bodytricks bpcure brain core download fitness glossary health maharishi meditation mind mywikipediabookmarks philosophy polcog psychology read religion spiritual spirituality tm transcendental transcendental-meditation transcendental.meditation ver wiki, yoga

My tags:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (January 2009)

A major contributor to this article appears to have a conflict of interest with its subject. It may require cleanup to comply with Wikipedia's content policies, particularly neutral point of view. Please discuss further on the talk page. (February 2009)

Transcendental Meditation, or TM, (a trademark of Maharishi Foundation, Ltd.) is a meditation technique introduced in 1958 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (1917-2008). The technique is typically practiced for twenty minutes twice a day while sitting quietly with one's eyes closed, involves repetition of a thought-sound called a mantra ^[1], and is stated to involve neither concentration nor contemplation.^[2]

Contents 1 Teaching procedure 2 Principles of the technique 3 History 3.1 Origin 3.2 Spiritual Regeneration Movement Foundation 3.3 Transcendental Meditation teaching centers 3.4 Global Country of World Peace 3.5 Maharishi's ban on teaching TM in the UK 4 Research 4.1 Effect on the physiology 4.2 Range of studies 4.3 Medical research 4.4 Research on cognitive function 4.5 Research funding from the NIH 5 Reception 5.1 Relationship to religion and spirituality 5.2 Cult issues 6 Lawsuits 7 References 8 Further reading 9 External links

[edit] Teaching procedure

The technique is taught by certified Transcendental Meditation instructors to new practitioners in a standardized, seven-step procedure, consisting of two introductory lectures, and a personal interview, a two-hour instruction session given on each of four consecutive days follows for those interested in learning the technique. The first instruction, begins with a short puja ceremony performed by the teacher, after which the student learns the technique and begins to practice at home twice per day. Subsequent sessions provide further clarification of correct practice, as well as more information about the technique.^[3][4]

According to the official web sites, the Transcendental Meditation technique can only be learned from an authorized teacher ^[5]

[edit] Principles of the technique

The Transcendental Meditation technique is described by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in The Science of Being and Art of Living as a mental procedure that allows the mind to quiet itself. During the initial instruction session the practitioner is given a specific sound, called a mantra, that is selected by the instructor. 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', or transcendental Being.

The Maharishi states in his book that the practice of allowing the mind to experience its deeper levels, over time, brings these levels from the subconscious to within the capacity of the conscious mind. The Maharishi goes on to describe the Transcendental Meditation technique as one which requires no preparation, is simple to do, and can be learned by anyone.^[6]

[edit] History

[edit] Origin

In 1955, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (born Mahesh Prasad Varma), an Indian ascetic^[7], began teaching a meditation technique that he said was derived from the Vedic tradition^[8] and which came to be called Transcendental Meditation.

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.^[9] 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.

[edit] Spiritual Regeneration Movement Foundation

The "Spiritual Regeneration Movement Foundation" was incorporated in California in 1959 with a seven member board of trustees led by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi^[10] It was the first and only organization to teach the TM technique until 1965. Its articles of incorporation stated that the Foundation'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." ^[11][12]

[edit] Transcendental Meditation teaching centers

In the early 1970s, the Maharishi undertook to establish one Transcendental Meditation teaching center for each million of the world's population, which at that time would have meant 3,600 Transcendental Meditation centers throughout the world. Initially the TM technique had been taught individually as a basic technique, but later various other techniques became available. For example, in 1975, the Maharishi began teaching advanced mental techniques such as the TM-Sidhi Program, that included a technique for the development of what he termed Yogic Flying. ^[13]

[edit] 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. This group reports that more than 6 million people worldwide have learned the Transcendental Meditation technique since its introduction.^[1]

[edit] Maharishi's ban on teaching TM in the UK

In 2004 Maharishi Mahesh Yogi directed his followers at the Maharishi village at Skelmersdale, Lancashire to meditate with the aim of influencing the British electorate into overturning the Labour government. The day after Tony Blair's Labour Party won reelection in May 2005 despite these efforts, the Maharishi ordered that all instruction in TM cease in the UK, ^[14][15] The ban was lifted in August 2007, two months after Blair resigned as Prime Minister. ^[16]

[edit] Research

[edit] Effect on the physiology

Research studies have described specific physiological effects that occur during the practice of the Transcendental Meditation technique. The first studies were published in the early 1970s in Science^[17], American Journal of Physiology,^[18] and Scientific American^[19]. This research found that the Transcendental Meditation technique produced a physiological state that the researchers called a "wakeful hypometabolic state." During the practice of the technique 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.^[20] In 1987 researchers at Maharishi University of Management, Dillbeck, M.C., and D.W. Orme-Johnson, concluded that the physiology was alert rather than asleep during TM practice.^[21]

[edit] Range of studies

Studies have suggested a positive correlation between the Transcendental Meditation technique and possible health-related physiological states, including improvement in lung function for patients with asthma, ^[22] reduction of high blood pressure,^[23] an effect the researchers termed "younger biological age",^[24] decreased insomnia,^[25] reduction of high cholesterol,^[26] reduced illness and medical expenditures,^[27] decreased outpatient visits,^[28] decreased cigarette smoking,^[29] decreased alcohol use,^[30]. and decreased anxiety.^[31]

