Transcendence: Healing and Transformation Through Transcendental Meditation [Hardcover]

Norman E Rosenthal M.D. (Author)

Book Description

Release date: June 2, 2011

In this definitive book on the scientifically proven health and stress-relieving benefits of Transcendental Meditation, a renowned psychiatrist and researcher explores why TM works, what it can do for you, and how to use it for maximum effect.

Norman E. Rosenthal, M.D., a twenty-year researcher at the National Institute of Mental Health and the celebrated psychiatrist who pioneered the study and treatment of Season Affective Disorder (SAD), brings us the most important work on Transcendental Meditation since the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's Science of Being and Art of Living-- and one of our generation's most significant books on achieving greater physical and mental health and wellness.

Transcendence demystifies the practice and benefits of Transcendental Meditation for a general audience who may have heard about the method but do not necessarily know what it is, how it is learned, or what they stand to gain, physically and emotionally, from achieving transcendence. Dr. Rosenthal clearly and practically explains the basic ideas behind Transcendental Meditation: It is a nonreligious practice that involves sitting comfortably for twenty minutes twice a day while using a silent mantra, or nonverbal sound, to attain a profound state of aware relaxation.

Alongside exclusive celebrity interviews-where figures like Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Martin Scorsese, Russell Brand, Laura Dern, Moby, and David Lynch openly discuss their meditation-Dr. Rosenthal draws upon experience from the lives of his patients and a wealth of clinical research amassed on TM over the past generation (340 peer-reviewed published articles). He provides the fullest and most accessible book ever on the broad range of benefits of this remarkably simple practice, from relief of anxiety, stress and depression to new hope for those experiencing addiction, attention-deficit disorder, or post-traumatic stress disorder.

"Dr. Norman Rosenthal's Transcendence is the best-ever book on Transcendental Meditation: accessible and substantive, engaging and scientific, practical and profound. A very enjoyable read that can change your life, for good."--David Lynch

"I have been meditating for over 10 years, and I found Transcendence to be a uniquely compelling introduction to the art and science of Transcendental Meditation. Dr. Norman Rosenthal's book will propel TM into the mainstream where it belongs."--Russell Simmons 

Editorial Reviews

Review

Dr Norman Rosenthal's Transcendence is the best-ever book on Transcendental Meditation: accessible and substantive, engaging and scientific, practical and profound. A very enjoyable read that can change your life, for good. David Lynch I have been meditating for over 10 years, and I found Transcendence to be a uniquely compelling introduction to the art and science of Transcendental Meditation. Dr Norman Rosenthal's book will propel TM into the mainstream where it belongs. Russell Simmons --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Norman E. Rosenthal, MD, is a clinical professor of psychiatry at Georgetown Medical School and has maintained a private practice in Washington, D.C. metropolitan area for more than thirty years. He conducted research at the National Institute of Mental Health, as a research fellow, researcher and senior researcher for more than twenty years. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Tarcher; 1 edition (June 2, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585428736
• ISBN-13: 978-1585428731
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 1.2 x 9.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (85 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #239,750 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Norman Rosenthal is a psychiatrist and scientist who in the 1980s first described winter depression or seasonal affective disorder (SAD), and pioneered the use of light therapy for its treatment. Rosenthal was born and educated in South Africa and moved to the United States to complete his medical training. He established a private practice and spent 20 years as a researcher at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) where he studied the disorders of mood, sleep, and biological rhythms. Rosenthal's research with SAD led him to write "Winter Blues" and two other books on the topic. More recently Rosenthal has written a book on the Transcendental Meditation technique and conducted research on its potential influence on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). In total, he has written seven books, including one on the topic of jet lag, and published 200 scholarly papers.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

223 of 264 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Be aware that you will not learn how to meditate from this book June 25, 2011

By Mimijo

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

The author, psychiatrist Norman Rosenthal, says that no book can teach you how to do TM; you must be taught by an individual teacher in a personalized course of instruction. This costs $1500 or more when last I checked. I have taken the TM course of instruction and found it so rigidly scripted as to seem almost stock, one-size-fits-all. In my opinion, Dr. Herbert Benson's book The Relaxation Response (and his subsequent books The Breakout Principle and Your Maximum Mind) presents the basics of a meditation practice that is essentially the same as TM, and in such a way that the reader can begin meditating on his or her own by following the simple steps outlined in the books.

Dr. Rosenthal says that TM involves no religious belief or faith -- yet practitioners are asked to believe that their mantra, even though it has no meaning at least to English speakers, has some deep transforming power and must be personally selected for each individual by a highly trained teacher. Dr. Benson on the other hand advises choosing a word of personal spiritual significance to you to use as your mantra. Either way, we seem to be talking about faith.

