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Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad #1-2
The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad, Books One&Two
The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad means Way of the Eternal. These writings are the scriptures of Eckankar, Religion of the Light and Sound of God. Though they're possibly the oldest teachings known on earth, they speak to you directly--today. They come alive in your heart.Through The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad you will discover an answer to every human question ever yet, or to be, devised. Its pages tell what life really consists of and how to live it.
Eckankar is ancient wisdom for today. Its teachings, which resurfaced in 1965, emphasize the value of personal experiences as the most natural way back to God. Whatever your religious background, they show how to look and listen within yourself--to expand your consciousness and enjoy spiritual connectedness. See for yourself--perhaps for the first time--how to lead a happy, balanced, and productive life. And put daily concerns into loving perspective.
529 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2000
61 people are currently reading
147 people want to read
About the author
Paul Twitchell
135 books66 followersWhen Paul Twitchell made Eckankar known to the modern world in 1965, he separated spiritual truths from the cultural trappings which had surrounded them. Average people could begin to experience the Light and Sound of God while still living a happy, steady, and productive life.
Paul Twitchell was born in Kentucky in the early part of the twentieth century and served in the US Navy during the Second World War.
A seeker from an early age, he was introduced to a group of spiritual Masters who would change the course of his life. These were the Vairagi ECK Masters. While they trained Paul to become the Living ECK Master, he explored a wide range of spiritual traditions under different teachers. The high teachings of ECK had been scattered to the four corners of the world. Paul gathered these golden teachings of Light and Sound and made them readily available to us.
It was these God experiences he chronicled in his book, The Tiger's Fang. Paul Twitchell eventually joined the Vairagi Order and was given the task of bringing Eckankar to the world. He became the Living ECK Master.
By 1965, Paul was giving Soul Travel workshops in California and offering discourses on the teachings of Eckankar. A community of ECKists began to grow. In 1970, Eckankar was established as a nonprofit religious organization. Paul Twitchell died in 1971, but not before he initiated many into the ECK teachings.
The present-day Living ECK Master is Sri Harold Klemp. He continues to give new life to the age-old spiritual teachings of ECK. (www.Eckankar.org)
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 23, 2019
The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad is the holy text of Eckankar, a small religion founded in the late 1960s by a man named Paul Twitchell. Most of the reviews here are positive, because who beside an adherent is going to read an obscure, dense 500+ page Bible? That's where I come in. My friend Carrie and I looked into the religion, read a handful of its many books, and attended meetings (including a semi-annual conference near its headquarters in Chanhassen, Minnesota) as part of our podcast Oh No, Ross and Carrie!.
A quick word about the hard-to-summarize Eckankar: the religion focuses on soul travel (aka out-of-body or astral travel) to connect with spiritual masters in an effort to reach higher planes of existence and eventually exit the cycle of rebirth. A common spiritual practice is chanting the HU (pronounced "hew", or more accurately: "hyeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwww"), the sound of Sugmad (God). There's a lot of terms to learn. The most important master is the Mahanta, the Living ECK Master, who exists both as a living human being and a spiritual paragon who connects personally with every believer. When Paul Twitchell wrote The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad, that figure just happened to be himself (he claimed to be 971st in an unbroken line of masters going back millions of years). His successor was Darwin Gross, who was later ejected from the group and has been scrubbed from the group's materials. In 1981, the ECK Rod of Power passed to the current Mahanta, Sri Harold Klemp, who has succeeded in producing even more written works than the prolific Twitchell.
Written in two parts released in 1970 and 1971, The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad makes bold claims about its scope and potency. It says of itself:
One spiritual practice in Eckankar is to pose a question and then flip "at random" to a page and point to a passage to read the presumably relevant result. I was invited to engage in this practice (known elsewhere as bibliomancy) at the temple in Chanhassen, and it actually did have a tangential if unsatistfactory answer to my question: "How would I know if this book is true?"
