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The Transcendental Meditation technique, or TM technique, is a form of mantra meditation introduced worldwide in 1957 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (1917-2008). The Transcendental Meditation technique is one of sixty services and courses offered by the Transcendental Meditation "movement". The terms "Transcendental Meditation" and "TM" are servicemarks owned by Maharishi Foundation Ltd., a UK non-profit organization and licensed to the Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corporation U.S.A., also a non-profit organization.

Teaching procedure

The Transcendental Meditation technique is taught in a standardized, seven-step course., and consists of two introductory lectures, personal instruction and four, two-hour instruction sessions given on consecutive days. Personal instruction sessions begin with a short puja ceremony performed by the teacher, after which the student is given a mantra to recite mentally. This mantra is chosen according to the student's age and gender at the time of the ceremony. The technique is practiced twice per day and subsequent sessions further clarify correct practice. According to the official web sites, the Transcendental Meditation technique can only be learned from a certified, authorized teacher.

Principles of the technique

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During the initial personal instruction session the student is given a specific sound, called a mantra. The sound given has no meaning assigned to it and is utilized as a thought in the meditation process. Use of this thought allows the individual’s attention to be directed naturally from an active style of functioning to a less active or quieter style of mental activity. According to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, as the mind quiets down the practitioner can become aware that the thought itself is transcended, and can have the experience of what Maharishi calls the 'source of the thought', 'pure awareness' or transcendental Being.

One important distinction between TM and other practices involving mantras is the way the sound is used. In Transcendental Meditation the mantra has no associations and is not chanted—either verbally or mentally. It is a vehicle on which the attention rests.

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi says in his 1963 book, The Science Of Being and Art Of Living that over time, the practice of allowing the mind to experience its deeper levels brings these levels from the subconscious to within the capacity of the conscious mind. He goes on to describe the Transcendental Meditation technique as one which requires no preparation, is simple to do, and can be learned by anyone. The technique is described effortless, natural and as involving neither contemplation nor concentration.


According to the Maharishi, the selection of a proper thought or mantra "becomes increasingly important when we consider that the power of thought increases when the thought is appreciated in its infant stages of development".

In October, 1955 the Maharishi said that: "Thus, we find that any sound can serve our purpose of training the mind to become sharp. But, we do not select the sound at random....because such ordinary sounds can do nothing more than merely sharpening the mind; whereas there are some special sounds which have the additional efficacy of producing vibrations whose effects are found to be congenial to our way of life. This is the scientific reason why we do not select any words at random. 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."

The sounds used in Transcendental Meditation are taken from the ancient Vedic tradition.

In 1975 Time Magazine reported that the TM meditator are instructed to keep their mantra private. Each TM teacher assigns each students mantra, based on a formula that presumably includes temperament and profession.

In January 1984, Omni (magazine) published a list of mantras that they received from "disaffected former TM trainers" as follows (age range in brackets): eng (0 - 11), em (12 - 13), enga (14 - 15), ema (16 - 17), aeng (18 - 19), aem (20 - 21), aenga (22 - 23), aema (24 - 25,) shiring (26 - 29), shiring (30 - 34), hiring (35 - 39), hrim (40 - 44), ), kiring (45 - 49), kirim (50 - 54), sham (55 - 59), shama (60 - up)

In 1992, Religious Scholar J. Gordon Melton wrote that the mantras are secret and that some TM meditators and TM teachers have published them

In the 1995 expanded addition of Conway and Siegelman's "Snapping Point", a TM teacher called "Robertson" says: "I was lying about the mantras - they were not meaningless sounds they were actually the names of Hindu demigods - and about how many different ones there were - we had sixteen to give out to our students"

In 1997 Bainbridge wrote that the mantras given for Transcendental Meditation are "supposedly selected to match the nervous system of the individual but actually taken from a list of 16 Sanskrit words on the basis of the person's age"

According to Physicist Lawrence Domash, describing Transcendental Meditation is like "trying to explain the innards of a color television set to a tribe of Pygmies. What you can do is tell the Pygmy how to switch on the set and tune in to a station so he can enjoy the program."

