What’s the Difference Between Transcendental Meditation and Mindfulness? A Teacher Explains

Meditation is all over the place today. Guided meditations or visualizations, mindfulness, strolling meditations, physique scans, and even mantra meditation are taught in lecture rooms and workplaces in addition to being featured on common meditation apps. Some folks swear by their particular sort, others dabble in numerous ones, and plenty of are merely curious to strive however haven’t but.

For me, mantra meditation—extra particularly Transcendental Meditation (TM)—has been life-changing. On this piece, I clarify what TM is, discover its advantages, and focus on variations between TM and mindfulness meditation.

Fifteen years in the past, in 2009, I started meditating. On the time, my life was shifting in virtually each attainable method. I had simply moved again to my hometown of San Francisco after seven years of instructing in Los Angeles. I had been recognized with an autoimmune illness, ulcerative colitis. Now, even at this time, we don’t know all the pieces about this illness, however what we do know is that stress is a serious set off. There I used to be, recognized with a persistent sickness, attempting to grasp my signs, handle them, and plan for an unpredictable future. On the identical time, one other main life occasion was unfolding: I had simply turned 30 and was embarking on the troublesome journey of attempting to have a child—an expertise that ended up taking three years, stuffed with physician’s visits, uncertainty, and loss.

On high of all this, I used to be transitioning professionally—shifting from being a classroom instructor in LA to working within the central workplace for SF Unified Faculty District’s new instructor Induction program. It was quite a bit—personally, professionally, emotionally—and this was the precise second I began meditating.

What Is Transcendental Meditation (TM)?

The model of meditation I discovered in 2009 was Transcendental Meditation (TM), via a grant from the David Lynch Basis supplied to workers within the San Francisco Unified Faculty District. TM is a type of mantra-based meditation the place you silently repeat a selected phrase (mantra) that will help you focus and transcend peculiar thought patterns. The thought is that the repetition of the mantra permits the thoughts to settle right into a deep state of relaxation and application, fostering a way of interior peace.

TM is a type of mantra-based meditation the place you silently repeat a selected sound or phrase (mantra) that will help you focus and transcend peculiar thought patterns.

Studying TM usually includes enrolling at a TM middle and paying for instruction, which can be delivered one-on-one or in a small group. Once I discovered, this system was supplied freed from cost to SFUSD workers and was performed in a small group over a number of periods, with month-to-month group check-ins. On the time, the muse was conducting a scientific trial to discover TM’s impression on well being, so individuals had been divided into two teams: one obtained instruction within the mantra-based meditation follow instantly, whereas the opposite (the management group) started six months later. 

No matter whether or not you study TM individually, in a bunch, or as a part of a examine, you might be given a private mantra by an authorized TM instructor. This mantra—a nonsensical, lyrical phrase—is supposed to be saved personal and never shared with others. Some have famous that mantras are assigned primarily based on the age of the practitioner on the time of studying.

Although TM has its roots in India’s Vedic traditions—a few of the oldest identified religious and philosophical techniques, relationship again over 3,000 years—the type of TM practiced at this time originated within the Fifties. Whereas the usage of mantras could also be linked to historical Sanskrit texts, TM is taught as a secular follow, distinct from any spiritual framework. It’s offered as a scientific methodology for lowering stress and enhancing total well being. The method gained widespread reputation, partially, resulting from high-profile advocates like The Beatles, who helped deliver consideration to this type of meditation.

Scientific analysis has proven that TM can cut back stress and anxiety, lower blood pressure, and enhance overall well-being, immune function,  and sleep. It has been discovered to reinforce cognition, enhance creativity, and even assist with psychological resilience during challenging times. Many individuals proceed to be drawn to TM due to its structured nature—it’s straightforward to study, and practitioners are usually taught one-on-one by licensed instructors, which offers personalised steerage.

For me, TM shortly turned an anchor in my every day life. As somebody who values routines, it was a easy ritual that introduced a deep sense of peace and readability. I discovered myself trying ahead to that post-meditation feeling: lighter, extra grounded, and higher geared up to face no matter was swirling round me. The anxious ideas that used to loop endlessly—about infertility, miscarriages, managing colitis via food regimen, or the stress of potential layoffs in addition to the financial recession—started to really feel much less heavy, much less consuming.

Impressed by the facility of TM, I additionally started to form a private strategy to mantra-based meditation, one which felt extra versatile and accessible. I used to be interested in how selecting my very own mantra or intention would possibly shift the expertise. The idea is straightforward: choose a phrase or phrase, repeat it silently, and let the thoughts soften and settle. It’s a chilled, efficient follow that doesn’t require costly coaching or lengthy hours. Whereas TM is one established type of mantra meditation, there are lots of variations, every adaptable to your personal rhythm, wants, and curiosity.

