One who meditates or follows a spiritual Path, need never again be bored or lonely.
Boredom and loneliness are both conditions of our mind. When our mind is not actively focused, or is engaged in some repetitive activity, it becomes dull and we say we are bored. Our spiritual heart is ever eager and ever new: when we are in our heart, we are ever flowing, flowering, flying, smiling: there is no room for boredom or loneliness. The first hint of boredom is an alarm bell, a sure sign that we have allowed our consciousness to drift away from our heart, to be captured by the mind’s rigidity and stagnation. Take this alarm seriously, and immediately look for a way to open and expand your heart: remind yourself of seven things you are grateful for; sing a spiritual song; chant a mantra; consciously breathe in peace, love or joy; recall any deeply moving, enchanting, awe-inspiring or thrilling moment; imagine you are a child playing your favourite game; consciously see all the goodness and beauty around you.
Loneliness is a close cousin of boredom; a sense that we are incomplete without the company of others, that derives from the mind’s isolation and lack of connection. When we are in our mind, we can be lonely in a dense crowd, for the mind is its own prison and prisoner; while a full heart can never be lonely, even in a remote cave, for our heart is one with all of divinity.
Though loneliness and boredom both arise from the barrenness of the mind, we can take both as cries from our heart, yearning for space and nourishment. The solution for both is the same: quieten the mind, dive into your heart – boredom and loneliness are banished.
“Are you not tired of living
Inside your mind-desert?
If so, then come and live
In your heart’s aspiration-oasis.”
– Sri Chinmoy
Our heart’s meditation is our own personal oasis: lush, soothing, refreshing, inspiring, encouraging and invigorating.
Too often, our experience of life, outer and inner, resembles an arid desert.
We know that meditation is supposed to cure us of all our worries, problems and anxieties. Yet sometimes our experience of meditation itself seems dry, mechanical and uninspiring, leaving us feeling further frustrated, disappointed and discouraged.
This happens when we meditate in our mind, when we go through the motions of meditation, its techniques and rituals, without really throwing ourselves heart and soul into the practise.
It’s easy to say: “meditate in the heart, don’t meditate in the mind!” – but being in the mind, can be like finding ourselves caught in a high-walled maze of hedges, with no clue how to find our way out.
Gratitude, aspiration, love, humility, selflessness and enthusiasm are ready accomplices, eager to help us escape from our mind-maze. The moment we break free from the mind’s grasp, we find our heart already waiting for us with its joyful embrace. Once our hearts’ floodgates are open, our experience of meditation becomes spontaneous, even without any techniques and rituals.
Birds and animals will always find their way to an oasis in the desert, no matter how tiny, remote or difficult to access. They have an innate sense of its location. Similarly, we must keep our own inner tracking device always connected with the oasis of our heart, so that no matter how lost, tired, thirsty or dispirited we find ourselves in the deserts of life, we are always able to find our way back to the replenishing, nourishing and inspiring oasis of our heart’s meditation.
Very few people start practising meditation with the goal of experiencing a blissful meditation. Most enter into meditation with a view to improve one or more aspects of their life. For most of us – at least consciously – our initial motivation is not inner, but outer: we want peace of mind in order to perform better at our study, work or sports; we want to escape from pervading stress and tension, from worries and anxieties; we want control over our thoughts and emotions; we want to feel better about ourselves and experience more fulfilling relationships with others; we want free access to our inner self, mostly to better serve the needs of our outer self.
Yes, we are a soul, a spiritual being, and meditation is our pathway to explore and discover this deeper truth within; but we are a soul living in this world, and for meditation to prove its effectiveness, it must be of benefit in our moment-to-moment reality.
All that time we spend practising meditation techniques in the early morning, has to be put to practical use in the challenging moments of our lives: otherwise, what is its utility? The very purpose of practising any skill, is to improve our performance: in this case, our ‘performance’ is the living of our life.
Certainly, the experience of meditation is peaceful and blissful, illumining and fulfilling in and of itself. But the practical application of meditation – bringing its peace, light, bliss and oneness into the teeming challenges of life, transforming problems into opportunities, obstacles into milestones, setbacks into progress, defeats into triumphs and sorrows into joys – is the truly transformative, miraculous value of meditation.
The purpose of meditation is not to visit Heaven; it is to reveal and manifest Heaven on earth.
“Be brave, in order to be cheerful.
Be cheerful, in order to be brave.”
