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This is the original transcript of Maharaji's comments on the fourth day of a training session that took place in Miami in 1999. The transcript was written by Chuck Nathan, and the only edits that have been done are the replacement of attendees names with initials, and a few very obvious spelling corrections.
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TOPICS/EXERCISES
7/1/99
9am
How are you this morning?
Couple of people approached the facilitator wondering why it wasn't happening. I'd like to talk a little about that.
How many of you, answer as honestly as you can, how many of you have truly assimilated these rules into yourself in your thinking process when you do an exercise? I would take issue awith anybody who raised their hand. That's the reason it's not gelling. This is further compounded by the fact they are called rules. If you speed limit in 60, you go 70. This is how we operate. This is now uncommon. So when the thing says rules, we take it and we say I don't know if I want to follow them but we butt them. We push them out of the way. But I've already explained and demystified them. To me these are tips for a better life, a better existence. If we can be conscious, even if we could ask ourselves am I being conscious, aware? If not, what can I do to become conscious? Am I too tired? Am I burning myself out? And making critical decisions at the worst possible time, but going on in the name of service? That's not conscious service. Analogy. You have a kid. He turns out to be a nuisance. A few years later you slap him because you know how his brother turned out so you're slapping the baby.
We have come here to start something that is different. But we are approaching it with all the apprehension of the past. Are we doing something new in an old way? Or are we doing something old in a new way? Given those choices only, could you pleased think about what we are doing here?
(Comments)
Let me point out something. For most premies who have been around for a long time.
Listen to this. All that stuff is fundamentally changed. I give K now 99.9% of the time. It was never done that way. The way the events happen, instructors used to do them. Now either you have a choice of video events you can watch live or there are video events. There's no middlemen anymore. It's all M M M. The way people are picked for K is completely different (drive all night, 17 hour K session, no breaks). Typically K sessions are within a minute 2 minutes of each other whether it is 10 or 1000 people. Things have changed. The answer is we're doing something new in a new way. But because we keep dragging in our past, we're going to do something old in a new way. What's going to happen, we're going to go back to doing old things in an old way. Do you know that I can guarantee that over 90% of the people with K realize there has been such a fundamental shift? Roads have been opened up. A lot more people want K. A lot of people have a complaint. People aren't active. They don't come to the video events. So the stats reflect that they are not active. They come when I come. They don't come to the video events. The next step is we're going to change that. A person who enjoys this life and practices K and participates, that is an active PWK, not just the ones who come to video events. We've got to get to that and we will.
These rule the fact that we've had a sour taste in our mouth about rules doesn't mean that these rules are bad. These are the best possible rules you can have. I can't force you to assimilate these into your life. But if you're going to be a team member, you have to assimilate these into your thinking. This is how you have to think, operate. This is how you have to operate.
Yesterday when you were going to fire people Jackie said we needed some criteria. That was very clear. If some basis had been there you would have used them. With the team, the rules are the criteria. Rules of engagement. In life you have to have the passion for those things that are extremely important to you. Because you have to do this, you have to do this. In all the have-tos you have to do, you lose the important things. So do you have a passion for this? You have to have that passion in order to follow these rules. How important is it to you? So far as we've seen for an event being put together, it's not going to be successful. So to make it nice, we've taken the event out, and said let's just do this little exercise because if the exercise was posed as an event it would scare the shit out of you. But if you would take this as seriously as preparing for an event, then you would take the rules seriously. Example: simulator for airplane pilots. You look out the window and it looks similar to the real thing, although not exactly. You take off; you see other planes coming at you. But anyone could see it's not real. But why do pilots sweat in the sim? Because they allow it to be real. Pilots allow it to be real to take it seriously.
In the sim you abort, you're stopped in the middle of the runway, the instructor slides you back to the beginning of the runway and says go again. But the pilots allow it to be real so the learning can be real. Amazingly enough, the mistakes that pilots make in the sim are the same ones they make in real life. Example: St. Petersburg crash. How real do you want this to be? This is dependent on your passion of how good of a team player you want to be. If mediocrity is fine with you, then that's how you've been acting. If not, you need to rise to the occasion. Yesterday we should never have had the amount of violations we had. You realize the next few tickets that get taken, that could be everything. You only get to make so many mistakes. Do you have the capability of being able to solve the problems? Do you want to? That's the problem. I can train you. I can make the training as good as I can, but I can't make you do it. You have to be the one to say I'm going to make this real. I want to be a team player.
