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The Maharishi Effect
The Maharishi Effect is a phase transition to a more
orderly and harmonious state of life in society as measured by decreased
crime, violence, accidents, and illness, and improvements in economic
conditions and other sociological indicators. The scientists who discovered
this effect named it in honour of Maharishi
Mahesh Yogi, who predicted it thirty years ago. Maharishi had predicted
that when a critical sub-population of individuals - 1% - experienced
and stimulated the field of pure consciousness through the Transcendental
Meditation Programme, a type of macroscopic field effect of coherence
would occur in the society and the quality of life would improve. This
would manifest in more orderly and harmonious individual behaviour and
a measurable improvement in the various social indices which characterise
the quality of life in society.
The first experimental evidence for this phenomenon
came in 1974 with the studies of Borland and Landrith (1976). They observed
11 cities in the United States in which 1% of the population was practising
the TM-Technique in 1972. Then they looked at one major index of the quality
of life in the cities - the crime rate - and compared it which the crime
rate in 11 other cities matching for population and geographic location.
They noted that when 1% of the town's population practised Transcendental
Meditation the trend of rising crime rate was reversed, indicating increasing
order and harmony.
Since then extensive scientific research on the phenomenon
of the Maharishi Effect has repeatedly verified that coherence, positivity
and harmony in collective consciousness is produced by the group practice
of the Transcendental Meditation Programme.
The extended Maharishi Effect
In 1976, with the introduction of the more advanced TM-Sidhi Programme,
including Yogic Flying, a more powerful
effect was expected. This prediction was first verified in 1978 during
a global campaign in 108 countries: crime rate was reduced everywhere.
This global research demonstrated a new formula:
the square root of one percent of a population practising Transcendental
Meditation and the TM-Sidhi Programme, morning and evening together in
one place, is sufficient to neutralise negative tendencies and promote
positive trends throughout the whole population.
A global Maharishi Effect was created by the group
practice of 7,000 Yogic Flyers - 7,000 being approximately the square
root of one per cent of the world's population.
Scientific Research on the Maharishi
Effect
During the past 25 years over 500 scientific studies
have been conducted on Transcendental Meditation and Yogic Flying showing
the wide-ranging benefits for all aspects of life. 42 of these studies
have shown that when 1% of the population of any town or country practises
Transcendental Meditation, or when the square root of 1% practise TM-Sidhi
Yogic Flying in a group, there are dramatic positive improvements in the
entire society. The following are highlights of this research.
Demonstration Project
in Washington, D.C.
4,000 Yogic Flyers from 62 countries
creating coherence, improving the quality of life and reducing
violent crime
A 21 percent reduction in the most violent
crime categories was reported when over 4,000 people from
62 countries gathered in July of 1993 in Washington, D.C.
to practise the Transcendental Meditation and Yogic Flying
programs. A final report by a 27-member independent team of
scientists and community leaders found that the crime drop
was consistent with the predicted causal role of the group
of Yogic Flyers
This study shows the decrease in violent
crime rate (orange line) when over 4,000 experts gathered
in Washington, D.C., in July, 1993 (shown in highlighted section).
Scientists took into account changes in policing, weather
patterns and all major factors known to affect crime rates.
This chart also shows a time-series analysis prediction without
the coherence creating group. Source: Institute of Science,
Technology and Public Policy: Technical Report.
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Reduced Crime in Merseyside
study published in Psychology, Crime and Law
(1996)
A powerful mathematical technique - Box-Jenkins
ARIMA impact assessment analysis - was used to confirm the
hypothesis that Merseyside crime rate was significantly reduced
by a group collectively practising Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's
TM-Sidhi Programme (including Yogic Flying) and by individuals
in Merseyside practising Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation
Programme.
This is the forty second research study
showing that a phase transition to increased orderliness,
as evidenced by reduced crime and other negative trends and
increased positivity, occurs when the group size approaches
the square root of one per cent of the total population. Time
series analysis of Merseyside monthly crime data and coherence
group size from 1978 to 1991 shows that a phase transition
occurred during March 1988 with a 13.4% drop in crime when
the Maharishi Golden Dome was opened in Skelmersdale and the
TM-Sidhi group size first exceeded the 1% Maharishi Effect
threshold.
The study demonstrates how urban crime
can be reduced quickly by Transcendental Meditation which
removes stress in individual and collective consciousness.
Since the transition point, Merseyside crime rate has remained
steady at a lower level in contrast to the national crime
rate which has increased by 50% over the last five years.
In 1987 Merseyside had the third highest crime rate of the
Metropolitan Areas in England and Wales; by 1992 it had the
lowest crime rate, 40% below levels predicted by the previous
behaviour of the series. It was the only Metropolitan Area
to show a reduction in crime for this period. There were 255,000
less crimes in Merseyside from 1988 to 1992 than would have
been expected had Merseyside continued to follow the national
crime trend. UK Home Office figures indicate savings to Merseyside
could exceed £1250 million for the five year period. Population
movements, economic and other factors could not account for
the changes in crime rate.
