[VoxSpace Exclusive] Cult Part Two : The Most Horrifying Practices Within The Cults Of Hyderabad

Editor’s Note:

Dear Reader, when we took up this two-part series of articles of Cults back in December 2016, we set out to find different Cults and expose them. The most prominent of them we featured in Cult Part One. But the more we digged, the more we found out that Cults across the city are not going to go down anytime soon. This made us sit down and think. How many of these Cults could we really expose? Dozens, maybe even Hundreds, but would that serve the purpose at all, since a hundred more would crop up. Hence, we decided to see the root cause of the formulation and propagation of these Cults, and address that in our next presentation. We eventually found out the main place where these Cults formed out from. Us. Human Minds. We are the one’s who give these ghastly ideals a proper structure for our convenience. Hence we set out to find stories of people who turned to cults in desperation and hopelessness and runied everything about them. Our intention behind these true incidents is to make people aware as to how when you are clueless and confused, anyone can control your mind and actions. The biggest most horrifying Cult is Humanity when it is without its spirit of well being.

We sincerely hope that these tragic incidents, will help you or those around you, find a sensible hold on life, and not fall prey to the atrocious practises of some mentally imbalanced men.

The incidents have been recorded, documented, verified and submitted to the concerned authorities, and due action is being taken as we speak. As we tell you the incidents in the way they occurred, some readers may find it deeply disturbing to read through.

Please exercise caution before you go into it. This presentation is NOT for young adults below 18 yrs of age, and those who cannot stomach gory and graphic details.

CULT FOUR: Sri Maanav Yogendra Swami Ji Foundation (Inputs by Kailash & Late Abhilash Kumar)

What do you do when your biggest enemy is you? What makes you live for a while and die in the next?

I am Kailash Kumar, a resident of Hyderabad, and this is the story of my elder brother, Abhilash Kumar. When Mr Fox, approached us for this story, we were very apprehensive about it. Although our Father, Mr Harish Chandra Rao, is no more, there is still some fear about him instilled in our minds. But more than the fear, it’s the guilt that has made us be silent all this while. In doing so, perhaps we were trying to forget what we did. By keeping ourselves busy, we thought, we’ll carry on. We were wrong. When VoxSpace wanted to bring out this story, as it would perhaps make people aware of the atrocities of Cults, we wanted to speak. Truly. But somehow it took us five months to gather our courage to relive the whole trauma again. To remember my brother, Abhilash. After all, we had killed him.

Abhilash Kumar was 24 when he passed away. He was a brilliant student of literature, doing his MA in Nagarjuna University, Guntur. What you will see below are some of the entries in his diary. These entries help us construct the suffering he had gone through before ending his life. We see that the entries are highly abstract, but with the help of Kailash (his younger brother) and some of Abhilash’s friends, we managed to find his mindset over time. Again these interpretations only hint at what could’ve occurred to him personally, but not what actually happened in him.

March 12th, 2001, Nagarjuna University – An Inhuman Crime

To think we can escape ourselves with someone else is stupidity. But aren’t we all stupid at times. It’s good to be stupid and learn, rather than be clever and ignorant. Rakesh always says that adventure is the best form of courage. I think it’s true. Even today, when we were alone, he whispered something. You see, we have all the plans made. He likes to repeat them over and over again as if they will come true instantly by doing so. We were alone, but we were not. We are now. Maybe.

On March 20th, the hostel warden, Babu, on his night rounds, found that one room at the far end of the block had some light flickering. He approached it, and heard a couple of voices, coming from inside. Perhaps the rumours were true, he thought, as he stood there, trying to hear what was going on. He called the boys from the next room, and silently planned a barge in. And without a warning or a name call, he banged the door open. That day five boys and the warden saw, Rakesh and Abhilash, naked and in each other’s arms. Rakesh was also holding an ice bag and a newspaper roll, and Abhilash closed his fist on his penis. He had just ejaculated.

