Consciousness-Based Education - Maharishi University of ...

consciousness-based approach to human securitythat the body lifts up at the point of maximum coherence, indicating“maximum integration of brain functioning” as seen by coherence inEEG patterns. 22 With systematic practice of these techniques, greaterorderliness of thought and psychological and physiological well-beingare developed.Researchers discovered that when individuals practice the TranscendentalMeditation and TM-Sidhi programs together in a group, onlythe square root of 1% of the population is necessary to influence thequality of life in society in the direction of greater harmony and coherence.Physicist John Hagelin likens the Maharishi Effect to coherentsystems in physics: “This prediction is based on a field theoretic modelutilizing a coherent superposition of amplitudes, in which the intensityof the effect generated is proportional to the square of the numberof participants.” 23 The Maharishi Effect studies, which largely utilizedtime-series methodology, have indicated that these coherence creatinggroups improve the economy, reduce crime rate, improve the quality oflife in cities and states, increase positivity of interactions between headsof state, and alleviate international conflicts. 24 We will look at shortsummaries of selected studies later in the paper.Mechanics of the Maharishi EffectThe research presented in the Maharishi Effect studies is informedby both a Vedic and a quantum mechanical (rather than a classical)perspective. Renowned quantum physicists hold that the force andmatter fields in nature are interconnected by, and are expressions offundamentally unified quantum fields. 25 Moreover, Maharishi’s Vedicperspective describes consciousness as an unbounded field as well.In this section a few key questions will be addressed: What arethe mechanics of “action at a distance” or field effects as applied tothe Maharishi Effect? How is coherence described in physical systems?What precedents in physical systems support the formula of theMaharishi Effect?Action at a Distance/Field EffectsIn physics, “action at a distance phenomena” are explained throughfields. For instance, radio transmitters send out signals through theelectromagnetic (EM) field, which can then be received by a radio in61