IS TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION A RELIGION?
The Maharishi makes the claim that T.M. is not a religion, but simply a practice of meditation. He maintained that the practice of TM would encourage members in their particular religion. However, this argument that TM is not a religion is certainly not sustainable, for this cult is very clearly anchored in Hinduism. The initiation ceremony is clearly a Hindu ceremony, since in it Hindu deities are addressed. The ceremony is conducted in Sanskrit, which is a Hindu sacred language. The initiate is required to recite the names of various Hindu deities. Many of the prayers are addressed to Guru Dev, who is described as the “Self Sufficient” the embodiment of pure knowledge. An example of the prayers required are as follows: “White as camphor, kindness incarnate, the essence of creation garlanded with Brahman, ever dwelling in the lotus of my heart, the creative impulse of cosmic life, to That, in the form of Guru Dev, I bow down.”258 It is clear from such remarks that Transcendental Medit
