Transcendental Meditation (TM) is a form of silent meditation developed by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The TM technique involves the silent repetition of a mantra or sound, and is practiced for 15–20 minutes twice per day. It is taught by certified teachers through a standard course of instruction, with a cost which varies by country and individual circumstance. According to the Transcendental Meditation movement, it is a non-religious method that promotes relaxed awareness, stress relief, self-development, and higher states of consciousness. The technique has been variously described as both religious[2] and non-religious.[nb 1]
Maharishi began teaching the technique in India in the mid-1950s.[1] Building on the teachings of his master, the Hindu Advaita monk Brahmananda Saraswati (known honorifically as Guru Dev), the Maharishi taught thousands of people during a series of world tours from 1958 to 1965, expressing his teachings in spiritual and religious terms.[1][7] TM became more popular in the 1960s and 1970s as the Maharishi shifted to a more secular presentation, and his meditation technique was practiced by celebrities, most prominently members of the Beatles and the Beach Boys. At this time, he began training TM teachers. The worldwide TM organization had grown to include educational programs, health products, and related services. Following the Maharishi's death in 2008, leadership of the TM organization passed to neuroscientistTony Nader.
Research on TM began in the 1970s. A 2012 meta-analysis of the psychological impact of meditation found that Transcendental Meditation had a comparable overall effectiveness to other meditation techniques in improving general wellbeing, but might have distinctive effects on specific psychological variables.[8] A 2017 overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses indicates TM practice may lower blood pressure, an effect comparable with other health interventions. Because of a potential for bias and conflicting findings more research is needed.[9][10]
The Transcendental Meditation program and the Transcendental Meditation movement originated with their founder Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and continued beyond his death in 2008.[1] In 1955,[11][12][13] "the Maharishi began publicly teaching a traditional meditation technique"[14] learned from his master Brahmananda Saraswati that he called Transcendental Deep Meditation[15] and later renamed Transcendental Meditation.[16]
The Maharishi initiated thousands of people, then developed a TM teacher training program as a way to accelerate the rate of bringing the technique to more people.[16][17] He also inaugurated a series of tours that started in India in 1955 and went international in 1958 which promoted Transcendental Meditation.[18][19] These factors, coupled with endorsements by celebrities who practiced TM and claims that scientific research had validated the technique, helped to popularize TM in the 1960s and 1970s. By the late 2000s, TM had been taught to millions of individuals and the Maharishi was overseeing a large multinational movement.[20] Despite organizational changes and the addition of advanced meditative techniques in the 1970s,[21] the Transcendental Meditation technique has remained relatively unchanged.
The meditation practice involves the use of a silently-used mantra for 15–20 minutes twice per day while sitting with the eyes closed.[28][29] It is reported to be one of the most widely practiced,[30][31] and among the most widely researched, meditation techniques,[32][33][34][35] with hundreds of published research studies.[36][37][38] The technique is made available worldwide by certified TM teachers in a seven-step course,[39] and fees vary from country to country.[40][41] Beginning in 1965, the Transcendental Meditation technique has been incorporated into selected schools, universities, corporations, and prison programs in the US, Latin America, Europe, and India. In 1977, a US district court ruled that a curriculum in TM and the Science of Creative Intelligence (SCI) being taught in some New Jersey schools was religious in nature and in violation of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.[3][42] The technique has since been included in a number of educational and social programs around the world.[43]
The Transcendental Meditation technique has been described as both religious and non-religious, as an aspect of a new religious movement, as rooted in Hinduism,[44][45] and as a non-religious practice for self-development.[46][47][48]
The public presentation of the TM technique over its 50-year history has been praised for its high visibility in the mass media and effective global propagation, and criticized for using celebrity and scientific endorsements as a marketing tool. Also, advanced courses supplement the TM technique and include an advanced meditation program called the TM-Sidhi program,[49] the unveiling of which created media controversy and a time of crisis for the movement’s image.[50] In 2014, a meta-analysis of research found insufficient evidence that meditation such as TM "had an effect on any of the psychological stress and well-being outcomes".[51]
The Transcendental Meditation movement consists of the programs and organizations connected with the Transcendental Meditation technique and founded by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Transcendental Meditation was first taught in the 1950s in India and has continued since the Maharishi's death in 2008. The organization was estimated to have 900,000 participants worldwide in 1977,[52] a million by the 1980s,[53][54][55] and 5 million in more recent years.[when?][56][57][58][59][60][61][62][excessive citations]
Programs include the Transcendental Meditation technique, an advanced meditation practice called the TM-Sidhi program ("Yogic Flying"), an alternative health care program called Maharishi Ayurveda,[63] and a system of building and architecture called Maharishi Sthapatya Ved.[64][65] The TM movement's past and present media endeavors include a publishing company (MUM Press), a television station (KSCI), a radio station (KHOE), and a satellite television channel (Maharishi Channel). During its 50-year history, its products and services have been offered through a variety of organizations, which are primarily nonprofit and educational. These include the Spiritual Regeneration Movement, the International Meditation Society, World Plan Executive Council, Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corporation, Transcendental Meditation for Women, the Global Country of World Peace, and the David Lynch Foundation.
