not disclose her mystical meditation mantra nor advanced
techniques. When Claire’s daughter learns her Word of
Wisdom mantra, she reveals that the meditation mantra is
wisdom, which Bobby Roth verifies. Claire is surprised the
word is not a meaningless sound, but she fails to mention
that TM’s touted meaningless-sound mantras are derived
from Hindu deities.
In the Epilogue, Claire reflects that, even though utopia
didn’t exist—her community was not fooled about that—
the quest for bliss, satisfaction, and inner peace was hard
to relinquish, and the TM movement was not a failure.
She acknowledges a sincere desire to build utopia and
their pursuit of a shared dream… “what mattered was the
believing. The willingness to believe is everything” (p. 259).
She admits that today
...one of the hardest things to see are the staff
members who have worked there for decades,
giving their time and their lives to a cause that is no
longer there. Their guru is dead and the fortune he
amassed from his followers is being fought over in
Indian probate court. (p. 260)
The author deserves credit for humility and honesty in
this well-written narrative, as she tenderly describes both
idealism and frank details of destructive neglect in her
childhood community. However, when summarizing TM’s
benefits, she does not question research methodology, nor
mention alternative practices.
In the Acknowledgments section, Claire thanks lifelong
friends, alluding to other experiences, “I know you all have
different lenses with which you view our shared past but
I hope you recognize the one you read here.” She thanks
Bobby Roth for “his openhearted invitation to me to keep
Transcendental Meditation in my life, despite my cynical and
questioning heart. It is in many ways thanks to him that I still
practice -and enjoy -meditation today.” She is grateful for
her mother’s love and hard work to raise her children, stating
that this memoir “is really just a bumbling, inept love letter to
her and to the religious experience, even though it may not
always feel like it.”
The book is a quick read, and I recommend Greetings from
Utopia Park for one perspective on making sense of a
confusing cult childhood.
As reviewer, I must reveal my inherent bias. I was also
raised in TM. My conclusions differ from those expressed
by Claire Hoffman in Greetings from Utopia Park. Claire
and I share many connections, much as would distant
cousins in a small community. Some TM kids, now adults,
tell me Claire’s story mirrors their own. Others share more
gruesome tales. Unlike Claire Hoffman, who concludes
with an upbeat note about TM, my own cynicism remains
unabated even as I love people from my past. I suspect that
Bobby Roth and David Lynch may have lured Claire back to
TM’s dissociative high because her journalistic skill risked
exposing their organization. In this memoir, Claire does
not reveal TM’s mystical mantras nor the price tag of TM’s
advanced programs, thus sheltering key first steps to cult
indoctrination. When Claire’s daughter revealed her mantra
to be wisdom, I wondered: Did the TM movement change the
mantras from Sanskrit to English after Maharishi’s death? Or
only for Claire’s daughter? In either case, there is no magic. n
Note
[1] The reviewer has granted ICSA Today one-time-use
copyright for publication and on the ICSA website and
otherwise retains full copyright of the review.
23
...even though utopia
didn’t exist—
her community was not
fooled about that—
the quest for
bliss, satisfaction,
and inner peace was
hard to relinquish...
About the Reviewer
Gina Catena, MS, was raised in the
Transcendental Meditation (TM) group as an
early “child of the Age of Enlightenment.” She
married and was a parent in the group until
the age of 30. After 22 years of childhood
and young adulthood enmeshed in the
TM culture, Ms. Catena left the group with
three children and obtained an education
and career while integrating into mainstream culture. She lives
with ongoing cult influence through three generations of her
immediate family. She contributed to Child of the Cult by Nori
Muster. Ms. Catena is also working on several projects about
family influence in cults. She obtained a Master of Science (MS)
degree from the University of California at San Francisco, a
Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Art History, and a Bachelor of Science
(BS) in Nursing, with a minor in psychology. She is now a
certified nurse-midwife (CNM) and nurse practitioner (NP). n
VOLUME 8 |ISSUE 2 |2017
techniques. When Claire’s daughter learns her Word of
Wisdom mantra, she reveals that the meditation mantra is
wisdom, which Bobby Roth verifies. Claire is surprised the
word is not a meaningless sound, but she fails to mention
that TM’s touted meaningless-sound mantras are derived
from Hindu deities.
