Shumsky Interview: Maharishi and Me

I am delighted to offer you an interview with Susan Shumsky, the author of Maharishi and Me.  This is an author who shares heart-felt insights based on her own direct and profound experiences.  Her book offers riveting glimpses of a guru who's life is often shrouded in mystery. Thanks for consenting to this interview.

Since I my 2009 Interview with Susan, much has happened in her life.

You have published a number of books and your life continues to expand in different directions.  How would you describe what is unfolding in your midst? How does it feel?

I would describe planetary trends as going in a powerful positive direction. With each year that goes by, more and more people are seeking spiritual experiences and practicing meditation and other yogic methods. If you compare the atmosphere of the earth in the mid-20th century with the atmosphere now, there is no comparison. The collective consciousness of the planet has risen significantly to a much higher octave vibration. Spiritual experiences that used to take months for a seeker to achieve, now it only takes a few minutes. People are more aware of issues of ecology, holistic health, organic foods, and the dangers of toxic agents to our planet. We now live in a different world. And positive trends continue to rise with every passing day.

Blessed be for those positive trends and shifts on collective perception and self-understanding. May it continue.

In all your years in the presence of Maharish Mahesh Yogi, why choose now to release Maharishi and Me? What is timely about your shift of perspective or your writing of this unique biography?

I began writing Maharishi & Me in 1998–20 years ago. Within a couple of years, it had exploded to 700 pages. It has taken 20 years for my agent to sell it to a publisher. I must admit it was because, internally, I didn’t have the right attitude about the book. And therefore when my agent sent the book proposal to editors, one of them said he didn’t think I could "pull it off.” Other editors said that Maharishi was passé and no one was interested in him anymore. But once I came to an internal revelation about my relationship with Maharishi and connected that to the larger picture about the traditional master/disciple relationship in the far East, I finally realized the correct theme of the book. Then my agent managed to sell it to Skyhorse Publishing in New York.

That 20 year period certainly speaks volumes about your passion and trust in the process.  As you say and observe, the level of collective consciousness on this planet is rising. People relate to things at their level of consciousness and perception. It appears that higher octave we have reached is a tipping point that makes this planet more receptive for what this book offers.

You also point out the topic of guru and discipleship is not widely understood or accepted in the West.  What would you like to share about your experience that shattered myths in this regard?

People think that living with a Guru is a guru-vy love fest of valentines, daffodils, butterflies, harps playing, and angels singing. But the truth is the master/disciple relationship can be an ego-shattering, mind-crushing experience. That’s because the traditional definition of “enlightenment” is known as “egoless.” And the traditional definition of “nirvana” is “extinguished.” Maharishi often likened himself to a carpenter, and his disciples to pieces of wood. Imagine how you would feel being a piece of wood and getting carved up into pieces. That’s not a fun image. When we have to step outside our comfort zone, out of the little box we’ve been living in, that’s an uncomfortable experience — and that’s an understatement. It was incredibly intense to live with Maharishi on a daily basis. An emotional roller coaster with extreme swings between heaven and hell.

Wow! Lots of misplaced assumptions are made based on a lack of understanding.

The opening quote in your book is, “Not everyone remembers their own birth. But I do,” is a very profound statement. In my own case, breathwork has enabled me to recall not only my own birth but pre-birth experiences, such as being a womb twin survivor (WTF), and soul-level views of experiences  unfolding before and since.  I call this time-travelling. I wonder if you can pinpoint a particular turning point in your own life that enabled you to see from this world from a very different angle.

There have been many turning points in my life. One was when I first learned how to practice Transcendental Meditation, which brought me back from the brink of insanity and transformed me in profound, meaningful ways. Another was when I found another powerful meditation method, which I now teach. It’s called "Divine Revelation.” That method changed my life again. With the profound inner connection I made with my higher self, ascended masters, and radiant beings of light, never was I alone again.

I love how meditation techniques offer each of us windows into the Soul if we are willing to venture into unfamilliar territory. Curiousity is sparked by the idea of a process that can trigger divine revelation. I'm sure many of seekers are eager to contact you to learn more about this meditation method.

Yet, for the time being, what advice do you have for people craving or seeking altered states of consciousness?

Don’t take drugs or plant medicines. It’s only a temporary bandaid and not the way to achieve true higher consciousness. Find a genuine spiritual teacher and learn how to meditate and how to experience unbounded awareness within. 