The technique is practiced morning and evening for 15–20 minutes each time but is not recommended before bed.

History

Origin

In 1955, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (born Mahesh Prasad Varma), an Indian ascetic, began teaching a meditation technique that he said was derived from the Vedic tradition and which came to be called Transcendental Meditation. The records of this "Spirtual Development Conference" held in Cochin in October 1955 were published as "Beacon Light of the Himalayas"

Prior to this, the Maharishi served as a "close disciple" and secretary to Swami Brahmananda Saraswati from 1941 until Brahmananda Saraswati's death in 1953. Of "Guru Dev", the Maharishi wrote: "In the English Language, his devotees felt that the expression "His Holiness" did not adequately describe this personified Divine Effulgence; and so the new expression "His Divinity" was used. With such unique adoration of newer and fuller grandeur, transcending the glories of the expression of antiquity, was worshiped the holy name of Guru Deva, the living expression of Upanishadic Reality, the embodiment of the transcendent Divinity. In 1957 Maharishi began the Spiritual Regeneration Movement in Madras, India, on the concluding day of a festival held in remembrance of his deceased teacher. In 1958 he began the first of a number of worldwide tours promoting and disseminating his technique. In the early 1970s, the Maharishi undertook to establish one Transcendental Meditation teaching center for each million of the world's population.

Early Organizations

The Spiritual Regeneration Movement Foundation (SRMF) was incorporated in California on July 7, 1959. Its articles of incorporation stated that the SRMF's primary purpose for formation was spiritual, and in Article 11 that "this corporation is a religious one. The educational purpose shall be to give instruction in a simple system of meditation." The SRMF corporation was later dissolved. It was the first and only organization to teach the TM technique until 1965, when the Students International Meditation Society (SIMS) was incorporated and continues in some countries outside the U.S.A. Other organizations created to teach the Transcendental Meditation technique include the International Meditation Society (IMS), created in the early 1960's and the American Foundation for the Science of Creative Intelligence (AFSCI), which catered to businessmen. AFSCI sponsored TM courses, at among others, AT&T, General Foods, Connecticut General Life Insurance Co., Blue Cross/Blue Shield in Chicago, and the Crocker National Bank of San Francisco. In 1993, the Maharishi Vedic Development Corporation was formed.

Popularity

Beginning in 1968 a number of well known musicians and celebrities, such as Donovan, members of The Beatles and The Beach Boys as well as Doug Henning, Clint Eastwood, Deepak Chopra, Andy Kaufman, Jane FondaShirley MacLaine and Kurt Vonnegut reported using the technique. According to Paul McCartney "It’s one of the few things anyone has ever given to me that means so much to me". Of his experience with TM, Kurt Vonnegut said; "I tried that (TM). It gave me a terrible headache (laughs)" Jerry Seinfeld said; ""I've been practicing Transcendental Meditation most of my life". Ozzy Osbourne thought it was a waste of time, saying "I tried TM but gave it up and smoked a joint instead.". Of his experience with TM John Lennon described it as "Just a waste of time". In 1975, TM meditator Merv Griffin invited the Maharishi to appear on his highly rated talk show, thereby aiding Transcendental Meditation in becoming a “full blown craze” during that era (according to Time Magazine) and eventually becoming a global phenomenon with centers in some 130 countries..

A Gallup Poll conducted in August 1976 indicated that three percent (3%) of Americans - 6 million people - were involved with or practicing TM at that time. The average number of people learning TM fell from a peak of approx. 40,000 a month in 1975 to approx. 3,000 in November 1977. Bainbridge wrote that in 1977 "Most of the million who had been initiated either ceased meditating or did so informally and irregularly without continuing connections to the TM Movement." . The official web site reports that more than 6 million people worldwide have learned the Transcendental Meditation technique since its introduction in 1958.

