The Beatles in India

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Life at the ashram

There were probably about sixty of us at the ashram, an interesting collection of people from across the world—Sweden, Britain, America, Germany, Denmark—and everyone was so nice. Despite that, we felt cut off from the rest of the world so it was always exciting when letters came in the post—my mother wrote regularly with news of home—or when others joined us. One of the newcomers was Donovan, with his manager, “Gipsy Dave.” We had known Donovan for some years. He and the Beatles had recorded together, and he’d contributed to the Yellow Submarine album. He had fallen in love with Jenny—for whom he wrote “Jennifer Juniper.” Mike Love, lead singer of the Beach Boys, also turned up, as did the actress Mia Farrow, with her brother Johnny and sister Prudence.

Pattie Boyd – From “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me“, 2008

An average day there was very much like a summer camp. You would get up in the morning and go down to a communal breakfast. Food was vegetarian (which is good for me now) and I think we probably had cornflakes for breakfast. After breakfast you would go back to your chalet, meditate for a little while, have a bit of lunch and then there might be a talk or a little musical event. Basically it was just eating, sleeping, and meditating–with the occasional little lecture from Maharishi thrown in.

There were probably about a hundred of us. There would be a lot of flowers on the stage and then Maharishi would come in. It was almost magical. He would say, ‘This is only a system of meditation. I’m not asking you to believe in any great God or any great myth. It’s merely a system to help you to be calmer in your own life.’

I still think it’s good for that exact reason. I don’t buy any of those other stories about flying and levitation, although it interests me now because you can actually take courses where you learn these ‘siddhis’, as they call them, and you fly – you bounce off the ground a bit. I well remember a little chat we had with Maharishi when we asked him if levitation was possible. Fde said, ‘Well, I can’t do it, but I know a fellow in the next village who can.’ And we said, ‘Can we get him here? We’d love to see it.’ That would have been something to write home about, but we never did get to meet him.

Paul McCartney – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

We had breakfast outside and monkeys used to come and steal the bread. After breakfast, we’d usually have a morning of meditation in groups, on the roof. Then after lunch we’d do the same.We did a lot of shopping. We all had Indian clothes made because they could do it right there: huge silly pants with very tight legs and a big body that you’d tie up tight, Nehru collars. We got right into it.

Ringo Starr – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

People on the meditation course were off on their own, meditating ten to twelve hours a day. The Beatles spent their time meditating, resting, writing songs, and attending the Maharishi’s lectures, or talking with him on the roof of his bungalow.

Paul Saltzman – From “The Beatles in Rishikesh” by Paul Saltzman, 2000

I asked if [The Beatles] minded my taking some pictures. Nobody minded at all. It was like a large easy family of meditators, and now I was included. I had my Pentax camera with 50mm and 135mm lenses, and although I had never been a photographer, I liked taking pictures. With the Beatles it was simply the fan in me.

Paul Saltzman – From “The Beatles in Rishikesh” by Paul Saltzman, 2000

The Beatles and their group ate at the table by the cliff, shaded by a flat thatched roof covered with vines and held up by white wooden poles. Breakfasts were cereal, toast, juice, tea and coffee. Lunch and dinners were soup, plain basmati rice, and bland but nutritious vegetarian dishes with almost no spices.

Paul Saltzman – From “The Beatles in Rishikesh” by Paul Saltzman, 2000

One afternoon Donovan, Mal, John, Paul, George, Cynthia, Jane, Pattie, Pattie’s sister Jennie, and I were sitting around chatting talking about India, the Maharishi’s teachings, and the beautiful ashram surroundings. Some were relieved to be in the lovely warmth, glad to be missing “the usual British winter.” We talked briefly about meditation, in general agreeing that more than one voice would play in one’s thoughts and the key was to simply go back to one’s mantra. John said, “Not so easy, really. I often have music playing in me head.” George seemed the most serious about meditation, followed by John. Paul seemed less serious, but he’d had several profound experiences, he said, enjoying the time he dropped away from busy, worldly thoughts. Ringo was the least interested.

