--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "feste37" <feste37@...> wrote: > > I find this interesting but am not convinced by the idea > (hardly a "psychological fact") that those who start TM > constitute "a certain type of person," since such a huge > variety of people have learned TM over the years.
Not to mention that many of them have dropped out over the years. In any case, it's meaningless--because it's a truism-- to say the group of those who start TM has been found by research to be "self-selected." How could it possibly be otherwise? Same with any other group whose members voluntarily adopt a particular program. It would only be meaningful if there were a finding that the group self-selects *for* some specific characteristics. It's pretty reasonable to assume that the group is self- selected for those who have an interest in self- development, since that's what TM is for. But of course many, many different types of people have an interest in self-development (and a desire for self-improvement is generally considered a positive, healthy characteristic). There's no basis to assume such a group has "unique vulnerabilities." That's just typical Vaj bullshit. > I think the self-selection idea could be better applied to > the TM campus community here in Fairfield, since that is > certainly a self-selected group from among the many > thousands of people who have learned TM, and they may well > have some traits in common that would make your question, > "What unique vulnerabilities does this group of humans > have?" a valid and an interesting one. But I think it would > have to be balanced by a more positive question: "What > unique strengths, including gifts, talents, and spiritual > vision does this group of humans have?" Then we might be > able to reach a more fair-minded conclusion. Exactly. Well put. > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Vaj <vajradhatu@> wrote: > > > > > > On Dec 4, 2011, at 2:14 PM, feste37 wrote: > > > > > I am aware that more than a few TM meditators have "hypersensitivities," > > > but I'm not sure that is always a bad thing: they have their antennae up > > > to detect anything that might be harmful and coming their way, so as best > > > to avoid it (food sensitivities, for example). I have hypersensitivities > > > of my own, but I don't think TM or the TMSP had any effect on them, one > > > way or another. It's just part of the makeup of the personality. But > > > that's just my experience. > > > > It's a psychological fact (from independent studies on TM) that a certain > > type of person "self selects" and decides to pay and undergo TM initiation > > - and that self selection all occurs from how that particular segment > > reacts to the intro lecture content. > > > > I guess the question then becomes "what unique vulnerabilities does this > > group of humans have?" > > >
