“On the surface, ‘know your self’ means know your qualities… but ‘know thy self’ took on a completely new meaning with Transcendental Meditation: Know your self to be wholeness, know your self to be the source of everything, to be the unified field of natural law.”
—Tony Nader, M.D., Ph.D., M.A.R.R.

When Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Founder of the TM® program, planned for the future of the international Transcendental Meditation® organizations, he chose an individual accomplished in the field of knowledge. To that end, he named as his successor a scientist and scholar with mastery in both modern science and the ancient Vedic tradition—Tony Nader, M.D., Ph.D., M.A.R.R., an MIT- and Harvard-trained neuroscientist and one of the world’s great Vedic scholars.

Dr. Nader guides the global supervision of the nonprofit TM organizations in over one hundred countries. From the Americas to Europe, from the Far East to Australasia, he advises the TM program and its educational, health, and research programs.

Watch Dr. Nader speak about how to “know thy self” (3:42)
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A Journey from Medical School to Meeting Maharishi

Dr. Nader has always been motivated by “the desire to understand life—who we are, why are we here, what can we achieve,” he says. As a French citizen who was born and raised in Lebanon, he received his M.D. from the American University of Beirut, where he also studied internal medicine and psychiatry.

In 1975, while still a premedical student, he learned the TM technique. Dr. Nader has reflected that “as soon as I started meditating… I experienced that reality which is transcendental, which is beyond the sensory level, which is inner, which is more abstract but more full, more peaceful, more blissful.” As a result, he wanted to understand more about this Transcendental Consciousness.

When he was a medical student, he learned the more advanced TM-Sidhi® program and soon realized that he wanted to teach the TM technique to others.

“Of course the scientific research was overwhelming, in terms of how effective and useful it is,” he recalled. “But ultimately the desire to give it… comes from the inner experience, which is so fulfilling that you just want all your friends, all the people you love, and everyone in the world to have it.”

Around this time, at a health conference for doctors and scientists in Switzerland, Dr. Nader met Maharishi for the first time. This was “a life-transforming experience,” he has said. “This transcendental feeling was permeating, and that was the wholeness which Maharishi radiated to all those who got to meet him and know him.”

Once Dr. Nader finished his internship, he returned to Switzerland and became a Certified TM Teacher. Being able to teach TM as a doctor was “very profound,” he has said, because the TM technique is “a very holistic way to approach problems without side effects.”

Practicing TM has “all kinds of side benefits—a better immune system, better health, more enjoyment of life, more fullness and wholeness in their experience of who they are, how they relate to others, even their influence on their environment is extremely positive.” —Dr. Tony Nader

People may learn the TM technique to relieve high blood pressure or anxiety, he explained, but practicing TM has “all kinds of side benefits—a better immune system, better health, more enjoyment of life, more fullness and wholeness in their experience of who they are, how they relate to others, even their influence on their environment is extremely positive. So you’re actually creating a large number of benefits which are beyond the resolution of a specific problem.”

Exploring Human Potential, from MIT to Harvard Medical School to Vedic Science

After becoming a TM teacher, Dr. Nader came to the United States to continue his education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he earned his Ph.D. in brain and cognitive science. He was appointed assistant director of clinical research at MIT, and was also a clinical research fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Nader has conducted research in neurochemistry and neuroendocrinology; the relationship between diet, age, behavior, mood, seasonal influences, and hormonal activity; and the role of neurotransmitter precursors in medicine.

At the same time, Dr. Nader began working on the science of consciousness developed by Maharishi, which integrates modern research with the broad-based areas of knowledge stemming from the ancient Vedic tradition. This field is known as Maharishi Vedic Science^SM.

Dr. Nader’s scholarship in this area deepens our understanding of the scientific significance of the Veda, the ancient, foundational texts of the science of consciousness. In five books he has shown an exact correspondence between each aspect of the Vedic literature to human physiology, anatomy, cell biology, and DNA.

This correlation reveals that “the fluctuations of consciousness as expressed in the Veda are the same as the structure of our body,” he explained. “That the physical is an expression of consciousness. That physiology and intelligence are just different aspects of the same thing.”

In recognition of Dr. Nader’s achievements and profound knowledge of both modern science and Vedic Science, Maharishi gave him the honorific title Maharaja Adhiraj Rajaraam (M.A.R.R.).

Dr. Nader guides the worldwide organization responsible for furthering and expanding the Transcendental Meditation program and Maharishi’s contributions to many fields, including education, health, architecture, defense, and practical technologies of human development.