Transcendental Meditation is often mistaken for other nostrums of the '60s and '70s, but it has little or no relationship to them.

Transcendental Meditation has received favorable testimony in the Congressional Record and been advocated by Major General Franklin Davis.

TM-Sidhi program

In 1975 the Maharishi began teaching advanced mental techniques, called the TM-Sidhi Program, that included a technique for the development of what he termed Yogic Flying.

Global Country of World Peace

In 1990 the Maharishi began the coordination of the teaching of the Transcendental Meditation technique from the town of Vlodrop, the Netherlands, through an organization he called the Global Country of World Peace (GCWP).

Temporary moratorium on courses in the UK

In 2004 Maharishi Mahesh Yogi directed Transcendental Meditation practitioners at the Maharishi village at Skelmersdale, Lancashire to beam peace loving thoughts to the British electorate with the aim of overturning the Labour government. The Maharishi said: "The good effects of transcendental meditation - increased creativity and long life - should not be given to a dangerous country that is constantly busy destroying the world". After Tony Blair's Labour Party won reelection in May 2005, the Maharishi withdrew all instruction in Transcendental Meditation in the UK. The ban was lifted about the same time Tony Blair left office as Prime Minister.

Research

Range of studies

Studies have suggested a possible positive correlation between the Transcendental Meditation technique and health-related physiological states, including improvement in lung function for patients with asthma, reduction of high blood pressure, an effect the researchers termed "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.

According to Time Magazine two researchers from Harvard and U.C.L.A. found a significant drop in systolic and diastolic blood pressure after the patients began Transcendental Meditation. In addition, oxygen consumption is as much as 18% lower during meditation, alpha waves, produced by electrical activity in the brain and generally associated with a feeling of relaxation, become denser and more widespread in the brain. This has been established in studies by a neurologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and by two psychiatrists at Hartford's Institute of Living. Other studies show TM meditators becoming less dependent on cigarettes, liquor and drugs.

Effect on the physiology

Research studies have described specific physiological effects that occur during the practice of the Transcendental Meditation technique. The first studies, published in the early 1970s by lead author RK Wallace,found that the Transcendental Meditation technique produced a physiological state that the researchers called a "wakeful hypometabolic state", curing which the researchers found significant reductions in respiration, minute ventilation, tidal volume, blood lactate, and significant increases in basal skin resistance, while EEG measurements showed increased coherence and integration of brain functioning, although later it was found that when compared to controls the original claims were actually insignificant. In 1987 researchers at Maharishi University of Management, M.C. Dillbeck and D.W. Orme-Johnson, concluded that the physiology was alert rather than asleep during TM practice..

In her book "Stress Management" author Cotton says: “Interestingly, in spite of TM’s status outside the mainstream of the health system and mental health practice, it has been subject to a significant amount of empirical evaluation, much of which has in fact supported its claims of effectiveness in countering the physiological effects of stress.” Psychiatrist Stanley Dean says, "TM is an important addition to our medical armamentarium, but it is not exclusive." According to Benson Transcendental Meditation is, "a hypometabolic state (…) that may well be induced by other techniques (…) and various religious prayers. TM therefore, is one method for eliciting the relaxation response".

A 2007 meta-analysis of meditation research was performed on five broad categories of meditation practices including mantra meditation, Mindfulness Meditation, Yoga, Tai Chi and Qi Gong. The report said that "meta-analysis based on low quality studies and small numbers of hypertensive participants showed that TM, Qi Gong and Zen Bhuddist meditation significantly reduced blood pressure" and that "choosing to practice a particular meditation technique continues to rely solely on individual experiences and personal preferences, until more conclusive scientific evidence is produced". According to a 1984 article in the New York Times, fifteen years of research on multiple kinds of meditation techniques has left the question of meditation's physiological effects more confused than clarified.

Effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique compared to relaxation

A 1984 article in the New York Times reported: "In a position not supported by most scientists outside the T.M. movement, researchers at the Maharishi International University in Fairfield, Iowa, maintain that T.M. has subtle effects on body chemistry and blood flow different from those induced by other formal relaxation methods, let alone ordinary rest."

The effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique have been compared to those of relaxation in biochemical studies, clinical research, and EEG studies.

An early study on biochemical effects published by Michaels in Science in 1976 looked a the reduction of biochemicals associated with stress as a result of meditation, comparing the Transcendental Meditation technique to simple resting. Reduction of levels of plasma epinephrine, norephinephrine, and lactate were the same for groups. A second study by Michaels in 1979 found similarities between the two groups on four measures but said that lower levels of lactate cortisol in the meditators may suggest that they are less responsive to an acute stress because of their lower levels of cortisol relative to controls.

A series of studies done in the lab of Archie Wilson at the University of California at Irvine found biochemical differences between the Transcendental Meditation technique and relaxation. A 1978 study found declines of hepatic blood flow, increased cardiac output, decreased arterial lactate, and minute volume in the Transcendental Meditation group. These changes imply a considerable increase of nonrenal, nonhepatic blood flow of 44% during the Transcendental Meditation technique compared to a 12% increase during rest-relaxation. A study in 1983 found a marked decline of cell glycolytic rate induced by the Transcendental Meditation technique that was significantly correlated with decreased plasma lactate, a hormone associated with stress.

A 1987 study found that during that during the hypometabolic states experienced by both both the Transcendental Meditation and relaxation groups, arterial-venous CO2 content difference declines, and that during the Transcendental Meditation technique, arterial-venous CO2 content difference briefly disappears. This change was due to both an increase of arterial CO2 content and a decrease of venous CO2 content. Similar, but opposite and smaller, changes occurred in arterial and venous 02 content. Both groups showed a decrease in espiratory quotient . A 1996 study found that the Transcendental Meditation group showed increased cerebral blood flow in the frontal and occipital regions of the brain compared to controls. The study also found a high correlation between increased cerebral blood flow and decreased cerebrovascular resistance, suggesting that a contributing vascular mechanism to the increased cerebral blood flow may be decreased cerebrovascular resistance.

Other studies comparing the Transcendental Meditation technique with relaxation have found that the Transcendental Meditation group shows a sharp decline in thyroid stimulating hormone (an increase of which is associated with stressors), a marked decline in red cell metabolism, increased phenylalanine concentration, and altered arginme vasopressln secretion (a hormone associated with stress).

Research of positive effects on hypertension and heart disease

In 2005 the American Journal of Cardiology published a review of two studies, both lead by Robert H. Schneider, Director of the TM Movements Institute of Natural Medicine and Prevention, 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 rates that were reduced by 23%. 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 involving 103 subjects 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 American Heart Association has published two studies on the Transcendental Meditation technique. In 2000, the association's journal, Stroke, published a study involving 127 subjects that found that, on average, the hypertensive, adult subjects who practiced the Transcendental Meditation technique daily experienced reduced thickening of coronary arteries, thereby decreasing the risk of heart attack and stroke. After six to nine months, carotid intima-media thickness decreased in the group that was practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique as compared with matched control subjects. Also, in 1995 the association's journal Hypertension published the results of a randomized, controlled trial in which a group of older African-Americans practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique demonstrated a significant reduction in blood pressure.

Also in 2006, a functional MRI study of 24 patients conducted at the University of California at Irvine, and published in the journal NeuroReport, found that the long-term practice of the Transcendental Meditation technique may reduce the affective/motivational dimension of the brain's response to pain..