Paul Saltzman – From “The Beatles in Rishikesh” by Paul Saltzman, 2000

As I spent time with the Beatles, together or individually, Paul was the most overtly warm and friendly. Jane Asher was a lovely-hearted woman whose striking red hair framed a freckle-filled face of beauty and intelligence. Unlike the other Beatles and their partners, Jane and Paul were openly tactile and affectionate. They had been together for five years, and although Paul would say in the months after Rishikesh, after they had broken up, that he had not been in love with Jane, he also said that she had inspired some of his most beautiful love songs.

Paul Saltzman – From “The Beatles in Rishikesh” by Paul Saltzman, 2000

The events

February 15, 1968 – John Lennon and George Harrison arrive at the ashram

On February 14, 1968, the Beatles’ assistant, Mal Evans, travelled to India, transporting luggage belonging to George and Pattie Harrison, her sister Jenny, and John and Cynthia Lennon.

The next day, John, Cynthia, George, Pattie, and Jenny flew from London to Delhi. In Delhi, they were met by Mal Evans and Mia Farrow. Mal had arranged for three taxis to take the group from Delhi to Rishikesh, where they were to study meditation with the Maharishi. The journey covered about 150 miles.

Then one morning, the third week in February, Maharishi made the announcement that the first group of Beatles and their friends were arriving that afternoon. “Please remember, I have offered these young people a quiet refuge from being celebrities. | promised them they would not be molested in any way by news seekers. Please do not have any cameras near them, do not ask for their autographs, and treat them no differently than anyone else here.”

I wished he would take his own advice. He had even planned a private dining area for them. Actually, no one was that interested in the celebrities. We were more interested in the wisdom Maharishi had to offer, and the announcement came as a surprise to no one. The minute we had started on the “beautification program,” everyone knew it was for someone very special; who else could it be but The Beatles?

Nancy Cooke de Herrera – From “All you need is love : an eyewitness account of when spirituality spread from the East to the West” by Nancy Cooke de Herrera, 2003

From Delhi, we took taxis for the six-hour journey to Rishikesh. The road was full of bicycles and oxcarts, donkeys and sacred cows. It was a hotchpotch of noise, and the smell of dung and spices hung in the air. As we left the city the dust rose, and through it we saw women working in the fields in bright saris, red and yellow, purple and green. We passed fields of wheat, mountains and rivers — it was an amazing drive.

Rishikesh nestles beside the Ganges at the point where the river cascades out of the Himalayas into the plains. The ashram was at the top of a hill overlooking the town and the river; the air was clear and clean and filled with the scent of flowers. It was about eight or ten acres, surrounded by a high perimeter fence and padlocked gates. Inside we were shown Maharishi’s little bungalow, the post office, a communal dining area, a lecture theater, and a series of stone cha-lets, where we stayed; they had flat roofs on which we sunbathed.

Pattie Boyd – From “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me“, 2008

February 19, 1968 – Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr arrive

On February 19, Paul McCartney and his partner Jane Asher, along with Ringo and Maureen Starr, flew to Delhi. The 20-hour flight lasted through the night, and they landed in Delhi early on February 20.

The arrival of Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr in Delhi was quite different from the journey taken by John Lennon and George Harrison a few days earlier. The world’s press was now aware of The Beatles’ presence in India, and cameramen and reporters were on hand as they disembarked.

They were met in Delhi by Mal Evans and Raghvendra from Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s ashram in Rishikesh. Garlands of red and yellow flowers were placed around the visitors’ necks.

Ringo was suffering pain in his arm following inoculation injections, and the party set off for a hospital. Their driver, however, lost his way and drove down a dead end in a field, along with the press convoy. One local reporter eventually led them to the hospital.

Afterwards, they began the 150-mile journey to Rishikesh.

There was an Indian driver and Raghvendra from the camp in front and me and Jane Asher in the back and it was long and it was dusty and it was not a very good car and it was one of those journeys, but great and exciting. I remember these Indian guys talking in what was obviously an Indian language and I was starting to doze off in the car in the back because once you were two hours into the journey the tourism had worn off a little. It was fascinating seeing naked holy men and the kind of thing you just don’t see unless it’s late-night Soho, and the ones you tend to see in Soho tend to be covered in s**t and very drunk. I slipped into sleep, a fitful back-of-the-car sort of sleep. It was quite bumpy, and the guys were chattering away, but in my twilight zone of sleeping it sounded like they were talking Liverpool. If you listened closely, it so nearly slid into it. There was like a little segue into very fast colloquial Liverpool. And I was thinking, Uh, where the f**k am I? What? Oh, it’s Bengali, and I would just drop off again. ‘Yabba yabba, are yer comin’ oot then, lad?’ It was a strange little twilight experience. It was a long journey.