Interesting you share this view. Growing curiosity about altered states of consciousness has created a huge market for drug-induced spiritual travel-related experiences.  These are promoted to raise awareness. Individuals who taste the infinite this way also always seem to be struggling to 'get back there.' 

Maharishi and Me offers glimpses into your remarkable spiritual journey. Please share one or a few experiences that you feel stand out and how they affect you in this moment.

There were so many experiences I relate in the book. But what stand out most are experiences of profound elation and waves of bliss, contrasting with experiences of profound humiliation. It was a wild ride swinging from ego-expansion to ego-deflation on a daily basis. And as a result, I eventually found what I was seeking. I found myself.

Beautiful.  Straight and to-the-point. Funny how Westerners are so often taught to make complicated what is simple. It can feel like simple is harder than complex as it requires honesty and a willingness to see through your own thoughts.

Why Maharishi and not another guru for you?  Any why do you sense he drew the Beatles and other famous people? 

I was reading the Buddhist scriptures, the Tibetan Book of the Dead, Autobiography of a Yogi and books by Alan Watts, such as The Way of Zen. In Watts’ books it said you have to find a “meditation guide.” Good luck finding a “meditation guide” or anything remotely similar in Berkeley California in 1966. But, after trying to meditate on my own, a fellow art student finally took me to the Transcendental Meditation center in Berkeley. As soon as I saw the photo of Maharishi hanging on the wall, I immediately knew this was it. This was where I would learn real meditation—not just ephemeral experiences afforded to me through psychedelic drugs. 

Maharishi was like a celebrity magnet. He drew famous people into his life like a magnet draws iron filings. He was the happiest person I ever met, and his aura was incredibly charismatic and hypnotic. Anyone who met him, if they were open to the experience, they would feel waves of divine unconditional love radiating in their direction. With just a glance Maharishi transmitted waves of bliss that people could feel viscerally. 

I love the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Your response makes it clear that timing is everything.  The same goes to say when we read. This interview encourages us all to trust the timing of all events and encounters unfolding in their lives. Reading here can only be synchronicity. We only ever encounter what we invite into our lives.  Many people are familliar with, "ask, and it is given"  What you so wisely imply is that the soul asks and the ego-mind gives itself the experience to realize what it is not so we can realize what remains. Silence says so much.

Please share insights you gained from living in India and abroad as part of your evolving journey with Maharishi.

It was great to live overseas. People from the USA tend to be america-centric in an arrogant way. They seem to have a superiority complex about this country. Little did I know how beautiful, peaceful, artistic, and cultured other countries were. After spending a few years in Europe, I never wanted to return to the USA. But eventually Maharishi sent me back to the USA.

Indeed.  When you tell yourself you are creating a new life, it feels right to take advantage of that.  Makes being away from the familliar worthwhile.  You certainly make the most of wherever you are to learn and grow.  Your books attest to that. Your readers appreciate your gifts to this world.

As for this book, You include a number of photos.  How do you feel about the timeless experience of meditation alongside images of events frozen in time?

My book is not linear. It goes forward in time for awhile but then goes back and forth, jumping to different time periods. So when you’re reading it, if you think if it seems frozen, it will thaw from time to time. And anyway, regarding the photos, nostalgia is fun. There are about 100 fun, nostalgic photos in the book.

As it is said, " a picture paints a thousand words" (or more). Love the feel of playfulness in the book's presentation.  Jumping around in time as you do gives readers a deeper understanding of Maharishi from diverse points of view. It feels more real somehow, like readers are engaged in dialogue within the book ourselves.

Is it possible to compare your experience in the presence of Anandamayi Ma and other enlightened souls  or would you say their energy feels different?

My experience of the many enlightened beings I have met in this lifetime are very similar to each other. They all have that joyful, powerful, charismatic vibration that transmits to people around them, and which they receive by osmosis. Being in their presence elevates our consciousnes, lifts our spirits, and fills our souls with joy.  

Filling the Soul with joy absolutely changes everything.

Why do you imagine people often feel they must go away to an ashram or some far off place to find themselves?

When you go somewhere far away from the daily numbing routine of the mundane world, you are immediately taken out of your old patterns, habits, beliefs, and hangups. This can be helpful in the pursuit of spiritual awakening.

