The never ending journey, "Are we there yet?"

And More from Lynch

It sounds natural and effortless.
Please read through to the end, like Pizarro's foundation of youth:

Deep Thoughts by David Lynch

The Raja speaks : It's your fault/obligation. Please come!

Invincible America

For Information and to apply to the course: www.InvincibleAmerica.org

Please Read Immediately

OPEN LETTER FROM DR. JOHN HAGELIN
TO AMERICA'S YOGIC FLYERS

September 24, 2007

Dear Fellow Governors and Sidhas:

I had the great honor of announcing in July to Maharishi and the world press the results of the first year of our Invincible America Assembly.

The news was excellent-and exactly what we had predicted one year earlier: a record-breaking stock market and a surprisingly robust economy; mounting bipartisan support for a peaceful resolution of the Iraq conflict; improved relations with North Korea, including an unexpected treaty; and fewer natural disasters (in fact, no hurricanes hit the US mainland in over a year-defying the predictions of every respected meteorologist in the country!).

The cause of such extraordinarily good news is an established scientific fact: nearly 1800 Yogic Flyers assembled together in groups in Maharishi University of Management and Maharishi Vedic City-enough to create a high degree of coherent national consciousness-the basis for a healthy, peaceful, prosperous, invincible nation.

But now, two months later, it's a different story. The market has turned volatile, peace efforts in Iraq have stalled, and US-Iran relations are flaring up again.

Why? There are now up to 200 fewer Yogic Flyers in the flying halls.

I write to every Yogic Flyer in America to give a gentle but urgent call: Please come here and fly together in a large group! We must immediately bring our numbers up again above the super radiance threshold of 1730. And ideally, we must increase those numbers to 2000 and beyond!

Yes, it is true that more Vedic Pandits are on their way from India and should be here in a few months. And their arrival will certainly raise our numbers.

But the Vedic Pandits should come here to "crown the nation with invincibility"-not to lay the groundwork. Creating national coherence is the responsibility of all American Yogic Flyers-including all of us who are blessed to be living in this sublime community.

Please come. You will hasten the rise of your own supreme enlightenment and enjoy life in a state of perpetual bliss consciousness. And you will radiate your bliss to America and the world.

Thank you so much.

Jai Guru Dev

John

The State of TM Research

Independent Research on various meditation practices concludes that previous studies were not rigorous enough in their methodology. Caution is warranted.

Read a survey of the research:
Meditation Practices for Health, State of the Research.

Experiences!

Advanced TM practice emphasizes "experience," rather than externally measureable phenomena.
Of course only feel-good experiences are valued.
Negative experiences are discredited as "un-stressing."

Some of us (moderators), along with experts in coercive persuasion, agree that many TM "experiences of (so called) higher states of consciousness" were induced through prolonged meditations, pseudo-hypnotic suggestion and group dynamics.

We observed others' "experiences" to the extremes of psychosis, schizophrenic-like symptoms, some leading to mental institutions and suicides. sigh.

The following New York Times article describes studies of induced "out of body experiences."
This is among the first of such neurologic research, using external sensory stimuli to create internal experiences.

Using electronic devices, out-of-body experiences were induced in participants. We hope there will be more such studies to come. Such studies may eventually explain 'siddhi-experiences.'
To read about this, click here.

Response to "Request for Help"

Response to Request for Help
Gina Catena, M.S.

Dear Ms. "X":

You lived as a second-hand cult member. Ouch! You survived a confusing and painful period with a loved one.

Please take whatever you find useful from below and discard the rest. You are not alone in the confusing period you lived. Nor are your children. There are many who struggle with similar situations.

You are affected by a psychological phenomenon that is not yet labeled by the American Psychological Association (APA). Some forward thinking therapists are studying this.

I expect there will eventually be a diagnosis category in Psychiatry's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Meanwhile, I choose to call this Cult Affected Personality Disorder (CAPD).

Dr. Philip Zimbardo and other leading psychologists and social psychologists have written extensively about cult thought reform. Very few have written about cult members' effects on loved ones.

