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'Transcendental Meditation or TM, a trademarked form of meditation introduced in 1958 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, involves the repetition of a specific sound, called a mantra. According to Maharishi, the repetition of this sound, practiced according to specific guidelines, enables the practitioner's mind to settle down until the mental activity of ordinary waking consciousness is "transcended", and a state of restful alertness is experienced. According to Maharishi, the distinguishing feature of this meditation program is its lack of effort, as contrasted with techniques involving concentration, or those involving contemplation or active thinking, . Maharishi describes TM as being the experiential side of Maharishi Vedic Science.

History

In 1957, at the end of a "festival of spiritual luminaries" in remembrance of the previous Shankaracharya of the North, Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, his disciple Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (or simply "Maharishi" to followers) inaugurated a "Movement to spiritually regenerate the world. From that point in time, TM has spread throughout the world to become a world-wide movement. Mahrishi's publications during this period include Beacon Light of the Himalayas (1955), Science of Being and Art of Living (1963), a translation and commentary of the first six chapters of the Bhagavad-Gita (1965), and the long devotional poem Love and God (1967).

In the early 1970s, Maharishi launched a "World Plan" to establish one TM teaching center for each million of the world's population, which at that time would have meant 3,600 TM centers throughout the world. Since 1990, Maharishi has coordinated his global activities from his headquarters in the town of Vlodrop in the municipality of Roerdalen in the Netherlands.

The TM Movement founded a nationally accredited university, Maharishi International University (later Maharishi University of Management), which began offering classes in 1973 in California and relocated to Fairfield, Iowa, USA, in 1974; a number of schools around the world, including the K-12 school,; Maharishi Vedic City in southeast Iowa, (incorporated 21 July, 2001); political parties in many countries around the world known as the Natural Law Party, all of which have been dissolved, the US branch having closed on April 30, 2004 in favour of the "Global Country of World Peace," founded in 2002.

The movement says that more than 6 million people worldwide have learned the Transcendental Meditation technique since its inauguration , including celebrities such as the Beatles, Beach Boys Mike Love and Al Jardine, jazz musician Charles Lloyd, actor Stephen Collins, radio personality Howard Stern, musician Michael Jackson, film director David Lynch, Scottish musician Donovan, and actresses Mia Farrow and Heather Graham. For nearly eight years, Deepak Chopra was one of Maharishi's most prominent spokespersons and promoters of Maharishi Ayurveda or alternative medicine.

Procedures and theory

The Transcendental Meditation technique is practiced for twenty minutes twice a day while one sits with the eyes closed. Jonathan Shear, professor of Philosophy at Maharishi University of Management, writes that a distinguishing feature of this meditation program is its lack of effort as contrasted with techniques involving concentration, or those involving contemplation or active thinking.

Maharishi teaches that the Transcendental Meditation technique comes from the ancient Vedic tradition of India. The simple sound used in the technique, the mantra, is given to the meditator at the time of initiation. The new meditator is informed that the mantra should remain private. Often, agreement forms to that effect are signed. The mantras used in TM and the yoga sutras used in the TM-Sidhi program have been published on the Web.

The first research on the Transcendental Meditation technique, conducted at UCLA and Harvard Medical Schools and published from 1970 to 1972 in Science, American Journal of Physiology, and Scientific American, indicated that the Transcendental Meditation technique produces a state which the TM movement calls “restful alertness” in the mind and body.. The deepest state of rest in this form of meditation, according to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, is called "Pure Consciousness". The TM organization emphasizes in its teaching that the procedure for using the mantra is very important, and can only be learned from a trained teacher authorized by the TM movement.

Maharishi has said that Transcendental Consciousness is experienced via dhyana, a Sanskrit term which he equates with Transcendental Meditation. While dhyana is often characterized as involving concentraton or contemplation, Transcendental Meditation instead makes use of the "natural, expansive response of the mind." Maharishi says that concentration is a mistranslation of dhyana and that meditation that uses concentration results in a failure to transcend.

Theory of consciousness

Maharishi's theory of enlightenment

According to Maharishi's theory of enlightenment, there are seven major states of consciousness, of which the first three are commonly known. The last three states fulfill the definition of Enlightenment - the ultimate goal of long-term TM-practice:

