--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Vaj <vajradh...@...> wrote: > > > On May 6, 2009, at 3:04 AM, TurquoiseB wrote: > > > > > I'm pointing this out because I think a lot of > > people on this forum FALL for "thought stoppers." > > The TM movement was not long on compassion. It > > never taught its followers that a person could be > > partly good, partly bad. The model invoked was > > always the clear-cut "It's only the Pandavas and > > the Kauravas, the rakshasas and the perfect saints" > > scenario we see in TM stories. Black and white, no > > middle ground. So if a person is characterized as > > black, they are ALL black. > > > You're missing one of the biggest TM org thought stoppers: > > "Pure Consciousness". > > We were supposed to think "wow, what could be better that PURE > consciousness?" I don't need to look and farther or look into this > any more, if it's pure (and the experience they're telling me I will > have is Pure Consciousness), then I need look no further. > > But what's happening is other meditation researchers are seeing > through this screen of re-definition. the Cambridge Handbook of > Consciousness, the standard textbook in neurological and > consciousness research pointed this out several years ago. Before > that neurologist and Zen master James Austin pointed out how the word > was being used in a misleading kind of way, without any "profound > proof" for this profoundly named experience. '"The phrase ��pure > consciousness�� continues to sow confusion more than a > decade after Forman pointed to its semantic pitfalls. When someone > employs the term today, it remains unclear whether its usage > describes an early moment, an intermediate step, or some ultimate > stage among the several optional varieties of consciousness." He then > goes on to describe in detail how the word is being used by TM > researchers to claim an exalted state, when in fact they're actual > attaching the thought-stopper (pun intended;-)) to a very rudimentary > state. > > It looks like the tom-foolery has been exposed. > > Beyond the thought-stopper is the further tendency 'if you repeat a > lie enough times, people will begin to believe it.' Despite being > caught at their act, I'm certain TM researchers, teachers and > professors will still continue to use "Pure Consciousness" as a > description. The fact is, at this point in the game, if they were > forced to abandon their use of this word, as applies to TM and it's > results, they'd have to rewrite websites and revise the entire > literature of TM, Maharishi Vedic Science--virtually ALL of the MUM > curriculum! It's all based on this (LOL) thought-stopper! >
You're assuming that Austin has evidence of the more "exhalted" states, did you notice? And who decides which laternate state is "exhalted" in the first place? Lawson