[edit] Medical research

In a 1975 study published in the journal Respiration, twenty one patients with bronchial asthma (who were excluded for significant emphysema by single breath diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide) were studied in a six month RCT designed study, (with the researchers but not the patients blind to the treatment modality) using the Transcendental Meditation technique and employing a crossover trial format using reading as a crossover control. The researchers concluded that based on the marked reduction in asthma symptom-severity duration, a statistically significant improvement of pulmonary function test abnormalities (in raw measured values of cm/H₂O/liter/sec determined using spirometry and body plethysmography), and from subject and physician evaluations, that the practice of the TM is a useful adjunct in the treatment of asthma. ^[32]

In a 1976 study published in The Lancet, seven hypertensive patients learned the Transcendental Meditation technique with six patients showing significant reductions in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP) during the first three months of meditation practice. During the second three months of the six month study, three of the patients continued to show reductions of systolic and diastolic blood pressure. ^[33]

Another study published in the Lancet in 1977 which involved 20 hypertensive patients, found that the Transcendental Meditation technique was associated with a significant reduction of systolic blood pressure and pulse rate in the first 3 months of practice, but that this effect did not continue for most of the patients during the second three months of the six month study, which on average showed no significant change of BP from baseline values during that second three month time period. ^[34]

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.^[35] 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.^[36]

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.^[37]

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.^[38] 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.^[39]

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..^[40]

In June, 2007 the United States National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine published an independent, peer-reviewed, 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.^[41]. The report concluded that "[t]he therapeutic effects of meditation practices cannot be established based on the current literature," and "[f]irm conclusions on the effects of meditation practices in healthcare cannot be drawn based on the available evidence.(p. 6) ^[42]

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 Hg systolic blood pressure and 3.2 mm 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.^[43] 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.^[44]

[edit] Research on cognitive function

A paper published in the Journal of Applied Psychology in 1978 found no effect on school grades.^[45] A 1985 study in the British Journal of Educational Psychology, and a 1989 study in Education showed improved academic performance.^{[46] [47]}

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.^[48]

In 2003 a study in the journal, Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift, reviewed ten randomized, controlled trials that looked at the effect of the Transcendental Meditation technique on cognitive function. Four trials showed a significant effect on cognitive function, while the remaining trials showed mixed results. 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.^[49]

A 1971 survey by Leon Otis found that a significant percentage of those who practice the Transcendental Meditation technique also report feeling anxiety, confusion, and depression.^[50]

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.^[51] 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.^[52]

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 and industrial workers. In the study 447 employees learnt 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, and tendency toward psychosomatic disease, insomnia, and smoking.^[53]

[edit] Research funding from the NIH

As of 2004^[update], 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[1]. 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.^[54] 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.^[55]

[edit] Reception

[edit] Relationship to religion and spirituality

Official Transcendental Meditation websites state that the Transcendental Meditation technique is a mental technique for deep rest that is associated with specific effects on mind and body. These sites state that the Transcendental Meditation technique does not require faith, belief, or a change in lifestyle to be effective as a relaxation technique.^[56] Maharishi called the Transcendental Meditation technique "a path to God,"^[57] and the Transcendental Meditation technique has been described as "spiritual" but not religious, and as a coping strategy for life.^[58]

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."^[59] 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".^[59][60]

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.^[61] In 1989, a Vatican council published a warning against mixing eastern meditation, such as TM, with Christian prayer.^[62]Other clergy, including Catholic clergy, have found the Transcendental Meditation technique to be compatible with their religious teachings and beliefs.^[63][64][65]

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.^[66][67] 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,^[68] but 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".^[67]

Instruction in the Transcendental Meditation technique has been introduced in a number of schools. In the United States this has become possible as part of the "Quiet Time" program.^[69]

University of South Carolina sociologist, Barry Markovsky describes teaching the Transcendental Meditation technique in schools as "stealth religion".^[70]

[edit] 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.^[71] Cult-like tendencies are described in Michael A. Persinger's book, TM and Cult Mania, published in 1980.^[72]

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^[73], Alexander ^[74], and Pelletier^[75] 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.^[76]

[edit] Lawsuits

Kropinski v. WPEC

In a civil suit against the World Plan Executive Council filed in 1985,^[77] 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.^[78]

Butler/Killian vs. MUM

Two lawsuits were filed as a result of a stabbing at Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa on March 1, 2004.^[79] 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, 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 mentally ill student.^[80][81] Butler vs. M.U.M. was settled out of court.[2]

[edit] References

[edit] 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.
• Mason, Paul (2005), Maharishi Mahesh Yogi: The Biography of the Man Who Gave Transcendental Meditation to the World, Evolution Publishing, 335 pages, ISBN 0-9550361-0-0
• Persinger, Michael (1980), TM and Cult Mania, Christopher Pub House, 198 pages, ISBN 0-8158-0392-3

[edit] External links

• Official site.

v • d • e Transcendental Meditation TM-Sidhi program · Maharishi Mahesh Yogi · Maharishi University of Management · Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment · Maharishi Sthapatya Veda · Maharishi Vedic City · Maharishi Vedic Science · Global Country of World Peace · Maharishi Ayurveda