Showing posts with label yoga. Show all posts
Showing posts with label yoga. Show all posts

Will other forms of meditation produce the same results?



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Different practices, different results: Some meditation practices involve attempts to concentrate or control the mind, to keep it focused on a specific object of meditation (such as a thought, mantra, one's breathing or other sensations). Other approaches might involve contemplation, visualization, watching your thoughts or trying to maintain a passive or non-judgmental attitude—all of which employ varying degrees of effort or sustained attention. Though these various approaches have their benefits, they tend to keep the mind active, engaged or localized, usually within the active realm of thinking.









The three categories of meditation practices 




Video: Maharishi on Yoga and Transcendental Meditation practice

Maharishi on Yoga and Transcendental Meditation practice:  
"Yoga we know is the summation of all the trends of mind - Yoga, Samadhi, Transcendental Consciousness. How it becomes perfected? Yoga becomes perfected when the Yoga state is not disturbed by anything. What could be the disturbing element—because that Yoga state is absolute silence—what could be disturbing to it? Only the activity could be disturbing to it. But when the action does not disturb the silence of the Yoga, then Yoga is perfected. It is a beautiful point." —Maharishi
In the West, yoga has come to mean the physical postures known as asana. But in the tradition that gave us yoga, the term actually refers to an inner experience gained during meditation: yoga means union or the state of unified awareness.

From the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali:

yogaś citta vṛtti nirodhaḥ


The Transcendental Meditation technique is yoga practice in the purest sense. It is a technique for arriving at the "cessation" of mental activity while maintaining inner wakefulness, the state of pure consciousness or samadhi. This experience is the true state of yoga. (2:46)

Read: The True Nature of Yoga: Stretching the Boundaries of Consciousness

Why pay for TM when I can learn meditation cheaper at the Y or in my yoga class?

Because the TM technique is different. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Scientific studies have found that the many different kinds of practices called 'meditation' do not all produce the same effects as one another or the same holistic benefits associated with the TM technique. 

While almost all meditation practices are beneficial, research comparing the TM technique to concentration practices, mindfulness meditation, contemplation, relaxation techniques, common mantra meditation, Zen, biofeedback and others has found the TM technique more effective at reducing stress and anxiety, lowering high blood pressure, facilitating cognitive growth, decreasing substance abuse, improving psychological health and developing self-actualization. (See comparative studies and reviews:

Also, no other form of meditation has been found in long-term studies to reduce heart attack and stroke (study>). The TM technique is the only meditation practice recommended by the American Heart Association for reduction of hypertension.

The various other methods of meditation engage the mind differently, requiring varying degrees of effort. The TM technique is an effortless process of transcending, allowing the mind to spontaneously settle inward, beyond mental activity, to experience the deepest, most peaceful and revitalizing state of awareness—the state of inner wakefulness or restful alertness, one's inmost Self.

Why pay for TM when other meditations are cheaper or free?

Kulreet Chaudhary

Kulreet Chaudhary, MD: It's great that meditation has become mainstream and so many people want to embrace it and even teach it. However, the Transcendental Meditation technique is not the same kind of meditation that you learn down at the Y or at your yoga class (unless your yoga studio has partnered with a certified TM teacher). Those forms of meditation can be helpful, but they're very different from the TM technique—in practice and results.

The TM technique is not just a practice of watching your breath, concentrating or contemplating. It's an effortless, natural technique for transcending, for going beyond thought to tap your deepest inner reserves of creativity, intelligence and well-being, directly enlivening your body's innate healing mechanisms. It's easy to learn but requires a qualified teacher.



David Orme-Johnson, PhD: The generic word 'meditation' refers to a general set of practices—many of them only loosely related, if at all—not to an agreed upon practice with recognized industry standards or procedures. As one would expect, there is a great range of results among the various meditation practices. As a researcher, I have seen some programs showing great promise, and others, well, not so much. The truth is, not all meditation practices are equal—at least according to science.

My work has focused primarily on the Transcendental Meditation technique, and we have seen some very exciting results over the past 40 years.

The American Heart Association, for example, recently issued a scientific review for doctors, recommending the TM technique, specifically stating that other practices have not been found to reduce high blood pressure(1).

