Meditacija: Bog govori a ja slušam, deo 1

Pitanje: Koji je najbolji način meditacije?

Šri Činmoj: Najbolji način meditacije je da osetite da ste došli iz Izvora. Taj Izvor je Blaženstvo. Kad meditirate, osetite da ste došli iz tog Izvora i da se tamo vraćate slavno i pobednički. Ovde na Zemlji igrate svoju ulogu i onda se vraćate Izvoru. Indijski spisi kažu:

```

Anandadd hy eva khalv imani bhutani jayante

Anandena jatani jivanti

Anandam prayantyabhisam visanti

Iz Blaženstva smo postali.

U Blaženstvu rastemo.

Na kraju našeg putovanja,

U Blaženstvo ćemo se povući.

```

Ovo je vrhunski način meditacije.

Pitanje: Kako da počnem da meditiram?

Šri Činmoj: Kao prvo, trebalo bi da proučite nekoliko duhovnih knjiga da bi dobili inspiraciju. To treba da budu knjige koje su napisali pravi duhovni Učitelji, a ne lažni duhovni učitelji ili aspiranti koji su još uvek na duhovnom putu i još nisu postigli prosvetljenje. Duhovne knjige i spisi će vam reći kako da fizički i mentalno disciplinujete svoj život, do izvesne mere. Ove knjige vam mogu pružiti pomoć na nekoliko dana ili nekoliko meseci.

Onda ćete shvatiti da vaše knjiško znanje o meditaciji nije dovoljno. Poželećete da imate solidno znanje o istinskoj meditaciji. Dakle, svaki pojedinac treba da ima svoju sopstvenu meditaciju. Ako hoćete da idete do kraja puta i da dostignete svoj unutrašnji Cilj, onda bi trebalo da imate pravu meditaciju svoje duše. Ova meditacija će vam pomoći da dosegnete suđeni Cilj. Biće vam potreban duhovni Učitelj, Učitelj koji vam može dati meditaciju u skladu sa osobinama vaše duše. Učitelj može tragaocu iznutra da kaže kako da meditira, tako što će zatražiti od tragaočeve duše da izađe na površinu i onda mu govoriti kroz njegovu dušu kako da meditira; ili mu Učitelj to može reći lično kada ga vidi. Ako Učitelj da tragaocu neku meditaciju, onda je to nesumnjivo najbolja meditacija koju aspirant može da ima.

Ako nemate duhovnog Učitelja, trebalo bi da zaronite duboko u sebe i da dobijete svoju meditaciju iz najvećih dubina svog srca. Meditacija koja vam odmah donese radost ili koja vam daje trajnu radost jeste najbolja meditacija za vas. Neće svi imati istu meditaciju. Vaša meditacija neće odgovarati meni, moja meditacija neće odgovarati vama. Vi volite određenu hranu, meni se ona ne dopada. Vi ste u pravu na svoj način, ja sam u pravu na moj način. Ali, kad jednom saznate koja je vaša najbolja meditacija, molim vas da je se držite. U svom umu ili u svom težećem biću, pokušajte da formulišete nekoliko meditacija. Danas možete da probate jednu vrstu meditacije, onda možete da pokušate sutra neku drugu vrstu meditacije. Ako imate sedam vrsta meditacije, možete probati po jednu svakog dana. Na kraju sedmice, ona meditacija koja vam daje najviše zadovoljstva ili trajne radosti biće vaša najbolja meditacija.

Čak i ako ne želite da proučavate duhovne knjige i ne marite za duhovnog Učitelja, onda bi, kao prvo i najvažnije, trebalo da držite svoj um mirnim i tihim i da dozvolite duši da kaže umu šta u stvari želi. Ako je um smiren, možemo da primimo svetlost duše umom. Svetlost ulazi u um i kroz srce. Kad imamo zajedničku meditaciju, onda meditiramo na taj način.

Ja uvek preporučujem da bi trebalo da vežbamo koncentraciju; u suprotnom naša meditacija nikada neće biti plodna. Kad sednemo da meditiramo, milioni misli i ideja ulaze u naš um i uznemiravaju nas. Trebalo bi da se koncentrišemo nekoliko minuta i da potom uđemo u meditaciju. Nekim tragaocima, koji su praktikovali koncentraciju i meditaciju duže vreme, koncentracija nije više neophodna, oni odmah ulaze u meditaciju. Nije lako imati smireni i tih um. To je veoma teško. To se može postići samo uz Božiju Milost i pomoću veoma iskrene težnje. Samo ako neko ima unutrašnji vapaj i ako Božja Milost siđe, samo tada se može praktikovati i postići prava meditacija.

Pitanje: Kad učimo da meditiramo, koju vrstu pitanja bi trebalo da postavljamo?

Šri Činmoj: Postoji nekoliko pitanja koja bi tragalac trebalo da postavi sebi kad uči da meditira. „Kako bi trebalo da meditiram?“ „Zašto želim da meditiram?“ „Koju vrstu meditacije želim?“ „Šta očekujem da ću raditi kad meditiram?" „Koliko iskreno sam prihvatio duhovni život?“ „Koliko sam vremena spreman da provedem?“ Međutim, kad postignemo najviši oblik meditacije, ne moramo da postavljamo nikakva pitanja. Najbolja vrsta meditacije je da se prevaziđe um. Trenutno iz uma dobijamo dobre i loše misli, ali će doći će dan kad ćemo morati da uđemo u najvišu Istinu. I tada nećemo dozvoliti nijednoj misli ili pitanju da uđu u nas.