As International Director, Dr. Nader guides the worldwide organization responsible for furthering and expanding the Transcendental Meditation program and Maharishi’s contributions to many fields, including education, health, architecture, defense, and practical technologies of human development.

“Hacking Consciousness” at Stanford University

Dr. Nader has also shared his knowledge of consciousness at educational institutions like Stanford University, where he was invited to give two talks as part of a series entitled “Hacking Consciousness.”

In his presentations Dr. Nader examines what scientists call the “hard problem” of What is consciousness? He makes this abstract question understandable by looking at consciousness in terms of human physiology, quantum mechanics in physics, and Vedic Science.

Consciousness, he concludes, is the source not only of the human mind and our ability to experience, know, innovate, and create, but also the source of all physical structures and functions—from fine particles and DNA to galaxies.

“In transcending, people experience not a specific object but consciousness itself,” he says. “There are millions of people who have reported this experience, particularly through the Transcendental Meditation technique. This is consciousness looking at itself.”

As founder and editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Mathematics and Consciousness, Dr. Nader has also offered a mathematical model for how the multiplicity of matter arises from a fundamental “singularity” or oneness of Transcendental Consciousness through the mechanism of consciousness knowing itself.

“In transcending, people experience not a specific object but consciousness itself. There are millions of people who have reported this experience, particularly through the Transcendental Meditation technique. This is consciousness looking at itself.” —Dr. Tony Nader

Dr. Nader Honored at the House of Commons on International Yoga Day

Dr. Nader’s unique expertise in the knowledge of East and West was recognized at the British Parliament on July 10, 2017, Third International Yoga Day. He was chosen to be the keynote speaker for a conference hosted by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Indian Traditional Sciences, to examine the value of introducing Yoga in the National Health Service (NHS). The Queen sent a letter of best wishes to the conference, which was held at the House of Commons, Palace of Westminster.

Dr. Nader spoke about the scientific basis of Yoga and the vital role of meditation, particularly the TM technique. “Every one of us has within us, built into our very physiology, the essential quality of Yoga, which is unifying,” he said. He also presented the seven-volume Scientific Research on the Transcendental Meditation Programme to Parliament.

For his work as International Director of the worldwide TM organizations, Dr. Nader was honored with the Kala Yugandhara Award, which means “universal enlightened master of all arts and sciences.”

“This is entirely unexpected, and the credit should go to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, from whom the profound knowledge of the full value of Yoga comes,” Dr. Nader said.

Expanding Maharishi’s Legacy in Science and Consciousness

Through the second half of the 20th century, Maharishi inspired a scientific quest for enlightenment. Over 700 published studies on the TM technique have demonstrated its far-reaching benefits—better health and longer life, greater intelligence and creativity, fulfilling relationships and work success, reducing societal stress and helping create peace. These studies established Transcendental Consciousness as a fourth major state of consciousness, as well as the neurophysiological correlates of Cosmic Consciousness, a fifth state of consciousness.

Dr. Nader is guiding this remarkable legacy into the 21st century. He’s bringing the science of consciousness to new audiences and expanding our understanding of the furthest reaches of human potential.

Now Dr. Nader is also sharing his insights with online communities worldwide, through videos, live streaming, and interactive Q & A events. On Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, he’s creating an online space for engaging conversations about consciousness and all fields of life—from health, education, and science, to love, human relationships, and world peace.

Dr. Nader’s goal is to continue Maharishi’s legacy of sharing “this knowledge, from this tradition, that allows every human being to truly live their fullness of life. It’s something that everyone can achieve. It’s very easy, and everyone can do it,” he says.

“It’s not a philosophy that you have to believe in, it’s not a way of life that you have to adopt,” he adds. “You just let yourself grow within yourself, remove your stresses and strain, and your nature is to be perfect, your nature is to be happy, your nature is to be healthy. And that is something which is life-transforming.”

“You just let yourself grow within yourself, remove your stresses and strain, and your nature is to be perfect, your nature is to be happy, your nature is to be healthy. And that is something which is life-transforming.”
—Dr. Tony Nader

Be part of the conversation with Dr. Tony Nader on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Stay up to date on his work as the International Director of the worldwide TM organizations. Learn more about his online interactive events and videos exploring consciousness and human potential.

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Watch Dr. Nader’s presentation at Stanford University’s “Hacking Consciousness” symposium:
Video: Part 1 (18:38)
Video: Part 2 (21:22)