Well said, Sal, thanks. Being a part of TM in the 60s and 70s, and perhaps even a little further on, meant being part of a "movement" towards greater spirituality and positivity in the world. At some point, however, the TMO became, if not entirely, but certainly in the greater part, a "business" promoting its proprietary line of techniques and products primarily for profit, still under the banner of its original goal of spiritual regeneration, but mainly without the soul. Or so it seems to me.
That is not to say that the product line is bad or bogus, though that charge made by many may have some merit in some instances; but merely that the primary face of the TMO reflects a business model it has incorporated that has mostly eclipsed the original and more spiritually oriented goals so many of us were attracted to and adopted in our youth. And in its place we see this strange amalgam of Indian hoodwinks and funny hats all seemingly in play so as to generate as much income as possible to sustain its own preposterous sense of importance. Again, much of what is promoted by the TMO such as organic farming, the meditation itself, ayurveda, yagyas, etc., I personally feel are life-supporting and life-enriching, but in the hands of the TMO are actually diminished, inasmuch as they seem to merely be another avenue for the TMO to enrich itself. Avarice appears to be the primary motivation. How strange and sad is that. I love Fairfield and am so happy that it is growing as a multi- dimensional town of unique individuals and as a locus of spiritually oriented values that attract saints and seekers from everywhere. Were that Maharishi's only contribution he would have given quite a lot to the world. Those of you who live in Fairfield and contribute to the dialogue here on FFL are real beacons in the world. Thanks. Marek ** --- In [email protected], Sal Sunshine <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > On Dec 20, 2006, at 10:28 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > > You speek much truth Sal. But their is more to my story that I will > > share at a later date. Maharishi has changed all of our lives and I > > love him very much. I am willing to forgive Maharishi for mistakes > > make in the past and in the present. We are at War. Humanity needs to > > come together. Their are other Guru's who offer > > a more relaxed and appropriate environment but I have yet to find any > > organization with 1,800 people that > > are meditating everyday. Besides, when I was with SSRS and worked for > > Deep Chopra I missed Maharishi. I love everyone in my spiritual family > > but Maharishi started this and even though I find myself > > complaining sometimes we do need to address some of the qualities that > > are wonderful in the MUM community and Vedic City. Organic gardening > > and working on an energy system that is self sufficient is > > a couple of the positive qualities. I feel strongly that Maharishi > > will not be with us much longer. I want to > > be a part of the community when he passes over. Maybe in some small > > way or big way I will be an influence to change things for the better. > > This is my prayer. Love and Light. Lou Valentino > > Agreed, Lou, MMY has had a huge impact on all of us, and I think most > former TMers give him a lot of credit and still have a great deal of > love for him. But the values most of us heard when we started and the > values expounded by the TMO now are two entirely different things. > Part of love is knowing when to let go and move on. > > And that doesn't mean moving very far. You want to be part of the TM > community and feel close to MMY, then come to FF. You'll find lots of > people here, many former TMers, involved in a huge amount of things > that are sustainable and life-supporting, while enjoying life and > letting others live theirs as well. You know, doing highly > controversial things like wearing comfortable clothes, drinking coffee, > (gasp!) reading whatever they feel like, and living in beautiful old > Victorians with real wood floors and neat little built-ins, as opposed > to some SV bunker that looks and feels like it was designed with Fort > Knox in mind. There's also lots of neat restaurants, gatherings, and > other ways to get together with people and enjoy life on your own > terms, not on some artificially-imposed ones by people who probably > don't even practice them themselves, and who robotically parrot > thinking they almost certainly have never actually thought about. > > I understand where you're coming from, and was there for a long time > myself. But I feel that if you think that the TMO is suddenly going to > see the light and change their attitude and open their hearts and minds > once MMY passes, that you are going to be really disappointed. Give up > on that idea, and see how much freer you feel. > > Sal >