Ako osećate da ste početnik, trebalo bi da kontrolišete um. Trebalo bi da nastojite da budete budni, sa otvorenim očima, i da fokusirate svu svoju pažnju na srce. Ako vam je cilj da imate samo malo mira u umu ili malo harmonije u svojoj porodici, svesna volja vašeg srca je sve što je za to potrebno.

Ako ste već meditirali niz godina i osećate da nipošto niste početnik, onda će vam jedino vaša dinamička volja pomoći da dosegnete svoj Cilj. Ako kažete: „Hoću da imam najvišu meditaciju da bih mogao da ostvarim Boga Apsoluta“, meditirajte na svoje srce. Ali, ako vam je cilj da dostignete Najviše, moraćete da budete po nekoliko sati dnevno u svojoj najvišoj meditaciji. Kad meditirate, kako da zaustavite funkcionisanje svog uma? Pokušajte da svesno izgubite svoju individualnost i ličnost. Ako uspete da ih svesno izgubite, duša vaše meditacije će se pobrinuti o prosvetljenju težnje vašeg života. Samo će prosvetljenje disati u vama i oko vas.

Pitanje: Voleo bih da znam kakvo učenje preporučuješ za postizanje dobrog stanja meditacije.

Šri Činmoj: Tu nema čvrstih pravila. Ne postoji jedan način meditacije koji bi svi trebali da praktikuju. Ti bi trebalo da meditiraš u skladu sa nivoom svog razvoja i u skladu sa potrebama svoje duše. Svaki pacijent dobija svoje lekove, svaki pojedinac ima svoj vlastiti način meditacije.

Kad god mi neki moj učenik dođe i kaže da još nije otkrio svoj način meditacije, ako vidim da je iskren, kažem mu da dođe kod mene. Prvo s njim meditiram nekoliko minuta i onda mu kažem kako da meditira. Ta meditacija je namenjena samo za tu osobu. Predana je u strogoj tajnosti. Ako on to kaže ostalima, neću ja biti biti na gubitku, nego on. Svaka osoba mora da ide svojim vlastitim putem tokom meditacije, zato što svako igra svoju određenu ulogu, ima posebnu misiju koju treba da ispuni na Zemlji. U Božijoj božanskoj Lili, Njegovoj kosmičkoj Igri, ne mogu svi da igraju ulogu kralja ili kraljice. Ali, svakom je dodeljena određena uloga. I da bi odigrao tu ulogu, svako mora da meditira u skladu sa svojom sopstvenom unutrašnjom potrebom.

Neki tragaoci osećaju da im u stvari treba ljubav i posvećenost Bogu. Oni osećaju da je ulazak u mentalni svet, odnosno pristup Bogu kroz um, gubljenje vremena. Ovi tragaoci se mole srcem. Ali, neki drugi možda vole da se mole pomoću uma. U osnovi, ako neko želi da bude blizak sa Bogom, kao dete sa majkom, onda treba da mu priđe srcem. Ako neko želi znanje i mudrost Boga, ako neko želi da zna šta se dešava na nekoj određenoj ravni i slično, onda mora da mu priđe umom.

Kad se dosegne Bog, kad neko ima Boga, put se završava. U tom trenutku ne kažemo: „Došao sam ovim putem, a on je došao onim putem“. Kad jednom uđemo u Božju Svest, stičemo dobrobiti svih puteva. Odnosno, ako ja sledim put posvećenosti a ti slediš put uma, kad dosegnemo krajnji cilj, dobijamo istu stvar. Ipak, trebalo bi da sledimo jednu određenu stazu skladu sa svojim sklonostima. Postoje razni načini. Ti moraš da ideš svojim putem, a ja moram da idem svojim putem. Ali, na kraju dolazimo na isti cilj.

Pitanje: Da bi se praktikovala meditacija sa nekim Učiteljem, da li savetuješ da se odustane od svih drugih duhovnih staza?

Šri Činmoj: Kad se praktikuje duhovna disciplina pod vođstvom duhovnog Učitalja, uvek je preporučljivo da se sledi isključivo njegov put. Kad ste jednom prihvatili njegov put, trebalo bi da odustanete od svih drugih puteva. Ako ste zadovoljni tim Učiteljem a i dalje tražite novog Učitelja, pravite grešku i postupate budalasto.

Jedino što znam

```

Bože, ja poučavam,

Zato

Što je to jedino što znam.

„Sine, ja učim

Zato

Što je to jedino što znam.“

Bože, ja Te osuđujem

Zato

Što je to jedino što znam.

„Sine, ja ti opraštam

Zato

Što je to jedino što znam.“

```

Pitanje: Kako bi trebalo da meditiram ako to nikad ranije nisam radio?

Šri Činmoj: Prvo pokušaj da se umiriš i utišaš bar tri puta tokom dana: ujutro, u podne i uveče. Ne moraš, u stvari, da praktikuješ nikakvu meditaciju. Samo oseti da tih pet minuta pripadaju tebi i nikom drugom. Ponašaj se kao škrtac. Oseti da nećeš dati tih pet minuta nikome, ni svojim rođacima, ni svojim prijateljima, ni svojim neprijateljima – nikome. Tih pet minuta su samo tvoji. Kad si sam sa sobom, to ne znači da si sa sebičnim egom. Ovde „ti“ označava tebe u tvom najvišem obliku. Tvoj najviši oblik je Bog, a ti izrastaš u taj najviši oblik.

