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An
independent view on Transcendental Meditation : |
Friends
! here is an independent, unbiased view on 'Transcendental Meditation'
also known as TM® .
In this article at many places, I have used the acronym TM for
Transcendental Meditation
Transcendental
Meditation : The most popular Meditation ?
Well
I am not sure but it appears that this 'Transcendental' thing has been
one of the most popular crazes in Western world. Just type any of the
keywords related to meditation in Google and you will be
surprised to see the numbers of TM®
related websites on the results pages. Or, alternatively, have a
look at 'Google's Groups on Meditation. Compare the sheer numbers
of posts (and level of activity) in the Transcendental Meditation' Group
with other Groups on Meditation. As compare to other Groups, the 'Transcendental
Meditation' Group is a behemoth with numerous discussions going on at
any given moment.
But
being a behemoth does not always mean the best and the brightest.
Transcendental
: "Of or characteristic of a system of philosophy emphasizing the intuitive and spiritual about the empirical and material"
Transcendence
: A state of being or existence above and beyond the limits of material experience
Transcendental Meditation (TM®)
was introduced to the Western world by Maharshi Mahesh Yogi. The TM movement began in 1956 in India and is now worldwide, claiming more
than 5 million followers, though the actual number of TM advocates is probably
much smaller
Despite
it's being so much visible and dominant on the world of Internet &
other media (including Print & Television), there is not even a
single instruction of Transcendental Meditation available for the
use of General Public. If you want to learn it - you'll have to spend a few hundred
dollars for learning it from any of the authorized TM®
centers
spread world over.
Since
I didn't have enough money to spend on learning TM®, I decided to find
some free resources for learning Transcendental Meditation. I was hoping
that may be there exists any good informational (and free resource) on Transcendental
Meditation. However, my search
for any good & free informational resource about Transcendental
Meditation led me to a surprising revelation.
Though,
I could not find any instruction on TM, I came to know (by reading
various discussion groups, articles and other opinions) that this Transcendental
Meditation ( with all it's glittery & world-wide appeal) is just a
form of Mantra Meditation. Basically it a set of
meditation techniques which primarily involved chanting a 'Mantra' as
per the instructions provided by the TM Centre.
TM
: Scientifically validated - Really ?
When
the TM student pays the money, he is given his personal mantra to chant
along with detailed
instructions (such as pronunciation, place and timing) for chanting the
mantra. He is told not to reveal the mantra to anybody.
The condition of not allowing the chanter to reveal his mantra to
anybody defy any logical explanation. Rather, it appears contradictory to
the claims of TM website that it is a 'scientific validated' program.
Now if something is scientifically validated, it should be able to
withstand all scientific tests in all conditions and places. I could not
find any validated (or even invalidated ) scientific study that shows
that revealing the mantra to others will lessen it's effects. In fact
there is nothing scientific about it. In an excellent article on TM at
the Skepdic.com
I found the following explaination of the above:
"After a TM student pays up to $400 and receives
his own personal mantra, he is told never to reveal it to another.
Why? Because the same "unique" mantra has been given - on the basis
of age - to thousands of people."
This
explains the whole thing. If people can share there mantra with others,
who 'll pay the money ?
In
my opinion, Transcendental Meditation is a good thing to learn provided
you have enough money to spend. Basically it involves chanting of
Mantras which are very good tools for achieving a meditative state and
in all likelihood, you will be benefited from it. However, use your own
discretion while reading various TM recruiting literature (which is full of charts and graphs demonstrating
"scientifically" the wonders of TM. You will find things like metabolic rate, oxygen
consumption rate, bodily production of carbon dioxide, hormone production, brain
waves, etc. all measured and charted and graphically presented to suggest that
TM really takes a person to a new state of consciousness.)
Meditation
is an individual's journey to his/her true self. All techniques (be
it TM, Vipassana, Zen, Dynamic or Death Meditation) are just simple ways
to help you understand your true nature - self. (Read
Central point of every meditation technique) Stress-reduction,
relaxation and better health are just few positive outcome of it.
You can get them free of cost if you just try a little bit and explore your inner
self.
Don't depend on any organization, cult or religion for your inner
journey. In spiritual path, all of us should follow the last advice of
Gautama Buddha - "App Dipo Bhav" which means "Be a
light unto yourself."
What
you read above is the opinion of an ordinary student of meditation. He may
be absolutely wrong.
Some
related articles:
Mantra
Meditation
Deep
Relaxation
Deep Breathing
