Dr.Commander Selvam Siddhar
Meditation is not for a few but
is necessary for all human beings. The inner self of a person touches the
Higher Self (the Param-Tattwa) during deep sleep daily. This unknown touch
recharges the battery of man. So, when he gets up from his sleep, he feels that
he is refreshed, full of strength and relaxed. This is a natural process for
all persons alike. If one could not sleep properly, he feels disturbed and is
in a sort of weariness. It is the experience of every man, whether he is rich
or a beggar, a literate or an illiterate, an executive or a laborer, a farmer
or a business man, a housewife or a huckster. So, every man needs peace,
strength, ability to discharge his/her duties and for tranquility of mind. So,
a wonderful discovery of man is to keep his inner self in touch with the SOURCE
in a wakeful state for longer periods continuously through specific type of
systematic practices. This is called the art of meditation. And such a person
is said to be a YOGI without any discretion/distinction of caste, creed, color
and country.
Whether oriental or occidental,
Hinduism or Mohammedanism, Buddhism or Jainism, Christianity or Judaism,
Shinto-ism or any other ‘ism’, the spiritual purpose and meaning is to lead an
individual soul to the ecstatic communion with the Universal Divinity or ONE
TRUTH, the SOURCE. A continuous flow of perception of thought is Dhyana Tatra pratyayaikatanata
dhyanam. It is the flow of continuous thought of one object or God or Atman or
Supreme Source Tailadharavat. According
to Raja Yoga, meditation is the seventh rung or step in the ladder of Yoga. One
cannot attain this state unless he knows the art of Concentration . What is concentration? Desa
bandhas-chittasya dharana. Concentration is fixing the mind on an external
object or an internal point continuously, without interruption or break for
twelve seconds. So, an aspirant has to develop himself in concentration, which
itself is changed into meditation, if his state of keeping the mind focused at
one object/point/subject continuously and spontaneously for 12x12=144 seconds.
It is termed as ‘Dhyana’ in Sanskrit scriptures, which comes from the root
‘Dhi’. In English we generally call it ‘intellect’ which is the basic root with
different derivations in different practices. However, ‘Buddhi’ (reasoning
faculty) is said to be directly based on this root term; yet this term is used
liberally by all systems of Yoga, which is central theme of all mystic
techniques leading one to higher levels of spiritual consciousness with
profound depths of spiritual expansion and takes one to God-realisation or
Self-realisation.
Meditation may be objective, or
on qualities or purely subjective or one’s own breath. In objective meditation
the Sadhaka meditates upon an idol or picture of his Ishta devata may be Lord Shiva, Vishnu, Rama, Krishna,
Christ, Buddha or any other god or goddess. For him, the idol is something
alive, vibrating with supreme reality, omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent. He
may meditate upon the beautitude, the qualities, the activities of his
Ishta-devata. Or he may meditate upon the all-pervading pulsating Supreme
Energy which is within him and without, permeating everywhere. This is
subjective meditation. Similarly on his breath while inhaling and exhaling with
MINIMAL SILENCE. All meditations are good; what counts is the intensity and
unbroken continuity of meditation.
An aspirant has to rest his soul
on the bosom of the Lord, to bathe in the bliss of Divine ecstasy, to drown his
ego in the ocean of eternity, to draw sustenance and strength from the SOURCE
to attain whatever he is capable of achieving. A Sadhaka should meditate regularly,
chew and digest what he has learnt, to transform what he has learnt into
wisdom, to apply that wisdom to solve the problems that cross his path daily.
Says F.W. Robertson: It is not the number of books you read, nor the variety of
sermons you hear, nor the amount of religious conversation in which you mix,
but it is the frequency and earnestness with which you meditate on these things
till the truth in them becomes your own and part of your being, that ensures
your growth.
