Joe-excellent analysis of the 70's and the "perfect master meltdown"...

To take it a step further, I think we saw:

1972-73-probably the most "innocent" period, leading to the 1973 millenium meltdown, then resurrected in 74&75, followed by the turbulent and infamous 1976 period in which premies began to have "workshops' and realized how programmed they had become...this meltdown was followed by the "super devotional-- this isn't your father's satguru" period of 1977, 78, 79, in which I think maharaji rebounded from almost losing the "mastership" as Mischler and others urged, into roaring back into devotion for one last try...

The 2 kissimmee festivals were big events, although after the last one, I remember the "vibe" just wasn't there in the communities very much, and satsang got really wierd and boring beyond belief, as premies tried to squeeze some magic out of the old s,s&m formula (S&M might be more appropriate?)..

Then the "secret project" the 707, pulled the action to Miami, although that was followed by the realization that the plane was a bust, too big, too polluting for US standards, too expensive, and eventually sold to another "maha', the maharishi....

I think at that period, in the early 80's, maharaji began to realize that he had milked this same old crowd for all it was worth...every "high" period was followed by a bust, and the propagation efforts never materialized beyond the original crew and a few friends etc...every big project eventually became a nightmare, with no increase in numbers...he couldn't "jump start" the premies into more devotion, so he blamed the premies, who were getting more burned out...

When Deca ran dry, and wierd, the ashrams were closed, and maharaji ran back to malibu...in one of the early ev websites, they noted that maharaji went into "semi-retirement" in the 83-84 period....I remember seeing Dettmers at that time in a meeitng he led, and he described maharaji as "in transition", or "waiting for the next phase" or something like that...

Then came the instructor programs in the mid 80's, which after a big hype, also went nowhere...I think he "came out" a bit then, smoking and drinking with premies, trying to pick up premie chicks...(a friend just told me the other day that his friend left the fold then-apparently his final "drip" was being at one of those instructor conferences and after listening to maharaji the whole day, he came down to the bar late at night, and saw maharaji apparently putting the "moves' on one of the female participants, and maharaji gave him the old "wink and a nod", as if to say to the premie "not bad, huh"...at least that was his take, and he wasn't seen again....)

I think he was always drinking and getting stoned regularly, but I think that in the early to mid 80's is when he really realized he was full of shit as far as the "perfect master"schtick went...also, it was 1981-2 when the "purge" happened, and all the old devotional materials were supposed to be thrown out...(nice move by Hilltop and others in keeping them in their attics and basements...)..it was also around 1984-5 that the "retreat" happened at San Yisidro ranch, where maharaji was confronted by premies for the first time, and possibly by his wife about his excessive drinking...

I remember many premies basically wondering "what's going on?" then, trying to figure out what to do next in their lives, especially the ashram ones, who were generally wandering around in a state of shock....

Fast forward to the late 90's when he started making noises about the "unique vision", "the new era of propagation", "secret trainings", "the 70's enthusiasm,with the 90's maturity" or some such clap trap etc.....

Once again I think he realized that it's not going anywhere, and declared that knowledge might become a "select club", especially after the emergence of the EPO site....

I think that his final attempt, after a long hiatus, was in the late 90's, but thank god for the internet, and the rest as they say, is history...

I think EPO was so much more effective at exposing him as a charlatan than he will ever admit, and I think the only hope he has left is keeping the few remaining premies with silly projects and things to do in order to keep donations rolling in the west, and keep the indian premies busy with large festival where he can get the devotion hs is so addicted to...