The book condemns anyone, such as myself, who would have the gall to read its words and draw conclusions or provide commentary. Twitchell comes across as an anti-intellectual Wizard of Oz, setting off smoke bombs and shouting menacingly from behind the green curtain:
This boastful voice is pervasive, and Twitchell regularly asserts Eckankar's superiority over other religions:
There's a glaring logical problem in this enterprise, as Twitchell claims this text to be "the most ancient of all teachings", "possibly the oldest scripture known on earth", and yet the text regularly comments on the most popular religions of the 20th century, specifically mentioning Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism and referencing Muslims. Oops! There are also numerous borrowings of phrases and ideas from other religions:
There are many more examples like this I could list, mostly that I recognized from the Bible, and I'm sure many more that I didn't recognize from other texts and traditions. Paul Twitchell was thoroughly exposed as a plagiarist (see David C. Lane's The Making of a Spiritual Movement: The Untold Story of Paul Twitchell & Eckankar), but the church tries to wriggle out of the obvious duplication by saying that Twitchell was tapping into the same divine sources that these other religions pulled from, and if anything, they're copying from him. It is worth noting that Twitchell studied many other traditions before founding Eckankar, notably the Eastern movement Sant Mat (from which the "light and sound" concept came) and L. Ron Hubbard's Scientology (Twitchell attained the status of clear and wrote for Scientology publications in the late 50s).
Much of the text is concerned with describing the various spiritual realms one can attain in Eckankar, warning against the depredations of the Kal (an evil force that is Eckankar's answer to the Devil), and talking about just how wonderful, essential, omnipresent and powerful the Mahanta is. It's amazing that Twitchell can make so many bold claims about himself, but he is also quick to forbid anyone from asking him to prove them:
There are many other odd nuggets throughout, including a pseudo-history of humanity going back millions of years. The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad insists on the existence of Atlantis and Lemuria (where the Garden of Eden was apparently located!), and describes various races of men in uncomfortably dated language ("They had other races - the yellow, brown, and black people - but these did not dominate"). Indeed, the text even gets caught admitting that "Eckankar never makes a claim that it is built on a historical foundation." For the above and many other reasons, this is clearly a work of human authorship. There is nothing to make an impartial observer appeal to divine explanation. Paul Twitchell went out of his way to exploit the precept (and my final quote from the book): "Man will take to religion, even if he has to invent one."
A quick word about the hard-to-summarize Eckankar: the religion focuses on soul travel (aka out-of-body or astral travel) to connect with spiritual masters in an effort to reach higher planes of existence and eventually exit the cycle of rebirth. A common spiritual practice is chanting the HU (pronounced "hew", or more accurately: "hyeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwww"), the sound of Sugmad (God). There's a lot of terms to learn. The most important master is the Mahanta, the Living ECK Master, who exists both as a living human being and a spiritual paragon who connects personally with every believer. When Paul Twitchell wrote The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad, that figure just happened to be himself (he claimed to be 971st in an unbroken line of masters going back millions of years). His successor was Darwin Gross, who was later ejected from the group and has been scrubbed from the group's materials. In 1981, the ECK Rod of Power passed to the current Mahanta, Sri Harold Klemp, who has succeeded in producing even more written works than the prolific Twitchell.
Written in two parts released in 1970 and 1971, The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad makes bold claims about its scope and potency. It says of itself:
"One will find within these pages an answer to every question man has ever devised to ask of any greater ones. All that which is truth is here now, within these pages."
"There has probably never been a greater gift from Eckankar to the world than the present book, the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad."
One spiritual practice in Eckankar is to pose a question and then flip "at random" to a page and point to a passage to read the presumably relevant result. I was invited to engage in this practice (known elsewhere as bibliomancy) at the temple in Chanhassen, and it actually did have a tangential if unsatistfactory answer to my question: "How would I know if this book is true?"
The book condemns anyone, such as myself, who would have the gall to read its words and draw conclusions or provide commentary. Twitchell comes across as an anti-intellectual Wizard of Oz, setting off smoke bombs and shouting menacingly from behind the green curtain:
"You in your pride who would read the sacred works of the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad without the assistance of the Mahanta, the Living ECK Master, do you even know by what letter of a word you ought to begin to read them?"
"The sacred scriptures of the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad should not be taken in their apparent meaning, as in the case of the orthodox scriptures. Of what use would it be to forbid their revelation to the profane if their secret meaning were contained in the literal sense of the language usually employed?"
"Many educated and clever persons are not fit for the society of the Mahanta, because they are filled with vanity and do not believe in him."
