Why Some Tibetan Buddhism Practictioners Can't See Abuse as Abuse
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- Опубліковано 23 бер 2022
- Some people in Rigpa who watched Sogyal Lakar (Rinpoche) abusing people couldn't admit that what he was doing consituted abuse, and though many have revised their opinon, the lack of the word 'abuse' in Rigpa's renewed apology indicates that some still in power in Rigpa still cannot admit that Sogyal did abuse people. Why is this? And why does it mean that the last apology they gave (see my previous video • Rigpa's Renewed Apolog... ) is likely the best they can do?
For more detail on the beliefs I mention, see section 2 of my book, 'Fallout: Recovering from Abuse in Tibetan Buddhism'. aiapublishing.com/product/fal...
And for a historical perspective on Sogyal Rinpoche's abuse, see 'Sex and Violence in Tibetan Buddhism: The Rise and Fall of Sogyal Rinpoche.' www.amazon.com/Sex-Violence-T...
I came to Thailand to ordain as a Theravada monk and I found a cult here. They tried to bully and subordinate me with insults, guilt, shame, blind submission to authority, rites and rituals. So I didn't ordain.
I'm still studying the Dhamma but I no longer see the Sangha as something necessary.
We must remember the real teacher is the Buddha (not anyone else) and the path is the Noble Eightfold Path (not someone else's interpretation of it).
Attachment to rites and rituals (silabata-paramasa) is one of the obstacles that prevent people from reaching stream entry (sotapanna).
Always, always, ALWAYS hold your religious leader or "guru" accountable for his actions. Whatever precepts you're subject to, he is subject to them as well.
Thank you for sharing. Keep your critical thinking. This is your strength. Not your weakness. 👍🏻
It's critical thinking that these cults try to chip away at most.
Theravada is a different path from guru yoga. One is the gradual path, the other is a path of result. Guru yoga is a whole different can of worms which is way riskier.
That said - Sangha IS important. Perhaps you just need to expand your notion of sangha. There is a reason it’s called the triple gems, not double gems. Sangha really is just every single person on the path.
Are you American because it Americans that have issues with the Vinaya. Look at 'American Buddhism', its void of it. The 'cult' you speak of is to erase your ideas of an abiding self. The Theravada tradition is a hierarchy in the Sangha yes - why? To learn humbleness. One begins at the very bottom as Anagarika and that is like a servant. You learn to observe your selfish tendencies that have you activated by the Kilesas of hate/anger, greed and delusion/confusion. White males arrive in an Asian country expecting to be celebrated and catered to. This is not Buddhism, it is Capitalism. So for you by the sounds of it, will thrive in American Buddhism or even Tibetan where the male can 'do as he likes'. This video is about Tibetan Buddhism which is very, very different to Theravada. Fora start, it does'nt teach the 4 Noble truths as the foundation, the 8 Fold path is the practice of realising the truth of the 4 Noble Truths and the cause and cessation of Dukkha.
The sangha is so strict with its members so in the end the robes represent who you are and this gives yourself and those you interact with safety, you will be a safe person to interact with. Obviously your Ego Atta fetter of self view was so strong and important that the Sangha as a whole for the correct practice and teachings of Dhamma was seen as a death. You keep your Ego, go practice American Buddhism, or Tibetan, stay in hate, hold that Ego high saying 'I was abused! Special ME!'
“He abused me, he attacked me, he defeated me, and he robbed me.
Those who harbor such thoughts will never end their hatred."
Dhammapada
Narcissism is huge on the planet right now. I left all spirituality. It's the perfect model for narcissism.
Very well said. Sadly, abuse in Tibetan Buddhism is not a reality that came to an end with Rigpa. The same practice of seeing the abuser as an enlightened being and rejoicing in having received this "special treatment" is still at the heart of many Buddhist communities nowadays. People don't even dare to speak out for fear of burning in Vajra Hells or being shunned away, and very few actually gather the courage to leave altogether. Even more shocking is that some elderly Western monks or nuns are beginning to practice abusive forms of "crazy wisdom" toward their "students." I think these medieval Tibetan practices need to be exposed continuously and shamed out of existence - otherwise, there's no chance for Buddhism to leave 14th-century Tibet and be beneficial to its current context and time.
Well said, the Dalai Lama has also said it's stuck in a feudal system, which is about power and nothing else.