Ako imaš prijatelje koji znaju da meditiraju i ako s njima meditiraš, onda, čak i nesvesno, tvoje unutrašnje biće dobija od njih inspiraciju. Ako si vrlo iskren tragalac, onda ćeš dobiti pomoć svesno, u obliku inspiracije od svojih prijatelja koji sede pored tebe. Naučićeš razne stvari od svojih duhovnih prijatelja. Moć meditacije u tebi će se automatski uvećati.

Moraš da znaš da, što se tebe tiče da tvoja moć meditacije trenutno nije dovoljno snažna da bi mogao neprestano da meditiraš značajno dugo, petnaest minuta ili pola sata. Ali, glavna stvar je da se ne obeshrabriš. Kad počneš da radiš neke vežbe, ne možeš to da radiš duže od pet minuta. Ali, ako budeš vežbao svakog dana, onda ćeš za nekoliko meseci moći da vežbaš sat ili dva. Ono što nam je potrebno je redovno vežbanje u utvrđeno vreme. Ako možeš da meditiraš rano ujutro u određeno vreme, onda pokušaj da nastaviš meditiraš svakog dana baš u to vreme. U to vreme, Bog će pokucati na vrata tvog srca. Otvori ih i On će ti ponuditi Svoj Mir, Svetlost, Blaženstvo i Moć.

Redovnost je neophodna. Međutim, iako smo redovni, možda nećemo svoju meditaciju staviti na prvo mesto. Ali, ako budemo cenili svoju meditaciju i ako budemo iskreni i od sveg srca posvećeni svom duhovnom životu, automatski će se moć naše meditacije uvećati.

Molim Te, obrati se

```

Moj slatki Gospode,

Molim Te, obrati se mom unutrašnjem oku.

Odmah ću se probuditi.

Moj slatki Gospode,

Molim Te, obrati se mom unutrašnjem uhu.

Odmah ću odgovoriti.

Moj slatki Gospode,

Molim Te, obrati se mom unutrašnjem umu.

Odmah ću primiti.

Moj slatki Gospode,

Molim Te, obrati se mom unutrašnjem srcu.

Odmah ću postići.

Moj slatki Gospode,

Molim Te, obrati se mom unutrašnjem životu.

Odmah ću se predati.

```

Pitanje: Nikad pre nisam bio u tvom Centru. Pročitao sam nekoliko knjiga, ali sam početnik u meditaciji.

Šri Činmoj: Došao si prvi put, pročitao si mnoge knjige, ali nisi ranije meditirao. Knjige su ti dale inspiraciju da uđeš u oblast težnje. Ovde svi težimo da dosegnemo Najviše i da ispunimo Najviše.

U duhovnom životu, kad si u prisustvu duhovnog Učitelja, primaš u skladu sa svojim kapacitetom prijemčivosti. Ti si početnik, ali to ne znači da će ti nešto biti uskraćeno. Svako je jednom bio početnik. U bilo kojoj školi, početnik ne može da sedi zajedno sa nekim ko je daleko napredniji, jer se njihove lekcije ne bi slagale. Ali, u duhovnom životu, moramo da osećamo unutrašnje jedinstvo sa onima koji su ispred nas. Takođe, moramo da osetimo koliko daleko i koliko duboko želimo da idemo.

Onima koji su moji učenici nisu potrebne posebne meditacije, jer sam ja preuzeo odgovornost za njihove meditacije. Kako? Pojednostavio sam stvar. Postoji moja fotografija u mojoj najvišoj transcendentalnoj svesti. Tragalac bi uvek trebalo da meditira na ono što ga najviše inspiriše. Baš zato što sam njihov Učitelj, moji učenici dobijaju ogromnu inspiraciju kad meditiraju na tu sliku. Svako ko je posmatra sa ljubavlju, radošću i posvećenošću, bez obzira da li je početnik, bez obzira koju stazu sledi, baš zato što je ta osoba tragalac, moja unutrašnja svest će mu otvoriti vrata. Na našem putu, ja preuzimam odgovornost za meditaciju svakog ko se redovno, posvećeno koncentriše nekoliko minuta i ulazi u moje treće oko. Ako je duhovni tragalac usklađen sa mnom tokom njegove meditacije kod kuće, ja ću odmah osetiti glas koji dolazi iznutra i govori mi da je ta i ta osoba meditirala u to vreme i tako dalje.

Ti si početnik, ali to ne znači da ćeš biti osuđen na razočaranje. Tvoj iskreni vapaj može učiniti da zaplivaš u moru težnje. Najlakši način za moje učenike je da se koncentrišu na moju sliku. Možeš to da probaš samo nekoliko dana. Ako imaš veru u mene, što je od najvećeg značaja, uveravam te da tvoj život stvarne težnje može da počne odmah. Tvoja vlastita iskrenost će lako ubrzati tvoju unutrašnju potragu za krajnjim ostvarenjem. U ovom trenutku si početnik. Narednog trenutka nećeš biti početnik. Početnik je kap. Ako kap svesno ubaci svoje postojanje u okean, onda početnik odmah postaje stručan, napredan i kompletan tragalac.

Pitanje: Da li je dobro da budemo sa drugim duhovnim ljudima?