Unlike other personality disorders, it is possible to recover from what I half-joking call CAPD. And like any other personality disorder, there is a broad spectrum of manifestations.

You are not crazy, even though you may have felt as if you were. You were given confusing mixed messages, and judgements that had nothing to do with objective reality.

With three generations of my family influenced by devout TMers, I likewise have ongoing influence from gradations of what you describe. There is always more to learn, and I am continually humbled by both our brains’ resilience and vulnerability.

TM practitioners have a broad expression spectrum. There are “lifers” on monastic programs who cannot function in the working world, to those barely affected who meditated for a few years but never disclosed their mantra.

You believe your ex-husband's noble intentions and well-rehearsed philosophy. The nobility contrasts greatly with his behavior. His intentions are good! This contrast creates dissonance in you, the outsider.

Some experts claim that cult members behave as those who have Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). You can find help for living with a Borderline Personality Disorder person in your life through BPD Central.

IMHO, your ex was addicted to the "bliss of meditation" - his meditation endorphin induced high - refocus.org offers helpful tips for recovering from trance-addiction.

His anger after meditation was likely in response to mental shock when jumping out of his trance state into full-on real functioning.

You asked how he could be so angry after meditating six hours daily for six years? That statement originates from TM's promises that prolonged meditations would magically dissolve inner anger. Not so.

In actuality meditating for six hours daily does not cure anger or frustration, if anything it will be the CAUSE of frustration when he tries to function in the real world (as a "householder" in TM terminology). Everyday life is a continual bombardment that interferes with the "feel the bliss."

Your husband believed that he wanted to "witness" life, to experience total bliss internally and observe the world around him. The Beatles described that state "and the eyes in his head see the world spinning round."

His failure to maintain that state when interacting with you, or anyone else, frustrated him! So, anger lashed out. His anger was his own frustration from being pulled out of trance.

He tries carefully to live "an evolutionary life in support of nature" such that the simplest variation from his narrow view could provoke anxiety, another cause of anger. You were the recipient because you happened to be there. Nothing more.

Of course, you didn't know that, and probably wondered what you did to provoke his anger. Merely asking him where the newspaper is could provoke agitation when he is in that state.

In my experience, any attempt at truly rational conversation with a devoted cult member will result in angry arguments. (read conversations in our "comments" and on TM online groups for ongoing examples).

Again, I acknowledge everyone's experience is unique. However, many have shared similar experiences with me.

There are many many such cases documented by the International Cultic Studies Association.

As to your theory of his frozen emotional development - I would say a resounding "Yes".. for political correctness, I should say "Probably".

Once again, ICSA studies found that cult members are regressed (or in your ex-husband's case frozen) at approximately the age of a fifteen. A devoted cult member will trust first and foremost in the cult leader(s), who are not held accountable to anyone. After all, to whom would a voice of God or spiritual Master be accountable?

A cult member who puts wholehearted trust in the cult leader(s), or methodology (Maharishi, SCI, and the lifestyle) as the answer to life problems is unable to navigate the difficult terrain of moral decisions, gradations of right and wrong and personal prioritization.

Trusting in this divine leadership, the cult member/devotee/thought reformed individual lives according to the group's higher purpose.

In TM this higher purpose manifests as a narcissistic drive to enlightenment and global world peace through large group meditations. The devout TMer believes in the nobility of these goals. S/he does not see the apparently narcissistic drive to maintain their trance-induced high.

Most who join cults are of above average intelligence, somewhat idealistic and were caught at a vulnerable time of life (IQ is not a protective factor for thought reform susceptibility). Many, as we know, continue to function well in the business world or other facets of their life. Many, however, fail abysmally. Just like any addiction manifestation spectrum.

The promised allure, like Pizarro's mythic fountain of youth, "TM is a scientific method for deep rest, increased intelligence, improved test scores, happiness, infinite support of the laws of nature, enlightenment, world peace, perfect health, flying, and invincibility” may entice someone at a vulnerable time of life. (Has MMY promised followers they can walk on water or rise from the dead yet?)

