Really just sounds like a lot of these men wanted someone to take control of their life by telling them what to do rather than take control of their own lives.

I get that, its a lot easier to put all your faith in a guru to tell you what to do rather than risk the really terrible situation of having to blame yourself for the state of your life and how you let it get so bad. After all, its your dad's fault for not being there and also society's fault for not teaching him! So I can't be responsible for my room being dirty!