Posted by peer-reviewed on October 7, 2007, at 15:08:06
In reply to Re: Considering transcendental meditation » John M. Knapp, LMSW, posted by widget on October 7, 2007, at 7:52:19
To All,
Widget, you asked an innocent question, and received responses from a couple of "internet activists" whose personal "anti-TM" agenda might call into question their open-mindedness about whether TM can help you. I wanted you to know who you were hearing from. I will directly address your question about the TM course fee, but first, Mr. Knapp has posted more fabricated charges against TM, which you might want to hear the truth about. I will also reply to his comments pertaining to me.
Contrary to Mr. Knapp's accusation, I was not impugning him as a person; rather, I was repudiating his assertions and shedding light on his ACTIVITIES as a crusader against the TM program. It is just too ironic that my post is reduced by Mr. Knapp, of all people, to being a "personal attack." To put his allegation in perspective, please keep in mind that Mr. Knapp maintains at least two web sites, possibly more ("tm-free.blog," "trancenet,"), devoted ENTIRELY to wholesale attack, defamation and denunciation of TM, and much of the language on those sites is vicious to a degree that makes my most ardent repudiations of his criticisms sound about as sinister as a nursery rhyme. Mr. Knapp, please know that I imply nothing against you as a person, and I wish you well, but I strongly deny the validity of your denigration of TM, a preoccupation that may very well prove, in the long run, to be pathological in nature, if pathological means a departure from a "healthy, productive norm."
Mr. Knapp's "mildly worded, brief post" contained links to web sites that are in no way mild or brief. He asks why I feel a need to defend TM. I don't. But I do feel a need, for the sake of people like Widget, to refute the disingenuous and dubious information being vigorously presented by him and a few others. I am sorry, Mr. Knapp, if you are irritated by this and feel inclined to take such refutations personally. You can call my references to your disinformation campaign as "bird droppings" an insult if you want (admit, John, that WAS kind of funny, huh?), but anyone who visits your web sites will see that personal attack against all-things-TM, including its founder, is the MO.
Furthermore, Mr. Knapp implies that Widget made claims against the benefits of TM and that she charges that it's a cult--untrue, it was Mr. Knapp who brought that up, as he commonly does.
It is also blatantly false that the TM organization claims to teach people to "levitate," as Mr. Knapp alleges. The TM-Sidhi program, which includes Yogic Flying, is based on the venerable Yoga Sutras, a compilation of aphorisms composed many centuries ago by the Vedic seer Patanjali. Yogic Flying is one of many advanced practices which enliven subtle states of consciousness and create brainwave coherence, leading to increased intellectual performance, broader comprehension, and improved health--results documented in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The "flying" technique was described by Patanjali as a means to enliven the mind's full potential. Many ancient rishis are recorded in the traditional Vedic texts as encouraging this practice, which is indeed said to lead, over time, to mastery of the "supernatural power" of Yogic Flying. Every branch of science has aspects of theory that are verified, and has other aspects that are more speculative and considered to be ongoing research programs. To decry the validity of Yogic Flying is not only to cynically rail against the very potential of human life, but it is also a denouncement of a longstanding, venerated tradition, the oldest tradition of knowledge on earth. Such cultural bias is not uncommon, but to assert that the TM organization claims to teach people to "fly" for a fee is a gross confabulation, and Mr. Knapp must know this if he was once a TM teacher as he claims.
Regarding Mr. Knapp's claim that there is "constant pressure within the organization to sign up" for advanced courses--just ask any meditator, Widget, if this is true. I live in a town where there is a very active TM center, and I have never once been pressured or solicited by a TM center to sign up for advanced courses. All I've ever seen is an occasional email notification (once a year) and an occasional sign up sheet in the center. This assertion is an out-and-out fib.
Regarding Mr. Knapp's claim that advanced TM courses cost as much as $1 million, again, this is intentional confabulation. The fact is, there was once a special course in Holland for wealthy people who felt sufficient appreciation for the benefit they had gained from TM that they were glad to donate $1 million to assemble together and receive advanced knowledge personally from the founder of the TM program, Maharishi. This was as much a fund-raising initiative as an advanced course, and the money was used to support peace-creating groups and TM schools around the world. Make no mistake: no one makes money off of TM, least of all Maharishi. And there is absolutely NO PRESSURE for people to take advanced courses. What a bunch of bunk.
As far as "controlling the weather," whether or not human actions in general or fluctuations within the field of collective consciousness can influence weather events is, of course, outside the mainstream paradigm of science. However, scientists far more credentialed than Mr. Knapp (he's a licensed social worker) are studying the implications of this question (such as Nobel Laureate Dr. Brain Josephson). It is not among the stated (or proven) benefits of TM that the practice influences the weather, as Mr. Knapp implies.
Knapp's more hostile accusation, though temperate compared to his web sites, that Maharishi has indulged in "spiritual terrorism" is so far out on the fringes of unreality that there's not much here to address. Knapp claims that Maharishi withdrew his teachings from England, and "threatened that country with war and ruin because they would no longer be 'protected' by advanced TMers presence." What really happened was this: there was so little encouragement from the government of England for Maharishi's peace-creating programs, that Maharishi invited all his teachers and people wanting to participate in peace-creating groups to join the teams in other countries where there was more support from the governments, such as the many countries in South America or Asia where TM is currently being implemented in schools and the military on a massive level. Maharishi issued a clear statement to England advising the population that he was doing this, and suggesting that England reappraise the TM program, noting that the TM Movement would return its attention to England at a moment's notice if there was sufficient support there. Mr. Knapp has his own negative interpretation of events that are in totally sensible and innocent in the light of reason.If Maharishi has a hidden agenda, as Knapp claims, after all these years I can't wait to know what it is! It can only be more bliss and positivity!
Mr. Knapp exerts much effort, with his multiple web sites and assertions of unverifiable "TM victim lists," to create the illusion that TM is controversial and has harmful effects. There appears to be a deep-seated emotional venom in his declaring that Maharishi is "insane."
Widget: If you want to know what "third-part observers" think of TM, I suggest that you don't ask John Knapp and his handful of disgruntled x-meditating friends. Check with the peer-reviewed journals that published studies that were conducted at independent institutions such as University of Virginia Medical School, Harvard Medical School, Stanford Medical School, Yale Medical School, University of Ohio, etc. Consider the fact that the National Institutes of Health have given $24 million to research the health effects of TM, and are funding more research money for TM as we speak. If Knapp's claims were true, this money would never have been released--believe me, there is intense competition for that funding from scientists across the U.S., and only the most solid and promising research proposals win out. After you consider all this, then you may have a new perspective on who is INSANE.
Oh yeah, the $2500 course fee. If TM were only as effective as all the other forms of meditation that are free or inexpensive, then it would perhaps be an unreasonable fee. But research clearly shows that TM is unique in its range of effects. When you learn TM you are on the receiving end of a flow of Vedic knowledge that cannot be deconstructed on a web site, that is soft and lively and innocent and effective because it is kept in its pure form; a flow of knowledge that is passed on from teacher to student in the traditional way. Some people dishonor and disrespect this oral tradition, and they denounce it, even people who were once teachers themselves. Let them, if that's their choice. To learn TM is to experience a renewed wholeness of life--of your own self, a delicate experience that is 'transcendental,' -- beyond words. It is a direct personal experience that you can only evaluate first hand, not by another's interpretation of it. Best of luck, Widget.
poster:peer-reviewed
thread:780763
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20070929/msgs/787637.html