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Originally Posted by dali  I might of course be missing the point about the money side of it all but I would like to see it available for people who cannot afford the rates they all seem to charge for participation in something that they all got for free in the first place.What do you think? |
My first impulse about Genpo's "fifty thousand dollar special" was that a red flag was waving somewhere but in fairness to him he does accept whatever you can afford for most of what he has on offer. Catering to the independently wealthy with boutique services is meant to help finance things for the less fortunate. I won't judge the man just because he vacuums in a quarter of a million dollars on one intensive. It's all in how he handles it, what kind of lifestyle he leads, what kind of integrity he has. All of which at this point I know nothing about. But if he has the bad taste to drive a Corvette or live in a mansion then I would have some concern about that.
Is Ken running scared? I wouldn't pretend to know. I didn't really get that. Besides, Eckhart isn't giving anything away. He has two runaway best sellers. He charges for most of his videos and audios. He has probably gained more in increased book and DVD sales from his exposure on Oprah than he "lost" on doing the "free" webinar.
I think Ekhart is really doing Ken and others a favor. He's generating millions of interested people, and Ekhart doesn't really even have the organization to absorb them all. There's plenty for everyone. And I would like to think that most of these gurus don't think of it as a zero sum game.
Is there a lack of concern / love / burden for the sick, poor and downtrodden?
I have always felt many new age teachings, particularly LOA, have a mean streak like that to them. It's a fine line. I think people's suffering shouldn't be dishonored / dismissed / discounted even when it's self-inflicted. I think equanimity should not suck the compassion out of us. I also think that teachings derived from Buddism have a built-in disincentive for people way down the hierarchy of needs with very little time or capacity for contemplation. However, none of these concerns has anything to do with the popular wave created by Eckhart.
Well I don't see televangelist-style exhibitionists strutting around exhorting the faithful for their offerings at least. I'm more concerned about the challenge this presents to these teachers to remain present and free of attachment. All this attention and popularity could put them off their game. I'm also concerned about the hucksters and wannabees that will probably start sticking to the whole thing like barnacles if it gains much more popularity. But these are, on the other hand, normal growing pains.
--Bob