wow! It makes me wonder about all those students sitting in the dining hall who were totally traumatized by watching a murder in progress...who will be or have already shown signs of post traumatic stress and how they won't have anyone to turn to. In fact their supervisors will tell them 'it is best not to talk about it'. Scary!!!
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I thought I would open a new thread because I would like to explore with any Ex-Transcendental Meditation/Maharishi Mahesh Yogi fans this horrific and sad murder at MUM in Fairfield, Iowa. We've been discussing Mahesh and Money and Mahesh and Meaning in other threads but this seems to warrant it's own thread. Here's the deal: If 7000 meditators get together and practice their pr
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Wow! You guys make Mahesh's TM organization sound just like some kind of CULT!!!!! (snark and sarcasm dripping from the page) Seriously...one of the problems as I see it is that people blame the 'movement' as being evil but still worship, adore and make excuses for their Maharishi. They say that he must be innocent of all this money grubbing and mind control because he is a sany
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

hmmm. This is good dialogueing, in my opinion. I'm really grateful and tickled by all your insights. Are you a Brit, by chance? I've noticed some slang that is definitely not 'American English'. Mostly I am just glad to finally AT LAST find others who are ex-Tm'ers and who have been there, done that. I still have many pieces of the puzzle that I haven't fitted i
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Thanks for the compliment! I'm all for the rousing and rousting round of sarcasm when it's purpose is cathartic! (sp) And that seems to be what this forum at least, allows... maybe the negative vibe will give one of the tm drones a little shiver up their spine. Might serve as a wake-up call, or might just pass as 'stress release'. Question, Martin: What did Mahesh really th
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

OH, I also want to comment on something that Toni said in an earlier post about a lady who made it her goal to boink the many-headed Purusha guys. (wrong head). That made me laugh so hard! For those who are just lurking, that is a name given to the celibate branch of TM. Yes, they don't tell you about that at an introductory lecture, either! Later it is revealed to you that if you want to g
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

**giggles** :roll: Life lesson #435,000: Don't just look at the master, look at who serves Him, before you make up your mind to end up like them.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Point taken about the hurtfullness of free expression. I am very much enjoying your take on what you know or have seen. Even while a student at MIU I would listen with perked ears to some of the tales I heard about Mahesh's legendary temper and force of will. There were several disgruntled guys around who had been at the top and seen and experienced some things. Looking back I wish I had
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Thanks! That is a well-thought out response to my query, and I enjoyed reading it. I take your point about dropping the negative and looking for the positive, and I must say that I truly am quite well and whole these days...so I don't like the emphasis on negativity, either, however!!! I don't like the mindless 'positivity-babble' that was part of the program in TM. "N
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

And! Since this thread is really about Mahesh and Money, check out this url to see where some of the money goes: www.globalcountry.org Mahesh has amassed enough fortune to start his own government 'net' with countries, capitols, ministers, his own currency (I'd love to get a look at his dollar bills. Do they have Guru Dev on them or himself?) And lots and lots of buildings m
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

That was very well written, Mr. Adanac! You know your stuff! I quite agree with you about the strength of an elephant 'sidhi'. I was fortunate in that I always saw TM and the advanced techniques as having a much deeper meaning and purpose than the surface. I 'got' it about the elephant being about the nature of strength rather than the accumulation of strength. For instan
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Well, one way of stopping it would be to make sure EVERYONE saw where your "TM DOLLARS AT WORK" are really going! Not for World Peace or to teach a safe and effective stress release technique, but rather for idiotish and delusional "Global Countries" which are being funded by all that amassed fortune of Mahesh Yogi. Check out www.globalcountry.org and click around until yo
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Prosemo I get your point...meditation can be a good thing and there should be a distinction between labeling anything 'iffy' as a cult right off the bat. But as a former TM practitioner of 20 some years, I can tell you that TM is not all that 'borderline'. It has a definite agenda, and that agenda really shouldn't be mixed up in public school education! The basic TM
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Well, I think you SHOULD be scared of cults! At least...a little fear is a good thing if it keeps you on your guard. Cults prey on confused people looking for answers and they use very well researched techniques to 'help' you let down that guard. They come across loving, benign, and like they have the answer to YOUR questions and only they have those answers. Nobody else. In fact, th
Forum: Recovery from Destructive Cults and Groups

I'd be interested in hearing from any ex-TM'ers about their thoughts on 'what did it all mean'? I myself was 'initiated' in 1980, zoomed off to be a full time student at MIU in 1980, and got the sidhis the very next year. Rather a meteoric rise to 'bliss bunnyness'! Of course being 'in the environment' was supposed to cushion me from the worst e
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Martin I find your insights about Mahesh and his motivations coming from extreme narcisism and also a need to prove something to his master Guru Dev to be most intriguing! MOST intriguing indeed! Since no longer practicing the sidhis (it's been ten years since I left 'the movement') I have often pondered the question, "What did it All Mean?" I recently read the on
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Yes, I too saw this article on Donovan being drawn back into the fold...(by the way, hello Toni! I've read a lot of your postings!) I was at "middle-iowa'univeristy' as I like to refer to MIU about the same time you were selling beads at Crest Jewel. In fact, I was a 'stringer' for that short-lived company that had beads that connected to other strands like pop-beads
Forum: Celebrities associated with "cult-like" groups

I think one concern might be that some forms of meditation are actually religiously based...and our Constitution guarentees us a division of Church and State. TM has been proven to be a religion in more than one court case...and also...trance states have been known to make those who are susceptable more likely to be susceptable to 'post trance suggestions'. I actually feel that medi
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"