It’s should also be seen, the same patterns in all the spiritual cults of today. The hindu cult I was introduced to as a young person had a Godman as the leader. Everyone participated in the same reasoning when he was abusive to people. I remember he shouted very very loudly at his swamis and everyone thought it was great. I was terrified too but i has been brainwashed in that moment. However later I found out he had been coercing young heterosexual men into a sex and supporting another very abusive Hindu leader and the cards fell from that moment, and i debrainwashed myself. Immensely painful and long process. I don’t know what to do with the things I know now. Anyway the point is, even if it’s not named crazy wisdom aka Chogyam trungpa, it’s the same thing.
So much Protestantism in Buddha Dharma nowadays.
It’s not you lama who is enlightened. You, the person getting ‘abused’ is also enlightened.
All this hoo ha is a consequence of people who have bad teachers. Pure perception is not just for the guru but for YOURSELF and also everyone around you. If you think your guru is enlightened and you are not, you are not practicing guru yoga but cult / celebrity worship.
Edit - I have never like Sogyal Rinpoche simply because I looked at his training and he came up sorely lacking. I feel sorry for his students.
"Some lamas are absolute cowboys; they want to dogpile onto the abuser not because it's necessarily morally objectionable, but because it's not something a healthy narcissist could afford to be associated with.
It's not just Rigpa; there are plenty of fake Buddhist teachers masquerading under the banner of Western Vajrayana, shivering in their fancy python skin boots right now. All the riches they have selfishly accumulated and guarded like Smaug, failing to share, are now threatened by association. Don't be fooled for one minute by the feminist sympathizing, heavily woman-centric, dakini-promoting desire to fast-track women into the inner circles of the dharma 'king.'
I know for a fact there's more going on than has come out; Western dress-up, make-believe Tibetan lineages need scrutiny and should be viewed with extreme suspicion!
Those teachers who are most vehement and vocal, even going so far as to start witch hunts and cajole their own Sanghas into helping burn the witch Sogyal, should be guilty by association. The ever-so-vocal denouncing and apparently sincere attacks on the abuser are nothing more than a fairly transparent attempt at subterfuge.
Sometimes the most vocal protests come from the most guilty; don't let the white robes fool you. Cowboy Western lamas need to face intense scrutiny and criminal investigation. It takes a hell of a lot to break the inner circle of indoctrinated Dakinis from the spell they are under; some of them desperately need help but can't bring themselves to admit it.
Sogyal wasn't the only one... nope."
Its NOT Buddhism, Tibetan 'Buddhism.' Dalai Lama is displaying abuse on camera for world to see and its 'innocent' ... its 'Tibetan culture' .... no, its abuse.
Thank you so much for your videos!
They make so much sense and are the soothing explanation i needed after getting lied to, manipulated, and seriously endangered in a Sangha in which i was for 15 years. I was broken and couldn't talk about it with other Sangha-members because i was too scared. What happened wasn't directly sexual abuse (well, somehow, yes, but it was a detail), it was criminal and even implied the arson of my home and almost the death of my cats, and mine. But it was more important to cover up the criminal activities of some of the members than to ensure my safety and the safety of my children (and cats).
I finally managed to talk about everything with a Sangha member i knew since 15 years (but from another group), and just that alone took such a weight off my heart!
And then i found your videos.
Thank you so much!
Brilliant. I hope more people actually watch it all the way through.
Thankyou Tahlia. I remember the Myall Lakes retreats, and abuse can be so insidious and you are right, it can take place right in front of 300 people and they tolerate it because of a belief that this is 'crazy wisdom' devotion to the Master. I saw with my own eyes the 'harem' of attractive young articulate females that Sogyal collected around him. I remember wating HOURS for him to turn up at his leisure whilst we sweated it out in the main tent wating...patiently...and the last straw was when I cam from Melbourne and dragged my husband and young child, only to have him rearrange his schedule at the last minute with no regard for the schedules of parents trying to attend his teachings in line with the Rigpa Yeshe program, his self centredness ruined it all. No longer would his teachings align with the Rigpa yeshe hours, and too bad to the parents that bent over backwards to be there after driving well over a thousand km, with non-Buddhist husbands. And then to embarrass me further, Sogyal was incredibly disparaging and downright rude in his attitude towards the children when they finally were invited into the main tent. Clearly he did NOT like children. His attitude was a disgrace, and I was embarrassed in front of my husband., and I was as a mother downright appalled at this attitude. That was the last straw for me. And that was a couple of years before the Letter from Rigpa students describing his extensive abuse. So disappointing. I drop in now and then and check your posts and videos, so thankyou so much. Other than that I have entirely fallen off my cushion years ago, but i still love the Tibetan teachings and meditation when I do. Mostly though I have been like a ship without a rudder adrift in samsara, never quite getting back on my cushion or following through with any practise, looking for a teacher that comes to Australia, and not finding anyone I resonate with.
