I had the same feeling, when I was in the presence of Maharishi; That it was better to be in his presence, then doing TM. In his presence, TM, in a way, became meaningless... In his presence, for me, I felt like I was in the radiance of the sun, of enlightenment...of the Self... And just closing my eyes, I would immediately feel the transcendence... So, I would say, that was where Maharishi, was coming from, When he answered the question about what 'exactly' Guru Dev taught.
It seems from reading the various quotes, which were offered at this site; That Guru Dev, was teaching TM, in the quote about mantras and the use of mantras. Guru Dev, also, continually reminded everyone, like Jesus did; To 'Seek the Kingdom of Heaven first, and all else will be added unto you'; When Guru Dev, says to seek the 'Para Atma'- the all pervasive Atma, or Soul. He says to trust in Atma, or soul, to 'know and be provided for; And that the more you trust your soul. The more the soul or Atma will reward you; Or be strengthened in you. So, I guess, it's possible to spin the story either way; Since Guru Dev, is not available to be interviewed on this matter. Either Guru Dev, wasn't' teaching TM. Or that Guru Dev was teaching TM; And his presence to Maharishi; Was more powerful, then the technique, itself. Because the Master is the embodiedment of the technique...itself. Like Jesus was living the 'Christ' energy; And I am sure just being around him; Would have enlivened that 'Christ' energy; To all who would have been open to it. But like Jesus or Maharishi or Guru Dev; We have to learn to follow our own souls; Follow the intuition of the heart; And any technique that works for you; To refine your perception and experience pure being; Will be just fine. And if you have the chance to be around someone who is fully Enlightened; Then that is a great gift. R.G. --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Paul Mason" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > In early 1968 The Beatles pop group flew out to India to study > philosophy and meditation with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Rishikesh and > their visit immediately became front-page news across the world. But > for many it is still unclear what The Beatles actually learned, and > where the teaching originated from. A clue is offered in the lyrics > of 'Across the Universe', a Beatles song written by John Lennon > containing the oft-repeated refrain 'Jai Guru Deva', a Hindi phrase > meaning 'Victory to Guru Dev', sung in praise of Guru Dev (the guru > of their meditation teacher). > > Back in 1959, shortly after Maharishi Mahesh Yogi arrived in the West > he proclaimed: - > 'My life truly began 19 years ago at the feet of my master when I > learned the secret of swift and deep meditation, a secret I now > impart to the world.' > > As a young monk he was known as Brahmachari Mahesh and his master was > guru Shankaracharya Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, a spiritual leader > famous in Northern India; held in high esteem by his many disciples > and devotees both young and old. Brahmachari Mahesh is said to have > joined his guru's ashram in 1940 and gradually assumed the role of > secretary. > > Speaking in 1952 to a Delhi audience he pleaded: - > 'I appeal to your good sense to extend your valuable support so that > his elevating discourses may reach the masses in every nook and > corner of our country and abroad.' > > After his guru passed away in 1953 Brahmachari Mahesh withdrew and > spent time alone at a remote location in the far north of India. > After moving down south he accepted an invitation to give a series of > lectures at a library where, allegedly, someone referred to him as > a 'maharshi' (maha=great, rishi=sage). As 'Maharishi Mahesh Yogi' he > made a name for himself, publicly extolling the benefits of mantra > meditation and establishing a worldwide organisation to promote his > views. Millions have paid to be taught the simple practice of > Transcendental Meditation (TM), and as all initiates are required to > attend a short puja ceremony celebrated in front of a portrait of > Guru Dev, everyone is led to assume that the TM technique comes > directly from Guru Dev. > > Asked if Transcendental Meditation is exactly the same meditation > technique as that taught by Guru Dev, the Maharishi answered : - > M M Y - 'Must be using better techniques than I am using.' > Questioner - 'Was he still using the long mantras and all of that?' > M M Y - 'It's very difficult for me to find out what he was using, > because initiation is all in private... And I was never interested > who was given what mantra; I was interested in myself... Full of > divine radiance, people don't have to do the mantra and meditation in > his presence. Just, the transformation was in his air, so full of > life.' > > So, to those who came to see him, what did 'Guru Dev' Swami > Brahmananda Saraswati, Shankaracharya of Jyotir Math actually teach? > > Mysteriously, despite the vast resources of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's > many organisations, for years now it has been virtually impossible to > find any books or tapes of Guru Dev's teachings anywhere, in India or > elsewhere! Fortunately though, some wire-recordings and quite a few > transcripts of his satsangs do exist, so it is still possible to > fulfil the appeal that 'his elevating discourses may reach the masses > in every nook and corner of our country and abroad'. > > Introduction to 'The Teachings of Guru Dev - The Roots of TM' > - Quotations of Shankaracharya Swami Brahmananda Saraswati > Compiled by Paul Mason > at http://www.paulmason.info/gurudev/gurudev.htm > To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/