Military
– A Case Study

The application of the Consciousness Development Programme by the military in Mozambique

In 1993, 15,000 people from three branches of the military – ground, naval and air force – were instructed in Transcendental Meditation and 3,000 in the TM-Sidhi Programme. Prior to 1993 there had been 20 years of bitter civil war, which created a divided and poverty-stricken country.

Excerpt of a speech given by Lieutenant General Tobias Dai, former commander of the armed forces of the Republic of Mozambique, who was in charge of implementing Maharishi’s technology of defence in the armed forces. His presentation, given at the 1994 International Conference on Invincible Defence at Maharishi Vedic University, Holland, reported on the positive, comprehensive transformation of the nation brought about by this programme.

‘Mozambique, after a disturbed period of war during the past 16 years, signed a General Peace Agreement in Rome in October 1992. The damage in terms of human life and material property was very high, and the country remained in a very precarious situation.

‘After the signing of the peace agreement, there was still a long way to go before the general elections could be held in the country.

‘Uncertainty about the success of the implementation of the General Peace Agreement and questions about the ability to maintain peace until the elections, shadowed the first happiness in the hearts of Mozambicans following the signing of the agreement. The proposed future UNO mission also was not a guarantee of the maintenance of peace – as had been seen in many countries in the world.

‘It was at this time that we were contacted by the representatives of Maharishi Vedic University who gave detailed exposition of their technologies and their effects. After a serious and critical study of the technologies that were being offered, the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces of Mozambique were charged with analysing and studying the possibilities of its implementation in the armed forces.

‘After having completed a thorough evaluation of the proposal, the Joint Chiefs of Staff decided to implement the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programme, including Yogic Flying, in the Armed Forces of Mozambique with the aim to create the Maharishi Effect in the country. It was a matter of decision. Either to try it or leave it aside. Our decision was to try. This occurred before the arrival of the UNO forces in Mozambique.

‘Thus started the huge work of teaching Transcendental Meditation in the different military units of the country, involving the Ground, Naval and Air forces. During 1993, about 15,000 people were taught in the provinces of Maputo, Sofala, Manica, Zambezia, Nampula, Niassa, and Cabo Delgado, and in 1994, 1,000 more were taught. Also, schools of police training, pertaining to the Ministry of Home Affairs, began the programme. In all, more than 3,000 people were trained in the TM-Sidhi Programme.

‘The results of the Maharishi Effect were predicted prior to the implementation of the programme. We were told that the increase of coherence in the collective consciousness created by the Maharishi Effect was going to maintain the peace, bring improvements in the crime index, decrease in the number of car accidents, and bring an unprecedented improvement in the economy.

‘When thousands of people were taught in Maputo, it was possible to assess a decrease of 20% in the crime index during the first quarter of 1993. This situation is totally anomalous, because at the end of the war, an increase of crime would be expected. The same thing happened in the city of Quelimane (decrease of 20%) and the province of Manica. Again, when the groups stopped practising due to troop movements and to demobilisation of the troops, the crime index increased again. During the year 1993, the number of cars in the country increased by approximately 3–4 times and the circulation of these vehicles in the country increased dramatically. For the first time in 28 years, it was possible to travel by road freely all around the country. In spite of this, the number of car accidents remained practically the same as in the previous year and the number of deaths due to car accidents decreased compared to 1992. During 1993, an economic growth of 6% was expected, but in fact growth was 19% – completely unexpected.

‘What is very clear is that once the positive effect is created, if the group practice is stopped, the previous tendencies of higher collective stress, as determined from the crime indexes and the tense situation in the country, begin to rise again. In 1994, there was a remarkable decrease in coherence in the country as a result of the decreased participation in the group practice of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programme. This was due to the demobilisation of troops practising the programme and the anticipated ending of police courses which included the programme.

‘Until now, although with several difficulties, the maintenance of peace has been possible during these two years, and free and just elections have been carried out – the only successful UNO mission in the world.

‘Our conclusion is that the implementation of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programme, with Yogic Flying, into the armed forces of Mozambique was worth the effort and the results were in line with what was predicted.’

Although the large groups of TM-Sidhi Programme Yogic Flyers were substantially reduced in 1994, as indicated by Lt. General Dai’s speech, smaller groups of Yogic Flyers have continued to create an influence of coherence in the country.

These changes in Mozambique are in striking contrast to developments in a similar country, Angola, during the same period (as described below). This makes clear that the progress that Mozambique continues to experience is not a general phenomenon in the region.

Both Angola and Mozambique are former Portuguese colonies; both countries suffered long and severe civil wars in the 1970s and 1980s. In the early 1990s both countries signed peace treaties and were subsequently monitored by the United Nations. (A peace accord in Angola lasted from May 1991 to October 1992, but then collapsed again into civil war until a new accord was reached in November 1994.)

In spite of the peace treaty and the presence of United Nations Security Force, violence and disorder have continued to be serious problems in Angola. For example, heavy fighting in 1997 threatened the peace treaty, while the economy of Angola has continued in disarray.

In contrast, Mozambique implemented Maharishi’s programme for defence soon after its October 1992 agreement. As a consequence, violence and disorder in Mozambique were drastically reduced; at the same time, the country’s economy began to recover and has shown solid growth ever since. Today Mozambique is considered a model for how African countries can recover from severe civil war.