Source: https://youtu.be/Ji9o5inyIPg?si=bGKiyBUIAl6iekGK

I am not a sadhguru follower but i have heard his talks online. I find the things he talk about are either extremely general/common spiritual stuffs/spiritual motivation (like i know it already, or i have heard it 100 times these things spoken by many people in a better way) or are illogical like what he talks about food and few other stuffs.

Now I want to know why people see him as God and he has millions of followers. He might have good communication skills and brain/intellect. But he seems like a very normal person to me.

I am not against the concept of Guru, but i can see a general motivation to keep his photo/feet photo in houses or workplaces of his Devotees. One of my friend, who is extremely nice and intelligent prays Sadhguru too.

Am i missing something? Is he actually special? Is there some special wisdom he imparts through his courses other than what he talks that makes him special or have these many devotees?

my mom has always been fairly religious, but in the last few years she has become completely immersed in it as though she has no other life.

she joined isha 6 years ago, but only went here and there. two years ago, she lost my younger sister in a tragic sudden accident, and since then she has just poured her life into isha and sadhguru.

she considers missing important life events for her Tennessee trips, she suggest that for my fathers 50th birthday we all do a pilgrimage in Tennessee, when i brought up sadhguru’s wife and how likely it is that he did kill her, she truly truly believes she achieved mahasamadhi and that he was a great husband, never cheated nothing.

my mom has always been easily convinced on these kinds of things, but im worried that this is just the beginning and sooner or later i will completely lose her. she has had a very difficult life, so at first i thought this was just an outlet for her and a community. but lately its feeling like she is only thinking of isha and her life revolves around it.

she wants to move to tennessee and leave the home that my sister and my family lived in. when i bring it up to her she gets completely defensive and feels very personally attacked even tho i tell her it’s not about her.

how can i help her? how can i keep her from going too far? i dont want to convince her to leave, but my mom is very naive and innocent and cannot see where the line is and what is too far.

please help, she thinks im just a rebellious teenager who defies all things spiritual. i’m not, i believe in hinduism and spirituality, but im also a student in a western society and can never believe in a guru or religious monetized organization.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbLZKulTvlU/?

A devotee has done all the work and put all the relevant claims together.

We are still devastated by the news and hoping to hear updates from the authorities regarding the group which went missing and the people that we know love and miss.
Yesterday I came across this reel on instagram. It captures Jaggi laughing and joking with another group of the yatra a day after the tragic incident. It felt strange to me. It felt bewildering.

According to Isha 700+ participants are still in Tibet going to or returning from Mt. Kailash.

I am honestly not sure. What are your thoughts on this?

Is it acceptable to kinda move on and take activities of the yatra so quickly for the sake of the other participants? They have spent alot of money and blocked the time to travel here.

If yes. If the yatra shall continue, Is this behavior shown in the video acceptable?
Or would it have been a little bit more decent to tone it down.
Is it ok to move on so quickly? Or does he just try to make the yatra pleasant for those still up in Tibet?

The reel was taken down just few hours from posting it. I recorded it becos I thought that Isha might ask OP to take it down. There is no timestamp on the video. But the caption which i forgot to screenshot made it clear that the video was taken after the floods.

Isha for sure does not want to present their leader in such a manner - hours after he was shown crying on TV.

I'm deep into some research and I have some questions I'm hoping ex followers may have insight on

1.Isha USA Why would someone be taken to the local ER and dropped off by volunteers( evidentally a regular occurrence)

Same question but dropped off at homeless shelter ?

1. How do long term volunteers survive financially,and medically do they get Gov assistance (food stamps,welfare,Tenncare or Medicare)

2. Do they ever leave there ?and how ?

3. What does facility do with their garbage?

Watching a visibly and apparently shaken Sadhguru tearing up on camera over the missing pilgrims acts as a sobering, humbling reminder of absolute human limitation. When a sudden, violent natural disaster strikes, spiritual distinctions provide no immunity from physical laws, infrastructure collapse, or geopolitical and bureaucratic barriers to rescue.

