''Transcendence: Healing and Transformation Through Transcendental Meditation'' is a book written by

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

and researcher Norman E. Rosenthal, published in 2011 by the Tarcher imprint of the

Penguin Group Penguin Group is a British trade book publisher and part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. The new company was created by a merger that was finalised on 1 July 2013, with Bertelsmann initial ...

. It presents the author's personal experiences and professional views on Transcendental Meditation research, as well as interviews with celebrity practitioners. The book contains a foreword by

Mehmet Oz Mehmet Cengiz Öz (; born June 11, 1960), known professionally as Dr. Oz (), is an Turkish American former professor of cardiothoracic surgery at Columbia University, television presenter, author and former political candidate. The son of Tur ...

and four main sections entitled: "Transcendence", "Healing", "Transformation", and "Harmony." An updated paperback edition was released in 2012 that contained a new final chapter titled "After Transcendence."

Overview

The book presents the author's personal experiences with Transcendental Meditation, his analysis and commentary on the Transcendental Meditation research, and interviews with celebrity practitioners such as

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

Laura Dern Laura Elizabeth Dern (born February 10, 1967) is an American actress. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a BAFTA Award, and five Golden Globe Awards. Born to actor Bruce Dern and ac ...

Russell Brand Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian and actor known for his flamboyant, loquacious style and manner. Brand has received three British Comedy Awards: Best Newcomer (2006), Best Live Stand-Up (2008), and the award for ...

and

Moby Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...

. The author discusses studies in the areas of

stress Stress may refer to: Science and medicine * Stress (biology), an organism's response to a stressor such as an environmental condition * Stress (linguistics), relative emphasis or prominence given to a syllable in a word, or to a word in a phrase ...

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...

and depression,

addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use o ...

attention-deficit disorder Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by excessive amounts of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that are pervasive, impairing in multiple contexts, and otherwise age-inap ...

(ADHD) and

post-traumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on ...

(PTSD). He also recounts the experiences of inner-city schoolchildren, war veterans, and formerly homeless and incarcerated men."Transcendence": Penguin Group Official Web Site
retrieved July 2011 According to the publisher the book describes how Transcendental Meditation is learned and "what they he readersstand to gain, physically and emotionally, from achieving transcendence". According to the author it is "not a manual on how to do" the

Transcendental Meditation technique The Transcendental Meditation technique (abbreviated as TM) is the technique associated with the practice of Transcendental Meditation developed by the Indian spiritual figure Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The practice involves the use of a private man ...

Content

The book contains a foreword by

, a question and answer interview with Bob Roth,

executive director Executive director is commonly the title of the chief executive officer of a non-profit organization, government agency or international organization. The title is widely used in North American and European not-for-profit organizations, though ...

of the

David Lynch Foundation The David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace (or simply DLF) is a global charitable foundation with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, and Fairfield, Iowa. It was founded by film director and Transcendental Me ...

, in the Appendix and the body of the book is divided into four parts.Rosenthal, Norman E. ''Transcendence: Healing and Transformation Through Transcendental Meditation'' Contents, (2011) Penguin Group Part I, Transcendence, has three chapters; Introduction: My Journey Back, A Return to the Self: Aspects of Meditation, and The Mind Within the Mind: What is Transcendence? This section, describes the author's personal history with the Transcendental Meditation technique; how he first heard about it, when and why he learned and the people he has met who are practicing the technique. Part II, Healing, has a single chapter called, Decompression: Managing Toxic Stress. This section discusses the concept of "transcendence" and its potential relationship to toxic stress, particularly in regard to heart disease and

hypertension Hypertension (HTN or HT), also known as high blood pressure (HBP), is a long-term medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms. Long-term high bl ...

. Part III, Transformation, has seven chapters: * Turning Off the Brains Alarm System: Treating Anxiety and Anger * The Schoolboy Who Pulled Out His Hair: Attention, Priorities, and Effectiveness * Helping the Spikes and Valleys: Meditation and Moods * Silencing the Bubble Machine: Addiction and Recovery * An Island of Safety in a Sea of Trouble: Transformation in Schools * Learning to Love Yourself: The Long Road Back from Prison * Self-Actualization—Your Personal Best Part IV is called, Harmony and has one chapter called, Harmony: Coherence at Many Levels. In this section the author discusses the concept of coherence and postulates parallels between coherence in the brain and harmony in society.

Reception

The book appeared at number seven on the

NY Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

list of Best Sellers: Hardcover Advice, How-To And Miscellaneous, number eight on the Washington Post Non Fiction list, and number 14 on the

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, Best seller, Hardcover Non-Fiction list during its first week of publication. A reviewer at PsychCentral, wrote: "I opened the book and began to read stories that inspired me and gave me hope that one day I might be a meditator too" and the chapters on "acute anxiety, major depression, and bipolar disorder" were "especially enlightening". Articles in

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and

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

reported on the book's case studies relating to

posttraumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on ...

.(June 26, 2011) Philp, Rowan B. ''The Sunday Times'' (South Africa), Hollywood loves SA doc's therapy

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

reported that the book "urges healthcare professionals to offer it Mto patients suffering from mental illnesses" Tenant, Laura (July 10, 201
Transcendental Meditation were the hippies right all along
''The Independent'', retrieved March 3, 2012

References

External links

Writers Voices: ''Dr. Rosenthal, "Transcendence''" (Video)

''Heal and Transform Your Life with Transcendental Meditation: Interview with Dr. Rosenthal''

{{Transcendental Meditation movement Self-help books Transcendental Meditation 2011 non-fiction books TarcherPerigee books