The Hindu religion has been called the oldest religion in the world. The majority of Hindus live in India. It is a diverse system of thought with a range of philosophies. It is the religion that is probably easiest to link to the Relaxation Response because of its long history of the use of mantras.
The earliest mantras are at least 3500 years old and were composed in Sanskrit, the ancient language of India. The word Aum or Om serves as a mantra and is believed by Hindus to be the first sound that was originated on earth. The Transcendental Meditation
technique was originally brought to worldwide notice by the Hindu monk Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The Transcendental Meditation technique was the first technique that Dr. Benson studied. This led to his characterization of the Relaxation Response, which is of course the subject of this website.