Sunday 27 September 2009

Ole Nydahl & Diamond Way accused of sexual abuse in Switzerland

Here is a newspaper article from Switzerland recently brought to my attention:

Lama Ole Nydahl missionaries are accused of abuse, sexual questionable and racism. The Diamond Way Buddhist church, which operates five centers in Switzerland, led by their leader, Lama Ole Nydahl, is a real cult. Now former members and leaders complain of the racism and abuse of power due to questionable relationships with students.
"I've seen the group as elitist, racist and sexist", says the 32-year-old communications consultant Marianne Huber (all names have been changed by the editor).
She was there two years. At first she was fascinated. "Lama Ole's charm is that he his followers full enjoyment of life, sex, success and enlightenment promises" says the cult expert and professor of theology at Zurich Georg Schmid. The ex-boxer Lama Ole likes driving fast motorbikes and sex. In the seventies, for drug deals he went to prison.

In Schawinski he boasted of having had sex with more than 500 women.

But the glory of Ole Nydahl quickly rubbed off for Marianne Huber. His handling of sex and women was intolerable to her: she has noticed in a summer training camp as Nydahl in addition to its two official women who take turns at the side of the Lama. In six months, he had sex with many of his female students. "These women should still be happy because they were in contact with him", Nydahl told her when she criticized him.

The same has also seen by ex-follower Anne Dietrich. "These young women were allowed to accompany him on his travels and sit at his feet when he lectured." Nydahl told her this would help their development. Dietrich accuses him of abuse of power, because such relations are problematic among equals, but inexcusable in a teacher-pupil ratio.

He is on the Internet photos showing him almost always surrounded by women - or in tight swimming trunks and brown burnt bodies. Nydahl escapades also criticized the German Buddhist Union (DBU). "Many dislike its dealings with women as simply scandalous."

Finally, Anne had enough after Nydahl claimed Africa's poverty was it's own fault and that sperm banks should be set up for white men to 'spread themselves'.
Baffled by those comments during Nydahl's tirade, she wrote to him about her discomfort. His answer: "We can now avoid that we have in a few years even larger ghettos of foreigners, which is undermining our society, which is a big win."

"He is almost following a Nazi ideology. Rhetorical racism, a coarse slogan, which also xenophobic statements in it are lying, "says Schmid.

The followers are repeatedly brainwashed. This was an important characteristic of a sect. The are told "Nydahl is also an elitist preacher of the best religion for the best people. It combines Buddhism with arrogance, judges Schmid. An example of an ego trip by Nydahl when asked about recent natural disasters: "It is their own fault" he said in an interview. And he added smugly: "As long as the women would be beautiful and no speed limits on the highways, nothing else matters".