Showing posts with label spiritual. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spiritual. Show all posts
WELCOME to the Transcendental Meditation program of Asheville. The TM technique has been offered in WNC since 1971. 

FREE INTRODUCTORY LECTURES are held weekly. For a schedule of upcoming courses, please contact us.


Need help with TM course tuition? Ask about scholarships and other options. Due to the non-profit structure, anyone who wants can learn.  

Next Introductory Lecture: Sunday, April 3, 2 PM, Asheville TM Center

Personal appointments: Learn how the TM program can benefit you or your business or organization. Request a free personal consultation with a teacher at a convenient time and place.  
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VIDEO: The Transcendental Meditation technique —  explained by quantum physicist John Hagelin and Dr. Norman Rosenthal, medical school professor at Georgetown University.



What is transcending?
Transcending is the process of the mind settling inward, beyond thinking, to experience the deepest, peaceful, inmost level of awareness — where the mind is awake in its state of maximum comprehension... MORE

Are all forms of meditation the same?
Scientific research has shown that meditation techniques do not all have the same effects — the various practices engage the mind in different ways and naturally produce different results... MORE
  
Videos: Why I Meditate
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Transcendental Meditation Benefit — Russell Brand, Katy Perry, Clint Eastwood, David Lynch, Dr. Oz and more

VIDEO: Watch the highlights of an amazing, mind-blowing, inspiring evening at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, where David Lynch recently hosted meditating celebrities, scientists and philanthropists for the annual "Change Begins Within" benefit event — to provide TM instruction to 10,000 veterans with PTSD. MORE
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Quantum Physicist John Hagelin: A Scientific Introduction to the Transcendental Meditation program

Quantum physicist John Hagelin explains the TM technique as a means to access the most fundamental field of order at the basis of nature's functioning — the unified field of natural law — which underlies not only the physical world, but resides also deep within human consciousness. MORE
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Dr. Oz Endorses Transcendental Meditation for Reducing Stress and Promoting Heart Health

Dr. Mehmet Oz speaks about the Transcendental Meditation program's health benefits: "This meditation can help a lot of people. It is important to understand exactly how it effects stress—which of course impacts our physiology—and in particular how TM reduces stress and stress-related disorders." WATCH
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New: The Flow of Consciousness: Maharishi Mahesh Yogi on Language and Literature

Over the years, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi recorded many brilliant, inspiring lectures on the literary process, critical theory and technique — emphasizing the importance of developing higher consciousness for both reader and writer. This is a collection of several of those lectures recorded between 1971 and 1976. Immersing oneself in the transcripts of Maharishi's talks allows readers to feel his presence, to hear his voice, his rhythms of speech, his humor, and to appreciate his skill as a teacher.  MORE

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Diving Within: My First Experience
by Tom McKinley Ball



Millions of people worldwide have learned the Transcendental Meditation technique — and they all learned it in the same, simple, systematic way. Still, it's a deeply personal practice, and one that's yours forever — no one can take it away. Here's an account of one meditator's personal experience of learning the TM technique here in Asheville. MORE

Is TM the only way to transcend?

No, but surely it's the easiest and most reliable. Scientific studies show that the TM technique, designed for “automatic self-transcending,” induces the process of transcending consistently and spontaneously—for new meditators as well as long-term.
Transcending is natural—we’re all hardwired for it.
Transcending takes you deep into silent, inner wakefulness—into the wholeness of your own self, a field of non-localized or “unbounded” awareness. EEG research on TM practice shows that it creates widespread brain wave coherence, meaning, more orderly and efficient brain function, not just in localized areas of the brain but throughout. This experience integrates the different parts of your brain so that they work together better as a whole. The benefits of transcending are holistic, as watering the root is more holistic than tending single leaves or flowers.
Whenever transcending happens, the meditation process has come to an end. The meditator has gone beyond the mind’s boundaries. There is only consciousness, in its purest, most serene and orderly state. This experience is also called the state of yoga (unified awareness), sat chit ananda (never-changing bliss consciousness), turiya ("the fourth state,” unlike waking, dreaming or sleep)—on and on go the references to it in all the great traditions of meditation.
Transcending is a universal experience known to all cultures. No one tradition lays claim to transcending more than any other.
CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE
The beauty of the Transcendental Meditation technique is that it allows transcending to happen spontaneously, effortlessly—without trying to make it happen or leaving it up to chance. During TM practice, transcending comes to you.



