Cult News

CultNews reported the death of Sri Chinmoy in October of last year, the guru often called a “cult leader,” died of a heart attack at his home in Jamaica Queens, New York. He was 76.

Chinmoy considered a “holy man” by his disciples, was dubbed “sleazy Sri” by the New York Post, when it was revealed that he exploited some of his female followers for sexual favors.

The Chicago Tribune called Chinmoy the “gonzo guru” for his incessant publicity stunts, which included lifting massive weights with the help of a mechanical device.

Chinmoy seemed willing to do almost anything to get his name in print.

Despite their guru’s apparent egomania, Chinmoy’s devotees persistently attempted to spin him into some sort of selfless saint pursuing peace.

But it looks like a posthumous title for Chinmoy might be the “greedy guru,” denoting a man more selfish the saintly.

CultNews obtained a copy of the “Will of Chinmoy Kumar Ghose” (aka Sri Chinmoy) and rather than demonstrating that he had few concerns about the material world, his final testament proves that cash was often the focus of his consciousness.

Chinmoy left behind a financial residue totaling millions of dollars in net assets, which were held by him personally rather than the nonprofit he controlled called “Sri Chinmoy Centre Church Inc.”

The “estimated testamentary assets of the estate” were “in excess of $2 million” according to a statement filed by Chinmoy’s designated executor David K. Burke of Jamaica, Queens, where many of his remaining followers continue to reside.

According to Burke the guru had $150,000.00 in various bank accounts, and “six real properties” all under his name.

Four of the properties are located in Jamaica Queens.

Two properties appear to be private residences, one is located in Victoria, British Columbia and another in Tarpon, Florida.

Did these properties serve as Sri Chinmoy’s selfless seasonal retreats?

The guru stated in his will that he had no “surviving relatives” and left everything after his death to the “Sri Chinmoy Centre Church, Inc.,” which will continue to perpetuate his name.

Benjamin Spector, a former devotee wrote, “Many of Chinmoy’s disciples will go into their senior years with no social security and ineligible for Medicare…”

Spector says, “Most of us gave up college and our careers for him.” The former follower worries, “After ten, twenty, thirty years of living in a cult, who will look after these ‘weird’ people in whites and saris? They have no job skills, and most were too poor to ever see a doctor or dentist.”

Will any of the guru’s millions be set aside to take care his past or present disciples?

Or will everything continue to fuel an endless posthumous promotion of his name?

What about the living?

Spector recalls, “The Guru promised us all ‘a ticket to heaven’ and all we had to do was to become his devoted unconditional slaves and willingly sacrifice our current lives for the promise of a heavenly future.”

Maybe David Burke should consider offering some compensation for former and current Sri Chinmoy devotees interested in redeeming those tickets.