Monday, October 12, 2009

Most Maharishi University students aren't interested in Transcendental Meditation

According to recent research performed by Maharishi University of Management students, the vast majority of them aren't interested in TM, let alone being forced to do it (or be expelled). 

According to the internally taken poll:

"300 students signed a petition vowing that they were all going to drop out if the university didn't stop forcing them to meditate by taking attendance at mandatory group meditations. MUM caved, and that policy was dropped. A study was then conducted that determined that the student body consists of

  • 30% entrepreneurs - career-oriented kids who mainly want to learn skills and enter the workforce. TM and SCI aren't high priorities.
  • 60% "dreamers" who want to change the world. They appreciate TM but don't see it as the lynchpin of that endeavor. They're into environmentalism and other causes.
  • 10% devotees

 

The faculty are about 90% devotees, so their attempts to impose their values on the students weren't working. The university is trying to translate this assessment into practical steps to become more relevant and appealing to students."

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The conclusion seems obvious: no one likes to be forced to do anything. Especially intelligent college students.

The once glassy-eyed followers of the Maharishi have been replaced by a new generation who are much more knowledgeable about Transcendental Meditation, it's side effects, pitfalls and exaggerated claims. Unfortunately Maharishi University of Management censors the university internet connection for TM-critical sites, so it's not always easy for students to find the truth.

 

4 comments:

  1. I like your last point about a new generation of students, there's definitely a new, and different, perspective being added to the mix. It's making life at MUM an exceptionally lively and dynamic time.

    I also like your conclusion about, "no one likes to be forced to do anything." I think most of the friction to do with TM was largely around the policy and not the practice of TM itself. Many students have expectations that MUM is a very alternative school, that is, before running into some generally old-school, top-down, policies and disciplinary structures.

    However, I think the stance that students aren't interested in TM is entirely wrong or perhaps your interpretation of what happened last year. Being present at the closing ceremonies in which the VP referred to TM as the essential core of the university, the affirming response from the student body was exuberant and unanimous.

    I am very familiar with the study you mention, concerning the 3 types of students. Here too, there is a misinterpretation of the actual information. The study was put together with no formal research and the percentages were guesses. The information was created at a tool for MUM faculty to better understand that there are many different types of students now attending MUM, (the new generation you mention) and each of these students have a personal opinion on what spirituality is and how TM fits into their life.

    Lastly, painting the picture that student activism and ultimatums caused the policy changes does a terrible disservice to the phenomenal tact, diplomacy, respect, and compassion that most student leaders harnessed in working with the administration and trustees to collaboratively draw up a more progressive meditation policy.

    Overall, I enjoy your passionate opinions about MUM events.

    -Perry

    P.S.
    Am currently reading this on a MUM campus computer. ;O

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  2. Hi, I'm a student at MUM and learned TM when I got here. Over the last few years I have had my share of issues with the university and the movement, but the study you're talking about is completely inaccurate.

    Let's get real: No one ends up in the middle of a little town in Iowa, at a school founded by an Indian guru, because they hate meditation. The issue you are pointing out in this blog was about taking attendance at the meditation hall. Students wanted to meditate whenever they felt like it and if they felt like it. The part about "300 students signed a petition vowing that they were all going to drop out if the university didn't stop forcing them to meditate by taking attendance at mandatory group meditations" is complete misrepresentation of what happened.

    Although yes I've experienced dissatisfaction with the university, I am incredibly thrilled at being able to meet so many progressive people who are interested in making real world change and being the change they wish to see. And I would much rather be frustrated about having to "check in" to meditation, than living a point-less existence surrounded by short-sighted, depressed consumers of culture.

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  3. Alex Cequea wrote:

    The part about "300 students signed a petition vowing that they were all going to drop out if the university didn't stop forcing them to meditate by taking attendance at mandatory group meditations" is complete misrepresentation of what happened.

    I appreciate the clarification Alex. I did not write the the part about the 300 students signing a petition, it's the way the leaked email stated it.

    Would it be possible to get a copy of the petition to see exactly what it did say? If no, why is it being kept confidential?

    My take on the leaked survey of student makeup is that it was reacting to interest as to what the level of "true believerism" there actually is these days.

    In the old days it was quite high and often the level of compliance was felt to be like living in a police state. Many believers felt they were fulfilling a divine mission by spreading coherence through their direct experience of pure consciousness into the unified field and the environment, etc. etc., and helping bring peace to the world. Strict attendance was part and parcel of that mission. Students could quickly rattle off any number of "facts" (research, quantum physics and so on) to back up these claims.

    So many are curious how things are there today.

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  4. Hi! I am considering Maharishi for my graduate studies (secondary education). i have loved most of what i've read on the website, but i have also come across some comments posted by students and former students claiming that the school is a scam, it costs more than they initially say, that it is run like a cult, etc. Alex, i was wondering if you could elaborate on any of the problems you have had with the school? i've read that they have a strict dry campus policy and dress code, but so far those are the only things that i havn't liked...

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