In June, 2007 the United States National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine released an independent, meta-analysis of the state of meditation research, conducted by researchers at the University of Alberta Evidence-based Practice Center. The report reviewed 813 studies, of which 230 were studies of TM or TM-Sidhi.. The report concluded that "he therapeutic effects of meditation practices cannot be established based on the current literature," and "irm conclusions on the effects of meditation practices in healthcare cannot be drawn based on the available evidence.(p. 6)

In 2008 researchers at the University of Kentucky conducted a meta-analysis of nine qualifying RCT published studies which used Transcendental Meditation to address patients with hypertension, and found that on average across all nine studies the practice of TM was associated with approximate reductions of 4.7 mm (0 in) Hg systolic blood pressure and 3.2 mm (0 in) Hg diastolic blood pressure. The researchers concluded that "...Sustained blood pressure reductions of this magnitude are likely to significantly reduce risk for cardiovascular disease." The study was published in the March 2008 issue of the American Journal of Hypertension. Using the Jadad scale, the researchers found that of the nine studies evaluated, three were of high quality with a score of 75% or greater, three were of acceptable quality, and three were of suboptimal quality.

Research on cognitive function

A paper published in the Journal of Applied Psychology in 1978 found no effect on school grades. A 1985 study in the British Journal of Educational Psychology, and a 1989 study in Education showed improved academic performance.

A paper published in 2001 in the journal, Intelligence, reported the effects on 362 Taiwanese students of three randomized, controlled trials that used seven standardized tests. The trials measured the effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique, a contemplative meditative technique from the Chinese tradition, and napping on a wide range of cognitive, emotional and perceptual functions. The three studies ranged in time from six months to one year. Results indicated that taken together, the Transcendental Meditation group had significant improvement on all seven measurements compared to the non-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.

In 2003, a study in the journal, Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift, reviewed 107 articles on TM and cognitive function of which only ten were randomized, controlled trials that fit the inclusion criteria. Four trials showed a significant positive effect on cognitive function, four were completely negative, and two were largely negative in outcome. Study authors, Canter and Ernst, noted that the four positive trials used subjects who had already intended to learn the Transcendental Meditation technique, and attributed the significant positive results to an expectation effect. They concluded that the claim that TM has a specific and cumulative effect on cognitive function is not supported by the evidence from randomised controlled trials.

A 1977 study in the Journal of Clinical Psychology showed reduced anxiety in practitioners of the Transcendental Meditation technique compared to controls who relaxed passively. A 1989 meta-analysis published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology compared 146 independent studies on the effect of different meditation and relaxation techniques in reducing trait anxiety. Transcendental Meditation was found to produce a larger effect than other forms of meditation and relaxation in the reduction of trait anxiety. Additionally, it was concluded that the difference between Transcendental Meditation and the other meditation and relaxation techniques appeared too large to be accounted for by the expectation effect.

A 1990 study published in the Japanese Journal of Industrial Health, conducted at Sumitomo Heavy Industries by the Japanese Ministry of Labour and others, looked at Transcendental Meditation and its effect on mental health in industrial workers. In the study 447 employees learned the Transcendental Meditation technique and 321 employees served as controls. After a 5-month period the researchers found significant decreases in major physical complaints, impulsiveness, emotional instability, and anxiety amongst the meditators compared to controls. The meditators also showed significant decreases in digestive problems, depression, tendency toward psychosomatic disease, insomnia, and smoking.

Studies on adverse effects of various meditation techniques

A study done at SRI International published in 1985 was based on a 1971 random survey of 893 people practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique. The survey asked whether they had experienced adverse effects such as anxiety, confusion, tension or depression after beginning TM practice. The results appeared to show that those who had dropped out from TM practice had experienced fewer adverse effects while practicing TM than those who continued with TM practice. Among those who had practiced TM longest (18+ months), reports of adverse effects were somewhat more frequent than among recent beginners (3–6 months). Otis interpreted his data to mean that the longer a person stays in TM and the more committed a person becomes to TM as a way of life, the greater the likelihood that they will report adverse effects.