What Is Mindfulness Meditation?

Mindfulness meditation is all about being current within the second, observing your ideas and emotions with out judgment. As instructor and educator Diana Winston explains in her Tedx Talk, this sort of meditation will be understood as “listening to present-moment experiences with openness, curiosity, and a willingness to be with what’s.”

Whereas it’s widespread to include an intentional focus in mindfulness meditation—just like the breath, a visible cue like a candle, or bodily sensations—this system is usually practiced by merely sitting or mendacity down in silence and simply being with no matter arises. If fear, anxiousness, pinging ideas, or bodily ache trigger distraction, the meditator notes the distraction with out judgment after which gently returns consideration to the current second.

One of these meditation is accessible, versatile, and encourages folks to start out the place they’re. Just like TM, research have proven that mindfulness meditation is efficient in lowering signs of stress, anxiety, and depression, bettering sleep, and growing the markers of bodily, psychological, and emotional well-being.

Whereas mindfulness will be extremely efficient for calming the thoughts, some folks discover it difficult, particularly if their thoughts is continually racing. The free type affords plenty of room for personalization, however that very same lack of construction or focus will be irritating, particularly for newer meditators.

Should you’re somebody who has tried mindfulness meditation and located it troublesome to make progress, let me share why I gravitated towards mantra meditation.

Mindfulness vs. Transcendental Meditation: Which Is Proper for You?

So, how do you resolve which sort of meditation is finest for you?

It actually comes all the way down to what resonates with you. Mindfulness meditation is all about being current within the second, observing your ideas and emotions with out judgment. It’s typically practiced by specializing in the breath or bodily sensations. Whereas mindfulness will be extremely efficient for calming the thoughts, some folks discover it difficult, particularly if their thoughts is continually racing. That’s the place mantra-based meditation will be useful. By specializing in a easy phrase or sound, it might probably present an anchor for the thoughts, making it simpler to enter a state of calm.

For some, mindfulness affords a deeper connection to the current second, fostering consciousness all through your ordinary every day actions. For others, TM or mantra meditation can present faster reduction from psychological chatter, particularly in aggravating moments.

For some, TM or mantra meditation can present faster reduction from psychological chatter, particularly in aggravating moments. However for others, mindfulness affords a deeper connection to the current second, fostering consciousness all through your ordinary every day actions.

In my expertise, mantra meditation supplied a structured solution to quiet the thoughts, whereas mindfulness meditation required extra of an open consciousness towards the ideas and feelings that pop up throughout follow. There’s no one-size-fits-all in the case of meditation. Some folks thrive with mindfulness, whereas others favor mantra meditation. And naturally, many  profit from incorporating each practices, relying on the scenario.

A Easy Mantra Meditation Observe for Anybody

Beginning a meditation follow can really feel intimidating. There are such a lot of types, methods, and concepts about what meditation “ought to” seem like. However in actuality, it’s extremely easy. You don’t want costly equipment. You don’t want to sit down a sure method or clear your thoughts of all ideas. You simply want a couple of minutes, a snug seat, and a willingness to strive. 

There are such a lot of types, methods, and concepts about what meditation “ought to” seem like. However in actuality, it’s extremely easy.

I follow utilizing a mantra, a easy phrase or phrase that I repeat silently to focus my thoughts. I set a timer, shut my eyes, and let my ideas come and go whereas gently returning to the mantra. That’s it. No stress, no perfection, simply presence. Over time, this small follow has helped me change into extra artistic, extra affected person, and extra resilient. It’s allowed me to fulfill life’s challenges with a clearer thoughts and an open coronary heart.

Begin small—simply 5 minutes. Attempt it for per week and see how you are feeling. And in the event you ever have questions or need to study extra about my mantra-based method, attain out through my website.

On the finish of the day, any type of meditation—mindfulness, mantra, TM, guided or one other sort—is likely one of the finest presents you may give your self. It’s a follow that helps you thru life’s hardest moments, enhances your finest ones, and finally helps you present up as the most effective model of your self.

So, what do you say—let’s get extra folks meditating! With that purpose in thoughts, I’ve launched a sequence on TikTok and Instagram referred to as #DeadOrMeditating, aimed toward making meditation go viral. Bear in mind when planking took off and folks had been posting photographs of themselves planking in public areas? That easy development raised consciousness and sparked conversations. Why not do the identical with meditation?