[Gem]

Originally Posted by dragonboy46

Hey everyone,

I've recently come across this Transcendental Meditation which is said to be a natural, effortless technique where the person has to sit with the eyes closed for 20 minutes and repeat a mantra silently in his mind.

This mantra is said to be meaningless word or sound and has nothing to do with religion. However, I have some doubts.

First of all, How would I know that the mantra is meaningless? The teacher will give me the mantra to chant in my mind and tell me that it's meaningless. But what if it had a meaning? What if it's not meaningless? I never know right..

Secondly, in what "sense" is it meaningless? There can be two possibilities:

1.) It's meaningless because I don't know the meaning of the word/sound. (The Teacher did not tell me)

2.) It's meaningless because the meaning does not exist.


For example, if somebody does not know English and does not know what "Tulip" means and does not try to know what Tulip means, it's meaningless for him because he does not know the meaning. But in reality, it's not meaningless. (He will know the meaning if he Googles it)

Second example, if the word is something like "nnnnnnn" or "aaaaa" which has just sound and no meaning associated with it. Even if you Google you won't find the meaning, because it does not exist.

So my question, "In which sense the Mantra is meaningless?", In a sense that the practitioner DOES NOT know the meaning or in a sense that the meaning does not exist?

Thirdly, I have heard that the mantras used in the practice of Transcendental Meditation are actually the names of Hindu Deities or are associated with Hindu Deities. Is that true?

and Lastly, I have also heard that any word or sound can be used to Transcend the mind. If that's true, why do they use only Sanskrit words in the practice and why do they tell people to keep their mantras secret if ANY word can be used?

I would really appreciate if someone can shed some light on the doubts I have about Transcendental Meditation.

Thanks,
Usman.

TM uses a sound which is not a word. It has no literal meaning. You could google it and find out a lot more, and I suggest researching various different traditions, including the Buddhist or Zen and so on, because there are different traditional approaches, and better to have a range of options to choose from.