According to a study by Persinger, "the Personal Philosophy Inventories of 221 university students who had learned to meditate (about 65% to 70% practicing Transcendental Meditation) were compared to 860 nonmeditators. Meditators displayed a significantly wider range of complex partial epileptic-like signs. Experiences of vibrations, hearing one's name called, paranormal phenomena, profound meaning from reading poetry/prose, and religious phenomenology were particularly frequent among mediators. Numbers of years of TM practice were significantly correlated with the incidence of complex partial signs and sensed presence but not with control, olfactory, or perseverative experiences. The results support the hypothesis that procedures which promote cognitive kindling enhance complex partial epileptic-like signs."

Peter Fenwick has pointed out that Transcendental Meditation researchers have documented the phenomenon of EEG coherence during meditation and that EEG coherence is also a byproduct of epileptic seizures, comas, and death. Studies show that TM reduces the number of seizures in epileptic patients and normalizes their EEG. An experimental study that was done on the Transcendental Meditation technique and epilepsy found that the epileptic patients initially had abnormally low levels of 5-HIAA in the cerebral spinal fluid, which then increased to normal levels after several months of practice of the Transcendental Meditation technique. This correlated with clinical improvements in these patients.

In his 1976 paper, "Psychiatric problems precipitated by transcendental meditation", Lazarus reported that psychiatric problems such as severe depression and schizophrenic breakdown may be precipitated by TM. He concluded by stating that while TM may have clinical benefits in certain cases it is clearly contraindicated in others.

Carrington and Ephron reported on the successful use of the Transcendental Meditation technique as an adjunct to psychotherapy, though for some patients the process entailed feeling overwhelmed by negative and unpleasant thoughts during meditation

The 2008 metaanalysis on hypertension mentioned previously included in its scope data on adverse effects. The authors write, "The anecdotal reports of adverse psychological effects or increased seizures have not been documented in randomized controlled trials. Two of the randomized controlled trials in this review indicated that psychological function was improved with Transcendental Meditation, while another study collected information but did not mention differences in side effects between groups. Rigorous analyses of available data suggest that Transcendental Meditation tends to decrease anxiety and have other psychological benefits. Further analyses are required to assess these effects."

Federally funded research

As of 1975, the Federal Government had so far funded 17 Transcendental Meditation research projects, ranging from the effects of meditation on the body to its ability to help rehabilitate convicts and fight alcoholism. By 2004, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) had spent more than $20 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.

Reception

Relationship to religion and spirituality

An official Transcendental Meditation websites states that the Transcendental Meditation technique is a mental technique for deep rest that is associated with specific effects on mind and body, and that it does not require faith, belief, or a change in lifestyle to be effective as a relaxation technique. Maharishi called the Transcendental Meditation technique "a path to God," and the Transcendental Meditation technique has been described as "spiritual" but not religious, and as a coping strategy for life. According to Time Magazine Transcendental Meditation owes something to all major religious traditions—Christianity, Judaism and Islam, as well as the Eastern faiths— because at one time or another they have included both meditation and the repetition of a mantra-like word.

In The Sociology of Religious Movements, William Sims Bainbridge has found Transcendental Meditation to be a "...highly simplified form of Hinduism, adapted for Westerners who did not posses the cultural background to accept the full panoply of Hindu beliefs, symbols, and practices." Going on to note that TM is an example of a "missionary" religious group which distills the essence of its own religious traditions to make itself more acceptable to its intended audience, Bainbridge describes the Transcendental Meditation puja ceremony as "...in essence, a religious initiation ceremony".

Prayer has been compared with meditation and the specific technique known as Transcendental Meditation (TM) however, “meditational prayer” does not always imply religion. –The Psychology of Religion, Bernard Spilka, Ralph W. Hood Jr, Bruce Hunsberger, Richard Gorsuch,2003, p.65

Author Roger LeBlanc writes: "It’s not a religion... The Transcendental Meditation technique is a simple, natural technique practiced by millions of people of all religions, including clergy. Practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique does not require or involve faith or any particular set of beliefs." Practioners of the Transcendental Meditation technique may use their meditation to supplement other faiths, or no faith at all.