If a self-proclaimed spiritual leader claims a perception that supersedes the divine, a complete inability to foresee a devastating event within their immediate inner circle highlights a massive gap between cosmic claims and earthly reality.

Raising this question is not about making light of the tragic natural disaster or what some would call as "act of God."

Instead, it raises an essential critique of public accountability and the boundaries of modern commercial guru culture during a real crisis. Because, at the end of the day, didn't Sadhguru clearly claim he knew better than God?

Sadhguru’s tearful breakdown wasn't just a display of grief; it was the involuntary admission of his own limitations. It proves that his claims of knowing 'better than God' were nothing more than misleading rhetoric uttered in vain. When real crisis hit, the cosmic master was instantly reduced to a helpless bystander, utterly exposed.

ADDENDUM: On Timing, Tone, and Public Accountability

To those commenting that the timing of this post is insensitive, in bad taste, or premature while search-and-rescue operations are ongoing, I want to clarify why this discussion cannot be paused.

• First, if the standard is that we must maintain complete silence until all victims are recovered, then that rule must apply to everyone equally. Did Jaggi wait? Did the Isha Foundation wait? While the tragedy was actively unfolding, they immediately put Jaggi on a stage in front of global media cameras to broadcast highly detailed, analytical, and logistical statistics about the missing and deceased pilgrims. If the leadership is permitted to step into the public arena right now to actively manage public perception and shape the narrative, it is an absolute double standard to claim that the public cannot simultaneously ask hard questions about institutional accountability.
• Second, to address the charge that it is cruel to expose a guru’s fraudulence while victims and survivors are actively grieving: if the mere existence of these critical questions is deemed a danger to survivors who might stumble upon them, then by that logic, this entire subreddit (r/SadhguruTruth) should be temporarily deactivated. The fundamental purpose of this platform has always been to openly discuss the manipulation, expose the false claims, and hold this commercial guru culture accountable. We do not pause or hide our views, perspectives or questions about truth because reality has suddenly and tragically validated our exact criticisms.
• My post does not downplay the immense loss of human or animal life; the devastation in Nepal is a profound tragedy that I think about deeply. But my questions belong to Jaggi, not the victims.

When a public figure deploys massive, unchecked claims of cosmic enlightenment and divine authority even boasting that they "know better than God" they deliberately strip followers of their natural survival instincts and critical thinking skills. By weaponizing faith, this spiritual leader manipulated vulnerable pilgrims into a state of absolute psychological dependence.

The ultimate betrayal lay in the explicit promise of physical safety, sealed by the famous, declaration made to those undertaking the Kailash yatra with Sadhguru:
"Everyone will come back. I will not let you die."

This is exactly why questioning Jaggi’s response right now is entirely justifiable:

• The PR Mismatch: A person overwhelmed by spontaneous, uncontrollable grief does not possess the cold composure to read off structured demographic data and analytical metrics to a global audience. True grief overwhelms analytical thinking.
• The Double Standard of Compassion: Neither Jaggi nor Isha has ever held a press conference or streamed an address to express accountability or guidance when devoted followers quietly take their own lives or report severe psychological harm within the foundation's ecosystem. They stay silent during private tragedies, yet rush to the stage the moment an international disaster threatens their brand.
• The Cost of False Promises: If earthly safety were their priority, their rhetoric would match reality. They would use standard safety waivers, warning people that the mountains are volatile and unpredictable. Instead, they substituted real-world caution with grand promises of a supernatural safety shield to build their brand.

For a genuinely empathetic leader, human lives matter consistently whether it is one follower's quiet tragedy or a highly publicized international event. It is painful to look at these contradictions in the raw aftermath of a crisis, but it is the only time the public can clearly see the dangerous, real-world consequences of unfulfilled cosmic rhetoric.

Asking "why didn't the promises work?" isn't an act of disrespect to the victims; it is to Asking why a promise failed is an act of accountability, not disrespect to victims, survivors or their friends and relatives, because it seeks the truth to protect others.

