Assassination Attempt Becomes PR Boon For Sri Sri

File under: The Siddhi of PR

Our own guru of gurubusting just informed us that last night in Bangalore, after returning from giving satsang, someone took a shot with a .38 handgun at the car Sri Sri Ravi Shankar was riding in. An attendant sustained a minor graze, but there were no other injuries. Nobody saw the attacker.

While we are sincerely glad he "survived", we wonder if we'll be the only one to consider the fact that this "setup" has resulted in a huge PR boost for Sri Sri. As one might expect after observing him for a few years, he's already playing it up as the spiritual hero and has "forgave" his attacker(s).

Like other brilliant self-promoters throughout history, Sri Sri has managed to turn this sour vinegar into a fine wine.

Update: As forecast, it's turning out that Sri Sri just may have brewed this vinegar himself:

It seems like this fell far short of a serious attack on one of India’s most revered religious figures.

The director-general of police of Karnataka, Ajai Kumar Singh, held a press conference Monday morning. Among his revelations: The bullet was fired from more than 700 feet. That’s more than 200 yards. With a .32-caliber pistol.

He also refused to call it an attack. Or an assassination attempt. Or, indeed, anything beyond “an incident.” He noted that the incident appears to have taken place five minutes after Mr. Shankar left the place where it happened.

Home Minister P. Chidambaram, at a press conference later Monday in New Delhi, also said it was his understanding that Mr. Shankar was not there when the incident took place and that it stemmed from a disagreement between two of his followers.

This assassiscam has been brought to you by the Art of Living.

Buddhist "Monk" On The Town

File under: The Siddhi of PR

This guy is showing Swami Nithyananda how it's done:

With his heavily lined face and thin graying hair brushing his shoulders, the guru didn't quite blend with the Cielo scene, though he did his best, boogying down with a young Chanel-clad Russian girl. Erin Vaughan, another yoga teacher there that night, was shocked. "He was on the dance floor, and there was nothing enlightened about it," she says.

It's amazing how far down the path of the ridiculous one's grandiosity will carry one. There, but for the grace of the fact that most folks think we're full of crap, go we.