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| '''Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati''' (May 26, 1940 – April 14, 2012), often shortened to the diminutive form '''Ma Jaya''', was a ] of ] ] ]. As a self-styled spiritual teacher and ] Guru, Ma Jaya founded Kashi Ashram in ] in 1976<ref>{{cite web|date=|title=Ma Jaya Bhagavati, spiritual leader of Kashi, dead at 71 | Photo Gallery|url=http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2012/apr/14/ma-jaya-bhagavati-spiritual-leader-of-kashi-dead/|accessdate=2012-08-16|publisher=TCPalm.com}}</ref>. Jaya's interfaith teachings included a blend of philosophy from ], ], ], ], ] and other religions. She devoted most of her time to HIV/AIDS activism, hunger alleviation, and writing and painting. Her outspoken and brash demeanor garnered attention from media outlets and created an atmosphere of contempt and adoration. Jaya faced accusations of emotional and physical abuse, substance use, and the promotion of cult-like practices -- allegations she fervently denied. | '''Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati''' (May 26, 1940 – April 14, 2012), often shortened to the diminutive form '''Ma Jaya''', was a ] of ] ] ]. As a self-styled spiritual teacher and ] Guru, Ma Jaya founded Kashi Ashram in ] in 1976<ref>{{cite web|date=|title=Ma Jaya Bhagavati, spiritual leader of Kashi, dead at 71 | Photo Gallery|url=http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2012/apr/14/ma-jaya-bhagavati-spiritual-leader-of-kashi-dead/|accessdate=2012-08-16|publisher=TCPalm.com}}</ref>. Jaya's interfaith teachings included a blend of philosophy from ], ], ], ], ] and other religions. She devoted most of her time to HIV/AIDS activism, hunger alleviation, and writing and painting. Her outspoken and brash demeanor garnered attention from media outlets and created an atmosphere of contempt and adoration. Jaya faced accusations of emotional and physical abuse, substance use, and the promotion of cult-like practices -- allegations she fervently denied. | ||
| == Early Life and |
== Early Life and Spiritual Beginnings == | ||
| Jaya was born Joyce Green in ] and grew up in a cellar apartment near ].<ref name="blog2">http://blog.kashiashram.org/ma-jaya/</ref><ref name=":12">{{Cite web|last=McCoy|first=Terrence|date=2013-05-16|title=Kashi Ashram: Claims of Rape, Child Abuse, and Kidnapping|url=https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/kashi-ashram-claims-of-rape-child-abuse-and-kidnapping-6392115|access-date=2020-02-25|website=Miami New Times}}</ref> Her mother died from cancer when Jaya was thirteen years old. Jaya said that as a young girl she had conversations with unhoused people who lived underneath the ]. The interactions strengthened her desire to serve the needy and ultimately led her to spend more time on Coney Island where she eventually met her future husband, Sal DiFiore. | |||
| Jaya and DiFiore married in 1956 and had three children. Jaya struggled with obesity in her thirties and in 1972 enrolled in a ] weight loss class where she learned a breathing exercise for weight loss.<ref name="blog2" /> While practicing the breathing exercise at her home, she claimed to have a series of mystical visions of ], ], and ]. After claiming to have an experience of ], Jaya began meditating on a regular basis and became acquainted with spiritual teacher ] who helped to introduce Jaya to spiritual seekers in the New York area who became increasingly devoted to her.<ref name=":12" /> | |||
| ==Spiritual Enlightenment== | |||
| ⚫ | ==Kashi Ashram== | ||
| In 1972, Ma Jaya enrolled in a Jack LaLanne weight loss class in Brooklyn, New York and encountered her self-proclaimed first simple yogic breath and initiation.<ref name="blog" /> She said that she had a spiritual awakening in which she encountered Jesus Christ.<ref name="blog" /> According to ex-husband DiFiore, one night he heard a loud crash - finding that Joyce was wandering the house whsipering about experiencing Christ, with red blotches of what appeared to be blood on her pajamas.<ref name=":1"/> Ma Jaya claimed that she had experienced stigmata, and she shortly began delivering sermons in Brooklyn Basements to increasingly devoted followers.<ref name=":1"/> | |||
| Ma Jaya moved to Indian River County, Florida in 1976 where she founded Kashi Ashram.<ref name="blog3">http://blog.kashiashram.org/ma-jaya/</ref><ref name="pr news wire2">https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/internationally-known-spiritual-leader-ma-jaya-dies-at-71-at-kashi-ashram-148945305.html</ref><ref name="funeral home2">https://www.strunkfuneralhome.com/obituary/5899972</ref> Located on the ] just west of the city of ], Kashi Ashram attracted a diverse group of students who helped to develop the eighty acre property which at one time had upwards of two hundred residents. With a communal living structure, residents help with maintenance, food preparation, and participation in yoga and meditation practices. | |||
| A ] primary and secondary education center called The River School (originally The Ranch School) was opened in the early 1980s and closed after graduating its final class in 2005. | |||
| ==Teachings== | |||
| An HIV/AIDS education and prevention program named The River Fund was created in 1990 and is still in operation. | |||