Šri Činmoj: Ako imaš Učitelja, onda će njegovo unutrašnje vođstvo ojačati tvoju težnju. Ali ako nemaš duhovnog Učitelja, onda moraš da čitaš knjige koje su napisali duhovni Učitelji i da se družiš sa tragaocima, sa duhovnim ljudima. Postoje mnogi drugi koji tragaju i upražnjavaju meditaciju, ali nemaju Učitelja. I u duhovnom životu takođe važi izreka: „Svaka ptica svome jatu leti“. Ako pored tebe sedi lopov ili neki drugi nitkov, tvoja svest će opasti zbog vibracija koje dolaze iz njega. Negativne, nebožanske sile će doći i napasti te. Ali, ako se družiš sa ljudima koji vode duhovni život i pokušavaju da ostvare Boga, onda će oni nesumnjivo ojačati tvoju težnju. Ako imaš veru i veruješ ljudima, onda će te njihovo prisustvo inspirisati. Ako sediš kraj duhovne osobe, ona će razmišljati o Bogu, meditirati na Boga, na božansku Ljubav i božanski Mir. I taj Mir i Ljubav će ući i u tebe. Tako da je najbolja stvar da se uvek družiš sa duhovnim ljudima koliko god je to moguće.

Pitanje: Dolazim na meditacije ovde na koledžu jednom nedeljno, ali osećam da mi je potrebno više duhovne hrane. Kad pokušam da meditiram sam, to je drugačije. Osećam da postoji nešto što gubim.

Šri Činmoj: Ti u stvari ne gubiš ništa. Kad četvoro ljudi rade istu stvar zajedno, oni i inspirišu jedni druge. To je kao povlačenje konopca. Kad meditiraš sa svojom grupom, tu je četvoro, petoro ljudi koji meditiraju zajedno nasuprot jedne jedine osobe: neznanja, dok si samo pojedinac kad meditiraš sam kod kuće, a neznanje je drugi pojedinac. Ne znaš ko će pobediti u povlačenju konopca. Kad četiri osobe povlače s jedne strane, a s druge strane je samo jedna protiv njih, onda znaš da će ove četiri osobe pobediti. To unutrašnje uverenje će te ohrabriti da dođeš i povlačiš zajedno sa drugima. Kad meditiraš sam kod kuće, boriš se sam protiv neznanja. Naravno da ćeš se brzo iscrpeti i potom osećati tužno i jadno i možda izgubiti interesovanje. Ali, ako budeš mogao da meditiraš sa ostalima, bićeš više siguran u to čime se baviš.

Pitanje: Zašto moramo da meditiramo svakog dana?

Šri Činmoj: To je jednostavno. Svakog dana jedeš, zato još uvek živiš na Zemlji. Ne možeš da živiš od hrane koju si jeo juče. Isto tako, božanskom detetu u nama potrebna je hrana svakoga dana. Svakoga danaa moraš da nahraniš svoju dušu. Meditacija znači da svesno hranimo naše duše. Ako jedemo svakog dan, postajemo snažni, zbog redovne ishrane. Isto tako, i kad meditiramo svakog dana, naša duša se nahrani. Ona, zatim, dobije priliku da se bolje ispolji, da ispolji Božansko na Zemlji. Zato je neophodna svakodnevna meditacija.

Bog i ja se sastajemo

```

Ujutru

Bog i ja se sastajemo

Da cenimo lepotu našeg rođenja.

Uveče

Bog i ja se sastajemo

Da se divimo kraju naše dužnosti.

Noću

Bog i ja se sastajemo

Da ovekovečimo život naše nužnosti.

```

Question: I have recently become your disciple. Does what you say about meditating when you get up apply to disciples or do you have a different standard for them?

Sri Chinmoy: I expect all my disciples to meditate in the morning before six-thirty. From two o'clock to six-thirty I concentrate on all my disciples. At that time my soul, my existence, my consciousness are responsible for feeding you. After six-thirty my inner beings take the responsibility. I am not saying that my inner beings are inferior to me; no, they are not. But if you want to give me joy in the physical mind, then please meditate before six-thirty. If you meditate after six-thirty my inner beings will have to take care of you. And again, if you meditate in the evening or at night, my inner beings and your inner being will commune.

Question: Why should someone meditating alone in his room be bothered by the agitation of the world outside in the street, especially if he can't hear it from his room?

Sri Chinmoy: Once the day dawns, Mother Earth becomes divinely energetic or undivinely restless. Especially in the West, because of its present dynamic nature, there is some feeling of irritation in the cosmos, or in the outer nature. These restless qualities of the world do not have to enter into you, but usually they do. When people move around, immediately their vibration enters into you, no matter where you are. The air, the light, has already been corrupted by human toil, human anxieties. The world is standing in front of you like a roaring lion. How can you enter into your highest meditation in front of a roaring lion? But, if you can meditate before nature starts functioning, when the cosmos is still and the entire universe is taking rest, then you will be able to get a more powerful concentration and a deeper meditation.

