Transcendentalism and Transcendental Meditation - 1471 Words

Transcendentalism and Transcendental Meditation The Transcendentalist adopts the whole connection of spiritual doctrine. He believes in miracle, in the perpetual openness of the human mind to new influx of light and power; he believes in inspiration, and in ecstasy.(Emerson 196). These two lines written by Ralph Waldo Emerson exemplify the whole movement of transcendentalist writers and what they believed in. Though to the writers, transcendentalism was a fight for a belief, unknown to them they could have been fighting for the betterment of human health. The transcendentalist writings of Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson have directly affected the health of modern society through the idea of transcendental meditation.†¦show more content†¦Sixty men and women volunteers completed pretest and posttests over an average intervention period of about seven months. The level of fatty substances deposited on participants arterial walls, or carotid intima-media thickness (IMT), was evaluated by ultrasound. IMT is a widely used surrogate measure of coronary atherosclerosis and a predictor of heart attack and stroke. The studys findings were impressive. (www.tm.org). There was an approximate 11 percent decrease in risk of heart attack and a 7.7 percent to 15 percent reduction in risk of stroke in the individuals that used TM. Dr. Robert Schneider states that the TM program decreases coronary heart disease risk factors, including hypertension, oxidized lipids, stress hormones and psychological stress, and is associated with reduced cardiovascular disease and death in African Americans and the general population. (www.tm.org). The TM program has also contributed to the lessening of drug use as shown on the graph enclosed on page 6. The teachings of The Maharishi and the writings of Thoreau and Emerson had many common aspects although written in different places. The Maharishi developed a Political Leadership Training course to present to leaders of all political parties the principles and scientifically validated programs ofShow MoreRelatedTranscendentalism in America: The Philosophical and Literary Movement1062 Words   |  5 PagesAmerica created Transcendentalism. Transcendentalism is a philosophical and literary movement that searches for individual truth through spiritual reflection, complete solitude, and a deep connection with nature. Because this was established by authors, many of them wrote different pieces reflecting and using the beliefs of Transcendentalism. Ralph Waldo Emerson was considered to be the father of Transcendentalism. He wrote many influential pieces that follow and emphasize major Transcendental beliefs.Read More`` Contemplations `` By Anne Bradstreet Essay1462 Words   |  6 Pagesbetween the Colonial Period, specifically Puritan literature, and the Romantic and Transcendental time. Specifically, the overlap of the Puritan and Transcendental styles is evident in the poem â€Å"Contemplations† by Anne Bradstreet. In order to fully understand how Bradstreet foreshadowed later themes in â€Å"Contemplations†, the context of the Colonial time must be examined, along with famed works from the Transcendental period. For starters, Anne Bradstreet was fathered by a man named Thomas Dudley.Read MoreThoreau’s Journey: Problem, Need, Lifestyle, and Revelation Essay1287 Words   |  6 Pagesself-reliance in the woods of Massachusetts. His exploration of his two years and two months living in a cabin near Walden Pond is considered a seminal work of early American transcendentalism. Thoreau never explicitly reveals the spiritual truth at the end of his journey. Still, a discerning Christian reader can note the main transcendental themes and ideals that Thoreau demonstrates, separating that which should be applauded from that which should be rejected. Thoreau sees mankind’s self-alienation asRead MoreMisunderstood Visionary : Ralph Waldo Emerson1509 Words   |  7 Pagesnaà ¯ve because he encourages individualism, avoiding conformity in society and finding your own way of living. Emerson was a Transcendentalist that stood for his wise famous quote â€Å"trust thyself†. He was also one of the founders that created the Transcendentalism movement which was a club made up of well-educated people that had one goal in common, achieve the perfect society. These people questioned religion and were suspicious of political groups that opposed as a threat to their vision of a perfectRead MoreBrief Survey of American Literature3339 Words   |  14 Pagesus†¦Ã¢â‚¬  - William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation (1630-50, pub. 1856) - Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672), The Tenth Muse (1650), the first volume of poems published by a resident of the New World - Edward Taylor (1642- 1729), Preparatory Meditations (1682-1725, pub. 1939, 1960) - Mary Rowlandson (1636-1711), A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson (1682) American Literature 1700-1820 From Colonies to Nation Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), whose passionateRead More Tennysons In Memoriam Essay2675 Words   |  11 Pagesthe locus classicus of the science-and-religion debate.Upon reflection, Hallams tragic death has proved to be an event that provoked Tennysons embarkation upon a much more ambitious poetic project than conventional Miltonian elegy, involving meditation upon the profoundest questions faced by mankind. Scientific advancements, most notably in the fields of geology and biology, challenged the beliefs that form the foundation of Christianity: the belief in a beneficent God responsible for creationRead MoreIn Memoriam: Reinvention of Faith for the Scientific Age? Essay2713 Words   |  11 Pagesclassicus of the science-and-religion debate. Upon reflection, Hallams tragic death has proved to be an event that provoked Tennysons embarkation upon a much more ambitious poetic project than conventional Miltonian elegy, involving meditation upon the profoundest questions faced by mankind. Scientific advancements, most notably in the fields of geology and biology, challenged the beliefs that form the foundation of Christianity: the belief in a beneficent God responsible forRead MoreMetz Film Language a Semiotics of the Cinema PDF100902 Words   |  316 Pagestemporary aesthetics has turned its attention to the great categories, such as the graceful, the sublime, the elegiac, etc., which, in the domain of art, of human relations, and of the emotions, define the affective-aesthetic equivalent of Kantian transcendentalism, itself reinterpreted into phenomenological terms and stripped of any trace of idealism. The universal characteristics of the world as it appears, or of man as he apprehends the world—since one cannot break away from this constant shuttling implied