Paul McCartney wants every student to learn how to meditate. He wants it to be taught in British schools, saying that “an ancient cure may be the solution to a modern problem.” To be fair to Paul, he doesn’t want meditation to be for a whole class period, just 15 minutes of every day. That’s really not so bad, but The Sun’s report on McCartney’s comments reek of snark – here are the basics:
SIR PAUL McCARTNEY has backed plans for school kids to have meditation lessons. As a huge believer in the benefits of transcendental meditation, the Beatles legend reckons it could be the key to making nippers more intelligent.
…Macca reckons 15 minutes of “mind gym” is just the ticket to get the grey matter ready for reading, writing and arithmetic. The wobbly eyebrowed Scouser said: “I believe that in the future meditation could be as commonplace in schools and society as eco-awareness is now.”
“It interests me that an ancient cure may be the solution to a modern problem.”
Paul McCartney, George Harrison and bandmate John Lennon famously learned the ancient Indian art from Maharishi Mahesh Yogi during the Beatles’ Sixties heyday.
Apparently 20 minutes of TM can help to lower blood pressure, reduce stress and assist the learning process.
[From The Sun]
Meditation is quite effective, if done properly. It’s a bit of a joke to suggest that young kids will be able to really learn how to do it though. Perhaps Paul and other meditation proponents should suggest a “deep breathing and relaxation period” for kids. Teaching kids to relax, to concentrate on their breathing and to “tune out” certain things is a valuable tool in the modern world, and if they want to call it meditation, so be it.
Sidenote: My father is Indian, and he always claims that he’s “meditating” when he just taking a catnap. Growing up, my family always used “meditating” as an inside joke for going to sleep. I would bet that if it’s ever introduced to public schools, more than a few students will just take a catnap instead.
Here’s Paul McCartney with girlfriend Nancy Shevell (wisely wearing Stella McCartney) at the Natural Resources Defense Council’s `Forces For Nature’ Benefit in New York City on Monday. Images thanks to Fame Pictures and WENN .
What’s up with her pants?
Meditation for children is typically taught initially as moving meditation. Children repeat their mantra as they walk. Only later do they sit and meditate.
TM is a cult, plain and simple. My family was caught up in it for years, some still are. I had family members living at the Institute in Iowa, she still claims to be the ‘enlightened one’ in the family because of the 30+ years she has been practicing TM – pfft…..all it taught her was how to manipulate and squeeze money out of her family members….oh yeah, and she thinks she can fly…do we really want this in our schools?
A cult? Ah, geezus louisus.
Why would I listen to a pot-smoking baby boomer?
Maybe because he has some experience with this?
Exactly, OJ. Paul is a role model. Except for the whole Heather Mills incident.
There are much worse things than meditation that we already teach kids in schools.
Transcendental Meditation is an extremely superficial form of meditation. If TM was the extent of Paul’s foray into meditation, he doesn’t know much.
I study deep nonviolence in university, and the thought that anyone famous enough to get a dialogue going advocates for mediation being taught in school is wonderful. Meditation, whether it’s being taught in a religious tradition or an Eckhart Tolle book, is the foundation of profound peace and inner strength. Exposing children to such a skill at a young age, even if it’s modified to work for energy filled squiggly bodies, would be transformative. At the very least, teaching mediation would indicate a positive paradigm shift in how we approach education and socialization.
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I suppose meditation could be introduced as a ‘club’ or something to do durring lunch hour or an after school activity but I could see teachers not wanting to take time out of there lesson plan to do this.