Swami Chetananda Visitor Comments

"I can't believe I found these articles about Michael Shoemaker on the Internet. I once lived in his freak show ashram. Seeing his photo makes me want to vomit. I know first hand the sexual misconduct and money misuse of this phony. He used the money earned by people working 70 to 80 hours. We had $8 a week to spend on whatever we wanted! Swami Shoemaker had sex with me within a week of my arriving at the ashram. 'Meet me in the meditation room, I have some special work for you.' I was anticipating steps toward my spiritual enlightenment. He had sex with whomever he wanted. No woman would dare refuse him. I guess that's what he would call 'consensual sex.' We were forbidden to associate with people in 'skag,' that was anyone who wasn't in the ashram. When I told Shoemaker I wanted to leave the ashram, he said I'd be in a mental institution within 6 months. I felt like I was breaking out of one!"