Recent studies have shown that not all meditation techniques improve PTSD symptoms or depression(2), whereas the TM technique has been found to be highly effective in this area(3,4)  Research shows that certain types of meditation actually worsen the cardiovascular system's reaction to stress(5), whereas the TM technique is found to improve it(6)

There is considerable evidence that TM practice reduces medical care utilization and costs(7,9), and a recent 10-year randomized controlled trial showed that the TM technique decreased heart attacks, strokes, and death by 48% compared to controls(10).  No other meditation technique has been found to show these long-term effects.

After more than four decades of research on different types of meditation, there is now sufficient evidence for health professionals to distinguish between the effectiveness of the various meditation practices, and to truly take an evidence-based approach in prescribing meditation to their patients. 

David Orme-Johnson is one of the principal researchers in the world on meditation and its effects, having published over 100 studies, mostly in peer-reviewed journals. He has been asked to review the meditation research on chronic pain and insomnia by a National Institutes of Health Technology Assessment conference, and has traveled to over 56 countries to speak on meditation research to scientific conferences, the press, program directors, government officials, members of Congress, parliaments, heads of state, and the United Nations. 

REFERENCES: 1. Brook RD, Appel LJ, Rubenfire M, et al. Beyond medications and diet: Alternative approaches to lowering blood pressure : A scientific statement from the American Heart Association. Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association 2013(61).
2. Kearney DJ, McDermott K, Malte C, et al. Effects of participation in a mindfulness program for veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder: A randomized controlled pilot study. J Clin Psychol 2012;69(1):14-27.
3. Brooks JS, Scarano T. Transcendental Meditation and the treatment of post-Vietnam adjustment. J Couns Dev 1985;64:212-215.
4. Rees B, Travis F, Shapiro D, Chant R. Reduction in post traumatic stress symptoms in Congolese refugees practicing Transcendental Meditation. Journal of Traumatic Stress 2013:1-14.
5. Grant C, Hobkirk A, Persons E, et al. Cardiovascular reactivity to and recovery from stressful tasks following a mindfulness analog in college students with a family history of hypertension. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 2012;18:1-6.
7. Orme-Johnson DW. Medical care utilization and the Transcendental Meditation program. Psychosom Med 1987;49:493-507.
8. Orme-Johnson DW, Herron RE. An innovative approach to reducing medical care utilization and expenditures. The American Journal of Managed Care 1997;3(1):135-144.
9. Herron R, Hillis S. The impact of the Transcendental Meditation program on government payments to physicians in Quebec: An update. Am J Health Promot 2000;14(5):284-293.
10. Schneider RH, Grim CE, Rainforth MA, et al. Stress reduction in the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease: Randomized controlled trial of Transcendental Meditation and health education in Blacks. Circ Cardiovasc Qual Outcomes 2012;2(5).


Why a course fee, anyway — why isn't TM taught for free? >>

10 facts you should know about the Transcendental Meditation program

2. EASILY LEARNED: The Transcendental Meditation technique can be easily learned by anyone and is enjoyable to practice.









The True Nature of Yoga: Stretching the Boundaries of Consciousness

by Dr. Barbara Steinman












Yogasthah kuru karmani
'Established in yoga, Transcendental Consciousness, perform action.'
Yogah karmasu kaushalam
'Yoga is skill in action.'



Maharishi speaks on "the highest yoga" 


Why is it important to learn meditation from a certified teacher?





Why a course fee — can't the TM technique be taught for free?

The Transcendental Meditation technique is not just watching your breath, contemplating, concentrating, or trying to be mindful. It's not guided imagery or common mantra meditation. It's an authentic meditation technique that, when properly learned, is easy to practice, but the technique cannot be learned from a book, website, DVD or download.

Personal instruction: The TM technique can be learned only from a professional teacher who is trained and certified. Learning the TM technique remains a refreshingly human process, and always involves in-person, private instruction and a series of classes with your teacher. 

click image to enlarge
The TM technique is unique, distinguished by its ease of practice, holistic benefits and scientific validation. As science has shown, all meditation techniques are not the same and do not produce the same results—and other forms of meditation have not been found by scientific research to produce the broad range of benefits associated with TM practice. The American Heart Association, after doing its own comparative research, determined that the TM technique is the only form of meditation they can recommend for hypertension.