• Dreamless sleeping state of consciousness
• Dreaming state of consciousness (REM)
• Waking state of consciousness
• Transcendental Consciousness is said to be a fourth major state of consciousness, distinct from waking, sleeping or dreaming. When the mind settles down during Transcendental Meditation, a state of "restful alertness" is experienced. Thought becomes quieter and quieter, until the mind is no longer bound by thoughts or perceptions but experiences awareness awake to itself alone. This state is an experience of "amness", or "Being", the unbounded pure consciousness that is at the source of thoughts and feelings.
• Cosmic Consciousness, the fifth state, is said to be the state of "enlightenment" which results from alternating the experience of Transcendental Consciousness and activity in our daily lives. Through repeated practice, the nonchanging state of Being in TC becomes permanently maintained along with waking, sleeping and dreaming. This all-inclusive state - "cosmic" - is marked by a peaceful, nonchanging restful state inside while one is actively engaged in the constant change which occurs in life.
• God Consciousness is said to be the state where the unbounded awareness of Cosmic Consciousness is accompanied by refined sensory perception during waking, sleeping and dreaming - where the full range and mechanics of creation are appreciated at a sublime, subtle level. This perception leads to a devotion and love for creation and its creator ("God").
• Unity Consciousness, the seventh state, is said to be the perception that all aspects of life are nothing but expressions of Being, or pure consciousness. All of the diversity in life, from the gross to the subtle, is seen as the self-interacting dynamics of Being. The outer and inner realities of life are bridged in Unity Consciousness. One sees the Self in all aspects of creation.

Research on "higher states of consciousness"

A number of studies have been done to identify the physiological correlates of what is referred to as Transcendental Consciousness experienced during Transcendental Meditation, and also during activity (which is referred to as Cosmic Consciousness). The initial studies of the physiological correlates during Transcendental Meditation were published in the early 1970s in Science, American Journal of Physiology, and Scientific American. This research found that Transcendental Meditation produces a physiological state called "restful alertness." During the practice of the technique the physiology becomes relaxed, as indicated by significant reductions in respiration, minute ventilation, tidal volume, and blood lactate, and significant increases in basal skin resistance, yet EEG measurements showed that the physiology was alert rather than asleep. These early studies termed the state of Transcendental Consciousness a state of restful alertness.

More recently, several studies have been done on individuals who report experiencing Transcendental Consciousness in activity (which is referred to as Cosmic Consciousness). A study published in 2002 in Biological Psychology found distinct EEG patterns in the 17 subjects as compared to two matched control groups. In addition, using a measure called choice-contingent negative variation, the researchers found that the subjects' brains responded more efficiently during tasks. A followup study on the same three groups of subjects that used content analysis to characterize and classify their subject experiences found that the group reporting an experience of Transcendental Consciousness during activity had unique subjective experiences. This was characterized by an ongoing experience described as unboundedness. "My self is immeasurably vast . . . on a physical level -- not just restricted to this physical environment," reported one subject. And another said, "It's my Being. There's just a channel underneath that's just underlying everything. It's my essence there and it just doesn't stop where I stop.".

Learning Transcendental Meditation

The TM technique is taught for a fee in a seven-step process over a five- to seven-day period. The process includes an introductory lecture, personal interview and individual instruction, group instruction classes, and a free lifetime followup program called "checking," to assure that the technique is being practiced properly . Personal instruction begins with a Vedic ceremony conducted in Sanskrit called a puja, and proceeds according to the TM teacher's instruction: "Teacher has prepared an altar to Guru Dev, lit a candle and incense, and spread camphor, sandalwood paste, rice, and other ritual offerings in the appropriate ritual containers prior to student's entrance." The student enters and presents the teacher with fresh fruit, flowers, and a clean handkerchief, who then places them on a table with a picture of Guru Dev, Maharishi's guru, Brahmananda Saraswati. At the ceremony's end, the teacher kneels and invites the initiate to kneel before the "picture of Guru Dev, His Divinity Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, Maharishi's Master, from whom we have this meditation." As the teacher rises, he or she presents the person with a mantra by repeating it and gesturing to the student to repeat it.

In the late 1970s, the fee for basic initiation in the United States was $75. Now in 2006, the initiation fee is $2,500

Transcendental Meditation-related research

See also: Validity of TM research

Medical indexes, such as PubMed, show that over 200 studies have been conducted on the Transcendental Meditation technique. The universities and medical centers where this research has taken place include Harvard Medical School, Yale Medical School, Stanford University, Princeton University, MIT, Purdue University, UCLA, UC Irvine, UC Berkeley, the University of Chicago, the University of Michigan Medical School, and the University of Texas.

Range of studies

The research suggests that health benefits are associated with the the Transcendental Meditation technique, including reduction of high blood pressure, younger biological age, decreased insomnia, reduction of high cholesterol, reduced illness and medical expenditures, decreased outpatient visits, decreased cigarette smoking, decreased alcohol use, and decreased anxiety.

Some studies indicate that regular practice of the Transcendental Meditation technique leads to significant, cumulative benefits in the areas of mind (Travis, Arenander & DuBois 2004) harv error: no target: CITEREFTravisArenanderDuBois2004 (help), body (Barnes, Treiber & Davis 2001) harv error: no target: CITEREFBarnesTreiberDavis2001 (help), behavior (Barnes, Bauza & Treiber 2003) harv error: no target: CITEREFBarnesBauzaTreiber2003 (help). One study showed reduced arterial wall thickness in African-Americans with high blood pressure. (PMID 10700487).

Research funding from the National Institutes of Health

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has spent more than $21 million funding research on the effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique on heart disease . In 1999, the NIH awarded a grant of nearly $8 million to Maharishi University of Management to establish the first research center specializing in natural preventive medicine for minorities in the U.S.

