Relaxation Response: The concept that your muscles, which are doing nothing (i.e., relaxed) are doing something. That is, a non-response is a response. As an oxymoron, or contradiction in terms, the relaxation response represents a wickedly good approximation of unknown knowledge that has been affirmed by the silent applause of millions. In other words, if you get one oxymoron going why don't you string along more (like the ones in parenthesis)?
The concept of relaxation is simple. Sit around and do and think of nothing, and your muscles will relax. There's no magic here, since if your muscles don't need to do anything, they won't. However, if you start reciting a nonsense word, odds are you'll still be relaxed, but now you can attribute those good feelings to the magical powers of mumbling in silence. Herbert Benson, the cardiologist who 'discovered' this nonsense, discovered also that the principle of the relaxation response is just the ticket to coining money big time in seminars and books. So even though the relaxation response is no different than sitting quietly, there's money in the extra mumbling tacked on. Hence the relaxation response will be with us for quite some time to come.
