--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <jst...@...> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, tartbrain <no_reply@> wrote:
> <snip>
> > I am interested to understand why people find it difficult
> > to accept. Perhaps a bit jaw dropping at first. But after
> > the first "really!?", why is it particularly odd or
> > difficult to digest?
> >
> > And I suppose, its a relevant questions: should a teacher
> > be entitled to a private life? Entitled to some parts of
> > life that are of no business to students or anyone else.
> >
> > I never heard MMY say he was celibate. Why should he?
> > Other than when he was Bal Bramachari Mahesh. And then
> > he changed his name. Which is a pretty big clue in itself.
> > A practice useful for a student is not necessarily still
> > useful for an adult.
> >
> > Like many of us, he may have not have gone out of his way
> > to correct some peoples misperceptions. Actually he spent
> > all day doing that -- misperceptions about "the path".
> > But it could have been an infinite job to try to straighten
> > people out in every area of his and their lives.
>
> You're leaving one aspect of it out, that he allegedly
> had these affairs with female followers. That really
> isn't OK, because of the power differential; it's
> exploitative at best, predatory at worst, even if it
> was nominally consensual. And the age difference was
> substantial, by all accounts.
Not arguing, but the women may have been -- I think were in many cases --
leveraging the situation. A lot of the woman around him may have had nice doe
eyes, but they were hardly naive or unworldly. Some were downright
manipulative, Some quite sophisticated temptresses. Some were quite the man
eaters. And you didn't usually get to be around maharishi without some street
smarts. There were a lot of people edging in. Lots of elbowing. Girls just off
the turnip truck were not among them. I sense that once the word got around
among an inner circle of women, some were bending over backwards to be the It
girl -- and made it clear to him.
And some men and women leaders were bonking their brains out with underlings.
Down to checkers or asana demonstrators scoring with their "students". And
there was a lot of sex going on at courses among participants. Particularly
beginnings and endings. MIU had professors and staff were dating much younger
students. His actions were not outside the norm of the TMO or the times.
As far as age difference, no one bats an eye at George Clooney or others when
the age difference between he and his dates is 20-30 years. George Burns was
iconic in this regard. Or any number of celebrities. I saw the other day Mr Big
(Chris Noth) was dating someone 25-30 years younger. About the same age
difference in the case
of discussion.
As far as other avenues, i suppose he could have gone down to the local bar in
Mallorca or Suisse -- do a few shots, talk up some women. ("hey, you into
unity?") But that would seem more unseemly.
Professional women I suppose were an option.
But frankly, it seems a lot more wholesome to be with women that loved him and
he loved them.
> I don't have any problem in the abstract with him
> getting his rocks off, but this was a rotten way to go
> about it.
>
> He didn't have a lot of options given the way he had
> things set up; he didn't have access to mature women
> who weren't his followers. But if he had sexual needs,
> he ought to have figured out some way to manage them
> that didn't involve dewy-eyed devotees. Or just accept
> that it was something he was going to have to deny
> himself.
>
> If it weren't for his choice of sexual outlets, I'd
> agree with what you say 100 percent.
>