The lure of support from this noble group is slow but sure for those vulnerable to the trance state, or looking a higher meaning or perfect support group.

Arthur Deikman in "Them and Us" describes the lure to remain in
childlike innocence, trusting someone else to lead the way. He compares cult mentality to that of a child sleeping peacefully in the back seat of a car, trusting in the parent to drive safely.

True adulthood is not lived in the back seat of one's own life. True adulthood involves taking the driver's seat - usually without a roadmap. For someone who has been in a cult for decades, that IS frightening!

When leaving TM, the organization or the technique, a "walk away" has not necessarily left the mentality or neuro-programming that occurred during the years (decades?) of TM involvement. The depth of involvement will determine the extent of needed recovery. Many seek other so-called spiritual teachers to provide direction. Many become cult-hoppers after learning of TM’s false promises, only to commit themselves to another leader.

Undoing the brainwash takes concerted effort. Other studies show between 18 months to three years to undo the effects for someone who obtains appropriate exit counseling or self education about thought reform.

For someone who does not invest in cult-recovery, the patterns may continue as a permanent part of their personality. (See
Rick Ross' website for his booklist- unfortunately, Rick is upgrading his website and it may not be currently accessible.)

If your TMer left the Movement and technique, but has not learned what happened to him and how his mind and behavior were controlled for decades, he will continue to function as if still from the TM trance-induced mentality, regardless of what other form of meditation he practices.

Physical neural dendrites (brain cell branches) were formed permanently in his brain. The physical pathways will remain always. Those physical structures will continue to govern his brain functioning until alternative pathways are grown in his brain. I kid you not!

Like learning to ride a bicycle, or perform complicated ice skating stunts, growing new dendritic pathways, takes determination and repetition. Eventually the new patterns will run automatically. There will be an occasional reversion to old patterns when confronted with an unexpected trigger. A person can learn to identify when they are triggered, and compensate accordingly.

With appropriate exit counseling, or motivated retraining, he may become more well-adjusted. However you cannot impose that upon him. It is his choice to become well or not. It is hard work. TM training biased him against therapy or any psychological literature. Many leave TM and continue to function as emotional/psychological cripples for years.

There is some evidence to support "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy” as a helpful specialized therapy for former cultists attempting to retrain their brain.

Continuing with the cult-(non)functional member in your life is difficult. In my humble opinion, you took the only option that you could - you saved yourself and your sanity.

Your children will learn to function between you two. They deserve to love both their parents. They will have their own struggles with the situation.

Again, there are very few studies on children raised in cults, or by cult-affected parents. You may search the ICSA website for the few studies on the effects to children of dissociated parents.

I wish you well in your challenging path. Thank you, "X", for having the courage to voice what others experienced living with devout TMers, or with those who recently left TM after depths of involvement.

g

Addiction and Transcendental Meditation

by Gina Catena, M.S.


TM has addictive qualities.

Acknowleding the addictive characteristics of TM and other practices, Carol Giambalvo and other cult experts founded ReFOCUS.org to help former cult members break their addiction to trance states.

I'll find my references on autism and endorphins (natural opiates). Some neuroscientists found a connection between autism and high level of endorphins. Limited doses of narcan (an opiate antogonist drug) brought autistic children out of their trance-like introversion, into an interactive state.

I wonder if TM increases endorphin production, creating a semi-dissociative state ("feel the bliss").
Some devout TMers on the monastic Purusha or Mother Divine programs behave as if in an autistic state. These participants meditate for many hours daily, sometimes for years.

On the other hand, this would explain why TM helped some Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) children, according to the David Lynch Foundation. Limited amounts of stimulated endorphins (as in short TM practice) may calm hyperactive children.

Another recent study found that long term TMers had increased pain tolerance. That would imply, once again, there is an increased amount of natural opiates (morphine-like) from TM practice. I used TM to calm myself while awaiting an ambulance when I had multiple injuries in a tragic auto accident. It worked.

Being trained in TM as a young child, over 40 years ago, I know how to make-myself-high in an instant - anytime, anyplace! It feels great. I avoid that state, since it's as useful as the heroin addict sitting on a city street corner. Other TM-kids, now young adults, say the same.