Lama Choedak Rinpoche is the Spiritual Director of the Sakya Losal Choe Dzong, Tibetan Buddhist Society of Canberra.
Trust the teachings, not the people.
That's why I always tell people before believing your lama or Rinpoche or whatever they call themselves now,,you must investigate the lama or the Rinpoche at least for three years background check is very important and observe for three years very important
No atleast 9 years.
@@korashortssshould be at least 27 years actually
If only those people realized that dropping the beliefs into their guru could be the ultimate teaching and the fastest way towards enlightenment.
Thank you, Tahlia. 🙏❤️
I was raised in a new age cult and a Hindu cult. It’s the same everywhere really. I wrote a really angry diatribe poem thingy about new age people but really it extends to all spiritual groups. Let me if you want to hear ir - it’s very angry. Am I the only one who has noticed that this abuse is in most spiritual groups nowadays?
Human stays human unfortunately 😢 Dharma stays the truth ❤ it is important to see your own fault and understand your deception and motivation 😂 for such a warning. Thank you for the good analysis 😊
Thanks Tahlia!
Sadly three years is not enough. I can tell you that for sure! As a lapsed Catholic, and now lapsed Buddhist, I think the commonality is-- people fall so very short of the ideals of any religion-- consistently, across cultures, at all ages. Maybe going through that disillusionment is the whole point. A painful transformation from childish beliefs to the complicated version of adult reality. That's the real slap from your lama. The real kicker.
The same exists in the Sufi culture of Islam. There are narrations from spiritual 'masters' that say 'Be in the hands of the master like a corpse in the hands of the washer of the dead'; i.e. totally passive. They also say that the way God (Absolute Reality) is through the master, and part of submitting to the master is not to question him, even if he appears to be doing something contrary to Islamic ethics. The Prophet's descendants (the Imams of the Shi'a tradition), on the contrary taught their followers to ASK QUESTIONS until their intellects are satisfied. That's why I moved to the Shi'a tradition.
It's not about dropping concepts needed to recognize abuse. It's having or developing h e a l t h y beliefs that matters. People who have been abused as a child, have beliefs, that make it likely to be abused again in the future. The most effective way to get out of this, is to process childhood traumas. When you process your emotions about certain traumatic events, spontaneous rearrangements and shifts in your belief system will occur. Healthier beliefs will appear. Ask yourself: Was there some kind of brainwashing going on in my childhood? Who was I supposed to obey unconditionally. What 'truths' was I supposed to accept without asking critical questions? Who had the power in the family system, I was brought up in?
The tricky part here is, that there may be perpetrators or enablers, who can be held responsible for traumatic events in the past and who are also still part of your social life. For me personally - in order to heal completely - it was no longer possible to have contact with these people. My new and healthier beliefs made that impossible. And this protects me from new abuse.
That's exactly what I am doing now. No contact to any of these people. This is the only thing that helps. I think for most confronting old issues is much scarier than just sit down and brainwash themselves into 'new concepts' and distruct their thoughts of old hurt.
@@AnnaH-lz2tg I think that's a wise decision (although hard sometimes). And the processing of trauma doesn't all have to be in one go. You can do it in small steps. I've had help from a psychotherapist who was willing to really work from the child's perspective, rather than to choose the parent's side. This processing really was a milestone for me in finding happines, peace and healthiness.
Well, it's my partner with the psychological abuse isse, not me. He doesn't work on, but lives in a brainwashed sect instead. We are separated now but it was hard for me to make this decision. I used to belong there, too.
cet vidéo date d'un an! maintenent, est ce que Khandro Rinpoché n'a pas repris "la direction" de rigpa???? pouvez-vous me dire si c'est exact! merci!
