What if I meditate using a mantra that has a meaning?

Meditation practices using actual words or phrases for mantras may have a pleasing affect, allowing one to explore concepts or enjoy the feelings or ideas that the words or phrases might invoke, but such practices are not so conducive to going beyond mental activity to the more settled states of awareness. This is because they tend to keep the mind busy and engaged more on the surface — in the active realm of thinking and meaning. Such methods are not found to consistently induce transcending — the experience of the deepest, inmost level of one's Self.

The
state of transcendental consciousness experienced during TM practice lies beyond mental activity, beyond all meaning and conceptualization at the source of thought.

Almost any kind of meditation will produce degrees of relaxation and resultant benefits, but practices that use sounds with meaning have not been shown through scientific research to consistently produce the deep, coherent physiological rest or holistic range of benefits gained from TM practice.

I heard that some mantras have meaning and can be religious — is this true of TM mantras?

Some people say the TM mantras have roots in a religious tradition — is this true?

Why are the TM mantras kept private?

So once I learn, I can’t teach the TM technique to others?

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