Paul McCartney – From “Paul McCartney: Many Years from Now” by Barry Miles, 1997

When Paul McCartney arrived he brought a total surprise. It was Ringo Starr, who said he could only stay for ten days at the longest. Paul was also accompanied by a slim, willowy red-haired girl he introduced as Jane Asher, a British actress and his fiancee. He made it clear that they would share the same quarters. George warned me, “Prepare for rain—it rains wherever Ringo is.”

Ringo was small and just as much of a Rumpelstiltskin as his pictures made him out to be. One’s first impression was of a big nose pushed along by vitality. Paul was outgoing and friendly. He seemed delighted to catch up with his team. Maharishi was the happiest of them all — he had all four Beatles as his guests. What a catch! It rained that night, but it didn’t dampen my spirits — every day got more terrific.

“Do you mean that Maharishi condones Paul and that actress sharing a room?” asked an indignant Genie, who was a supporter of Moral Rearmament, a Christian movement with strict moral values. “Do you feel that is a good example for the rest of the course members?”

“Maharishi’s eyes are on far more important events than who is sleeping with whom,” I countered, in spite of being a bit baffled myself. “He isn’t going to treat us like children. We are responsible for our own behavior,” I reminded her. “Don’t forget Maharishi’s definition of sin— it involves an action which is ‘life destructive.’ I don’t think it’s ‘life destructive’ for Paul and Jane to share a room. Neither are married, so who are they hurting?” But her Moral Rearmament training was too deeply imbedded; I didn’t make an impression.

Nancy Cooke de Herrera – From “All you need is love : an eyewitness account of when spirituality spread from the East to the West” by Nancy Cooke de Herrera, 2003

The helicopter ride

Maharishi was very up with modern technology because he thought it would help him get round the world and get his message over quicker. Once he had to get into New Delhi, and a helicopter came to the camp and landed on the beach down by the river. We all traipsed down in our kaftans and then it was: “One of you can go up for a quick ride with Maharishi. Who’s it going to be?” And, of course, it was John. I asked him later, “Why were you so keen to get up with Maharishi?” “To tell you the truth,” he said, “I thought he might slip me the Answer.” That was very John!

Paul McCartney – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

February 25, 1968 – George Harrison’s birthday

We had a big party for George’s birthday. It was crowded with people and we all got dressed up and had red and yellow paint on our foreheads.

Ringo Starr – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

I had my twenty-fifth birthday in Rishikesh (a lot of people had birthdays while we were there), and they had lots of flowers and garlands and things like that. Maharishi made me play my sitar.

George Harrison – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

As well as peace, there were also times of joy and celebration. George, Pattie, and musicians, Paul Horn and Beach Boy Mike Love, all celebrated their birthdays within a few days of each other. On Pattie and Paul Horn’s birthday we all watched Paul playing the horn with an Indian musician called Shah Jahan. Donovan, who had recently arrived, played and sang a Beach Boys-inspired song, along with Paul and George, for Mike Love’s birthday celebration. Whether it was a special occasion, I can’t remember, but there was one day when we all traipsed down to the Ganges in our colorful Indian kurta shirts and loose fitting cotton pajamas, made by the tailor who sat cross-legged in a tent at the ashram, ready for our special outing. We sat with Maharishi beside the Holy River; George, John, and Paul playing their guitars with Donovan while everyone else sang some of the better-known songs.

Jenny Boyd – From “Jennifer Juniper – A journey beyond the muse” by Jenny Boyd, 2023

If it was anyone’s birthday, and there was a surprising number while we were there, including George’s twenty-fifth and my twenty-fourth, there would be cake and a party. At George’s everyone put red and yellow paint on their faces and wore garlands of flowers, and an Indian musician came to play for him. The same musician played on my birthday, and gave me a beautiful dilruba—an Indian string instrument—with a bird’s head engraved at the neck. John drew me a picture of us all meditating and wrote “Happy Birthday Pattie love from John and Cyn” on it, and Cynthia, who was an accomplished artist, made me a lovely painting.