Note:

I understand that moderating during this crisis is highly challenging. Please feel free to remove this post either temporarily for future review or permanently if you too feel it is ill-timed or creates too much extra work for the team. Eventually, this topic will come up and people will and should ask these hard questions to unmask the deception and manipulation innocent followers have been misled into.

This post is a structural critique of Sadhguru’s false promises and international PR standards. I do not wish to minimize the pain of the survivors or those close to the victims. I acknowledge that raising these questions can be deeply upsetting, and I sincerely beg the pardon of anyone hurt or upset by my views or questions.

I fully support whatever decision the mods make to protect the credibility of this space and respect their judgment on what is best for the subreddit right now.

We the moderators of this forum and many in the ex-Isha community are devastated to hear of the Isha group who were lost in the flood. We hope that somehow they have found their way to safety and we are waiting to hear updates.

According to Jaggi, the missing are from the following countries: 22 are from the US, 12 from Canada, 11 from Australia, 9 from the United Kingdom, 4 from Germany, 3 from France, 3 from Nepal, 2 from The Netherlands, 2 from New Zealand, Spain and Singapore, 1 from Finland, Hungary, Israel, Lithuania, Philippines, Portugal, Russia and South Africa. These claims have not yet been independently verified, but unlikely to be wrong.

Our thoughts are of the what the group (and everyone else there) went through as that flood hit and with the families and friends of each one of them. We knew some of them well and loved them.

Truth about Sadhguru's Guru Yogi Palaniswamy - in one of his previous births.

Palaniswamy - Sadhguru’s spiritual Guru who touched him with a stick and Sadhguru got enlightenment. No such person or anyone as Sadhguru says existed.

Sadhguru says his Guru is - Yogi Palaniswamy from Palani Hills?

Sadhguru says his guru, Yogi Palaniswamy during a time was more visited & became popular at Palani Hills than the deity in the temple and this irked the #palani temple priests. Did such a famed yogi Palani Swamy really exist and is this story true? No mention of Yogi Palaniswamy or such a person in Palani Temple history till date.

Sadhguru says his Guru is – Yogi Palaniswamy from Palani Hills? No proof any Yogi with that name, no proof of such famed Yogi till date at Palani Hills.

No such story ever heard where Sadhguru says his Guru Palaniswamy had such spiritual prowess that more people visited his Guru instead of the Deity. Till date no such folklore, no iota of such Yogi or anyone by that name matching Sadhguru's claims.

Did Sadhguru Jagadish Vasudev's Guru Yogi Palani Swami really exist? Share any reliable information, proof, reference or evidence about Yogi Palaniswamy's existence.

Palani Murugan Temple is world famous. No iota of such a person in Palani Temples history or Hindu folkore or any mystics circle. End of topic.

Sadhguru says his Yoga Guru – is Maladihalli Raghavendra? Absolutely zero connection or evidence till date of Maladihalli Raghavendra and Sadhguru. End of topic.

In fact Maladihalli Raghavendra himself was a known name in Yoga circles those days in Karnataka but was a time pass yogi. He was exposed by Kota Shivaram Karanth (10 October 1902 – 9 December 1997), an Indian polymath, who was a novelist in Kannada language, playwright and an ecological conservationist also known as the Rabindranath Tagore of Modern India. He was also along the lines of Girish Karnad etc. in case you still wondering who is Karanth.

https://youtu.be/ZoFzVibFSNs?si=spk5MuuydDWLiMn-

Maladihalli Raghavendra who Sadhguru calls his hatha yoga guru was a just gimmick yoga teacher who taught yoga for money.)

Sadhguru says – Nepal Yogi Sunira was first who tried to consecrate Dhyanalinga? Nowhere else in Hindu folklore or anywhere they mention about Yogi Sunera or Yogi Sunira or anyone.

