On Aug 14, 2005, at 10:55 AM, authfriend wrote: > No, think about it for a second, Vaj. How *else* > could he have ensured that Guru Dev got the credit > for the good stuff without also making him the > target of the inevitable criticisms?
You're still using a desperate rationalization to excuse a money-hungry used mantra salesman. Sure manasika-japa works, but so does other peoples manasika-japa. In the Shankaracharya tradition it is not unusual for sanyasis to give householders an Ishta mantra, a mantra of a personal deity. This has several benefits--it helps them calm their minds and get the worldly benefit of worldly deities which help in learning and prosperity; in other words benefits which would be helpful to someone in the householder ashrama. In the full setting (of the tradition) though this goes further. One typically at least learns the visualization of the mantra and of the deity herself. Some go further and also learn the common 16-fold worship of the Ishta. These help the sadhaka see the Ishta "everywhere" and have the divine vision of the Goddess face-to-face. To me this is what context I hear Guru Dev talking of. Therefore given the disparity and incongruence of TM with this I find it disingenuous to suggest that "TM" is an extension of Guru Dev's teaching; instead it is a sales and marketing ploy. That's not to say that the invocation of the lineage during the puja-style TM mantra initiation is not of benefit, it's essential and it does "work"--nor is it to say TM is "bad" as a meditation technique. It's just different from what GD taught. The good news is 'you can get to one from the other'--if one wanted to extend their practice into what the broader tradition teaches I'm sure one will find they have an excellent basis with which to do so. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Get fast access to your favorite Yahoo! Groups. Make Yahoo! your home page http://us.click.yahoo.com/dpRU5A/wUILAA/yQLSAA/JjtolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
