transcendental meditation
 

hi guys, nice to meet you all

can anyone tell me anything about the transcendental meditation tecnique developed by Maharishi Mahesh yogi? I've been using several meditational practices for a few years now, the main one being the Buddhist calm abiding method and I was wondering how transcendental meditation differs from others and why it costs so much to learn (several thousand pounds!!). It seems to me that any spiritual practice should be given freely to any-one who wants to learn, for the benefit of humanity as a whole and not just the lucky few who can afford it.

free me
 

Spiritualaity/ knowledge should be free. Love is free. Relationship withThe supreme is free. Good point bro.

Hi Ross,

Yeah, the idea seems strange to me as well? I could understand charging a few quid to cover the cost of the room hire of something, but I don't think it's a good idea to be making a business out of selling mantras.

Here's some links on TM below -

Information on TM Meditation:
http://www.eastern-philosophy-and-me...editation.html

General Practices:
http://www.eastern-philosophy-and-me...editation.html

Plus if your interested:

The Mantra Meditation I perform daily:
http://www.krishna.com/main.php?id=330

Philosophy behind the Maha-Mantra:
http://www.krishna.com/main.php?id=316

Best Wishes,

Das

Ross,
can I ask what the "Buddhist calm abiding method" is... I know very little about meditation, and I'm curious!

Meditation methods
 

Hi Poppies,

if ever want a really deep overview of meditation I remember this book being quite a good one. I have the 1977 edition but I'm sure the new one is pretty similar? ... ys, D

The Varieties of the Meditative Experience
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/...169062-0595853

Calm abiding
 

Hi Poppies, this is probably one of the most simple meditation tecniques other than chanting mantras;

1. Sit quiently in the meditation posture (back strait, head inclined slightly
forward, eyes loosely shut or partly open, hands resting in lap, right hand
facing up in the palm of left hand with tips of thumbs lightly touching, tip of
tongue lightly touching the roof of mouth on the tip of the palate).
2. Become aware of being in the present, here and now,and relax into this
space.
3. Resolve to let go of your thoughts, fantasies, about the future, nostalgia
about the past, mulling over problems etc.
4. Maintain a balance between trying too hard and becoming too sleepy and
dull.
5. Bring your attention to your breathing and notice the sensation at the tip
of your nostrils for each breath in and out.
6. Be careful to just watch the breath and not to try and make it deeper or
different in any way.
7. Each time you find your mind has wondered from the breath and followed
some thought, gently bring your attention back to your breathing.

It is recommended that you practice this for about twenty minutes a day to start with, anything more can cause despondency if "results" aren't acheived quickly enough.
In Buddhist terms the first sign of progress is called the waterfall effect.Be aware that your mind will wander a great deal to start with, you will begin to notice how much activity there is going on in your mind, usually we are not aware of how busy our mind is and noticing this restlessness is actually the first sign that it is beginning to calm down. It is often helpful to count your breaths to start with; from one to ten starting again each time you become distracted.
When I started practising meditation I found it very helpful to listen to specialist CDs which contain brain wave audio technology. these are CDs which send very specific sound frequencies into your brain via headphones which produce a phantom signal called a binaural beat. Your brain activity slips into rhythm with this beat and goes into a state called hemispheric synchronization - meditative states which can otherwise take a while to develope.