Just  to clarify, my presence is not new to ex-premie.org or this forum.  After attending the Miami Event in November 2001, I came home with a throbbing headache and the need to know why.  It was on my return that I was fortunate enough  to stumble upon this forum and the intelligent people writing for it. If not, I would be in an entirely different place. This forum and the information contained within ex-premie.org provided the balanced viewpoint I desperately needed before making a severe mistake. When I eagerly reproached my wife with some print-outs of Maharaji's corruption, her response was to tear it to shreds, spit on it, throw it on the floor, and declare it "lies!" That was when I realized this is not a joke, this is a cult, and I have a real problem because the person I love is involved down to her very core.

To answer your question, the event organizers must have known my name from a list of self-repudiated ex-premies on ex-premie.org.  Back then my moniker wasn't anonymous. To be clear, I never took knowledge, but came close. I attended many satellite programs and watched a number of videos in my community and at home. I haven't been lurking, but, in the past year and a half, "let sleeping dogs lie." My goal was not to attend Miami Beach, but for us to drive down together and, while she attended the event, I could do my own thing, and meet for dinner. Unfortunately, she interpreted my interest to go to Miami as interest in the event, and bought me a ticket against my objections. I better stop there before you think I'm a complete idiot.

To maintain the peace, my wife agreed not to play videos or cassettes when I'm at home. Also, she agreed not to hang up pictures of Maharaji. So, the only ones being indoctrinated are her, and the two cats, if they have nothing better to do.

In honesty, I do not take Maharaji seriously. But, I walk a fine line between my inner beliefs and my spouse's desire to practice knowledge. On the one hand, I don't want to ruin her joy, but on the other, I want to protect myself.  What confuses me is this: I think I at least have half a brain, and listening attentively to Maharaji, my reaction is this guy does not make sense. For me, listening to Maharaji is like watching a bad sitcom: you know the predictable story line before it happens, when to laugh and applaud, yet the 7000 people  around me are so enthralled, you might think they never watched television. Why do people allow themselves to trust a guy who cannot give three cohesive lectures for $125 a person? This boggles my mind.

The answer is obvious: people want to believe in his divinity. Similar to they way teenagers want to believe their rockstar can do no wrong. There is a reverence there that does not add up, for me. For the remaining 7000 attendees, they may think it was God talking about needing more money to save Amaroo.  All I heard was a middle aged man making a sales pitch.