By Pat Means,
Campus Crusade for Christ,
1976. pp.
240-254
A. Scientific evidence against TM and TM
"testing."
1. TM makes no
discernible change in personality.
"The degree to which people who stay in TM derive benefits from
its practice appears to remain an open question. TM had no discernible effect
in changing self-image over the year's test period for those people who
continued in the Stanford Research Institute experiment."
Dr. Leon Otis of Stanford Research Institute, quoted in John
White, Everything You Want to Know About TM (Pocket Books, NY, 1976), p.
54.
2. TM is dangerous for
those with psychological problems.
"It would seem that those with insufficient controls to
prevent the release of massive uncontrollable anxiety represent a
potentially high-risk population for training in TM . . . without close
supervision."
Ibid., p. 55.
3. SIMS misuses test
data to promote TM.
"In Boston at the 1972 Biofeedback Research Society some of
his data in a booklet of charts showing the results of various TM research
programs . . . .The chart based on Dr. Otis' data showed that the longer people
meditate, the more likely they are to give up drugs. This is true. However,
SIMS didn't report that Dr. Otis had found that the data on
discontinuation of drug use came from a group of people predisposed to
stop in the first place . . . ."
Ibid., p. 56.
4. TM
benefits have nothing to do with the TM mantra.
Dr. Jonathan Smith of the psychology department of Roosevelt
University in Chicago compared the results after six months between three
supervised groups: Group I practiced TM, Group II simply sat with eyes closed
for 20 minutes twice daily, and Group III, the "anti-meditation
group," sat daily with eyes closed "actively generating as many
positive thoughts as possible."
All seemed to be equally effective in reducing tension. TM
held no edge at all. Why did they all work? Dr. Smith's conclusion:
"I propose (that) the critical aspects may be (1) expectation of relief, and (2) a daily regimen of sitting with eyes closed."
Ibid., p. 56.
5. Some TM
"tests" are merely "solicited testimonials."
"One group of TM studies that (Dr. Smith) feels are virtually
meaningless was done by mailing out questionnaires. The studies consistently yielded
results favorable to meditation. However, Dr. Smith notes: "The major
weakness of these studies is that they relied on data resembling solicited
testimonials. A meditator asked to participate in a study investigating the
beneficial effects of meditation might view this as an opportunity to 'step
forth for meditation . . . . ~ We cannot conclude from such studies that the
practice of (transcendental) meditation is therapeutic."
Ibid., p. 59.
6. Randomly comparing
meditators with non-meditators is invalid.
"Studies that compare changes experienced -by meditators and
non-meditators are faulted because the two populations may not be
comparable." In other words, there may be other factors that motivated the
meditators to change, other than TM. There are at least six studies of TM that
use this approach, and Dr. Smith discredits all of them.
Ibid., p. 59.
B. Further evidence that TM/SCI is a religion.
1. The testimony of
secular authorities.
a. John White,
author.
John White has written an objective, secular analysis of TM. Here are his insights on the religious question:
"Thus you can hear them insisting, as I did on a radio show
recently, that TM is not a religion and that it requires you to believe
nothing.
"In reality, however, the rich variety of Hindu and Vedantic
tradition plays an important part in TM. Maharishi's entire cosmology, with its
levels of consciousness and theistic summit, are part of a belief system that
you must tentatively accept if you are to operate within the TM
framework."
John White, Everything You Want To Know About TM -(Pocket
Books, NY, 1976), p. 69.
b. T. George Harris,
Editor-in-Chief, Psychology Today.
"All the Eastern exercises grew out of religious roots, and
all are designed to evoke specific religious experiences. The word yoga
literally means yoked with God. Though TM salesmen deny that their technique
has any religious meaning, all TMers go through an ancient Hindu ritual. It is,
I'm convinced, more than window dressing."
Psychology Today, December 1975, quoted in John E.
Patton, Religion Maharishi Style: The Camouflage Technique, 1976, p. 52,
53.
2.
The initiation ceremony and the
employment contract.
a. Overview of the initiation ceremony.
