For 30 years Mike Finch gave his total allegiance, his energy,
his devotion, his dreams, and his love to Guru Maharaji (the Lord
of the Universe, Prem Rawat). He also gave Maharaji and his
organizations two inheritances, a house, and hundreds of thousands
of dollars. As Maharaji's former chauffeur Mike was close to him
personally; he lived as a renunciate in Maharaji's ashrams, and was
authorized to reveal Maharaji's secret teachings. The book is a
narrative of Mike's time with Maharaji, and his struggle to
surrender his life to Maharaji, and to achieve the liberation that
Maharaji promised.
It is a story of being confined within a rigid belief system,
realizing it, and learning how to break out from it. It is a story
of how he came to live, think, feel, behave, and love, without 'the
Guru', meaning both Maharaji, as the actual guru in his life; and
in a more general sense of learning to face oneself and the world
without any intermediary or negotiator, of any kind, in
between.
Recommendation from Steve Hassan
I have recently made the time to finally read this fine book,
although I was sent a review copy over a year ago. I am glad that
Mike followed up and sent me another copy, and that we had the
chance to sit down for lunch, along with a brief addition of his
lovely life-partner Gail.
I have been doing my 'work' of helping former members and
raising awareness since I left my own involvement with the
Unification Church (yes, the Moonies) back in 1976. I say this
here, because it is rare that I get to learn from a fellow
traveler, a former member from another totalistic group, with
insights and perspectives that dovetail with some of my own
conclusions, but from a somewhat different orientation.
I heartily recommend this book for people to read. Not just
former members of Guru Maharaji (aka Prem Rawat), not just former
members of other eastern 'guru' groups, nor even other cult groups
of every shape size and orientation. It is a book that the general
public can benefit from reading - especially the last fifty or so
pages. I also think people who have been devoted to a religion of
any kind who have left it would find this insightful - but
particularly former long term members of high demand groups and
cults.
In my cult experience, my recruitment and indoctrination to have
utter and complete belief in Sun Myung Moon as the Lord of the
Universe paralleled Mike Finch's. They achieved my total submission
to Moon and his beliefs and practices and organization within a few
months. I dropped out of college, donated my bank account, turned
my back on poetry, art, my family, friends to work for the Messiah
and to 'save the world.' I was prepared to die or be killed for
Moon. I was also absolutely sure I would spend the rest of my life
doing his 'will.' That ended abruptly when I fell asleep while
driving a fundraising van, and my family did an intervention and
rescued me. When I learn about Lifton and brainwashing, Jonestown
and other cults - like Scientology, Krishna, TM, Children of God,
DLM - it became clear that all of these groups were deceptively
recruiting and using social influence techniques and other mind
control methods to enslave people. And so I began my crusade which
has lasted these several decades.
Mike Finch: He walked out on his own, with the help and prodding
of his life-partner Gail, who had woken up herself to the
realization that not only was Maharaji not the Lord incarnate, but
also that he was extremely abusive and harmful. She helped him see
what he knew from his experience was true.
This book, and his web site where he continues his exploration,
restarts his life and continues to evolve, surely is a very
important guide for the multitudes of people who are still in cult
groups after twenty or thirty years. He also offers them hope, that
you can come out, and reclaim your personal power and move
forward.
Read this book and share it with others
Steve Hassan
General
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