What is Transcendental Meditation: 5 Amazing Facts

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Have you been feeling stressed or anxious lately but unsure what should be done? Rest assured, here is some useful information about transcendental meditation that might help you with your problem.

Haven’t you heard of transcendental meditation before? Worry not; in this article, you will be briefed about what it is and how it can help us physically and mentally.

Let’s get straight to the point and understand what transcendental meditation is.

what is transcendental meditation
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1. What Is Transcendental Meditation?

1.1 What Is Meditation?

As you know, meditation is a practice where we turn off our thoughts for a while and focus on tuning the positive energy toward our mind and body. It is like learning a skill that helps exercise our brain muscles without actually working out.

Meditation
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1.2 What Are the Types of Meditation?

There are about 16 types of meditation practices. These include meditation techniques like focused attention, body scan, noting, visualization, loving-kindness, skillful compassion, resting awareness, reflection, zen, mantra, yoga meditation, vipassana, chakra, qigong, sound bath, and transcendental meditation. The one meditation technique we will learn about in this article.

Meditation
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1.3 What Is the History of Transcendental Meditation?

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi created the transcendental meditation technique in the mid-1950s in India. He taught thousands of people from all the teachings he had received from his master Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, also known as Guru Dev.

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi founded the spiritual regeneration movement in Madras, Tamil Nadu, in 1958. It was an attempt to bring more attention and awareness to people from all corners of the world about transcendental meditation from his side. His goal was to drive masses of people towards transcendental meditation to divert the public to the path of humanity.

He became popular in the 1960s and the 1970s as his invented meditation technique grew and people from around the world, including well-known celebrities, started to practice it.

1.3.1 David Lynch Foundation

The David Lynch Foundation is a global nonprofit organization founded by the transcendental meditation practitioner David Lynch in 2005. It was founded to fund the teaching of TM in schools. It later grew to focus on other populations in danger, such as the US military veterans, homeless people, refugees from the war, prison inmates, and at-risk children.

1.3.2 Maharishi Foundation USA

The Maharishi Foundation USA is a nonprofit organization that aims to spread the transcendental meditation technique as much as possible. It is a national center transcendental meditation program where the TM practitioners teach about the importance, the benefits, and the technique of TM.

1.4 What Does Transcendental Meditation Mean?

It is a meditation technique wherein an individual repeats a few words or some sentences until they reach a state of inner peace and calm. The TM technique is taught one on one by certified teachers in which personal instruction is given to the individual.

After learning it from the certified TM teachers, you should practice it for 20 minutes twice daily.

Transcendental Meditation
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1.5 How Does Transcendental Meditation Help Us?

1.5.1 How Does Transcendental Meditation Help Our Body?

It is one of the forms of meditation that help lowering blood pressure, improve cardiovascular health, it helps reduce stress. It also looks after the mental health of an individual. People suffering from high blood pressure problems can practice it as it is known to lower blood pressure levels.

People suffering from stress, trait anxiety, low self-esteem, and pessimism can also practice this technique. A study has shown that the transcendental meditation practice has helped achieve high self-esteem, significantly reduced negative emotions, reduced stress, and helped make a person live in the present moment.

1.5.2 How Does Transcendental Meditation Help Us in Other Ways?

Apart from the health benefits, this meditation practice has numerous other benefits, like helping reduce stress, correct self-image issues, and much more. It has been observed that people who exercise transcendental meditation have been able to get rid of compassion fatigue and have been able to reach a state of pure consciousness.

It also improves resilience, helps make your active mind settle down, helps make you more aware of the conscious mind, helps bring in increased feelings of positivity, and helps you reach a state of inner peace.

How does it help us
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2. How to Practice Transcendental Meditation?

It is an effortless technique and an easy form of meditation in which all you have to do is sit back, close your eyes, relax your mind and focus on chanting a mantra. You can include this technique in your self-care strategies as it has many physical and mental health benefits. Following are the steps you can follow to practice it:

STEP 1: Sit comfortably on a chair or the floor with your legs crossed and your hands on your laps.

STEP 2: Close your eyes and practice deep breathing to calm your body and mind.

STEP 3: Chant the selected mantra in your mind or speak it out loud. Do it the way you feel comfortable.

STEP 4: Focus on chanting the mantra. If you have thoughts running through your mind, try redirecting your attention to the chanting.

STEP 5: Once you are done with the 20-minute session, slowly open your eyes and take a few minutes to return to reality.

These are the steps to practice transcendental meditation but the ideal way to learn it is from a certified teacher who has practiced it for quite a while and is experienced enough to guide you properly.

How to practice it
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3. How Do I Make It More Effective?

Taking your first session with a certified TM teacher can help you get a clearer idea of the whole process. Additionally, practicing it regularly and doing it wholeheartedly can make it more effective.

3.1 Are There Any Risks of Doing It the Wrong Way?

There are no risks in practicing the TM technique the wrong way. It is safe even if it is not done the right way. The only problem one might face while doing it wrong is not getting the expected results.

To do it the right way and avail the benefits of doing it, one must practice it daily to get the hang of it and discover which mantra works well for them.

3.2 How Do I Prevent Mistakes?

The immediate solution to prevent mistakes in transcendental meditation is to get proper training from a certified TM teacher. The certified TM teacher would help you understand the technique better by doing a meta-analysis and giving systematic reviews. They would also help you find the specific mantra that works for you. Once you get a grip on how it is done, you are less likely to make mistakes.

Four sessions into it with the help of a certified teacher would help you get a clearer idea of the steps, the techniques, and the tips and tricks to take care of while doing it. The teacher would help you figure out your carefully personalized mantra, which will be effective for you.

Being consistent and practicing the technique regularly is another way to reduce mistakes. Also, make it a point not to switch from one technique to another. Select one technique and give it enough time to gel with you. It will not work if you keep jumping from one technique to another.

Certified TM teachers
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4. What Are Some Transcendental Meditation Mantras?

A few of the most commonly used mantras in the TM technique are the “Aum or Om,” “Om Namah Shivaya,” “Hare Krishna,” “I am that I am,” “Aham-Prema,” “Ho’oponopono,” “Om Mani Padme Hum,” “Buddho,” “Lumen De Lumine,” “Sat, Chit, Ananda” etc. Here is a small clip that will help you select a mantra that works for you:

HOW TO CHOOSE YOUR MANTRA

4.1 How Do I Learn These Mantras?

You do not have to make any extra effort to learn these mantras. All you need to do is practice the TM technique for 20 minutes twice a day.

Doing this religiously and rightly would help you get a grasp on all the mantras easily without having to put in any effort. No other parameters need to be taken care of to learn these.

5. What Does Transcendental Meditation Look Like?

Just in case you are wondering and are curious to know what a transcendental meditation session looks like, here is a small clip of how the whole process takes place. You may have a look at it to get a better understanding of it.

How to Mantra Meditation | Free Version | Simple Explanation for Beginners

Last Updated on by Himani Rawat

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