"After a series of preliminary orientation sessions, a prospective candidate for Maharishi's system of transcendental deep meditation was required to undergo and participate in a religious initiation ceremony which was conducted by the teacher or initiator around an altar bearing a picture of Guru Dev. The central focus of the initiation ceremony was the chanting by the teacher of a hymn of praise, adoration, worship and sacrifice, popularly referred to as the Puja. Twenty-six times the phrase 'I bow down' is intoned in the Puja to the various Hindu deities including by name Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Krishna, Shankara and Guru Dev. Four times the name `Lord' is invoked. In the Pu ja, spiritual tribute is paid to the Hindu sacred scriptures including by name Shrutis, Smritis, Puranas and Brahma Sutras. Finally, the Puja refers to traditional Hindu sacrificial offerings including by name a seat, cloth, sandal paste, rice, flour, incense, light, water, fruit, betel leaf and coconut."
John E. Patton, Religion Maharishi Style: The Camouflage
Technique, 1976,p.26.
b. Complete
English translation of initiatory puja invocation.
Whether pure or impure, whether purity or impurity is permeating
everywhere, whoever opens himself to the expanded vision of unbounded awareness
gains inner and outer purity.
Invocation.
To LORD NARAYANA, to lotus-born BRAHMA the Creator, to VASHISHTHA,
to SHAKTI and his son PARASHAR,
To VYASA, to SHUKADEVA, to the great GAUDAPADA, to GOVINDA, ruler
among the yogis, to his disciple,
SHRI SHANKARACHARYA, to his disciples PADMA PADA and HASTA MALAKA,
And TROTAKACHARYA and VARTIKA-KARA, to others, to the tradition of
our Masters, I bow down. To the abode of the wisdom of the SHRUTIS, SMRITIS and
PURANAS, to the abode of kindness to the personified glory of the LORD, to
SHANKARA, emancipator of the world, I bow down. To SHANKARACHARYA the redeemer,
hailed as KRISHNA and BADARAYANA, to the commentator of the BRAHMA SUTRAS, I
bow down.
To the glory of the Lord I bow down again and again, at whose door
the whole galaxy of gods pray for perfection day and night.
Adorned with immeasurable glory, preceptor of the whole world,
having bowed down to Him we gain fulfillment.
Skilled in dispelling the cloud of ignorance of the people, the gentle emancipator, BRAHMANANDA SARASVATI, the supreme teacher, full of brilliance, Him I bring to my awareness.
Offering the invocation to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV,
I bow down.
Offering a seat to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering an ablution to the lotus
feet of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering cloth to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down.
Offering sandalpaste to the lotus feet of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow
down.
Offering full rice to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering a flower to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering incense to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering light to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering water to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering fruit to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down.
Offering water to the lotus feet of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down.
Offering a betel leaf to the lotus feet of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering
a coconut to the lotus feet
of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down.
Offering camphor light.
White as camphor, kindness incarnate, the essence of creation
garlanded with BRAHMAN,
ever dwelling in the lotus of my heart, the creative impulse of
cosmic life, to That, in the form of GURU DEV, I bow down.
Offering light to the lotus feet of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down.
Offering water to the lotus feet of SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down.
Offering a handful of flowers.
GURU in the glory of BRAHMA, GURU in the glory of VISHNU, GURU in
the glory of the great LORD SHIVA, GURU in the glory of the personified
transcendental fulness of BRAHMAN, to Him, to SHRI GURU DEV adorned with glory,
I bow down.
The Unbounded, like the endless canopy of the sky, the omnipresent
in all creation, by whom the sign of That has been revealed, to Him, to- SHRI
GURU DEV, I bow down.
GURU DEV, SHRI BRAHMANANDA, bliss of the Absolute, transcendental joy, the Self-Sufficient, the embodiment of pure knowledge which is beyond and above the universe like the sky, the aim of "Thou art That" and other such expressions which unfold eternal truth, the One, the Eternal, the Pure, the Immoveable,the Witness of all intellects, whose status transcends thought, the Transcendent along with the three gunas, the true preceptor, to SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down.
The blinding darkness of ignorance has been removed by applying
the balm of knowledge. The eye of knowledge has been opened by Him and
therefore, to Him, to SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down. Offering a handful of flowers
to the lotus feet of
SHRI GURU DEV, I bow down.
Note: This translation is from a secret uncopyrighted TM handbook
called The Holy Tradition, p. 5. It is given only to those who qualify
to teach and be initiators for TM training. The initiates hear the puja
only in Sanskrit and are not told its meaning even if they ask!
c. A prominent scholar
explains the idolatrous meaning of the puja.
