities. Tragically, this has led some individuals to suffer from mental illness, and others have allowed their education to collapse. They are, in many ways, causing great harm to themselves.
Prophecies, Predictions, and Paralyzed Lives
This unfortunate situation has arisen from discussions circulating in society, particularly around a topic known as Diyasena, a prophesied future king or savior figure, and a coming spiritual world. Exploiting this, various individuals who deal in esoteric arts or those who sell spirituality for profit are spreading all kinds of ideas. Many people, out of an innocent hope, listen to them.
They hold a sincere wish that our country might one day be free from its current political and economic troubles, that a new and better era will dawn. However, there is often no tangible sign or basis in our current social or environmental reality to expect such a miraculous change as they describe.
These figures make specific predictions, naming years like 2024, 2025, 2028, or 2030, trapping people in a state of suspense. As a result, people become lost in a dream world, passively waiting for these dates to arrive, their present lives put on hold. This is a pattern of behavior we have observed repeatedly.
The Cruel Flattery of False Teachers
I feel compelled to speak on this because I have personally encountered many people who have been harmed by these topics, whether it’s about the legend of Ravana or the prophecy of Diyasena. It is heartbreaking to say that over 90%, perhaps even 100%, of the individuals I have spoken to who are deeply caught up in these ideas are suffering from some level of mental distress.
A particularly disturbing trend involves so-called lay meditation teachers, or gihi guruvaru. When a young man or woman, or anyone for that matter, comes to them, these teachers may look at their appearance or their wealth and tell them what they want to hear. They will say things like, ‘You are the Kalki avatar. You are Diyasena. You are Ravana, or perhaps his son, Meghanada.’
By assigning these grand identities, they trap people in delusions of grandeur. The person who hears this often falls into a state of mental illness. I have voice recordings of these incidents, with names mentioned. This is a great crime. Families have had to take their children to psychiatrists.
When this happens, it creates a barrier so thick that it becomes nearly impossible for a genuine, sincere teacher to guide them onto the true path. This damage is caused by foolish, ignorant individuals who spread these ideas for personal gain, for profit or to increase their number of followers.
The Qualities of a Genuine Spiritual Guide
This is why you must practice spiritual discernment. If a lay teacher who is still living a family life and engaging in sensual worldly pleasures, which in Buddhism we call kāma, offers to teach you meditation, you cannot expect a teaching of supreme purity. They are teaching you while still being immersed in the very things the path seeks to transcend.
While their spirituality may be developed to a certain degree, this is something we can only understand after associating with them for a long time. Their development is not even at the level of a hermit meditating in the Himalayas. Therefore, I urge you: be intelligent, be wise when you choose a teacher. This is a point of utmost importance.
Misinterpreting Signs and Accumulating Negative Karma
Another tactic these individuals use is to seize upon natural events. When there are floods, sudden droughts, strong winds, or if the sea level rises slightly, they will claim it as proof of their prophecies. They will emerge and declare, ‘See? I told you this would happen at this time!’ They sensationalize these occurrences to deceive innocent people. This pattern of manipulation is something we have seen time and again.
The individuals who make these claims are committing a deeply unwholesome action, what we call an akusala kamma. They often do it for fame or profit on platforms like YouTube, and for this, they will surely accumulate negative karmic consequences. The results of these actions will have to be faced, if not in this life, then in a future one in the long cycle of rebirth, or samsara.
They speak without proper knowledge, without genuine spiritual development of their own, perhaps relying on a restless spirit, or preta, or using a shrine as a front. Those who become involved with them also share in these unwholesome results. If one is to speak on these matters, one must do so with true understanding. From a spiritual perspective, a person making such claims should be established in morality (Sīla), living a life of purity, ideally one of celibacy (Brahmachārī).
They should be developed in concentration (Samādhi) and wisdom (Paññā), and advanced in both tranquility and insight meditation (Samatha-Vipassanā). Only then could we consider their words. But the people we are discussing are chasing money and fame, driven by worldly aims. It is because they speak from this level that innocent people fall into such a tragic state.
Your Path Forward: From Future Dreams to Present Action
This is the message I wanted to convey to you. Please, understand these things and act with wisdom. If you engage in genuine spiritual practice with this understanding, you have the power to change things more quickly than you can imagine, the power to influence nature and the universe resides in right action, not in waiting.
Do not waste your precious time watching useless content that repeats the same empty promises, content that does not advance your spiritual life but instead traps you in future dream worlds with false hopes. There is so much beneficial material available, even on these same platforms. Study those things. Make use of them. Act accordingly.
I felt the need to say this because an artificial ‘spiritual world’ is being created. My intention was to advise you not to expect such a thing. I have delivered this necessary message to you at the right time and in the right way. Now, I urge you to act with intelligence and wisdom. With that, I conclude today’s teaching.
May the powerful blessings of the Triple Gem, the Buddha, the Dhamma (His Teachings), and the Sangha (the Enlightened Community), give you the strength to understand these matters clearly and act with true spiritual discernment.
We invite you to walk this path with us. Read our teachings, and most importantly, apply them practically in your own life. as you practice, questions will naturally arise. Please feel free to share your experiences and questions in the comments below, via email or contact form. I will do my best to offer guidance in future talks based on your progress. For now, begin this practice with an open heart and a mind free from expectation. Cultivate it correctly, and may you find the clarity and peace you seek.
Thank you for joining us. We hope this blog will be of great benefit to your spiritual journey.
May you all be well and happy.
May the blessings of the Triple Gem be with you all!.