The rumours, of the “Homo” psychos, spread the whole university, and by early morning, the issue had reached the Vice Chancellor. The boys, Abhilash was locked up in his room, while Rakesh was taken to the warden’s room, and locked up. Both of these young graduates were debarred from the campus by the night. Abhilash’s Father came to pick him up and brought him to Hyderabad. Rakesh, from what we know, took the bus to Nellore and was last seen working as a clerk in LIC of India, Nellore some 15 years later. In what we can confirm, March 21st is the last time Abhilash saw Rakesh. They didn’t communicate or get in touch ever again.

When Abhilash was brought home, his younger brother Kailash was in his 9th standard in Holy Mary High School. He remembers his brother as so–

“ Abhi Anna was thin. But he looked thinner than usual when he came home. Nana (Father) and He, had come in at around 9 in the night, and neither spoke anything. I was not told that Anna was coming home, so I was very surprised and excited for his sudden arrival. But Amma (Mother), said I should not disturb him that night. So I just said hello, and sat on the sofa. He also sat on the sofa, but on a different chair. Nana who was silent till that point suddenly started throwing all the utensils and pots on the Kitchen floor. When Amma went near him, he slammed the Kitchen door, so hard, that Amma had to back off. She called him out continuously, but he wouldn’t open the door. The banging’s to the floor, the crackling sounds of glass, the steel clanking, every noise behind the door, raised to a new loud level. Initially, I was petrified and confused. I had never seen Nana like this. Just as I got up, to go to Amma, Abhi Anna started shouting loudly and wept uncontrollably. He was saying something, that only Nana could understand. Or maybe he couldn’t. That night and for the hundreds of nights that followed, no one slept peacefully again”

May 19th, 2001, Indira Nagar, Hyderabad – A Disease Identified

Time changes everything. I wonder. I think it isn’t entirely true. Although everyone around me seems to believe in that, I find it difficult to blame everything on Time. Rakesh is somewhere out there. Somewhere in Kurnool, I think. Maybe he went to Vijayawada, to his Uncle’s place. Vijayawada is not far from here. Do I go and find him? I am a man, why should I be afraid. I can find him. I know the shop where his uncle works. Simple. I’ll ask Amma tomorrow. Wish me luck Dear Diary.

On May 27th, Abhilash tried to run away. Apparently, the day before, his father had gotten to know about his plans to visit Rakesh. Maybe Abhilash’s mother told him, or maybe it was Kailash Kumar. We couldn’t be sure. More importantly, His father had stormed into Abhilash’s room, and without a second of hesitation, slapped him hard on his face. The young graduate recoiled and lost his balance, and had fallen to the ground. Kailash says that he saw his father, hit his brother in his stomach with his shoe leg. But the violence lasted only for a short while, as his father left as suddenly as he came.

“Abhi Anna, was so shell shocked that he refused to even speak. He just sat at one corner of the room, his eyes staring the floor, as tears just flowed down his cheek. He wasn’t crying, I think. He was sad and angry. And he didn’t move an inch. He didn’t eat and as far as I was with him, he didn’t sleep either. He just looked at the floor, as if there was something happening there. And from the red eyes, tears went on dripping down. This incident is what I think started to make me hate my father. I stayed with him till the wee hours, but don’t know when I dozed off. I remember waking up to the screams of Amma. She was crying. As I went to the drawing room, I was told by one of my cousins that My brother had run off”

“After searching for him, practically everywhere, we got a call from a distant relative that he had seen Abhi Anna boarding a bus to Vijayawada. It was almost in the next six hours we got to him. Nana was so furious that day, that he refused to even sleep, or drink water. We literally had to drag Abhi Anna home. On entering the home, Abhi Anna said nothing. He just resigned to his fate and went to his room, leaving his bag on the floor and unmindful of anything else. He was tired. Very tired”

Kailash says that everything was normal for a few days. But after a week or so, post this event, their father had started coming home at three or four in the morning. He was a chief accountant at a bank, and his office usually got finished by 5 in the evening. He was obviously going somewhere. He would not talk too much and just be to himself. As per Abhi Anna, he started applying for jobs. He used to go to interviews and was slowly getting over the incident.

October 3rd, 2001, Indira Nagar, Hyderabad – A Cure For Wellness

…With or without, things bring out their best form. You know, when I was in my tenth, I wanted to ride a bullet. Or a Royal Enfield. Today, I don’t really care. As long as the vehicle gets me to the place I want to be. To me that’s important. Leo Tolstoy said if you cannot remember where you fell apart, you can never know where you will mess it up.