And what about your own experience? Could your awakening have happened anywhere other than India and through experiences with/ about the Maharishi? 

Since I take people on tours to sacred destinations throughout the world through my Divine Travels company at www.divinetravels.com, I know the value of visiting places with high vibrations and being in the company of like-minded spiritual people. Being in that higher vibrational atmosphere encourages and enhances spiritual experiences.

Like so many of our readers, I can so relate to the power of unseen energy.  It seems to work miracles until we are open to the deeper insights within ourselves.

What do you feel draws so many celebrities to TM? What about the general public?

It’s a simple meditation that works effectively for people. Just about anyone can do it. Maharishi used to say that if you can think a thought, you can practice Transcendental Meditation. That’s because thinking a mantra is like thinking any other thought. 

Love your references pages. Any particular film, book or reference really leave a mark during your research? How much of this is also out-of body (OBE) experience or time travel to re-experience different perspectives of a perceived past?

The following books have a lot of information about the Beatles in India, and I recommend them: The Secret of the Mantras by Richard Blakely, All You Need is Love by Nancy de Herrera, and Dear Prudence by Prudence Farrow. I don’t do OBEs and don’t time travel. I just have a good memory about the events that happened when I was with Maharishi. And I am a very exacting researcher who dug deeply into the topic and read many books and articles about events in the book that I didn’t personally experience firsthand.

Thanks for your meticulous way of fine-tuning details. This comes across very well. What highlight would you like to leave with our readers about this book. Why is it an important book for them to experience? 

This book brings into question everything people think they know about how a spiritual master acts, what enlightenment is, how a spiritual master works with his disciples, and how to spot an enlightened master. The book asks many questions by not asking those questions and gives answers by not answering them. The reader is left with having to answer all these questions him or herself. It’s a mind-blowing book that takes the reader through an emotional seesaw where, at the end, the reader is left with “What just happened?” “Can this be real?” “What a ride!"

Please share anything else you feel is relevant to our readers. 

The master/disciple relationship is not what you think it is. You’ll find out what it’s really about by reading the book Maharishi & Me.

Thanks again Susan for taking a period out of your busy schedule to share such valuable insights.  Readers can purchase Maharishi and Me from retail outlets as well as on-line.  Invite readers to check this out and share testimonials on this page.

7 Clues you are where you are meant to be

Its common to question why you are where you are and also where you are headed. Finding the right question to ask is more important than the answer. Ponder these clues you are exactly where you are meant to be;

1. Asking ‘what do I’ do & ‘how do I do it’ reflects discomfort with emptiness and flow of inspiration. (This points to living in the head rather than heart)

2. Meditating brings you to inner solitude where you feel enriched and renewed by divine will (contrasts with personal will-often overrides intuition)

3. Discovering what energizes and excites you is as if money is irrelevant

4. Awakening is observing the mind, seeing everything with greater clarity 

5. Being present and listening to what life is calling for from you

6.  Being honest is being what the world is attempting to become

7. Listening to the Soul is recognizing what life inviting from you

5 Tips for soulful living

When you live true to your soul, you feel peace, contentment, abundance and fulfillment.  You actually experience what the ego mind tells you to keep chasing.  You may be asking, how can I be happy now? Ponder and integrate these tips:

1) Meditate regularly. It is often assumed meditation is simply sitting in a lotus position in silence. In fact, one can meditate anywhere and many approaches to meditation exist. Everything is a divine creation because you are a divine creator.  Being consciously creative in the kitchen, garden, with paint, wood or other materials can also be a form of meditation when you lose all sense of time. Explore options.

2) Take up spiritual pracitce.  Disciplined spiritual practice enables you to strengthen and sharpen the body verhicle.   Yoga, Tai Chii, Chi Gong and other practices prepare the body for meditation so you hear your soul clearly.  This is about harmonising your physical and energy bodies,  gaining insight into emotions as they arise and mastering your mind. Spiritual practices also exist to balance each chakra

3)See Beyond "You". Divinely-inspired activities that reflect a soul calling  are not motivated by ego or self-interest.  The human vehicle you use simply divine light in action and can allow grace to work through it. Spiritual practices allow you to deepen discernment so you recognize what is soulful or  not.