Pattie Boyd – From “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me“, 2008

March 1, 1968 – Ringo and Maureen leave India

March 15, 1968 – Holi, the festival of color

March 17, 1968 – Pattie Harrison’s 24th birthday

Killing a tiger

The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill’ was written about a guy who took a short break to go shoot a few poor tigers, and then came back to commune with God. There used to be a character called Jungle Jim, and I combined him with Buffalo Bill. It’s a sort of teenage social-comment song and a bit of a joke.

John Lennon – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

[…] As for me, once I got down the ladder and saw the tiger up close. I felt sick. There wasn’t a blemish on his coat: he’d been shot down in the prime of his life — what a terrible thing to kill such a magnificent young animal. I would never go hunting again.

The next day, on returning to the ashram, we went directly to see Maharishi. John Lennon. Paul McCartney, Jane Asher, and George Harrison were there with him. Rik was worried about his killing the tiger. “Is that bad karma for me, Maharishi?”

The answer was, “You had a desire, and now you have satisfied it and will no longer have the desire.” (Maharishi must have been right, for Rik hasn’t been hunting since.)

“But wouldn’t you call that slightly life-destructive?” sneered John.

“Well, it was the tiger or us,” I volunteered, getting into the act.

Paul, with Jane sitting alongside, her head on his shoulder, asked, “Tell us the details, man — what an experience.” He always went out of his way to be friendly to everyone.

Later on, John wrote the song, “Bungalow Bill” — its lyrics telling the story of the tiger hunt: “Hey, Bungalow Bill, what did you kill?” It described Rik as “an all-American, bullet-headed (his crew cut). Saxon mother’s son (who always dragged his mom along)…” Everything was grist for John’s writing.

Nancy Cooke de Herrera – Mother of Rik, who killed the tiger – From “All you need is love : an eyewitness account of when spirituality spread from the East to the West”

The beat started. Suddenly, I was aware of a movement in the underbrush. I saw Avi point. As I kicked Rik to look, we heard a furious roar — Rik said it startled him so much that he almost pulled the trigger right then. A second later, the tiger broke in front and like a streak of lightning leaped at us. Rik’s gun went off instantaneously, hitting the animal’s head and stopping its charge. At almost the same instant, Avi fired, hitting it also near the ear and killing it. For a second, all was quiet and there was a tiger lying two feet from our ladder.

“Rik, I’m so proud of you!”

“Mom, I’ve never shot so fast in my life. That was real luck. I’m sure glad Avi had that big gun, or that animal could have recovered and been up in the machand with us!”

The elephants returned; everyone was shouting and congratulating Rik. After the initial excitement was over. Avi said to us. “Cool it, unless you want to pay $7,000. You don’t want the Burkes to get uptight.” Against the real tradition of the hunt, they claimed the skin, saying it was just a fluke they were not in the machand at the time. Rik didn’t care, he had had the thrill of shooting the tiger.

As for me, once I got down the ladder and saw the tiger up close, I felt sick. There wasn’t a blemish on his coat; he’d been shot down in the prime of his life — what a terrible thing to kill such a magnificent young animal. I would never go hunting again.

The next day, on returning to the ashram, we went directly to see Maharishi. John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Jane Asher, and George Harrison were there with him. Rik was worried about his killing the tiger. “Is that bad karma for me, Maharishi?”

The answer was, “You had a desire, and now you have satisfied it and will no longer have the desire.” (Maharishi must have been right, for Rik hasn’t been hunting since.)

“But wouldn’t you call that slightly life-destructive?” sneered John.

“Well, it was the tiger or us,” I volunteered, getting into the act.

Paul, with Jane sitting alongside, her head on his shoulder, asked, “Tell us the details, man — what an experience.” He always went out of his way to be friendly to everyone.

Nancy Cooke de Herrera – From “All you need is love : an eyewitness account of when spirituality spread from the East to the West” by Nancy Cooke de Herrera, 2003

Writing songs

About 30 songs were written during the Beatles’ stay in Rishikesh. Most of them became part of the White Album, released in November 1968. A couple of them were recorded for the 1969 album “Abbey Road”. Paul McCartney also released three songs written in Rishikesh during his solo career.