“It all went downhill when one of our relatives spilt the beans. In a casual banter, a certain Aunt declared to the gathering that Abhilash was ‘Odd’. Slowly, the whispers became louder, and the rumours were believed. None of my cousins, or relatives talked to Abhi Anna after that. Days passed on, and slowly our silence was taken as the confirmation for the rumours. My brother was Gay. By December, we had moved to a different place, on the outskirts of the city, away from everyone. Hoping that our past would leave us. But what was inside us, memories of the incident, and the result of it, was eating us from within. It had to be solved. For the sanity of us all, there had to be a solution for what we were suffering for. It had to be solved” says Kailash with a fleeting sadness in his eyes.

January 23rd, 2002, Choutuppal, Hyderabad – The Practice

When you cannot fight, what can you do? What do you do when your biggest enemy is you? What makes you live for a while and die in the next?

“Nana had found a solution for our misery. He was going to a Swami in LB Nagar, every night, after office. He was perhaps finding solace in it. He slowly started to mention this Swami at home. He said, the Swami truly understood what he was going through. The Swami had after much research found a way to lift the curse of shame and sadness from our house. He had asked us, the whole family, to come visit him at his Ashram. Abhi Anna was working as JL (Junior Lecturer) in Sri Chaitanya College in Uppal. Initially, he was reluctant. But when Amma sat with him and convinced him that maybe this would solve the whole issue, and they could be happy if it did, he agreed. He agreed to visit the Swami only once and no more. Obviously, Nana was not talking to Anna for a really long time now. Amma or me, were the mediators” Kailash says holding his kid close, who just comes in after playing outside.

“So when we attended the Ashram, there was a certain peace about the place. As we got out of the car, we could see people walking around in tip to toe white dresses. The Ashram seemed quite a serene place to start off with. Abhi Anna wasn’t looking around, as his focus was purely on where we were going. Then the Swamiji came. He greeted us warmly and asked us to come in. After we had waited in a room for half an hour, the Swamiji came again, this time with a small pot of water. And without any warning, poured it on Abhi Anna. Everyone except Nana was taken aback. Before we could do anything, a couple of strong looking fellows, came out of nowhere and got hold of Abhi Anna tightly. He struggled and struggled. I tried to hit one of them, but Amma pulled me back, saying it was Ok. Everything had been planned beforehand. The fellows strong armed Anna, and pinned him to the wall, and had him inhale something. In moments, Anna fell unconscious”.

Apparently, Abhilash was suffering from a ‘disease’. Homosexuality, of course, was not a personal sexual preference, but a sickness. And obviously, if it is a sickness it can be cured.  A few curing methods and Abhilash would become ‘Normal’ again. They could get him married. And then everyone would be happy. Perhaps stay away from Homosexual people, cause in our part of the world, it is contagious too. Don’t touch them. Don’t even talk to them. Don’t be them – This becomes the crux of our mindset in the society we live in. The following practice, The Cure for Wellness of Abhilash, is just one of many atrocious practices that the blind society belives in, to ward off anything that is beyond their understanding. Sadly, even Sexual preferences are. We hope that what happened next, will make you see which form of humans are sick and beyond repair.

January 27th – Sri Maanav Yogendra Swami Ji Foundation – The Humanity Alive?

So after starving Abhilash for three days, they allowed him to walk out. On the day of his arrival, and after he fell unconscious, Abhilash was dragged down to the basement, where there were several rooms which appeared empty. The family went with him, but the Swamiji asked them to go home. The practice wouldn’t work, with them present. The family had no choice but to leave him there. Kailash to this day regrets not staying back. “Perhaps”, he says, “I too had some kind of hope. The last I saw of Abhi Anna, was when he was being carried away down the stairs. I saw him only once thereafter. I should’ve stayed. He needed me. I know he did. But I was scared of Nana. I shouldn’t have..”

