Blog

Press Delete on Women’s Five Top Health Concerns

I checked with Amy Ruff, BSN, RN, WOCN, to learn how the practice of the TM technique reduces the risk factors for, onset of, or difficulties that come along with the five top health concerns

The Family that Meditates Together

I grew up in the era when families ate their evening meals together (think the Donna Reed Show and Leave It To Beaver). Intuitively, it makes sense that it’s good for kids to share the family meal as an anchor in the day.

It turns out science backs up this notion. First of all, there are benefits for digestion and healthy eating itself. A study by Harvard Medical School has shown that children who eat with their parents eat less junk food, eat more fruits and vegetables, and ingest more of the nutrients needed for their developing nervous systems and to fend off heart disease and cancer later in life.

Educating from the Inside Out in Thailand

The Story of Two Students

(Part two of a three-part series)

The word “education” comes from the Latin verb “educere” which means “to lead out.” For children in many parts of the world, an education is a way to lead their families from poverty to prosperity. In Thailand, education for girls means the difference between a life spent working in a respected trade or profession and living on the street.

Reducing Stress for Women with Breast Cancer

The simple but remarkable fact about breast cancer is that two of its most significant risk factors are gender (being a woman) and aging. Not much can be done to undo those two phenomena. In

Educating from the Inside Out in Thailand

Acharn Yai (Aunampai Passakchai), Buddhist Nun, Talks About Meditation, Academics and Peace (Part one of a three-part series) I was deeply moved while writing two previous blog posts about the Dhammajarinee Witthaya School, which provides

The Inner Core of Peace

Mitakuye Oyasin: We are all related (American Indian Lakota tradition);

Vasudhaiva kutumbakam: The world is my family (Vedic tradition)

When I was a little girl, even from within the safe cocoon of my family and friends, it was deeply distressing to overhear the news about negative world events. Raised in a minister’s family where empathy was emphasized, I felt the pain of others intensely, but felt helpless to do anything about it. These days, especially, my heart goes out to children who hear the news. My heart goes out to everyone!

Personal Foul

What peace can we hope to find elsewhere…if we have none within us? – Saint Teresa of Avila

A hunter is outside tracking his prey when he hears a tiger roar behind him.

He can either run away or stand his ground and fight. His very survival depends upon his quick reactions. A complex cascade of stress hormones, such as adrenaline, noradrenaline and cortisol, is triggered. These hormones have a powerful and widespread effect on his body’s biochemistry, physiology and psychology, giving him the extra strength and speed he needs to deal with the threat.

Grief

My Mother in Law passed recently. She was 100 years old. We had lived together as family for the last 20 years; having lived with my own mother for only 18 years, my mother-in-law was

Bringing Smiles to the Faces of Women in Uganda

Numerous studies have shown that the Transcendental Meditation technique is an effective way for women to manage stress, to develop a greater sense of fulfillment and inner peace, and improve overall quality of life. Stress can take a serious toll on both body and mind. It can inhibit the flow of creativity and inhibit one’s ability to see oneself in the most positive light. Every human being has the inherent capability to be more creative, happy, and successful in their daily activities.

In developing countries, severe poverty and conflict is the norm for so many women—the challenges wrought by the impact of stress are extremely apparent and have a damaging ripple effect on every aspect of their lives. I had sometimes wondered what effect TM would have on women in such circumstances.

What is Liberation

When ancient traditions talk about liberation, what do they mean? Liberation from parents? From an oppressive government? From school or our marriage? At the most fundamental level of a human’s experience, liberation denotes the fullest development of a person’s consciousness, which gives us eternal freedom from all suffering.

Our intellect discriminates among boundaries, identifying this as separate and different from that—it locates and attaches the mind to the distinctions in life. It causes the mind to identify with the parts of life and lose the comprehension of the wholeness of which life is made. I am a student, I am a mother, I am a businesswoman, I am short, I am tall, I am frightened, or happy or excitable. I am not her or him or like them. I am separate.