Why

```

I do not sing.

Why?

Because my Lord Supreme

Sings so soulfully.

If I sing, I shall only embarrass Him.

I think that is not fair on my part.

I do not dance.

Why?

Because my Lord Supreme

Dances so charmingly.

If I dance, I shall only embarrass Him.

I think that is not fair on my part. ```

Question: Why is it necessary to have flowers, incense and so forth in order to meditate?

Sri Chinmoy: When we offer flowers, when we burn incense, light candles and take a shower before meditation, we convince our physical that we are doing something. The outer life and inner life must always go together. But the outer is not the ultimate. The ultimate is inner aspiration, the mounting flame within us. We have to be aware of our aspiration, and then constantly go within and fly to the highest level of our consciousness. Flowers, incense and washing before meditation also help us to have purity. The purity of the body is of paramount importance in the spiritual life. It is in purity that God's breath abides. If physical purity is lacking, then it is simply impossible for the Divine to breathe in you. Purity demands cleanliness in the body. What we call cleanliness in the outer world we call purity in the inner world. So before you start meditation, no matter when you meditate, take a shower or wash your eyes, ears and nose and feet with cold water, and if possible use flowers and incense to create an atmosphere of purity.

Question: Should a person be alone when he meditates, or does it have anything to do with environment? Do you advise him to be in a big crowd or do you want him to shut himself away all alone?

Sri Chinmoy: He who meditates has to act like a divine hero. He has to serve and while serving he is guiding. He is serving the divinity in humanity. One has to face the world and not retire into the Himalayan caves. We have to act like divine heroes here amidst humanity. Humanity is part and parcel of God. By throwing aside humanity, how are we going to reach divinity, which is part and parcel of humanity? What we need is transformation. We have to accept the world as it is now. If we don't accept a thing how can we transform it? If a potter does not touch the lump of clay, how is he going to shape it into a pot? The world around us is not perfect, but we are also not perfect. Perfect Perfection has not yet dawned, but we expect to attain perfection through our meditation. How are we going to discard our brothers and sisters who are our veritable limbs? I cannot discard my arm. Similarly, when we meditate soulfully, devotedly, we have to accept humanity as our very own. We have to know that humanity as it stands is far, far, from perfection, but we are also members of humanity. We have to take it with us. If we are in a position to inspire others, if we are one step ahead, naturally we have the opportunity to serve the divinity in the ones who are following us. We have to transform the face of the world on the strength of our dedication to the divinity in humanity. Meditation is not an escape. Meditation is the acceptance of life in its totality, with a view to transforming it for the highest manifestation of the divine Truth here on earth.

Question: Can we meditate while lying down? Is this not the best way to relax?

Sri Chinmoy: For meditation you do have to relax. And for a spiritual person who has meditated for many years and knows how to meditate at his command, lying down and meditating for hours is no problem. But for the beginner, or for the person who is not advanced in meditation, lying down will present a problem. This type of meditation is not dynamic or active. His blood circulation will not function properly and a very subtle kind of drowsiness will attack him. But when he is in a sitting position, drowsiness cannot assail him. The very act of lying down takes us into the world of coma. Then what happens is that we feel we are meditating most sincerely and dynamically but we are wrong. I had a cousin who is now twenty-five or twenty-six years old. She used to tell us that every night she would meditate at least ten hours while lying down. My sisters used to enter into her room and find her snoring. They would then pull her hair, nose and so many things. But she would not wake up. The following morning she would say that she meditated the whole night. She did not have conscious meditation. It was an unconscious way of feeling that she was meditating. Meditation is very good; but this kind of meditation while lying down tends to lead towards self-deception about one's own spirituality. It is better to meditate while sitting or even standing. While walking up and down, to and fro, you can also meditate. I used to meditate in a very relaxed way two or three hours or more while walking very fast, like the marching of a soldier.

Two machines

```

Father, I need

From You only two machines:

Concern-machine

And

Compassion-machine.

"Son, you need two

Machines from me,

But

I need only one machine

From you:

Surrender-machine.

Let us give and take

And be all even." ```

Question: I don't seem to feel comfortable and relaxed while meditating in a sitting position.

Sri Chinmoy: Everybody has a room where he can meditate. He may not own a house or apartment but he certainly has a room. In one corner of that room he can have a shrine where he can sit and meditate. When the body feels uncomfortable it will change its position and it is up to you to keep it comfortable. If there is restlessness though, immediately relaxation goes away. If you constantly move from this side to that side, how can you have relaxation? In order to maintain relaxation one has to keep calmness in the body and avoid restlessness at all costs.

Question: Is the lotus position the most comfortable one for meditation?

Sri Chinmoy: According to some the lotus position is the most comfortable and again according to some it is not. The main advantage of the lotus position is that it helps the spinal cord to remain erect. Otherwise, the lotus position will not necessarily keep your body relaxed. We can stay for two or three hours in the lotus position, but if one wants to meditate for four, six or eight hours, I don't think he will be able to sit for that long in the lotus position, but he can make his body relaxed in many other ways such as walking in a relaxed manner or sitting in a relaxed manner.

Question: I read a book about concentration and meditation that said one should pay attention to the direction one faces while meditating, whether East, West, North or South. If one wants spiritual things and a quiet life, one should always face North. If one wants worldly things one should face East.

Sri Chinmoy: It depends on the individual. A sincere spiritual seeker who wants to realise God and God alone does not need any particular direction. He has to be infinitely above all such Indian traditional theories. For God-realisation what we actually need is aspiration in the purest sense of the term.

Question: I wonder if you could tell me something about inner discipline.

Sri Chinmoy: Discipline should come from inside. Outer discipline is necessary, but if there is no inner discipline, then outer discipline has no value. Outwardly I may be calm and quiet, but inwardly I can be cherishing all kinds of wrong thoughts. If you want spiritual discipline, then you have to know how to concentrate. Concentration is of paramount importance in disciplining us. Every day you eat. Every day you go to school and every day without fail you should practise concentration. What will you concentrate on? You will concentrate on the life that is fulfilling and not the life that is disturbing or destructive. What can build your life? Your cry for God. If you want to possess the world, then you will not be able to discipline yourself. If you want only to be possessed by the Inner Pilot, by the Supreme, then only you will be able to discipline yourself.

Question: To start meditation, do you discipline yourself through will or do you joyfully start?