After three days, Swamy Ji gave him something to eat. After which he was asked to take a bath. Abhilash did what was asked, as the food he ate was laced with mind numbing drugs which only left the consciousness blurred but the motor skills active. And so started the ritual of curing Abhishek Anna.

“We were called and seated in a small room, which overlooked the temple area. The members of Ashram had decorated the whole area with columns of lemons and marigold flowers. The whole area was being sprinkled with cow’s urine. And in the centre of the hall, the fellows brought something which made no sense to us”.

“Abhi Anna was being prepared, cleaned and bathed for his ultimate ritual. He was walked out to the temple area, as three to four men accompanied him. When we saw him, he seemed to be lost, lost behind any recognition. Although he looked at us, he seemed to have no memory of who we were. It was as if he was in a trance. Was the Swamiji giving him drugs for the last three days? Maybe? We chose to believe that it was only for the ritual. We were Ok with it, as it would at least lessen the pain”

“The cure for his sickness was simple. He needed to fuck. Fuck the animal who was standing right in the middle of the temple hall, in the centre of four circles drawn with chalk powder. Abhi Anna had to fuck a Donkey. Swamiji claimed that whatever Anna was suffering from was because of the devil which was transmitted to him from the previous partner. The devil would go if he could fuck someone else. And as was the age-old tradition, when we needed our devil to be gone, we would turn to Animals. A She-Donkey was placed there, precisely for this”

“So the Swamiji and Nana sat a few feet away from the Donkey. They started chanting some mantras, as the fellows brought Abhi Anna there. They stripped him naked and applied turmeric to his penis. The major problem was his erection. He was too drugged to have an erection, and so, they pushed back his foreskin. And the fellows started rubbing the head of his penis. They squeezed a lemon half on it, and kept rubbing it. Although Anna was wobbling and muttering something, he kept staring down to his penis. Perhaps he wished that he never got an erection. Perhaps, he understood what was going on, somewhere deep in his mind. But then, something always remains beyond anyone’s control. And most of them were related to our deepest fears”

“Once, his penis achieved the erection, the foreskin rolled back was wound up by a thread. And then he was made to stand behind the Donkey. The animal’s tail was held up by one of the fellows. Was Anna aware of what was happening? I could not fully understand. They made him grip the Donkey’s legs. And then insert his penis into it. Not once. Not twice. From what I could count, the insertion happened around twenty times. And that’s when the ejaculation happened. And the ritual complete. As the fellows stopped holding him, Anna walked back a couple of steps, and just crashed onto the ground. The devil had left him, the Swamiji proclaimed and sprinkled some water on him. As we tried to stand him up, I could see, in his bloodshot eyes, the last drops of tears”

 January 29th – Hyderabad – Free At Last?

“Amma truly believed that the curse had been lifted. Abhi Anna was smiling again. He asked for Biryani to be made as well. He sat near Nana and talked to him at length. We swore that not a single word about the ritual would come out ever. Come what may. We had finally found peace after all. Nothing would jeopardise it”.

On 31st January, “Abhilash Anna’s body was found on the road, near Himayatnagar flyover. He had jumped off a seven-floor building near the flyover. His skull cracked into pieces and there was nothing we could do. The Curse… had finally been lifted”.

Kailash in his final words to us says “We think we understand this world. That is the biggest lie we tell ourselves. We understand nothing. We understand no one. I think the desperate attempts we give out to reach a solution to every problem is the biggest crime we do. We can’t just let it be. Or Let ourselves be”.

CULT FIVE: Koumana Ghori Tandava – (Inputs by Mr Fox, Surekha Yamini and Siddharth Naidu)

Fame. What a simple looking word. But how do you really define it? Most people say that Fame is another form of Popularity. To some extent, we could say that. But Fame is being known I think. When a Man craves to be known to everyone around him and also beyond, for as long as he lives, perhaps that’s what you can say Fame is. Who are the most famous people we have in our country today? Politicians, Cricketers and of course Movie Stars. And what happens, when Craving becomes an obsession? Obsession turns into Madness? How do you get out of madness which is inside your head? There is no proper answer to this question. We can only try that nothing around us, becomes a root cause for obsessive madness. When such a thing happens, morals and life, become nothing but just floating terms with no meaning. This understanding becomes the base for our story inclusion here, which took us seven months to gather. The story of Govardhan Babu. A superstar in South Indian film industry, one who comes from a lineage of actors. This story starts when Govardhan’s existence in the film industry was under question? His eight films had flopped at the box office, one after the other. His career had for all purposes hit the rock bottom. But then, how could he turn around? After all, he had his lineage to take care of. A name, a reputation, and a fan base which believed in him and his imminent return to delivering mass masala blockbuster hits.