I agree with you. As you know, change is a basic tenet of Buddhism and the time has come when the dross that unenlightened teachers, over centuries, have covered and obscured the pure teaching of the Gautama Buddha, is to be swept away.
interesting points made. I often think about Buddhist teaching of attachment and its ckear to me attachment can be formed over anything. Including the attachmdnt to the ideas or belief behind ones Guru. Although there is much talk if devotion in Guru and disciple relations in Tibet. One has to ask what is the true devotion we are talking about. Devotion to ideas or devotion to the true practice that sets one free from suffering?
“ethics: to be as fine as fine flour”
Iam trying to understand this..Let us first start with your INITIAL intentions of going to that path.
15:30
sigh
Buddhisms highest teachings say that all is your own projection.
While, simultanously, this You is empty.
No-one forces you to become a Buddhist.
WELL-meaning Cognitive Dissonance. Central feature to ANY cult, or "religion".
It's so sad to see how the Western world glorified the lamaism for years, and now the people suffer from the consequences😮 Please stop using "Budhism" to describe Tibetan Lamanism! China warned the world more than 70 years ago about human abuse and killing in this Tibet Lamarism, but was ignored by the Western world, until recent years!
Tibetan lineages are manificent and precious. but the institutions of religions are not. Sometimes even the rinpoches are victims of them. However, it really is part of ife isnt it ? Nothing is just rainbows and roses.
Small Mind
Instead of doing politics and doing business through a book launch, you should file a police complain qnd launch q criminal trial against all who are part in the crime.
When you have never ever learn 1% of Bhuddhist tradition Tantra. Then how , could you abuse a Bhuddhist tradition.
Teaching had not exploits you, those pseudo teachers had exploited you not by buddha Dharma.
When you are exploited in a foreign land, which has their own legal system and you a victim. Then you have to go to police station qnd launch a case. Police is not going to come to you through prayer.
You cannot expect and blame other teachers to do something when they do not live in your foreign country.
You should know serf before Dalai Lama escaped.
Everything the Buddha does is ‘good’. This shows how much people have not rid themselves of Protestant view and then try to fit their norms into a non dual path. It’s not a criticism, just an observation.
I hope, my message is not late. Why such case of exploitation doesn't happen with native Bhuddhist community especially in india. It is because native people always keep border line between guru and student. Western students usually don't follow that, and i personally, don't trust those teachers both Monastic and Non-Monastic who live very far away from the native Bhuddhist community like tibetans, ladak, khunu, bhutia and arunachalu and sikkimist community to overseas places. Where they don't have that check and balance from the native community. Not only that, disgrace practioners both Monastic and Non-Monastic always flew to overseas and there they become a teacher. Just do a observation, majority of native community pay more respects to the Monastic monks, who always stay in robes even if they are in overseas.this is opposite in case of western students.
Native people are by birth followers of Mahayan and Vajrayan tradition. Still, they devote their time also in practice of Bhuddhist foundation practices instead of directly jumping into a core inner yoga or Vajrayan practices which has a discussion on various body anatomy and application of various body parts only for the purpose of controlling thatbuntamed minds.
Since, many such people live in overseas. There, law and justice is very systematic and as and when such incidents of assault happen. Right away, lodge a police company and initiate a criminal trial instead of requesting other teacher for support. It is very difficult for teachers in india to support a case against someone claimed teacher who resides in overseas because such disgrace teachers are in overseas and there is a complete advance law and justice system. Such nature of act is criminal case and uninvited statement from teacher's in india can unnecessary become a interference in their criminal investigation. Remember, place of criminal trial is where, the crime actually happens in a place.
You should force yourself to file a criminal case against such pseudo teachers because such a action will become a service to the Buddha Dhamma.
One things, i also noticed that foreign students always engaged in meditation, you won't see native lay Bhuddhist community doing meditation day and night. There is no use of meditation without a slightest practice of Bodhichitta and Shunyata.
One more information, whoever exploit you in the name of Bhuddhist Tantra, which is in reality not even a 1% of Bhuddhist Tantra. These are so called modern day " popular Tantra" means to exploit others in the name of Tantra by exploiting others.
Whenever, there is a teaching by anybody , always ask a hard question. Then you will come to know the scholarship of such teachers.
I support you, launch a criminal case or i hope you already started against other then soyal Rinpoche.
🙏🙏🙏
0:44
Instead of letting go of beliefs, it desperately wants to recreate a false reality that transfers them to some kind of Buddhist ambience. The more it is not like the reality, the more it feels like they will bump into Buddha itself under the tree or at the front of the hall, giving dharma talks, the more they feel better about their spirituality. The more they deny, the better they think they are.