The research institute, called the Institute for Natural Medicine and Prevention, was inaugurated on October 11, 1999, at the University's Department of Physiology and Health in Fairfield, Iowa.

Research in medical journals

In 2005 the American Journal of Cardiology published a review of two studies that looked at stress reduction with the Transcendental Meditation technique and mortality among patients receiving treatment for high blood pressure This study was a long-term, randomized trial. It evaluated the death rates of 202 men and women, average age 71, who had mildly elevated blood pressure. The study tracked subjects for up to 18 years and found that the group practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique had death rate reduced by 23%. The review was funded in part by a grant from NIH's National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Also in 2005, the American Journal of Hypertension published the results of a study that found the Transcendental Meditation technique may be useful as an adjunct in the long-term treatment of hypertension among African-Americans.

In 2006 a study published in the American Medical Association's Archives of Internal Medicine found that coronary heart disease patients who practiced the Transcendental Meditation technique for 16 weeks showed improvements in blood pressure, insulin resistance, and autonomic nervous system tone, compared with a control group of patients who received health education. The researchers concluded that the Transcendental Meditation technique may be a novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of coronary heart disease.

The American Heart Association has published two studies on the Transcendental Meditation technique. In 2000, the association's journal Stroke published a study that found that on average the subjects engaged in daily practice of the Transcendental Meditation technique reduced the thickening of coronary arteries in hypertensive adults, thereby decreasing the risk of heart attack and stroke. After six to nine months, carotid intima-media thickness decreased in the Transcendental Meditation group as compared with matched control subjects.The association's journal Hypertension published the results of a randomized, controlled trial in which the group practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique had reduced blood pressure in a group of older African-Americans.

Also in 2006 a functional MRI study of 24 patients published in NeuroReport found that the long-term practice of the Transcendental Meditation technique may reduce the brain's response to pain.

A paper published in the The Lancet in 1977 demonstrated that the Transcendental Meditation technique had no effect on blood pressure in patients

Research on intelligence and creativity

A paper published in 2001 in the journal Intelligence reported on the results of three randomized, controlled trials used seven standardized test to measure the effect of the Transcendental Meditation technique, contemplative meditation from the Chinese tradition, and napping on a wide range of cognitive, emotional and perceptual functions of 362 students in Taiwan. The results of the three studies, which ranged from six months to one year, showed that taken together the Transcendental Meditation groups had significant improvement on all seven measurements compared to the no-treatment and napping control groups. Contemplative meditation showed a significant result in two categories, and napping had no effect. The results included an increase in IQ, creativity, "fluid intelligence, field independence, and practical intelligence.

A paper published in the Journal of Applied Psychology in 1978 found no effect on school grades.

Other programs offered by Maharishi

Beyond the initial meditation technique, the TM organization offers numerous other programs and products, such as the TM-Sidhi program, which involves the use of the yoga sutras of Patanjali, and may be followed by recordings of Vedic Pundits who chant portions of the ninth and tenth mandalas of the Rig Veda. The TM movement says the advanced meditation technique taught in this program brings many additional benefits to the practitioners known as"Yogic Flyers". Maharishi Mahesh Yogi says this practice will eventually lead to levitation. So far, only "hopping like a frog" has been demonstrated.

The TM movement also offers Maharishi Ayurveda, a trademarked version of Ayurveda, the traditional medicine of India; Vedic Astrology, known as Maharishi Jyotish; fire rituals called "yagyas" that are intended to purify the individual of karmic obstructions; a trademarked process for producing fresh food, known as Vedic Agriculture; and Maharishi Sthapatya Veda, a system for the design and construction of buildings according to Vedic principles.

Transcendental Meditation controversies

Validity of TM Research

In 2003 a study published by Canter and Ernst in the journal Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift reviewed ten studies of TM. Four studies showed a significant effect on cognitive function. Two studies showed that TM practitioners performed better on only some of the variables, and four studies suggested that Transcendental Meditation didn’t have a signicant effect. Canter and Ernst noted that the four positive studies employed subjects from among people favorably predisposed towards the Transcendental Meditation technique. The reviewers concluded that "The association observed between positive outcome, subject selection procedure, and control procedure suggests that the large positive effects reported in four trials result from an expectation effect. The claim that TM has a specific and cumulative effect on cognitive function is not supported by the evidence from randomised controlled trials." In an interview, study coauthor Peter Canter, a researcher from Peninsula Medical School, again noted the expectation or placebo effect, saying, "there is a strong placebo effect going on which probably works through the expectations being set up."

A review for the U.S. Army Research Institute, a National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council committee concluded that Transcendental Meditation is no more effective in lowering metabolism than are established relaxation techniquesNRC 1991. The report has been criticised.

Sociologist Barry Markovsky, said of their publications, "Once they publish in a certain journal...they start to call it 'the prestigious journal,' but that's almost never the case. They are almost always barraging journalists with articles, and every once in a while something gets through."

