“The thing about meditation is that you become more and more you.”
– David Lynch
As a beginner, just before you actually start meditating, a basic question that your mind loves to pop-up is “Is there really something called meditation? In case it exists, does it really work or is it just a fairy tale made famous by some so-called mystics?”
Eventually, after gaining some knowledge (only knowledge and NOT the experience yet), you become convinced that yes, meditation is very much a reality and that once you start meditating, all your queries and doubts will be answered automatically.
However the contrary happens. A few days/months into meditation, only the ‘kind’ of questions raised by your brain changes, but the quantum of doubts keeps on increasing.
Since you are putting in sincere efforts and you follow proper techniques (at least you think so), obviously you expect results and when the same aren’t delivered, you get a little depressed thinking, “Oh it’s not working, maybe it’s not meant for me, maybe I am not the chosen one .”
Lets try to figure out what exactly is happening by considering the statements made by people in the above situation :
# 1. “When you say meditation, what exactly has to be done?”
You don’t have to do anything. Just sit for meditation with your eyes closed or open, whatever way suits you (though initially I would recommend closed eyes). Always remember the thumb rule for meditation – daily, just sit and do nothing for a few minutes!
When I say do nothing, it means no action in thoughts as well. However that doesn’t imply that you start controlling or stopping your thoughts while meditating. No, that’s just not possible. What I mean is to try to gradually slow down the jugglery of mind to a minimum.
# 2. “I have been trying to do meditation but nothing is happening despite my sincere efforts.”
Nothing will happen. No magic is going to happen. In fact, the very purpose of meditation is to converge towards this nothingness (Shunya / Zero). So don’t expect anything.
Always remember the basic rule of meditation – don’t seek anything, just be! Just keep doing meditation, accepting it as a mandatory routine without thinking “What will I get in return?” Besides, stop ‘trying’ to meditate, daily just sit and do nothing for a few minutes!
# 3. “I sit quietly in the lotus posture for a long duration but I am still not getting peace of mind.”
Well that’s because you are doing a kind of trade here by seeking the peace in return for doing meditation. It’s like you are making a conscious effort to achieve something while pretending to be seated and doing nothing. It doesn’t work like that . This sub-conscious and desperate desire to be peaceful is exactly what is stopping you from being peaceful.
Keep sitting in Dhyan and as the self-realisation gradually seeps in, the feeling of peace, joy and blissfulness will definitely prevail. But don’t make this peaceful or joyful state your goal. As I have told you, daily just sit and do nothing for few minutes .
# 4. “I meditate regularly, yet I am unable to manage my anger.”
Stop managing your anger as in any case, it’s just impossible to manage it from the outside. You might suppress your anger for say 20 days by saying to yourself ‘Oh, since I am doing meditation, I don’t have the right to be angry anymore’, but it will eventually come out as a volcano on day 21 for sure, because the only way out is in.
Just keep on meditating and eventually, as your inner self starts helping you realise the reality, all these strong emotions of hatred, anger, etc. will automatically fade away. Until then, daily just sit and do nothing for a few minutes.
# 5. “Will meditation be of any help when practiced while living a married life?”
Just because you cannot stand first in the class, does not mean that you should not join the school.
In the journey to the peak (enlightenment), probably yes, you need to lead a life of ‘Vairagya’ because ultimately you are breaking all the boundaries of this physical world and looking beyond them. However, for people who want to do meditation but are already married or want to get married, there is absolutely no problem, because being on this path itself will liberate you to some extent, if not fully. This way, by the time you reach the retirement age, you would already be half-way there on your journey to liberation while most people will have to start afresh then. So, married or unmarried, daily just sit and do nothing for a few minutes .
Remember one thing: there is no fixed duration as to when the meditation will bear fruits. It can’t be fixed since it’s an out an out individual journey. Yes, the technique may be more or less the same, but the journey will be different, unique for every individual seeking truth.
So folks, carry on meditating !