Maybe this is that one thing that says rise. Then rise. You're here. I know you blame other people. The team isn't succeeding because there are 72 asholes, because that guy made a brain fart, because that guy keeps repeating himself. Why aren't are they, trey, they. Take ownership of the problem. You are a part of it. You are. There were people here that want to be leaders. Let me ask you, is captain a leader of the plane? How many say yes? OK he's not. There's a whole team that puts the baggage in. Do you think the captain decides on the food? ON where he's gong to go? It's predetermined. All the captain is is a head, not a leader. He heads the project, not the leader. There are teams and they do their bit. The stewardesses do their bit. Others do their bit. He doesn't make the rules. FAA does that. Typical day for a captain is he goes to dispatchers office. Dispatcher has done fuel loading, weather briefing, routing. Captain doesn't do that. Dispatcher does. He hands the captain a clipboard and signs off. Captain goes to the airplane and asks the copilot are you going to do the walk around? Captain looks at prior notes from last flight. Then he takes off.
Do you see the difference between a head and a leader? No one gets to abdicate their responsibility. There's a guy on the ground who resp for pushback. Gives clear, clear clear to captain for the flight. You don't need a leader. Don't look for a leader. Don't become a leader. I have the solution. Now I'm going to tell you when to do what. No more a team. How many of you are task oriented? Why? Give me something to do and tell me how to do it. You are a human being and you have a brain. There are those people who say I can cook as long as I have a good recipe book. They spend their life collecting recipe books, not learning how to cook. And then there are people who keep coming out with recipe books because they know people will buy them.
There's a raw onion flavor which is what you want in gazpacho. Then with onion soup all you need to do is sweat the onions. And then for Indian food, onions need to be caramelized But you have to know that. Recipe book doesn't tell you that. Season to taste it says in the recipe book. Many people jump ahead and put the salt in. Then they put half-and-half in. And it's all messed up. It doesn't work like that.
Don't get into leadership. Don't get into blaming game. Follow the rules. Assimilate the rules. They will help you.
(Question about leader)
Captain doesn't make all the decisions. Well he is the final decision, but it's already been drilled into him what you would do and not do. It's not left to the captain's whim.
He is not the leader. He's just allowing a fulfillment to happen. For example, Phyllis came up with the solution to Crossing the River, then she backed off and let other people take over. In the team itself, don't become a leader. Leader starts to take on decisions that are not anybodys. Captain is told when to take, which heading to turn to, where he can go, when he start down, when he go ahead and commence approach, when runway to use, which gate to pull into.
(Question about leader)
There are many teams. Different teams. We're talking about D's function as a head. He doesn't come up with a vision. Leader comes up with a vision. Captain doesn't decide what city to fly to. Captain has to do 6-month check. D will be facilitating, making that vision takes place, making sure those teams are doing their part. When people amongst you become a leader, they substitute me. Even in the exercise, they provide very bad leadership. Here the whole team, one team, one thing you have to work on is to become a team. The team becomes a team when it has a common purpose. And the common purpose is? To follow the rules.
There is no level of importance of the rules.
(Question about resistance): Does it help the team or hinder? Is is light outside or dark? If it solves the purpose of the team, it's dark. Why not? We want to stick the rod of truth up our asses. Religious fanatics. They're going to kill people in the name of God. Team. Does it accomplish the purpose of the team? Dark, light. What is the big deal?
It's like if someone graffiti on the Hindu temple, they'd get upset. Ten years ago they wouldn't care. But now its individual enterprise. How can I become a leader? Who defiled the temple? This is happening with Christianity, Moslem. How can I become popular? What can I say so that I can become popular? How can. That's a big mistake that people are making in America.
It's like your kid is on the street and you authorize them to go pick him up. Do you really want to give that kind of authority to cops? Not all cops are bad. I've seen some very good ones. There's a lot of cops that want to be soldiers, but they can't get into the army. So being a cop is next best thing. How much power how allowed to be put into these systems? How much resp have we abdicated? Cops take care of me, airlines take care of me, govt take care of me.