Three categories of meditation techniques


Scientific and scholarly literature has identified three major categories of meditation techniques, classified according to EEG signature (electroencephalograph) and the type of mental activity or cognitive processing involved.  

Controlled focus (concentration) techniques involve the most mental effort or cognitive control. Open monitoring (mindfulness-type practice) involves less cognitive control. Automatic self-transcending (TM technique) uses still less mental effort (no cognitive control). 

The term "automatic" is derived from the phrase "automatic processing," a phrase used in cognitive science to describe the type of cognitive processing or mental activity that is not consciously controlled, but is more natural and automatic, such as ordinary, spontaneous thinking or perception. "Controlled processing" refers to another type of mental activity identified by cognitive science, in which the subject is consciously directing attention or attempting to control the mind's focus, as in ordinary mental concentration.

 Each of these three major categories of mental activity has its own distinct EEG pattern:

1. Focused attention techniques are characterized by concentration or controlled focus on an object of meditation. Brain waves recorded during these practices are typically in the gamma frequency, a pattern commonly seen during any highly focused or controlled mental activity. (Lutz A, et al, 2004)
    Focused attention: Gamma waves (20-50 Hz)


    2. Open monitoring (mindfulness) involves monitoring the content of mental experience non-reactively. These practices are characterized by frontal theta brain waves, an EEG pattern seen during memory tasks and internal focus, and also associated with drowsiness (Cahn, Delorme, & Polich, 2010).

     
    Open monitoring: Theta waves (4-8 Hz)

    3. Automatic self-transcending describes meditation practices designed to transcend or go beyond their own mental activity—not engaging the mind in sustained mental or sensory activity, as in controlled focus or open monitoring, but allowing mental activity to subside spontaneously. Whereas concentration and open monitoring techniques require some mental effort (holding attention onto its object or maintaining a mental attitude of "mindfulness"), automatic self-transcending allows the mind to effortlessly transcend the meditation process itself. The Transcendental Meditation technique is this type of practice. The category is called automatic because the meditator is not involved in any attempt to control or sustain the process. The EEG pattern associated with this approach is frontal alpha coherence, characteristic of a more restful mind (reduced mental activity) along with increased inner wakefulness. (Travis, Arenander, &  DuBois, 2004; Travis et al., 2010)
     
    Automatic self-transcending: Frontal alpha1 (8-10 Hz) coherence


    On the Huffington Post: More about the three categories of meditation techniques—click here
    What is ‘transcending?’
    During the Transcendental Meditation technique, the meditator effortlessly, systematically transcends: the mind spontaneously settles inward, away from the surface, active levels of thinking, enjoying progressively more settled and refined levels of experience—going beyond mental activity entirely to arrive at the silent state of restful alertness or pure consciousness. In this low-stress state, the mind is said to access its inner reserves of intelligence, creativity and order.
    Neuroscientists have found that the meditative state experienced during TM practice corresponds to a distinct style of brain activity and range of physiological changes that has not been reported from controlled focus or open monitoring practices—a state characterized by significantly lowered breath rate, decreased cortisol, reduced basal skin conductance, reduced plasma lactate, decreased activation of the sympathetic nervous system and increased EEG coherence. Scientific research shows that the experience of twice-daily transcending through the TM technique reduces anxiety, depression and stress-related disorders, improves cardiovascular health and stimulates growth of creativity and intelligence in daily life.
    Because the TM technique is itself non-religious, it does not conflict with religious practices or other kinds of meditation. People involved in other meditation practices, whether religious or non-religious, commonly report that the TM technique helps fulfill the aims of their practice and can be enjoyed as a complementary way to gain deep relaxation, improve focus and clarity, alleviate stress and accelerate personal growth.
    Maharishi speaks on the mechanics of meditation:




    The fourth state of consciousness


    The existence of a major fourth state of consciousness was proposed in the early 1970s when researchers in the physiology labs at UCLA first discovered the physiological effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique. This pioneering research on meditation was first published in Scientific American, American Journal of Physiology and the journal Science. Those initial findings were replicated and expanded by hundreds of subsequent studies on the TM technique conducted over the past 40 years in independent research institutes and medical schools and published in leading journals. The Transcendental Meditation technique’s distinct physiological state is now well established.

