Re: [FairfieldLife] Re: 'Was John Lennon Right About Maharishi?'

Thu, 20 Jul 2006 09:17:39 -0700

In a message dated 7/20/06 10:47:54 A.M. Central Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:

> The ashram turned out to be more like a hotel than the spartan guru's
> camp the Beatles expected. The sleeping quarters were in a complex of
> picturesque some bungalows with four or five bedrooms in each. The
> Beatles' rooms had four-poster beds and solid English furniture. Each
> was equipped with a modern bath and toilet, and there was even an
> electric fire for cold nights. Meals were eaten communally at long,
> hand-carved tables under a vine-covered trellis next to the Ganges.
> Food was served to them by a large staff of servants and prepared in
> a completely modern kitchen by a trained chef. The Maharishi's house,
> a short distance away from the rest of the compound, was a long, low,
> modern building with its own kitchen and staff. There was even a
> woman to give the girls a daily message. The most eyebrow-raising of
> all the luxury accoutrements was the landing pad for the helicopter
> used to ferry the Maharishi in and out of the compound on his
> appointed rounds throughout India. This was the man whom George had
> excused to Peter Brown as "not a modern man."
>
> www.geocities.com/white_album_2000/rishikesh.htm
>

OK, so this was TM HQ at this point and MMY was already into the courting the wealthy
thing.

I would say this is a fairly accurate description of the buildings. The fine English furniture was not there when I was. It all looked rather cheap to me but nice for it's period. I think most, if not all of the buildings had been built long before the Beatles though and long before TM became a house hold word. For it's day, I'm sure it was the nicest and probably the most comfortable Ashram in Rishikesh, geared to keep westerners as comfortable as could be expected. It wasn't Spartan, like some of the older more established Ashrams, but it was far from luxurious. There could have been a little jealousy by some others of M's place. However if the place had been kept and maintained all these years, nobody would really want to stay there now because there are far nicer , more modern places to stay in Rishikesh today. A sentimental nature  and solitude might be the only draw today.    
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