(Homework)
Very similar things. A lot different from the first homework you did.
(V announces Blind Quotations exercise)
I have a question for the facilitators. Did you admonish?
I love jokes. I love a good laugh. But there is a time for jokes and there is a time not to do it. So what does that show you, what message does that tell you? What does that tell you when you are joking and laughing and disturbing other groups? How many of you know that when you lived in an appt and make a racket or in a hotel room and you will be admonished? So why did you do it and disturb the other team members? Does that cover the respect rule? I don't get it. This is supposed to be the last day. I would be very concerned. Are you going to own this or not own this? But you say that every time. What's going on? Do you know, how many of you kids, how many of you were kids. Do you know your parents would make a rule and expect you to follow it within five minutes. They would just make up a rule at random. No one can talk in the car. Bam. Whoa. If little kids can be expected to follow rules, why can't you be expected to follow these rules? They are not being shoved down your throat. You're having prob with honesty, respect, participate. And these are the rules you came up with. Conif I have you, 10 sec, brain farts, no dark thoughts I gave you. We should be ready to go on to lifelong rules at this point. I don't know what to say. I find that to be an appalling behavior. It's not a big exercise. So you finished. What's the big deal? You want to talk about it. Can you see the other people still working on it? Isn't your rude behavior going to disturb others? Is that conscious behavior? Is that even a decent adult behavior? I'm not your father. You don't have to be rebellious with me. I'm on your side. The team is not a monster. The team is comprised of people just like you, same concerns, same weaknesses. Very very similar. I don't know.
You can't lose sight of what you're doing. A task is given to you and you lose sight of everything in order to complete the task. I did not come on purpose after the break. Another twist, right. M's not here. Of course he's not here. Am I going to be there physically? Probably not.
(Firing scenario exercise starts)
M instructions during the firing scenario exercise:
Each person should say what they do, not what they're going to do. This is a firing scenario, not a hiring scenario.
Will you have more time? What I hear is you accomplished the task but you needed more time to do it accurately. But did you accomplish the task if you didn't do it accurately? Don't waste a lot of time. Get time on your side? Every team player has to listen. You cannot expect people to keep repeating. It's the opposite of leadership when people abate responsibility. People stand in the back, "Oh could you repeat that?"
All the tables were doing a hiring scenario, I will do this, I will do that. Will you follow the rules? Yes, yes yes. I came around and said, "this is a firing scenario. What have you been doing?"
What would happen if you actually fired those people who you decided to fire? Did you do your task? So you didn't do the task. What did you do? Didn't follow the rules. Didn't do the task. Are we improving or degrading?
Now we've got valuable people who don't follow the rules. That's an oxymoron. Can you have that statement be accurate for this team? So now we need to come to a resolution.
Here you are again, not taking on the resp on possibly having to hurt someone's feeling. But it doesn't help the team and it doesn't help M. You know how many justifications there are in your head why someone shouldn't be fired and not one single one why someone should be. Which means you have just invented a car with a gas pedal and no brakes or vice versa. So this car is either going nowhere or it is doomed to failure. Wouldn't that be true in either of those scenarios.
I'm going to turn the scenario. How important is it to follow the rules. Those of you who got fired, stand up. How important is it for you to follow the rules. You realize if we keep doing this exercise every hour, you'll fire everbody. Very very bad scenario. You know why this is such a painful scenario? Any idea? It's real. There's something that everybody owns here and it's like wait a minute, Oh my God, I'm going to hurt someone's feeling. If reality is so painful to you, then imagine when you start working on a team on real events, how painful is that going to be, unless you decide not to hang anything. There's going to be a lot of gravedigging here. Things you thought were dead will come back to haunt you. You don't want to look at it. When you came for this training, you never thought you'd feel this feeling. You thought it would be all fun and games. But if we did that imagine how fake it would be. We'd be taking a whole bunch of people to do things who are completely diseased. It's like having a person with jaundice being the blood donor for an entire village. And then there will be more donors. It's not a question of what you do. Service comes in many shapes and sizes. It's what your intent is. Nothing is easy. That Montreal program, I was saying simplicity is not in the systems, it's in you. Here's a computer. IS it simple? No. I can make it very simple though if I approach it, work with it simply. We always want to change the systems. When the car crashes, we just change the car. And it crashes again. Does a car crash on its own?
