The Most 'Spiritual' Swami In America

File under: The Siddhi of PR and Real True Gurus

Today while visiting our tribe.net account, we came upon this ad:

The most spiritual magazine on the market today. That's saying a lot. First that magazines can be spiritual, and then that this magazine is the most of that, whatever that is.

When we went to the website of the "most spiritual magazine on the market," we learned that it's the effort of one Prabhushri Swami Amar Jyoti. We went straight to his site with a glee one has when they are about to skewer the most spiritual swami in America. But then we found ourselves stopped dead cold by his picture.

The guy just doesn't look like a flimflamming big-time guru. Furthermore, he's flown under our radar for the 10 years we've been gurubusting. Maybe that says more about what we don't know about gurudom in America, but we like to think it's because the Swami just doesn't feel the need to have a press release-spitting PR department on the case.

But he is sure towing the party line as far as the Hindu traditions of gurudom are concerned. We have plenty of problems with that, but it's not necessarily an indication that the Swami is false in any way, just a product of his upbringing. And we do like this quote on Swami's bio page:

Things don’t happen in spite of us. You and I are as important as anyone else and as responsible as anyone else. Whatever you and I do, speak or think is contributing to the entire energy of the world.

Notice how he includes himself when speaking about us. Rather than being about him, or those he's working to acquire as devotees, it's about all of us together. There's a whole bunch more quotes here. We've got to admit we liked every one we read. He may be way too old school for us, but perhaps he's a best case scenario for that particular configuration.

We're going to cautiously embrace the idea that Swami Amar Jyoti is a real, true guru and see what happens. Anyone with any opinions to the contrary are invited to share them with us in the comments section.

Update: From a reader:

He's flown under your radar because he's been dead for five years. But while he was alive, there were womanizing rumors.

Well, perhaps he wasn't quite the most spiritual swami in America to begin with.