20/05/2020
In meditation there is no room for coarse feelings. The mind must be absolutely clean and purged of the acts of “seeming love” and “showing hate.” Both are evils. Only when the mind has been purged of them can you meditate with confidence. At that point you will be glorified by the fruits of this divine exercise of meditation.
MEDITATION
When you have decided to meditate, the first important thing that has to be settled is the seat (asana), i.e. the place where you choose to sit for meditation. Here on this seat you have to sit absolutely motionless like a rock, with no movement of your body. You should not twitch your eyelids, move your lips, scratch your ears or nose, yawn or belch. You should be like a frozen body, absolutely motionless.
It matters little in the beginning if thoughts continue to stream through your mind, rising and passing away. At this point you should simply avoid physical distractions such as moaning and sneezing. In an hours time you will feel your mind has started settling softly into a subtle state of thought and mood. Gradually you will experience your mind moving quickly into the domain of meditation filled with peace and rest. Here your mind will become one-pointed and subtle.
In the Bhagavad Gita the Lord says:
“As the wandering mind will never remain on one point You must be ever vigilant, and whenever it strays bring it under control and fix it again towards God Consciousness.”
You need not struggle to fix your mind upon that point from which it has begun to waiver. You need only sit still with one-pointed effort, and in one hour’s time you will understand and experience the bliss of the dawning of awareness.
“You must sit erect for meditation with enough strength to maintain that position, and at the same time you must fix your gaze in the direction of the tip of your nose in order to restrain your eyes from wandering.”
(Bhagavad Gita)
The posture has to be quite steady, straight and motionless. It must be one-pointed, with the mind fully concentrated on the guru-shabda or guru-dharana. Though the literal meaning of the text is that the aspirant should direct his sight in the direction of his nose, it may also be taken to refer to concentration on the word of the Master (guru-shabda), the resonance of unlimited I-consciousness which He embodies and which is to be found in the junction (sandhi). This state of concentration can be achieved if you have freed your mind of all domestic worries, finished your daily routine activities, and have had your full dose of sleep. Your mind must be absolutely free from all preoccupations, then alone will you be able to see inside yourself and meditate without deviation.
“At the time of meditation your mind must be serene and free from the intimidation to meditate. You must be determined with devotion to discover God Consciousness. In this state your mind is to be continuously directed toward God Consciousness.” (Bhagavad Gita)
In this verse the Lord is telling you that you must be serene, fearless, and determined in order to achieve your goal. You should be subdued in mind, at harmony and in peace; with devotion you should meditate with vigor. There should be no outside pressure for you to meditate. It should be an out-flowing of your own desire.
From the above verse observance of Brahmacarya means full of devoutness and engrossment in thought. It does not mean you have to embellish yourself with a saffron robe, keep a long tuft of hair on your head or a large mark on your forehead; or wear a garland and cover your forehead and body with ashes. “Continuously directed towards God Consciousness,” refers to full devotion in the act of meditation leading to one-pointlessness and ultimate Awareness. But this is only the physical posture for meditation. There is also an internal posture, which enables the mind to be one-pointed towards and in awareness.
SWAMI LAKSHMANJOO