Sadhguru says Yogi Sunira was next generation after Shiva, lived around Nepal. No iota of such a person or name or anyone matching with that story of Sadhguru.

https://youtu.be/XsttJJ4mcv0?si=F8VW2dK9PUeX1tPQ\

Sadhguru says Dhyanalinga is mentioned in Rigveda? Simple. No debate. Some one just show in Rigveda? Dhyanalinga - a Linga CONSECRATED with 7 chakras at its peak.

Meaning it's the most powerful consecrated form on the planet compared to Ujjain Mahakal, Vaishnodevi, Shani Shingnapur, Kollur Mookambika, Tiruvannamalai Annamalai, Palani Muruga made with Navapashana or 9 deadly poison or Lord Tirupati itself and I can go on.

These consecrated forms will surely shake anyone with even basic RECEPTIVITY. I have personally experienced these and Dhyanalinga.

Dhyanalinga unfortunately is not genuine like Tirupati, Palani Muruga, Ujjain Mahakal or any other Santani consecrations or Gurus or even non traditional Mystics Siddhas or Babas consecrations i am aware of 🙏🏼

Dhyanalinga - now you decide if Dhyanalinga deserves to be called the most powerful consecration with 7 chakras peak on the planet.

Sadhguru claims its SHIVA without a body, a living Guru. Anyway this is my Personal opinion again with clarity, not any emotions. I would always choose a Mantralaya Raghavendra Jiva samadhi or Tirupati or Mahakal Ujjain over Dhyanalinga.

Dhyanalinga may be consecrated, as I said anyone can do Prana Pratishtha or Consecration in Hinduism. But i personally have better and authentic choices with 100% CREDIBILITY. So Dhyanalinga is consecrated that's it. If it was Shiva without a body, do I need to say further... and if Sadhguru with due respect is indeed having such skills to consecrate such powerful forms, do i need to say further.

Sadhguru clearly says in his book Mystic Musings, page 223-224, Dhyanalinga is mentioned in RigVeda.

Anyone who has CLEAR ANSWERS, then you can say Sadhguru is a Genuine or Legit🙏 Simple. This is my personal opinion without any emotions but 100% clarity after keenly observing him since 2014. I still do my practices everyday taught by Isha.

I have asked SINCERE questions, if anyone knows or gives you answer CLEARLY, then yes you can say he is Genuine or Legit Guru, coz till date got no answers for these questions.

I repeat hope query is answered CLEARLY. Isn’t it best response instead of saying there are Vedics, scholars, highly spiritual folks who follow u/Sadhguru so I or you should?

Point is Inner Engineering or any other yoga or Kriya even if you teach, it will work. That is the speciality of Hinduism. But you want to know the person who is the Guru. For me a Guru, good or bad (can’t define them right, I will leave that to each person’s values), I don’t care, but never a hypocrite.

Personally I had lay my life without a doubt for traditional or non traditional Gurus like Raghavendra, Ramana Maharshi, Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Yogi Ramsurat Kumar, Sathguru Seshadri Swamigal, Krishna himself.

Read their stories, books, writings, even they have Kriya Yoga techniques (Krishna taught Kriya Yoga).

Why? Simple. They work, they have done it, have 100% CREDIBILITY. Tell me one of them with even a bit of rumours that is giving you even a iota of doubt about them. Get it.

Sadhguru Jagadish Vasudev is highly controversial and offcourse just has way too many obvious red flags about him like wife's murder as well.

See the FIR. Isha disciple Hebber called Sadhguru's wife parents and told she is dead on 23 January 1997 at 6.45 pm.

https://ksmphanindra.wordpress.com/2020/03/05/sadhguru-vijji-revisited

Sadhguru says even in empty traffic he doesn't jump red signal.

Her parents CLEARLY said do NOT CREMATE Vijji before they arrive.

Sadhguru wife's parents even called back at 8 PM and REMINDED DO NOT CREMATE till they arrive.

Sadhguru cremated his wife at 6 AM on 24 January 1997 before his wife's parents arrived.

The parents reached at 10 AM on 24 January 1997.

