Why do we need to meditate? What are the ways to meditate? How can we meditate successfully? What are the different types of meditation? What are the secrets of meditation? How do you prepare yourself for meditation?
All the questions above have one unbelievable answer – just be natural.
Secret: If you are formal, you cannot meditate. Meditation requires you to be informal and at ease.
Secret: Every human being has the need to meditate because it is the natural tendency in them to look for everlasting joy. To look for pure love, which is devoid of negative emotions.
These are some of the secrets that are revealed to those who turn to meditation. There are 5 more secrets about meditation which are listed below.
5 meditation secrets
Secret #1
Prenatal meditation:
Is meditation a foreign phenomenon? Absolutely not. You have been meditating even before your birth, when you were in your mother’s womb, doing nothing. Your food was fed directly into your belly, without your having to chew. You happily floated in the fluid, turning, kicking and, basically, just being. That is meditation. You did nothing. Everything was done for you. So there is a natural tendency in every human being, in every soul, a desire for that state of absolute comfort.
Secret #2
Comfort of meditation:
We have known comfort before at some point in time. This is the reason why we strive for comfort. You have experienced a state of comfort called meditation and you want to regain it. Meditation is an absolute comfort. So, returning to the state you had once experienced, before coming into the hustle and bustle of this world, is natural. Everything in this universe is cyclical, and, ultimately, seeks its source. That is the nature of the world.
Secret #3
Meditation in the cycle of life
During autumn, leaves fall and go back to the soil. Nature has its own way to recycle them. The tendency of the mind is to collect impressions every day. However, to get rid of them and return to the state of calm, one needs to practice meditation. Meditation is being fresh and alive and returning to that serenity, which is your original state. It is absolute joy and happiness.
Secret #4
Essential nutrient for the soul
Meditation is pleasure without excitement. It is a thrill without anxiety. It is love without hatred. Just like how the body requires food, the food for the soul is meditation.
Secret #5
Every soul is a seeker
There is not a single individual on this planet who is not a seeker. People may not know it or recognize it, but they are all searching for that elusive comfort that is hidden in the secret of meditation. The problem is they are looking in the wrong place. It is like going to a grocery store, when you want to fill gas in your car. It won’t work because you need to go to the petrol station. So, you need directions which is what guided meditations by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar does, it directs our mind.
What are the ways to meditate? How can you experience that absolute comfort within yourself? Read on:
1) Physical exercises
The first way is through physical means - yoga and physical exercise. When your body does certain postures with a certain rhythm, it brings some tiredness. This helps the mind slip into meditation. If you are too active or too rested you cannot meditate. Your body has to be in the right state between rest and activity – in that delicate balance, the mind and whole system slips into meditation.
2) Breathing techniques
The second is through prana (life force energy) or breath. Through breathing, you can get into meditation. Sudarshan Kriya is one of the best examples. After pranayama and Sudarshan Kriya, you get into meditation effortlessly.
3) Sensory organs
The third is through sensory pleasures – through sight, sound, taste, smell, and touch. The five sensory organs are related to the five elements - earth, water, air, fire and ether or space. A different combination of these five elements is what this universe is made of. These five elements are connected to the five senses that we have. Fire is connected to the sense of sight, earth to smell, water to taste, either to sound and air to touch. You can go through any one of the senses to transcend the elements and get into a deep meditative state.
4) Emotions
The fourth way is through emotions. Through emotions also, you can get into meditation.
5) Intellect
The fifth is through the intellect. When you sit and recognise that the body is made up of billions of cells, you feel stimulated. Don’t you feel different when you go to a space museum or watch a movie about the universe and then come out? Something happens deep inside you. You cannot easily come out of such an experience and go back to your routine. This is because of the context of life changes when you become aware of the magnanimity of the universe.
Based on a series of talks entitled ‘Secrets of meditation’ given by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar on April 20, 2012, in California. These talks have been converted into knowledge sheets.
Practicing meditation regularly alleviates you from stress-related problems, deeply relaxes the mind and rejuvenates the system. The Art of Living’s Sahaj Samadhi Meditation is a specially crafted program to help you tap into your unlimited potential by diving deep within yourself.
Find a Sahaj Samadhi Meditation program at an Art of Living center near you.