We wrote about thirty new songs between us. Paul must have done about a dozen. George says he’s got six, and I wrote fifteen. And look what meditation did for Ringo – after all this time he wrote his first song.

John Lennon

George, John, and Paul wrote several songs while we were there—several went into the White Album—and Donovan taught them his finger-picking technique on the guitar. Someone was always playing a guitar and there would be discussions and singing, a nice little hubbub of social activity.

Pattie Boyd – From “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me“, 2008

We ate breakfast outside, with lots of crows vying for our food. I was sitting there one day when Paul came to the table with his acoustic guitar, saying, “Hey, listen to this, Mike: ‘Flew in from Miami Beach B.O.A.C., didn’t get to bed last night…’” He was writing “Back in the U.S.S.R.” I told him, “You should sing about all the girls around the Soviet Union: the Ukraine girls, the Moscow girls, Georgia on my mind.”

We all had so much fun playing music for each other. For my birthday, the Beatles wrote a song called “Spiritual Regeneration” that ended with “Happy birthday, Michael Love.” It sounded just like the Beach Boys, the same rhythms, the same harmonies.

Mike Love, of the Beach Boys – From Smithsonian (smithsonianmag.com), January 2018

Regardless of what I was supposed to be doing, I did write some of my best songs while I was there. It was a nice scene. Nice and secure and everyone was always smiling. The experience was worth it if only for the songs that came out, but it could have been the desert or Ben Nevis.

The funny thing about the camp was that although it was very beautiful and I was meditating about eight hours a day, I was writing the most miserable songs on earth. In ‘Yer Blues’, when I wrote, ‘I’m so lonely I want to die,’ I’m not kidding. That’s how I felt.7’ Up there trying to reach God and feeling suicidal.

John Lennon – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

Mike Love was in Rishikesh. Donovan was there. I can remember people like that. Mia Farrow was there, and her sister, Prudence. John wrote the song ‘Dear Prudence’ for her because she had a panic attack and couldn’t come out of her chalet.

Paul McCartney – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

I wrote a couple of little things while I was there. I had a song called ‘I Will’, but I didn’t have any words for it. And I wrote a bit of ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da’. We went to a cinema show in a village where a guy put up a mobile screen and all the villagers came along and loved it. I remember walking down a little jungle path with my guitar to get to the village from the camp. I was playing: ‘Desmond has a barrow in the market place…’

Paul McCartney – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

Later that afternoon, I heard guitars and the sound of Paul’s and John’s voices. They were sitting with Ringo among the potted plants on the steps of their bungalow. […] They were strumming their Martin acoustic guitars, singing fragments of songs, musically meandering through some of my favorites: “Michelle,” “All You Need Is Love,” “Norwegian Wood,” “Eleanor Rigby,” and others. Ringo was dressed in his favorite heavy, gold-brocade Nehru jacket and jeans […] John and Paul wore white cotton kurta pajamas, the most comfortable clothers to wear in India […] Paul started strumming again and John joined in. Paul had a pad of paper sitting on the step beneath him, and he started to sing the words that he had scribbled down. It was the chorus to “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da.” They repeated it over and over again, and when they stopped Paul looked at me with a twinkle in his eyes and Said, “That’s all there is so far We’ve got the chorus but no words yet.”

Paul Saltzman – From “The Beatles in Rishikesh” by Paul Saltzman, 2000

Songs released on the “The Beatles”, November 1968:

• Back in the U.S.S.R.
• Blackbird
• The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill
• Cry Baby Cry
• Dear Prudence
• Don’t Pass Me By
• Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey
• I Will
• I’m So Tired
• Julia
• Long, Long, Long
• Mother Nature’s Son
• Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
• Revolution
• Rocky Raccoon
• Sexy Sadie (originally titled “Maharishi”)
• Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?
• Wild Honey Pie
• Yer Blues

Songs released on “Abbey Road” in 1969:

• Mean Mr. Mustard
• Polythene Pam

Paul McCartney’s songs released on solo albums:

• Junk
• Teddy Boy
• Cosmically Conscious

Paul and Jane left after about a month. Paul was keen to get back to London and Apple, the business the Beatles were about to launch. The Apple shop had opened just before we left but there was an office to find and a new manager to replace Brian. He had always been more interested in business than the others and I guess a month of meditating was enough for him.

