Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who passed away on 5 February 2008 was an Indian Hindu
religious leader who introduced the practice of transcendental meditation (TM)
to the West.
Little is known of the Maharishi’s early life. He
studied physics at the University of Allahabad and worked for a time in
factories. He later left for the Himalayas, where for 13 years he studied
under Guru Dev, the founder of TM. When Guru Dev died in 1952, the Maharishi
organized a movement to spread the teachings of TM throughout the world; his
first world tour took place in 1959 and brought him to the United States.
TM is a type of meditation, practiced twice a day, in which the
subject mentally recites a special
mantra (sacred sound or phrase). Concentration on the
repeated utterances decreases mental activity, and as a result the subject is
expected to reach a higher state of consciousness. The movement grew
slowly until the late 1960s, when the Beatles, an English rock-music group, and numerous other
celebrities began to join his following. Since then, many have left the
movement, but TM remains a popular form of relaxation, especially in the United
States. The principles of transcendental meditation are discussed in the
Maharishi’s books The Science
of Being and Art of Living (1963) and Meditations of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (1968).
