There are two things you should know about David Lynch. First, and foremost, Lynch is still one of the greatest directors on the planet. But secondly, the man loves Transcendental Meditation, aka TM. And in a new interview with Yahoo, Lynch discusses why he thinks that TM has not only made him a much better creator but could also cure some of society’s current ills.
Lynch wants to make it abundantly clear that the misconception that an artist must struggle and experience darkness to somehow create is a bunch of BS. In fact, TM has not only brought Lynch a new type of peace he hadn’t experienced before but the practice also opened him up to produce better work.
He explains, “People say, ‘David, if you’re so happy, how come you make these [disturbing films]?’I say the artist doesn’t have to suffer to show suffering. I used to worry: ‘Am I going to get all calm and easygoing and not want to work anymore? Am I going to make goody-goody-two-shoes things and feel-good things?’ But no. You get more of an edge when you dive within. You get way more energy to do your work. Negativity, you see, is the enemy to creativity. People say, ‘Oh, suffering artist!’ and all that, and it might sound like a romantic thing, but suffering is really not that enjoyable.”
The filmmaker also starts to explain how he believes that TM could help the current differences between men and women, with the rise of toxic masculinity and the #MeToo movement. “It would bring out that thing: ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ It just would bring that out. Men have certain urges and women are a certain way, and this has caused a lot of trouble, but if men were meditating every day, they would not want to force anything on women. They would treat all people with a whole different type of kindness and respect. It would just come naturally,” says Lynch.
While Lynch didn’t want to talk about anything regarding Donald Trump or the controversial comments he made months ago, the filmmaker does believe that TM could be the answer to the political schism that has greatly affected the US.
READ MORE: David Lynch Responds To Backlash And Says Trump Is “Causing Suffering And Division”
“But I would like to say that I really feel — and it’s pretty obvious — that this country’s divided. Another name for this field within is called the unified field. Ancient Vedic science has always and forever known about this field, but modern quantum physics discovered it around the ’70s. This field is the unity of all the particles and all the forces in manifestation. This field is magical. You enliven this field of unity in the midst of diversity, and there is peace. All diversity is appreciated fully in the light of unity. And this is absolutely possible,” Lynch says.
He continues, “So all these problems, all these people so bitterly divided, enliven this field, and they affect collective consciousness with bliss, harmony, coherence, love, all these qualities from this field. And you’re going to have a different world. Right now, every single human being participates in creating that collective consciousness. We have a dark, brooding cloud all around the world, but if we enliven this field of peace within, it’ll turn that cloud from a dark, brooding cloud to a beautiful, golden cloud. And this is what I’m interested in — seeing that happening very soon.”
So, there you have it. Has Lynch convinced you to give Transcendental Meditation a shot? Or is this just more David Lynch being David Lynch? Frankly, we have no clue what to make of it.