In Dr. Rosenthal's favor, he does lay out the benefits of meditation clearly and persuasively. I have experienced these benefits through regular practice of meditation for almost thirty years; sometimes using my TM mantra, sometimes using a phrase from the Psalms that is more connected with my spiritual beliefs. In either case I have experienced relaxation, increased creativity, surprising insights, greater energy, deeper calm, more organized thinking. I leave it to neuroscientists to prove that there is a difference between the effects of TM and that of The Relaxation Response, Christian Centering Prayer, or other kinds of meditation.... A large number of studies cited by Dr. Rosenthal touting the unique benefits of TM seem to come from Maharishi University in Fairfield Iowa, founded on the principles of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the popularizer of TM, and thus seem to me to be of questionable objectivity. I am not saying that TM is worthless or a hype -- but if the same effect can be gained from a book costing less than 1% of the TM course of instruction then maybe that's a good first step for neophyte meditators.

One last point: all 20 of the customer reviews could have been written by the same person, so alike are they in tone and in complete suspension of critical evaluation. Read more ›

76 of 88 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A momentus book and powerful story of scientific and personal discovery June 2, 2011

By Jeanne

Format:Hardcover

Occasionally, an important scientific discovery comes along that surprises even the scientists themselves. World-renowned psychiatrist Norman E. Rosenthal, M.D., writes here about just such a discovery: the experience of "transcendence" is a powerful antidote, he believes, for many of our modern woes, a way to help overcome stress and stress-related disorders while opening a new window to the potentialities of the human brain.

Dr. Rosenthal was a senior researcher at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and is professor of psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical School. He has spent three decades conducting medical research, first at Columbia University and then at NIH. Famous for pioneering the study and treatment of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), his focus recently turned to the Transcendental Meditation technique.

With a forward by Mehmet Oz, M.D., this gracefully narrated, reader-friendly account takes a subject that is subtle and, for many, elusive and renders it simple, clear and vitally relevant.

In addition to exploring the extensive scientific documentation of healing and transformation through TM practice, the book features case studies and interviews with meditators -- including Paul McCartney, Russell Brand, Martin Scorsese, Moby, Laura Dern and David Lynch -- who share with us their life-changing experiences.

Dr. Rosenthal says, "If TM were a new prescription drug, conferring this many benefits, it would be a billion-dollar blockbuster."

I recommend this book to anyone interesting in improving their life and health, gaining relief from stress, or attaining inner peace.

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A superlative book by an inspired psychiatrist June 9, 2011

By Duncan Brown

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

In "Transcendence", Norman Rosenthal encapsulates in words both wise and clear his experience with, and understanding of, the Transcendental Meditation technique. Reading his careful review of the scientific research on TM in a variety of areas (stress, cardiovascular disease, depression, anxiety, etc.), it's striking to consider that a fundamentally simple and easy meditative practice can produce such a complex and widespread range of benefits for both mind and body.

It's also fascinating to witness Rosenthal carefully distinguishing the TM technique from other meditative practices; he makes it clear that different meditations use different methods and produce strikingly different results. He focuses on the TM technique in this book, noting that it is the most extensively studied meditation practice. He also cites study after study supporting his statements.

My favorite parts of the book are those where he relates the personal experiences of people suffering from various conditions, and the results they experienced directly in their own lives after starting TM. While Rosenthal is careful to say that such stories indicate or point to the benefits of TM (rather than to prove them), he puts them in a broader context by citing the research studies in those areas.

One of the surprising parts of the book is the section on PTSD. Rosenthal cites preliminary studies on the positive benefits of TM. From what Rosenthal says, the results are very promising. I find it odd that more research has not been done on this, especially since TM has been shown to be so effective for treating things like anxiety and stress.

We have anywhere from 250,000 to 500,000 (or more) soldiers who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan suffering from PTSD.... They're self-medicating themselves with alcohol or drugs. They're receiving prescription drugs to damp down their symptoms from their mental health care providers (when they admit to suffering from PTSD). Perhaps this book will encourage more veterans (and their caregivers) to consider TM for self healing or as an adjunct to their other care for PTSD.

Rosenthal is a doctor who listens to and learns from his patients. He tells us in the book that he learned the TM technique when young, then fell away from it. Later a patient of his, suffering from bipolar disorder, reported great results from TM and suggested that Rosenthal take it up again. He resumed his TM, and then delved into the hundreds of research studies conducted on the technique since he last paid it any attention. Now he regularly recommends it to patients in his practice.

Rosenthal is one of the discoverers of Seasonal Affective Disorder. These days it seems like an obvious thing. But it was brand new when he and his colleagues first figured it out, to everyone's benefit through light therapy, etc. Rosenthal applies this same uncommon common sense to the TM technique. His conclusions are well supported. This book is an authoritative review of the TM technique; it's well worth reading and heeding if you're interested in meditation in general or TM in particular. Read more ›