The TM movement also operates a worldwide network of Transcendental Meditation teaching centers, schools, universities, health centers, herbal supplements, solar panel, and home financing companies, plus several TM-centered communities. The global organization is reported to have an estimated net worth of USD 3.5 billion.[66][67] The TM movement has been characterized in a variety of ways and has been called a spiritual movement, a new religious movement,[68][69] a millenarian movement, a world affirming movement,[70] a new social movement,[71] a guru-centered movement,[72] a personal growth movement,[73] a religion, and a cult.[69][74][75][76] Additional sources contend that TM and its movement are not a cult.[77][78][79][80] Participants in TM programs are not required to adopt a belief system; it is practiced by atheists, agnostics and people from a variety of religious affiliations.[81][82][83]
The organization has been the subject of controversies that includes being labelled a cult by several parliamentary inquiries or anti-cult movements in the world.[84][85][86][69][74][75]
There is no good evidence that TM reduces anxiety, or has any beneficial effect on forms of psychological stress or well-being.[89][90]
A 2012 review found that Transcendental Meditation performed no better overall than other meditation techniques.[8] The authors' analysis of a subset of these studies, those that studied specific categories of outcome, found that TM might perform better in reducing negative emotions, trait anxiety, and neuroticism and improving markers of learning, memory, and self-actualization, but performs more poorly in reducing negative personality traits, reducing stress, improving attention and mindfulness and cognition, in comparison with other meditation approaches.[91]
A statement from the American Heart Association said that TM could be considered as a treatment for hypertension, although other interventions such as exercise and device-guided breathing were more effective and better supported by clinical evidence.[92]
TM may reduce blood pressure according to a review that compared TM to control groups. A trend over time indicates practicing TM may lower blood pressure. Such effects are comparable to other lifestyle interventions. Conflicting findings across reviews and a potential risk of bias indicated the necessity of further evidence, conducted by researchers without bias.
[9][10]
By 2004, the US government had given more than $20 million to Maharishi International University to study the effect of meditation on health.[93]
In his 1963 book, The Science of Being and Art of Living, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi says that, over time, through the practice of the TM technique, the conscious mind gains familiarity with deeper levels of the mind, bringing the subconscious mind within the capacity of the conscious mind, resulting in expanded awareness in daily activity. He also teaches that the Transcendental Meditation practitioner transcends all mental activity and experiences the 'source of thought', which is said to be pure silence, 'pure awareness' or 'transcendental Being', 'the ultimate reality of life'.[94]: pp 44–53 [95][96] TM is sometimes self described as a technology of consciousness.[97] According to author Michael Phelan, "The fundamental premise of the psychology of fulfillment is that within every person exists a seemingly inexhaustible center of energy, intelligence, and satisfaction... To the extent that our behavior depends on the degree of energy and intelligence available to us, this center of pure creative intelligence may be described as that resource which gives direction to all that we experience, think and do."[98]
According to the Maharishi, there are seven levels of consciousness: (i) deep sleep; (ii) dreaming; (iii) waking; (iv) transcendental consciousness; (v) cosmic consciousness; (vi) God consciousness; and, (vii) unity consciousness.[99] The Maharishi says that transcendental consciousness can be experienced through Transcendental Meditation, and that those who meditate regularly over time could become aware of cosmic consciousness.[100] An indication of cosmic consciousness is "ever present wakefulness" present even during sleep.[101] Research on long-term TM practitioners experiencing what they describe as cosmic consciousness, has identified unique EEG profiles, muscle tone measurements, and REM indicators that suggest physiological parameters for this self described state of consciousness.[101][102] However, the Cambridge Handbook of Consciousness notes that it is premature to say that the EEG coherence found in TM is an indication of a higher state of consciousness.[103]
In 1961, the Maharishi created the "International Meditation Society for the Science of Creative Intelligence".[104] In 1971 the Maharishi inaugurated "Maharishi's Year of Science of Creative Intelligence" and described SCI as the connection of "modern science with ancient Vedic science".[105] Author Philip Goldberg describes it as Vedanta philosophy that has been translated into scientific language.[106] A series of international symposiums on the Science of Creative Intelligence were held between 1970 and 1973 and were attended by scientists and "leading thinkers", including Buckminster Fuller, Melvin Calvin, a Nobel Prize winner in chemistry, Hans Selye, Marshal McLuhan and Jonas Salk.[106] These symposiums were held at universities such as Humboldt State University and University of Massachusetts.[107][108][109][110] The following year, the Maharishi developed a World Plan to spread his teaching of SCI around the world.[110][111]
