I appreciate serious, informed debate over new ideas and concepts. In that light, I offer the following facts in response to your editorial Thursday (“Meditation movement lacks proper credentials,” ODE Nov. 10).
Fact: The National Institutes of Health has granted $20 million to study the health benefits of Transcendental Meditation – in particular, benefits for reducing heart disease, hypertension and the effects of a stroke. This research has been published in leading, peer-reviewed scientific journals. The studies have been conducted by the NIH-funded Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention at Maharishi University of Management as well as by more than a dozen other independent universities and health centers, including Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles and the West Oakland Health Center in Oakland, Calif.
Fact: Three hundred students at American University in Washington, D.C., are now taking part in a two-year study by the AU Psychology Department on the effects of TM on brain, behavior and health. Similar studies are now under way on the effects of TM on ADHD, high blood pressure, grades and overall academic achievement, anxiety and depression, and substance abuse at middle schools, high schools and universities around the country.
Fact: Research on the effects of collective Transcendental Meditation practice has been published in several peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Conflict Resolution, Social Indicators Research and the Journal of Mind and Behavior.
Fact: There is no scientific evidence to suggest that all meditation practices are the same. In fact, over the past 30 years, there have been several meta-analyses distinguishing the effects of TM from other techniques, including studies published in the American Psychologist, the Journal of Clinical Psychology and the Journal of Social Behaviour and Personality.
Fact: The course fee to learn Transcendental Meditation is about the same as the cost of a 3-unit course at most universities. However, the TM course is not just one semester but includes personal instruction from a qualified TM instructor as well as a lifetime of follow-up meditation instruction at thousands of meditation centers around the United States and the world. The Lynch Foundation is providing full scholarships to students at schools, colleges and universities throughout the country.
Fact: Transcendental Meditation is not a religion. It is taught and practiced by people (and clergy) of all religions – and to people with no religious beliefs. Well before scientists began to explore the effects of TM, a judge in New Jersey in 1979 concluded there were religious elements to the teaching of TM. However, as we all know, there is a long tradition in the American judicial system (see civil rights in the south), where decisions are overturned with new evidence. Transcendental Meditation is offered to students of all religions in scores of educational institutions throughout the United States.
David Lynch did not come to the University of Oregon to persuade anyone to meditate. He came to answer questions about his filmmaking, his creative process and his meditation practice. And to offer, if anyone is interested, to help provide them with the tools to “dive within.” It was – and is – a simple, genuine offer from a brilliant artist and a rare human being.
Best wishes.
Bob Roth is the Vice President for the David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace