Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

Photo Courtesy :en.wikipedia.org

One of the greatest legendary personalities of Yoga of 20^th century, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi is recognized as the world’s foremost Vedic scholar and scientist of consciousness of the modern era. He is renowned as the pioneer of the Transcendental Meditation programme and credited for popularizing Yoga in the West. Maharishi is said to be born on 12 January 1918 in the Jabalpur city of Madhya Pradesh province of Central India; then British India.

Swami Brahmananda Saraswati, the Shankaracharya (spiritual head) of the Jyotirmath, situated in the Himalayas and one of the four centres of the holy Char Dham pilgrimage of Hinduism is credited for inspiring Maharishi through his teachings. He became the disciple & assistant of Brahmananda Saraswat and under his spiritual guidance acquired the deep knowledge and the actual understanding of Yoga.

Maharishi began to teach to the world his Transcendental Deep Meditation, which was later renamed ”Transcendental Meditation” and began his global tour since the year 1958 to propagate the way of life through Yoga to the whole world. Through Transcendental Meditation, Maharishi made innumerable people experience and utilize the source of infinite intelligence and creativity within; the field of pure consciousness. This effortless and systematic technique of the ancient Vedic Era, which was lost by the human, was brought again to the knowledge of the mankind through him.  

Photo Courtesy :en.wikipedia.org

The benefits of Transcendental Meditation for the mind, body, and society as a whole have documented by which have been conducted by over 600 scientific studies by more than 200 independent research institutions in 35 countries which have been published in various leading peer-reviewed scientific, medical, and professional journals.

Maharishi worked with various scientists, educators, and exponents of Vedic wisdom to develop an integrated approach to knowledge, unifying diverse fields of study. He wrote many books and travelled across the world numerous times, communicating with the world leaders and lecturing widely. Maharishi achieved fame in the decade of 1960’s & 1970’s as the Guru of the Beatles, The Beach Boys and other celebrities of the Western world who were inspired towards the Indian spiritual discipline of Yoga.

Maharishi is regarded for bringing to light the Vedic truth that meditation is not based on effort and concentration. It can be practised by anyone regardless of age, lifestyle, gender & religion. For the development of higher states of consciousness in which our full cosmic potential becomes a living reality of day-to-day life, he laid out a systematic path. The naturalness of his meditation technique as a simple way of developing this potential was the main emphasis of his teachings.

In 1970’s, Maharishi started the famous TM-Sidhi programme. Through the TM-Sidhi programme and particularly the group practice of Yogic Flying, technology that enables a tiny proportion of the population to create a peaceful, coherent influence reliably reducing crime, sickness and accident rates was gifted to the world by Maharishi.

The Global Peace Initiative was designed by Maharishi, where a large group of specially trained Vedic Pandits (scholars) are established, whose practice of Yogic Flying along with their performance of Vedic Yagyas (holy rituals) can create a profound and measureable influence of peace for the world. Besides, various charitable organisations and for-profit businesses including health clinics, mail-order health supplements and organic farms were created by Maharishi and his family, which are still operational. 

The teachings of Maharishi was based on three main goals of to revive the spiritual tradition of India,  meditation was for everyone and not just for recluses, and to show that Vedanta is compatible with science. Maharishi stated that “Being happy is of the utmost importance. Success in anything is through happiness. Under all circumstances be happy. Just think of any negativity that comes at you as a raindrop falling into the ocean of your bliss". The philosophy propagated by him was that within everyone is an unlimited reservoir of energy, intelligence and happiness. 

Maharishi took his final breadth peacefully in his sleep on 5 February 2008 at his residence in Vlodrop, Netherlands. The cremation and funeral rites were conducted at his Ashram in India at Allahabad; Uttar Pradesh due to the confluence of the three great holy rivers in the city; Ganga, Yamuna & Saraswati at the Triveni Sangam.  He left behind him a legacy that includes the revival of India's ancient spiritual tradition of Yoga, which was made introduced by him to the whole