Actions of the TM organization

Attorney Anthony D. Denaro, who says he served as Director of Grants Administration and legal counsel for Maharishi International University for appproximately ten months during the period 1975-76, approximately five years before it attained accreditation, accused the university of practicing deception in order to obtain tax-exempt status. In an affidavit he signed and presented to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in 1986.

"It was obvious to me that organization was so deeply immersed in a systematic, wilful pattern of fraud including tax fraud, lobbying problems and other deceptions, that it was ethically impossible for me to become involved further as legal counsel.

"I discussed this with Steve Druker (the University’s Executive Vice President), but agreed to remain as Director of Grants provided certain conditions and restrictions were met. In practice, however, because I recognized a very serious and deliberate pattern of fraud, designed, in part, to misrepresent the TM movement as a science (not as a cult), and fraudulently claim and obtain tax-exempt status with the IRS, I was a lame duck Director of Grants Administration."

The JAMA article on Ayurvedic Medicine

In 1991 the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published an article on the benefits of Maharishi Ayur-Veda titled Letter from New Delhi: Maharishi Ayur-Veda: Modern Insights into Ancient Medicine, and authored by Hari Sharma, M.D., of the Ohio State University College of Medicine, Brhaspati Dev Triguna, of the All India Ayur-Veda Congress, and Deepak Chopra, M.D., of the American Association of Ayurvedic Medicine.

A subsequent article in JAMA, entitled Maharishi Ayur-Veda: Guru's Marketing Scheme Promises World Eternal "Perfect Health", alleged that the authors of the first article had not disclosed their affiliation with organizations that sell the products and services about which they wrote. The article reported on an investigation into the marketing practices surrounding Ayur-Veda products and services. This article states that "An investigation of the movement's marketing practices reveals what appears to be a widespread pattern of misinformation, deception, and manipulation of lay and scientific news media. This campaign appears to be aimed at earning at least the look of scientific respectability for the TM movement, as well as at making profits from sales of the many products and services that carry the Maharishi's name".

The second article quotes a former TM teacher and chair of the TM center in Washington DC, as saying that "I was taught to lie and to get around the pretty rules of the 'unenlightened' in order to get favorable reports into the media. We were taught how to exploit the reporters' gullibility and fascination with the exotic, especially what comes from the East. We thought we weren't doing anything wrong, because we were told it was often necessary to deceive the unenlightened to advance our guru's plan to save the world."

In 1992, in response to the second article, including the actions surrounding its writing and also subsequent actions, the The Lancaster Foundation and the American Association for Ayur-Vedic Medicine filed a $194 million dollar libel suit against the author of the article and the editor of JAMA, alleging in part that statements in the article were false and defamatory. This lawsuit was settled out of court in 1993..

Alleged Harmful Effects of Transcendental Meditation

Former TM accountant and legal counsel Anthony Denaro said in a sworn affidavit filed in a 1986 lawsuit alleging adverse effects that there was a "disturbing denial or avoidance syndrome....even outright lies and deception are used to cover-up or sanitize the dangerous reality on campus of very serious nervous breakdowns, episodes of dangerous and bizarre behavior, suicidal and homicidal ideation, threats and attempts, psychotic episodes, crime, depression and manic behavior that often accompanied roundings (intensive group meditations with brainwashing techniques)."

According to the affidavit, Denaro was employed by Maharishi International University for approximately 10 months in 1975-1976. His affidavit, which was superseded by his testimony in court, was submitted as part of a lawsuit alleging psychological and emotional distress as a result of the practice of Transcendental Meditation. The suit was dismissed by an appellate court.

Dr. Leon Otis a scientist at the Stanford Research Institute, conducted a study which he titled "Adverse Effects of Transcendental Meditation" practitioners of the TM technique and found that, "...people who had been meditating for the longest period of time reported the most adverse effects. Of considerable interest is the finding that the specific adverse effects reported were remarkably consistent between groups and formed a pattern suggestive of people who had become anxious, confused, frustrated, depressed, and/or withdrawn (or more so) since starting TM." He concluded by saying that "A final word appears justified regarding SIMS promotional efforts. SIMS advertises that TM results in beneficial effects for anyone who takes up the practice and learns to perform it »correctly.« Our data raise serious doubts about the validity of this position."

In a civil suit against the TM organization Robert Kropinski, who had been in the movement for 11 years, reported incidents of alleged psychosis, suicides, and the drugging of course participants. After the case Dr. Otis was quoted as saying "TM may be hazardous to the mental health of a sizable proportion of the people who take up TM." (the Philadelphia Inquirer January 14, 1987). The jury awarded Robert Kropinski, 39, $137,890 to pay for his psychiatric treatment. The decision was appealed and Kropinski's suit alleging psychological damage was dismissed by the appellate court..

Transcendental Meditation as religion

The Transcendental Meditation organization states that the Transcendental Meditation technique is not a religion. In fact, its practitioners are encouraged to continue practicing whatever religion they might already pursue.

