Spiritual Recovery: How to Meditate

At
workshops/Retreats or in counseling sessions I always hear:

“I tried meditating; it doesn’t work for me.”

“I can’t stop thinking about things.”

“My mind drifts.”

“It’s too noisy.”

“I can’t sit in a lotus position.”

Etc., etc., etc.

Meditation
is not a forceful act, but a gentle consent to God’s presence within us.

A
Mystic has told me many times, “If you can think, you can meditate.”

Meditation
is different than concentration, but you cannot meditate without concentration.
And concentrating on something doesn’t mean you’re meditating.

Concentration
is (1) focusing on a single object or thing to help you either free yourself
from distractions or (2) positively placing your attention on something…an idea
or an object…that is your goal.

Meditation
is different because meditation is used for one purpose: to connect to the
Presence of God, in whatever form you acknowledge.

So
to say “meditate on that issue or meditate on that thought” is incorrect and
cheapens the meaning of meditation.

The
type of meditation I use is a simple and gentle one, and its goal is to go
within and connect to the God within you. Each time you do, it’s like strengthening
that cord between you and the God within, and it brings about more peace, joy,
creativity, compassion, love and intelligence in your everyday life.

When
most people think of meditation, they think of sitting in a certain position, with
incense, candles and mantras playing in the background, etc.

While
some or all of this can be true, it does not have to be. Here are some very
simple instructions for meditating:

• Finding
  a quiet place is very helpful, but not 100% necessary. A quiet place is very
  important for beginners, but as you practice meditation regularly you might be
  able to come to a place where you are able to go within and meditate even with
  the distractions around you.

• Sit
  in a comfortable position. It can be in a chair (have your feet touching the
  ground) or cross-legged on a sofa, the floor, etc. Try not to slump, if you can
  help it. Try to keep your back straight. You can lean or gently position your
  back against something for support, while keeping your head gently resting,
  looking forward. It may droop during the meditation, but try not to let it
  distract you…let it be.

• Here
  is where concentration comes in
  • First, focus on your breathing.
    Inhale through your nose (if you can, not absolutely necessary). As you do,
    fill your lower abdomen up with your breath. It will look like your belly is a
    balloon filling up, then exhale (again through your nose if possible), until
    all the air in your belly/diaphragm is out.
    • As you fill up your belly count
      to 10-15-20 (mentally), whichever is comfortable for you while filling your
      belly up. When exhaling, use the same number you used when inhaling.

• Do
  this for 10 repetitions, always focusing on filling that belly up like a
  balloon, and then squeezing all the air out.

• Next,
  while continuing to breath in and out as you have been, it should start to come
  naturally so you don’t have to focus so much on the breathing; now begin to
  place your focus on your heart area.
  • As you’re breathing in and out,
    begin to listen and feel to your heart.
    • Feel the gentle rhythm, can you
      hear the beating
      • Continue
        to feel and listen to your heart, for another 10 full breath repetitions.

• Now
  gently place your focus to a place just behind your beating heart. While still
  feeling and hearing it, begin to draw your focus behind the heart and now on
  your “in” breath, while focusing on that place just behind your heart area, say
  to yourself the mantra OM.
  • And on your out breath, say the
    word Sai (pronounced like the word sigh)

• Remember
  that you are placing your focus on the area just behind the heart, while you
  are breathing in deeply (to a 10-15-20 count), you are now gently saying the OM
  sound as you breathe in, and while breathing out (to the same count), you are
  saying the word Sai to yourself.
  • Do this for 20 or more times.
    • After 20 or so times, keeping
      your focus on the area behind the heart, slip into the silence. Feel the peace.
      • If
        your mind drifts onto to something, chant the Om Sai mantra.
        • Do this for the next 5 or 10-
          minutes.

There
is a technique here. With the deep breathing, you are bringing oxygen you’re
your body and giving your mind something to focus on by counting your breaths.
After you seem to have the breathing down, you begin to now focus on something
else…your heart; listening to it and feeling it. Your mind, once it has the
breathing down will want to drift, so now you’re breathing and focusing on the
heart, then after that, the mantra, which will bring you into a deep state of
meditation, aligning your Spirit with Spirit.

It
is only natural for the mind to think, to constantly be engaged. That’s a good
thing. What we are doing is giving it different things to focus on, while
beginning to enter a state of meditation.

The
word Om is the un-manifested Aspect of God within creation. Sai is a name used
for the Divine Mother in the Vedas.

Mantras
and names of God, regardless of their origins, are universal and not limited to
any one religion or spiritual path. So one who practices the path of Jesus of
Nazareth or follows the Old Testament or any other path, can benefit
spiritually from this mantra.

We
are tapping into the essence of the Feminine aspect of God. So, while breathing
deeply in and out, focusing on the area behind your heart, silently chanting OM
Sai, try to imagine yourself relaxing in the arms of the Divine Mother.

This
entire practice you just read through can take 15-30 minutes, depending on your
breaths and the silence piece.

Start
off slowly, but steadily with your meditation practice. Be committed to it, and
you will tap into a Source of peace, joy, creativity, compassion, love and
intelligence in your everyday life that was not there before.

Namaste,
Michael

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