What the Media Say
The benefits of Transcendental Meditation are frequently reported by
the press. Here are a few excerpts from some recent articles:
Mind the Gaps
I am
sometimes asked about the practicalities of meditation. People listen
and then say comfortably, "Oh, I couldn't sit still and concentrate
for 20 minutes," or "I have too many thoughts." Sometimes
they say, "Oh, I learnt but it didn't do anything for me" -
and you find they tried it for just a fortnight. The Born Agains will
say, "You're emptying the mind, the Devil will rush in." You
could ask them what the Devil gets up to when they're asleep. Indeed,
the mind is curiously alert during meditation: you are far more likely
to hear the first cuckoo or the death watch beetle in the attic...
The Maharishi talks less about what happens during meditation than
its effects on everyday life. He illustrates this by the simile of the
bow and arrow: the further back the bow is stretched, the further and
faster the arrow carries. I like to think that after 15 years my work
has improved and that I am indeed the sunshine of our home. Little knots
of worry loosen: a fear of sleeping in the house alone, a fear of death,
grudges borne over years, stabs of guilt about the past. You think of
these things and come to realise that they've gone...
by Maureen Cleave, SAGA magazine, November 2003
[Complete text of this interesting article]
Just Say Om
Scientists
study it. Doctors recommend it. Millions of Americans - many of whom
don't even own crystals - practice it every day. Why? Because meditation
works
... meditation does more than reduce stress, bring harmony and increase
focus. As the Beatles demonstrated in 1968 when they visited the
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in his Himalayan ashram (they had met him in
London in 1967), it can also give you much needed gravitas.
Actress Heather Graham started meditating at the suggestion of director
David Lynch, another Maharishi student, 12 years ago on the set of his
studiously bizarre Twin Peaks TV series. "It's easy to spend a lot
of time worrying and obsessing, but meditation puts me in a blissful
place," says Graham, who typically meditates for 20 minutes when
she wakes up and then again in the afternoon. "At the end of the
day, all that star stuff doesn't mean anything.
"Transcendental Meditation reminds you that it's how you feel
inside that's important. If you have that, you have everything."
Lynch, who also directed Eraserhead and Blue Velvet, has been sitting
for 90 minutes twice a day since 1973. "I catch more ideas at
deeper and deeper levels of consciousness, and they have more clarity
and power," he says. Imagine the messed-up stuff Lynch might come
up with if he meditated for four hours a day.
Goldie Hawn, who says she has been practicing for 31 years ... meditates
twice a day for at least 30 minutes. "How do you learn to witness
your destructive emotions?" she asks. "You can only do this by
being able to sit quietly and quiet your mind."
More recent devotees are decisively non-crystal. Eileen Harrington, who
runs the hard-boiled consumer-fraud group of the Federal Trade
Commission in Washington, invited a meditation speaker to give a
presentation after 9/11. Roughly half her staff is still at it. Bill
Ford, the head of Ford Motors,- meditates, as does a former chief of
England's top-secret MI5. Hillary Clinton has talked about meditating,
and the Gores are converts. "We both believe in regular prayer, and
we often pray together. But meditation as distinguished from prayer - I
highly recommend it," says the man who nearly became our President.
Gore's TM mantra is not, as rumoured, Florida.
Time Magazine, By Joel Stein, Aug. 4, 2003
Sometimes You Feel Wonderfully Calm
"But it is the personal benefits of TM that are so compelling.
There was a time, after a hard day's work, I would hurry home for a
large glass of white wine. Now, I hurry home to meditate. It doesn't
eradicate all the scratchy irritations of the day - to claim that
would be absurd - but it does make them much easier to deal with. And
each time you meditate, it's different. Sometimes you feel wonderfully
calm, other times peaceful, and others full of optimism and joy
(neither of which come easily to me). I am a writer, and like most
writers, am by nature introspective and inclined to depression. It is
the alleviation of that, more than anything, that convinces me of its
real power. More, even, than the extensive empirical research
collected in hundreds of papers from universities around the
world."
Sally Brampton, Editor, Red Magazine, October 2000
I Feel More Patient and Tolerant
"My
concentration improved, I have amazing physical energy and am capable
of long hours of physical work without fatigue. After a fortnight
[after learning TM] I realised that I had stopped biting my nails, a
lifelong habit. I have a sense of organisation which I have lacked all
my life. I feel more patient and tolerant."
John Harding, journalist, Sunday Times, January 1988
The Science of Transcendental Meditation
"These findings challenge a commonly held assumption that all
meditation techniques are equally effective. More than 100 previous
studies of the effect of different techniques of meditation on
anxiety... found that TM reduced anxiety twice as effectively as other
techniques..."
New Scientist, April 1990 [Scientific Research on TM]
Is Meditation all the Same?