4) Notice synchronicity. When you follow inution, you come to discover a trail of synchronicity to guide you to make more choices that feel right.  The logical mind does not understand, does its best to question, instil doubt,  talk you out of listening. If you cannot explain why, its likely divinely inspired.

5) Nurture the unexplainable.   A divine idea is formless, much like truth itself is formless. Every divine idea comes down through your heart and mind and takes specific form with perfect timing.  When you are ready, it begins to take more concrete shape within you through feeling alone.  As you nurture what you cannot explain, you are allowing it to grow and emerge into the world in its own unique way.

12 Tips to deepen self-discovery

No matter who you work with as a guide, mentor or coach, no matter which courses you take or books you read that impact self-awareness, ultimately you are on a journey of self-discovery and progress at your own pace. Ponder these ten tips to deepen self-discovery with little or no money:

1) Look beyond traditional education.  Whatever it is you think you wish to learn or do, be aware many ways exist to obtain some insight for free.  Explore newsgroups, meet-ups, instructional Youtube videos.  Interview people, attend public lectures by those who have done it. The avenues are endless.

2) Nurture a creative art.  This is a way to unleash what cannot be said in words.  This is not about expressing it to an audience or gaining approval.  Its about translating inner knowing, revealing things and growing to trust yourself. Pottery, weaving, painting, design, dancing, knitting, or any combo of creative activities.  Whatever gets the juices flowing. Do it. 

3) Go on a group excursion in nature.  This could be anything from a bus trip and picnic lunch in a local park to a hike, extended canoe trip, mountain climbing or more rigorous trekking. Join a regular birdwatching group or walking group. Stillness speaks.  Interaction with new people can be suprising.

4) Research the mystical. This could include things like reading, watching films, going to an ashram, exploring meaning in night dreams, or taking up a spiritual internship with a mystic or shaman. Whatever it entails, ponder what enlightenment is and what it is to live life more fully.

5) Travel.  Put yourself in situations where you need to act on your feet. You could volunteer for an organisation, find a job abroad, be a live-in nanny, hitchhike or take your motorbike through new territory.  Whatever you choose, experiencing a different culture, learning a language, or fending for yourself in a foreign place allows you to see life from new vantage points.

6) Change your job or career.  Step outside the familliar.  Check out want-ads.  Try out for community theatre. Identify transferrable skills, new priorities or an inner longing to do whatever you have been postponing.  Now is the moment.

7) Face a fear. Whether its public speaking, sky diving, being more assertive or expressing yourself with more honesty to people in your life, take steps to show yourself that fear is an illusion that begins and ends in the mind.

8) Be entrepreneurial. You could start your own business, offer to be an apprentice or intern to test the waters or simply be more pro-active in different ways in your life.  Consider Jon Bon Jovi who started a restaurant where you give back in time or effort to the place rather than pay for the meal.  Imagine the possibilities.  A limit only exists when you believe in it.

9) Take a break. Take a year off from what you regularly do or had planned to do. This could be a gap year from school, a sabbatical from paid work, time to yourself away from relationships, a multi-month hiking trip, or maybe you join a crew on a ship sailing to a foreign desination. See what unfolds as you trust the universe.  Realize everything comes together.

10) Write.  Be it a diary, journal, blog, newspaper editorials, an email newsletter, contribute posts to a Facebook or other community group.  Discover what the power of words reveals.

11) Meditate.  Explore different meditation practices and listen to the wisdom of silence more often.  This is the way to rediscover what true listening is.  Its a practice humans tend to be conditioned away from.

12) Be an 'initiate'. This hard-to-define term implies a person who, through intense inner work, achieves enlightenment, illumination, and selflessness to work wholly out of the spiritual world for the sake of the world and humanity.

Be intensely aware

Be like a river.  It asks for nothing.  It has no direction or destination. Attention on particular directions introduces limitation.  Simply intuit what to do and which way to go. Cooperate with the inevitable, with the flow of life itself.  Be open.  Feel ways to navigate beyond what mind thinks. You start to see what you are ready to see. The flow sheds light, brings clarity, in ways that cannot be imagined.  When you are not focused on division, you surrender.

The mind is taught to focus and fixate on objects, to judge and develop dependence.  It contracts around what it can pin down.  It desires to control it.   Let go of noise.  Appreciate being unsure of what is unfolding in energy, light and unseen information.  Ease into a state of meditation on true awareness.  Introduce a question into the silent mind. BE that.