Transcendental meditation: Encyclopedia II - Transcendental meditation - History

Transcendental meditation - History

In 1957, at the end of a big "festival of spiritual luminaries" in remembrance of the previous Shankaracharya of the North, Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, his disciple Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (or simply "Maharishi") inaugurated a "movement to spiritually regenerate the world". That was the formal beginning of the spread of TM throughout the world.

In the movement's initial stages, Maharishi emphasised the religious aspects of TM and operated under the auspices of an organization he called the Spiritual Regeneration Movement. However, the requirements of the West made him adopt a more secular approach in the 1970s. He focused on western science both to show theoretical parallels with his thinking and practical verification of the results of TM. The main emphasis was on relaxation, relief from stress, and improved personal effectiveness.

In the early 1970s, Maharishi launched his "World Plan" to establish a TM teaching center for each million of the world's population, which at that time would have meant 3,600 TM centers throughout the world. The centers established in many cities flourished for a time, but not all are operational now. Today, there are TM centers and facilities in many countries of the world, and over five million people have learned the technique, though not all continue to practice it. Since 1990, Maharishi co-ordinates his global activities from his headquarters in the town of Vlodrop in the municipality of Roerdalen in Holland.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki