Originally posted by buckky
What is everyones thoughts on the so called Saints of India ? Yogananda was one. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi is another. There a an American called Da Free John that is supposed to be very powerful. These guys interest me in many ways. What do you bunch of heathens think of the lot ?

India can probably lay claim to the oldest spiritual culture (via the Rig Veda scriptures) and they've certainly been home to many great masters. Patanjali, Buddha, Mahavira, and Nagarjuna are just some of the ancients. In recent times there was Ramakrishna, Neem Karoli Baba, Ramana Maharshi, Nisargadatta, Osho, Meher Baba, Sri Yukteswar, Yogananda, Sri Aurobindo, and many others. These were quality spiritual teachers of the highest calibre. Many who spent time in Ramana's company considered him to be a modern day Buddha or Christ.

But I think people tend to overlook what is present, now, in front of their noses, and instead pay homage only to the ancients, who are safely dead. Christ himself spoke about a prophet never being recognized in their own land -- and often, in their own time as well.

India as a country supports the spiritual seeker in ways that many other cultures don't. For example, there is the way of the "sadhu" in India, the wandering mendicant, someone who simply wants to devote their life to enlightenment and nothing else. Such a person there will be treated with respect and essentially supported. In the West, these people end up being arrested, committed, or resort to pushing shopping carts around in parks....at least that's what happened to Eckhart Tolle, anyway.