Transcendental Deception: Behind the TM Curtain—Bogus Science, Hidden Agendas, and David Lynch’s Campaign to Push a Million Public School Kids into Transcendental Meditation While Falsely Claiming It Is Not a Religion. By Aryeh Siegel. Los Angeles, CA: Janreg Press. 2018. ISBN 978-0-9996615-05. 222 pp. Paperback, $17.99.
The subtitle indicates the content of this well-researched yet straightforward response quasi-religious sect founded after 1955 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (1918–2008). Mahesh first taught his religion as “transcendental deep meditation” in India. Later, this savvy businessman trademarked Transcendental Meditation (TM) for foreign consumption. A major meditation cult was born: Cultus means to care for; TMers care for themselves and the world through a special meditation technique.