December 2013, Koumana Ghori Ashram, Habsiguda, Hyderabad

Govardhan Babu was always a believer. In Gods more than in Hard work. In Destiny more than in Planning. In Rituals more than in life. After visiting another ashram in Suryapet (near Hyderabad), he was advised by his assistant, Murali, about this place. According to him, Swamiji here was an Aghori, who did penance and renunciation for forty-seven years and had attained a control over time and destiny. People would horde up to him. Some would come because they were Childless, some would come to gain a job, some would come with anger, some would come with hunger, but they all revered him. Murali took a special appointment for Govardhan Babu to attend the Swamiji.

“The Swamiji had a certain power in him. Like he could tell where we came from, who I was, what I needed, everything. Even when I took Sir, inside, he knew who he was. That is the power of Swamiji. Even today I go there personally to seek his blessings before we start the shoot of any movie. The last time he blessed for the film, Minister, it became a super-duper hit. You must have seen it. See, he blesses us for good things. What is the harm? There is no logic, Ok? Like, why do we smash a coconut in the temple? Why do we pray on Thursdays only to certain Gods? Other days they are not effective ah? So there is no logic. Like that we believe in him. To us he is the only God” Murali says explaining their willingness and enthusiasm towards this Cult, even today (ie, 19th May 2017).

So as they entered, the Aghori Swami offered him Milk to drink and gripped his right hand. Unmindful of the Superstar’s reluctance, Swamiji tapped on to his wrist and closed his eyes. He was obviously feeling the pulse. That was what this Swamiji was truly famous for. He could tell the destiny of a person, just by feeling their pulse. His Father’s name (who almost a million people knew) and his mother’s name (who only a handful of people did). Then he swiftly laid on his back, stared at the roof for a couple of minutes, and gave him an anklet to wear. The superstar had no intelligence, nor the awareness, to reject anything from Swamiji at this point. Make a man enough hungry, and he’ll be an animal. Make a man enough desperate, he’ll be a ball of clay. After giving him the anklet, Govardhan Babu was asked to wait outside. Swamiji would never take any fees from the devotee himself. He had other means to do it. Murali handled the finances here. The next appointment was fixed three weeks from then.

March 2014 – Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad – Two Days After The Release OF ‘Killer Of Your Dreams’

So the day had come. Govardhan Babu awaited his next big budget film to be released. And as it hit the screens worldwide, the prayers started in a small temple which he had specifically constructed in his lawn. His wife, being the traditional Indian spouse, sincerely hoped that her husband would hit gold this time. All the divine people had said the same. His victory at the box office was practically guaranteed. The prayers went on till evening, but by night nothing had changed. Not his fate. Not his career. Nothing.

Two days later, Aghori Swami walked into the plush bungalow and scanned the whole area, through the lawn. He sniffed across the garden and tapped the corners of every wall. After walking all around the perimeter of the bungalow, he sat in one corner, cross-legged, and took some mud into his hand. After holding it for a few seconds, he threw away the mud. The sacrifice he said. Sacrifice is needed to ward off the bad evils residing underneath the bungalow, he spoke. The super star’s home, he concluded, was built on an age old graveyard, and the evil spirits underneath were cursing Govardhan babu’s career. They could be satisfied if they would be bathed in Human blood. And not just anyone. This human had to be someone who built Temples. Or belonged to that clan.

When we approached the Jubilee Hills Police Station in January 2017, regarding the research into this matter, we were met with absolute silence. The SI situated therein asked us for all sorts of documentation and authenticity. Of course, Mr Fox and Surekha Yamini (who was following the story of the Aghori Swami for the past 3 years) presented it. Even so, the Police refused to give any sort of comment on the incident (which you are about to read below). It was after much trail and hard work, we found a retired Head Constable Mr Hari Prasad, who was willing to shed some light on the occurrence. The following are the excerpts of his testimony which he allowed to be used. And some part of this testimony, he refused to divulge.