There was a guy at Tamaimi airport. He had an old airplane with a prop to push. He put a piece of chalk in front of one of the wheels. He turned the prop. Didn't start. Then he pulled out throttle, more gas. Didn't start. More gas. Then the engine started, and with all the thrust it started going around in circles due to the chalk. So he grabbed a beam. Then the other wheel jumped the chalk. So he let go. And the plane started going down the taxiway with no one in it. It took off. Other people chased the airplane. The empty plane finally ran out of gas and landed in the Everglades. The people chasing it found it. There was nothing wrong with the plane. What does that tell you? Who causes crashes in airplanes? Airplanes are quite capable of flying themselves.
We're the ones causing the problem. How important is it to follow the rules. It's incredibly important.
(15 minute break)
11:57am
(Someone points out N is missing)
Maybe he didn't want to come
(Comments)
How many of you think that we asked N to stay out of here? It's a real situation. It's not an exercise.
(Comments)
What do you want me to do, go find him?
(Comments)
You have a problem. You better resolve it.
(Comments)
We're about to quadruple our problems, many many fold.
(Comments)
Figure it out.
(Comments)
(H leaves after going backstage with M and V)
Now you've got two people missing.
(Comments)
Maybe you should send someone to find H. You don't want to send someone to find H? H's feelings are going to be hurt.
(Someone comments they are here to learn from M)
I'm here to teach you, not the team.
(Comments)
This is a real situation. You made an exercise out of it. It's not an exercise. The things that are so obvious you're ignoring. What was unanimously agreed upon (to ask V a question), you don't have to send someone (to ask V), you can just ask the facilitator. You made an exercise out of it.
(Comments)
I was talking to V and I asked H if he wanted to talk to V.
(Comments)
(Team spokesperson apologizes to M)
Why are speaking so softly? Didn't we agree not to do this? Didn't we say this is a sign of disrespect? So why are we getting up and whispering? Rather than an apology, I would like an explanation of that, a unanimous concise explanation of why you keep speaking softly which. We're not able to change a very very simple behavior. Is this the amount of unconsciousness that you want to demonstrate? What is this demonstration of? Why are you disrespecting? What's your problem? If you were sitting in that cafeteria you'd be speaking louder than this, I know it. Here is a real situation and how are you handling this situation? For no reason at all, how many people have violated since the break? Is it necessary? What's going on here? Not interested? People are just speaking on top of each other, not following the 5-second rule that you made. Now there's a new protocol, you have to say you object. And what do you suppose will happen if you immediately say you object? What if they haven't grasped it yet?
It's too quick. Immediately, immediately. Does anybody object? You want to rob yourselves of the power, of the understanding and I don't know why. You're so interested, so selfish and mean spirited, you want to make a proposal and nobody object to it. You want to rule the show so bad that you want to invent rules that insure failure. Sabotage. You've gone so fast. You've lost two members instead of one. This is a very very precarious situation to be in, to want to be a team member and acting exactly opposite. When it's very clearly defined how to be a team member, why aren't you going in that direction? It leaves a lot of unanswered questions. How many of you distrust each other? Why? Why? You were part of it, but you still distrust other people. You are the one who got in an accident but the other guy is the bad driver. Do you
You don't trust each other and compound the problem. Haven't you heard me, what I've been saying here? That's what I was talking about, the 72 assholes. More you distrust, the worse it's going to be. Everyone who distrusts in this team is going to be a leader. How many people raised their hands? This shows many leaders you have. Have you ever sat next to a person driving and want to grab the wheel? That's what you've been doing. It doesn't matter how much you individually follow the rules, if you distrust there's never going to be a team. Checkmate. We can't proceed folks. Unless we resolve the problem of this distrust.
