Ray gets "spiritual comeuppance"

Verdict in self-help guru's sweat lodge trial stirs reaction among Native Americans

By Jessica RavitzAmong those disappointed by the verdict is Valerie Taliman, a Navajo who serves as the West Coast editor for Indian Country Today Media Network.

“He deserves to pay for the lives he took. Our prayers go out to the families who lost their loved ones because of his greed and wrongful exploitation. He had no right to create the false illusion that he had any connection to Native ceremonies,” she said in an e-mail sent Thursday. “He is a worst case example of charlatans selling spiritual snake oil.”

She hopes that when jurors convene to pass down the sentencing, they’ll go as far as they can.

“He took something we hold sacred and broke every rule we go by, then sold his desecrated version of our ceremonies to people that he actually profited from, then killed. I hope they make an example of him and give him the maximum sentence," Taliman said.

"According to our teachings, what he’s done to these people will come back on him over a lifetime," she added. "Let’s see how spiritually grounded he is now.”Comment:  Other Natives in the article said similar things. And I heard similar things on Facebook. But Taliman said it best, so I'm quoting her.

For more on the subject, see Ray Guilty of Negligent Homicide and Ray Misused Native Teachings.