Origins and History of Transcendental Meditation

Transcendental Meditation was revived from the world's most ancient tradition of meditation - the same tradition that gave us yoga. Before Maharishi began teaching the technique, in 1955, it had been long lost to society, even in India, the land of its origin.

A unique, non-religious form of meditation, TM is based on natural and timeless principles of mind and body. It has been learned by more than 6 million people worldwide - and is always taught in the same systematic way by highly-trained certified Teachers. Because the technique produces consistent results, it lends itself to scientific research, resulting in more than 650 studies, research papers and scientific reviews.


"A rediscovery to fulfil the need of our time" 

Transcendental Meditation represents a renewed understanding about meditation and human consciousness:

1. Meditation need not be difficult or involve effort or control - in fact, effortlessness is the key to the technique's effectiveness.
2. With proper instruction, every mind can easily transcend or settle inward beyond all mental activity, to access the silent reservoir of energy, creativity and intelligence that lies deep within human consciousness at the source of thought.
3. The full benefits of meditation are available to everyone regardless of age, lifestyle, beliefs or educational background.

40 years of scientific research:

The benefits of TM have been validated by more than four decades of ongoing scientific research, with over 350 studies published in peer-reviewed science journals. This research was conducted around the world at more than 250 universities - including medical schools at Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Cornell, UCLA and many others.

Over $27 million in U.S. Government grants has been awarded to fund research on the TM, including support from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defence and the Veterans Administration.

After 40 years of scientific investigation of Transcendental Meditation, researchers have identified a wide range of benefits for mind, body and behaviour - with no negative side effects ever noted by any peer-reviewed study.

What does "Vedic" mean?

The word "Vedic" (VAY-dik) means "knowledge." It describes the ancient tradition of knowledge from which the Transcendental Meditation technique is derived.

According to scholars, the Vedic Tradition is the oldest continuous tradition of knowledge on Earth, dating back at least 10,000 years. This tradition includes detailed information on a wide range of topics - from health care to architecture, from agriculture to music. It's the tradition that gave us yoga.

The Vedic Tradition focuses especially on knowledge about consciousness, technologies of self-development, and growth to higher stages of human develop, or enlightenment - described as the state of peak mental performance and optimal health and well-being.

Some people assume that the Vedic wisdom is strictly a cultural tradition, relevant only in India. Others see it as a philosophical tradition, and others yet as a religious tradition.

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, founder of Transcendental Meditation, worked to restore aspects of Vedic knowledge that had fallen into disuse or had been lost. He understood the Vedic Tradition to contain practical knowledge that is as scientific, and as measurable in its effects, as knowledge from modern physics. In this sense, just as Newton's Laws of Motion are not English or Christian, nor Einstein's Theory of Relativity German or Jewish, TM, revived from the Vedic Tradition, is a scientific discovery based on laws of nature that are true and universal for all people and cultures.

 

Founder: Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, founder of Transcendental Meditation, was widely regarded as a foremost authority on meditation - described by some as "an Einstein in the field of consciousness."

He is known for his practical, scientific approach and his lifelong endeavour to relieve human suffering and promote peace by bringing the benefits of effective meditation to people everywhere.

He offered the Transcendental Meditation as one simple practice through which anyone can strengthen and fully develop their life from within - "as watering the root nourishes all aspects of a flower".

Maharishi founded worldwide non-profit foundations to teach TM, trained thousands of teachers and opened Transcendental Meditation Centres and "Consciousness-Based" schools on every continent.

More

Maharishi Foundation UK

Transcendental Meditation and its Advanced Programmes are taught in the United Kingdom through Maharishi Foundation UK, a registered educational charity. Our goal is to offer the highest standards of instruction, provide ongoing follow-up and support to everyone who learns, and to maintain UK.EnjoyTM.org as an educational resource.

The Foundation partners with other non-profit organisations and foundations to provide TM scholarships to students and at-risk populations such as inner city youth, war veterans, the homeless, and men and women in prison.

more

Our Executive Director: Dr Peter Warburton

Meet Dr Peter Warburton, Executive Director of the Maharishi Foundation group in the UK and also chairman of Maharishi's organisations in seven other countries. Dr Warburton worked exclusively with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi from 1972 until 2008 and for many years was Maharishi's personal press secretary. …

More

 

TM Friends: Helping local people in need

Many people who wish to learn the TM technique cannot afford to pay for the cost of their training. In such cases, we rely on "TM Friends," our generous donors who support the TM scholarship fund. Depending on the circumstances, people who qualify can receive a partial or full TM scholarship.

TM Friends help us provide TM instruction to students, at-risk youth, military veterans suffering from post traumatic stress, the homeless, Native Americans on the reservation, incarcerated men and women, and others in need of stress relief. 

If you'd like to become a TM Friend or learn more about helping local people in need learn the TM technique, please visit TM Friends

 

The David Lynch Foundation

The David Lynch Foundation was founded to help ensure that every child, anywhere in the world, who wants to learn to meditate can do so. Now the Foundation is actively teaching the TM technique to adults and children in countries everywhere—including students in inner-cities and developing nations, military veterans and other at-risk populations.

Over the past five years, the Foundation has brought TM to more than 500,000 people in need of stress relief.

more

 

Certified Teachers

Teachers of Transcendental Meditation have completed a rigorous teacher training programme to become qualified instructors. To ensure maximum results for their students, teachers of Transcendental Meditation regularly attend re-certification courses to ensure they are well-versed and up-to-date in the procedures of teaching the technique.

More