Significance Of Meditation (Part 4 Of 7)

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SIGNIFICANCE OF MEDITATION - (Part 4 Of 7)Meditation is a mind free from thoughts. Meditation is the heart of yoga, the roof of Sadhana, the master key to knowledge the stream of love, the sacrificial rite that earns the richness of the Guru's Grace. Meditation is also one form of the Guru. Many will ask now to meditate and for how long. These are primary and essential questions. It is said in the Gita. The vision of the Self is obtained through meditation. In the Srimad Bhagavata it says : "In the meditation the Sadhaka becomes the form of God."Just we have occupied in mundane activities, our mind also is immersed in love for God in meditation. When the mind becomes empty of thoughts and becomes one with the Self, we reach a very high state. So we must keep our mind empty. When we wakeup after sleep, we experience a few moments when our mind is free of thoughts. We should make

our mind peaceful and thought free, so that it becomes no different from the Self. This progress is to come in meditation.PART 4 Does Constant Meditation Develop Great Powers? "Constant meditation develops great powers. The letters of the Mantra become prominent and are flashed before the mental eye and they seem to burn like fire. Whenever repeated with an object in view, the object will be attained with the help of the Mantra which reveals itself as described above. Such a Mantra is usually known as 'Siddha Mantra'. When uttered, it is capable of producing the most extraordinary results. Similarly, when concentration is on a deity for a long time and according to a fixed procedure with devotion and under the guidance of a ,competent Guru, your Istha-Devata will be realised. This Deity reveals itself before the Sadhaka and offers him everything he desires. Your Istba-Devata never

leaves you and remains practically at your side always. The concentration should make you entirely oblivious of the surroundings and you should think of yourself as one with the Universal energy. Your mind should think of yourself as one with the Universal energy. Your mind should be akin to Susupti or deep sleep condition. When this is practised for a long time, certain signs appear before your mental eye and your Istha Devata show conclusively that the Sadhaka is progressing towards the realisation of your Istha Devata. The signs appear in five successive stages. The sign in the beginning is the vision of mirage. This gives place gradually in the second stage to a vision of smoke. In the third stage, the Sadhaka visualises bright sparks in the space in the form of fire flies. The form of light is seen in the fourth stage which is replaced in the fifth stage by a constant light like that of the

cloudless sky. That is to say, when meditation is practiced for a sufficient length of time, you see the vision of a constant light which does not revert to the other four inferior stages. The light referred here is the Light of Pure Satva. When the mind is deeply absorbed in that quality, then, indeed, does this condition of Light which is free from all pain follow. This is the Jyothi, light which is the sure sign of constant meditation on the deity can now be practised with confidence in order that the deity may appear before the Sadhaka in a vision. In the beginning the vision will appear, disappear and again reappear. By constant practice, the vision becomes permanent. Then you should have reached perfection when this state is reached. The deity will confer on you all that you desire and never leaves you. Thereby, you become endowed with supernatural powers and acquire control over the Law of

Nature. To attain the above, one must have enough patience, regular practice for years or perhaps for a whole life time. Everything depends on faith and Sadhana. The Sadhana is the greatest and most glorious mystic experience that can be attained in your life. Your life would be aimless without pursuit of Sadhana." These Golden words were preached by Sri Sankaracharya. Our sorrows are our teachers. We must wipe of our ignorance and passions. Ignorance is destroyed by wisdom. The desires and thoughts are to be understood. When we observe highly bright colours during our meditation we see a form in that colour. The brightness of the colour equals to that of the Sun. The colour depends on our thoughts. Each of Kama-Krodha etc. have a different colours. By identifying the colour.in the meditation, we can know what Guna is predorninant in our mind. After some time, these colours in meditation

embrace each other into one and we can see the form clearly. We must practise to identify this."Do Sadhana to experience the state of thoughtlessness (Nirvikalpa Sthithi) through meditation. This is definitely superior State. In the state of Nirvikalpa Samadhi, every thing appears as 'Brahmam'. When the illusion of life ceases we will experience the Supreme Knowledge that we are 'Para- Brahrna'. Our Ajnana will be burnt in the fire of that knowledge. We should not stop At that. We must further know that 'Paramatma' is in us only. This .can be realized by only Meditation. We must cry for God to experience His sweetness in meditation. Our sorrows drop off as we turn inwards deeply in meditation. If we meditate on Sri Sai Baba wholeheartedly, we shall have a blessed life. If we meditate on Baba through Nirvikalpa Samadhi, we will become eternal and prove to be the sole Supreme Consciousness.