“……it was a normal, word of mouth enquiry at that time. Super star Babu, wanted a new gardener and a watchman. Usually, when these actors, or politicians, want to employ a new watchman, they approach us. We help them by sending one of our own, to be their watchman in the night. Someone who wants to get out of the department, or someone who wants to make some more money etc. See these actors, they need privacy at all cost. So they pay a good amount for it. So when we got to know that Govardhan Babu was looking for a new watchman, we spread the word across. But there was only one condition. The person we suggested had to be from a particular caste. The reason we thought was that, maybe Govardhan Babu needed some help with his temple work, we heard he was building at the outskirts of the city. Anyway, we didn’t think too much about it…So we searched. There were a couple of them in Rajahmundry. They were brought here, but Babu somehow didn’t like them. He offered to pay us 5 lakhs for finding the perfect person. Our SI…we..well, it was a good amount of money to ignore”

So when you brought this person, in July 2014, where did you find him? Where was he from and why do you think Babu liked him and employed him?

He liked him. Our job was done. We did what we were asked to do. Of course, we had to provide him with proper certificates to stay here. So we made the appointment through one of the security services company in the city. Through them, we brought him the job”.

On further prodding, The Head Constable refused to comment and asked us to leave him alone.

August 2014, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad – The Sprinkling of Good Omens

In August 2014, during the fag end of the month, a news article flashed through the media circles. Govardhan Babu’s security guard had been murdered during the night. His skull broken to pieces by a heavy object, (later identified as Marble Stone). Apparently, the house was attacked by robbers at around 2 am, and they had got into a fight with the security guard and ended up killing him.

By 3 am the Police had arrived at the scene and by 4.30 the corpse was cleared out of the bungalow. The whole film industry expressed strength and condoned the attack right away. Govardhan Babu was safe, and that was important.

By 9.30, every morning news had covered the story, and by 11, the discussions as to why robbers killed the security guard started. Were the robbers after something so precious? Was the security guard armed enough to face the robbers? It was reported that robbers had stolen around 75,000 which was kept in the front room? How would they know? Were the Robbers and the Security guard all part of the same team? How come beat constables who patrol the area from 1 am to 3 am, never saw or heard anything about the incident?

By night, a dozen conspiracy theories connecting robbers and the security guard were created. Of all them, there was only one journalist who actually made a fluke guess.

Surekha Yamini who worked for a small newspaper shunned away all the theories and came out with something very peculiar. What If There Were No Robbers At All?

Call it a gut feeling or a journalist instinct Surekha was convinced that there was more to this story. She started tracking Govardhan Babu’s contacts, and whom he visited in crises and more. Slowly she began to see a pattern, and involvement of Aghori Swami in Babu’s life.

September, 2016, Hyderabad – The Uncovering Of truth

As it so happened, Mr Fox met Surekha in one of the literary collectives in March 2015. She had become a journalist of some repute within the city and was leading a good life. On knowing our intent with the website, she got on board to share the Horrifying incident which happened in August 2014. Basing on, The Security Guard Raju’s phone calls, Swamiji’s visit to the bungalow, arrangements bought for the night from the flower market, the unaccounted couple of hours, sudden leave of absences granted to all the staff, and many other evidences (verified), we bring to you the constructed truth,

On one auspicious night in August, the preparations were made. It was always claimed that there was a special puja at the Bungalow. Raju the watchman was sent to bring coconuts, precisely 37 of them from the nearby super market. After the place was fully decorated, Govardhan Babu and family, built a small wooden Hommam (ritual) stage in the lawn. At around 7 pm, a puja started with Aghori Swamiji’s preceding over the same. This ritual puja, offered Babu and his daughter, many evil repelling devices like – Bracelets, Seed necklaces, Copper arm bands, and some “animal products” as well. The Puja continued till midnight. By this time, Babu had asked his staff to leave except for the newly appointed security guard Raju. And then he was invited to the Hommam area in the lawn, and that was where he was hit on the skull. In a couple of seconds, he was dead.

