Our conclusions are so similar to mine (and least thus far on my journey). You've written them so concisely and clearly.
Although I only visit FFL occasionally, I've been reading a lot since MMY's death. I too find it a valuable place for sorting out my thoughts and feelings about this technique and man who occupied such an important place in my life for so long. Although I haven't been involved with the TMO for a long time and do TM only occasionally, it's clearly not a closed chapter in my life or I wouldn't be here on FFL. Thanks so much for this lucid post, ruthsimplicity! > I am coming to the very personal conclusions that: > > (1) MMY probably believed strongly in himself and his cause, but was > manipulative, lacked empathy, was prone to exaggeration and I don't > believe he was enlightened. He as the founder is ultimately > responsible for the organizations that have evolved under his tenure. > > (2) Meditation 20 minutes twice a day probably does no harm and > likely does a fair amount of people some good. A chance to step back, > relax, let go. Maybe it has some physical benefits but they are not > pronounced. The psychological benefits are harder to quantify. > Spiritual benefits? The jury is out for me. I wouldn't pay the > current price. The price is elitist. > > (3) I question whether the advanced techniques and the siddhis have > any benefit whatsoever. The promised benefits have not been shown. > The claims are exaggerated. The teachers say you need no faith to > practice the techniques, but why would you practice the techniques > unless you had faith that they worked? Super highway to enlightenment? > I don't see it. If it is a superhighway, I know plenty of people who > have been on that highway for more than 30 years, still going around > in circles. I think that any benefits people perceive are in large > part due to justification. You invested a lot of time and money; > dissonance theory makes it likely that you will exaggerate the > benefits and minimize the detriments and never know you did so. > > (4) Excessive meditation, like rounding, may be dangerous to some and > is good for almost no one. > > (5) The TMO is a collection of various corporations and entities that > are not financially transparent which leads to considerable > speculation as to where the money goes. It is paternalistic and not > democratic, inconsistent with many western values. Its leadership > structure and asset ownership structure is obscure. It has blinders on > as to the TM techniques and its affiliated scientists often refuses to > cooperate with outside scientists and they ignore potential problems > in some meditators. Its inside scientists do not behave as scientists, > they behave like religious fanatics. Yet, as a religion it fails. The > various religious type pronouncements are inconsistent (think Nader > and heaven vs. the more mystical hindu view) and it has no real > ethical or moral teachings. Trying to make it a religion without an > underlying morality is dangerous. Yet many TBs seem to make it a > religion. And, after all, the TMO says it is NOT a religion. > > (6) Given the exaggerated claims, the unproven benefits, why would > anyone then buy into the siddhis, the food supplements, the natural > law party, the vastu architecture, the pulse diagnosis, the yagyas, > the consciousness based education, all the things that the movement > wants to sell? A rational person would want damn good evidence. Or > they would have to be religious about it, taking these things on faith > because they trust what their religion says about these things. Well, > I already have concluded that as a religion the movement fails. And it > professes not to be a religion anyway. I already have concluded that > I do not trust MMY enough to take his pronouncements on faith alone. > > > Thanks the the forum for helping me think through what I believe. >