If we have faith in Sri Sai Baba and meditate, our mind shall be pristine, pure (Suddha-Satvika) . If we thus meditate, we shall experience certain appearances such as Divine Light (Jyothi). Such appearances are proof that our mind is sanctified. Meditation does not mean a Karma done with the mind. Meditation is looking into all the transactions of Karma generated in the mind. This is the insight. The insight is the one that wipes out our defects. This deep insight removes our sorrows and worries. Meditative life is a blessed life and get Divine pleasure. We must always make ourselves Atma Vimarsha by recapitulating all that we have so far done in this birth. Baba said to one of His devotee : "Have complete faith in Me and give away your wants to Me. Who asked you to suffer? While I am showing the right path, you are going in a wrong way. If you have got confidence in Me, I shall reveal

all the secrets relating to My Philosophy. Perpetual meditation is the way of your life. Qualities like anger, grief, greed are making you restless. By constant meditation you can get rid them off. Selfless deeds and thoughts purify your mind. Practise this through your meditation." Baba also says - 'Those who take complete refuge in Me and think of Me always in meditation, they are able to see the Universe in their bodies and passions of mind as Chaitanya, but also 1 will show various colourful visions, sounds and other worlds in the meditation. To those who manage to see the external world as inert in meditation, 1 will slow to such people the place of 'Diwividhya Tyagi'. I am the 'Adwaitha Brahma'. Baba says: "If you meditate on Me with perseverance and concentration, you will get results. Such people can get over Maya or the 'Tri gunas'. I am responsible for well being of those who are

devoid of egoism and attachment. Treat pain and pleasure equally. Offer your mind and Buddhi to Me and then meditate with one-pointed mind. Some. of you are inviting your own down fall by practising sorcery against My devotees being foolishly prompted by arrogance, jealousy and hatred. All of you must meditate on Me, with firm faith that 1 am the father and mother of this Universe. Know that I am in those who meditate on Me, with complete faith, then they are in Me.' Sri Sai Baba always says: 'If one ever meditates on Me, repeats My name, sings My deeds and is thus transformed into Me, one's Karma is destroyed. I stand by his side always.' It was Baba's look out to see that His nature and attitude towards His devotees should be thoroughly well impressed upon devotees mind and look after their welfare. Baba had to repeat his efforts to ensure the thorough fixing of these valuable truths and

impressions in Chandorkar's mind. The most common and basic things one would include in the list of ordinary man's needs are water to drink and food to eat. By a kind act, act of Divine Providence, Baba provides these two to His devotees. In meditation, render your mind vacant and spirituous all of your senses. Then only the world outside will disappear. In order to reach the inner world, we transcend our mind and the senses. This is possible only in meditation. "Meditation' means - 'Releasing liberation from the shackles of the Finite into the freedom of 'infinite'. This process is called Meditation.The aim of meditation is to make contact with the Reality. This is possible only after the self of the body mind complex is duly penetrated. This is possible only when the subtle as well as the causal body surpasses, when the body-consciousness takes its place. Concentration

must not be mistaken for meditation. For concentration, things are important. Purity of consciousness moral awareness and spiritual discrimination. Concentration is below senses and meditation is beyond senses. If we are interested in meditation, we must undertake the journey from below the senses and beyond the senses. When we experience Blissful consciousness, that experience is meditation. When the individual awareness is released from the clutches of the body-rnind consciousness and loses its identity and rnerges with the Divine Consciousness, that is called meditation.So we must try to practise such meditation and thereby we will gain Moksha. Meditation is the name for a period of rest provided for the busy and wayward mind. The Vasanas i.e. recollection of past experiences, influences the thought process, ie. the mind plays the time and the body acts out the role

through five senses of Karma Indriyas. Detachment of the mind from the Sense,objects as well as the relief from the consequent mental agitation, are essential for success in meditation. We must be vigilant, never lose our temper, avoid pride, and tendency of fault finding of others. A sense of joy is necessary for concentration and, meditation. Jai Sai RamSwamy MahadevanBow to Shri Sai-Peace be to allBaba Bless you ever!!!