Rediscovery: This technique of effortless transcending had been long lost to society, even in India, before Maharishi Mahesh Yogi introduced it to the world in 1955. To maintain the technique's original effectiveness and authenticity, and help ensure that it doesn't get lost again, it is taught in a systematic, standardized way by certified instructors worldwide. After you learn, to help make sure you're practicing correcting and getting the maximum benefit, extensive follow-up with the teachers is available at no charge—for the rest of your life.

The course fee covers your educational expenses of personal instruction and the series of comprehensive classes. The cost for the TM course is determined by what it costs to make the program available—there are no added profit margins. The reason you can learn the TM technique today is because so many others before you have paid to sustain the program.

Non-profit: The TM technique is offered by a non-profit educational organization [501(c)(3)] called Maharishi Foundation USA, which exists solely to bring the benefits of fully effective meditation to people everywhere.

Free lifelong follow-up and support: For everyone who learns the TM technique, personal meditation guidance, continuing follow-up and support are provided by experienced, highly qualified teachers who have thousands of hours of experience with the process of transcending. In addition to personal guidance with your meditation practice, the program includes ongoing advanced classes to deepen your understanding about the full awakening of human consciousness.

Why can't the TM technique be taught for free? Does one really need a trained and certified teacher, personalized instruction, a seven-step course and follow-up to properly learn and correctly practice this meditation technique, and enjoy its full benefits? The experience of thousands of TM teachers providing meditation instruction around the world for the past fifty years—along with hundreds of independent, peer-reviewed scientific research studies verifying the program’s effectiveness—tells us the answer is most definitely yes: this way of teaching is absolutely necessary and works marvelously well.

If learning the TM technique requires personalized instruction, the time of a rigorously trained teacher, a series of classes, an adequate teaching space and support and follow-up, obviously expenses will be incurred—thus the course fee. 

Anyone who wants can learn: There are standard fees for the TM course, with reduced rates for full-time students, couples, families, children and those under financial hardship. There are also payment plans, grants, scholarships and work-study options to help cover the cost. Due to the program's non-profit and non-commercial structure, anyone who wishes to learn the TM technique can learn.

Additionally, when you learn the TM technique you're helping support TM programs for at-risk populations who cannot afford to pay anything—such as inner city youth, military veterans with PTSD, the homeless, Native Americans on reservations, and prison inmates—all of whom typically learn for free. With the help of private benefactors such as the David Lynch Foundation, 300,000 schoolchildren in the U.S. and abroad have learned the TM technique free of charge and practice meditation twice daily during in-school “Quiet Time” programs. 

Tuition, payment plans & scholarships       

• Why pay to learn the TM technique when you can learn other forms of meditation for free?  
• Will other practices give the same results?
• Do authentic meditation teachers ever charge money?  

Dr. Sandeep Chaudhary: When you purchase anything of value, of course, cost is a consideration. But the TM technique is actually inexpensive if you consider what you're getting: a program you'll benefit from every day of your life—a program known to help prevent heart attack and stroke, to help people sleep better, to avert the harmful effects of stress. And those are just side effects. The real benefit is that you enjoy your life so much more.

There's also ongoing follow-up and personal checking of meditation to ensure correct practice, and there's continued knowledge and guidance, if desired, at TM centers everywhere for the rest of your life—and you get all that follow-up for free.

As a physician, I see the TM technique not only as lifesaving but also as a cost-savings tool. We know how much the average American spends on health care in a lifetime. I live with these statistics. And I see the cost of it everyday in human terms.

I've also seen the statistics on how the TM technique reduces health care costs. Let me tell you, anyone who says the TM technique is too expensive, just take a look at how much money America is spending on medical bills and health insurance every year. It's a lame argument.

The Transcendental Meditation program is the most powerful preventive medicine we have. It pays for itself many times over.

Dr. Sandeep Chaudhary is Medical Director of Wellspring Endocrinology at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, California.

TM instructor Robert Roth explains why there's a course fee:

Filmmaker David Lynch answers this question

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