How to Meditate
Whenever it fits your schedule, you should meditate every day for at least 10 minutes. Some people find that beginning the day in a state of peace and silence makes the whole day go better. Some people find the best time is in the evening, where the soothing effects help take them into deep and nourishing sleep. And many people meditate both morning and evening and include some cleansing techniques with the evening meditation.
The meditation is a deceptively simple process and takes the form of sitting quietly to allow the Kundalini to rise from its seat at the base of the spine to the top of the head – along the central spiritual ‘channel’ inside all of us. Again many literary works dealing with Yoga describe this subtle road map; this is knowledge which has been available for thousands of years, not merely a few centuries!
This Kundalini energy cleanses the individual’s chakras – or spiritual energy centres – and leaves the person in a profoundly peaceful and relaxed state. Various additional techniques of meditation, designed to make it easier for the practitioner to attain this state of thoughtless awareness, are taught as part of the classes. These include simple mantras and hand movements which encourage the cleansing activity in the chakras.
Going deeper in meditation is not something that we can force along. It is simply a matter of allocating a few minutes every day when we can sit quietly, do nothing and experience the power of pure introspection. By doing this, over time we will notice that our meditation becomes more effective and the benefits more tangible.
To start
Find a place in your home where you can sit comfortably without being disturbed, preferably somewhere that you can use regularly. It is not necessary to sit on the ground, you can use a chair or sit anywhere as long as you are comfortable. Try and ensure that you minimize the potential for distractions by e.g. turning on the answering machine before you start off. It helps to have a lighted candle in place in front of your position, alongside a small photograph of Shri Mataji or chart of the subtle system.
If you are meditating for the first time you may find it difficult to sit still or take your attention inside as you close your eyes, but do not worry, this will improve with practice.
Settling Down
Once you have settled down, take your attention slowly to the top of the head. At this point we can use the affirmations we use in the public meetings to help us focus our attention inside, or we can simply say to ourselves silently ‘please may I go deeper into meditation’ a few times.
After a few moments we may feel tingling, cool or heat on our fingers or a slow ripple of movement along the spine as the Kundalini starts to rise from the base of the spine to the top of the head. It helps if we try and ignore these sensations to start with, since we are trying to achieve a state of thoughtlessness, where we are not dragged along with our thoughts but simply watch them float into and out of our consciousness.
Going deeper
After a few minutes we may notice that while we are sitting more peacefully, thoughts are still flowing through our minds. This is quite natural and we shouldn’t think that the meditation isn’t working simply because of this continued thinking. Just bring our attention slowly back to the top of the head and try to keep it there. In fact it will take quite a bit of practice before we are likely to notice a significant slowing of the flow of thoughts, but we will experience the benefits of our meditations long before that time.
Finishing up
Once we have been sitting for 10 to 15 minutes or so, we can slowly finish the session.
For reading the complete article please go to www.freemeditation.ca.