"There is no way to analyze ECK, nor is there any way to explain It. It is just what It is, and attempts to make It anything else bring about confusion and failure."
"Those who question all the works of ECK shall never know Truth and shall always be bothered with questions. None shall ever know Truth. It is not possible to have Truth and at the same time ask questions about it..."
"There is little need to seek truth, just stop having views. Do not adopt or reject, nor examine truth or pursue it."
"Neither reason nor logic offer any way to find truth. Both deal merely with the world of appearance."
"To ridicule, to scorn, to speak mockingly of the words of the Mahanta, and not to have faith in him and the cause of ECK is to bring woes on the advocator of doubt. It brings his karmic progress to a halt, increases his incarnations in this world, and causes him to suffer untold hardships."
This boastful voice is pervasive, and Twitchell regularly asserts Eckankar's superiority over other religions:
"Eckankar is the basic foundation for all religions, philosophies, and scientific works in our world today."
"In the end he will learn that all religions established so far throughout the world have their origin in the Godman, the Living ECK Master..."
"All religions have had a beginning and an ending. Even the modern religions of the day will have an ending whether or not anyone believes it. But with ECK it is vastly different. No one can establish any beginning of It without a founder or such..."
"...man worships the wrong gods; for all religions, whether or not they deny it, are pantheistic, which means many gods."
"...the mission of the Mahanta on this earth is to stir the millions of noninitiated into revolt against all orthodox religions."
"All those who seek this realization from the varied religions, cults, and isms will meet with failure."
"Woe be to him who tries to travel another path of religious doctrine or spiritual works while at the same time a chela of the Living ECK Master. He will suffer the penalties of his folly and not know what has created his adversities."
There's a glaring logical problem in this enterprise, as Twitchell claims this text to be "the most ancient of all teachings", "possibly the oldest scripture known on earth", and yet the text regularly comments on the most popular religions of the 20th century, specifically mentioning Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism and referencing Muslims. Oops! There are also numerous borrowings of phrases and ideas from other religions:
"...the Living ECK Master, is the Voice crying out in the wilderness." (cf. Isaiah 40:3, John 1:23)
"Through them the Word becomes flesh..." (cf. John 1:14)
"God so loved them that He sent a Living ECK Master to bring Souls home to Him..." (cf. John 3:16)
"No man comes to the Sugmad except through the Mahanta." (cf. John 14:6)
"He that wants life badly will never have it, but he that gives it up for the ECK, shall have all life." (cf. John 12:25)
"The three attributes derived from Soul's relationship with God are love, wisdom, and power. Of these three, the greatest is love." (cf. 1 Corinthians 13:13)
"...the experience or revelation comes like a thief in the night" (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:2)
"...they must obey the laws of matter, energy, space, and time." (cf. Scientology's concept of MEST, along with other references to Scientology terms like "spiritual freedom", "beingness" and "overt acts".)
"...often confuses this with self-knowledge or Self-Realization." (Self-Realization Fellowship)
"This law is: Love is all, and do as thou wilt." (cf. Ordo Templi Orientis)
There are many more examples like this I could list, mostly that I recognized from the Bible, and I'm sure many more that I didn't recognize from other texts and traditions. Paul Twitchell was thoroughly exposed as a plagiarist (see David C. Lane's The Making of a Spiritual Movement: The Untold Story of Paul Twitchell & Eckankar), but the church tries to wriggle out of the obvious duplication by saying that Twitchell was tapping into the same divine sources that these other religions pulled from, and if anything, they're copying from him. It is worth noting that Twitchell studied many other traditions before founding Eckankar, notably the Eastern movement Sant Mat (from which the "light and sound" concept came) and L. Ron Hubbard's Scientology (Twitchell attained the status of clear and wrote for Scientology publications in the late 50s).
Much of the text is concerned with describing the various spiritual realms one can attain in Eckankar, warning against the depredations of the Kal (an evil force that is Eckankar's answer to the Devil), and talking about just how wonderful, essential, omnipresent and powerful the Mahanta is. It's amazing that Twitchell can make so many bold claims about himself, but he is also quick to forbid anyone from asking him to prove them:
"The Mahanta, the Living ECK Master has other titles. He is the Godman, the Vi-Guru, the Light Giver, protector of the poor, the king of heaven, savior of mankind, the scourge of evil, and the defender of the faithful. He is the real and only power in all the universes of God. No one can harm him without his consent, for all that is done to him is given permission by the ECK, with his consent."
