TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION

Transcendental Meditation or TM is an artful combination of an initial simplicity of technique with a final complexity of theory and practice. It was introduced in the United States in the early 1960s by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, a Hindu monk with a degree in physics from Allahabad University. Maharishi studied Vedic teachings and the philosophy of Shankara in the Himalayas under Swami Brahmanand Saraswati ("Guru Dev"). The TM technique involves the silent repetition of a mantra or sound derived from the Vedic tradition, practiced 15 to 20 minutes twice daily, and is taught for a fee. In 1976 Maharishi introduced the TM-Siddhi program, which is based on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. It stabilizes the experience of transcendental consciousness gained through TM and develops mind-body coordination. TM officials estimate that currently there are about 3.5 million TM practitioners worldwide, one million of whom are in the U.S.—more than there are in India. There are about 50,000 practitioners of the TM-Siddhi program.

Unlike meditation techniques which emphasize the importance of effort and the enduring of painful sitting postures for extended periods of time, TM sees meditation as a relaxing and effortless technique which "mechanically" reduces stress and nervous excitation.

Maharishi contends that he is promoting science and not religion, but this is somewhat misleading. The vedas are Hindu religious documents, and Maharishi himself in 1963 characterized TM as an "approach to God realization." The theology being promoted is a scientifically informed and nonmonastic version of Shankara's Advaita Vedanta. As for the TM technique itself, it is quite similar to the practices advocated by John Cassian, the Hesychasts, the author of the cloud of unknowing, and, more recently, Dom John Main, OSB.

According to Maharishi's Vedic psychology, the TM technique exploits the natural tendency of the mind to seek greater happiness and intelligence. During the practice of TM the mind spontaneously attends to increasingly subtle levels of consciousness because they are increasingly attractive. The mind eventually begins to "transcend," i.e., leave behind mental activity and attain a fourth level of consciousness which is different from waking, dreaming, and sleeping. In 1963 Maharishi described this "transcendental consciousness" as a condition of "restful alertness." The idea of a fourth level of consciousness is at least as old as the Indian upanishads (prior to 500 b.c.), but Western scientific awareness and studies of such a state are new. From 1970 on, many articles appeared describing the physiology of the "wakeful hypometabolic state" which TM produces and the benefits that result. According to those studies, the practice of TM neutralizes deep-rooted stress, accelerates cognitive growth in children, facilitates the development of moral reasoning in adolescents, and improves the test scores of adults in the areas of fluid intelligence, field independence, and perceptual flexibility. Studies of the elderly indicate that TM improves learning ability, cognitive flexibility, systolic blood pressure, and longevity.

The TM program and the TM-Siddhi program are part of the Maharishi Technology of the Unified Field, an integrated science of life which seeks to unify Vedic teachings with the ideas of modern science, especially unified field theories in physics. Another aspect of the Technology is Maharishi Aryuveda, a holistic system of medicine that emphasizes prevention, balance, and the restoration of harmony along with the development of consciousness. For social problems, Maharishi maintains that there is a collective consciousness which is ultimately based on the transcendental consciousness attained in TM. This transcendental consciousness in turn is a field of pure consciousness which is the unified field of natural law. According to this theory, one individual transcending to the unified field can influence the development of coherence and orderliness in the whole of society and the physical environment.

See Also: new religious movements; hinduism.

Bibliography: r. k. wallace, The Maharishi Technology of the Unified Field (Fairfield, Iowa 1986); Modern Science and Vedic Science 1 (January 1987), maharishi mahesh yogi, The Science of Being and Art of Living (New York 1963). d. deniston, The TM Book (rev. ed. Fairfield, Iowa 1986).

[t. anderson]