T.M. popular at Pentagon

Press, 24 February 1977, Page 21

T.M. popular at Pentagon

A staff member of the! office of the United States|t Secretary of Defence is de-if lighted that a meditation'a room is planned for the Bee- r ■ hive (the new executive wingp [at Parliament). jl Mr E. E. Winchester has returned to New Zealand to e submit the results of his post-p 'graduate research into trans- t cendental meditation to Vic- 1 ! Itoria University. Part of that: research is a detailed evalua- ' |tion of the transcendental f i meditation technique, and its application in increasing pro- 1 ductivity, efficienqy, andT creativity in government and ' industry! He first became interested! in meditation when he waste wmrking for the Treasury in If Wellington from 1972-1975. r 'He came to New Zealand!l under the United States Presi-p dential interchange executivel( programme. is “I could see the beneficial It effects it was having on my* own work,” Mr Winchester'< says. “So I decided to find out 11 about its intellectual basis |t and why it affected the crea-' f tive intelligence.” H

Mr Winchester defines I transcendental meditation as J a way to use the mental cap- < acities better, so that their; j maximum benefit can be dir-jl ected to all facets of one's: life. } “It generates an energy and,, creative intelligence to pur-i, sue personal goals. Any nega-| j tive behaviour becomes more [ life-supporting.” t Mr Winchester is especially' | interested in how the bene-: fits can be used in business. , q When he returned to the,; United States, some followers, of the movement tried to con-! ‘ vince the Pentagon that T.M.r would increase productivity. “The Secretary of Defence,, did not take them seriously ‘ at first. But a symposium on I management was organised * by T.M. in June last year and ■ many large firms, such as|. General Motors sent repre-|‘ sentatives. 1 also attended on,* behalf of the Pentagon.” ! One month later, a T.M.i 1 club was set up at the Penta- ( gon. “It has hundreds of! members who now have the'' facilities to meditate during,! lunch and coffee breaks.” r

The Secretary of Defence is now studying Mr Winchester's book on the subject. “A New Approach to Problem Solving.” One-third of the study will be locked up at Victoria University as it would contravene the Official Secrets Act if it were published. The book discusses the T.M. technique and suggests ideas for better government. Mr Winchester says studies have proved that T.M. cuts absenteeism, reduces the consumption of alcohol and cigarettes, results in better sleeping patterns, and enables people to accomplish more. “A study of 500 management staff in the United States showed that people had greater job satisfaction and more harmonious relations with other members of the staff, and that productivity also increased,” Mr Winchester said. Mr Winchester criticises what he calls “closet mediators” — those who practise T.M. but keep it secret be-

cause they are afraid their colleagues may chide them. “Some top executives arej interested in starting T.M. at their factories. I tell them to take it up themselves, and see if they notice any benefits.

“Meditation doesn’t mean | that you are going to solve ail your problems,” Mr Winchester says. “But you are ■ going to use your brain bet-! ter. “What is so fantastic about: it, is that it does not involve I any beliefs. It is a mental! technique to improve the ■ functions of the brain. These ■ benefits can then be applied ■ to any field — sport, religion i or business.” Mr Winchester worked, with the United States Gen-1 eral Accounting Office from I 1960 to 1968, where he! audited the expenditure on the Gemini space programme.' He will return to the i United States to work again at the Pentagon in two weeks with his New Zealandborn wife, Betty, and their! two children.