    This proposed fourth state of consciousness may be a new discovery for modern science, but knowledge of it has existed for thousands of years in the Vedic tradition of meditation. In the ancient Sanskrit language, this state of restful alertness has long been called turiya, meaning simply ‘the fourth’ because it is distinct from the other three common states—waking, dreaming and sleep.  Experiencing the fourth state repeatedly over time is traditionally said to be the natural stimulus for unfolding higher stages of human development.

    Many scientists and physicians have heralded the discovery of the fourth state as a major breakthrough in health and human potential. “We propose that what happens during TM is a fourth state of consciousness because it’s very different from the other three states,” says Gary Kaplan, M.D., Ph.D., of New York University School of Medicine. “After forty years of research, we now know that TM produces a unique, wakeful, coherent state of deep rest—physiologically the opposite of stress. The science also suggests that experiencing this state twice daily through TM is the key to maximizing wellbeing and overcoming stress.”
    When we’re deprived of sleep, we know what happens. Researchers have found that dream state is also essential for balance in life. If we are hardwired to experience a natural, major fourth state of consciousness, what is the result of omitting this state from daily life? Again, Dr. Gary Kaplan: “There’s a growing pandemic of stress. There’s a healthcare crisis. As a nation we have widespread anxiety, depression, hypertension and stress-related disorders that costs us billions every year, with untold costs in human suffering. This is what happens when life is lived without the restorative experience of transcending. Human history becomes the story of stress and suffering.”

    Transcendental Meditation: Instruction


    Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, founder of the TM program, spent over 50 years elucidating the principles behind the Transcendental Meditation technique, always emphasizing the need for personal, one-on-one TM instruction:

    "By necessity, the practice of Transcendental Meditation is imparted by personal instruction. It cannot be done through a book [or CD or online] because it not only involves telling an aspirant how to experience the subtle states of thinking, but an even greater responsibility lies in finding out what the aspirant experiences when he proceeds on that path… The experiences on the path of Transcendental Meditation are very subtle… It takes a while for the beginner to be able to pinpoint his experiences of the subtle state of thought. The practice of Transcendental Meditation must always be given by the expert teachers of Transcendental Meditation who have been properly trained to give it and who have been trained to check the experiences.

    "The checking of experiences is a vital point in the practice of Transcendental Meditation. Again, it cannot be done through books…by nature it is delicate and therefore highly technical. But under personal instruction and guidance the way is smooth and easy.“ (Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, The Science of Being and Art of Living (New York: Plume/Penguin Group, 1963/2001), p. 35-36]

    When a person learns the Transcendental Meditation technique, every instruction is given out only on the basis of the previous instruction being understood and acknowledged. The certified TM teacher guides the student step by step personally, adjusting the teaching process according to the pace of the student. This helps ensure that the student can remain innocent and relaxed without having to self-monitor results while learning.

    Holosync “binaural beat” meditation CDs

    Brain entrainment products such as Holosync®, EquiSyncTM, Hemi-Sync® and many others create sound frequencies called “binaural beats,” said to influence the brain by altering one’s brain wave patterns. Companies promoting entrainment products—usually in the form of CDs or downloads—claim that listening to these sounds produces a range of benefits, such as an “instantly induced, advanced meditative state,” synchronization of the brain’s left and right hemispheres, better sleep, improved learning and reduced stress.

    How is entrainment different from the Transcendental Meditation technique?
    Holosync and other such products tend to keep the mind engaged in sensory stimulation as the brain continually processes the auditory signals. Depending on how the products are used, they will employ controlled focus (the user strives to keep attention on listening) or open monitoring (the user listens passively without controlling attention). In either case, the approach of stimulating the brain with outer sensory input is very different from automatic self-transcending through the Transcendental Meditation technique.