| Founded in Hindu philosophy and integrated with many other faiths, Ma Jaya's teachings focused on the ideas of attaining spiritual fulfillment through "selfless service" to humanity.<ref name="pr news wire">https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/internationally-known-spiritual-leader-ma-jaya-dies-at-71-at-kashi-ashram-148945305.html</ref> The Kashi organisation states that "Kashi's values exemplify the ideal that all paths followed with a sincere heart lead to one's own God within, with the philosophy exemplifying values of "kindness and service," envisioning a world where all are treated with kindness, dignity and respect, and people of all backgrounds are welcomed.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.kashi.org/mission|title=The Mission of Kashi|website=Visit Sacred Kashi|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-25}}</ref> According to the Kashi organisation, Ma Jaya stated that her teachings were "not a religion" but rather beliefs that could be used by students within their own faiths or traditions, with only kindness as a central practise.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|url=https://www.kashi.org/a-lifetime|title=Who is Ma Jaya|website=Visit Sacred Kashi|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-25}}</ref> Ma Jaya was a supporter of the LGBT community, encouraging believers to serve those living with HIV/AIDS in the 1990s.<ref name=":4" /> | |||
| An affordable living community named By The River was opened in 2009 and included accommodations for forty low-income seniors. By The River was foreclosed in 2013 due to insufficient government funding and a lack of grant funding. | |||
| ⚫ | ==Kashi Ashram== | ||
| The Kashi Ashram community remains active and includes a retreat center, yoga school and sustainable farm. The retreat was visited by ] after she discovered Jaya's teachings when researching her role for the 2010 movie ].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=McCoy|first=Terrence|date=2013-05-16|title=Kashi Ashram: Claims of Rape, Child Abuse, and Kidnapping|url=https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/kashi-ashram-claims-of-rape-child-abuse-and-kidnapping-6392115|access-date=2020-02-25|website=Miami New Times}}</ref> | |||
| Virtual ] teacher training and permacutlure courses have been offered only via virtual platforms due to the ongoing ]. | |||
| Satellite branches of Kashi Ashram were also established in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Colorado, Santa Fe, and Atlanta.<ref name="funeral home2" /> Kashi Atlanta Ashram was founded in 1999 in the Candler Park neighborhood by Jaya Devi Bhagavati. | |||
| In 1976, Ma Jaya moved to Indian River County, Florida to start Kashi Ashram as a non-profit, tax-exempt 510(c)3 charitable organization.<ref name="blog" /><ref name="pr news wire" /><ref name="funeral home" /> Located on 7 miles along the St. Sebastian River and just west of the city of ], Kashi Ashram attracted a diverse group of students.<ref name="funeral home" /><ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Ma Jaya taught for 35 years at Kashi Ashram, drawing from her many publications and teaching her students.<ref name="funeral home" /> Later on, Kashi Ashram affiliates were set up in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago, Colorado, and Santa Fe.<ref name="funeral home" /> The retreat was visited by notable people including ] and ], with Roberts discovering Jaya's teachings when researching for the 2010 movie ].<ref name=":1"/> | |||
| The retreat was visited by notable people including ] and ], with Roberts discovering Jaya's teachings when researching the 2010 movie ].<ref name=":13">{{Cite web|last=McCoy|first=Terrence|date=2013-05-16|title=Kashi Ashram: Claims of Rape, Child Abuse, and Kidnapping|url=https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/kashi-ashram-claims-of-rape-child-abuse-and-kidnapping-6392115|access-date=2020-02-25|website=Miami New Times}}</ref> | |||
| The Kashi Ashram community is still active today, and describes itself as an "interfaith spiritual community founded by Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati with temples, shrines, retreat center, yoga school and sustainable farm." <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.kashi.org/|title=Visit Sacred Kashi|website=Visit Sacred Kashi|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-25}}</ref> The Kashi organisation states that "the teachings of Kashi are rooted in the lineage of Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati and her guru, Neem Karoli Baba." <ref name=":3" /> The Kashi Church Foundation still operates "The River Fund," established in 1990 to "coordinate and fund humanitarian activities for the hungry and homeless in Florida, Uganda and India.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/local/indian-river-county/2017/04/11/kashi-ashram-diversifying-ensure-its-survival/99274072/|title=Kashi Ashram diversifying to ensure its survival {{!}} Photos|website=TCPalm|language=en|access-date=2020-02-25}}</ref> The Kashi foundation's "Feed Everyone" initiative serves the needy in ] and supplies food to local elementary schools for a "backpack buddies" scheme.<ref name=":2" /> The Kashi school of Yoga still operates in the Kashi Ashram headquarters in ] and offers daily ], breathing, ] and meditation classes.<ref name=":2" /> | |||
| == |
== Criticism == | ||