"Worship of a deity in the form of an image by means of Puja is a direct expression of popular theistic religion. At its most basic level, its meaning is summed up in Krishna's statement to Arjuna in the Gita: 'He who offers me with devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit or water, that devout offering of a pure minded one I accept . . . .' The image in Puja is treated as one would treat the god himself in person, for the image is the god in person: It is his murti, his 'form' made manifest for his worshippers. This sense of the deity as a person and the image as his representative form is fundamental to the meaning of Puja and is always preserved in Puja rituals."
Thomas J. Hopkins, The Hindu Religious Tradition (Dickenson
Publishing Co., 1971), pp. 110-112.
d. TM teachers employment contract.
"Every teacher (initiator) who performed the Puja ceremony
was personally trained by Maharishi himself and before being permitted to teach
transcendental meditation was required to sign a form employment contract which
was also executed by Maharishi. The concluding paragraph of this employment
between Maharishi and his initiators is set forth below:
'It is my fortune, Guru Dev, that I have been accepted to serve
the Holy Tradition and spread the light of God to all those who need it. It is
my joy to undertake the responsibility of representing the Holy Tradition in
all its purity as it has been given to me by Maharishi and I promise on your
altar, Guru Dev, by Maharishi. And to you, Maharishi, I promise that as a
Meditation Guide I will be faithful in all ways to the trust that you have
placed in me.' "
Patton, op. cit., p. 26.
3.
The meaning of the mantra.
a. Number and description.
The following information is on file in the case of Malnak vs.
Maharishi, civil action no. 76-341 in New Jersey Federal District Court:
(1) There are a total of only 16 mantras.
(2) Former TM teacher Greg Randolph has supplied the following
complete list of mantras. Preceding each mantra is the age category of the
initiate for which the mantra applies.
AGE MANTRA AGE MANTRA
0-11 Eng 26-29 Shirim
12-13 Em 30-34 Shiring
14-15 Enga 35-39 Kirim
16-17 Ema 40-44 Kiring
18-19 Ieng 45-49 Hrim
20-21 Iem 50-54 Hring
22-23 Ienga 55-59 Sham
24-25 Iema 60 up Shama
b. Mantras
represent Hindu deities.
All of the mantras so far identified have
traditionally been used to symbolize specific Hindu deities.
This information comes from a recognized authority
in the field, Sir John Woodroffe, in his The Garland of Letters (Ganesh and
Co., Madras, India, 4th ed., 1963), pp. 4-7 of Chapter XXVI.
(See also the
testimony of Richard Scott below, 3.e.)
c. The
purpose of mantras.
"A mantra is not a mere formula or a magic spell or a prayer; it is an embodiment in sound of a particular deity. It is the deity itself. And so, when a mantra is repeated a hundred times, or a thousand times, or even more, and the worshiper makes an effort to identify himself with the worshiped, the power of the deity comes to his help. Human power is thus supplemented by divine power."
From essays by Hindu scholars in "The Religion of the
Hindus" (edited by K. Morgan), in essay by D. S. Sharma,"The Nature
and History of Hinduism," p. 24.
d. Selection
of mantras.
According to information obtained through the Spiritual
Counterfeits Project of the Berkeley Christian Coalition, mantras are not
"individually matched with an initiate's personality." They are
picked simply according to the initiate's age. The mantras are given out
according to age, with one mantra for all children under 12.
Compare these facts with the following claim by Maharishi:
Maharishi deceptively claims there are thousands of individually
suited mantras.
"But one thing is important to know, and that is that there
are thousands of mantras and all have their specific values, specific
qualities and are suitable for specific types of people.
"We know that each man is a different individual . . . ,
Similarly, each man has his own type of energy impulses which constitute his
personality. Therefore, if the qualities of the energy impulses created by the
sound of the mantra rightly correspond to the energy impulses of the
man, only then will it be of real value. Any wrong choice of the mantra is sure
to create unbalance in the harmony of the man's life." Maharishi Mahesh
Yogi, Meditations o f Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (Bantam Books, Inc., New
York, NY, 1968), pp. 185, 186.
e. On
file in the civil action referred to above in 3.a are 98 pages of testimony
from Richard D. Scott, a TM teacher for four years, who initiated more than 400
people into the practice of TM. He also was instrumental in setting up the
early scientific experiments at the Institute of Living in Hartford, Connecticut,
and worked closely with Dr. Bernard Glueck testing the effects of TM on
psychiatric patients.