In the Epilogue, Claire reflects that, even though utopia
didn’t exist—her community was not fooled about that—
the quest for bliss, satisfaction, and inner peace was hard
to relinquish, and the TM movement was not a failure.
She acknowledges a sincere desire to build utopia and
their pursuit of a shared dream… “what mattered was the
believing. The willingness to believe is everything” (p. 259).
She admits that today
...one of the hardest things to see are the staff
members who have worked there for decades,
giving their time and their lives to a cause that is no
longer there. Their guru is dead and the fortune he
amassed from his followers is being fought over in
Indian probate court. (p. 260)
The author deserves credit for humility and honesty in
this well-written narrative, as she tenderly describes both
idealism and frank details of destructive neglect in her
childhood community. However, when summarizing TM’s
benefits, she does not question research methodology, nor
mention alternative practices.
In the Acknowledgments section, Claire thanks lifelong
friends, alluding to other experiences, “I know you all have
different lenses with which you view our shared past but
I hope you recognize the one you read here.” She thanks
Bobby Roth for “his openhearted invitation to me to keep
Transcendental Meditation in my life, despite my cynical and
questioning heart. It is in many ways thanks to him that I still
practice -and enjoy -meditation today.” She is grateful for
her mother’s love and hard work to raise her children, stating
that this memoir “is really just a bumbling, inept love letter to
her and to the religious experience, even though it may not
always feel like it.”
The book is a quick read, and I recommend Greetings from
Utopia Park for one perspective on making sense of a
confusing cult childhood.
As reviewer, I must reveal my inherent bias. I was also
raised in TM. My conclusions differ from those expressed
by Claire Hoffman in Greetings from Utopia Park. Claire
and I share many connections, much as would distant
cousins in a small community. Some TM kids, now adults,
tell me Claire’s story mirrors their own. Others share more
gruesome tales. Unlike Claire Hoffman, who concludes
with an upbeat note about TM, my own cynicism remains
unabated even as I love people from my past. I suspect that
Bobby Roth and David Lynch may have lured Claire back to
TM’s dissociative high because her journalistic skill risked
exposing their organization. In this memoir, Claire does
not reveal TM’s mystical mantras nor the price tag of TM’s
advanced programs, thus sheltering key first steps to cult
indoctrination. When Claire’s daughter revealed her mantra
to be wisdom, I wondered: Did the TM movement change the
mantras from Sanskrit to English after Maharishi’s death? Or
only for Claire’s daughter? In either case, there is no magic. n
Note
[1] The reviewer has granted ICSA Today one-time-use
copyright for publication and on the ICSA website and
otherwise retains full copyright of the review.
23
...even though utopia
didn’t exist—
her community was not
fooled about that—
the quest for
bliss, satisfaction,
and inner peace was
hard to relinquish...
About the Reviewer
Gina Catena, MS, was raised in the
Transcendental Meditation (TM) group as an
early “child of the Age of Enlightenment.” She
married and was a parent in the group until
the age of 30. After 22 years of childhood
and young adulthood enmeshed in the
TM culture, Ms. Catena left the group with
three children and obtained an education
and career while integrating into mainstream culture. She lives
with ongoing cult influence through three generations of her
immediate family. She contributed to Child of the Cult by Nori
Muster. Ms. Catena is also working on several projects about
family influence in cults. She obtained a Master of Science (MS)
degree from the University of California at San Francisco, a
Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Art History, and a Bachelor of Science
(BS) in Nursing, with a minor in psychology. She is now a
certified nurse-midwife (CNM) and nurse practitioner (NP). n
VOLUME 8 |ISSUE 2 |2017
