The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University in Russia
Reports are emerging of how a successful Russian businessman, Aleksandr Ksenzov, stopped being a follower of Brahma Kumaris and requested the return of his property from the the BKWSU. A luxury apartment in the Moscow city centre. Ksenzov apparently claimed that he had given it to the BKWSU in a totally brainwashed state of mind, the temporarily euphoric mental state BK followers call "The Intoxication Phase" or "Honeymoon Period". The Honeymoon Period is emotional state which happens at the beginning of a follower's involvement with the Brahma Kumaris and "marriage" with their god, involving love bombing from other followers, special attention from the organization's senior leaders and psychic influences. But is one which soon evaporates.
Despite a considerable media reporting, which drew negative attention to the BKWSU, the Brahma Kumaris are reported to have fought to defend their acquisition legally and won a court case in order to do so. Events suggesting to watchers evidence of both the confrontational nature, and the degree of materialistic interests within the movement. The Brahma Kumaris, an End of the World cult, have predicted on numerous occasions from WWII onwards an imminent and desirable Nuclear Holocaust called "Destruction". Destruction is said to "purify" the world by killing 6,000,000,000 "impure" human beings, in order that they, the Brahma Kumaris, will inherit a "pure" Golden Aged heaven and rule the world as Emperors and Empresses.
The Brahma Kumaris are noted for their sizable property portfolio. It includes mansion houses, large campus-like properties on government donated land and luxury retreats internationally funded by followers. They encouraging their followers to donate not just their minds and bodies but also their property and wealth, on the promise of a high status and palaces in the Golden Age which will follow the forthcoming Destruction during which all other continents but India will sink below the seas.
In the Moscow Times, Sudha Rani Gupta, one of the organization’s leaders in Russia said, "Follow the (Brahma Kumaris’) teachings and you will go to the Land of Happiness ... Give everyone this message ... Everything will be destroyed. Only a short time remains." Only a "short time" but long enough to make it worthwhile acquiring property on doomed territory it would seem.
Recently, in the channeled messages which makes up the BK scripture dated 16 September 2008, the spirit entity which the Brahma Kumaris consider to be God, calling himself a "sensible businessman", said ...
BKWSU wrote:Sakar Murli Revised
... to purchase a building and donate it is very good service. It is the children who would sit and do service. The building would remain yours, but you would receive the fruit of its use. In return for that, you will receive huge palaces there. The time will come when you children will be offered many buildings and people will continually bow down at your feet. What would we do with those buildings then? We simply want to do service.
Why should we accept a building and then have to spend money on it! This Businessman is clever. He is such a sensible Businessman.
The Brahma Kumaris have a 70 year reputation for splitting families, using family homes as centers or "universities" and family inheritances to fund their expansion. The organization was established when the original founder and medium, Lekhraj Kripalani, was threatened by numerous law suits in his home of Hyderabad, Pakisthan for doing so but instead divested his wealth into a trust held by his wife, a teenage follower and the women of other families involved. It recently ran public programmes in the Russian capital aimed at children and parents called, "Children - The Gentle Riddles of the World".
In 2006, their global chief of PR, BK Karuna Shetty raises controversy when he denied the prediction of Destruction to the Moscow Times dishonestly claiming the predicted war between Russia and America had been removed from their University's teachings despite images at its headquarters showing the opposite. A statement entirely contrary to the truth.
The BKWSU leadership is also recorded as having encouraged followers to remove money from banks and cancel retirement or insurance policies due to the proximity of "Destruction", and have financially benefited from having done so.