167 Fake Gurus Exposed – Chris Butler (Part 3/3): Tulsi Gabbard's Ex-Guru

Reacting to Vaishnava guru Chris Butler (aka Jagad Guru Siddhaswarupananda Paramahamsa). He is a former member of ISKCON (during the lifetime of Swami Prabhupada) who started his own group of Krishna devotees in Hawaii, today called the Science of Identity Foundation, and said to be Krishna or "akin to god" by ex-devotees. He is famous for his negative teachings of Muslims, LGBTQ, and being Tulsi Gabbard's former spiritual guru. This video is not about Tulsi, her family, her recent nomination as Director of National Intelligence, nor the cult accusations surrounding Jagad Guru, but just looking at what he says in the moment (which is my approach to all guru reaction videos). Live 8.22.2025.

Science of Identity Foundation Official website: https://www.scienceofidentityfoundation.net/
Official youtube channels: https://www.youtube.com/@ScienceofIdentityFoundation & https://www.youtube.com/@JagadguruchrisbutlerNetzine
A website of his writings: https://siddhaswarupananda.com/biography-jagad-guru-chris-butler

Criticism of Tulsi's involvement: https://www.civilbeat.org/2024/12/senators-urged-to-examine-gabbards-deep-and-intense-ties-to-hawaii-sect/
Negative description of Chris' background: https://prem-rawat-bio.org/nrms/gurus/chris_buttler.htm

0:00 – Intro to 3rd reaction video in series on Jagad Guru (Chris Butler)
3:22 – Reaction to talk: Recognizing a bonafide spiritual guru | not contradicting scripture | lineage | feelings
16:22 – Reaction con't: Legitimacy of teacher not based on number of followers
17:16 – Reaction con't: God gives to devotees what they need to see | seeing God's representative
25:43 – Reaction con't: Serving devotee's concept of guru | guru's playing a part
32:07 – Reaction con't: Having blind faith | having spiritual doubts | purging personal beliefs
40:00 – Debunking fake gurus | reading from "Taking Refuge In Dharma" by Sri Dharma Pravatarka Acharya on traits of an authentic guru @DharmaNation
48:42 – Closing thoughts

For seekers who’ve outgrown spiritual fluff.
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🎙️ Each episode is part of a larger journey. This isn’t random content—it’s a structured path into deeper truth, not easy comfort.

I’m Premanand Das Bhagat (Aaron Joy), in Portland, Maine, USA.
I followed the so-called spiritual path—believed everything and anything, joined a cult, and ran in circles. Through honest effort, deep unlearning, and painful self-awareness, I found clarity in Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism).

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🕉️ I'm a Integral Vedic Counselor, Certified Spiritual Life Coach and Ayurveda Specialist. I'm a student of Dr. David Frawley and devotee of Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya, following the non-Advaita, non-Universalist Vaishnava lineage of Ramanuja. My spiritual name was a gift from Dr. Chaturbhai Babaria (Swaminarayan Gurukul USA). This show is a 2025 People's Choice Podcast Award nominee in the Hinduism category.

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