(A: M teach us how to trust)
Oh shut up. What do you think I"ve been doing for the last few days? I come here every morning. Why? Because I distrust you? I don't distrust you but you distrust yourselves and others. What you're telling me is my judgement is faulty. This is not a good situation. That's bizarre. You don't trust each other and I trust you. I must be an idiot. Why am I appearing every day in front of a group of people who have a high level of distrust? Problem is you are liars too. How many people raised their hands about the 72 assholes the first time it was asked? There were so few I was shocked. You can't do this, if you're going to lie and cheat and deceit. It's not going to work. If there's this level of distrust, there's not going to be a team. It's futile. It's an extremely bad situation. I really don't understand why don't you trust. It's too bad. We've wasted a lot of days.
(J apologizes to team for not trusting. Then others do too.)
I'm not accepting any apologies by the way. Do you think I should? You apologize and then do the same thing. To you apologies are cheap. I can't help you any more. You've got to resolve these differences yourself.
(M walks out)
(H returns)
(Comments)
(M returns)
You guys can't think the same way can you? When a river runs, all the water runs the same way. How come people start talking about all these other topics? That wasn't the topic I left you with. If everyone is talking about dogs and I start talking about fears, it's got to be some difference. So far you think you are the only right person, you're gong to have trouble connecting to this team.
Then the team got into laughter. Sharing the joy. Hey, this is serious. This is very serious. How serious? It's up to you. You obviously don't want to take it seriously. If something was holding a gun to my head, I'm not going to laugh; I'm going to say thank you and walk away. This is serious. Poeple are trying to make an effort to reconcile that trust that's been lacking. I fail to see the joke in it, the joy in it. All I see is a very serious situation. Maybe I'm just weird. To me it's all very serious. The fact that there needs to be a team, that I've spent so many days, my work. To me it's very very serious. And what do you think I was doing? How serious do you think it was for me to hear what you were saying? I was standing right in front of a speaker so I could hear every single thing that was said. I wanted to hear. I didn't want to be physically present in case all you were doing was trying to impress me. I wanted to see how serious you took this. Every time you went off on a tangent, it was an incredibly painful thing for me. Why can't everyone head on down the same direction? We start talking about this, that. Here we're trying to fix the problem why you're not merging with the team and you're talking about procedures. It doesn't make sense to me. Who cares? Please people. It's very simple. You've made it difficult by being so individualistic. You want this team to do your proposal. Everyone else's proposal is wrong. Someone makes a proposal but they aren't listened to because people want to do it their way. Selfish. This is not a good situation. I believe you; some of you tried to come together. Others tried to sabotage it. Something beautiful started to happen. Why can't we think the same direction? Not the same way, the same direction. I'm not asking you to be robots. Trust. Let's stick to this topic. Let's get this somewhere. This is not good. You're bringing this out at such a late point in the training. Day and a half left. And you say you don't trust these people. This is the epitome of dishonesty. Well, what we need to do is take a lunch break. One hour.
(Lunch break)
2:20pm
So, what have we concluded? Any conclusions?
(Comments)
Is that unanimous or is that independent thinking?
Well, think about for a few seconds, please.
(Silence)
Anybody who feels they can't go on? Can't resolve these trust issues in them?
OK, well, let's try to put our best foot forward. That's what the time is for. I'd like to have the rear row move about a foot and a half back.
What we're going to do is first we're going to have this group go to this group that you want to clear the air with, OK? Clear the air means someone has done something, you want to tell them about it, maybe someone said something, maybe someone did something. When one of you comes here, you can't speak. You stay seated, the other person stands. You can't react or respond. You just stay put and listen to it. Then the other group has a chance. So let's begin. This is not apology time. This is to clear any beef, any animosity, any problem. That's what I said. Chance to clear the air. Then the other group will do it with you.
(Group one clears the air)
So is this group done? OK. Now the other group.
(Group two clears the air)
OK, within the group, anybody.
OK, what we're going to do, starting at one end, and take your time, and go to each person and look them in the eye and very sincerely and very honestly -- there are some things that we need to do and those things need very much to come form our heart, from very much inside -- and go to each person and say "I will not judge you" and mean it. We're going to start from here and go around like this.
(Team does "I will not judge you.")
4:20pm
Well, how do you all feel? Hmm? Heavier? Lighter? Not so light? Not so heavy?