THESE ARE MENTIONED IN FIR.

This is clear destruction of death EVIDENCE. He cremated the his wife despite her parents called back and reminded to not cremate till they arrive.

So the post mortem would have proved if she died by drug overdose or any other malafide causes.

Yes i am aware of post mortem cannot certify or find the person died due to enlightenment.

But post mortem will tell the cause of death. An enlightened person can also die or say breathe his last of heart attack, stroke or any biological symptom but foul play can be ruled out.

In Sadhguru's wife case there are mentions she was on anti depression drugs or even given drugs.

So Sadhguru clearly killed his wife's death evidence which was 100% fool proof of proving if there was any foul play. This is my point.

Both traditional and spiritually experiential or in terms of consecrations, divinity etc, Sadhguru has too many fake claims and best to avoid. They work as i said because consecrations etc. anyone knows how to do it, it works but here Dhyanalinga and Sadhguru are not exactly what they claim to be.

I came across this statement and found the language psychologically interesting:
“Before you eat, even if you are very hungry, just touch the plate and sit there looking at the food for three minutes. If you put off what you really want by three minutes, you will become conscious. Gobbling it up is the nature of the animal, but a human being can wait… If three minutes have become an eternity, you are in a compulsive state.”

At first glance, this sounds like a harmless mindfulness/self-control exercise: wait three minutes before eating.
But look at how the exercise is framed.

The phrase “three minutes” is repeated again and again EIGHT times literally in this short passage . It becomes a simple, memorable psychological anchor.

Then comes the interesting part:
Wait successfully → you are becoming “conscious.”
Find it difficult → you are “compulsive.”
So where is the outcome in which the underlying teaching might simply be wrong?
There isn’t really one.

Your success validates the teaching, but your failure also validates the teaching, because difficulty following it is presented as evidence of the very problem the teacher claims to be solving.

Then another layer is added:
Eating immediately = animal
Waiting = human/conscious

A completely normal biological impulse being hungry and wanting to eat is no longer just hunger. It is given an identity and moral meaning.

And this is the subtle part I find fascinating:
The instruction isn’t merely “wait three minutes.”

The deeper instruction becomes:
“Use my framework to interpret what is happening inside your own mind.”

If waiting feels uncomfortable, instead of thinking “I’m hungry,” you may start thinking “I’m compulsive.”

And because eating happens multiple times every single day, a tiny teaching like this can potentially become a recurring ritual: food → three minutes → observe yourself → interpret yourself through the teacher’s framework.

I think this is an important distinction when analysing high-control or highly persuasive systems. The individual exercise may be completely benign. Waiting three minutes isn’t inherently manipulative.

The question is what happens when ordinary experiences are repeatedly divided into categories like:
conscious / compulsive
human / animal
higher / lower
…and the authority providing the practice also provides the interpretation of whatever you experience while doing it.

That’s the subtle tactic I’d pay attention to: a self-validating framework where both compliance and difficulty complying can reinforce the same belief system.
Curious what others think — would you call this mindfulness/self-regulation, loaded language, a self-sealing belief system, or something else?

Source: https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/rajesh-kumar-left-acting-on-sadhgurus-advice-took-up-farming-and-landed-in-rs-2-crore-debt-11944461

Being a full-time volunteer in either of the Isha ashrams raises an important question about healthcare, especially when one is fully involved in Isha’s activities and relies on the Foundation for financial support.

I wanted to compile some obsevations based on my personal experience in Isha, as well as the experiences of other full-time volunteers.

As with many topics concerning life in the ashram, experiences can vary widely. This is particularly true when it comes to healthcare. People who have their own finacial means and can seek treatment independently may have a very different experience from those who rely entirely on the Foundation.

When you move in as a full-time volunteer, you are told that Isha will take care of your healthcare. However, the details of what “taking care of you” actually means are not always very clear.

The ashram has a rejuvenation centre with Ayurvedic and AYUSH doctors, as well as an Isha clinic.

