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Musicians Paul McCartney, left, and Ringo Starr participate in press conference to promote
the 'Change Begins Within' benefit concert for the David Lynch Foundation and to support
an initiative to teach 1 million at-risk youth to meditate, Friday, April 3, 2009 in New York.
(AP Photo/Evan Agostini)
It was over 40 years ago when The Beatles and other musicians took a vacation in 1968 to relax and meditate and escape the stresses of celebrity life. But instead of going to a tropical island or luxurious resort, they went to an isolated area in Rishikesh, India to experience the teachings of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, a transcendental meditation, or TM, guru. John Lennon said about TM at the time: "There's none of this sitting in the lotus position or standing on your head. You just do it as long as you like...Makes you happy, intelligent and more energy."
Now, 40 years later, many of the musicians on the trip including Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Donovan, Mike Love and Paul Horn are reuniting to get the message out about the benefits of teaching meditation to children. Director David Lynch has brought all these celebrities together for the "Change Begins Within" benefit concert scheduled for Saturday, April 4 at Radio City Music Hall. The concert will raise money to support the David Lynch Foundation which aims to teach 1 million at-risk youth to meditate.
At a press conference in New York on April 3, Paul McCartney recalled: "It was a great gift the Maharishi gave us. For me, it came at a time when we were looking for something to kind of stabilize us towards the end of the crazy '60s, and it is -- it's a lifelong gift. It's something that you can call on at any time and I think it's a great thing."
Donovan added: "41 years ago, or was it last year, boys? --we traveled to India to see if it was true what we'd only read about in the books-- that meditation is the real way to be fulfilled. We found it to be true and we sang out the good news in our songs. It's really simple -- change begins within."
[Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and Donovan (AP Photo)]
David Lynch explained: "I've seen schools that were in bad trouble get this technique for the whole school and within one year 180-degree turnaround, night to day. It is so beautiful. It's not a surface cure...[TM] changes them from within. No more teacher burnout, changes the teachers from within.... and it really and truly works."
Mike Love of the Beach Boys said: "I think the David Lynch Foundation's goal to teach a million children meditation is definitely an indication that there is definitely an age of enlightenment to be had. And that will be like a million steps in the direction of world peace."
For more info: Visit www.davidlynchfoundation.org. To see pictures documenting the Beatles 1968 trip to India, read "The Beatles in Rishikesh" by Paul Saltzman.
Comments
Way to go Trina :-)
Great cause! My kids started practicing Transcendental Meditation years ago, and it's helped them grow into mentally clear, emotionally grounded people. It works. See www.tm.org
Didn't Ringo & Paul play on a song called "Sexy Sadie?"
Makes you wonder why they had a change of heart toward Maharishi...
The Beatles never had a falling out with Maharishi. That was a rumor created by one of there "hangers on" and perpetuated by the press back then. George was still involved right up to his death. I know Paul is very into it because I know him and we spoke about it.... They were always involved
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