Aug 11, 1984

Happy Landings A Foam 'Flight Cushion' For Levitational Letdowns

Quentin Wood  Happy Landings
Quentin Wood

St. Louis Post-Dispatch
August 11, 1984
FAIRFIELD, Iowa 


(AP) Thousands of people who claim to be able to levitate owe their "happy landings" to Quentin Wood. 


Wood, 28, developed a foam "flight cushion" late In 1977, shortly after he said he had learned to levitate by taking a Transcendental Meditation-Siddhi course at Maharishi International University in Fairfield.

Adherents claim they can lift themselves off the ground while sitting cross-legged and practicing TM, a form of mind concentration.

"You could say I had a crash landing," Wood recalled, with a laugh. "I found I needed something to protect myself while I was doing the flying program." 

Wood said he had designed the high-density "portafoam" to give the flying meditator a maximum of "comfort and function." 

The design lends itself to flying in the cross-legged, lotus or kneeling positions, he said. The bottom of the cushion Is nylon for "smooth sliding over any surface," while the entire casing removes for easy washing, be said. All four sizes are equipped with adjustable safety belts. 

Wood used an $800 investment to begin producing and selling the product In 1978. By the end of the year, he had sold $65,000 worth of the cushions, he said. 

"Everyone (who levitates) uses foam or mattresses or something. These cushions really turned out to be the best They're very comfortable and very strong they have to be, they take a real beating," he said. 

Non-meditators are not allowed into the university's Golden Dome of Pure Knowledge, where mass levitations are reported to take place. That prohibition leads most non-meditators to be non-believers. But Wood Insists that levitation is for real. 

"Yeah, we do lift off. That's why we sell so many of these cushions. These cushions cost $50. No one is spending $50 on something they don't use. People are needing this product," he said. 

Wood estimates that he has sold 7,000 portafoams, called "Happy Landings," through the mail and out of his store In the past six years. He also sells several accessories, such as a $1 2 bag to carry the portafoam, and a "portapad" for levitating in rooms that already have foam or mattresses on the floor.