The Science of Creative Intelligence is not science.[124] Theologian Robert M. Price, writing in the Creation/Evolution Journal (the journal of the National Center for Science Education), compares the Science of Creative Intelligence to Creationism.[125] Price says instruction in the Transcendental Meditation technique is "never offered without indoctrination into the metaphysics of 'creative intelligence'".[125] Skeptic James Randi says SCI has "no scientific characteristics."[126]Astrophysicist and sceptic Carl Sagan writes that the "Hindu doctrine" of TM is a pseudoscience.[127]Irving Hexham, a professor of religious studies, describes the TM teachings as "pseudoscientific language that masks its religious nature by mythologizing science".[104] Sociologists Rodney Stark and William Sims Bainbridge describe the SCI videotapes as largely based on the Bhagavad Gita, and say that they are "laced with parables and metaphysical postulates, rather than anything that can be recognized as conventional science".[128] In 1979, the court case Malnak v Yogi determined that although SCI/TM is not a theistic religion, it deals with issues of ultimate concern, truth, and other ideas analogous to those in well-recognized religions.[129] Maharishi biographer Paul Mason suggests that the scientific terminology used in SCI was developed by the Maharishi as part of a restructuring of his philosophies in terms that would gain greater acceptance and increase the number of people starting the TM technique. He says that this change toward a more academic language was welcomed by many of the Maharishi's American students.[130]
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi claimed that the quality of life would noticeably improve if at least the square root of one per cent (1%) of the population practised the Transcendental Meditation technique. This is known as the "Maharishi effect" and according to the Maharishi, it was perceived in 1974 after an analysis of crime statistics in 16 cities.[94]: 329 [131][132] With the introduction of the TM-Sidhi program including Yogic Flying, the Maharishi proposed that the square root of 1 per cent of the population (around 6325 people, the square root of 40 million (1% of the global
population of about 4 billion people in 1974[133])) practicing this advanced program together at the same time and in the same place would create benefits in society. This was referred to as the "Extended Maharishi Effect".[131][134]
Author Ted Karam claims that there have been numerous studies on the Maharishi effect including a gathering of over 4,000 people (just under two thirds of the square root of 1% of the population as of 1974) in Washington, D.C. in the summer of 1993.[131] The effect has been examined in 42 scientific studies.[135] The TM organisation has linked the fall of the Berlin Wall and a reduction in global terrorism, US inflation and crime rates to the Maharishi effect.[136] The Maharishi effect has been endorsed by the former President of Mozambique Joaquim Chissano.[137]
As the theories proposed by TM practitioners[138] go beyond modern science[weasel words], the Maharishi effect still lacks a causal basis.[139] Moreover, the evidence has been said to result from cherry-picked data[140] and the credulity of believers.[139][141] Critics, such as James Randi, have called this research pseudoscience.[142] Randi says that he investigated comments made by former Maharishi International University faculty member Robert Rabinoff in 1978. He spoke to the Fairfield Chief of Police who said local crime levels were the same and the regional Agriculture Department who reportedly deemed that farm yields for Jefferson County matched the state average.[143]
The Maharishi proclaimed 1981 as the Year of Vedic Science.[94]: 336 It is based on the Maharishi's interpretation of ancient Vedic texts and includes subjective technologies like the Transcendental Meditation technique and the TM-Sidhi program plus programs like Maharishi Sthapatya Veda (MSV) and Maharishi Vedic Astrology (MVA) services which apply Vedic science to day-to-day living.[144][145] Vedic science studies the various aspects of life and their relationship to the Veda.
Maharishi Ayurveda[146][147] or Maharishi Vedic Medicine[148] is a form of alternative medicine founded in the mid-1980s by Maharishi.[63] Distinct from traditional ayurveda, it emphasizes the role of consciousness, and gives importance to positive emotions.[149] Maharishi Ayurveda has been variously characterized as emerging from, and consistently reflecting, the Advaita Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy, representing the entirety of the ayurvedic tradition.[150][151]
^ abSedlmeier, Peter; Eberth, Juliane; Schwarz, Marcus; Zimmerman, Doreen; Haarig, Frederik; Jaeger, Sonia; Kunze, Sonja; et al. (May 2012). "The Psychological Effects of Meditation: A Meta-Analysis". Psychological Bulletin. 138 (6): 1139–1171. doi:10.1037/a0028168. PMID22582738. The global analysis yielded quite comparable effects for TM, mindfulness meditation, and the other meditation procedures...So, it seems that the three categories we identified for the sake of comparison, TM, mindfulness meditation, and the heterogeneous category we termed other meditation techniques, do not differ in their overall effects. For most of the specific categories that could be analyzed, we found quite a variation in effects. These results indicate that different approaches to meditation might have differential effects. To date, it is difficult, however, to deduce any consistent differences therefrom.
