What draws India to holy men and gurus?

The tragedy in India's northern town of Hathras in July saw over 120 people die during a religious gathering led by a self-styled godman. Over 250,000 are believed to have attended the event.

The crowd reportedly started to stampede when godman's security detail pushed the followers who had knelt to collect the mud upon which the religious leader had walked.

The spiritual preacher Suraj Pal, popularly addressed as "Bhole Baba" (Innocent Elder), is just one of thousands of "godmen" in India. He was once a constable with the Uttar Pradesh state police. As a preacher, he now hosts scores of religious retreats around the country, drives ostentatious cars, commands a private security force, and counts the political elite and the deep-pocketed among his followers.

Pal and other self-styled Hindu ascetics have followers in every layer of society, from everyday people to celebrities. A large amount of their money comes from their followers' donations, and some of the godmen claim to possess supernatural powers and divine connections.

However, in the last few years, an increasing number of so-called "spiritual" gurus or "godmen" in India have been implicated in crimes ranging from sexual abuse to murder.

'Saints' behind bars

In 2014, security forces had to push through a wall with bulldozers just to get their hands on guru Rampal Singh Jatin. An estimated 20,000 troops had to contend with 10,000 of Rampal's fervent followers.

After securing his massive "ashram" or spiritual dwelling, they found the bodies of four women and an 18-month-old child buried on the grounds. Four years later, he was sentenced to life in jail for murder.

There is also the case of Nityanand, a fugitive guru and self-proclaimed godman who is facing charges of abduction and rape in India. He claims to have established his own island nation called the United States of Kailasa four years ago, reportedly off the coast of Ecuador.

Gurmeet Singh Ram Rahim Insan, head of spiritual sect Dera Sacha Sauda in Punjab province, enjoyed venerable status among the lower caste Dalit Sikhs and other groups. He made headlines in 2017 when he was sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping two female disciples. Two years ago, he was found guilty on two charges of murder.

Another spiritual leader, Swami Premamnanda, escaped the pogrom in Sri Lanka in 1983 and later gathered many followers in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The self-styled godman was eventually convicted of raping 13 girls. He died in prison.

Spirituality incorporated

"Millions of people in both rural and urban India are looking for a purpose and a cause in their lives. They want someone to gratify their spiritual needs and find such a person who they can trust and then become part of that identity," journalist Bhavdeep Kang told DW.

Her book, "Gurus: Stories of India's Leading Babas," draws out the centrality of the godman in the lives of people — as spiritual instructor, family confidante and business advisor — that creates a dependency, making the devotee emotionally invested in the purity and supposed godhood of the guru.

In many cases, according to Kang, new technologies played a hand in transforming the generic family advisor or village "saint" into a high-flying celebrity.

Many devotees flock to them for solutions to problems ranging from health issues to unemployment and fertility.

"The high-profile ones have money and are brands with deep influence on electoral politics and markets. They comprise entire corporations and economies," Kang adds.

Divine powers and money management

Dhirendra Krishna Shastri, popularly known as Bageshwar Dham Sarkar, is one such example from central state of Madhya Pradesh. He claims divine powers, including the ability to heal the sick, but also claims he can help people overcome business and financial problems.

Counting powerful government ministers and politicians among his followers, Bageshwar is also a social media phenomenon with millions of followers. He burst into the national limelight after a public figure questioned his claims that he had healing powers and could read people's minds.

There is also the case of Mata Amritanandamayi, the "hugging saint" affectionately called "Amma" by her followers, whose legacy includes a huge network of charities, schools, and shelters across the world.

The spiritual therapist from the southern Indian state of Kerala does not ascribe herself to any specific religious doctrine.

"My religion is love. An unbroken stream of love flows from me to all beings in the universe," Amma told DW in an interview years ago.

Her supporters include doctors, rock stars, tycoons, and software engineers, as well as many who have abandoned their previous careers to be in her service.

'Science is not everything'

Sociologist Dipankar Gupta, who has studied the issue closely, points out that steadfast rationalists find it difficult to fathom the faith and adoration that gurus and godmen invoke in their followers.

"Rationalists commit a major error here in their reasoning because science is not everything. They go wrong because the lens they see the world with is not bifocal. They just know and see a single method," Gupta told DW.

"To ask then why religious believers are not scientific is the most unscientific question of all," added Gupta.

However, educator Avijit Pathak sees these less-than-holy members of India's massive religious network as problematic and thriving alongside genuine spiritual leaders.

"The religiosity of love and compassion has been replaced by the politics of oppressive organized religions. The meditative quest for the merger of the finite and the infinite has been replaced by the instantaneous salvation capsules sold by the fancy 'spiritual industry' of the neoliberal market," Pathak told DW.

"The utter existential anguish of the downtrodden has been exploited by the manipulators," added Pathak.

Edited by: Darko Janjevic

Before you leave: Every Friday, the DW Asia newsletter delivers compelling articles and videos from around the continent right to your inbox. Subscribe below.