I'm new to this site. While fortunately the leader of my New Age Group/Community/cult never professed to have any lineage to Native Americans, he did charge for things like "vision quests" and borrowed heavily from what seems to me to be Lakota traditions, but they were so muddled that I am not sure. He also used many other "truths'" that he got from various books, therapists, philosophers, etc., so it wasn't just one thing.
Of course, this was just one of a myriad of issues - to me the major issue with many of these gurus is that they are preying on hurt people who are desperate for healing and are usually in a position of power. This one was an LCSW. Their "healing" modalities are untested and made up on the fly, and many end up hurting people. Their clients completely depend upon them and THAT IS THE POINT. The "quests" happened once a year, and the rest of the time, he was using other things like Zen, poetry, or whatever he wanted to "help" people. While some of it was helpful, I feel that my spirituality eventually became stunted. First of all, it was too reliant on him. Second, it was reliant on a borrowed/mishmash of something that he really didn't fully understand. If I had visions that did not fit into his "Native American viewpoint" then they were made fun of or dismissed. So basically, I had a secret spirituality within his already secret group. No wonder I felt crazy.
His home was filled with art made my various Native American artists, and so was mine. I can't even look at those things anymore, as it just fills me with sadness. The second he died, his wife/former client had to sell these supposedly sacred objects (most of which we, his followers, bought for him directly or indirectly) in a garage sale to us. It was so gross, so profane and so against everything I thought this "community" was about. I was at a young, impressionable age when I met him, and I was leaving an abusive family. I really didn't know any better but now I do. I can't imagine being the age he was at the time (late 40s) and doing this stuff! It seems crazy to me now.
It is extremely ARROGANT for a white person (oh, ok, some of them claim they are 5% Native American or something...doesn't count, sorry) to just TAKE rituals from cultures they don't understand and organize their "community" and make MONEY off their "community" and oh...wait for it....as soon as any children are born, completely turn on your members who have children because that doesn't fit. What Native American culture ever decided "children" weren't part of their community? I'd really like to know. I never got an apology or anything from him, his wife or the various "social workers" who sat by and allowed this to happen, though they like to profess they are great leaders and should be looked up to as "elders." What a joke.
At this point, I do not want to use/borrow things I really know little about firsthand. It isn't my culture, and it doesn't seem right to just use whatever I feel like. On the other hand, it isn't easy leaving such a group (he died and half the members continued on, no apologies, etc.) and trying to figure out how to be a spiritual person. But it does seem unnecessary to borrow rituals from other cultures when I can easily look up my own history/culture and use those. There are also plenty of progressive churches I could belong to for a sense of community so that I can engage in justice work/volunteering.
I think the msot painful realization i had is that the group was ALL ABOUT MONEY. Members who really needed to go and live their lives were pressured to stay so he could keep making money. Women had children and were verball abused and not supported by him or his group (probably because they couldn't buy his quests anymore). That's how I felt by the end. It was so toxic and so not why I joined. Very little spirituality was left and the entire thing was a three-ring circus with him as circus trainer.
All I know now is No MORE GURUS. And I never did nor will I ever make money off of other culture's spirituality.
If I sound angry, that's because I am. I feel people like this take advantage of others to boost their own egos and since they are borrowing from cultures white people don't really understand and can't, they can make up whatever they like for their BUSINESS.