A sincere spiritual seeker
meditates to realize the Ultimate Reality to unravel the mystery of life and
death, to understand in the bottom of his heart, what is Truth. Once he knows
Truth, he knows the Ultimate Reality, he becomes That, and there is nothing
more to know. A person who has realized Brahman, becomes Brahman, and lives in
Brahman. Knowing is being. That is the highest state.India has been fortunate
to have produced many saints and seers who had realised the Truth and for more
or less time lived in a state of Divine Ecstasy. Even during the past hundred
years people have witnessed such saints like Paramahamsa Ramakrishna, Swami
Vivekananda, Swami Ramatirtha, Sri Aurobindo, Ramana Maharshi, Swami Ramdas,
Swami Sivananda and several others of world fame. Ramakrishna would while
talking relapse into Samadhi and often prayed to his Divine Mother not to draw
him frequently into Her Bosom so that he can converse with his disciple,
particularly his darling Naren later known to the world as Swami Vivekananda so
that he could prepare a band of workers to spread his message, the holy message
of India. Swami Ramatirtha was often seen in a state of ecstasy during last
seven years of life in India and United States. Swami Sivananda was another who
would often sing and dance or be just be quiet in divine ecstasy. There have
been more in India and quite a few messengers of God in other parts of the
world.
Meditation and concentration are
often treated as synonymous. However, I have drawn earlier a distinct line between
concentration and meditation. In further explanation when one brings to bear
all his thought waves on a single point or spot like a laser beam where the
scattered rays of light are concentrated, it is concentration. Everybody needs
concentration to understand, assimilate and apply any information, any
knowledge. When the concentration is prolonged for 144 seconds, it is called
meditation and when extended to 144 multiplied by 144 i.e. 20736 seconds =
345.6 minutes, it is said to reach the state of Samadhi. According to Ashtanga
Yoga comprising two main parts of Hatha Yoga Yama, Niyama, Asana and Pranayama
covers the first one, whereas Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi, is the
second part. There is no equivalent word in English language for Samadhi.
Concentration is the sixth, Meditation the seventh and Samadhi the eighth and
last stage of Yoga when the Sadhaka is united with the Supreme Being. It shows
that concentration leads to Meditation, similarly prolonged constant meditation
leads to Samadhi. In other Yogas Manana, Nididhyasana, Upasana, Chintana,
Dhyana these terms are used in
different Yogas with subtle differences in their techniques. Manana is a sort
of reflection. It is just to chew the cud slowly and nicely. It is done through
into intense practice of Manana. Chintana is also a sort of reflection and
meditation to assimilate the thoughts in consciousness for proper and
significant impression with profound understanding. Intense meditation on the
Self or Brahman or ANY SPIRITUAL ILLUMINED PERSONALITY is termed as
‘Nididhyasana’. As Saint Francis of Assisi did. ‘Upasana’ stands for devout
meditation which is being used in both i.e., Jnana Yoga Sadhana and Bhakti
Yoga. Upasana means ‘sitting nearby’. In Jnana Yoga Sadhana the seeker has to
sit near the Self or Brahman; whereas in Bhakti Yoga a devotee has to sit by
the side of God.
Thus meditation is not meant
merely for the recluse, the ascetic, the renouncer. It is of utmost important in
man’s day-to-day life. It is of immense help to a student, a youth, an old man.
A man who can meditate will become a better manager, a better businessman, a
better executive and, above all, a better man. Conversely, if a person cannot
meditate, he will lack composition, courage and confidence to achieve his goal.
Nowadays, several medical doctors and psychologists advise to their patients
suffering from nervousness, unusual irritation, disordered mind, fear and
inferiority complex and lack of self-confidence to meditate in a specific
manner along with the medical treatment. So, the meditation is very necessary
these days when man leads a life of tension and complexity.Every morning and
evening, preferably at dawn and dusk, sit down in a comfortable posture with
your backbone straight, relax each and every limb of your body, and then your
mind, and sit unmoved, in the same pose, as long as you can. It is always
better to invoke your Guru (master) and Ishta Devata first, when you sit for
meditation for their blessings and guidance and gratefully thank them again
when you finish the meditation. Gradually, increase the time of your
meditation. It is easier to relax your limbs of the body but not so easy to
relax your mind. This process of relaxation, stillness and body awareness will
automatically reduce the speed of your breathing, which, in turn, will help in
meditation. So many thoughts will cross your mind now and then. They may even
disturb you. Do not be afraid. Try to remain calm and watch them with equanimity.
Let them come, let them go. Do not fight to free your mind from thought waves.
Try to be indifferent to them. But do not observe these thoughts with
equanimous mind. Gradually, automatically the flitting of thoughts across the
canvas of your mind will diminish. After sometime—sooner than later you will be absorbed in your Ishta-Devata if
your meditation is objective, or in your Being, if your meditation is
subjective. Once, you get the taste of it, believe me, you will like to taste
it more and more and more.
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