Sri Chinmoy: The soul is a divine portion of God and is all joy and cheerfulness. Now, if you start your meditation through discipline and keep your body very tight and straight, as if a monkey who is full of evil thoughts is trying to bite or pinch you, it is wrong. By doing this you become afraid and you only keep yourself tense. What you should do when you meditate is to allow yourself to be relaxed, keeping the spinal cord erect. The best way is to meditate in the lotus position, but if you cannot do this, then just sit on a chair. God is all Love and Joy. The most effective way to please God and to become one with God is to approach Him through Love. And where there is Love, there is Joy. To go to my Father I do not have to cut off my hands or arms to show how self-disciplined I am. That is no discipline at all. Discipline comes through spontaneous love. When we allow our divine qualities to come to the fore, automatically the soul takes care of our outer life. We just have to go deep within and from there we shall have to bring out the soul’s poise. When the soul's poise comes to the fore, automatically the restless outer being becomes calm and quiet. So please try to meditate always with inner joy.

Three sons

```

Three sons:

The youngest, the middle and the eldest.

The youngest son said:

“Father is in Heaven.”

The middle son said:

“The Kingdom of Heaven is in your heart.”

The eldest son said:

“I and my Father are one.”

To the youngest son, the Father said:

“Son, thank you for your vision.”

To the middle son, the Father said:

“Son, thank you for your mission.”

To the eldest son, the Father said:

“Son, thank you for your union.” ```

Question: When you meditate, do you reject thoughts or do you think?

Sri Chinmoy: There are two types of thoughts: divine thoughts and undivine thoughts. If a thought is divine you can let it grow. Let the seed grow into a tender plant, and finally it will become a huge banyan tree. Undivine thoughts should be rejected altogether. If thoughts are undivine, you have to destroy them, or, if you are able to show abundant capacity, you should transform them. If you have the capacity to transform darkness into Light, you should do it, but if it is not possible, then you should always try to stay in the room where there is Light. Unfortunately, in the case of beginners I have seen that undivine thoughts always enter in. Fear, doubt, jealousy and hypocrisy enter into the beginner’s aspiring life, so it is advisable for a beginner to reject all thoughts mercilessly during meditation. For fifteen minutes he may cherish divine, aspiring, spiritual thoughts, and then in just a fleeting second an undivine thought will enter and his meditation will be ruined. The best thing for beginners is not to allow any thoughts, good or bad, during meditation.

What are you doing?

```

God, what are You doing

In Heaven today?

"Son, today I have decided

To please you in your own way.

Son, I am sincere."

"Son, what are you doing

On earth today?"

Father, today I have decided

To challenge You,

To equal You.

Father, I am serious. ```

Question: How do you go about emptying your mind in order to be able to meditate?

Sri Chinmoy: First, you have to aspire. Then, you have to make your mind vacant. You should not allow any thought to enter into your mind and take shape. Suppose a name comes. As soon as the first letter of the name appears, you kill the name. You have to make your mind vacant, as empty as possible.

Question: How do you do it?

Sri Chinmoy: With your power of concentration. Suppose a thought, or a vibration, or something else is coming. Immediately, shoot an arrow and pierce it into pieces. An idea comes, somebody's name comes, or some thought comes. Immediately, just throw it out. It must not come and enter into your mind. Before it touches your mind you have to cut it into pieces. But if you already have thoughts and ideas within you, within your body, within your mind, then you have to meditate like this: be as relaxed as possible. Feel as if you were inside the ocean. Then absorb those thoughts and ideas so they do not have a separate existence. They are lost in the sea. If they are already within you, throw them into the sea. If they are coming from outside, then do not allow them to enter into you. After doing this your meditation is bound to be successful.

Question: Can we do our meditation without doing concentration exercises first?

Sri Chinmoy: If you want to learn meditation without going through concentration, you must feel that you are standing at the door of your inner room. When you stand at the door you allow only your friends to enter into your room. You do not allow strangers or your enemies. You have to welcome only good thoughts, divine thoughts. These are your true friends. Undivine thoughts, hostile thoughts, must not come into your mind. Your mind is constantly receiving thoughts and you have to be very careful. You have to welcome only divine thoughts. Then play with these divine thoughts. Let them play in the garden of your mind. Play with thoughts of divine qualities, divine Love, divine Power or divine Peace. Let them play, let them grow. While playing you will grow into the divine aspects of Truth. Then a time will come when you will see that there are no thoughts, if you allow only divine thoughts to play within you. Your entire being will be surcharged with inner Divinity. Your consciousness at that time will try only to be receptive. And what will descend, what will enter into you? Truth in abundant measure, Light in abundant measure, Love in abundant measure, everything in infinite measure.

Question: I am a musician and I would like to know your ideas on concentration. When we study music we realise that we need a great deal of concentration. I would like to know how you develop concentration.

Sri Chinmoy: I would like to know what you mean by concentration.

Question: To me, concentration is awareness. The more I can concentrate on something, the more aware I am of it, the more I can grasp all the details. If I am not concentrating enough on something, I cannot understand it completely. I feel concentration also means leaving oneself a little to the side, but I would like to know your opinion.

Sri Chinmoy: Concentration is not the same as awareness. If you want to achieve extraordinary concentration, please try this. Take an idea and try to make this idea into a living being. Then place it on the wall at your eye level. If it is too difficult to use an idea, then take some material object and place it on the wall. Keep your eyes open. It is always better to concentrate with open eyes. Look at the object and start concentrating. Now enter into the object. You have to apply all your attention and pierce through the object to the other side. When you have gone to the other side, from there start concentrating. You are there, your body is here. You start concentrating from the other side and from there look at your own body.