Well, we put our best foot forward. Not beat ourselves over the head. Follow the rules. Be a team. And go forward.
(20 minute break)
4:47pm
Just a reminder. What's the purpose of the exercise? It's not a difficult exercise. The hint is how you approach it. Don't let it trip you up. Don't follow dark thoughts. If you follow the rules you'll be fine.
(V gives instructions for Maze exercise)
(Said jokingly) V always gives clear, concise instructions. (Put in facilitator checklist)
Don't start solving any problems while he's reading the instructions. You can really trip yourself up that way.
Did you give them 45 minutes V? You're so genereous.
(Maze exercise starts)
(During the Maze Exercise one of the facilitators blows the whistle really loud and M tells them not to.) (Put in facilitator checklists)
5:55pm
Well folks, that was a lot better. You really made an attempt to follow the rules. Worked a lot better. Everyone wants to help. The better you follow the rules. It's possible for you to do. Things were definitely a lot better.
L - your'e brilliant - and I know you're brilliant because you remember the instructions. But when something's happening you have to back off. Not everything you say will be right. It's nothing personal. I know you've got the smarts because the first few days you were the one who remembered the instructions.
No home work. I think you can just feel good. Something really turned. I think people really made the attempt. This exercise is one of my favorites. There's uncertainty. You have to experiment. Every time you step on a wrong tile there is a whistle. In anything we're going to do as a team, maybe there's going to be an event in Tn. Not too long ago I was in Alabama. People were looking at me. Maybe they've never seen an Indian. Sitting in back of a Mercdedes driven by a white person.
There's needs to be experimenting. Feedback may come back that sounds negative, but it's not really negative.
Sit's really a trick. Don't let yourself If you follow the rules, I'll help you. I don't have a problem with that. It's really quite easy. Everyone does their bit. Not taking leadership. The one group couldn't get it, they only one left. Then someone took a chance and then they fond it.
Taking a chance. Or they had bribed the facilitator. I think you all did good. Stay with it. My personal experience is people do good and relax and then they forget the rules.
We're also going to make the lifelong rule . Basically one word. Think about that. Makes it easy. Just one. Hopefully this can become second nature and we can move on. Then tomorrow we can do something really enjoyable.
You're almost there. There's another exercise that you did not finish. You know which one. So. But you did good. See D, it does turn. The tide. Any questions?
(Comment)
I thought it was brilliant in the lst group coming up with this "and "thing.
In your house or apartment you can paint the tiles. Honey you can't come until walk the maze. Your kid can blow the whistle on mommy walking across the tiles.
(someone asks a question about the Firing Scenario Exercise)
You don't have to use the word fired. You can say relieved, relieved of your service. But at the end of the day, it means the same damn thing.
It's never going to be easy. The whole world is looking for the solution. 2 questions. Is God really there? How to fire a person easily? Is there a God? yes. Is there an easy way to fire a person? No.
But if we can swtich. Then hiring a person is done right. On the Malibu staff, I have everyone's resignation. They're just not signed. When I want to fire someone, I just have to put a date on it. I've never fired anybody. Most people tend to leave automatically. I don't think there should be an hesitation. Firing is just the tiop of the iceberg. Concepts. Soup. We can't do that. Errors made every day, every day.
(Someone asks if a person is found stealing if they should ever get a second chance)
Well, should they ever be allowed to return. Hopefully there would be a screening, thorough evaluation. It's incumbent on that person to prove to you that they would never do that again. What have you done to change that behavior? The person says I had a problem, I dealt with the problem. I have done this or that. And you look at it.
Our emphasis should be on screening the person before they are brought into the system, not on firing.
I think you all took a turn for the better. Relax. This training is going to come back to you. This is not what you thought was going to happen. You play catchup all the way through. You're always behind the power curve. Those people who have been through the training see how easy it is. Once you go back and rest a little bit and reflect on it, it's going to come like flood waters. Wow, wow, wow, wow. It's intense training but it's good. If it's not intense, guess how ong we'd be here. We'd be really really old.
I have nothing else. Tomorrow at 9am. Dinneer at 7:30pm.
You might want to think about the lifelong. So enjoy yourselves.
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