Observations by Elias on Adi Da’s psychological makeup: Narcissus in the Insane Asylum
"It has always been a 'paradox' that Franklin Jones criticizes [his guru] Muktananda's realization and yet relies heavily on Muktananda's naming-letter for his own claim of legitimacy as a 'guru.' In fact, according to Frank's current '7-stage' system, Muktananda isn't even a realizer-- he's at best a 5th stage yogi, an ego suffering self-limitation and contraction from the Divine Self.... Later came rebellion, when he didn't receive the support that he wanted and expected from Muktananda [or from his earlier teacher, the American-Hindu renunciate Rudrananda / "Rudi"].... Neither of them... was even close to true Realization. Both of them were curiously unfinished men... And these are the teachers [Muktananda and Rudi] that Frank chose, because of their perceived weaknesses, because they were 'pushovers' from whom he felt he could easily obtain the authority to teach a form of the Hindu religion. The result -- Daism -- is a teaching without a real foundation in tradition, and a teacher -- Franklin Jones -- whose central 'heroic-myth' is that of supplanting the father. In fact, there's the nub of Frank's psyche -- he 'kills' the father and 'marries' the mother [the Goddess, whom he claims to have 'fucked' and merged with in a culminating experience in the Vedanta Temple in Hollywood, CA, in 1970]. Frank has always been in an Oedipal rivalry, not only with his teachers, but with his own devotees. As many have testified, he is in competition with every male member of his community. He sleeps with their wives, strips their sense of self-worth, and systematically castrates them, both psychologically and spiritually. Most importantly, he is at war with every apparent masculine manifestation of the Divine, from Buddha to Ramana. In this ultimate Oedipal statement of having supplanted the father, he devalues all gurus except himself -- there is not one ounce of devotion or respect in him for those who came before. He is, quite simply, Oedipus the father-slayer." (--from Elias' 2001 essay, "Frank's Oedipus Complex.")
[Here's another gem about Da/Franklin Jones' own colossal narcissism:] "The natural setting for a narcissist is a situation where the attention of other people is focused on him or her. The famous moment by the pond -- the moment of preening in front of the mirror -- is just the setup for the moment in the spotlight. Psychology tells us that narcissists, in general, have a distaste for solitude, and feel lonely and uncomfortable by themselves. They are enamored of their own image, for sure, but the proof and justification of their self-love is not in solitude -- it is in seeking the notice and attention of others.... Narcissus' greatest fear is that he does not exist, or that he might not be remembered. So Narcissus builds monuments to himself, temples -- even religious cults. Narcissus wants to be a Star, and he wants to be remembered as the Great One in a story of his own devising.... Traditionally the spiritual hero -- everyone from Buddha to Ramana Maharshi -- expressed humility, discouraged adulation, and turned the attention of listeners away from himself to his message, which was that Truth is found not outside yourself, but in your own heart.... Some of us have noticed that Frank is not content to wait for history to honor him -- he does the whole show himself. He builds the statues, erects the religion institutions around himself, and accumulates and spends the wealth. He looks for sycophants as disciples, and practices well-worn psychological techniques to control their minds and gain their hysterical adulation. He has given himself the honorific of 'The Liberator of All Beings,' and yet we don't find any liberated or enlightened people around him -- NONE. We do find people worshipping him according to his rules, and bowing to photographs he ordered taken. Virtually all his 'recognition' is self-generated. He owns the printing press and he prints the books. He micro-manages the magazines, he chooses the photographs, and he controls the lives of the community of devotees from morning to night. (I remember, as an employee of Dawn Horse Press, hearing him screaming on the telephone to my supervisor about the most minor details.) By the standards of traditional society, Frank is like the man in the madhouse claiming to be the Second Coming of Christ who has taken control of a few other patients and convinced them that he is in fact the Messiah. People walking around outside the walls of the asylum say 'Yes, you think you are Jesus Christ, but we don't think so. You claim to be the Most Enlightened Being Who Ever Was and Ever Will Be, but it just doesn't add up. Your behavior doesn't add up. Your pomposity and your self-important declarations do not add up. By even the most liberal standards, you are quite insane, totally nuts, absolutely bonkers, a real nutcase...' Frank is one man against the world...and less than a thousand people have bought his tune. Like the rats of Hamlin they have followed the mad piper into the mountain of doom." (--from Elias' 1998 essay, "Narcissism and Franklin Jones.")