Reference: Hatchard, G., et al.
"The Maharishi Effect: A Model for Social Improvement.
Time Series Analysis of a Phase Transition to Reduced Crime
in the Merseyside Metropolitan Area." Psychology,
Crime and Law, 1996
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Increased Positivity, Decreased
Crime
The results
show that 24 cities in which 1% of the population had been
instructed in the Transcendental Meditation program by 1972
displayed decreased crime rates during the next year (1973)
and decreased crime rate trends during subsequent years (19721977)
in comparison to 19671972, in contrast to control cities
matched for geographic region, population, college population,
and crime rate.
'The Transcendental
Meditation program and crime rate change in a sample of forty-eight
cities', Journal of Crime and Justice 4: 2545, 1981.
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Increased Progress Towards Peace
in Lebanon
Reduced conflict and war intensity, and
increased progress towards peace in Lebanon were found on
seven occasions when large assemblies of Yogic Flyers were
held in Israel, USA, Lebanon, Yugoslavia, and The Netherlands.
'Alleviating political violence
through enhancing coherence in collective consciousness: Impact
assessment analysis of the Lebanon war', Dissertation
Abstracts International, 49(8), 2381A.
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Improved Quality of Life and
Reduced Conflict
This study indicates that group practice
of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi program improved
the quality of life in Israel as measured by improvement on
an index comprising crime rate, traffic accidents, fires,
and the number of war deaths in Lebanon, and by increases
in the national stock market and improvements in national
mood. The chart above shows the strong correspondence between
the number of Transcendental Meditation-Sidhi program participants
in the group in Jerusalem and a composite index of all the
above variables.
International peace project in
the Middle East: Effects of the Maharishi Technology of the
Unified Field, Journal of Conflict Resolution 32(4):
776812, 1988.
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Improved Quality of Life
A prospective study was performed to
assess the effects of the group practice of the Transcendental
Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme on the quality of life in
Rhode Island, USA. The number of TM-Sidhi program participants
was sufficient to create the Maharishi Effect for the entire
state. A time-series analysis was performed on a monthly index
that assessed the quality of life in Rhode Island in comparison
to a demographically matched control state. During the experimental
period, an index comprised of the following variables significantly
decreased: crime, motor vehicle fatalities, auto accidents,
deaths, alcoholic beverage and cigarette consumption, unemployment,
and pollution. In the figure above, an increase illustrates
an improvement in the index of all these variables taken together.
Consciousness as a field: The
Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi program and changes
in social indicators, The Journal of Mind and Behavior
8: 67103, 1987.
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Reduced Crime in Washington,
D.C.
Reduced violent crimes were found in
Washington, DC, using time series transfer function analysis
of weekly data from 1981-1983.
Reference. Dillbeck, M. C., L.
B. Banus, C. Polanzi and G. S. Landrith III 1988, 'Test of
a field model of consciousness and social change: The Transcendental
Meditation and TM-Sidhi program & decreased urban crime',
The Journal of Mind and Behavior 9, pp. 457-486.
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Decreased Violent Fatalities
Two studies using time-series impact
assessment analysis found a significant reduction in weekly
fatalities due to motor vehicle accidents, homicides, and
suicides in the United States (19821985) and Canada (19831985)
when the size of the groups practising the Transcendental
Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme at Maharishi International
University in Fairfield, Iowa, exceeded the square root of
one percent of the U.S. population, or of the U.S. and Canadian
population together for an effect seen in Canada. During periods
when the size of the groups were smaller than the square root
of one percent of the U.S. and Canadian populations, fatality
rates were higher. The use of time series methodology ensures
that these effects could not be due to random variation, seasonal
cycles, or long-term trends in the two countries.
Test of a field theory of consciousness
and social change: Time series analysis of participation in
the TM-Sidhi program and reduction in
violent death in the U.S. Social Indicators
Research 22: 399418, 1990.
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Decreased Inflation
and Unemployment
Time series analysis found
a significant reduction in the economic 'misery index'-defined
as the sum of the inflation rate and unemployment rate-when
the number of participants in the group practice of the TM-Sidhi
Programme exceeded the square root of one per cent of North
American population.
Reference: Proceedings
of the Business and Economic Statistics Section, American
Statistical Association (1987): 799-804.
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Reduced International Conflicts and Terrorism
This study shows that during
three experimental periods when 7,000 experts (the square
root of 1% of the world's population) practised the TM-Sidhi
Programme, there were significant global reductions in international
conflicts and terrorism.
Reference: American
Political Science Association (1989).
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Improved
East-West Relations
During
the period 1979-1986, the number of participants in Maharishi's
Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programme at Maharishi
International University in the U.S. frequently exceeded the
required amount to create the Maharishi Effect for
the U.S. During those months, the U.S. actions toward the
Soviet Union became more positive, as indicated by time series
analysis of an independent data bank. When the number of TM-Sidhi
participants was at its highest level, the Soviet actions
toward the U.S. also improved.
Reference:
Proceedings of the American Statistical Association, Social
Statistics Section (1990): 297-302.
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