– Sri Chinmoy
“Be brave, in order to be cheerful.” –
Gravity is not only a phenomenon of Newtonian physics. It is a spiritual law also, that to descend is far easier than to ascend. To rise, requires the effort of conscious aspiration; while to stay still, is to descend. To surrender to the gravity of ego, thoughts and desires is to embrace perpetual descent. Cheerfulness lives in lightness, selflessness, clarity and purity. To attain cheerfulness must be our conscious, determined choice to stand against gravity, one of Nature’s most powerful, pervasive forces. To attain cheerfulness, we must summon the strength to lift the heavy weight of fear, doubt and sorrow; and the courage to rise above our ego-centred petty thoughts and desires. Strength plus courage equals bravery. Bravery casts aside the heaviness of gravity and gloom of selfishness. Bravery naturally rises, expands and illumines; ushering in cheerfulness, as dawn portends the day.
“Be cheerful, in order to be brave.” –
Cheerfulness is more than mere contentment or even happiness. Cheerfulness is a solid wave of irresistible strength, momentum and transformative power. The very word “cheerfulness” contains the word “fulness.” When a vessel is full of one thing, there is no room for anything else: when we are cheer-full, when our consciousness is full of cheer, there can be no room for any non-cheer, any doubt, fear, sorrow, regret or anxiety – all the negative qualities which weaken and enfeeble us. Like chasing the clouds away to reveal a clear sky, when doubt, fear and sorrow-clouds are banished by cheerfulness, we attain tremendous clarity, purity and certainty, the very qualities which combine to engender and nourish bravery. Cheerfulness clears the negativity-clouds to reveal our heart’s bravery-sky.
“In prayer, I speak and God listens.
In meditation, God speaks and I listen.”
– Sri Chinmoy
No-one appreciates a one-way conversation. If we like to be listened to, then we must also pay others the respect of listening.
When we pray to God, we hope and expect God will listen to our prayer: otherwise, prayer would be pointless.
But what if God is also praying to us? Who will answer God’s prayer?
God’s needs and prayers are actually far more pressing than our own: God needs the transformation and perfection of the entire creation. And for this supreme task, God needs instruments here on earth – you and me. So, God prays to us, constantly.
Any meaningful relationship has mutual benefits and obligations. When someone does something for me, naturally I will be more inclined to return the favour. So, when we take the time and effort to listen to God’s prayers to us, we also gain more confidence that our own prayers to God will be heeded.
We can speak to God in any language: English, Bengali or Slovakian. God speaks to us always in the one universal language: silence. Prayer is our audience with God: meditation is God’s audience with us. Meditation – listening to God’s prayer to us in silence, God’s silence – is a study, a discipline, a practise, a struggle, a battle, an art, a gift, a science, a skill, a journey, a discovery, a game, a therapy, a treasury, a qualification, an education, a passion, a romance, an adventure, a revelation – an ever-blossoming creation.
We are God’s arms and legs, eyes, ears and beating heart in this world. God’s need for us encompasses and subsumes our need for God. Through merely giving God our attention, we gain everything God has and God is.
The village had no water. A government expert advised the villagers to each dig a well in their back yards, to get water for their daily needs.
One villager starting digging, but after one hour, when he became hungry, he went in search of a good restaurant. After lunch he continued to the pub and joined some friends for a drink.
A second villager was making excellent progress, and had created a waist-deep hole already by lunchtime. He had arranged for food to be delivered, so didn’t need to leave his work when he became hungry. Shortly after lunch, however, with a jolt and a ringing sound, his spade struck solid rock. Realising the rock was larger than his hole, there was nothing for it: he had made a good attempt, but now would have to abandon the project.
Another villager had planned to start work early, but at 6am, had been called in to work. Another ceased digging because he didn’t have a hat: his doctor had cautioned him to always wear a hat under the hot sun. Another stopped when his son asked him to come and kick a ball around.
After two days, all had forgotten about digging – except one. Heeding the advice of the government expert and committed to his task, he continued, enduring heat and hunger, pounding through rocks, ignoring all temptations, distractions, and the demands of others. After two weeks, in the dead of night he reached a spring of cool, clear water. The spring didn’t need to be pumped; it flowed eagerly to the surface, where a series of pipes were installed to distribute the water to the entire village and beyond, free for all.
Many folks moved to the village from all around. The village prospered. All were happy.
We are eddies swirling in the river, and this river is God – but we are so busy being eddies, we don’t notice God all around us, we don’t notice we are flowing with God, one with God, inseparable from God. We are clouds floating in the God-sky; grains of sand of the God-beach; flowers, fruits and leaves of the God-tree; little fingers of the God-body, utterly absorbed in being this little finger.
How can we expand ourselves beyond our little ego-self, to become aware of our larger infinite Self, how can we unveil our oneness with God, how claim God as our own? What instruments do we have to sense and know the infinite God within and around us, what voice have we to sound the God-depths, what vision to scan the God-skies?