Pattie Boyd – From “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me“, 2008

Jane Asher and Paul had to leave the last week in March, after six tranquil weeks. Jane had a theatrical commitment she could not break. It was a heartwarming scene when they said their goodbyes. Paul got on his knees and said, “Maharishi, you will never fathom what these days have meant to us. To have the unbroken peace and quiet and all your loving attention — only a Beatle could know the value of this. You kept your word to us, you protected us from the press and all outsiders. This has been the ultimate luxury. We will never forget you. When John and George get back, we’ll work on the plans we’ve made here.”

As Rik and I walked to the upper gate with them, Paul gave Rik his tripod. He said to me, “I’m going away a new man.” Jane beamed with happiness. John stood by the gate and, strumming his guitar, bid them a fond farewell. John almost seemed like a different person from the white, pinched-faced man who had arrived. He posed happily for me as I took a picture of him with his foot on a rock, playing his guitar.

Nancy Cooke de Herrera – From “All you need is love : an eyewitness account of when spirituality spread from the East to the West” by Nancy Cooke de Herrera, 2003

Fall out with Maharishi

I was quite happy. I was wondering how the others were going to get out of it, though, and then they arrived back with a story that Maharishi had made a pass at an attractive blonde American girl with short hair (not Mia Farrow).

Paul McCartney – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

There was a big hullabaloo about him trying to get off with Mia Farrow and a few other women, things like that. We’d stayed up all night discussing was it true or not true. And when George started thinking it might be true, I thought it must be true because if George is doubting him there must be something in it.

John Lennon – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

Someone started the nasty rumour about Maharishi, a rumour that swept the media for years. There were many stories about how Maharishi was not on the level or whatever, but that was just jealousy about Maharishi. We’d need analysts to get into it. I don’t know what goes through these people’s minds, but this whole piece of bullshit was invented. It’s probably even in the history books that Maharishi ‘tried to attack Mia Farrow’ – but it’s bullshit, total bullshit. Just go and ask Mia Farrow.

George Harrison – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

In retrospect

I learnt how to meditate. I don’t meditate as much now, but I say to my kids that it’s not a bad thing to learn, because if you’re stuck somewhere or if you’re a bit disturbed, it is a great thing to do.

Paul McCartney – From “The Beatles Anthology” book, 2000

The demand for TM grew, in spite of the bad press Maharishi had received from The Beatles’ rebellion. Unfortunately, some of the other celebrities who had been at the ashram kept quiet and said nothing. I wondered what Paul McCartney thought; had he forgotten the love in his heart the day he said goodbye to Maharishi? Never a word was heard from him, or Mia, or Donovan—at least publicly. There were times when a word from them would have helped.

Nancy Cooke de Herrera – From “All you need is love : an eyewitness account of when spirituality spread from the East to the West” by Nancy Cooke de Herrera, 2003

On January 25, 1969, during The Beatles’ “Get Back” sessions, Paul McCartney mentioned that he had edited together their home movies from the trip in India. He told the others that he had watched the finished film the previous evening:

George Harrison: What were we doing?

Paul McCartney: We, uh… I don’t really know, you know? But it’s like we totally, sort of, put our own personalities under, for the sake of it. And you can really see, you know, we’re all…

John Lennon: Who’s writing all them songs?

Paul McCartney: That was probably when we did…

John Lennon: In your room.

Paul McCartney: Yeah. Right. I remember, yeah. But just sort of… There’s a…

George Harrison: Do you regret having gone there?

Paul McCartney: No, no. Oh, no. I just think, what we did there, we weren’t really very truthful there. You know, things like sneaking behind [The Maharishi’s] back and sort of saying, “It’s a bit like school, isn’t it?” But you can see on the film that it is very like school.

John Lennon: You want to call it “What We Did On Our Holidays”?

Paul McCartney: But it is very like that. There’s a long shot of you, sort of, walking with him. And it’s just not you, you know?

From Peter Jackson’s film “The Beatles: Get Back“, 2021

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