"Therefore, the Mahanta is the most powerful being within the universes of the Sugmad. With a flick of his finger he can create or destroy nations and any form of life. But in his compassion for all life, he desires to create and build instead of destroy."
"It goes without saying that the Mahanta, the Living ECK Master, who reigns as the Avatar over the external order of the universe, is himself but a perfect man."
"He is a miracle worker, but never attempts to prove himself when called upon to do so. He does not perform wonders simply because someone challenges him to do so. He will not perform magic nor give himself over to tricks as many believe he should do. But he proves himself in mysterious ways to everyone."
"No ECK Master will acknowledge his appearance to another person... in a sense he is letting the individual or individuals decide for themselves whether it was really him."
There are many other odd nuggets throughout, including a pseudo-history of humanity going back millions of years. The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad insists on the existence of Atlantis and Lemuria (where the Garden of Eden was apparently located!), and describes various races of men in uncomfortably dated language ("They had other races - the yellow, brown, and black people - but these did not dominate"). Indeed, the text even gets caught admitting that "Eckankar never makes a claim that it is built on a historical foundation." For the above and many other reasons, this is clearly a work of human authorship. There is nothing to make an impartial observer appeal to divine explanation. Paul Twitchell went out of his way to exploit the precept (and my final quote from the book): "Man will take to religion, even if he has to invent one."
November 28, 2014
First of all I have a bias I am an ECKist.
This book is mostly for students on the path of ECK. It is the ECKists bible.
ECKANKAR is a spiritual path of the Religion of Light and Sound. It has been taught since ancient times.
There is a living section of the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad series in each of the 7 Golden Wisdom Temples. Harold Klemp the Living ECK Master has the ability to take you in the dream state (in your Soul body) to the Golden Wisdom Temples to study these great scriptures.
The physical book one and two is very deep in places and not a quick read. It may be more easily understood with an ECKANKAR dictionary to look-up some of the terms.
For me this book is a great way to get insight if I am in a tough life situation. By opening the book at random and reading a page I find I often get insight that helps me better understand my life situation.
Here are the first two paragraphs from the forward "The teachings of ECK define the nature of Soul. You are Soul a particle of God sent into the worlds (including earth) to gain spiritual experience.
"The goal in ECK is spiritual freedom in this lifetime, after which you become a Co-worker with God, both here and in the next world. Karma and reincarnation are primary beliefs."
May the Blessings Be,
Greg Mann
This book is mostly for students on the path of ECK. It is the ECKists bible.
ECKANKAR is a spiritual path of the Religion of Light and Sound. It has been taught since ancient times.
There is a living section of the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad series in each of the 7 Golden Wisdom Temples. Harold Klemp the Living ECK Master has the ability to take you in the dream state (in your Soul body) to the Golden Wisdom Temples to study these great scriptures.
The physical book one and two is very deep in places and not a quick read. It may be more easily understood with an ECKANKAR dictionary to look-up some of the terms.
For me this book is a great way to get insight if I am in a tough life situation. By opening the book at random and reading a page I find I often get insight that helps me better understand my life situation.
Here are the first two paragraphs from the forward "The teachings of ECK define the nature of Soul. You are Soul a particle of God sent into the worlds (including earth) to gain spiritual experience.
"The goal in ECK is spiritual freedom in this lifetime, after which you become a Co-worker with God, both here and in the next world. Karma and reincarnation are primary beliefs."
May the Blessings Be,
Greg Mann
September 1, 2020
Two of the most remarkable books I have ever read. Using words like "inspirational" do not come close to describing them, and yet they are deeply so.
First Book One, then Book Two, takes one on a journey into self-exploration and self-understanding. We learn we do not have Souls, but we are Souls, each a unique particle of God. We discover, as Souls, that we are responsible for our own karma and reincarnation. The author, Paul Twitchell, gathers up truths which have been scattered throughout many texts and times, and brings them all together in a cohesive, structured form to reveal the deepest secrets about ourselves and how we can, once again, find our way home to God. I tease you not, if you read these two books with an open mind, they will change your life forever, as they did mine.
