The True Story

David Har-Tzion (Montesinos), known today as Swami Ramakrishnananda, was born in Santiago, Chile, in 1958. He lived in Israel between 1970 and 2000, and since the year 2000 has been living in the United States.

During the 1990’s Ramakrishnananda opened four spiritual centers in Israel, in which he gathered around him a group of disciples.

Over the years, Ramakrishnananda directed the group to various yoga practices, following different yoga institutions and branches such as Bhakti Yoga Vedanta and Shivananda Yoga. At different times he practiced other spiritual traditions such as Buddhism and Judaism. These frequent changes in spiritual direction were done mostly in order to avoid conflicts with other groups that objected to his activity, and not from changes of his own beliefs. Thus, for example, he identified himself for a while with the Jewish movement of “Chabad”, ordering his disciples to refer to him as “Rabeinu” (our Rabbi).

Following these changes, he also switched his names between Gurudev, Rabeinu, David Har-Tzion, Swami Ramakrishnananda, Vishnupad, and many others. the organization he leads has changed its name and character several times throughout the years as well for Bheaktivadenta Vediv church, Ramakrishnananda Yoga Society, Har-Tzion Institute for Yoga, Har-Tzion Institute for “Mudaut Ivrit” (Hebrew Consciousness), Vishwa Dharma Mandalam center, etc.

These constant changes of theology, naming and identity are known traits among cult leaders, and have been well documented in cultic studies materials (click here). The changes are only outfacing. Ramakrishnananda himself does not live according to his own preaching.

Ramakrishnananda claims to be a “completely enlightened being” His disciples experience different states of consciousness by using suggestive and hypnotic techniques. He claims these experiences to stem from his own powers, and convinces his followers that these are part of the way to spiritual enlightenment. The cult members go through initiation rites and receive new names which symbolize their new lives. Romantic relationships between the cult members are allowed only with the explicit permission of Ramakrishnananda. The Guru  (Har Tzion) prevents friendships between group members. The disciples are not allowed to talk to each other about their relationships with the Guru, or about anything which is part of their spiritual practice.

Ramakrishnananda has absolute control over his followers. All the financial assets they acquired before joining the cult are transferred to him, as well as any income they may have during their stay in the ashram. He holds their credit cards and has full access to their bank accounts although most of the cult members work out of the ashram during the day.

The cult constitutes of separate and compartmentalized circles of closeness to the Guru, to verify the outer circles know little about the Guru’s true lifestyle. Members of the cult are not allowed to give outsiders any information on what’s going on inside. They are manipulated to disconnect their relationships with family members and past friends, in order to increase the Guru’s and his close circle’s control over their lives, preventing  them from doubting his actions or asking questions.

As part of the “spiritual” practices, female members of the cult are urged to agree to sexual intercourse with multiple members, sometimes against their will and by using extreme manipulations. Ramakrishnananda himself generates competition for his attention, and has sexually abused female members of the cult under pretexts of spiritual growth, which is allegedly achieved by being intimately close to the Guru.

Apart from the sexual abuse, the cult’s practices include rituals of public humiliation, use of brutal emotional violence, and other mind-control techniques, including prevention of sleep, negligence of health, restriction on eating, and constant mental pressure, which deeply influences the member’s sense of judgment and prevent them from making free choices.

In 2000, when the Ramakrishnananda’s activity was at risk of being exposed, he moved to New-York with his close disciples. In 2003 he founded the Vishwa Dharma Mandalam center in New York City, where the cult is centered today. Lately he claimed to have renounced renunciation. In other words, he is officially no longer a monk.