Solutions are not found in the same level of consciousness that created the problems. So how can we, as a global collective, transcend to a deeper level of individual and collective consciousness in alignment with Natural Law?
This webinar, hosted by Frances Litman and featuring guests John Cowhig and Anne-Marieke Chu, explores what collective consciousness means, how to achieve it, plus learn all about the mental, physical and community benefits of Transcendental Meditation complete with the science to support how it can reduce stress and create optimum health and wellness on both an individual and community level.
John Cowhig discovered Transcendental Meditation (TM) when he was a Bohemian seeker in the 60’s. From 1974 to 1991 he worked, in more than 100 countries, with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder of TM, an international educational non-profit.
Maharishi set up countless pilot projects to inspire visionary leaders to bring prosperity to society, correct environmental imbalances and create world peace. Among the dozens of projects that John worked on, was one in the late1980’s to help developing countries become food self-sufficient by cultivating organic food on their unused arable land. Other pilot projects in the 80’s, all ahead of their time, included electric-vehicles in the Netherlands and solar panel production in India.
But what caught John’s imagination was the fundamental principle in all these projects: Consciousness First. First develop everyone’s full potential; then those happy, enlightened, fulfilled people will intuitively live in accord with the laws of nature and spontaneously do what is right.
Anne-Mareike Chu holds a Master of Science degree in Resource Management & Environmental Studies, and Bachelor’s degree in physics. She has worked as a sustainability consultant and researcher with world renown architects, municipalities, and international research institutions on sustainable building projects around the world.
As a certified Instructor of Transcendental Meditation, Anne-Marieke teaches leaders, professionals, athletes and families about the science of consciousness for a balanced approach to life. Her dedication is to allow people to unfold their full mental potential and develop a sustainable and regenerative connection with themselves and their environment.
Musical artist Chloe Kim concludes this webinar with the Allemande from JS Bach’s Sixth Suite originally for cello. Chloe graduated with a Masters in violin performance from the University of Victoria and is now studying at the Julliard School of Music in New York. She has performed in many countries.
Additional Q&A (not included in the video)
Q. It feels like things are getting dramatically worse. How can this be if TM has been spreading for 50+ years?
A. You can look at it that way, or you could look at it other ways: for example, that much of the turbulence in society today is the bubbling up of what was there already, but hidden—the world is purifying, throwing off the dirt, and it can be messy. When you first vacuum a dirty floor, clouds of dust fill the air, and it seems worse than before—but it’s on the way to looking better.
You might also look at the good things happening today (which the media tends to ignore): https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/28/opinion/sunday/2019-best-year-poverty.html and https://globalgoodnews.com
And yet, we still need more people with techniques to dissolve stress, and that’s why we are working hard to train more TM teachers and bring this to the attention of more people. Visit the website of the David Lynch Foundation to see how effective Transcendental Meditation is for even the most traumatized and disadvantaged people. https://www.davidlynchfoundation.org
Thanks for the inspiration to move faster—and tell your friends!
Q. I looked into TM, and found it expensive. Has the price been lowered? Don’t we want to expand it to all the world?
A. TM is taught by non-profit organizations; the money from instructions is what pays for the costs of teaching centres, material, websites, etc., and to support the teachers. It’s important to recognize that the organization is a not-for-profit education entity and that the one time tuitions are used to support the teaching activities of the local, national and international organization which are there to support your practice for a lifetime.
As a long time teacher, I would always recommend that when someone comes to learn TM that they are not only committed to a daily life practice, but that it is the right time to start that practice.
Right time means – having the time to learn the technique and practice properly – not feeling rushed. Right time also means – not feeling a significant financial pinch when you do so.
Sometimes it’s better to save up and wait than to rush in when feeling an undue financial pinch. We often find that we value things more when we have been patient and we have earned it.
Q. How does TM differ from other forms of Buddhist meditation?
A. TM comes from the ancient Vedic science and knowledge of India, which is the root of many Buddhist meditations. How does TM differ from most other forms of meditation? It does not require effort, concentration, control, or any kind of emotional for intellectual intervention; it uses the mind’s natural tendency to go from a field of lesser happiness to a field of greater happiness, as the mind naturally settles down to deeper levels of thought and then transcends to the field of pure consciousness. Each step on this effortless dive is more and more blissful, and pure consciousness itself is the source of bliss: it’s called Sat Chit Ananda: eternal bliss consciousness. And it’s what we are at our basis.
Q. How does TM compare with Centering Prayer?
A. Most meditations fall into the three categories Anne-Mareike explained with the brain-wave slides. You can also watch the following short video with Bob Roth https://ca.tm.org/en/videos, CEO of the David Lynch Foundation, who is explaining the different categories of meditation again: https://ca.tm.org/en/videos
Q. How can the maharishi function on 1 hour of sleep?
A. Great question. It seems surprising, but Maharishi never got tired and frustrated. When I (John) was his secretary, there were two or three of us (and we were young men) on shifts, and even then it was hard to keep up with his unflagging energy. Maharishi was an inspiration of our real potential.
Q. Thank you so much for this impactful presentation! Are there any books you could suggest to help deepen the understanding about the science behind TM?
A. Thank you for your question. There are many great books on the science behind TM. Two books that I can highly recommend by Dr. Norman Rosenthal are “Transcendence” and “Super Mind” both very fascinating on the science and research on TM. Another great easy read is “Strength in Stillness” by Bob Roth. I hope this helps.
Q. Why are you only discussing consciousness as it relates to TM? There is so much more than just TM.
A. Indeed, today many people are discussing consciousness, and many techniques of meditation are available, which shows the world is evolving—more and more people are recognizing that consciousness is primary, or at least the ultimate mystery.
Even in science, the question is being asked: what is consciousness and how does it come about?—is it primary, or emergent—the field in which matter arises, or just an epiphenomenon of the sophistication of the brain?
When I started TM in 1967 no one was asking these questions except in a few pockets of metaphysically-minded people; to me it just meant not asleep or unconscious. Maharishi reintroduced to the world the understanding that consciousness is the basis of all we are conscious of, and it can be easily accessed.
We talk about TM as the way to access it because that is what we know as certified Teachers of Transcendental Meditation, this is with all respect to the many other approaches available. We certainly feel TM is a very simple, effortless and natural way to access pure consciousness, our inner self based on the timeless Vedic knowledge, more than 50 years of research and the experience of millions of TM practitioners.