First you try to focus your attention on a particular object, then you enter into it, then you go beyond it. At this time you become the witness, or sakshi purusha. This is real concentration. This is the secret of meditation. If you know it you can concentrate most effectively.

Sri Chinmoy: One's own witness.

Question: It is very difficult in that way?

Sri Chinmoy: It is difficult.

Question: It is as if you were there, standing there looking at yourself?

Sri Chinmoy: Yes, but first you have to enter into the object and then go beyond it. Then you come back to yourself and become the witness.

Why do you hide?

```

Lord, I seek and You hide.

I seek because without You

My life-flames do not and cannot burn.

Now Lord, tell me,

Why do You hide?

“Daughter, I hide because

My hiding intensifies your seeking.

It gratifies your loving,

Glorifies your achievement

And immortalises your enlightenment.”

```

Question: I'd like to develop better concentration so that I can keep my mind focused on one thought.

Sri Chinmoy: Before you start your meditation I wish you to repeat the name of God, "Supreme", about twenty times as fast as possible. First purify your breath by repeating "Supreme." The breath has to be purified; unless and until the breath is purified, the mind will wander and cannot remain one-pointed. If the breath is purified, then the mind will not act like a restless monkey.

Then I wish you to concentrate on your inner divinity. Always try to feel that you are safe when you are with God, with divinity. Let God and the divine qualities within you act against your human, undivine qualities. When you use the word "God," please try to feel your real love for God. When you are concentrating, feel that you are really growing into God, into the very breath of God. Then your concentration is bound to do something for you.

Next I would like you to focus your attention on a picture. You can look at my picture or you can look at yourself in the mirror. If you concentrate on your own reflection, try to enter into the image that you are seeing. You have to feel that you are totally one with the physical being that you see. From there you should try to grow. How will you grow? You will grow with one thought: God wants you and you need God. Repeat: "God wants me, I need God. God wants me, I need God." Please try to do this. Then you will see that slowly, steadily and gradually God the divine thought is entering into you and permeating your inner and outer existence, giving you purity in your mind, in your vital and in your body.

Question: How do you apply that way of concentrating to a chapter of a book that you have to study?

Sri Chinmoy: Do not take it line by line. When you concentrate on a chapter it will be several pages, but you can only see two pages at a time. But this is what you do. Suppose there are ten pages that you have to commit to memory. Just hold these pages; do not read them. Just enter into them and then go beyond them. Before you start reading anything in an ordinary way, word by word or line by line, just concentrate and take it as a whole object, not scattered lines or a series of lines. Then concentration is very successful. Then it becomes very easy to learn anything by heart. Here the witness is the person who does the concentration. When I was a student, at the age of fourteen or fifteen, in my history class I used to commit thirty or forty pages at a time to memory by the power of concentration. The teacher used to ask me, "How do you do it?" Of course, I could do it in various ways. There are a few Sanskrit mantras for this. If you just repeat these mantras four or five times, then just read any poem twice, a fourteen or sixteen or twenty-line poem, and you can easily prove that you have learned it by heart.

Question: I would like you to teach me that mantra.

Sri Chinmoy: When I was a student I had to study French. One of my sisters was very fond of me and at the same time she used to cut jokes with me. We had to learn a French poem, about twelve lines. I was the youngest, so naturally I was bragging, boasting, "Look, I can do it!" My sister also knew French well. She said, "No, you can never do it." So I said, "Look, I will read twice any poem that you give me. Then I will show you that I know it." She brought the book, and picked out a very difficult poem of sixteen lines. She said, "Now you have to prove that you read it just twice. You have to read it out loud, otherwise how can I know how many times you are reading it inwardly?" I said, "First give me a minute. When I start reading I will read it out twice, but before that you have to give me time to concentrate." So in front of her I concentrated. Then I said, "Now give me the poem." She brought it and I read it just twice and then I recited it. She was very pleased, and then she said, "Now teach me."

I said, "I am not the person to teach you."

The difficulty is that unless and until you are commanded by the inner being, or by God, you cannot tell these things. My sister is my dearest, but I cannot tell her because I am forbidden. In other things I can give my whole life for my sister, but this I am not permitted to tell. Once I gave this mantra to one of my friends, a most ordinary friend. He was a student, but he found it very difficult to memorise. He was very dull, so I taught him, gave him this knowledge. God asked me, otherwise I could not have done it.

Question: How can we meditate better each time?

Sri Chinmoy: You know that each time you take exercise your muscles become stronger and stronger. If you can do one push-up one day, the next day you will try to make it two push-ups, and then you go on and on increasing daily. You come to thirty or forty push-ups. Then a time will come when you can do fifty. Let us say fifty is your maximum, that is your highest. Then what will happen? The Grace of the Supreme will allow you to make it fifty-one. You see the world records in the Olympics. They are all broken. The Olympic record of four years ago is shattered like a piece of glass. So you should practise every day to transcend your previous achievement. If you want to make your meditation better, you have to feel a need, a divine need. You have to know how close you want to become to God. You have to have the inner cry to be inside His Consciousness all the time, to be totally merged in Him. If you have that kind of feeling, then try to feel that today you are a hundred steps away from your Goal, and that tomorrow you will be only ninety-nine steps away.

Question: Is meditation our duty?

