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Cults and Cosmic Consciousness: Religious Vision in the American 1960s by CAMILLE PAGLIA full article at: http://www.bu.edu/arion/paglia_cults00.htm The major Asian cult of the sixties was Transcendental Meditation, founded in India as the Spiritual Regeneration Movement by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1957. The Maharishi brought TM to Hawaii in 1959, from which it spread to North America and Europe. His practice of deep relaxation, whose aim is "bliss," was based on ancient Vedic literature that he claimed to have learned from his master, Shri Guru Deva. At the start, TM had more cult-like characteristics, such as a personal secret mantra imparted by master to student. The Maharishi was at times accused of claiming godlike powers. By the mid-seventies, TM was more professionally organized as a business, with certified trainers teaching the system at stress-relief centers throughout the US. In 1974, TM bought the campus of a Presbyterian college in Iowa and opened the Maharishi University of Management. TM currently claims five million followers worldwide. Deepak Chopra, the New Age motivational speaker and best-selling author who became a media star through his visibility on Oprah Winfrey's TV show, was a disciple of the Maharishi but broke with him and TM in 1993. To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!'
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