Clergy have varying views when assessing the compatibility of the Transcendental Meditation technique with their religions. Jaime Sin, a cardinal and the Archbishop of Manila, wrote in 1984 that neither the doctrine nor the practice of TM are acceptable to Christians. In 1989, a Vatican council published a warning against mixing eastern meditation, such as TM, with Christian prayer. Other clergy, including Catholic clergy, have found the Transcendental Meditation technique to be compatible with their religious teachings and beliefs.

Charles H. Lippy, author of Pluralism Comes of Age: American Religious Culture in the Twentieth Century writes that earlier spiritual interest in the Transcendental Meditation technique faded in the 1970’s and it became a practical technique that anyone could employ without abandoning their religious affiliation. Though religious in origin, going back for several thousand years, Transcendental Meditation as introduced to the West is not attached to religion. Rather is it a means for developing human potential.

In 1979 the Third Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the decision of the US District Court of New Jersey that a curriculum in the Science of Creative Intelligence/Transcendental Meditation, was religious activity within the meaning of the Establishment Clause and that the teaching of SCI/TM in the New Jersey public high schools was prohibited by the First Amendment. The court ruled 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. The court found that the religious nature of the course was clear from careful examination of the textbook, the expert testimony elicited, and the uncontested facts concerning the puja, but was also largely determined by apparent involvement of government. The court also found state action violative of the Establishment Clause, because the puja involved "offerings to deities as part of a regularly scheduled course in the schools' educational programs".

In 2006, twenty five public, private and charter schools offered Transcendental Meditation to their students. The Terra Linda High School in San Rafael in California, canceled plans for Transcendental Meditation classes due to concerns of parents that it would be promoting religion. University of South Carolina sociologist Barry Markovsky describes teaching the Transcendental Meditation technique in schools as "stealth religion".

Cult issues

In 1987, the Cult Awareness Network (CAN) held a press conference and demonstration in Washington, D.C., saying that the organization that teaches the Transcendental Meditation technique “seeks to strip individuals of their ability to think and choose freely.” Steve Hassan, author of several books on cults, and at one time a CAN deprogrammer, said in the same press conference that those who practice the Transcendental Meditation technique display cult-like behaviors. Cult-like tendencies are described in Michael A. Persinger's book, TM and Cult Mania, published in 1980.

David Orme-Johnson, former faculty member at Maharishi University of Management (at which all students and faculty practice the Transcendental Meditation technique daily), who has researched the Transcendental Meditation technique and the paranormal Maharishi Effect, cites studies by Schecter, Alexander and Pelletier showing greater autonomy, innovative thought, and increases in creativity, general intelligence and moral reasoning in those who practice the Transcendental Meditation technique. According to Orme–Johnson, cult followers are said to allegedly operate on blind faith and adherence to arbitrary rules and authority, while these studies would indicate the ability of those who practice the Transcendental Meditation technique to make mature, independent, principle-based judgments.

Marc Galanter MD, Professor of Psychiatry at NYU in his book Cults: Faith and Healing Coercion says that TM "evolved into something of a charismatic movement, with a belief system that transcended the domain of its practice". He notes how a variety of unreasonable beliefs came to be seen as literally true by its more committed members. Among these unreasonable beliefs he cites: levitation, the belief that group meditation can reduce traffic accidents and reduce conflict in the Middle East.

In his book Soul Catching: The Mechanisms of Cults, Dr Jean-Marie Abgrall describes how Altered States Of Consciousness (ASCs) are used in many cults to make the initiate more susceptible to the group will and world view. Herein he cites research by Barmark and Gautnitz which showed the similarities between the states obtained by Transcendental Meditation and ASCs. In this way not only does the subject become more reliant on the ASC but it allows for a weakening of criticism of the cult and increase in faith therein. Dr Jean-Marie Abgrall goes on to note that the use of mantras is one of the most widespread techniques in cults, noting in TM this mantra is produced mentally.. Dr Jean-Marie Abgrall continues that a Guru is usually central to a cult and that its success will rely on how effective that guru is. Among the common characteristics of a guru he notes paraphrenia, a mental illness that completely cuts the individual from reality. In regard to this he notes for example, that TM's Maharishi recommended levitation as way to reduce crime..