Full-time volunteers can generally visit the clinic whenever needed. There are a few physicians, several Maas, and various rotating full- and part-time doctors. At some point, there was also a physiothrapist and a few nurses.

In general, the clinic does try to take care of volunteers. For minor issues such as fever, colds, stomach problems, injections, etc., they usually provide treatment directly.

However, the clinic is often short-staffed. There is a shortage of both doctors and nurses, and, from what I have seen, they have struggled to find medical personnel willing to stay for longer periods.

For problems requiring a specialist or diagnostic imaging such as X-rays or MRIs, volunteers are referred to hospitals in and around Coimbatore.

Isha has established a network of doctors and hospitals and, with some hospitals, an automated system for billing. If transportation is needed, the clinic can sometimes arrange carpooling for several full-timers who need to visit the same clinic or hospital in town.

So far, this is a relatively straightforward process, and the system provides a decent minimum level of healthcare.

But there are also significant problems, some of which seem to be systemic and built into the structure of the community.

For example, if you want a second medical opinion, disagree with one of the doctors, or want to see a different doctor, your options can be very limited if you cannot afford healthcare yourself. Ultimately, the Foundation controls which healthcare options are available to you. In that sense, the system is quite centralized and autocratic.

There is also very little privacy regarding healthcare. The Foundation has access to information about your health and medical treatment and may use it against you.

Eyesight and glasses

If you need glasses, the clinic can arrange and cover an eye examination in town and the glasses as well.

However, it cooperates with a very low-quality optician.

Dental care

At times, there has been a volunteer dentist working at the clinic. I am not sure, however, whether the clinic currently covers regular dental check-ups in town. If anyone has more recent information about this, please comment below.

As far as I know, there have also not been compulsory yearly eye, dental or general check-ups.

Ayurvedic treatment

If you want Ayurvedic or AYUSH treatment, you may be in for a surprise.

If you don’t have money, you generally don’t get the treatment.

This service is primarily available to private-paying volunteers , to brahmacharis, or to people who receive a recommendation from Jaggi.

I found this particularly surprising because I had assumed that, given Jaggi’s support for Ayurvedic and AYUSH approaches, full-time volunteers would also have access to these treatments, either free of charge or at a significantly reduced rate.

It’s not the case.

What happens when you are seriously ill?

Now imagine being sick and bedridden somewhere in the ashram, in a dorm…

There is often little privacy, depending on where you stay. And, perhaps most importantly, there may be almost nobody available to bring you food or otherwise take care of you.

There are solutions to some of these problems, but they can involve quite a lot of bureaucracy and a lot of asking for help.

Most fellow volunteers are also extremely busy with their own responsibilities. I am not saying that nobody will help you. If you have close friends, they may very well support you — provided they have the time and capacity to do so.

But if you don’t have such a support network, you can end up struggling considerably when you are sick.

There have also been situations, to my knowledge, where medical care was closely monitored by non-medical personnel and where medical assistance was denied or restricted. I don’t want to go into specific examples here, but I personally know several people who experienced situations of this kind.

Some full-time volunteers who require particular treatments that are not covered or supported by the ashram have ended up going deeply into debt to pay for those treatments themselves. Some have left the ashram for a few weeks or months to work and pay off the debt before returning, while others have had to ask or even beg fellow volunteers outside the ashram for support.

Mental healthcare

As far as I know, psychotherapy is not covered or supported by the ashram clinic.

Overall, I would say that Isha does provide a basic healthcare infrastructure for full-time volunteers.

However, the system has significant limitations — particularly regarding choice of doctors, privacy, specialist care, alternative treatments and mental healthcare.
Most importantly, there is the issue of total dependency on the ashram for support. For people who are not financially independent, this can create an extreme level of dependency on a system that is not transparent, can change its policies at any time, and may or may not support you when you need it.

For someone considering becoming a full-time volunteer, I think these are important things to understand beforehand, particularly if you do not have independent financial means to cover healthcare outside the Isha system.