Sri Chinmoy: Yes. We should try to feel our daily duty to the Supreme's mission in our morning meditation. All our activities should be directed towards our supreme duty. When you are at work in the outer world, during the day, you have to feel that it is your duty to aspire. You have to know how many minutes you are in a divine consciousness. It is your duty to work and support yourself and pay attention to your household responsibilities. But this is not enough. This is your human duty. If while you are working your mind, your consciousness, is on God, then you are thinking of the divine duty. When divine thought and divine action go together, divine thought will act like a pioneer; it is immediately followed by action. Immediately duty is performed. You have to feel your outer actions are inspired by divine thought, divine knowledge, divine Light. Then it will be divine duty. Otherwise it is only a waste of time from the spiritual point of view.

Question: What do you mean when you say that dedication is meditation?

Sri Chinmoy: Dedication to whom? When you feel you are giving something to someone, helping people, this is not dedication. Dedication means feeling God's conscious presence in the other person. If you are working and at that time you are feeling God's conscious presence, this dedication is a form of meditation. But if you feel that you have some capacity to inspire or help someone even though you do not see God's presence inside that person, then you are only aggrandising your ego by letting it tell you that you have more inner wealth than the other person. If you are doing something and at the same time feeling God's Presence in the work itself, then that dedication is meditation. But if just because of your own ego, you feel that you are a little better or superior and you are going to the other person to help him, then that is no dedication, that is no real meditation at all.

Question: What happens if after meditating for a while, you decide you want to take a rest and then continue your journey at a later time?

Sri Chinmoy: In the ordinary life, after you have covered one mile you can remain where you are for a while and take rest before continuing on your journey. But, in the spiritual life it is not like that. In the spiritual life, once you take rest, doubt enters into you, fear enters into you, suspicion enters into you. All kinds of negative forces enter into you and destroy all your possibilities. Your potentiality remains the same; eventually, you will realise God. But the possibilities that you once had, the golden possibilities, you have lost. If you stop meditating and leave the spiritual life, the progress that you have made will be destroyed. People will not receive a good vibration from you; nobody will get inspiration from you; you won't be able to give your soul's smile. You will fall back to your old ways and be lost to ignorance. However, the essence of the progress that you made remains inside the soul. The essence is never lost, even though in your outer life you cannot use it. The quintessence of the progress that you made will remain inside your heart, and after five or ten years, when you want to meditate again, or in your next incarnation, this quintessence will come to the fore. If you pray to God most sincerely to enter into the spiritual life again, your previous progress will loom large in your life. So always be on the alert and run as fast as you can towards your Goal. Do not stop until the race is won; otherwise, the pull of ignorance will take you back again to the place from which you started.

Question: Do you pray sometimes?

Sri Chinmoy: To be quite frank with you, I do not pray. And also, I have no need for meditation, but I do meditate for my disciples. After one has realised the highest Truth, one has no need to pray or meditate. But I have a few hundred disciples, and I meditate for them as I used to meditate for myself more than twenty years ago. When I meditate on them, prayer is automatically there, because I am trying to help them in their spiritual awakening, in their spiritual aspiration and realisation. In deep meditation, prayer is present.

Question: Is there a method whereby if one does not have patience for meditation, he could use hypnosis or self-hypnosis instead to quiet the mind so his soul can come forward?

Sri Chinmoy: To try and approach meditation by way of hypnosis is dangerous and negative. The better way is to dive deep into yourself. Through hypnosis one doesn't go into himself. When all other aspects of the person, the heart, the vital, the physical, join in really going deeply into one's soul, then there is a chance of quieting the mind. The human mind though can never convince the soul. There is no reason for the soul to be enticed by the mind. The soul does not push. The soul has infinite patience. But sometimes, if it is God's Will, the body vital and heart can force the mind to diminish its activity.

Question: Do you feel pain while you are meditating? Do you feel any pain? If someone hit you, would you feel pain?

Sri Chinmoy: If it is the highest type of meditation, we will not feel any pain because at that time we are not in the body, but in the soul. If our consciousness is in the physical, if somebody pinches us immediately we will feel pain. But if we are in the soul, we will not be affected. The soul is the divine part in us, the divine Light, which is the representative of God. This soul cannot be disturbed, cannot be destroyed. It is something in us that is immortal. When we are doing our highest meditation, we are not in the physical, we are in the soul. We become one with the soul. Here we are living in ignorance. That is why somebody can come and strike us. But if a person is in the Light, he will not bother us. He will not disturb us. He will never pinch us. On the contrary, when he sees that we are meditating, he will come and also start meditating with us because he feels that we are doing something good, something divine. Naturally, he also wants to do the same things so that he can be a divine child.

If I can

```

If I can,

I shall speak to God about you.

If I can,

I shall beg God

To grant you an interview.

If I can,

I shall ask God

To simplify your long and arduous task.

If I can,

I shall ask God to grant you

His Nectar-flood.

```

Editor's preface to the first edition

Mystics the world over have always practised meditation to attain the exalted states of illumination and ecstasy of which every seeker has heard. Meditation is indispensable for every spiritual aspirant; indeed it is the path itself. Meditation is not only a discipline or a technique. It is an experience perpetually expanding into a universe of spiritual consciousness. But to scale the heights to which meditation can take us, we must begin our ascent step by step from the ground where we now stand. In this volume Sri Chinmoy answers questions asked by beginners on meditation, and offers basic instructions in methods of meditation. He also offers his explanations, issuing from his all-embracing inner vision, of many vivid experiences individual seekers have during their meditation.

From:Sri Chinmoy,Meditacija: Bog govori a ja slušam, deo 1, Vishma Press, New York, 1974
Izvorno sa https://rs.srichinmoylibrary.com/mgs_1