Sieveking's struggle and goal was to produce thrillingly "cryptic, abysmal" movies just like his big idol David Lynch. With this documentary he found his abyss within the TM Organisation and its members - their denial, secrecy and dubious projects.
In a way it's maybe the most lynchian film I've ever seen. Starring Lynch himself who probably didn't want to appear in it and even wanted to sue the director! It can't get more absurd than that and I really love it. In his quest of becoming like his idol, Sieveking got to meet and subsequently rejected and even threatened with a sue by him... I just love the irony and poignancy of that. At first I wasn't sure about it, but ultimately I liked that he showed intimate scenes from his private life. It all was very "real" and raw. It's not just about TM and the harsh, dark side of spiritual business but also his personal spiritual seeking - while in the beginning he is motivated mainly by wanting to get creative ideas for movies he later on seems to develop a more serious interest in "enlightenment", liberation, and how it can be achieved.
I admired both the courage but also innocence and openness with which the director approached this documentary and his quest. He seemed to genuinely want to give TM a serious try and he did. I think he was pretty fair in his investigation and the things he disclosed and that the threat to sue he reiceved was absolutely unwarranted.
It's a difficult subject really because I'm convinced TM and meditation in general do bring about wonderful and potentially life changing benefits. However even the world of meditation and spirituality isn't as pure as you'd like to imagine. There are complications that come with propagating and wanting to spread such a technique on a very wide scale. You run into questions of business and money that can render the spiritual/practical side of it questionable and evoke the greedy egotistical side of humans. Before I never really understood the allegations of TM being a cult or scam but after having watched this I can comprehend it.
The Organisation, as becomes obvious very soon, isn't as pure in its intentions as it pretends to be. What's the functions of all those rajas, what are they needed for? Why the rivalry and distrust even among them? Why do you have to pay such absurdly high amounts of money to become one? Why is everyone so super secretive about everything? The aggression and rejection towards anybody who dares to question it or expose certain aspects of it really exposes its dubiosity and questionable hidden agenda. Also some details and dark secrets about Maharishi himself are disclosed by former devotees. The power struggles within the organisation that promotes world peace, huge amounts of donations that never got used properly, etc. Especially the statements of "Raja Emanuel" later on and how Lynch defended him were interesting and baffling!
Perhaps this documentary really also in a way deals not only with the collective shadow of the TM Organisation but also that which especially many Germans still carry with them - the guilt, shame and resulting distrust, hypervigilance and scepsis of anything to do with "following" leaders, religions or organisations...
It seems that Lynch's secrecy is one of the main ingredients to the "abysses" in his movies... Which Sieveking seems to lack completely. I found his openness refreshing, but at times I thought he was a bit naive in his conception of enlightenment and world peace - it doesn't mean you won't face difficulties in life such as breaking up with your girlfriend f.e.
As a fan of Lynch myself I was a bit baffled and disappointed in his denial of the obvious shadow of this Organisation. Also I noticed he dodged and didn't clearly answer many of the questions. But I guess it's good to see that he's just a human with flaws, too.
It does seem that at the end the director and protagonist has come closer to finding his own path and way of expression. I think his seeking for truth and self expression wasn't in vain, even if much of the TM business remains a secret.
I personally would have been interested in a clear statement of him on TM and if he will keep practicing it. But I also like that he remains pretty neutral, just gives a glimpse into the reality and leaves the conclusions to the viewer.
In a way it's maybe the most lynchian film I've ever seen. Starring Lynch himself who probably didn't want to appear in it and even wanted to sue the director! It can't get more absurd than that and I really love it. In his quest of becoming like his idol, Sieveking got to meet and subsequently rejected and even threatened with a sue by him... I just love the irony and poignancy of that. At first I wasn't sure about it, but ultimately I liked that he showed intimate scenes from his private life. It all was very "real" and raw. It's not just about TM and the harsh, dark side of spiritual business but also his personal spiritual seeking - while in the beginning he is motivated mainly by wanting to get creative ideas for movies he later on seems to develop a more serious interest in "enlightenment", liberation, and how it can be achieved.
I admired both the courage but also innocence and openness with which the director approached this documentary and his quest. He seemed to genuinely want to give TM a serious try and he did. I think he was pretty fair in his investigation and the things he disclosed and that the threat to sue he reiceved was absolutely unwarranted.
It's a difficult subject really because I'm convinced TM and meditation in general do bring about wonderful and potentially life changing benefits. However even the world of meditation and spirituality isn't as pure as you'd like to imagine. There are complications that come with propagating and wanting to spread such a technique on a very wide scale. You run into questions of business and money that can render the spiritual/practical side of it questionable and evoke the greedy egotistical side of humans. Before I never really understood the allegations of TM being a cult or scam but after having watched this I can comprehend it.
The Organisation, as becomes obvious very soon, isn't as pure in its intentions as it pretends to be. What's the functions of all those rajas, what are they needed for? Why the rivalry and distrust even among them? Why do you have to pay such absurdly high amounts of money to become one? Why is everyone so super secretive about everything? The aggression and rejection towards anybody who dares to question it or expose certain aspects of it really exposes its dubiosity and questionable hidden agenda. Also some details and dark secrets about Maharishi himself are disclosed by former devotees. The power struggles within the organisation that promotes world peace, huge amounts of donations that never got used properly, etc. Especially the statements of "Raja Emanuel" later on and how Lynch defended him were interesting and baffling!
Perhaps this documentary really also in a way deals not only with the collective shadow of the TM Organisation but also that which especially many Germans still carry with them - the guilt, shame and resulting distrust, hypervigilance and scepsis of anything to do with "following" leaders, religions or organisations...
It seems that Lynch's secrecy is one of the main ingredients to the "abysses" in his movies... Which Sieveking seems to lack completely. I found his openness refreshing, but at times I thought he was a bit naive in his conception of enlightenment and world peace - it doesn't mean you won't face difficulties in life such as breaking up with your girlfriend f.e.
As a fan of Lynch myself I was a bit baffled and disappointed in his denial of the obvious shadow of this Organisation. Also I noticed he dodged and didn't clearly answer many of the questions. But I guess it's good to see that he's just a human with flaws, too.
It does seem that at the end the director and protagonist has come closer to finding his own path and way of expression. I think his seeking for truth and self expression wasn't in vain, even if much of the TM business remains a secret.
I personally would have been interested in a clear statement of him on TM and if he will keep practicing it. But I also like that he remains pretty neutral, just gives a glimpse into the reality and leaves the conclusions to the viewer.