Transcendental Meditation & Prayer: A Short Discussion with Keri Wyatt Kent

I read some interesting discussions in the blogosphere recently about what I think could be called meditative prayer. Part of my interest in this comes from having practised Transcendental Meditation many years ago and now having a different understanding of what it means to meditate in a spiritually lifegiving way. I stopped practicing TM some years before I became a Christian because of my own awareness of how it was influencing me, and because of a directly negative experience that occurred while I was meditating one day. Fast forwarding, as a Christian I was suprised to discover that the bible refers to meditating on God's word, and to hear people sometimes mention that they had "meditated" on something from the bible. (There's another one of those words that is commonly used but has a different spiritual meaning when following Jesus). I learned that this kind of meditation did not involve a mantra, nor did it involve "transcending" one's own thoughts, awareness of surroundings, and coherent processes. Meditating as a Christian is to stop and think - taking the time to mull over, ponder, and explore what something says and means. It isn't vain repetition, but is practical and grounded in reality.

I've been aware for a while that some forms of "contemplative prayer" advocate a TM type of meditation - they have incorporated a technique that is exactly the same. Instead of a mantra from an Eastern religious source they use a word from the bible, but in effect it is the same technique. The word is conferred with a kind of magic status and it's repetition without meaning is supposedly what allows God into ones experience. I do not advocate such a practice, whether it is called "Christian" or not - in fact I strongly advise against it, or any spiritual practice which involves giving up cognitive responsibility and not being discerning with regard to spiritual influences. However, that is not what it truly means to meditate prayerfully, and not everyone who proposes meditating on the scriptures is advocating TM style meditation. Meditating, or dwelling thoughtfully, upon a scripture doesn't require special magic passwords or the suspension of normal thought.

So it was with interest that I read this article by Keri Wyatt Kent in Christianty Today, Fresh Air. I also visted her website and read the the introduction from her book Oxygen. Her ideas remind me of how I have sometimes had my own reflective times as a Christian. Let me say that I don't put labels on how I pray - I think of it as prayer, or reflection, or just talking to God. That's enough description for me. I found Keri Wyatt Kent's approach somewhat similar in that she is being descriptive, and metaphorical, in discussing meditative prayer. For example, she talks about breathing as an illustration, a metaphor, for how we become aware of God's presence. She isn't saying that we literally breathe God in!

In the interests of being clear that I was hearing what Keri said correctly, since I don't have her whole book, I emailed her to ask about what she describes as "Deep Listening". To my mind this sounded similar to what I sometimes do when I read the bible or am at the beach. I watched the sunset from my favourite rock under the cliffs a couple of nights ago and I meditated on God's strength in gentleness as I looked at the vividness of the colours shining through the intricate lacework of the clouds. My thoughts dwelt on that as I considered the imagery strung across the sky - I thought about how God is like that and how I am not always, but would like to be. I gave my time to that line of thought. So I emailed Keri to clarify what she means by "Deep Listening" (I love that metaphorically - it reminds me of "deep calling to deep"), and have put our short discussion here:

Hi Keri,
Thanks for taking the time to read this. I read the article you wrote for Christianity Today, and have also read the first chapter of your book Oxygen on your website. Some of what you describe in that chapter reminds me of how I sometimes used to pray.

I do have a question that I hope you will clarify for me. I noticed how in your explanation of deep listening you talked about focusing on a word from a bible passge that might stand out to you. I think I understand that - as thinking about how that word applies to me and what it means.

I practiced and then gave up practicing Transcendental Meditation some years before I became a Christian. So I had a mantra. In some Christian writing on contemplative prayer I've seen a similar technique to TM advocated. This involves repition of the same word over and over. If the person starts thinking about things they are to stop thinking and return to meditating to the exclusion of other thought. I won't go into a long explanation as to why I disagree with that and what I experienced with TM which made me realise, even as a non-Christian, that I was misusing my spiritual capacity for receptiveness. What I want to ask you is whether that is the sort of thing you mean by focusing on a word - or do you mean, as I think you might, that one simply dwells on a word if it stands out and explores what it means, how it applies, and one thinks about it rather than skipping onto something else.

I'd appreciate it if you are able to reply, and also if you wouldn't mind me letting others know of your reply on my personal website.
Thankyou,
Catez Stevens

Here is Keri's response:

Dear Catez,
First, thanks for taking the time to write. You'd be surprised how many people just decide to blog about this article and what they think I meant, without asking me.

I understand why you would be concerned. But what I am suggesting is not T.M-style meditation. In T.M. and other eastern religion style meditation, you pick your own word, or a meaningless word like "Om," and the goal is to empty your mind.

In meditating on Scripture (which the Bible itself says we should do--see Psalm 1), we ask God to speak to us through his Word, the Bible. The goal is to fill your mind with the truth of God's word--and to begin a conversation in which we actually listen, rather than jumping to conclusions. We don't just arbitrarily pick a word from the text, but rather, one that God's Holy Spirit leads us to, in answer to our humble request that he speak to us through the text. We then focus on that word as the means to begin a dialog with God. What does he want us to know? What is he saying to us? Rather than skip ahead, we ponder it in our heart. We patiently wait for God to help us understand him better. It's a means of slowing down to linger with God, to build the relationship our faith is based on. You said it perfectly--we think about what it means, how it applies to our specific situation, etc.

We've all had the experience when, reading in our Bible, we come across a verse that speaks into something we have been praying about or struggling with--and we knew it was God speaking to us through the words. I think God wants to give us more moments like that--but we often hurry as we read, or we come at it in an analytical way, determined just to figure out the "answer" rather than listen to God. The methods I wrote about in the article are simply ways to slow down so that we can attend to the "still, small voice." (see I Kings 19).

A great way to use these practices is to read a book of the bible devotionally, working your way through it and studying it in whatever way you traditionally have. But then, once you've studied a passage, to go back and read a particularly meaningful section, and ask God to give you one word, phrase or verse, and for him to show you how it applies to your specfic situation.

My new book Oxgyen: Deep Breathing for the Soul, guides the reader through these and a few other practices. I was limited by space in the magazine article and so my book provides much more in-depth information about these practices.

I deeply appreciate that your wrote and shared your questions and concerns with me. If any of this is unclear, feel free to write back. I'm fine with you sharing it on your blog, but please don't quote me out of context.
God's blessings on your ministry!
Keri Wyatt Kent

I have put in links to the bible passages Keri mentioned since we are online. One small thing I'd add here to our discussion is that TM doesn't involve picking your own word, but having one given to you. I had no idea what mine meant, and had to return to the teacher to have it "reset" because in all the repetition it would change from what it was originally. So I really was putting myself under other influences in more ways than one. I'm just making a note with that. From reading Keri's article and material at her site I can see that she is talking about something quite different to TM. One thing I liked in the introduction to her book Oxygen was that she was clear that people who use the book can skip things, use what is helpful, and that she isn't trying to prescribe a set of methods. That's my impression too, that she is talking about an approach - slowing down to dwell on God's word in the bible (the scriptures). I've partly posted this because I think that in our desire to discern rightly we can sometimes broad brush things as negative when they are not from the wrong influence - that's something I don't want to do. The kind of meditative listening that Keri describes may not be for everyone, but I certainly wouldn't liken it to TM or other non-lifegiving meditation. They say it's good to stop and smell the roses. Meditiative prayer is like that - stopping to metaphorically smell the sweetest rose of all, to breathe the purest air, and to become aware of the deepest love. Needless to say, you can become quite aware of your own shortcomings and the need to admit them when you do that. Ah - but that is where grace is comes in doesn't it? She who is forgiven much loves much. I think I'll meditate on that today.