Death was only a part of the ritual. Rather the first step in it. The ladies of the house went inside, as the men got to work. They broke the skull with a hammer, first’ and raised up the body a bit, to allow the blood to flow out of his skull into a tub. When the tub was half filled, The Swamiji mixed cloves, ginger, and neem leaves into it. He mixed the combination for a few minutes. But the ritual need the combination to be served to the evil below, with a bone as a spoon. And that was arranged too. The corpse’s left arm bone was plucked out from its base. Several pores were punctured all through the body, to allow for an easier flow of blood out.

Govardhan Babu carried the tub, a few yards at a time, across the house, sprinkling on the floor, the man’s blood. As he went on sprinkling, the Swamiji chanted mantras and blew the conch in between. Meanwhile the body of the watchman was disposed of. By 4 AM in the morning, the whole lawn was cleaned, and the blood remaining drained into a gutter nearby.

Today, Govardhan Babu has had incredible worldwide hits. Someone with common sense, would, say that, it’s a periodical shift of fate. But he would attribute it to the sacrificial ritual. What happens when he faces a flop again? Who will he select now?

The above version of events is the best possible way of explaining the whole incident who no one would talk about. We also base our construction on a similar incident and cure, which occurred in Bangalore. This time however, the Swamiji was arrested while performing the ritual at the residence of Mr Kumar, a well renowned industrialist. While imprisoned (only for four days before he was given bail), the Swamiji had spoken about Govardhan Babu’s ritual as well to the SI and other police personnel. We were fortunate to get ourselves an affidavit from the Bangalore Police, as to the steps involved in the ritual, and the clients who had undertaken them. Govardhan Babu’s name featured prominently in it.

Landmark Forum, Hyderabad/World Wide – Inputs By Swati Nambiar

You are a slut. You know why your relationships don’t work? Because you sleep around, or at least you want to! You are a fucking slut because of this.

The Cult that I want to talk about via Voxspace does not involve any physical torture or gory practices. Neither does it involve invisible gods or sacrificial rituals. The cult I’m talking about feeds on your biggest weakness and vulnerabilities. It gets inside your head and makes you twist your mind to never be the same again. And the worst part is that you start to believe in what they tell you. And therefore, you become dependent on these people. Without their validation, you feel like the most useless person on earth. You NEED them. Every single day. Like a drug. You are addicted to their teachings and statements. It is this kind of cult that I am talking about. It doesn’t lure you into joining, you walk in voluntarily. But after you do, that becomes the last decision you take. You become a toy in their hands thereafter. And it is a mental crucifixion.

Landmark Worldwide is an organisation which offers life coaching of course on registering yourselves and paying a fee that is anything but modest. Level by Level they drill into your mind, the emotional turmoil which will turn you into a hollow being later on.

Stop using the word, Hope? Stop it. Who do you think you are? You are nothing. Your boyfriend, your family is happier without you. Don’t you see? That’s part of nature. You wear a dress for a year, but after that doesn’t it bore you like hell? You are a human, capable of no change at all. So why would anyone take you at all? Who the fuck are you?

Landmark Worldwide doesn’t really mention what they intend to achieve. Rather, they keep saying they will bring your world back to nothing, to emptiness; where you can rebuild your life from scratch. In terms of their philosophy, they sound intriguing and correct, which leads people to push through the gruelling three-day forum. First thing asked of people is to listen. Just listen as the influential life coach goes on and on. The cult feels far from welcoming, as opposed to what it feels like during the introductory session. But the apparent discomfort is justified by the coach who always talks on the lines of how he/she is not here to make you comfortable, but to transform your life, by bringing rude awakenings to you. Deal with it!

When you look at yourself, don’t you hate what you see? How can you survive to look at your face every day? Such a hideous face, short nose, plucked out eyes, nothing about you is attractive. No wonder no one wants to fuck you? Such ugliness, are you not ashamed when you look at girls around you? And then there’s that weight. Who would want to do anything with you, when he can’t see what you are? Inner beauty my foot. That’s the fuck all logic created by ugly people to lure others into relationships. That’s you.

