Howdy Folks,
Ok, we're gonna save a grand because here's the inside scoop on TM from an old commando from '69.
It works exactly like everything else in life. You get out of it what you put into it.
Here we go.
Breath normally, the same way you do when reading IC Mag. See? You are not conscious of your breathing when reading and so should the same apply to meditation, the purpose of which is not be conscious of anything. Loose clothes, comfortable seating, legs crossed on the floor for the guru vibe but any comfy chair will do. Needless to say a quiet, darkened room will be easier to begin with but after some practice you can meditate at a hockey game.
Pick a short 2 syllable mantra. There is no mojo here, it is simply a device to use. Use mo-jo if you like but soft vowel sounds that mush together like ay-ying or ee-yo will roll through your mind with less effort. You won't have to tie them to your particular heartbeat but repeat them to yourself in a lub-dub lub dub pattern without emphasis. It's just the gas used to get you where you can coast without it.
You will stop and start. No problem. Start over. You will screw up your mantra. Start over and don't get frustrated. It means you're getting close because as your mind empties, it means you are no longer concentrating on your mantra and it will just float away.
You'll say "Why can't I stop thinking? I'm not supposed to be thinking." No problem. Keep going. Finish your allocated half hour even if you sat the entire time with your mind spinning. The brain is not used to being silent while conscious, it has to be trained to roll away from thought that you are aware of, or rather it is the ego that is rolling away into the void. If you fall asleep, which is very common, good for you. You had a nice nap. Keep at it.
Some will experience a profound sense of calm and tranquility the first time out and others may take 20 sessions. No problem again because the purpose is not to achieve...anything.
When you first tried to ride a bike you might have thought it impossible but you kept falling and one day you're zooming down the road without a thought to the effort it took to train your muscles to balance while pedaling and steering. Sitting in a chair is far easier.
It will happen. You'll know it because you just will. You may come out from your first successful session deeply emotional, calm or elated, energetic or flaccid and languorous like having the best sleep in your life. Everyone is different. Where do you go? I went nowhere or not 'anywhere' that I can recall. All I know is that when I got back from there I felt different, so I have to assume it was a good place. I can't remember what the official TM branded place I went was called, be that is the least consequential aspect of the experience. Everyone has a different name for 'it' anyway. Pick one you like.
I have never met anyone who practiced TM successfully that said "Well that sucked". As to the claims to reaching higher realms of the angels, Satori, or that ever elusive Nirvana that many purveyors of the meditative arts will try to beguile you and your wallet with, all I know from my personal experience of a couple of years is that I became more insightful to my own nature, more calm and thoughtful of others and an abiding sense of filling my spot in the world in a more meaningful way than I did before.
It hard to describe. Like a very positive use of psychedelics, you become more aware of an inner life that was less accessible than before and I gained an understanding that you don't have to beat your way through life and that like a river that meets a rock, can gently flow around it.
Wow. I sold myself. I'll have to start over again. I might have overused my curmudgeonly asshole niche I sometimes enjoy.
The rest of the stuff with the flowers is so there will be plenty of fresh flowers to create the ambiance for the next crew to run through the classes.
Ya gotta sell the sizzle with the steak.
Ok, we're gonna save a grand because here's the inside scoop on TM from an old commando from '69.
It works exactly like everything else in life. You get out of it what you put into it.
Here we go.
Breath normally, the same way you do when reading IC Mag. See? You are not conscious of your breathing when reading and so should the same apply to meditation, the purpose of which is not be conscious of anything. Loose clothes, comfortable seating, legs crossed on the floor for the guru vibe but any comfy chair will do. Needless to say a quiet, darkened room will be easier to begin with but after some practice you can meditate at a hockey game.
Pick a short 2 syllable mantra. There is no mojo here, it is simply a device to use. Use mo-jo if you like but soft vowel sounds that mush together like ay-ying or ee-yo will roll through your mind with less effort. You won't have to tie them to your particular heartbeat but repeat them to yourself in a lub-dub lub dub pattern without emphasis. It's just the gas used to get you where you can coast without it.
You will stop and start. No problem. Start over. You will screw up your mantra. Start over and don't get frustrated. It means you're getting close because as your mind empties, it means you are no longer concentrating on your mantra and it will just float away.
You'll say "Why can't I stop thinking? I'm not supposed to be thinking." No problem. Keep going. Finish your allocated half hour even if you sat the entire time with your mind spinning. The brain is not used to being silent while conscious, it has to be trained to roll away from thought that you are aware of, or rather it is the ego that is rolling away into the void. If you fall asleep, which is very common, good for you. You had a nice nap. Keep at it.
Some will experience a profound sense of calm and tranquility the first time out and others may take 20 sessions. No problem again because the purpose is not to achieve...anything.
When you first tried to ride a bike you might have thought it impossible but you kept falling and one day you're zooming down the road without a thought to the effort it took to train your muscles to balance while pedaling and steering. Sitting in a chair is far easier.
It will happen. You'll know it because you just will. You may come out from your first successful session deeply emotional, calm or elated, energetic or flaccid and languorous like having the best sleep in your life. Everyone is different. Where do you go? I went nowhere or not 'anywhere' that I can recall. All I know is that when I got back from there I felt different, so I have to assume it was a good place. I can't remember what the official TM branded place I went was called, be that is the least consequential aspect of the experience. Everyone has a different name for 'it' anyway. Pick one you like.
I have never met anyone who practiced TM successfully that said "Well that sucked". As to the claims to reaching higher realms of the angels, Satori, or that ever elusive Nirvana that many purveyors of the meditative arts will try to beguile you and your wallet with, all I know from my personal experience of a couple of years is that I became more insightful to my own nature, more calm and thoughtful of others and an abiding sense of filling my spot in the world in a more meaningful way than I did before.
It hard to describe. Like a very positive use of psychedelics, you become more aware of an inner life that was less accessible than before and I gained an understanding that you don't have to beat your way through life and that like a river that meets a rock, can gently flow around it.
Wow. I sold myself. I'll have to start over again. I might have overused my curmudgeonly asshole niche I sometimes enjoy.
The rest of the stuff with the flowers is so there will be plenty of fresh flowers to create the ambiance for the next crew to run through the classes.
Ya gotta sell the sizzle with the steak.