| In 1993, after a fire destroyed the Branch Davidian. People Magazine included Kashi Ashram under the title, "It's not just Waco--Cults rule by paranoia flourish under America".<ref name="wwrn 13457">https://wwrn.org/articles/13457/</ref> As well as a Florida Today investigation revealing Kashi Ashram's role in "bitterly dividing families.".<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Many former employees and executives of Kashi Ashram have come forward such as the former treasurer to describe brainwashing, intimidation through violence, illegal drug use and more to be realities at Ma Jaya's sites.<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Furthermore, one of Ma Jaya's earliest students and well known author, Richard Alpert (a.k.a Ram Dass) published "Egg on My Beard" in a 1976 Yoga Mysticism journal in which he slams Ma Jaya's teachings and claims that Ma Jaya's energies came from energizing pills as opposed to spirituality.<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Physician, Harry Brodie, accuses Ma Jaya of drug use, beginning in 1981 he claims Ma Jaya would use cocaine nightly causing panics and energetic swings.<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> In a 1997 autobiography entitled, ''It's Here Now (Are You?)'', Bhagavan Das recalls that while he was trying to leave Kashi Ashram, after a spiritual trip, he was violently encountered by Ma Jaya's followers; "I was beaten until I was bruised and bleeding. Fortunately, they didn't break any bones. I . . . thought, 'We have given the power of God. It's time to leave.'".<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Ex-adherents claim abuses ranging from violent beatings to paedophilia.<ref name=":1" /> | In 1993, after a fire destroyed the Branch Davidian. People Magazine included Kashi Ashram under the title, "It's not just Waco--Cults rule by paranoia flourish under America".<ref name="wwrn 13457">https://wwrn.org/articles/13457/</ref> As well as a Florida Today investigation revealing Kashi Ashram's role in "bitterly dividing families.".<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Many former employees and executives of Kashi Ashram have come forward such as the former treasurer to describe brainwashing, intimidation through violence, illegal drug use and more to be realities at Ma Jaya's sites.<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Furthermore, one of Ma Jaya's earliest students and well known author, Richard Alpert (a.k.a Ram Dass) published "Egg on My Beard" in a 1976 Yoga Mysticism journal in which he slams Ma Jaya's teachings and claims that Ma Jaya's energies came from energizing pills as opposed to spirituality.<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Physician, Harry Brodie, accuses Ma Jaya of drug use, beginning in 1981 he claims Ma Jaya would use cocaine nightly causing panics and energetic swings.<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> In a 1997 autobiography entitled, ''It's Here Now (Are You?)'', Bhagavan Das recalls that while he was trying to leave Kashi Ashram, after a spiritual trip, he was violently encountered by Ma Jaya's followers; "I was beaten until I was bruised and bleeding. Fortunately, they didn't break any bones. I . . . thought, 'We have given the power of God. It's time to leave.'".<ref name="wwrn 13457" /> Ex-adherents claim abuses ranging from violent beatings to paedophilia.<ref name=":1" /> | ||
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| ==Death and Memorial== | ==Death and Memorial== | ||
| Ma Jaya died on April 13, 2012 at her home in Kashi Ashram due to pancreatic cancer.<ref name="funeral home" |
Ma Jaya died on April 13, 2012 at her home in Kashi Ashram due to pancreatic cancer.<ref name="funeral home">https://www.strunkfuneralhome.com/obituary/5899972</ref><ref name="pr news wire">https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/internationally-known-spiritual-leader-ma-jaya-dies-at-71-at-kashi-ashram-148945305.html</ref> She was surrounded by her family and several of her students who came to see her shortly before she passed away.<ref name="blog">http://blog.kashiashram.org/ma-jaya/</ref> A memorial service was held in her honor on Kashi Ashram's birthday in 2012 on May 26.<ref name="funeral home" /> Earlier on in her career, when Ma Jaya was asked what she wanted to be remembered by, she replied, "non-judgemental".<ref name="pr news wire" /> | ||
| == Honours and Affiliations == | == Honours and Affiliations == | ||
Revision as of 04:27, 13 February 2021
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Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati (May 26, 1940 – April 14, 2012), often shortened to the diminutive form Ma Jaya, was a devotee of Hindu Guru Neem Karoli Baba. As a self-styled spiritual teacher and Jewish-American Guru, Ma Jaya founded Kashi Ashram in Sebastian, Florida in 1976. Jaya's interfaith teachings included a blend of philosophy from Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and other religions. She devoted most of her time to HIV/AIDS activism, hunger alleviation, and writing and painting. Her outspoken and brash demeanor garnered attention from media outlets and created an atmosphere of contempt and adoration. Jaya faced accusations of emotional and physical abuse, substance use, and the promotion of cult-like practices -- allegations she fervently denied.
Early Life and Spiritual Beginnings
Jaya was born Joyce Green in Brooklyn, New York and grew up in a cellar apartment near Brighton Beach. Her mother died from cancer when Jaya was thirteen years old. Jaya said that as a young girl she had conversations with unhoused people who lived underneath the Coney Island Boardwalk. The interactions strengthened her desire to serve the needy and ultimately led her to spend more time on Coney Island where she eventually met her future husband, Sal DiFiore.
Jaya and DiFiore married in 1956 and had three children. Jaya struggled with obesity in her thirties and in 1972 enrolled in a Jack LaLanne weight loss class where she learned a breathing exercise for weight loss. While practicing the breathing exercise at her home, she claimed to have a series of mystical visions of Jesus Christ, Bhagawan Nityananda, and Neem Karoli Baba. After claiming to have an experience of stigmata, Jaya began meditating on a regular basis and became acquainted with spiritual teacher Hilda Charlton who helped to introduce Jaya to spiritual seekers in the New York area who became increasingly devoted to her.
Kashi Ashram
Ma Jaya moved to Indian River County, Florida in 1976 where she founded Kashi Ashram. Located on the St. Sebastian River just west of the city of Sebastian, Kashi Ashram attracted a diverse group of students who helped to develop the eighty acre property which at one time had upwards of two hundred residents. With a communal living structure, residents help with maintenance, food preparation, and participation in yoga and meditation practices.
A K-12 primary and secondary education center called The River School (originally The Ranch School) was opened in the early 1980s and closed after graduating its final class in 2005.
An HIV/AIDS education and prevention program named The River Fund was created in 1990 and is still in operation.
An affordable living community named By The River was opened in 2009 and included accommodations for forty low-income seniors. By The River was foreclosed in 2013 due to insufficient government funding and a lack of grant funding.
The Kashi Ashram community remains active and includes a retreat center, yoga school and sustainable farm. The retreat was visited by Julia Roberts after she discovered Jaya's teachings when researching her role for the 2010 movie Eat, Pray, Love.
Virtual yoga teacher training and permacutlure courses have been offered only via virtual platforms due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Satellite branches of Kashi Ashram were also established in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Colorado, Santa Fe, and Atlanta. Kashi Atlanta Ashram was founded in 1999 in the Candler Park neighborhood by Jaya Devi Bhagavati.
The retreat was visited by notable people including Julia Roberts and Arlo Guthrie, with Roberts discovering Jaya's teachings when researching the 2010 movie Eat, Pray, Love.
Criticism
In 1993, after a fire destroyed the Branch Davidian. People Magazine included Kashi Ashram under the title, "It's not just Waco--Cults rule by paranoia flourish under America". As well as a Florida Today investigation revealing Kashi Ashram's role in "bitterly dividing families.". Many former employees and executives of Kashi Ashram have come forward such as the former treasurer to describe brainwashing, intimidation through violence, illegal drug use and more to be realities at Ma Jaya's sites. Furthermore, one of Ma Jaya's earliest students and well known author, Richard Alpert (a.k.a Ram Dass) published "Egg on My Beard" in a 1976 Yoga Mysticism journal in which he slams Ma Jaya's teachings and claims that Ma Jaya's energies came from energizing pills as opposed to spirituality. Physician, Harry Brodie, accuses Ma Jaya of drug use, beginning in 1981 he claims Ma Jaya would use cocaine nightly causing panics and energetic swings. In a 1997 autobiography entitled, It's Here Now (Are You?), Bhagavan Das recalls that while he was trying to leave Kashi Ashram, after a spiritual trip, he was violently encountered by Ma Jaya's followers; "I was beaten until I was bruised and bleeding. Fortunately, they didn't break any bones. I . . . thought, 'We have given the power of God. It's time to leave.'". Ex-adherents claim abuses ranging from violent beatings to paedophilia.