I first encountered meditation 30 years ago in a yoga class and was
taught how to quieten my mind by focusing my attention on my breathing.
It certainly kept me sane through the stress of medical training and
house jobs. In my early forties, I ran into some extremely difficult
times and was close to collapse. A friend suggested I learnt to
meditate.
"What do you mean?" I asked. "I've been meditating for
years!"
"I don't think so," he smilingly replied and started to tell
me about Transcendental Meditation. ...
I learned the TM technique in Bristol and found my stress and upset
quickly subsiding. What impressed me as much as the technique was the
level of back-up and support that was available, not only from my
teacher but also from the TM organisation, with no pressure whatsoever.
My training took place over a week but I could dip back in for
'checking' whenever I felt I needed too...
I would recommend it to anyone, for health, happiness, for
relationships, and to enable you to reach your highest potential. The
cost of training is high at £1,280, but you will have its benefits and
the support of the organisation for life. So it must be considered as
the most excellent investment you could make of your time and money, and
certainly a great deal more valuable long-term than the holiday you were
about to book.
Dr Rosy Daniel, Western Daily Press, 3 June 2003
Mantra Magic
If your way of dealing with stress is to fuel yourself with coffee
and cigarettes throughout the day and then drain a bottle of wine when
you get home in order to wind down, it may be time to try a different
tack. You may scoff, but there is an abundance of scientific research
that shows transcendental meditation (TM) can greatly enhance your
ability to deal with stress. According to the results from a 1989
statistical analysis published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, TM
was found to be more than twice as effective as any other meditative or
relaxation technique for relieving the mental effects of stress. Other
studies have shown it to reduce many of the symptoms of stress including
insomnia, hypertension, and anxiety.
For some, this system triggers alarm bells about religious sects and
brainwashing, but the TM Organisation in Scotland assures that there is
no religious component. It does not require dressing in open-toe
sandals, shaving your head or flocking to mountain-top retreats. In fact
the technique, once learned, simply involves practising for 15-20
minutes in the morning and at night
A teacher of TM for 26 years, Mary Ross regularly teaches business
executives and students from all over the world at the Edinburgh
facility: 'As a former journalist I know what it's like to come home
after a full day with your head spinning and know you have to go out to
work again in the evening.' She says: 'Meditators look forward to doing
their TM because it's just like sitting in a warm tub -- you can hear
the kids quarrelling and the phone ringing, but you're so calm and happy
you just don't care. It's a mental bath -- you come out fresh, rested
and get on with your life. Sceptics get just the same benefits as
there's no belief system involved.'
Project Manager Annie Arrowsmith, 53 and a regular meditator since
1975, has dealt with family health problems, a cross-country move and a
career change in the past six months: 'I could say that TM has helped me
cope with all that has happened recently,' says Annie, 'but I take it so
much for granted now. My life rushes about while I just enjoy what comes
up. The meditation is fulfilling and settling and I emerge feeling as
though I've had a weekend away from it all."
Elizabeth McQuillan, Sunday Herald, Glasgow, 25 May 2003
How to Transcend a Stressful Lifestyle
Many business leaders have begun to search for a less stressful way
of working that does not adversely affect their managerial competence.
Executives are taking the teachings of Indian mystic Maharishi Mahesh
Yogi to their hearts and mind. The guru made famous by The Beatles in
the 60s advocated transcendental meditation (TM) as a foolproof method
that tackles stress at the cause.
The effectiveness of the TM program is no longer in doubt, validated
by more than 500 scientific studies at more than 200 independent
research institutions in 30 countries. The TM technique requires no
belief or lifestyle change, is not time-consuming, and can be learned by
anyone regardless of age or level of education.
Practitioners say the results are impressive. TM is said to reduce
stress, increase alertness, creativity, intelligence, well-being and
motivation; heighten decision making and job satisfaction; improve
relationships with colleagues and customers and generally increase
efficiency at work.
Martin Creese, managing director of London-based Creese
Communications, discovered TM in 1969 whilst at university. Martin puts
much of his business success down to TM and he especially commends TM
for the energy and clarity of thought that it gives him. For him TM is
"both a management tool and a personal development programme".
Nigel Barlow, another TM enthusiast, runs his own management
consultancy, Service Legends. In his book, Batteries Included, about
customer service and creativity at work, he shares how he believes TM
can help resolve stressful business situations. Nigel regularly
addresses conferences around the world and finds that TM helps to soothe
his pre-public speaking nerves. "TM gives me a feeling of inner
invincibility which means I can't be fazed," he says. What's more,
he adds: "TM is invaluable for getting over the jet lag after a
long haul flight." Nigel encourages his staff to take up meditation
and within eight to 10 weeks, people notice a difference in their
approach to work. They seem a lot calmer and more energised.
Susie Tempest, Saturday April 14, 2001, The Guardian
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