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Transcendental Meditation
21 July 2019
6.15pm
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Leppo
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I’ve been been getting quite interested and doing lots of reading up and learning about transcendental mediation recently. Has anyone else had any experiences of this?

We all know The Beatles got incredibly absorbed in transcendental mediation and we know that the John, Paul, George and Ringo who travelled to India were not the same individuals who came back and this then went on to greatly impact Beatles history. Could it even be said this was the catalyst which led to the slow and gradual break up? I think Mark Lewisohn may have mentioned this.

 I’ve always been interested in Zen Buddhism and have done some mindfulness type meditation which has become quite popular recently but this is a different form of meditation. Mindfulness is about either focusing the mind on a particular thing i.e the breath; the body (body scan) or by just noticing thoughts coming and going. Transcendental meditation is about using a mantra which is a meaningless word or sound which you repeat silently to yourself for twenty minutes twice a day which is supposedly a much easier and effortless form. The Marharishi took an ancient form of Indian meditation which he learned from his master who he called Guru Dev and developed his own form. I also listened to a good episode of Something About the Beatles where they discussed transcendental meditation with an ex member. Something that came out of that was there was a suggestion that when The Beatles were out in India they were not entirely drug and sex free which upset the Marharishi and he was going to ask them to leave. It was also said that to save face they  found a reason to leave and then upped and left. Whatever the reasons it is clear the George, Paul and Ringo remained supporters of TM and I’m sure I read John still practised it. Apparently George even travelled to see the Marharishi in Holland many years later to apologise for The Beatles behaviour. Paul and Ringo also did a recent benefit show in aid of TM. So perhaps the narrative which John mainly promoted and which has been written into history about The Marharishi being a fraud is not entirely true.

I’ve been attempting to practice it over the last few weeks. I should say that the version I’m practising is just what I’ve learned from my own research and may not be entirely authentic as they say you need direct one to one tuition from a teacher which is something I intend on doing eventually.  Something I have noticed is that I found an effect of doing this meditation is that there have been a few instances recently where lets say my capacity for putting up with bulls**t from those around me seems to have been lowered.  This made me realise that it seems to have had that affect on The Beatles too. They were changed people after experiencing it. I was also watching a video last night where someone who runs a course was explaining the background and it got to a point where he said that “You may find people around you notice you have changed and that you are more genuine than before”. That really struck a chord because it really fits into The Beatles history and it’s a piece of the jigsaw which makes sense to me and explains a lot. I would love to post the video in question but don’t want break any forum rules as it’s from an organisation which runs courses.

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QuarryMan, Beatlebug, Ahhh Girl, Tangerine

Pivotal Moments in Beatles History No.118:  Yoko helps herself to one of George's digestives. 

21 July 2019
6.17pm
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QuarryMan
Rishikesh
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Great post. I think an interesting thing to consider is the role this meditation had in replacing LSD as a creative stimulant. Didn’t George ditch LSD in favour of this or something similar?

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Leppo, Beatlebug

I've been up on the mountain, and I've seen his wondrous grace,
I've sat there on the barstool and I've looked him in the face.
He seemed a little haggard, but it did not slow him down,
he was humming to the neon of the universal sound. 

22 July 2019
10.00am
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Yes, I think he did. The accusation against the Maharishi was made by Mia Farrow. She is always accusing men of sexual misbehavior they didn’t do (see Woody Allen).

I do think TM is probably good but it’s very expensive from what I understand, and in that respect it’s probably a rip off. I don’t see how you need a lineal connection if you are just learning to meditate. Everyone already possesses Buddha Mind.

I think mindfulness meditation may actually be more advanced. The only reason to use a mantra is if your mind wanders too much. The teacher who taught me to meditate likened using a mantra to “giving the monkey mind a banana.”

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"If you're ever in the shit, grab my tit.” —Paul McCartney 

22 July 2019
12.06pm
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sir walter raleigh
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There are troubling rumors connecting Alex Mardas to the Maharishi allegations. John heard the rumors from Magic Alex, which is what influenced him to confront the Maharishi on Farrow’s behalf. The truth behind this rumor is plausible at best, but Mardas is an extremely mysterious figure who does not talk to historians or reporters, and in fact has filed countless suits for libel when Beatle stories come out against him. According to the Rumor, George did not turn against the Maharishi because he did not trust Mardas and Farrow’s allegations, and thought that John blindly believed it and severely overreacted. 

On the subject of Transcendental Meditation, I have explored the surface level. I started the Autobiography of A Yogi, which George would carry multiple copies around in his car to loan to whoever is interested. It is an interesting story of faith, perseverance and spiritual discipline. Unfortunately I gave up pretty soon after that. I was once trying to meditate on LSD while listening to Ravi Shankar’s music. I’ve yet to reach the point where meditation is more profound than LSD

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Beatlebug, Leppo

"The pump don't work cause the vandals took the handles!"

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-Brian Wilson, Surfer Girl

22 July 2019
1.18pm
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I don’t think Yogananda practiced TM.

Both Elvis and George were into Yogananda. I wish they had known that about each other.

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"If you're ever in the shit, grab my tit.” —Paul McCartney 

22 July 2019
1.22pm
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The thing about LSD is that it can fragment the psyche over time. Meditation has a healing, holistic effect. 

But meditation doesn’t wake you up automatically like LSD. It takes time and patience.

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"If you're ever in the shit, grab my tit.” —Paul McCartney 

25 July 2019
5.39pm
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sir walter raleigh
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I’m at a festival in Pennsylvania and a man came up to my friend and gave him this 

image-1.jpgImage Enlarger

 

image.jpgImage Enlarger

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50yearslate, Beatlebug, Ahhh Girl, ThatWeirdBeatlesGirl, Leppo

"The pump don't work cause the vandals took the handles!"

-Bob Dylan, Subterranean Homesick Blues

"We could ride and surf together while our love would grow"

-Brian Wilson, Surfer Girl

28 July 2019
11.00pm
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That’s from ISKCON, another group George supported. Unfortunately that group is the Hindu equivalent of fundamentalist Christianity.

In our city the ISKCON temple abused children in the 1970s.

Yogananda’s group is more enlightened.

So far we have mentioned three lineages:

ISKCON —Hare Krishnas, founded by Prabhupada

TM—Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

SRF—Yogananda 

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"If you're ever in the shit, grab my tit.” —Paul McCartney 

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