A New Approach for Perpetual Peace in Sudan – By Arlene Schar and Dr. David Leffler

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By Arlene Schar and Dr. David Leffler | Iowa, USA | August 18, 2024

Despite ongoing efforts to resolve tensions and stabilize
Sudan, longstanding divisive issues remain largely
unresolved, and civil war persists. Achieving a sustainable
and lasting peace remains challenging. It is crucial to quickly
reduce the rising tensions to prevent further dangerous
escalation and put an end to this 14-month conflict.
Why has it been so challenging to alleviate tensions? At its
core, the root cause of social violence is the buildup of
collective social stress. Addressing this human issue
demands a human-centered solution. (See: “Peace through
health: traditional medicine meditation in the prevention of
collective stress, violence, and war” published in Frontiers in
Public Health.)
The best approach to eliminating social problems like
war, conflict, terrorism, and crime is to directly reduce
societal, collective stress—quickly and efficiently.
Extensive scientific research suggests that the most
effective way to reduce collective societal stress,
eliminate extremism, and eradicate war, conflict and
terrorism is through an ancient strategy. The non-
religious approach known as Invincible Defense
Technology (IDT), revived by the late Maharishi Mahesh
Yogi, has been successfully and quietly used by
individuals from many faiths to resolve conflicts in the

past. It is now time to consider this brain-based
technology to help create lasting peace in Sudan.
We can reduce societal tensions and end the civil war in
Sudan by establishing a Prevention Wing of the Sudanese
Military or, if necessary, in the Military of a neighboring
country. This special unit would be trained in the
Transcendental Meditation (TM®) program and its
advanced techniques, including the TM-Sidhi® program.
This IDT approach has been extensively field-tested,
even in war-torn regions like the Middle East. Extensive
research has shown that when large groups practice
these techniques twice daily, there is a measurable
influence of harmony and peace in society: crime rates
drop, quality-of-life indicators improve, and war and
terrorism decrease. This large group practice appears to
create a “field effect of consciousness” that extends to
the surrounding population, producing a demonstrable
influence of peace.
For instance, an IDT intervention was examined in
Washington, D.C., in 1993. Predictions were submitted in
advance to government leaders and newspapers. An
independent Project Review Board approved the research
protocol. When the group's size peaked, crime dropped
24 percent below the forecasted level. Changes could not
be explained by temperature, weekend effects, or
previous data trends. The results were published in Social
Indicators Research.
A study published in Studies in Asian Social Science
reviewed previous empirical tests of IDT in Cambodia,
India, the Philippines, and other countries. The findings
align with earlier peer-reviewed research, showing

significant reductions in crime and violence associated
with the group practice of the TM and TM-Sidhi programs.
The World Journal of Social Science published a study
demonstrating that when √1% of a population practiced
IDT together, multiple stress indicators in the U.S.
decreased. Subsequently, when the size of the IDT group
decreased, these stress indicators increased again. Other
factors such as economic conditions, political leadership,
and demographics were considered but could not account
for these results. The consistent pattern of stress
indicators decreasing and then increasing in sync with
changes in the size of the IDT group strongly suggests
that the group itself was responsible for this effect.
Twenty peer-reviewed studies, many of which are listed
here, have validated the effectiveness of IDT. Although
the exact causal mechanism is not entirely understood,
other research has demonstrated that practicing TM
enhances EEG coherence (refer to the International
Journal of Psychological Studies and International Journal
of Neuroscience). This biological effect, combined with
the deep rest provided by the practice, helps reduce
stress and tension, boosts alertness, and enhances
wellbeing and resilience in individuals.
A study in the Journal of Social Behavior and Personality
(JSBP) provides a possible biological explanation for the
causality of IDT. Research on the neurotransmitter
serotonin indicates that it is involved in feelings of
happiness, contentment, and well-being, while low
serotonin levels are associated with violence, aggression,
and depressed emotional states. The JSBP study found
that higher numbers of IDT practitioners in the group

meditation correlated with increased serotonin production
among community members who were not practicing
meditation and knew nothing about the group numbers.
The opposite relationship was found for levels of cortisol,
a stress-related hormone. When group numbers
decreased, cortisol level increased. These statistically
significant changes, which followed periods of higher
attendance, suggest a plausible, stress-related,
neurophysiologic mechanism for the reduction of
aggression and hostility in society.
IDT's global impact was documented in a study published
in the Journal of Offender Rehabilitation using data from
the Rand Corporation. Between 1983 and 1985, when the
size of large IDT assemblies surpassed the threshold
predicted to produce a measurable global effect, deaths
from worldwide terrorism decreased by 72%,
international conflict decreased by 32%, and violence in
other countries was reduced without external
government intervention.
The IDT approach also offers tangible personal benefits
for military personnel and civilians affected by the
aftermath of conflict and war. For instance, Post-
Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is frequently observed
among veterans and civilians alike. According to a study
in The Lancet, a non-trauma-focused therapy, TM, could
be a promising option for reducing PTSD symptoms into
the normal range in veterans with PTSD and serves as an
effective alternative for those veterans who choose not to
receive, or do not respond to, the common prolonged-
exposure-based PTSD treatments.

Military forces are entrusted with the duty of
safeguarding their nations. It is their responsibility to
rigorously explore practical, scientifically proven methods
to eliminate war and terrorism. Military personnel are
compensated for their service and the protection of their
countries. Given their funding for this purpose, we
believe it is incumbent upon nations’ Militaries to
establish IDT Prevention Wings within their armed forces.
We strongly encourage any military to promptly
implement the IDT approach to stabilize the volatile
situation in Sudan.

Ideally, a synchronized practice of IDT by 15,000
advanced TM meditators twice daily would suffice to
generate a global coherence effect, initiating a phase
transition towards lasting world peace across all nations.
Once this shift occurs, the military that first initiates such
a large deployment of IDT would gain international
recognition not only for fostering enduring peace
domestically but also for their pivotal role in averting
escalating global conflicts and potentially safeguarding
our endangered planet from extinction.

About the Authors:

Arlene J. Schar is the Director of Communications at the Center for Advanced Military

Science (CAMS).

Dr. David Leffler is the Executive Director at CAMS

(https://www.istpp.org/military_science/).