Friday, April 04, 2008 The World is as We Are... (two)
Maharishi Namaste
Originally uploaded by saeed_tm
Ive not commented here about the passing of Maharishi on February 6th.
I havent felt compelled to.
But, the other evening after work I climbed up into the attic, pulled out the
box labeled Pattys Old Life and sorted through the notebooks and memorabilia
from my days with Maharishi.
The pages are quite yellow now around the edges. The writing and doodles are
familiar, unforgettable.
I made some tea and took a stack to the back deck.
Remembering.
Reconsidering.
I dont know what I wanted to find. Nothing seemed quite right, nothing totally
compelling. The strangest feeling began stirring.
Am I past all this?
I copied a few passages to a yellow legal pad. Some of these may be of interest
to you.
And while I cant swear that I took down Maharishis words verbatim, I was
fresh out of college and my note taking skills were well honed. I caught most
of what was said.
I smiled at these lines. They've come to me often in these intervening years.
Maharishi had decided we should take three days of silence. I had no idea what
taking silence even meant. So he was explaining.
We were to stay in our rooms alone, meditating day and night. A thermos of hot
soup would be delivered to our door:
April, 1972:
You should have the chance to experience what makes men spend months and years
of their lives by themselves in caves. What they live on is that sweet bliss of
inner awareness.
And then he added as an after thought, And you should have some chips, potato
chips.
Sure enough the next day there was a small bag of chips along side the thermos
of soup.
I loved him for that gesture.
July 8th, 1971. Maharishi on how to give an introductory lecture:
Most people dont understand why collective calamities occur from stressed
individuals - be it riots, wars, or earthquakes. Explain how the atmosphere
holds only so much tension. Use your own experience of a tense house.
All efforts have failed because wars still occur. Therefore, the problem is
unsolvable according to history. If the problem is so big, lets break it down
and try to solve the small problems. Then maybe this generation can be the
first to solve the big one.
The problem is the individual.
April 10th, 1972:
There was a question a woman from Rio was worried that she somehow hypnotized
her audience when she gave introductory lectures. The head of the local TM
center was also concerned. Her audiences said they felt hypnotized and everyone
always signed up to learn. How could this be?
People get wrapped up in the reality of hope. More credit should be given to
the people of Rio than to the lecturer. They must be very inspired people.
They hear the beautiful possibilities and they are stunned by the shock of the
truth.
Stunned by the shock of the truth
the reality of hope.
Suddenly, I saw this years election cycle and the politics of hope.
Samsara and politics. One generation and the next,
time and passages.
Maybe this generation. If not, when?
Suddenly, I felt compelled.
The world is as we are.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Summer, 1971.
Posted by Pat Bralley at 10:47 AM
Labels: hope, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, politics of hope
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