For me "wisdom" doesn't mean the same thing as these Buddhist places trying to display. As a person who finds attachments important for our species, towards our kids, our environment, nature (plants and animals) attachment needed to give us the love to fight for things. These are the things I want to be attached. Not views or groups that wants to dictate what reality is for others.
Reality is malleable and different times need different way of thinking, acting and being.
Meditation also helps to "program" you. It is a hypnotic state and your mind is primed to accept thoughts that is not yours. Don't let other people's thinking replace your own. Even when you think they are walking saints. Image. It is image. It is not even Buddhist because reenforced, fabricated reality and "special clothing" are distractions. You are letting go of something: your own life and to be the one who is charged with it.
We are living in democracy. The very purpose of democracy is to empower everyone so the people who have power have boundaries set up for them. We create laws to protect our collective community. That is nowhere in Buddhism. I find it very disempowering to live by teachings that doesn't fit the world today, that will also cause to lose the accomplishments of generations of people who fought and suffered for us to have the quality of our lives raised, have more chance to become somethings that people never had the chance to become. I find "becoming" positive and meaningful. It is not Buddhist. I am not a Buddhist, I will never be one. I find it disrespectful to throw away countless suffering to have a goal to become nothing.
Reality is malleable and different times need different way of thinking, acting and being.
I am sorry Thalia if I am ruining the quality of the comment section. I am having a very painful, abusive cultish experience and I am feeling overwhelmed by anger and pain towards those who brought it all on me. Under said "Buddhist" believe system. I am glad to find someone who had been practicing for 20 years and recognizing the hypocrisy of it. I am traumatized and my reality is different from yours. My "now" is painful and can't wait to get out of it with a validating therapist who understands narcissism, cults, trauma, highly manipulative people and groups.
The people responsible for this are probably vajrayana students of Sogyal's who decided they want to continue with Sogyal as their root guru. This is a personal decision and if you decide that way you break samaya if you publicly criticise your guru.
But as I said, this is a personal dharma practice decision and as such should not be reflected in the public stance of Rigpa, the organisation. Here the hard facts should be the basis of any action.
@@jacquedaw I know for a fact that at least some of the statements of the subscribers of the initial letter of accusations were false, because I was personally present when one of those supposedly has happeed (so were about 1000 other people) and it did not take place as described in that letter.
While I do find a lot of the reports of abuse credible, not necessarily all of them are.
And you have to take into account that the majority of the people in charge today are not victims and not first hand witnesses of the abuses. Plus, we have people who were close to Sogyal who believeably claim that they were not abused.
So you have a complete mix of people here, a lot of them legitimately having no axe to grind.
From my current experience (I still occasionally go to Rigpa events, having never been a Sogyal vajrayana or dzogchen student) the policy currently is doing everything to leave the whole thing behind, while making legitimate efforts that abuses will not happen in the furture. Which is fairly easy because unlike for example with Shambhala, there have never been any abuse accusations against other members. So with Sogyal gone Rigpa should be pretty much abuse free.
Yes, Mimi's report as well as several others are very credible. Looks like Sogyal was a sex addict, which together with his authoritarian leadership style and easy availability of a supply of fresh young victims was the recipy for abuse.
@@jacquedaw Ah, have you read the books by Dzongsar Khyentse. In the second and third he directly critisizes Sogyal for his behaviour, and in his opinion unskillful presentation of the teachings, something that is extremely unusual for a Tibetan (as they are culturally inclined to never publicly critisize anyone, for any reasons)
He also explains that by sitting in some random initiation you do not necessarily "get" it, along with the samaya commitments that come with it. So I would assume that at least some of the students in Rigpa who think they are samaya bound to him are in fact not.
And it is true that once you have taken up the vajrayana path by having gotten valid initiation, you are in trouble if you go against the teacher, because doing that cuts you off from the mandala and therefor your own nature of mind. And this is the case in proportion to how far along on the path you are. The corrosive effect is proportional to the extent to which you have successfully relied on the mandala to transform your mind. If you are the occasional dabbler without much realisation, if you go against the teacher, the effects will not be immediately noticeable and pretty subtle. If you had a good level of realisation and have habituated to that state, and then cut yourself off from your nature of mind, you will go unhinged first and then crazy.
