Hi, Gazz -- your story is good to hear. Not all of us realized, in time, just what we were being seduced into.
But, there are two things I notice: first, like you, TM in the days before Mahesh decided to get rich and famous, the centres were pleasant, decent and nice. Second, not everyone found that TM stagnated.
The second thing is curious. Mahesh's claims that TM worked for everybody and, by implication, I guess, [i:a5d4e16f7c]always[/i:a5d4e16f7c] worked and worked the same for everybody is just plain not true. It's one of Mahesh's narcissistic delusions that he was so special that his version of what was good for everybody just had to be right. Far from that!
Regarding first, above, yes, I really enjoyed the pre-money-making days before Mahesh had to get rich quick. I think being dumped by the Beatles and only being known to most [i:a5d4e16f7c]because[/i:a5d4e16f7c] of the Beatles really got in amongst him. I really think that he decided he'd show everybody just who he was and just how rich and famous he could be all on his own.
People, of course, still only remember him because of the Beatles without whom he's be a nobody.
But he first made huge numbers of teachers and then made up programs to sell to his specially created market. Y'gotta give the old git credit for cleverness. But deception? I think there will be a special hell for all the destructive cult creators; Mahesh will probably appoint himself the leader there, but who cares, right?
I don't know if you are familiar with Paul Mason's web site*, but Paul, who has written a bio of Mahesh, has also set about trying to understand Guru Dev, learn all he can about him and put it there for everyone to follow. Mahesh looks less and less like the Guru he claims to honour (curiously, by putting his own name on everything).
Says a lot about Mahesh and a lot about your perspecacity in seeing the red flags many of us didn't see in time.
Take care and please feel free to share everything you can with us about your observations about Mahesh and the Organization that personifies him.
Martin
______
* [
www.paulmason.info]