The Religions Book

320

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi founded

TM as the Spiritual Regeneration

Movement. Today it is an organized

international movement with its

headquarters in the Netherlands.

See also: Physical and mental discipline 112–13 ■ Zen insights that go beyond

words 160–63 ■ Life-energy cultivation in Falun Dafa 323

I

n 1958, Maharishi Mahesh

Yogi traveled to the West

to teach Transcendental

Meditation (TM), with the original

intention of founding a Hindu

revival movement. His methods

evolved from Hindu mantra

meditation techniques, with

the similar aim of transcending the

confines of physical consciousness

to tap into a creative force.

Cultivating inner peace

The practice of TM involves sitting

in meditation for 20 minutes, twice

a day, using a personal mantra. This

is believed to result in improved

psychological and physical well-

being and increased potential for

creativity, allowing the individual to

experience “communion with the

wellspring of life” and overcome

negative thoughts, which become

merely “raindrops falling into the

ocean of your bliss.”

At first, TM initiates were

encouraged to give thanks to

the Hindu deities for providing the

knowledge behind the method

and to study the Vedas and the

Bhagavad-Gita. Today, proponents

of TM offer it as a scientific method

for self-development that is open

to all. TM techniques have been

adopted not only by individuals, but

also by business institutions, and

even in some medical practices,

posing the question as to whether

it should be considered as religion,

or simply a form of therapy based

on traditional Indian techniques. ■

NEGATIVE THOUGHTS

ARE JUST RAINDROPS

IN AN OCEAN OF BLISS

FINDING INNER PEACE THROUGH MEDITATION

IN CONTEXT

KEY FIGURE

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

WHEN AND WHERE

From 1958, Europe

BEFORE

From 1700 BCE Meditation

techniques are found in early

Indian Vedic practices.

From 6th century BCE

Meditation is practiced

in Buddhism in India and

Confucianism in China.

19th century European

intellectuals discover Eastern

philosophy and arouse general

interest in Buddhist and Hindu

meditation and yoga.

AFTER

1967 The Beatles meet

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in

London and visit his ashram

in India for TM training.

1976 TM promotes its

Siddhi program with

the claim that it enables

practitioners to levitate.