In 1979 the Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Malnak v. Yogi (592 F.2d 197) that under the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution the teaching of the theory and philosophy of the Science of Creative Intelligence (SCI) could not be taught in New Jersey public schools. The Establishment Clause was intended to prohibit the federal government from declaring and financially supporting a national religion. The lower court based its decision in part on its examination of the puja ceremony that is performed by teachers of Transcendental Meditation prior to giving instruction. The appellate court said that the puja wasn't an issue.

The TM movement states the puja is a ceremony of gratitude. Judge Meanor, the lower court judge, was concerned with the portion of the ceremony in which Guru Dev, Maharishi's teacher, is praised as "the Lord," as "Him" and as Eternal and perfect. At the appellate level, Judge Adams emphasized the secular nature of the ceremony, referring to it as “a secular puja, quite common in Eastern cultures” and distinguished it from unlawful school prayer because: “(a) the Puja was never performed in a school classroom, or even on government property; (b) it was never performed during school hours, but only on a Sunday; (c) it was performed only once in the case of each student; (d) it was entirely in Sanskrit, with neither the student nor, apparently, the teacher who chanted it, knowing what the foreign words meant. Moreover, the elements of involuntariness present in Engel and Schempp are wholly absent here.”

Judge Adams concurred with the Circuit Court's decision to uphold the lower court's decision that the teaching of SCI in public schools violated the Establishment Clause.

Patrick Ryan, a graduate of MIU and founder of the TM-Ex support group for people leaving TM, states that "People become vegetarian, celibate, recite mantras composed of the names of Hindu gods, and worship Maharishi Mahesh Yogi as the ‘enlightened master of the universe.’"

In a biography called "The Maharishi", Paul Mason states that the TM mantras are bija mantras, one or two syllabled sounds, which are related in Hinduism to different Gods or Godesses. . Maharishi has written that "For our practice we select only the suitable mantras of personal Gods. Such mantras fetch to us the grace of personal Gods and make us happier in every walk of life."

Sociologist Barry Markovsky, a University of South Carolina sociologist, labeled the TM movement's program to teach TM in public schools “stealth religion.”

Maharishi's teachings include teachings about "God", for example "The sixth state is referred to as God consciousness, because the individual is capable of perceiving and appreciating the full range and mechanics of creation and experiences waves of love and devotion for the creation and its creator." "God is found in two phases of reality: as a supreme being of absolute, eternal nature and as a personal God at the highest level of phenomenal creation!". "The solution, Maharishi said, is groups of Yogic Flyers. The impact of the groups will be immediate and clear. 'A new destiny of mankind will dawn when Total Natural Law -- the Constitution of the Universe, the Divine Will of God -- which is present in every grain of creation -- rules the world of human beings as it rules the ever-expanding universe.'"

According to Maharishi, "Transcendental Meditation is a path to God".

Is Transcendental Meditation a cult?

The Cultic Studies Journal has published two articles on the TM movement, one critical of the use of Transcendental Meditation to promote social progress in Israel, and a second by researchers explaining how the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programs can be used to reduce conflict and enhance quality of life.

Four articles have been published about TM in the Cult Observer. Three of the articles summarize statements made in an article appearing in the Journal of the American Medical Association (see section on "Marketing of herbal products" in this article). A fourth, by Kevin Garvey, a member of the American Family Foundation, makes accusations of spousal and child abuse, but doesn't present evidence.

According to a 1987 article in the Washington Post, the Cult Awareness Network, which is now owned and operated by associates of the Church of Scientology, held a press conference and demonstration in Washington, D.C., charging that Transcendental Meditation is a cult. The article quoted Steve Hassan, editor of two books on cults and a former follower of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, as saying "They want you to dress and think and speak in a certain way and not to ask questions. They go into hypnotic trances and shut off who they are as a person."

A 1995 report "Cults in France," commissioned for the French National Assembly, lists Transcendental Meditation as one of 175 cults. The report defines cults broadly and includes Baptists, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Church of Christ, and Rosicrucians. It provides estimates of each cult's size in France and the rest of the world.

Books that accuse the TM movement of exhibiting cult-like behavior include Michael A. Persinger's 1980 "TM and Cult Mania" and former TM teachers Joe Kellett and Curtis Mailloux have also claimed it is a deceptive and harmful cult.

Researcher David Orme-Johnson, who states that he has authored over 100 studies related to Transcendental Meditation Technique (most of them peer-reviewed), also states that the “The Transcendental Meditation organization is not a cult.” He argues that research shows that the Transcendental Meditation technique produces effects in practitioners that are “the opposite to those found in people who allegedly get involved in cults.” And he cites, as examples, a dissertation done at York University and one done at Harvard that suggest that meditators show more autonomous thought. He states that a cult is a “closed system of thought that does not submit itself to outside validation,” whereas the “Transcendental Mediation organization is the opposite because it submits its theories to the rigors of scientific testing.” He says that over 200 universities have conducted research on the Transcendental Meditation technique.

