Posted by:
caffiend
(
)
Date: June 06, 2013 01:33PM
Transcendental Meditation ("TM") yogis have a system for assigning personal mantras. Depending on the year you learned TM, and your age at that time, you are given your "secret" mantra. So if you go to any TM teacher, telling him you forgot yours, he'll ask you how old you are and when you went through TM training. A little mental arithmetic, and he'll give you your mantra. Like he's intuitive.
http://minet.org/mantras.htmlThis reminds me of Woody Allen's movie, "Annie Hall." He's walking through a party of trendy intellectuals and New-Agers, and passes by a character actor on the phone, who is saying, "Hello, yogi? I'm all stressed out and I forgot my mantra, can you help me please?"
The whole business is typical of cults: they are esoteric, in that they love to wrap up their nonsense in secrecy and mystery. Now that people can learn the secrets on the internet, they re-package it and call it "sacred." Big freakin' deal.
That's part of the reason I'm an old-fashioned, garden-variety born-again Christian. I know this is inimicable to the large number of atheists on this board, but I am not ashamed of the Bible's message: "I'm a sinner. God's Son died on the Cross to pay my penalty for my sins. My part is to repent and follow Him; God's part is the gift of Grace (forgiveness). This constitutes spiritual re-birth ('born-again'), and I live this way through the ups and downs of mortal life until death. At this point, my 'citizenship' is transfered to Heaven."
I don't claim any advanced spirituality or moral superiority, just that I open myself up to God's love.
Strange and unacceptable to the intellects of lots of people, sure, but there is nothing strange, mysterious, complicated, or secret about it. And you don't need any special priesthood or ritual or Temple or tithing requirement or anything. It's between me and God, plain and simple.