Supreme Stress Management

        MEDITATION        

BY DIVINE ASTRO, YOUR SPIRITUAL CARE TAKER 

What is Meditation? How is it beneficial to human life ? What are the techniques to be adopted in meditation? Is there any risk management to be followed during meditation? Let us see one by one.

The Meditation is the continuous thinking over one subject of your choice. It should be like the streak of oil which flows continuously and it should not be like that of dropping of water. The synonym for the term meditation in Sanskrit is Dhyana which is the highest form of concentration. The mind is like a monkey. It will jump from one tree to another and from one branch to other branches. First you should tie the monkey to a particular tree so it can not go to other trees and its movement is arrested to a single tree, of course it is free  to climb from one branch to another branch. Like wise you should fix your thought to single object and let your thought be focused on the object only. For example if you are concentrating on a ROSE, think of the whole rose .. its sepals , petals etc., Now when you begin to concentrate on a single petal , the other remaining parts of the rose will automatically vanish from your mental picture. This is the power of concentration. The term meditation is used in relation to controlling and disciplining the mind by yoga practices. According to the great saint Pathanjali who compiled the YOGA SUTRAS, an exhaustive work in Hatha Yoga,    the yoga comprises of EIGHT FOLD procedures and the , meditation forms last but one step out of eight-fold procedures. which is popularly known as ASTANGA YOGA  which comprises of :

1)Iyamas 

2) Niyamas 

3)Asanas 

4)Pranayama

5)Pratyahara 

6)Dharana 

7)Dhyana (Meditation)

8) Samadhi. 

So Meditation ( Dhyana) comes as the seventh step of Yoga. When we speak about Meditation it simply starts with  concentration, and after wards it is the final transcendental state of samadhi. ( the motionless,  thoughtless and ever lasting living stage) Now let me give some of the  basic code of ethics that are to be followed for the safest meditation practice

 a) to lead an ethical and simple life, b) to do regular breathing exercise which I am going to describe in the coming page to regulate  prana by means of which you can get final control over your FIVE SENSES c) to withdraw sensory organs from the worldly  objects.

GUIDELINES FOR MEDITATION

SIMPLICITY: It is preferable to  lead a pure and simple life as far as possible. Food should be small in quantity at a time, and meat, alcohol, and smoking is best avoided. Adequate sleep is necessary. Virtues such as truthfulness, continence, non-injuring others by words or deeds, and prayerful attitude are helpful. ( If it is not possible to give up meat, alcohol and smoking abruptly, the quantity and frequency can be reduced.) I have seen many of my friends who are used to take meat by their family custom  have switched over to pure vegetarian diets and now they are having aversion even to taking eggs or edible preparations  like cake which are supposed to have egg as one of the ingredients.Really they are very great.

2) SELF RESTRAINTTry and cut down a few unnecessary desires and requirements if possible which in one way will cut down your monthly budget and which will be the first step for leading a simple life. Perform one selfless act daily, or at least once a week. Such act as helping old person cross road, nursing the sick, or feeding the invalid. Even allowing someone to overtake you on a highway will do.

3) TIMING: The best time for meditation is early morning and evening when nature is tranquil and quiet. Twice a day practice is preferred but morning meditation alone is quite sufficient to begin with.

4) NEAT AND TIDY:It is preferable to take shower before sitting for meditation. Clothes should be light and loose, preferably cotton. It is better not to eat anything before meditation, but exception can be made for a cup or glass of water or fruit juice.

5) It is better to decide before the start of practice the object of meditation. A spiritual teacher best suggests this, but for want of the same, one can choose the form of one's liking and inclination If this is not desirable or one's constitution does not approve of meditation with form, one may choose vastness of sky or the ocean as the object of meditation. Or else, pure formless meditation can be attempted that includes meditation on a thought or an idea of Absolute Beauty, Bliss, Ethics, Nature etc.,

6) PLACE: To begin with, choose a quiet room or a corner of any room as the place for meditation. Install a photo or image of your chosen ideal or the symbol, if you have decided to meditate with form.
Sit cross-legged on a thin small mattress (2 feet by 3 feet) or on  a small mat in a comfortable posture that allows you to be stable with least movements for some time, say 30 minutes. Spine and the back should be held straight.

7) You may light incense stick and/or offer flowers to your chosen ideal who is symbolized in the form of a photo or image or an idol. It is just to create a congenial atmosphere. If you are allergic to odor please don't do this, because the meditation should not be disturbed in any manner.

8) "SARVE JANA SUKINO BHAVANTHU": Then close your eyes and pray for the welfare of all. Like, pray, 'let all noble thoughts come me from all over the universe. Let there be peace and bliss all around. Let all beings be joyful and happy'.

9) OM SANTHI: Now, think of pure space in the region of your heart. Imagine that it is all peaceful, vast, and effulgent. The light is cool and blissful. Those who meditate with form should think that the effulgence is in the form a lotus with eight petals. In the center of this illumined lotus there is another blissful effulgent form of their chosen deity or symbol. Those who practice meditation without form should think of uniform blissful effulgence.

10) LIGHT EVERYWHERE:Gradually think and imagine that the light is spreading all around and occupying the inside of thoracic cavity. It is filling chest inside. Continue to see this effulgence spreading to abdominal cavity reaching towards thighs, legs, and feet.

11) Think of the similar spread to shoulders, arms, hands, head, neck, and face.

12) Now your whole is filled with radiant blissful light.

13) Next, imagine this effulgence spreading outside your body; above your head, below your seat, to the right and left, and in front and back. From all side this wonderful calming effulgence surrounds you.

14) Continue as long as you can. Initially the mind  will not co-operate with you and it will agitate. Various unthinkable thoughts will crowd your mind. The thoughts of lust, hatred, cruelty, thoughts regarding your office or home, wife (or husband, or friend), children, past experiences, etc. will spring up from no where. This all may frighten you. The best course is to ignore these thoughts. Just observe them as a witness. Do not loose your heart and fight them. Gradually with perseverance over  a period of many weeks the mind will come under your control and a true Meditation will become a reality.

15) Continue to sit in a relaxed frame of mind for five to ten minutes before you leave the room. During this period you may say prayers, sing a song in the praise of the Lord, or read some good text from Baghvat Gita , Bible or any other Holy Book.

16) KEEP COOL:Do the same practice everyday about same appointed hour on the same mattress. Do not use that mattress for any other purpose. It is best to switch off your mobile phone etc. However, do not get irritated if visitors ring the door bell or the phone rings abruptly. Take it as a divine interruption, and accept all the weaknesses of self and others as natural.

17) Initially one may become slightly more irritable, but within a few weeks you start feeling better in your body and mind. But mental tranquility and physical fitness are not the goal of meditation. These are all good side effects. The goal is to get glimpses of our true nature, that is Divinity. It takes about three years of regular practice for the desired results to become visible.