First Book One, then Book Two, takes one on a journey into self-exploration and self-understanding. We learn we do not have Souls, but we are Souls, each a unique particle of God. We discover, as Souls, that we are responsible for our own karma and reincarnation. The author, Paul Twitchell, gathers up truths which have been scattered throughout many texts and times, and brings them all together in a cohesive, structured form to reveal the deepest secrets about ourselves and how we can, once again, find our way home to God. I tease you not, if you read these two books with an open mind, they will change your life forever, as they did mine.
Read
May 17, 2021A first its seems an ordinary book.
Later with deeper contemplation , you'll discover that the Shariya Ki Sumad contains plenty of keys to survival and spiritual attainment.
The deeper shariyat has several portals to it with this seemingly ordinary scripture
Its indeed a good way to start and close life
Spiritual Masters come alive in our world when we take the words of the shariyat ki sugmad into a deeper world
Later with deeper contemplation , you'll discover that the Shariya Ki Sumad contains plenty of keys to survival and spiritual attainment.
The deeper shariyat has several portals to it with this seemingly ordinary scripture
Its indeed a good way to start and close life
Spiritual Masters come alive in our world when we take the words of the shariyat ki sugmad into a deeper world
August 23, 2022
The combined volumes one and two offer great inspiration for those walking a more direct path home. The stories and parables pondered create worlds unimaginable to the closed mind, but leads the open mind through the various spiritual planes and ultimately home to Sugmad, high above the soul planes. The Shariyat -Ki - Sugmad is indeed the most comprehensive and direct path home.
"Read random paragraphs and contemplate, a faithful heart should find great inspiration."
"Read random paragraphs and contemplate, a faithful heart should find great inspiration."
March 7, 2022
Thankful for a digital version
Super glad to have this in my pocket anytime I need a lift. The ability to highlight different area with different colored markers is clutch.
Super glad to have this in my pocket anytime I need a lift. The ability to highlight different area with different colored markers is clutch.
September 20, 2020
For the true seekers, read books by Paul only, avoid books by others
For those who have experienced a bit of what Paul described in his books, they would understand meaning of his words immediately, as well as limitations of human language or words. It is not a book meant to entertain, motivate, even to educate. Since this book was written decades ago, probably edited by others many times, it can be seen as too blunt or hard, or not correct a d illogical. However as you read, your heart feels something at times and that's when you know it's all true.
For those who have experienced a bit of what Paul described in his books, they would understand meaning of his words immediately, as well as limitations of human language or words. It is not a book meant to entertain, motivate, even to educate. Since this book was written decades ago, probably edited by others many times, it can be seen as too blunt or hard, or not correct a d illogical. However as you read, your heart feels something at times and that's when you know it's all true.
October 28, 2019
Everything You’ll Ever Need to Know
If you have this book, you have all you will ever need to know. Within its pages are messages of golden wisdom to light your way on your journey home to God. Read slowly, a page at a time, and let it sink into your heart. You and your life will never be the same.
If you have this book, you have all you will ever need to know. Within its pages are messages of golden wisdom to light your way on your journey home to God. Read slowly, a page at a time, and let it sink into your heart. You and your life will never be the same.
Currently reading
October 31, 2019This work of art has what we need in these times where God's popularity is sinking everyday more and more. Read these sacred pages and tell me you don't have a new view on life.
May 3, 2022
The shariyat is a life changing book, reading it fills my heart with love
August 31, 2023
I don't agree with everything, but a lot that was in this book helped me at a particular time in my life currently. Very unique book. Will be re-reading.
January 31, 2025
Very nice
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 8, 2021
Unless you have reconnected with your inner master in the formless nature of the Mahanta this book will hold no value. It will be goobly gook because you are trying to understand with your mind and rationalise with your prejudices and social indoctrinations that have governed you from birth and pas t forgotten incarnations. Soul knows and this book is nectar for those who have had direct experience in how spirit works. In my experience there is no other literature higher, everything else pales into insignificance and belongs to the passing show on earth with all its fixed statues of thinking and repetitive games.
May 8, 2013
شریعت کی سوگماد
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