Suit alleges mental health required for safe practice

The possibility that a minimum level of mental health is required for safe TM practice is alleged in lawsuits filed as a result of a stabbing at the Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa on March 1, 2004

The family of the murdered student and a student who was assaulted earlier in the day have sued MUM and the Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corporation. Their separate suits, filed on Feb. 24, 2006, allege that the twice-daily practice of Transcendental Meditation, which the university requires of all students, can be dangerous for people with psychiatric problems. They also charge the university with failing to call the police or take action to protect students from a violent, mentally ill student .

Consciousness and the unified field

Maharishi has taught that the Transcendental Meditation technique allows the mind to contact an underlying field of existence. This underlying field has been characterized by teachers of Transcendental Meditation as being the same as a hypothetical unified field described by physicists. For a short time in the 1980s, the Transcendental Meditation technique was referred to as the Maharishi Technology of the Unified Field.

The relationship between the mind and physics is a matter of dispute among physicists.

In his capacity as executive director of the New York Academy of Science in 1986, Heinz Pagels submitted an affidavit on behalf of a former TM member who was suing the movement for fraud. "There is no known connection between meditation states and states of matter in physics," he wrote. "No qualified physicist that I know would claim to find such a connection without knowingly committing fraud. ... To see the beautiful and profound ideas of modern physics, the labor of generations of scientists, so willfully perverted provokes a feeling of compassion for those who might be taken in by these distortions."

Pagels said that the philosophical claims willfully distort scientific truth: "I would like to be generous to the Maharishi and his movement because it supports world peace and other high ideals," he wrote. "But none of these ideals could possibly be realized within the framework of a philosophy that so willfully distorts scientific truth."

The claim for fraud was settled out of court and both parties entered into a confidential settlement agreement.

Other physicists do support the concept that there is a relationship between mind and physics. Quantum pioneer Max Planck described consciousness as the source of matter: "I regard consciousness as fundamental. I regard matter as derivative from consciousness. We cannot get behind consciousness. Everything that we talk about, everything that we regard as existing, postulates consciousness."

German Government sued by TM Organization

A 1980 report funded by the German government found that over 75% of long-term meditators experienced adverse effects as a result of TM.

The German Ministry for Youth, Family and Health was sued by the German Transcendental Meditation organization regarding the report. On December 18th, 1985, the Administrative Court of Appeals for the State of North-Rhine Westphalia, docket No. 5 A 1125/84, held in favor of the TM organization, citing various issues such as dealing only with isolated cases and only interviewing those hostile to TM. Well over half of the information was obtained from third parties (parents or spouses) who had no direct knowledge of Transcendental Meditation or the Transcendental Meditation organization.

The court stated that the evidence does not prove that those who practice TM are more susceptible to mental illness and that "These studies were prepared by religious-ideological opponents of the TM movement, and are obviously biased."

Some TM teachers breaking away

Some TM teachers feel that the course fee of $2,500 (USA) to learn TM is unreasonable, in view of Maharishi's longstanding claims that the technique is everyone's birthright, and have broken with Maharishi to offer instruction on their own. They include TM Independent in the UK and Natural Stress Relief in Italy and the USA. The Natural Stress Relief web site states that the technique they offer is "comparable to" and is not Transcendental Meditation: "Please be advised that the instruction provided you by our organization does not consist of the TM® or Transcendental Meditation® program." TM Independent says that it is their goal to "to make TM available to everyone at a price they can afford."