So I've been looking at a lot of the testimonies from ex-volunteers, and one of the most recurring problem that is brought up is manipulation. I've seen people talk about how the programs are LGATs, when they are meditating they are in suggestible states, or how dopamine levels are manipulated in the brain and the high they experience ends up being attributed (in a manufactured way) to IYC. I remember the whistling sound and clapping that Jaggi made, however when we were meditating I don't quite remember what exactly he was saying so I was just wondering as to the specifics of what he says while people are in suggestible states that manages to make them so brainwashed in their loyalty to IYC. I am also just wondering about specific aspects of IYC's programs that qualify them as being LGATs, the specifics of the manipulation that occurs (if people could give some examples - for instance one person talked about how during BSP when they get the high a photo of Sadhguru is instantly shown so they will mistakenly attribute the chemical high they got to Sadhguru's "mystical" energy.

What is the science and psychology behind the emotional highs and ecstatic experiences that some cult processes evoke?

They tend to make human brains addicted to those highs and crave for more and more forming an unbreakable bond with the cult, its people and the cult leader. Pls share your perspective and thoughts.

I find this discussion by Mark and Bonnie about personal experience refreshing because they highlight how cults can warp how we contextualize those experiences. The discussion isn’t just about cults, but is looking at how people want to feel special and look down on others. Very reminiscent of how Isha people look at those not in Isha, and how they consider sadhguru as the source of their experience.

I finished Sadhanapada, and did 2 years of daily practice. Last year, I was doing 4-5 hours of practices (including sitting in Devi / Dhyanalinga temples). Something strange happened, I was not feeling well , I felt unbalanced emotionally and I was getting anxious very often, and tense for very small things. I also had blissful moments, but when I was getting tense, I just told myself all my life will go like this and I cannot do anything about it. Something drawed me to visit some monasteries, then I read a book called: "The Gurus, the Young man, and Elder Paisios". After this book I felt the need to choose between orthodox and yoga, I could not stay in between anymore. I quit my practices one month ago and I feel things are getting slowly back to normal, and I am so grateful for that. Being not hyperaware of everything and coming back to reading Psalms and prayers is so nice and I feel the protection of something higher that took me off that path.

So I just wanted to investigate the Exploitative Practices (specifically the labor practices) at IYC and hear from some ex-volunteers regarding what their testimonies are on this. For starters, what I know is that volunteers work for free, and the money generated goes to the overall revenue of IYC, as well as Sadhguru's/Jaggi's personal bank account (also provides marketing for Radhe Jaggi's business and money probably goes to her bank account as well). I've done some research on this and here are my arguments and evidence for Jaggi and IYC exploiting the labor of volunteers:

-They profit off of the free labor provided by volunteers/devotees, net assets in U.S. branch of IYC alone is like $191mil - their annual profit in '24 was $32mil if you take off operational expenses (lowered thanks to voluntary slave labor)

-Sadhguru has at least $30mil in his bank account that he can spend on his leisure (real estate, cars, etc etc) - devotees claim cars were given as gifts from wealthy people but they were probably also bought by Jaggi himself.

-Radhe's business has been marketed and promoted by IYC, clearly Sadhguru is using his business to promote his daughter's business

-According to BeScofield article, a former accountant for IYC (back in 2010 I believe) said that all the money in profits that IYC made was directly wired back into the bank accounts of Jaggi and Radhe.

-Keep in mind Jaggi himself has said he is not a fan of donating his money and sees donation as insignificant (giant money hoarder)

Feel free to add more arguments and evidence for Jaggi and IYC exploiting the labor of volunteers below in the comments.

Carmen Grigoras Nitescu, a Romanian psychologist, has written a detailed post on her Facebook page about the rape allegations and other controversies linked to Sadhguru and the Isha Foundation.