When Scott was first initiated in 1968, he was given the mantra
Aaing. (Aaing is a variant spelling of mantra #5, Ieng. In Sanskrit the
emphasis is on the sound of the word, and not the spelling.) He was told at
that time that it was a "meaningless sound," an explanation which he
(more or less) accepted until the spring of 1971. At that time he helped to
teach a weekend residence course for meditators in Litchfield, Connecticut. The
following are excerpts from Scott's testimony:
"Another one of the teachers residing in Litchfield had in
his possession a book, entitled Tantra Asana. Late one evening during the
course I was in my room glancing through the book and discovered on the first
few pages of the book a dedication. The dedication was to someone named Acing,
and the description of this particular individual was very similar to
descriptions of a god or a Creator. The remarkable thing about this was that
this name happened to be one in the same as my own personal mantra, which I had
received in April of 1968 and which I had been told at the time was a
meaningless sound.
"I didn't really give it all that much thought at the time
because I knew, or, at least, had a strong inkling, that my mantra and others
were not meaningless sounds. At that time, keep in mind, I was a teacher of TM
and had completed the teacher training course as given by Maharishi Mahesh
Yogi. However, I did find it of interest to see written confirmation in the
form of this dedication that my mantra was not a meaningless sound but was,
indeed, apparently, the name of a deity in the Hindu tradition" (pp. 48,
49).
In June of that same year, Scott attended a one month residence
course at Amherst, Massachusetts.
"Near the end of the course I had been meditating for
approximately three years, and, if you remember, I had received my second
technique, which was advanced technique, while at Estes Park in Colorado. I was
eligible for my third technique and made an appointment to receive it from
Maharishi himself.
"On the day of my appointment I went to Maharishi's quarters
with fruit, flowers and handkerchief, answered some questions from one of the
Maharishi's aides, was told to perform a puja by myself in a corner of the
room, and then was ushered into Maharishi's suite.
"I knelt down by the side of his bed. He was sitting
cross-legged on the middle of a double bed. He bowed his head over close to
mine and said, `What is your mantra?' I told him, 'Aaing.' I also mentioned
that I had received night technique from him at Estes Park.
He then said - he asked me a few questions about my experiences
with meditation and then said, `Your mantra will now be aaing namah.'
"This came as a surprise, for although I knew that my third
technique would probably involve an additional sound or word to my mantra, it
was interesting to actually receive and to discover that this additional word
also had a meaning.
"Remember that prior to this course I had seen the book
Tantra Asana and had discovered that aaing seemed to have a meaning, and now
having learned the word namah to mean 'I bow down,' which is used . . .
approximately 26 times in the course of the puja, it was not difficult to
realize that my mantra now was a devotional phrase which meant, Acing, whoever
he was, I bow down to you.
"At that point I said, 'Maharishi, this is very interesting.
It seems that my mantra does have a meaning.' I told him about the book Tantra
Asana and pointed out that namah was from the puja and meant `I bow down,' and
he said - actually, he didn't say, he acted as if he didn't quite understand my
question, indicated he was in a hurry, that there were many people in back of
me waiting to come in and see him, and I never really received an answer to
that question" (pp. 49, 51).
In the summer of 1972 Scott attended an SCI course in Canada, at
which time he received his "fourth technique" from Maharishi.
"At that time I received my fourth technique, which was an
additional word in front of acing namah; and this word was shri, which also was
found in the puja and is translated as 'oh, most beautiful.' So at this point
in my own personal experience in meditation my mantra could be translated as
'oh, most beautiful Acing, I bow down to you.' To my way of thinking, it would
be difficult to misconstrue this as anything other than religious and of a
devotional nature .... From this point on I began to develop increasing doubts
as to the integrity of Maharishi's movement" (pp. 80, 81).
"I would like to just point out that the foregoing is to
serve the purpose of simply bringing out two issues . . .
1. That the mantras do have a meaning and that that meaning is of
a religious nature; and,
2. That the puja is also a highly religious ceremony and not, as
publicly stated by the movement, a secular offering of thanks.