See also

References

1. Shear, Jonathan (2006). The Experience of Meditation, 27-28
2. ^ Transcendental Consciousness
3. Shear, Jonathan (2006). The Experience of Meditation, 25, 30-32, 43-44
4. ^ Beacon Light of the Himalayas, The Dawn of a Happy New Era, Maharshi Bala Brahmachari Mahesh Yogi Maharaj, October 1955, p. 65
5. Maharishi School for the Age of Enlightenment
6. Natural Law Party
7. The Transcendental Meditation Program
8. The Transcendental Meditation Program
9. Shear, Jonathan (2006). The Experience of Meditation, 25, 30-32, 43-44
10. The TM and TM-Sidhi Techniques
11. Enlightenment Online
12. Studies of Advanced Stages of Meditation in the Tibetan Buddhist and Vedic Traditions. I: A Comparison of General Changes, Hethe House, eCAM, 2006 3(4):513-521
13. Transcendental Consciousness: The State of Inner Peace
14. Cosmic Consciousness: A Permanent State of Peace
15. ^ God Consciousness and Unity Consciousness: The Highest States of Peace and Fulfillment
16. Wallace RK. Physiological effects of Transcendental Meditation. Science 1970;167:1751–1754
17. Wallace RK, Benson H, Wilson AF. A wakeful hypometabolic physiologic state. American Journal of Physiology 1971;221:795-799
18. Wallace RK. The Physiology of Meditation. Scientific American 1972;226:84-90
19. Travis, F. T., Tecce, J., Arenander, A., & Wallace, R. K. (2002), Patterns of EEG coherence, power, and contingent negative variation characterize the integration of transcendental and waking states. Biological Psychology, 61, 293-319
20. Travis, F., Arenander, A., & DuBois, D. (2004). Psychological and physiological characteristics of a proposed object-referral/self-referral continuum of self-awareness. Consciousness and Cognition, 13, 401-420
21. 7 Steps to Learn the TM Technique
22. The Seven-Step Course
23. ^ The Steps of Initiation
24. Course Requirements
25. Scientific Journals
26. Hypertension 26: 820–827, 1995
27. International Journal of Neuroscience 16: 53–58, 1982
28. Journal of Counseling and Development 64: 212–215, 1985
29. Journal of Human Stress 5: 24-27, 1979
30. The American Journal of Managed Care 3: 135–144, 1997
31. The American Journal of Managed Care 3: 135–144, 1997
32. Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly 11: 13–87, 1994
33. Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly 11: 13–87, 1994
34. Journal of Clinical Psychology 45: 957–974, 1989
35. Vedic Medicine, Meditation Receive Federal Funds, U.S. Medicine,Matt Pueschel, July 2000
36. NIH Awards $8 Million Grant to Establish Research Center on Natural Medicine
37. Schneider RH; et al. "Long-Term Effects of Stress Reduction on Mortality in Persons >55 Years of Age With Systemic Hypertension" (PDF). Retrieved 2006-09-12. {{cite web}}: Explicit use of et al. in: |author= (help); Unknown parameter |citation= ignored (help)
38. Schneider RH; et al. "A randomized controlled trial of stress reduction in African Americans treated for hypertension for over one year". Retrieved 2006-09-12. {{cite web}}: Explicit use of et al. in: |author= (help)
39. Effects of a Randomized Controlled Trial of Transcendental Meditation on Components of the Metabolic Syndrome in Subjects With Coronary Heart Disease, Archives of Internal Medicine, Maura Paul-Labrador et al,, Vol. 166 No. 11, June 12, 2006
40. Stroke. 2000 Mar;31(3):568-73.
41. A Randomized Controlled Trial of Stress Reduction for Hypertension in Older African Americans, Robert H. Schneider et al, Hypertension, 1995, 26: 820-827
42. Orme-Johnson DW; et al. "Neuroimaging of meditation's effect on brain reactivity to pain". Retrieved 2006-9-12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Explicit use of et al. in: |author= (help); Unknown parameter |Publisher= ignored (|publisher= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |citation= ignored (help)
43. Pollack, A. A., Weber, M. A., Case, D. B., Laragh, J. H. "Limitations of Transcendental Meditation in the treatment of essential hypertension." The Lancet, January 8, 1977, 71-73.
44. Intelligence (September/October 2001), Vol. 29/5, pp. 419-440
45. Carsello, C. J. and Creaser, J. W. "Does Transcendental Meditation Affect Grades?" Journal of Applied Psychology, 1978, 63, 644-645.
46. The TM and TM-Sidhi Techniques
47. TM in the Heartland
    The physical manifestations of the "Yogic Flying" vary with the practitioner. The Yoga Sutras of Maharishi Patanjali describes three stages of immediately visible results. Stage One is generally associated with what would best be described as "hopping like a frog." Stage Two is flying through the air for a short time. Stage Three is complete mastery of flying. The above photo and all "Yogic Flying" demonstrations to date depict Stage One results.
48. What is Vedic Agriculture?
49. Canter, P., Ernst, E. (2003) The cumulative effects of Transcendental Meditation on cognitive function—a systematic review of randomised controlled trials Wien Klin Wochenschr. 2003 Nov 28;115(21-22):758-766
50. ^ Meditation Controversy, The Journal News, May 18, 2004
51. Orme-Johnson, D. W., Alexander, C. N., & Hawkins, M. A. (2005). Critique of the National Research Council’s report on meditation. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality,17(1), 383-414
52. Good Vibrations, Dallas Observer, Jonathan Fox, Oct 5 2000
    "Barry Markovsky, the Iowa University sociologist, said the institution has an insatiable need for validation in scientific journals and newspapers. "Once they publish in a certain journal," he said, "they start to call it 'the prestigious journal,' but that's almost never the case. They are almost always barraging journalists with articles, and every once in a while something gets through."
53. ^ Transcendental Meditation, The Skepdic's Dictionary, Robert Carroll
54. Sharma, HM, Triguna, BD, Chopra, D. "Maharishi Ayur-Veda: modern insights into ancient medicine", Journal of the American Medical Association, 1991 May 22-29;265(20):2633-4, 2637
55. Skolnick, A.A. "Maharishi Ayur-Veda: Guru's marketing scheme promises the world eternal 'perfect health'." Journal of the American Medical Association. 1991 Oct 2;266(13):1741-2, 1744-5, 1749-50
56. Maharishi Ayur-Veda: Guru's Marketing Scheme Promises World Eternal "Perfect Health", Journal of the American Medical Association, Andrew Skolnick, Oct. 2, 1991
57. Maharishi Ayur-Veda: Guru's Marketing Scheme Promises World Eternal "Perfect Health", Journal of the American Medical Association, Andrew Skolnick, Oct. 2, 1991
58. The Lancaster Foundation, Inc., The American Association for Ayur-Vedic Medicine, Inc. vs. Andrew A. Skolnick, George D. Lundberg, M.D.,; in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, No. 82 C 4175; Judge Kocoras
59. United States District Court for the District of Columbia, #85-2848
60. Adverse Effects of Transcendental Meditation Dialogcentret', Leon S. Otis, Update Nr. IX 1, March 1985
61. United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Civil Suit #85-2848, 1986
62. United States District Court for the District of Columbia, #85-2848
63. What the TM Techniqe Is
64. Meditation, Delusion and Deception, Cult Abuse Policy and Research Newsletter, Vol. 2, No. 3, October 1994
65. ^ Malnak v. Yogi, 592 F.2d 197, 203 (3rd Cir., 1979)
66. Information on TM
67. The Maharishi: The Biography of the Man Who Gave Transcendental Meditation to the World
68. Man Fails To Fly, Sues Camlot Owner, GTR News Online, Nancy K. Owens
    said the movement is "a way to hoist an actual religion onto unknowing people and a way to turn a profit."
69. ''Meditation Controversy, The Journal News, Joy Victory, May 18, 2004
70. Science of Being and Art of Living, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Rev. Ed. 1967, p. 271
71. [http://www.alltm.org/pages/9oct02.html Maharishi's Message to the World], Oct 9 2002
72. Meditations of Maharishi. p. 59
73. Transcendental Meditation
74. Group Says Movement a Cult, The Washington Post, Phil McCombs, July 2 1987
75. Cults in France, The Board of Inquiry Into Cults, October 4 1958
76. TM and Cult Mania, Michael A. Persinger et al, Christopher Pub House, May 1980, ISBN 0815803923
77. JAMA, Medical News & Perspectives, Oct. 2, 1991
78. About David Orme-Johnson, Ph.D.
79. Issue: Is the Transcendental Meditation organization a cult?
80. Trouble in transcendental paradise as murder rocks the Maharishi University, The Observer, May 2 2004
81. Butler v. Maharishi University of Management, US District Court, Southern District of Iowa, Central Div., Case No. 06-cv-00072
82. Kilian v. Maharishi University of Management, US District Court, Southern District of Iowa
83. Heinz Pagels
84. Deepak Chopra, The Skeptics Dictionary, Robert Carroll
85. United States District Court for the District of Columbia, #85-2848
86. Max Planck, The Observer, London, Jan. 25, 1931
87. Transcendental Meditation, John Carroll, The Skeptic's Dictionary
88. Administrative Court of Appeals for the State of North-Rhine Westphalia, docket No. 5 A 1125/84
89. German Court Cases, David Orme Johnson
90. We Do Not Teach Transcendental Meditation