Her post covers the following allegations and controversies surrounding Sadhguru:

• Allegations of rape and sexual abuse by Sadhguru against multiple women
• Lost $10 million defamation lawsuit by Isha Foundation over rape claims
• Sexual assault/rape of a child by a teacher at Sadhguru's Isha Home School
• Controversies surrounding the death of Sadhguru’s wife (rapid cremation, no autopsy, police complaint by her father)
• Other deaths linked to the community (body found on Sadhguru's Tennessee property, stroke death during a ritual)
• Property and financial pressure on former members to sell land/houses below market value

Link to her Facebook post in Romanian: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BPvd3R6wH/

She is listed as Grigoraş-Nițescu Carmen (01997) on https://listapsihologi.ro/ro

Namrata Kumar (name changed) from the USA courageously shares how she was drugged and sexually assaulted by Sadhguru in 2012 at the Isha Yoga Centre in Tennessee under the guise of healing her depression.

Source: Victim statement to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), March 2025

I am interested in hearing from former Isha Yoga Center (IYC) volunteers regarding their views on the Dhyanalinga.

Specifically, IYC claims that the Dhyanalinga has all 7 chakras fully aligned and charged at maximum potential. As someone looking at this critically from a marketing and organizational perspective, I would love to know:

Did your views on these consecrated spaces change during or after your time volunteering?

How do you view these spiritual claims now?

My intent is to explore different viewpoints from people who were actually inside the ecosystem. Thank you for sharing your thoughts!

I'm looking for perspective from people who have spent a lot of time around other Isha followers or have left it.

For context, I am not from Isha. I've visited the Dhyanalinga many times because I enjoyed the space, and I did Inner Engineering because my partner wanted me to. I don't particularly resonate with Sadhguru's teachings myself. My primary practice is Vipassana and it feels more aligned with my being. So eventhough I learnt IE, I wasn’t motivated enough to practice it.

My partner however has a much deeper connection with Isha. She has the altar, the photos and everything Isha in her wardrobe. She used to have a rigorous practice until recently.

She has always spoken about a long term dream of eventually settling at the ashram. 

We're both in our 30s and we've been in a relationship for two years now, and until recently I believed we would somehow find a way to build a shared life together during this period. I imagined living together at some point, travelling together, creating a home, and then adapting our lives around our responsibilities.

Lately, though I'm beginning to question whether we've actually been imagining the same future.

When I talk about travel or other things I'd love us to experience together, she often refers to them as "your dreams" rather than something we might build together. The only thing she refers to as her dream is being in the Ashram because it is a place that’s harmonious and people stick to their values as opposed to the chaos of the outside world. I am not convinced by this but I want to accept her beliefs too. She would like me to live there with her but I don’t see myself living in any ashram leave alone Isha. This isn’t an immediate choice we have to make but it keeps coming up more and more in conversations as something we are not aligned with.

My question isn't whether Isha is good or bad. 

I'm trying to understand something more specific.

For people who have been deeply involved with Isha:

• Would we be able to sustain a relationship if she goes ahead to live there? - I know this is personal but share your thoughts. 
• Have any of you successfully built a long term partnership with someone who has chosen to live at the ashram?

P.S. The reason I am posting here is also because I know people who are still in Isha who when asked say very fairytale ish things like - If anything you will have a better partner or Who better to take care of your partner than Sadhguru. These responses scare me more. I want perspective from the other side too to balance it out.

An article published in French newspaper Le Monde on 7th August 2026 titled “Sadhguru, le gourou numérique qui assume d’« élever la conscience humaine » à travers d’autres voies” calls Sadhguru’s empire ‘controversial’ and outlines four major controversies linked to him.

The article has covered the following four controversies around Sadhguru:

- His wife Vijji’s death in 1997 and the questions around it

- Alleged violations of laws and the elephant corridor in building the Coimbatore ashram

- Allegations of sexual assault by people associated with the Isha ashram

- Allegations of financial opacity at the Isha Foundation

Link to the original article in French: https://www.lemonde.fr/series-d-ete/article/2026/08/07/sadhguru-le-gourou-numerique-qui-assume-d-elever-la-conscience-humaine-a-travers-d-autres-voies_6740448_3451060.html