Any Jeddah Mali exercise is a positive thing.
That said, a little "contraction" is also necessary. It is a mistake to think that expansion is the only movement the Universe sanctions. Every expansion is followed by a contraction; every rise is followed by a fall. Watch the ocean: the tides rise, the tides fall. You breathe in; you breathe out. Sometimes our words are sweetness and light; sometimes we must speak of things that are less uplifting. Cycles within cycles surrounding other cycles, into infinity.
Inchiki's post contained some important truths. Not necessarily pretty ones, but for seekers, invaluable. They are some of my concerns, too. Choosing teachers and gurus--and indeed, entire paths--is a serious exercise in discernment. I'm amazed at how many people put themselves in the possibly incapable or even malevolent hands of strangers and follow blindly.
As we see from the past (and we do have many examples, with Mr. Ray being only the most recent, but also including more sinister gurus like Jim Jones), at its worst it can be a matter of physical life or death--in a slightly better scenario, students are merely relieved of their money, although that's bad enough. Of course, everyone hopes for the best: attaining the big goal, whatever it is. This is actually more common, but it is not the only outcome.
It's easy enough to seek out the best teachers for ourselves. In this internet age, google can be a good tool for this--is there anything out there that might indicate a problem with ethics? If so, no matter how great the course or event, it's good to remember that there is no wall between personal ethics and what is being taught. On an energetic level, often in class (including classes on disk) auras will merge--especially if trance is involved, and it almost always is. We should all choose--carefully--what we allow into our auric space.
Even after all of that, do energy testing on the course and on the teacher. If you have another way of going inside and asking your Higher Self these questions, use that.
I am delighted to say that I've never had the slightest doubt about any of Paul Scheele's material. Even though I didn't get the advertised results with one program (Sonic Access), all of them are very positive and very light-filled. Sonic Access remains a great meditation set--I just let go of expectations and enjoy the meditation.
I should mention that I've never felt drawn to any of the Diamond material. I also have a book by Ray (and an oldie) that I've never read. Somehow, it just didn't seem to resonate with me. Farther back in time, I met with Jim Jones at his Peoples Temple in San Francisco. Although several friends thought he was the bees' knees, I felt better backing away, so I did. Years later, I was so glad I had. Listen to your intuition, even if everyone around you enthusiastically supports a teacher, guru, or path.
So yes, expand, grow, but also contract and occasionally, at times when you know for yourself that something is amiss, retreat--or to put it the way another of my teachers says it: grow in a different direction.
But we should be asking questions, both of our possible teachers, and of ourselves. Inchiki's post was valuable for bringing some of these things to light.
