The keys to meditation
"Solve all your problems through meditation. Attune yourself to the active inner guidance; the Divine voice has the answer to every dilemma of life. Though man's ingenuity for getting himself into trouble appears to be endless, the infinite succor is no less resourceful." Lahiri Mahasaya, quoted by Paramahansa Yogananda
As regular listeners know, The Yoga Hour promotes meditation as an essential practice on the spiritual path. I recently attended a training for Kriya Yoga Meditation Teachers at the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment, and found this summary of the four stages of meditation very useful. It’s based on the four F’s: Foster, Focus, Flow, and Finish. We Foster an environment that is conducive of meditation, both internally and externally. We set aside a regular time to meditate and let go of the past and the future. We adopt a meditation posture that is both steady and sweet, and then turn our attention within, closing our eyes if we feel comfortable doing so. We Focus our attention on one thing, such as the breath, returning our attention there whenever it wanders. This allows the mind to become quiet. After a period of time, with continued focus our breathing becomes more subtle, thoughts settle, and concentration becomes steady. Meditation naturally occurs, which we can sense as a feeling of Flow toward the object of concentration. Here, we can let go of our point of focus and allow our attention to expand into the peak experiences of meditation and Oneness. If distractions recur, return your attention to the breath. Continue until your meditation time is complete. We then close by taking a few minutes to consciously Finish, bringing our attention back to mind and body, resting for a few moments in meditative awareness.
If you don’t already have a meditation practice, now is a great time to begin, or to recommit yourself to meditation if you have taken a break.
We have several Yoga Hour programs that promote meditation in our archive. Here are a few if you’d like to have more support for your meditation practice:
In Change Your Destiny Part 2, from 3/10/22, Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian offers a great overview of the importance of meditation in bringing more sattvic energy, or illumination, into the mental field. Meditation changes the climate of our mind, and the practice of self-discipline allows us to arrange conditions so that we are living in the highest way.
In Mantra: Diving Deep into Meditation from 11/18/21, guests Marty and Stella Wutke discuss how the use of mantra can help deepen our meditation practice, and how regular meditation practice is important as it changes the structure of the brain.
One of the health benefits of meditation is discussed in Curbing Chronic Inflammation with Yoga and Meditation from 6/3/21, as physician and yoga teacher Baxter Bell MD discusses how yoga practices including postures, meditation, and breath techniques can help to decrease chronic inflammation, which is linked with the development of many diseases.