he has had doubts as to whether or not TM and Christianity are compatible ever since I roomed with him on a residence course in 1975 - he has been having more doubts lately due to my corrupting influence as I pass on all things I find about TM both the positive and negative.
But presumably different kinds of doubts, right? I mean, not about compatibility per se? Has he ever thought about trying "Centering Prayer"? The technique itself is a blatant ripoff of TM, with Christian "sacred words" substituted for mantras and some Christian-oriented window dressing (IMO) in terms of the recommended attitude toward/during practice, but otherwise it's a clone. I would love to know what a person who had done TM for as long as he has but is otherwise a devout (fundamentalist) Christian would experience with Centering Prayer. (But some hard-nosed fundamentalists don't think even Centering Prayer is compatible with Christianity.) I think he likes talking to Jerry on some level because it re-affirms his desire to believe TM is a gooooood thang - he did touch on some of the allegations about M's dalliances with women with Jerry and Jarvis said those things absolutely never happened. At least, he never saw them. Wow, huge gulf between "I never saw it" and "Absolutely never happened." One worries a bit about Jerry's state of mind if he were ever to be convinced of the dalliances... Were I to be asking the questions, I would like to know how so many other skin boys saw and heard that which Jerry did not. Indeed. But maybe Bill will ask him that sometime. Jerry did tell my friend he is not too keen on the behavior of many of the TM big wigs these days, but they did not get into specifics. That's good to know, at least (that Jerry isn't keen on their behavior). -------------------------------------------- On Mon, 1/6/14, authfriend@... mailto:authfriend@... <authfriend@... mailto:authfriend@...> wrote: Subject: Re: [FairfieldLife] RE: Marshy and Religion To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com mailto:FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com Date: Monday, January 6, 2014, 10:18 PM OK, thanks. I don't understand how he can do both with full commitment if he's so sure TM is a religious practice. TM would be OK with his being an evangelical, but evangelicalism would most definitely not be OK with his doing TM. Please do pass on anything he tells you about his conversations with Jerry Jarvis. (You could pass on to him--to Bill--my comments too if you wanted to. I'd be fascinated to hear his response.) << He does his program every day, twice a day now that he's retired. Goes to church a couple times a week too - he also has been having ongoing conversations with Jerry Jarvis the last couple months. He spoke with him a couple hours last about a week before Christmas. I'll pass on any good info or stories if Bill gives me any. >> -------------------------------------------- On Mon, 1/6/14, authfriend@... <authfriend@...> wrote: Subject: [FairfieldLife] RE: Marshy and Religion To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com mailto:FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com Date: Monday, January 6, 2014, 6:44 PM What do you mean by "TM aficionado"? He sure doesn't sound like one to me. << In honor of what FFL was supposed to be and sometimes is, I offer a piece of writing sent to me by a friend who is both a devout Christian and a TM aficionado. Those of you reading may not agree or like it, but I think it makes a number of good points. >> Maharishi Defines Himself Through the Spiritual Regeneration Movement M defines himself as the instrument through which a precious knowledge, lost after Shankara’s revival, will be given back to the world: “It was the concern of Guru Deva, His Divinity Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, to enlighten all men everywhere that resulted in the foundation of the worldwide Spiritual Regeneration Movement in 1958, five years after his departure from us.”(p.16) And again, “...the SRM (was) founded with the sole purpose of spiritually regenerating the lives of all men in every part of the world. (p.21) Guru Deva was M’s guru, the Spiritual Regeneration Movement (SRM) was created by M, and it is significant that the original name for M’s movement was “Spiritual Regeneration”. This is heavy stuff. These are words that belong to the domain of religion and can only be understood in that context. If M’s explicit aim was to “spiritually regenerate the world” by spreading enlightenment, creating a society where every action of the individual was “in accordance with all the laws of nature”, i.e. in Christian terms “without sin”, the accomplishment of this aim would represent no less an event in spiritual significance than the life and death of Jesus Christ. It is difficult to talk about TM not being a “religion” for those who center their lives around the practice of the technique, and study the teaching’s of M. For those people who take TM “seriously”, who devote themselves to both the practice and to M, the following statements (in italics below) concerning an online Webster dictionary definition of religion can be honestly made: Webster Definition Of Religion re·li·gion noun \ri-ˈli-jən\ : the belief in a god or in a group of gods. TM teaches a great deal about the nature of god, about getting the favor of gods, and about direct experience of God. : an organized system of beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used to worship a god or a group of gods. TM teaches a system of beliefs concerning the nature of spiritual growth, for a fee the organization offers spiritual ceremonies (Yagyas), performed by specialists, for obtaining the favors of the gods for the acquisition of specified blessings. All of these are based on faith in the accuracy of M’s teaching. : an interest, a belief, or an activity that is very important to a person or group. There are many people who completely devote their lives and their fortunes to M and the TM movement. Full Definition of RELIGION 1 a : the state of a religious <a nun in her 20th year of religion> The TM organization offers full time monastic positions to certain qualified persons, allowing them to become Hindu monks and nuns. b (1) : the service and worship of God or the supernatural (2) : commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance Success with the TM technique is based on regular practice. Initiates start out with 20 minutes twice a day, peopl with advanced training often graduate to 90 minutes twice a day. This is represents a serious commitment to “the supernatural”. While the benefits of TM help sustain this commitment, there is certainly an element of faith that is also required. M also talks about the necessity of faith to achieve the goals of TM. 2 : a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices. The teaching of M (“attitudes, beliefs, and practices”) have certainly been codified and institutionalized over the past 50 years. 3 archaic : scrupulous conformity : conscientiousness The term “scrupulous conformity” is a good description especially of the people that live in TM communities, in terms of dress, language, diet, and overall lifestyle. 4 : a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith The teachings of TM include a specific set of beliefs (life after death, reincarnation, the nature of spiritual growth, etc), and the “ardor and faith” to which these are held can be witnessed by speaking to almost any committed practitioner. M’s expressed goal of “spiritually regenerating the world” is a certainly a cause that many devote their lives to. The Bhagavad Gita and TM Holy Tradition As Scripture “The BG is the highest expression of divine intelligence understandable by man.” (4:1, p.252) This is a pretty profound religious statement. “This path of action for gaining success in the world and freedom in divine consciousness has a long tradition. In its content it is eternal. Even if in time its purity is lost and it is forgotten by man, each time it is restored in the world by a wave of revival that comes from God.” (p.247) There it is, you either accept this as from God or you don’t. “It is deplorable that such precious accounts of life on the highest human level as are to be found in the historical material of ancient India should have been regarded as myth. They should, on the contrary, be recognized as a most useful history of the highest civilization that has ever existed on earth.” (p.254) There are many that might accuse M of being a bit egocentric about his country’s history. 4:2 “The holy tradition of great masters, which responsible for reviving the teaching after every lapse, has captured the minds and heart of lovers of Truth in every age. It is not merely held in high regard, but has come to be actually worshipped by seekers of Truth and knowers of Reality.” (p.257) This is religion. I have a feeling M wishes he hadn’t written that. TM As Fundamentalism “It may be added that only through TM, which is the direct way to gain PC and rise finally to GC, can absolute purity be lived in daily life.” (p.312) This is not only religion, this is fundamentalism! Maharishi presented TM as the only effective way, the “one way” to enlightenment, and himself as its messenger. Being a member of the Christian evangelical community, I have to say that this has a familiar ring to it.
