I know I wrote a passage on Vasantha Sai Ma much earlier and her claim to being the reincarnation of Radha (as in Radha/Krishna). She is a Sai devotee and to be fair to her, her visions and personal experience seem genuine - her book 'Liberation Here Itself Right Now' is worth a read and has been sighned by Sathya Sai.
http://www.vasanthasai.org.uk/
As with the well known female 'gurus' e.g Ammachi and Mother Meera, experiences can be vast and differing - the same is true for the leseer known such as Vasantha Sai Ma, so your own personal experience will validate your belief systems, unless there have been obvious signs of malpractice. So the authenticity of gurus may be there but the same principle of caution in blindly following should be considered. Vasantha Sai Ma's sincerity in her beliefs for example is valued but what is ultimately right for you in spiritual journey must be seriously considered.
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Passage below from related blog on Gurus who visit or are based in the West:
"One of the temptations of having an advanced psychic experience is that one may be inclined to communicate via this means as opposed to the safe, old-fashioned and undeniably fulfilling encounter of person-to-person contact. This goes back to the notion of whether people should be undergoing Kundalini awakening at all. My understanding is that psychic communication is acceptable only in the case of communication with ascended masters or beings from other realms who really need to pass a message; there should be no other need for psychic contact in any other situation. Furthermore, for people who have attempted to communicate with each other psychically, remember that a great deal of negativity still may be present along with interference from others (with less than noble motives). It is impossible then to interpret messages correctly or even send/receive messages at all through 'mind' or 'thought' control. One's system may also be subjected to a form of psychic attack which in turn may cause deep stress, depression or an unstable mental state. Remember that for those moving into a deeper spiritual path, open communication is absolutely necessary. As human beings, we are naturally imperfect and the best way to transcend challenging situations is to discuss openly and honestly, even (if possible) with those who have not-so-good intentions. One's spiritual leader should be encouraging openess and harmonious interaction within groups as well as with those who follow other 'faiths' or even those who subscribe to no faith at all. We are all here for a purpose and we are all entitled to grow at our own pace. As human beings, we need human interaction hence Kundalini awakening should not place us in a position where we may appear to be above or below others. We should definitely not be using the psychic realm for purposes of entertainment, self-indulgence or quick fixes. People who use any acquired psychic power for the means of tapping into or controlling the subconscious mind or 'thought' process of another being are inviting the same to be done to them as in the grand scheme the Universe equals the field in surprising ways.
Self-proclaimed gurus who often travel round the West are usually quite adept in mind manipulation or control as well as practice of tantra. The obvious ones who have generated a lot of publicity in recent years and some of whom listed below are definitely subject to controversy are:
Swami Vishwananda
Padma Ananda / Vishnu Deva Saraswati
Adi Da
Premananda
Bala Sai Baba
Starlight Devi (not as well known - undecided opinion on her position)
Mother Meera (update Dec 2009: supporter of Vishwananda / tantra)
Ammachi (undecided opinion due to differing accounts and experiences)
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Ammachi (undecided opinion due to differing accounts and experiences)
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Mother Meera is also a guru based in Germany - I cannot personally vouch for a positive experience with Mother Meera and would strongly recommend avoiding her. In regard to Ammachi, it has proven difficult to pinpoint how she offers her energy outside of her immediate followers, as is the case of the Swami(s) who conduct sessions on her behalf - my personal view is that seeing the swami(s) should best be avoided.
I went to see 'swami' Vishwananda, more than once in 2004 - initially I did believe his hype, but it didn't take too long before the cracks began to show and the weaknesses of his character started to come forth. Be aware that Vishwananda, claiming to be the reincarnation of Yogananda, has some knowledge of the techniques of Kriya yoga and tantra....he abuses these abilities and takes advantage of innocent people looking to deepen their experience of God.
An immense level of personal responsibility and maturity comes with psychic development. Wisdom, love and the laws governing right conduct become paramount. In many ways we are evolving into 'masters' ourselves so we do need to become more self-reliant and self-aware. Those who guide us will eventually start to take a back-seat as we say hello to our own higher purpose. My personal experience of the psychic realm is that one's necessary 'truth' and life-purpose is revealed as God's love quietly permeates the individual experience."