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^Murphy, M; Donovan, S; Taylor, E (1997). The Physical and Psychological Effects of Meditation: A review of Contemporary Research with a Comprehensive Bibliography 1931–1996. Sausalito, California: Institute of Noetic Sciences.
^Humes, C.A. (2005). "Maharishi Mahesh Yogi: Beyond the T.M. Technique". In Forsthoefel, Thomas A.; Humes, Cynthia Ann (eds.). Gurus in America. SUNY Press. p. 69. ISBN0-7914-6573-X. This lawsuit was the most significant setback for TM in the United States ... Since then TM has made a comeback of sorts with some governmental sponsorship
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^Chryssides, George D. (2001). Exploring New Religions. Continuum International Publishing Group. pp. 301–303. ISBN9780826459596."Although one can identify the Maharishi's philosophical tradition, its teachings are in no way binding on TM practitioners. There is no public worship, no code of ethics, no scriptures to be studied, and no rites of passage that are observed, such as dietary laws, giving to the poor, or pilgrimages. In particular, there is no real TM community: practitioners do not characteristically meet together for public worship, but simply recite the mantra, as they have been taught it, not as religious obligation, but simply as a technique to benefit themselves, their surroundings and the wider world."
^Partridge, Christopher (200). New Religions: A Guide To New Religious Movements, Sects and Alternative Spiritualities. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 184. It is understood in terms of the reduction of stress and the charging of one's mental and physical batteries.
^Stark, Rodney; Bainbridge, William, Sims (1986). The Future Of Religion. University of California Press. p. 287. ISBN978-0520057319.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) "Time magazine in 1975 estimated that the U.S. total had risen to 600,000 augmented by half that number elsewhere" =[900,000 worldwide] "Annual Growth in TM Initiations in the U.S. [chart] Cumulative total at the End of Each Year: 1977, 919,300"
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^Bainbridge, William Sims (1997) Routledge, The Sociology of Religious Movements, page 189 "the million people [Americans] who had been initiated"
^Analysis: Practice of requiring probationers to take lessons in transcendental meditation sparks religious controversy, NPR All Things Considered, 1 February 2002 | ROBERT SIEGEL "TM's five million adherents claim that it eliminates chronic health problems and reduces stress."
^Martin Hodgson, The Guardian (5 February 2008) "He [Maharishi] transformed his interpretations of ancient scripture into a multimillion-dollar global empire with more than 5m followers worldwide"
^Stephanie van den Berg, Sydney Morning Herald, Beatles guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi dies, (7 February 2008) "the TM movement, which has some five million followers worldwide"
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^Maharishi Mahesh Yogi - Transcendental Meditation founder's grand plan for peace, The Columbian (Vancouver, WA), 19 February 2006 | ARTHUR MAX Associated Press writer "transcendental meditation, a movement that claims 6 million practitioners since it was introduced."
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^Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Spiritual Leader Dies, New York Times, By LILY KOPPEL, Published: 6 February 2008 "Since the technique's inception in 1955, the organization says, it has been used to train more than 40,000 teachers, taught more than five million people"
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^Sedlmeier, Peter; Eberth, Juliane; Schwarz, Marcus; Zimmerman, Doreen; Haarig, Frederik; Jaeger, Sonia; Kunze, Sonja; et al. (May 2012). "The Psychological Effects of Meditation: A Meta-Analysis". Psychological Bulletin. 138 (6): 1139–1171. doi:10.1037/a0028168. PMID22582738. A thorough comparison of the three kinds of meditation was difficult, due in part to the small number of studies that used a given category of dependent measure. Again, we only included results that could be calculated from at least three studies. On the basis of these data...there might indeed be differential effects. Comparatively strong effects for TM...were found in reducing negative emotions, trait anxiety, and neuroticism and being helpful in learning and memory and in self-realization...For mindfulness meditation, such comparatively strong effects were identified in reducing negative personality traits, reducing stress, and improving attention and mindfulness...(other meditation techniques) yielded a comparatively large effect in the category of cognition...TM yielded noticeably larger effects than mindfulness meditation for the categories negative emotions, neuroticism, trait anxiety, learning and memory, and self-realization. The opposite results were found for negative personality traits and self-concept, where the effects of mindfulness meditation were larger...For most of the specific categories that could be analyzed, we found quite a variation in effects. These results indicate that different approaches to meditation might have differential effects. To date, it is difficult, however, to deduce any consistent differences therefrom
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