Transcendental meditation

A regimen designed to develop the will power and control of the psyche so that the whole body can function in a more integrated and orderly manner.

A type of meditation in which the same words or sounds are repeated silently.

A simple program of meditation for reducing stress. Transcendental meditation is taught by qualified teachers in seven steps, beginning with the assignment to each student of a secret mantra, a word or phrase repeated over and over by the practitioner to induce a meditative trance.

A type of meditation based on ancient Hindu practices in which a person tries to relax by sitting quietly for regular periods while repeating a mantra. The value of TM in treating various conditions is under investigation. It was first popularized in the West by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.

Usually shortened to TM, a technique to help meditation. “Transcendental” means extending beyond the hounds of any worldly category and is used in the philosophy of religion to describe a state of being that is beyond the reach, or apprehension of, the experience of our senses. Doctors have come to believe that certain forms of meditation can be useful in controlling stress and that the TM movement markets a very effective and simple technique. TM claims that their meditation state is a physiologically and psychologically distinct form of consciousness, and as part of its claim for acceptance, it encourages scientific investigation. The technique involves the meditator sitting comfortably, with eyes closed, and mentally repeating a Sanskrit word or sound, a mantra, for 15 to 20 minutes twice a day.

The founder and spiritual leader who brought the Hindu doctrine of TM to the West in 1958 was the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. But it was not until the British pop group the Beatles became followers of the maharishi at the end of the 1960s that the TM movement took off, with many of the young fans of the Beatles following their example. The maharishi appeared on television and was seen throughout the Western world sitting in the lotus position, surrounded by flowers, his long white hair falling around his face, looking like a depiction of God from a children’s Bible.

Transcendental meditation (TM) is a form of meditation that originated in the cultures of India and Tibet. It was exported to the West by the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It involves training the mind on a single point of focus, such as a word or phrase.

A modified transitional form of mantra meditation originated by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi that removed what he considered to be the nonessential elements of yoga.