ABSTRACT
R. K. Wallace et al. undertook the first detailed study of metabolic changes accompanying Transcendental Meditation (TM), seeking to test the hypothesis of decreased metabolic rate. Perhaps the greatest contribution to science made by TM study has been the enunciation of a clear paradigm for comprehending and investigating phenomena that had heretofore been only subjective, at best, and anecdotal, at worst. In particular, because of the proposed nature of TM as a rest state, metabolism— metabolic rate—or closely allied parameters have become primary in research attempts to identify and describe meditation as well as suggesting health applications. The redistribution of blood flow and slight increase of cardiac output have interesting implications for the fine structure of metabolic changes elicited by TM. Although this behavior is hypometabolic overall, from these results it appears likely that there is an increase of metabolism in some specific tissue(s).