In truth, God is infinitely more eager to receive and answer our call than we are to cry it. We have only to turn all of ourselves, with all of our hearts’ ardour, eagerness and intensity, towards whatever conception of God we can love with all of our being – and let God, our highest, wisest, fullest Self, complete the picture, join the dots, finish our game.
Sri Chinmoy writes:
“The moment God or the feeling of the Beyond comes into our existence, we will see God. The moment we repeat the name of God, or chant Aum, immediately the sound travels to the Beyond, and from there we hear the vibration echoing and re-echoing. When we call God, He will not simply remain in the Beyond; He will echo our call. God immediately receives our call in the Beyond and from the Beyond He sends His divine vibration into our heart. When this happens, faith is bound to come into our life.”
– Sri Chinmoy
Seated comfortably with a straight back, begin by focusing on your breathing, regulating the inflowing and outflowing breath by counting slowly to a number of your choice. Dismiss all extraneous thoughts, feelings, desires and distractions as you hone your focus and become absorbed in just breathing, counting.
Our breath brings us a profound spiritual message: the message of oneness. All humans, animals, trees and plants are at once breathing the same air, the one earth-atmosphere. Though breathing through countless lungs, we are all sharing one breath – the breath of life. So it is, that our one breath in myriad breaths, connects us directly with every living breathing being on this planet: with every human, each animal, tree and tiniest plant.
Still focussed on your breathing, imagine our planet Earth slowly revolving in space inside your heart, a delicate tender globe enveloped in light. As you breath, imagine all the beings on our planet are breathing in sync with you: like one big orchestra, feel that you are breathing one breath – your breath – on behalf of all beings, on behalf of Earth herself.
We all know our world is imperfect, just as we are ourselves imperfect beings. We have so many weaknesses, shortcomings, problems and failings. Forget about our flaws – just imagine three qualities which our world most needs in order to be more perfect; three qualities you yourself need to become a better person. Now consciously breathe in each of these three qualities: observe them flowing directly into your heart, and into the hearts of all who are sharing your breath, the beating hearts of every living being of our world-family. From all hearts, perfection flows outward into the thoughts, feelings, eyes, smiles and actions of all.
Through your each and every breath, world-perfection slowly dawns.
Fasting has long been associated with spiritual practice. Monks, nuns and ascetics have routinely fasted for various reasons, mostly in the belief that fasting brings one closer to the divine.
Fasting cannot be considered a spiritual practice in its own right, and will never bring us to enlightenment, though occasional fasting can certainly benefit our meditation by helping to purify our physical system, clarify our mind and brighten our outlook.
One of the direct benefits of fasting has nothing to do with its physical effects. The discipline, determination and focus required to endure a fast of any duration can certainly be applied to enhance the discipline of our meditation, our self-control and detachment from desires, in turn boosting our self-confidence and aspiration.
Sri Chinmoy writes:
“If you fast once or twice a month, it will purify your subtle nerves. Purity is of great importance in the spiritual life. But this purity does not come from fasting only. We also have to meditate properly. We have to offer our inner life to God. Then only will our outer life be properly purified and transformed. In addition to our inner prayer and meditation, if we fast twice a month or three times a month, it will aid us in purifying the body’s outer existence. It will also aid us in our concentration and meditation.”
“It is through aspiration, not fasting, that we reach our goal. In order to increase our inner cry, we have to meditate regularly and devotedly. If we meditate, then purification is bound to come. Fasting is not indispensable in the spiritual life. Only aspiration, our inner cry is indispensable. If we know how to aspire, then our nature will be purified. Then, in our meditation and contemplation we get the results of fasting.”
– Sri Chinmoy
We know it is important to remain calm and quiet for some time after meditation, to allow the peace, light and bliss we have experienced to settle, be absorbed and take root in our consciousness. It is best to not speak, eat a meal or engage the mind in complex tasks for a while. Instead, read spiritual books, listen to spiritual music or enjoy some gentle exercise.
Yet assimilation starts during meditation itself. If we feel we are a spectator in our meditation, we will never assimilate our experiences, for we will feel them to be separate from ourselves, something foreign which can be lost or taken away. Only when we see ourselves in our experience, when we can claim our experience as our own deeper and true self, can assimilation be permanent.
What quality do we need to cultivate, to develop this capacity for identification, and hence, assimilation? Sri Chinmoy speaks of the primary role of gratitude in our hearts:
“I ask my disciples to assimilate the Peace, Light and Bliss they get during their meditation. Unless and until it has been assimilated, there is no guarantee that it will come back again or that it will remain permanently in the system.