In 2013, Ma Jaya's youngest daughter with Sal DiFiore sued the Kashi Church Foundation in a Miami court, claiming that in 1981, aged 14, she was raped by a church member at her mother's orders. Her daughter, whose name was changed to Molly to disguise her identity, claimed on 10 December 1981 that she was "squeezed into a white wedding dress" and married to a 25-year-old church member Kevin Brannon so that Molly could be impregnated to supposedly provide more church members for Ma Jaya. The Kashi Ashram and Brannon deny the molestation ever happened. Ma Jaya is said to have ordered marriages between devotees who "barely knew each other," although most seemed to consent - according to follower Lyn Deadmore writing in her journal in 1981. A spokesperson for Kashi Ashram denies these arranged marriages occurred. Other accusations include parents who claimed, in 1989 and 2001 court filings, that Ma had manipulated them into giving her custody of their children.
Publications
Ma Jaya is an author to many publications, namely: Deep and Simple Wisdom: Spiritual Teachings of Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati, The 11 Karmic Spaces: Choosing Freedom from the Patterns That Bind You and The River; as well as numerous podcasts: "Ma's River Poem", "Healing Mantra Practice", and "Shakti and the Ego," in which she speaks about her ideas and reads original poems. Ma Jaya also painted paintings depicting gods and goddesses involved in Hindu and Vedic traditions and Kali Natha Yoga; she oftentimes brought these pieces into her teaching.
Death and Memorial
Ma Jaya died on April 13, 2012 at her home in Kashi Ashram due to pancreatic cancer. She was surrounded by her family and several of her students who came to see her shortly before she passed away. A memorial service was held in her honor on Kashi Ashram's birthday in 2012 on May 26. Earlier on in her career, when Ma Jaya was asked what she wanted to be remembered by, she replied, "non-judgemental".
Honours and Affiliations
According to the Kashi foundation, Ma Jaya was widely recognized for her work and was a recipient of many awards and honors, including:
- Recipient, Interfaith Visionary Award, 2010 from the Temple of Understanding.
- Recipient of Humanitarian Service Award 2007 from the Gandhi Foundation.
- Recipient of title Mata Maha Mandaleshwar from the Ma Yoga Shakti Mission
- Recipient of the Interparliamentary Paradigm of Peace Award.
- Recipient of the United Foundation for AIDS Award.
- Recipient of the Universal Way Award.
- Inducted into the Martin Luther King Jr. Board of Preachers, Morehouse College.
However, many of these awards are unverifiable.
They state additionally that Ma Jaya had many affiliations with various international organisations, including:
- Trustee Emeritus of the Council for the Parliament of the World's Religions
- Advisory Board Member of Equal Partners in Faith
- Advisory Board Member of the Institute on Religion and Public Policy
- Advisory Board Member of the Gardner's Syndrome Association
- Delegate to the United Religions Initiative
- Member of the Board of Directors of the AIDS care organization Project Response
- Member of the Parliament's General Assembly.
References
- "Ma Jaya Bhagavati, spiritual leader of Kashi, dead at 71 | Photo Gallery". TCPalm.com. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
- ^ http://blog.kashiashram.org/ma-jaya/
- ^ McCoy, Terrence (2013-05-16). "Kashi Ashram: Claims of Rape, Child Abuse, and Kidnapping". Miami New Times. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
- http://blog.kashiashram.org/ma-jaya/
- https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/internationally-known-spiritual-leader-ma-jaya-dies-at-71-at-kashi-ashram-148945305.html
- ^ https://www.strunkfuneralhome.com/obituary/5899972
- ^ McCoy, Terrence (2013-05-16). "Kashi Ashram: Claims of Rape, Child Abuse, and Kidnapping". Miami New Times. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
- McCoy, Terrence (2013-05-16). "Kashi Ashram: Claims of Rape, Child Abuse, and Kidnapping". Miami New Times. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
- ^ https://wwrn.org/articles/13457/
- "Ma Jaya Bhagavati, spiritual leader of Kashi, dead at 71 | Photo Gallery". www.tcpalm.com. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
- ^ http://kashipodcast.libsyn.com/
- https://www.kashi.org/
- ^ https://www.strunkfuneralhome.com/obituary/5899972
- ^ https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/internationally-known-spiritual-leader-ma-jaya-dies-at-71-at-kashi-ashram-148945305.html
- http://blog.kashiashram.org/ma-jaya/
- Ashram, Kashi. "Internationally Known Spiritual Leader Ma Jaya Dies at 71 at Kashi Ashram". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2020-02-25.