It's how the vajrayana works. You have the benefit that you can borrow realisation from the mandala, like tapping into the electricity grid. That shortens the path to liberation considerably compared to sutra-yana meditation. But if you do that, while on that path and not yet fully liberated, there are risks. A fire that burns bright can easily burn you, if you do not know how to handle it safely.
Samaya is nothing more than a safety regulation. Like traffic rules and regulations. If you drive in traffic you of course can drive on the wrong side if you insist on it. It's just not really good for your health and well being.
Or if you run a nuclear power station. Those are usually quite safe, as long as you don't play around on the controls and start stupid experiments. As the folks who ran Tchernobyl quickly notices when they deviated from their safe standard operating procecures and melted the reactor core in the process. Ooops.
Plus, you can let a samaya connection rest if you feel unable to continue with your vajrayana guru without breaking anything. Though you have to be aware of the fact that you can not get rid of it. It's a bit like if you have seen a murder or something. If that techer conveys to you a direct experience of the absolute, you can not make that un-happened. In fact, in my opinioon it would be crazy stupid to want to make this un-happened, even if it was given to you by a corrupt sleazebag like Donald. It's that valuable to have seen it.
No idea if you belong to the category of people who have samaya or not, the warnings are not a method to pester students. They are safety rails so you don't accidently fall off a cliff.
@@jacquedaw If they have incurred a samaya connection with Sogyal by successfully receiving empowerment while they were his students it doens't matter if they knew what they were getting into or not.
Like if you sign a business contract not knowing all the details in small print because you haven't read them, the contract is still legally binding.
These people are indeed in an unpleasant situation.
This is not about it "being wrong". It's about them having to live with the consequences. Buddhism doesn't ban behaviours that have negative consequences. You can go rob a bank, beat someone up, try to climb Mont Blanc in flipflops, whatever, it's your choice. Buddhism just reminds people that actions create results. And the results of broken samaya are not pretty. And then someone has to pick up the pieces and clean up the mess with those folks. Because, you know, the connection is of course not gone by breaking off with that teacher. They will eventually show up again with the then versions of the teacher and students. Likely not in a good state with a ton of obstacles stuck to them.
Plus, it hurts the teachings. The teachings will eventually die out. But breaking samaya and general disdain for the teachings are one of the reasons why this will happen sooner rather than later. This planet and humanity on it is currently going down the drain anyway. Do we need to make it worse by harming the dharma?
That's gonna be a mess. A fucking unnecessary mess.
@@jacquedaw Of course as a dharma teacher exploiting your dharma students for your own personal gain, is also harming the dharma.
Samaya is to your own buddha nature via the vehicle of the teacher. The teacher/mandala is the vehicle you use in vajrayana as a short cut, so you do not need to go the sutra way for an aeon or so. Now you can jump out of your car at 100 mph, on the way, before arriving at your destination. I'm quite certain you won't look so good if you try that stunt.
The teacher who successfully introduced you to your own nature is doing you a great kindness. Whether he has a sleazebag side still going on or not.
By the way, I am not convinced that all of these people who now heap blame on Sogyal do have samaya.
No, nothing can seperate you from your own nature permanently. Even the so called vajra hell is impermanent.
Oh, the dharma will die out, to be revived at a later point by Maitreya buddha. All mahayana schools agree on that one.
One advantage Rigpa has is that the dharma teachings themselves were not corrupted in Rigpa. There was put an unhealthy emphasis on certain aspects while neglecting other parts of the teachings that would have been important. But the overall structure of the three turnings of the wheel is sound, unlike for example with New Kadampa, who have indeed a corrupt version of dharma running. Fortunately Rigpa always had enough input from other lamas too, so nothing got too out of whack teachings-wise.
I don't see cruelty as kindness. Abuse is abuse. I see that you can at some occasions get both from the same person, kindness and cruelty. You have to keep in mind that to give valid vajrayana transmission you do not need to be a fully liberated buddha. And if you are not a fully liberated buddha, a mahasiddha, you can make mistakes, midjudge situations, have blind spots etc. So there will always be vajrayana teachers out there that have the potential to screw up.
It's a bit like with some medications. They work if you commit, but may come with some additional undesirable side effects you have to content with.
Abuse is still going on even outside of Rigpa organization. Many lamas in the west are abusive but apparently nobody charge them. Abuse is intrinsic in Tibetan Buddhism called Lamaism
Sogyal Rinpoche is my Guru I Never ever Doubt my Guru My true Guru . Stay away from religion if you always complain