“Assimilation means conscious, consecrated oneness with the Source, conscious and consecrated oneness with the Source. We receive something, and then we have to think of the Source. Where did it come from? It did not come from you; it came from the Source. And then you have to feel your absolute oneness with the Source, and this oneness you can establish on the strength of your gratitude-heart, a grateful heart. So, when your grateful heart has become inseparably one with the Source, then assimilation has taken place.”
– Sri Chinmoy
No matter how tasty it is, if food is not properly digested, we derive no energy or nourishment from it; even so, if the peace, light and bliss we experience in meditation are not assimilated, they will simply evaporate and our meditation will not have any lasting benefit.
Just as there are both inner and outer steps that help us to prepare for meditation, so there are several inner and outer factors which help us assimilate our meditation.
Outwardly, the simplest, safest and surest way to assimilate our meditation, is to remain in silence for some time. During this silence, our subtle nerves are absorbing and being nourished by our inner experience: the moment we open our mouth and start talking, or listen to someone else, our mind is engaged and we are drawn away from the subtle, sweet, soft realm of the heart. During this time, we can read spiritual writings, listen to spiritual music, hum quietly to ourselves or go for a gentle walk somewhere quiet. Then when we do talk, it should initially be spiritually focussed, not discussion of mundane, disturbing or complex matters.
While it is not harmful to take some fruit or a light drink, we should not eat a proper meal for at least an hour after meditation, as the process of physical digestion drains our energy and dulls our subtle sensitivity.
As for the inner approach to assimilation, in addition to consciously cultivating gratitude and treasuring our experiences, Sri Chinmoy gave this very clear and simple advice:
“You can assimilate all the beautiful experiences only by increasing, deliberately increasing, joy in the heart, joy in the mind, joy in the vital, joy in the physical — always joy, joy, joy! Joy is the answer to help you assimilate.”
– Sri Chinmoy
To do anything well, requires our preparation. Whether climbing a mountain, sitting for an exam, baking a pie, driving to the beach, or even going to bed, we need to make suitable preparations in both our outer environment and inner focus.
Meditation is an inner journey, so our preparation involves reorienting our consciousness away from its usual absorption in the outer world, and towards the inner.
Take a shower or a proper wash to give you the feeling of a fresh start. Wear light-coloured, loose-fitting clothing. Choose a place where you can be alone, quiet, undisturbed and undistracted by outer influences and obligations such as work, family and friends. Switch off and put away all devices with a wifi or phone connection. Use a candle, flowers and incense if these objects inspire you – anything which will reflect back to you the qualities we need in ourselves for meditation – simplicity, purity, beauty and sincerity.
Because digestion takes so much energy and dulls our subtle nerves, it is best to avoid eating anything substantial for a few hours prior to meditating.
We cannot just discard our outer consciousness like taking off a coat: it takes time for the waves of outer thoughts and preoccupations to subside. Spend some time in quiet without talking: read, sing or listen to spiritual music, all the while our mind is receding and our heart gently opening.
It is pointless to set off without a clear purpose and objective. An archer will never hit the target without first taking aim. First take careful aim, then shoot. After sitting to meditate, take a minute to preview the ideal meditation you are about to enter into. Prepare your defences against rogue thoughts and distractions, and set your sights clearly on your goal.
We want to have everything, and we want to be perfect. We sometimes expect that we should be able to have everything and be perfect for the asking. Indeed, many of us take up meditation with the idea that its practice will enable us to attain perfection, while experiencing and possessing everything we fancy.
Unfortunately, our desire for perfection and our desire to have and possess whatever we want, are almost always on an unseen collision course. The desire to have everything arises from our lower, finite self; whereas perfection is the exclusive prerogative of our higher, infinite self. Our lower self sees its own desire-fulfillment and perfection as one and the same; while our higher self knows perfection can flow only from our emancipation from desire-indulgence.
Sri Chinmoy addressed this predicament when asked: “What keeps us from attaining perfection?”
“What keeps us from attaining perfection? It is our self-indulgence. In self-indulgence we feel that there is something absolutely necessary in our life, and that is pleasure. When we cry for pleasure and want to remain in pleasure, to become pleasure itself, perfection is a far cry. But when we cry for divine Joy, Delight, Bliss, at that time we enter into the ocean of perfection. If we cry continuously, we learn how to swim in the sea of perfection.
“When we have an inner cry for Delight, we jump into the sea of perfection. This is the first step. But when this inner cry becomes constant, we swim in the sea of perfection. When we keep Joy and Delight as our goal, perfection automatically grows in us, and slowly, steadily we become the sea of perfection. But, what now keeps us from perfection is our fondness for pleasure-life and our indulgence in pleasure-life.”
– Sri Chinmoy