    International Journal of Neuroscience 14: 147–151, 1981
    Rather than sustaining mental or sensory activity, the TM technique allows mental activity to subside systematically until the faintest impulse of thought is transcended and one experiences the silent state of pure consciousness, described as “unbounded” or non-localized awareness. Neurophysiological studies show that TM practice produces a distinct state of restful alertness: the body gains deep relaxation, inner wakefulness increases, and brain function becomes more integrated and efficient. High levels of alpha brain wave coherence and synchrony are displayed throughout the brain’s frontal area (and also spreading from the front to the back of the brain). This is the signature brain wave pattern of the TM technique—high amplitude alpha coherence. It is an EEG pattern not reported by research on brain entrainment products or other forms of meditation. Additional physiological changes found to commonly occur during the TM technique include marked decreases in plasma lactate, reduced respiration and higher skin resistance—all indicators of deep physiological rest.[1]

    Although many users of entrainment products report benefits, a search on the U.S. Government’s health research database (PubMed) does not show that the many benefits claimed have been substantiated by scientific studies. 

    In contrast (and this is another distinguishing factor of the TM program), hundreds of peer-reviewed research studies confirm the benefits of twice-daily TM practice for improving mind, body and behavior.

    CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE
    During TM practice, one experiences that it is the mind's inherent nature to settle inward and experience the state of pure awareness. While it may be possible, theoretically, to transcend during any form of meditation, binaural beat or entrainment products — which have their specific benefits — tend to keep the mind active and engaged in outer, auditory stimulation. The Transcendental Meditation technique allows the mind to spontaneously settle inward and experience finer, increasingly subtler stages of the thinking process, until one transcends thought and arrives at the source of thought—the silent state of pure awareness.
      
    More about the TM technique and brain entrainment:

    What is entrainment?
    Measured by EEG (electroencephalograph), brain waves represent faint electrical activity of neurons in the brain. When we are mentally active, the EEG normally shows a jumble of different brain waves at various frequencies. When we’re in a relaxed, yet conscious state, certain areas of the brain may emit alpha rhythms (moderately slow brain wave frequencies of 8-12hz). When we’re drowsy, brain waves slow to the theta range (6-7hz), and in deep sleep to the even slower delta range (4-5hz). The pace of these natural rhythms is set by deep structures in the brain.

    CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE
     “Entrainment” is a phenomenon whereby external sensory stimulation synchronizes brain waves differently than the brain’s native rhythm. For example, a strobe light can cause the frequency of one’s brain waves to match (or entrain with) the frequency of the rapidly flashing light. Combined frequencies of sound also have been found to influence or entrain brain waves.

    Meditation and the brain: what science says
    Although neuroscientists have known about entrainment’s temporary effect on brain waves for decades, there appears to be insufficient peer-reviewed scientific research to substantiate the claim that entrainment or “binaural beat” audio products can improve brain performance.

    There is ample evidence that certain meditative states produce corresponding brain wave patterns. Since the early 1970s, scientists have been recording coherence and synchrony of brain waves in subjects practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique. Today, after 40 years of research into the effects of meditation, dozens of peer-reviewed scientific studies have verified that TM practice creates high amplitude alpha coherence.[2] This more integrated, efficient style of brain functioning is the basis of improved mental performance and self-development.

    Natural versus artificial
    Some brain entrainment products claim to induce a mind-body state similar to the state associated with the Transcendental Meditation technique. However, scientific research has not yet demonstrated that such products can generate EEG coherence in the alpha frequency. Nor has research confirmed the fundamental premise of entrainment products: that by externally inducing a particular brain wave pattern, the meditative state associated with that pattern can be reproduced.

    One major difference between the Transcendental Meditation technique and brain entrainment products is that during TM practice, the change in brain waves is not imposed from the outside, but happens naturally from within. As the mind settles inward during the TM technique, all mental activity is transcended and one arrives at the state of pure consciousness — experienced as the deepest, most creative and blissful level of the mind. Because of the natural connection between mind and body, when the mind settles quietly inward during this process, the physiology gains deep rest; spontaneously and of its own accord the brain becomes highly coherent and synchronized.