I joined Landmark because a friend took me to the introductory session. It wasn’t a thought out decision really. I went there to learn to deal with some of my life issues. It was desperation of sorts because professionally I was at an all-time low. The reason I regret it is because of the methods they employ. The absolute disregard they show towards you as a thinking individual. It may not include mystical, gory rituals, but it is emotionally draining and aims primarily towards making you dependent on Landmark. Basically, their strategy is to get you so dependent on their thought and their philosophy, that you lose the ability to think straight for yourself. They start off by removing the filter you see the world through, only to replace it with theirs. Free thought is highly discouraged, individuality is disregarded, all by the means of a masked doctrine, which is supposedly designed to transform your life and to me. They Mind Fuck you.

Swati Nambiar ended up paying 37,000 for two levels of sessions. Today she regrets giving such power to a hopeless organisation and urges people to not fall into the whims and fancies of this particular cult. They will drain you out of money and leave you deranged and be reeling under life.

A Short Interview With Psychiatrist Dr.Ankita Patel On Cults, Luring Techniques And How To Avoid Them:

“When we look at today’s Youth, we can see that they resent so many things. Take for example our city of Hyderabad. Millions of people come here from the interiors to settle down and make a good life. But, there is resentment. You see, we as humans are tuned to crave for more. When we look at a swanky car, we want it. It is more prominent in our city because of the unequal distribution of economic resources. Post 2000, there was an explosion of jobs, created mostly in the IT industry. People who knew a few coding languages were paid salary in lakhs. But was the city ready for it? Not really, when suddenly a guy from your street earns one lakh per month, and you, even if you are a lawyer, earn around forty thousand, how do you think it plays out?”

“There’s a stark difference in economies, leading to a difference in culture, tastes, preferences, beliefs and lifestyle. Suddenly you have something like Starbucks come up, which normal people can’t afford, and only the rich can. But this city forces you to be rich even when you aren’t. The resentment turns into disappointment and further into hopelessness. And we as humans, when we are hopeless turn to things or people or groups which show us some way out. You see people in Jubilee Hills or Hi-tech City, and you suddenly fancy being them. In that depression, you will listen to anything. Burn a candle and you’ll get rich, seems entirely possible. So that’s how Cults today are thriving”

To avoid being lured into Cults following are five step points which Dr Ankita Patel shares with us. She talks about 5C’s of healthy human behaviour.

1. Communicate – Have a friend or a relative you can call at any time of the day and just talk. It needn’t be from your own office or taste. It has to be someone you can talk to. When we internalise feelings, we become more chaotic and hopeless. Always take around 10 minutes every day to talk to someone on a personal basis, colleagues and official apart.

2. Control – There are times when you feel utter confusion and directionless. Never try new things when you are in this stage. That is the basic and most important rule. Never go for trying out new places, new people, new joints, new pubs, or new groups when you are low on confidence. Wait till your mind is in proper shape.

3. Confirm – Everyday when you wake up, try to remember all that happened in the last 3 days. Think and remember. What you are doing is, you are finding a pattern in your behaviour. And once you remember, just sit in a calm position for at least 5 minutes trying to visualise your day ahead. Believe that you are having a great day ahead.

4. Create – Develop a hobby. (Watching TV or Music cannot be a hobby). Pick something which is active and would require effort from your brain and body. Painting, Dancing, Zumba, Learning Music, Trekking, Swimming, Reading, Theatre Acting, Photography, etc. come as the ideal suggestions.

5. Crop and Copy – When you feel low, one of the best exercise is to lay back, and recreate your most wonderful memories. Try putting on a song you haven’t heard in long, close your eyes, and crop out just the great memories, and try smiling while you do that. In not less than 10 minutes your mood will be uplifted. Voluntarily smile as you remember your fond memories. That’s the trick.

Vidya Dadati vinayam, VinayadyAai patratam !
Patratvaddhanam apnoti, dhanaddharmam tatah sukham !!

(From Knowledge comes discipline, from discipline comes worthiness, From worthiness one gets wealth, and thus attains circle of happiness)