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External links

• Discover the benefits - Link to official TM site, includes some scientific study summaries.
• Truth About TM - A leading researcher on Transcendental Meditation responds to issues.
• American Association of Professionals Practicing the Transcendental Meditation Program
• Stress-Free Schools
• Falling Down the TM Rabbit Hole - How TM Really Works, a Critical Opinion - Criticism of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and TM by a former TM teacher
• Transcendental Meditation - The Religious Movements Homepage Project at The University of Virginia.
• Meditation Information Network - Web site supporting critical examination of Transcendental Meditation and associated programs. Includes archived newsletters of TM-EX, the Transcendental Meditation Ex-Members Support Group (1990 - 1994).
• Behind the TM Facade - Criticizes claims made by the TM organization.
• Research on the Transcendental Meditation Technique
• Transcendental Meditation,Scientia Institute - Discusses TM benefits and TM alternatives.
• Medication or Meditation - A critique of thirty years of TM research.
• MUMBull - "A critical look at the Maharishi University of Management and other enterprises of the Transcendental Meditation movement."
• The Maharishi Caper: Or How to Hoodwink Top Medical Journals, Andrew Skolnick, ScienceWriters: The Newsletter of the National Association of Science Writers, Fall 1991 - Discusses the JAMA article Maharishi Ayur-Veda: Modern Insights Into Ancient Medicine
• Transcendental Meditation -- Links at Steven Hassan's "Freedom of Mind Center"

Further reading

• Maharishi Mahesh Yogi on the Bhagavad-Gita : A New Translation and Commentary, Chapters 1-6
• Maharishi Mahesh Yogi: Science of Being and Art of Living : Transcendental Meditation
• The David Lynch Foundation For Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace
• June 16, 2006 Transcendental meditation improves blood pressure, insulin resistance
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• Kropinski v. World Plan Executive Council, 853 F, 2d 948, 956 (D.C. Cir, 1988)

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