Endorphin-induced trance would explain participants' receptivity to suggestion when attending long meditation courses.

Addiction to endorphins would explain addict-like dysfunctional dynamics seen with some TM families.
This could explain explain why some substance abusers relinquish use of exogenous chemicals after beginning TM. Perhaps they subsitute a self-produced opiate for their street drug?
This could also explain the frequent drug use/abuse by TM kids, as they replace their parental endorphin addiction with their own street drug abuse. Just trading one high for another.

Would anyone like to study us? It would be interesting to measure opiates when we meditate, then see what happens with a narcan injection. My supposition is we would respond exactly as those autistic kids did, instantly being brought out of our trance. (and what about the long term TM celibate program participants who immerse themeselves in that state 24 x 7) It would not surprise me if TM-kids' brains have neuro-pathways allowing us to dissociate more readily than the general population, since our internal dependence on that state was cultivated at a young age.

I would be willing to participte in such a study, in the interest of demonstrating TM's addictive qualities. A few others might be willing also.
Any takers?

Please forgive me for not providing references to the autism research, nor the TM-pain tolerance research. They can be googled.
This is written off the top of my head, not as a scientific abstract.
I will add appropriate references when I have time to find them.

Physicists vs. Salesmen

by Gina Catena, M.S.

In the TM Movement,and other New Age circles we hear frequent reference to the much touted films "What the Bleep Do We Know?" and The Secret." These films blend pseudo-science, mysticism, faux "experts" and psychics for a sharp presentation on the power of the mind. Those without scientific training often succumb to deemed "truths" of these movies.

Our TM background accostomed us to scientific terms misapplied to pseudo Eastern philosophy.

The following scientific conference abstract comes from a practicing physicist tired of charlatans misapplying his profession:


The Contribution of Quantum Mechanics to the Physics of Consciousness and the Rise of Mind-Body Complementary and Alternative Therapies: Quackeries from New Age Movements or a New Medical Science?

Unfortunately, most practicing physicists lack the time to demonstrate ineptitude of those twisting science to advance their own interests.

I hope the above link provides some awareness of real physics, vs TM's false physics.

As to deemed physiologic benefits of TM, the same benefits can be obtained by low dose morphine, certain antidepressants, regular practice of other forms of meditation (not linked to wealth building advanced courses), or regular exercise.

Pharmacology research is required to address adverse effects of exogenous chemicals introduced to the body. TM researchers are not required to reveal potential negative effects of TM, even if they are aware of such, because their research does not involve pharmaceuticals.

That is why negative effects of TM are not discussed by TM's research scientists. They neither seek nor measure negative effects, thus they are not reported. No need to measure adverse effects, since no foreign substance is introduced into the body, right?
WRONG!

If one scratches the surface, with a little understanding of statistics or physics, it is easy to question the validity and usefulness of TM's deemed-scientific research.

Transcendental Meditation, as taught 20 minutes twice per day, may offer benefits.

There is a down side that new initiates should be aware of, prior to "investing $2500 to learn a scientificly proven method for deep rest and release of stress."

The warning label should read, "TM, the cult, may be hazardous to your health, your emotional, psychological, financial and familial well being. Many teachings are taught by deceived, but sincere, individuals. Others methods offer similar or identical benefits for less cost and no risk of cult persuasion."

With appropriate warning applied to TM's marketing, I would have no objection. Truth in Advertising.

THINK FREE: 02/04/07

THINK FREE is a regular feature of TM-Free Blog. It features a summary of news about TM and other orgs labeled "cults" by critics.

• Transcendental Meditation Said to Reduce Perception of Pain Seattle Times [Now, if It Weren't for Those Pesky Side-Effects, Bayer Would Need to Worry!]
  
• Juliette Lewis, Scientologist Sydney Morning Herald
  
• San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsome Flirting with Scientology? Ventura Country Star
  

Have a hot tip? See something we missed? Email jmknapp53@gmail.com.