"I base this statement upon my own personal experience
totaling some nine months of actual contact, personal contact, with Maharishi
Mahesh Yogi and four years of in-the-field experience teaching the
technique" (pp. 82, 83).
Quoted in Spiritual Counterfeits Newsletter, August, 1976.
C.
Further dangers of TM.
1. The danger of the
demonic.
The TM experience closely parallels the mediumistic state.
"A further possible explanation of the TM experience remains.
Roy alluded to it previously. When anyone opens his mind to whatever influence
comes along, he must realize that Satan may offer a deceptively pleasurable
"religious" experience.
"The purposes of spiritualists at seances is remarkably
similar to those of meditators. Raphael Gasson, a former medium, explains that
in a student's first sessions he learns `to relax his body and to keep his mind
on one thing until he has reached a state of what could be regarded as
self-hypnosis and passivity, which results in his not thinking for himself. He
becomes an automaton through which evil spirits work by taking advantage of his
passivity.' "
Gordon R. Lewis, What Everyone Should Know About Transcendental
Meditation (Regal Books Division, G/L Publications, Glendale, CA, 1975),
pp. 66-67, who quotes from The Challenging Counterfeit by Raphael Gasson (Logos
Books, NJ, 1966), p. 83.
2. The
danger of "pantheistic programming."
The TM
mantra affects you by "vibrations."
"More than the content of the thought is at work in TM, for
thoughts are said to have vibrations. Thinking is considered to be a subtle
form of speech, and thought a subtle form of sound. Since the ultimate Reality
is beyond thought, it is reasoned, the clue to transcendence may be the
vibrations rather than the content."
ibid., p. 52.
"The influence of a spoken word that is carried by the waves
of vibrations in the atmosphere does not depend upon the meaning of the word.
It lies in the quality of the vibrations that are set forth . . . ."
Ibid., p. 52. Quote taken from Maharishi Mahesh Yogi,
Transcendental Meditation (Original title: The Science o f Being and Art o f
Living) (New American Library, NY, 1968), p. 51.
D. Further evidence of deception within TM.
1. Maharishi
encourages keeping the truth from the "unenlightened."
". . . If the enlightened man wants to bless one who is
ignorant, he should meet him on the level of his ignorance and try to lift him
up from there by giving him the key to transcending, so that he may gain
bliss-consciousness and experience the Reality of life. He should not tell him
about the level of the realized, because it would only confuse him."
John E. Patton, Religion Maharishi Style: The Camouflage
Technique, 1976, p. 29. Quote taken from Commentary on the Bhagavad-Gita, p.
224 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
2. Opportunism
Motivates TM’s non-religious image.
. . . Here comes a process which attracts the modern man because,
not in the name of God-Realization can we call a man to meditate in the world
of today, but in the name of enjoying the world better, sleeping well at night,
being wide awake during the day. If something makes the practical life of man
better from day to day, then everyone is for it. This is the technique being
adopted for the spiritual regeneration of the world and this is just suitable
for these times."
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Meditations of Maharishi Yogi
(Bantam Books, Inc., New York, 1968), pp. 168, 169.
E. Maharishi’s view
of those who refuse to meditate.
"There has not been, and there will not be, a place for the
unfit. The fit will lead, and if the unfit are not coming along, there is no place
for them. In the place where light dominates, there is no place for darkness;
in the Age of Enlightenment, there is no place for ignorant people."
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, In a Generation of the Age of
Enlightenment, p. 47.
F. Miscellaneous.
1. TM creates a lack of compassion.
"The answer to every problem is that there is no problem. Let
a man perceive this truth and then he is without problems."
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi on the
Bhagavad-Gita (Penguin Books, 1969), p. 66.
2. In India every "science" has a
spiritual purpose.
Thus, when Indians like Maharishi Mahesh Yogi use the word "science," they mean something entirely different by it. The following quote is from one of the most respected Hindu leaders in India, the Sankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam:
"Indian Science, far from being opposed to religion, had a
spiritual origin and a religious orientation. It is significant that every
science in India is called a Sastra - a system o f thought with a spiritual
purpose. In our temples, for instance, all sciences and arts are pressed
into the service of religion. Architecture, music, dance, mathematics,
astronomy, all have a spiritual and religious significance."
Quoted in Arthur Koestler, The Lotus and the Robot (Harper
& Row, NY, 1960), p. 59.