“Too many thoughts — surely this won’t work for me.” If you feel the same way, I have good news: it’s not an obstacle to learning or practicing Transcendental Meditation.
One of the most common things we hear at almost every introductory talk: “I always have so many thoughts running through my head — can this really work for me?” Or the same phenomenon in a different form: “I’d love to quiet my mind because it’s running in overdrive; I could use some inner calm, but I just can’t get there.”
If you feel that way too, I have good news: this is not an obstacle to learning or practicing Transcendental Meditation.
The misunderstanding that may hold you back
Most people think meditation is about eliminating thoughts — sitting in motionless silence with an empty mind. That sounds like hard work, and it would be. Thankfully, TM doesn’t work that way. You can experience the silence of the mind, but the process isn’t based on concentration.
Inner calm, effortlessly
I remember as a child, inspired by what I was reading, trying to concentrate on nothing and empty my mind… well, that didn’t work for me either. I realized fairly quickly that learning real meditation would need proper guidance. At 15, when I finally found TM, I was delighted that this inner calm could be reached so effortlessly. The whole process clicked.
Easy and effective
Through the technique, the mind spontaneously experiences calmer, finer levels of thought, and going beyond even those — transcending — our awareness settles into a quiet, restful yet alert state.
Quiet, clear, joyful
In this baseline state — when we simply are, exist, and our awareness isn’t reaching outward toward a thought or feeling but is experiencing itself — the mind fills with contentment. Everything is okay.
More effectiveness during the day
As stress dissolves and meditation’s effect stabilizes in our daily life, we’ll begin to feel during the day that there’s less “background noise” in our mind — and even that we can focus better despite extra noise around us.
So if you’ve ever thought “this won’t work for me — my mind races too much,” then perhaps, just as it was for me back then, this is exactly right for you. From our many years of TM teaching experience, I can confidently say: a restless mind is no obstacle. In fact, it’s often the very starting point from which many begin.