In his book The Elementary Forms of The New Religious Life Professor Roy Wallis describes TM as having moved beyond being a cult to a "Sect". He notes similarities between progression in TM and progression within Scientology (In Scientology progression from "Basic" to "Operating Theten" and in TM from basic TM instruction to achieving the powers of the Siddhis). He notes that whereas once the initiatory stage was important and the "goal" this now becomes simply a prerequisite for training to higher "powers" or abilities. He argues that this helps facilitate group control over members rather that allowing them to come to their own judgment. Only those who clearly display their commitment and also belief in the movement - by employing its rhetoric and conceptual vocabulary. Thus this progression becomes a strong form of social control

Clarke and Linzey, argue that for the ordinary membership of TM their lives and daily concerns are little - if at all - affected by its cult nature. Instead they claim, as is the case for Scientology, it is only the core membership, who must give total dedication to the movement

Lawsuits

Kropinski v. WPEC

In a civil suit against the World Plan Executive Council filed in 1985, Robert Kropinski claimed fraud, psychological, physical, and emotional harm as a result of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programs. The district court dismissed Kropinski's claims concerning intentional tort and negligent infliction of emotional distress, and referred the claims of fraud and negligent infliction of physical and psychological injuries to a jury trial. The jury awarded Robert Kropinski $137,890 in the fraud and negligence claims. The appellate court overturned the award and dismissed Kropinski's claim alleging psychological damage. It also threw out testimony related to the fraud claim. The claim of fraud and the claim of a physical injury related to his practice of the TM-Sidhi program were remanded to the lower court for retrial, and the parties then settled these remaining claims out of court.

Butler/Killian vs. MUM

Two lawsuits were filed as a result of a murder at Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa on March 1, 2004. The families of the murdered student and a student who was assaulted earlier in the day sued MUM and the Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corporation. Their separate suits, filed on February 24, 2006, alleged 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 charged the university with failing to call the police or take action to protect students from a mentally ill student. Butler vs. M.U.M. was settled out of court. The alleged perpetrator of the murder was a diagnosed schizophrenic who had been off his medication for months at the time of the tragedy.

See also

References

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  159. http://bulk.resource.org/courts.gov/c/F2/853/853.F2d.948.87-7060.87-7033.html Kropinski v. WPEC, 853 F.2d 948 (CADC 1988)
  160. Trouble in transcendental paradise as murder rocks the Maharishi University, The Observer, May 2, 2004
  161. Butler v. Maharishi University of Management, US District Court, Southern District of Iowa, Central Div., Case No. 06-cv-00072
  162. Kilian v. Maharishi University of Management, US District Court, Southern District of Iowa
  163. GTR Newspapers Oct 26, 2005

Further reading

  • Denniston, Denise, The TM Book, Fairfield Press, Fairfield, Iowa, 1986 ISBN 093178302X
  • Geoff Gilpin, The Maharishi Effect: A Personal Journey Through the Movement That Transformed American Spirituality, Tarcher-Penguin 2006, ISBN 1-58542-507-9
  • Kropinski v. World Plan Executive Council, 853 F, 2d 948, 956 (D.C. Cir, 1988)
  • Maharishi Mahesh Yogi on the Bhagavad-Gita : A New Translation and Commentary, Chapters 1-6. ISBN 0140192476.
  • Maharishi Mahesh Yogi: Science of Being and Art of Living : Transcendental Meditation ISBN 0452282667.
  • Template:Harvard reference
  • Template:Harvard reference

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