Big Think

Rajarian Rekhana commented on What is human nature? on January 27, 2008, 6:11 PM

Maria, yes it is serendipitous! May you enjoy all success with your yoga and meditation! You may be interested to know that although Herbert Benson claimed in the 1970s that his technique achieved the same results as Transcendental Meditation (taught by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi), the actual results achieved by TM are 3 to 4 times greater, as shown by two subsequent meta-analyses (Journal of Clinical Psychology, 45, 1989; and Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 6, 1991). Dismissive of several thousand years of Vedic tradition, Benson rejected the importance of mantra in combination with technique. Worse, he didn%u2019t even get the technique right. Unfortunately, his Harvard credentials have obscured these critical elements in the minds of many a novice meditator. Thus for many spiritual seekers, mild relaxation and its attendant benefits is as much as they ever experience. But the benefit of Transcendental Meditation is not merely relaxation but higher states of consciousness. (See: http://www.truthabouttm.org/truth/home/aboutdavidorme-johnson/higherstatesofconsciousness/index.cfm). In matters of spiritual development the Harvard cardiologist is no match for the Himalayan Master.

Rajarian Rekhana commented on What is human nature? on January 27, 2008, 1:11 PM

Maria, yes it is serendipitous! May you enjoy all success with your yoga and meditation! You may be interested to know that although Herbert Benson claimed in the 1970s that his technique achieved the same results as Transcendental Meditation (taught by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi), the actual results achieved by TM are 3 to 4 times greater, as shown by two subsequent meta-analyses (Journal of Clinical Psychology, 45, 1989; and Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 6, 1991). Dismissive of several thousand years of Vedic tradition, Benson rejected the importance of mantra in combination with technique. Worse, he didn%u2019t even get the technique right. Unfortunately, his Harvard credentials have obscured these critical elements in the minds of many a novice meditator. Thus for many spiritual seekers, mild relaxation and its attendant benefits is as much as they ever experience. But the benefit of Transcendental Meditation is not merely relaxation but higher states of consciousness. (See: http://www.truthabouttm.org/truth/home/aboutdavidorme-johnson/higherstatesofconsciousness/index.cfm). In matters of spiritual development the Harvard cardiologist is no match for the Himalayan Master.

Rajarian Rekhana commented on On the Public Perception of Social Scientists on January 25, 2008, 9:44 AM

GV: Yes, a Catch-22. Though social scientists may be sincere, their knowledge has been insufficient to make significant improvements, thus the status quo of indifference to the profession. But every academic discipline today suffers from incompleteness of knowledge, which points to the weakness of our educational system in general, which only focusses on content but does not develop the container--the consciousness of the student. You can go from kindergarten to Ph.D. and not come out of it a better person (often the stress of it makes you worse). The system itself creates the problems it seeks to solve--another Catch-22. That is why a new approach to education is so necessary. Only a new seed can yield a new crop.

Rajarian Rekhana commented on What is human nature? on January 25, 2008, 12:29 AM

Cobrateen, not that you abandon science for meditation, but use meditation to restore the missing element in science, then science can come to fulfillment.As to whether Transcendental Meditation is a science: Science is systematic study through observation and experiment. TM is systematic because the technique is specific and repeatable. It is observation, not of an external object, but of the observer himself. It is subject to experiment because the meditative state has physiological correlates that are measurable in the lab, and its effects on mind, body, and behavior outside of meditation are also measurable. Over 600 research studies have been conducted at more than 200 universities and research centers (including Harvard, UCLA, and Stanford) and published in more than 100 journals: http://www.mum.edu/tm_research/bibliography.htmlImagine sitting comfortably in your room, closing your eyes and, through a simple mental technique, diving into your own mind and experiencing the silent, unbounded reservoir of creative intelligence at the basis of your thinking process. Imagine then coming out of that ocean of consciousness, mind expanded, body refreshed, and sitting at your computer, booting up your favorite video game, and playing it better than you have ever played it before. Why better? Because you are Unbounded Awareness, the greatest knowledge/action hero that ever lived. Doubts? Learn TM and conduct the experiment yourself. . . :-)

Rajarian Rekhana commented on What is human nature? on January 24, 2008, 7:29 PM

Cobrateen, not that you abandon science for meditation, but use meditation to restore the missing element in science, then science can come to fulfillment. As to whether Transcendental Meditation is a science: Science is systematic study through observation and experiment. TM is systematic because the technique is specific and repeatable. It is observation, not of an external object, but of the observer himself. It is subject to experiment because the meditative state has physiological correlates that are measurable in the lab, and its effects on mind, body, and behavior outside of meditation are also measurable. Over 600 research studies have been conducted at more than 200 universities and research centers (including Harvard, UCLA, and Stanford) and published in more than 100 journals: http://www.mum.edu/tm_research/bibliography.html Imagine sitting comfortably in your room, closing your eyes and, through a simple mental technique, diving into your own mind and experiencing the silent, unbounded reservoir of creative intelligence at the basis of your thinking process. Imagine then coming out of that ocean of consciousness, mind expanded, body refreshed, and sitting at your computer, booting up your favorite video game, and playing it better than you have ever played it before. Why better? Because you are Unbounded Awareness, the greatest knowledge/action hero that ever lived. Doubts? Learn TM and conduct the experiment yourself. . . :-)