    Entrainment products are intended to drive the system into a modified style of functioning by externally manipulating one aspect of the physiology, the brain waves. This is very different from allowing the mind and body to naturally shift into the meditative state during TM practice, a process whereby the whole system spontaneously reorganizes itself into a state of greater balance and coherence. For example, research studies show that if one’s cortisol levels are too high, then during TM practice cortisol drops to more normal levels. If cortisol is too low, then it rises. The same is has been found for serotonin metabolite. Such research suggests that the deep, coherent rest gained during TM practice stimulates the system’s natural balancing mechanism. Brain researchers have said the TM technique “resets the brain’s natural ground state.” There is no evidence that this balancing of the whole system in all its complexity can take place by manipulating a single individual part such as brain waves.

    When EEG measurements show brain wave changes during TM practice, this shift in brain functioning happens as a natural by-product of meditation, and is only one aspect of the many, holistic mind-body changes common to the TM technique.

    REFERENCES:
    1. Hormones and Behavior, 10: 1, 1978; Psychoneuroendocrinology 22:4, 1997; Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine 1: 3, 1995.
    2. Consciousness and Cognition, 8, 302-318, 1999; International Journal of Neuroscience 14: 147–151, 1981; Cognitive Processing, 11:1, 2010
    How the TM technique compares to:
    • Common “mantra” meditation 
    • Zen and concentration practices 
    • Guided meditation
    • Contemplation/contemplative practices 
    • Mindfulness 
    • Relaxation response 
    • Neurofeedback 
    What is the “fourth state of consciousness?”

    The Transcendental Meditation technique and contemplation/contemplative meditation

    Contemplation practices typically use either controlled focus or open monitoring, depending on whether one is focusing deeply on a particular idea or meaning (controlled focus) or employing “free association” (a form of open monitoring).

    Contemplative practices tend to keep the mind active and involved in the realm of thinking, meaning and ideas. This can be valuable for gaining insight during meditation but is very different from the Transcendental Meditation technique. 

    TM practice is a form of automatic self-transcending, which allows the mind to go beyond thinking and conceptualization. During TM practice one transcends the realm of belief, dogma and opinion, to experience pure consciousness, described as the source of thought or a state of self-knowing—one’s true self in its deepest, most blissful and expansive state.

    This process of transcending during TM practice provides deep physiological rest and creates widespread EEG coherence in the brain, as numerous scientific studies have shown.

    Everything good about the brain, including our ability to gain insight and understanding, depends on the brain’s coherent, orderly functioning. As coherence and efficiency of brain functioning grow in daily life through TM practice, mental performance improves and one naturally grows in the ability to gain deeper insight and understanding.

    According to research studies, the profound rest gained during the TM technique is an extremely low-stress state that restores balance to the physiology, reducing anxiety and depression, improving cardiovascular health, reducing incidents of disease and promoting longevity.

    Practices that tend to keep the mind engaged in thinking have not been found to consistently produce this state of deep, coherent rest or result in this holistic range of benefits (please see scientific research).

    CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE
    During TM practice, one experiences that it is the mind's inherent nature to settle inward and experience the state of pure awareness. While it may be possible to transcend during any form of meditation, contemplative type practices — which have their specific benefits — typically engage the mind on the levels of thinking and conceptualization. The Transcendental Meditation technique allows the mind to spontaneously settle inward and experience finer, increasingly subtler stages of the thinking process, until one transcends thought and arrives at the source of thought—the state of pure awareness.

    How the TM technique is different from:
    • Common “mantra” meditation 
    • Zen and concentration practices 
    • Guided meditation
    • Mindfulness 
    • Relaxation response 
    • Holosync or binaural beat CDs 
    • Neurofeedback

    Is TM the only way to transcend? 

    The Transcendental Meditation technique and guided meditation

    In guided meditation — also called guided visualization, guided imagery, or guided relaxation — a speaker offers instruction or suggestion aimed at guiding the listener into a meditative state (such practices can also be self-guided). Depending on the particular type of practice, these approaches can employ either controlled focus or open monitoring.

