A lot of people ask me what type of meditation to practice…which technique to follow.
- Somehow various ‘techniques’ of meditation have been branded all around by various meditation gurus. Those are merely induction techniques for trance. Not meditation itself.
- Some people would say ‘meditate on this’ this and confuse meditation with contemplation or focus techniques. If you are meditating ‘upon’ something, whether something from a scripture or a word or mantra, that’s not meditation.
- Some books and authors have confused meditation with visualizations. A lot of groups and individuals have practiced what they called ‘guided meditation’. Well that is not meditation either.
- Some people thought meditation is breathing techniques. That s part of yoga but not meditation itself.
- Others confuse meditation with yogic postures or various types of yogas. Some think kundalini and chakra work is meditation. All these techniques are wonderful for wellness and healing but are not meditation itself.
- Chanting, singing, praying are all nice but they are not meditation either.
Meditation is our inner natural state. It is when we are simply observing our inner silence. Meditation literally means going within. If you are focused on anything external it is not meditation. Thoughts are not us. We are something even deeper within.
Think of an onion and you are peeling the layers of an onion. Beyond body, beyond emotions, beyond your wishes and dreams, beyond your thoughts playing in the mind, beyond the mind…Going to the deepest part of you. That is our real self and meditation is the way to our real self.
You have to let go of those chanting, affirmations, visualizations, and all those techniques and simply be in inner silence.
Really go off the GRID of all those mental projections which we believe to be ‘reality’. If your thoughts are playing in your mind keep practicing …half and hour to one hour a day…until you are able to quieten your mind. You will be. It does not depend on what you wear, what music you play outside, which incense you light, what crystals you decorate yourself with. Those things can create the mood, but meditation has only to do with finding time for yourself. Dedicate time…its called ‘sadhna‘. Find time off those facebook and twitter feeds and those numerous chores and tasks of daily life. Really dedicate time for YOURSELF and be with yourself. That’s the only ‘technique’.
Your practice will start to give results when your thoughts reduce significantly. You will be less mind-full and more ‘mindful‘. This is ‘dhyana‘.
Once you achieve the state of ‘dhyana‘ you will slowly find the space between your thoughts getting longer. Stillness. You will be quiet for the first time. Not just on the outside but inside. Free of thoughts. That’s the ‘no-mind‘ awareness. Coming to the point of nothingness or ‘shunyata‘. That’s where the true self is found. It is who we are without all those ideas of who we are. Without our egos and self-identities. It is the real self common to us all. This is where we are all connected as one. So take off all those masks of imagined perceptions and ‘know thyself‘.
To be with our real self is so blissful, you would not want anything else. There is great peace and real happiness. Not just momentary pleasure but real inner joy. This is the most positive state ever. For the first time you are in touch with yourself. Our true self is divine. Self realization is God-realization. That is the real Goddess energy and the real Christ consciousness. No religion, no prayer, no ritual can give it to us. It is our common spiritual reality where everything and everyone converges. There is no describing how positive and peaceful it can be, you have to experience it yourself.
Don’t give up if you don’t get this instant ‘nirvana’. It is not the false high you get through a drink or a drug. Its not like typing into google and finding what you are looking for. No-one out there can give you the answer to who you are. You cannot pay someone to find you YOUR inner bliss and inner contentment. No healer or guru can do it for you. No witch can cast a spell and send you real happiness. Find yourself. Do not wait for someone to come and open the ‘crown chakra’ for you. That door opens only with your inner key.
Once you do find your inner self, be with yourself and stay with yourself, you will love being with yourself. No longer are you dependent on friends, society, community. No longer are you looking for a soulmate or trying to find love or acceptance. No longer do you need anything or anyone to complete you. Stop wandering around looking for something to do, someone to talk to…and meditate.
Your inner self is peace, bliss and truth. Give yourself time. Be with your inner self more often. You will slowly get established in your inner self. That’s ‘samadhi‘. Even in the outer world you can be in touch with your inner self, constantly. With time you begin to integrate with your real self it in non-dual awareness. Self-aware and awakened, not divided anymore but one complete whole.
If you are looking for ‘benefits’ in meditation then let me tell you, there is nothing else but meditation that truly sets us free. You can cast spells and do all those new age magick that you love and enjoy everyday. But meditation is the way to find the truth. Its not just something you use for gaining power, getting richer, getting success, getting love or fame…PLEASE do not meditate for those reasons. Its time not to be stuck at those worldly desires. You are on the right path if and only if you are interested in being one with the TRUTH. That’s called being spiritual.
If there is one thing and one thing alone that can really heal the world it is meditation. If there are problems in our life, in our society, in the world, it is only because of lack of meditation. There is no dis-ease, no worry, no struggle, no fight or strife any more once you are well integrated with the inner truth. If we could all meditate a bit more and a bit more…and a bit more…we will automatically find everything that is necessary for the world today.
The truth makes us free. That is the only path to REAL-ization. While thoughts and ideas are illusions, truth is only found in silence. That’s the only time we are COMPLETELY with our pure and natural self. I hope you enjoy meditating and being with the truth within.
Happy Earth Day and Full Moon.
Blessed Be!
Swati Prakash 