I was pretty surprised too - I think if he just said that he had mental
problems and this is how he dealt with it, that would be one thing, but using
the handle that apparently was given him by the press is capitalizing on what
he did - not the first killer to do so, but opportunistic I think. I wonder if
the Butler family knows he is doing this? Wonder what happened to the guy he
got the knife from, Joel Wysong? Did MUM censure him for poor judgement at all?
Another interesting thing that I got from an article about this is former MUM
professor Dr Kai Druhl. I looked him up online and see that he has a TM story
to tell - after years of TM and being governor and MUM faculty, he jumped ship
and has very little good to say about TM - he's a born again Christian. This is
what he said about MUM at the time of the murder
"Dr Kai Druhl taught physics at the university for 13 years. He has since left
to teach at a college 20 miles away after becoming disenchanted with the
movement.
He said: 'There were certainly initial benefits for some of the students but
the promise of complete enlightenment is just not true ... it just doesn't
happen and I saw how this intense meditation can damage some students,
particularly if they have mental problems.'
Druhl recalled a student with schizophrenia being told to come off his
medication, as meditation along with a herbal remedy would cure him. The
student had a major breakdown.
Druhl described a culture where such events were treated as 'top secret'. He
said: 'There was a definite understanding between staff members that you must
not allow any bad news to leak out. You were required to keep up this image of
a perfect campus at all costs."
--------------------------------------------
On Mon, 4/7/14, feste37 <no_re...@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
Subject: [FairfieldLife] Re: The Maharishi Murderer
To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com
Date: Monday, April 7, 2014, 10:47 PM
I find this utterly appalling and repellant. This
man should not make money from the murder of Levi Butler.
Whoever encouraged him to write this book and make himself
available for lectures and God knows what should not have
done so. This man should perform penance in private and be
very humble about it. He was given a second chance; Levi got
no chance at all.
---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <mjackson74@...>
wrote :
New Autobiography
Gives Insight into Maharishi Murder
Tue, 19 Feb 2013, 14:47:52 EDT
Edited by Debra Tone
LANCASTER, Pa., Feb. 19, 2013 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- It is
a story that could only be written by one person. A
compelling autobiography that not only pushes the boundaries
of sanity, it takes readers on a frightening voyage to meet
it face-to-face. 'Murder and Misunderstanding; One
Man's Escape from Insanity' (ISBN-13:
978-1479256969) is the story of Shuvender Sem, who on March
1, 2004 became known as 'The Maharishi Murderer.'
LANCASTER, Pa., Feb. 19, 2013 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- It is
a story that could only be written by one person. A
compelling autobiography that not only pushes the boundaries
of sanity, it takes readers on a frightening voyage to meet
it face-to-face. "Murder and Misunderstanding; One
Man's Escape from Insanity" (ISBN-13:
978-1479256969) is the story of Shuvender Sem, who on March
1, 2004 became known as "The Maharishi Murderer."
The murder took place in Fairfield, Iowa, on the campus of a
university that prided itself on non-violence. The Maharishi
University of Management used a variety of techniques
towards its non-violent goals including twice-daily use of
Transcendental Meditation. It was to no small degree that
this setting put the murder in the national spotlight.
In one moment Sem was a college student. In the next he was
"The Maharishi Murderer." Shuvender killed
freshman Levi Butler without provocation on the campus by
stabbing him four times in the chest with a paring knife.
The murder took place following an incident earlier in the
day when Sem stabbed a student with a pen. That previous
incident led to the student getting seven stitches to his
face.
Deemed competent to stand trial, the judge ruled he was
"not guilty by reason of insanity" at the request
of both the defense and the prosecution. Against popular
belief, NGRI is an extremely rare plea, used in less than
one percent of criminal cases. A not guilty result is even
more uncommon, occurring just one-quarter of one percent of
the time.
Now, after years of psychotropic medications and intense
therapy, Shuvender is telling his story of schizophrenia in
his autobiography, "Murder and Misunderstanding; One
Man's Escape from Insanity." It is not only an
extremely rare look into the mind of a killer from his own
perspective, but it is also a deeply personal story that
explores the darkest, most grim places of the mind.
"Our mental health system is broken. We need to fix
this before more crimes are committed," says Sem.
In his book, Shuvender tells of his relationship with his
father, and the events that led to that day on campus. He
describes his struggle with, and eventual escape from this
misunderstood illness. It is a story of recognition and
realization. A story of redemption desired, and hope
delivered. It is a book written to serve as a beacon for
those with schizophrenia and their families, by a man who
was held in its strongest grips, and managed to escape.
Shuvender Sem, or Shubi as he is known, now speaks publicly
about his experience with schizophrenia in the hopes of
helping others. He is available for presentations and
Q&A sessions for law enforcement, mental health groups,
attorney associations, academic institutions and others who
may feel they can benefit from his story.
The self-told story of Shuvender Sem, "Murder and
Misunderstanding; One Man's Escape from Insanity"
is available at http://www.ShuvenderSem.com/
. The book is available in paperback; as well as Kindle,
iPad and Nook digital editions.