    This approach to meditation can create pleasant moods, provide insight, allow degrees of relaxation and other valuable benefits. Such practices tend to keep attention in the realm of thinking, feeling and imagining. The Transcendental Meditation technique is not guided meditation, but a form of automatic self-transcending, a very different process. The TM technique is designed to take attention beyond thought and imagination to access deeper reserves of peace, energy and happiness at the basis of the mind.

    The Transcendental Meditation technique does not require a meditation CD or any outside stimulus. It’s not an act of imagining, visualizing or responding to narrative. The TM technique is a quiet process of settling inward to experience finer and finer stages of the thinking process, until one transcends thinking and arrives at the silent source of thought—the mind’s inner reservoir of creativity and intelligence, known as pure consciousness.  Research studies have shown this to be a distinct state of restful alertness, characterized by decreased respiratory rate, reduced cortisol, decreased plasma lactate and other indicators of profound relaxation, accompanied by frontal alpha brain wave coherence.

    Practices that tend to keep the mind’s thought processes engaged on the levels of thinking, imagination or suggestion certainly produce their benefits, but are not designed to consistently produce the extensive, holistic positive effects known to result from the process of effortless transcending (research on the TM technique).

    The goals of guided meditation or visualization — such as relaxation, stress reduction, more positive thinking and inner growth — are spontaneously and more powerfully fulfilled by transcending thought and imagination and experiencing your deepest, inmost Self, as happens automatically through through twice-daily TM practice. This state of restful alertness is described as always positive, blissful, and fully awake to its limitless potentiality. 

    CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE
    During TM practice, one experiences that it is the mind's inherent nature to settle inward and experience the state of pure awareness. While it may be possible to transcend during any form of meditation, practices such as guided meditation, guided imagery or guided relaxation tend to engage the mind on the more active levels of thought, emotions or imagination—and do not create the conditions conducive to the deep, inward settling associated with transcending. The Transcendental Meditation technique allows the mind to spontaneously settle inward and experience finer, increasingly subtler stages of the thinking process, until one arrives at the source of thought—the state of pure awareness.


    How the TM technique is different from:
    • Common “mantra” meditation

    • Zen and concentration practices
    • Guided meditation 
    • Contemplation/contemplative practices
    • Mindfulness
    • Relaxation response
    • Holosync or binaural beat CDs
    • Neurofeedback
    • Lower-cost "alternatives"

    Is TM the only way to transcend?

    But TM is so simple — can it take you to higher states of consciousness?

    The Transcendental Meditation program is designed for full awakening of human potential. The TM technique comes from the most long-standing tradition of meditation on earth, the Vedic tradition of India. After being long lost to society, the practice was revived by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and introduced to the modern world in 1955. The TM technique is considered by many to be the quintessential meditation practice from the world's most venerated tradition of self-development.

    More researched than any other form of self-development, the TM technique is the only meditation practice found by independent scientific studies to have such a broad, holistic range of benefits for mind, body and behavior.

    Spiritual growth is easy: Before Maharishi introduced the Transcendental Meditation technique, the common thinking was that it is difficult to directly experience the Transcendent, the most deeply settled and expansive state of human consciousness — unbounded awareness — and even more difficult to attain the highest states of consciousness. There was, and still is, much misunderstanding about meditation and the process of transcending. 

    To transcend means to settle inward in meditation beyond all mental activity, to experience the silent field of pure awareness at the source of thought. Perhaps unknowingly, many people of good intention still promote meditation practices that obstruct the mind's natural tendency to settle inward or completely transcend. While non-transcending-type practices have their range of benefits, in the Vedic tradition effortless transcending is known to be the key to unfolding the highest stages of human development.

    Simplicity:     It's been said that anyone can get complicated, but it takes a true genius to be simple. The TM technique's simplicity is what renders it so effective. Maharishi once remarked, "It is my joy to make the difficult simple."

    Full awakening of human consciousness, the state of Enlightenment, is everyone's birthright. The world just needed a fully effective practice that makes the process simple and easy—and a systematic, scientific knowledge of consciousness to render higher states comprehensible. The world needed a scientific age for humanity to have a clear vision of possibilities for life on earth through unfolding higher stages of development. This is what the TM program is ultimately all about.


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