Part Two: Questions and Answers

How does one meditate so that one makes the fastest progress toward enlightenment?

The fastest progress is made when you are completely open to all that occurs in Meditation. Your intent to meditate is the catalyst that propels you along the path of Meditation. With “intent to meditate,” I mean the intent to look deeply within yourself, to look for the hidden spark of light within your being. When you have found that spark, make an effort to blow it up until it is a raging fire, consuming all your shortcomings and purifying your mind from within.

What is the biggest obstacle during Meditation?

The biggest obstacle during Meditation is the threefold notion of a meditator, the process of Meditation, and the idea that something other than you can be attained through Meditation. Just put your thoughts aside and allow the energies of the Meditation to fill you completely. Then you will experience freedom from the limiting mind, and the purity of your soul will be revealed. This soul will be realized as your innermost Self.

Where does the need to meditate come from?

The need to meditate arises out of the hunger of your soul for satisfaction. When you neglect the needs of your soul, then it searches for a way to make you aware of this neglect. When you feel dissatisfied with your material accomplishments, that is when the soul whispers its longing for satisfaction into your mental ear. Let those who have ears hear this whisper and follow it to the heavenly abode of complete inner bliss.

What makes one choose a particular meditative exercise over another?

You may experiment with different meditative methods until you find one that you are most comfortable with, or that you find most attractive. Your likings are different from the likings of other people, so it is important to listen to your own inner voice for guidance when choosing your Meditation.

Do not attempt to get results through a particular method just because someone else told you about all the great things that will happen through it. Be your own judge when doing anything in your life, including finding a meditation method.

What should I focus on during Meditation?

In Meditation, you should focus on your Meditation, nothing else. Keep your mind focused. Keep it free from any intent that will lead you away from your one-pointed concentration. Meditation is its own country, its own sacred place where you roam with delight and enjoy the rays of the blazing sun of eternal bliss. The highest state you can get into is the state of blissful Meditation where all differences and obstacles have disappeared and where you feel as free and as light as a feather, yet as solidly grounded as the Himalayas.

What should I not focus on during Meditation?

During Meditation, do not focus on anything unrelated to your Meditation. Be concentrated. Be focused and do no attempt to achieve a particular state of mind. Meditation is not a mental control game; it is a listening to the needs of your soul.

Are group Meditations necessary to advance on the spiritual path?

No, they are not necessary. You may get involved with them, if you wish. If they help you become more concentrated and more vigilant in your efforts, then by all means, meditate in a group.

Are there environments that can help to meditate better/deeper?

Generally, quiet environments will help your Meditations. However, you can mediate anywhere at any time and under all circumstances. External influences do not reach to the center of your being where true Meditation takes place.

Are external Meditations as valuable as internal Meditations?

External Meditation is the realization of the eternal bliss that exists in all of the impressions that your outer senses bring to your attention. Internal Meditation is the realization of the eternal bliss that exists in all of the impressions that your inner mind brings to your attention.

Both kinds of Meditation lead to the experience of eternal bliss. There is no difference between external bliss and internal bliss. It is the same bliss.

What about Meditation with eyes open or eyes closed? Which is better?

Whatever Meditation brings you to a state of completely and utterly fulfilling bliss is the best Meditation, whether you are performing it with your eyes open or closed. What is important is the goal, which is the conscious experience of your blissful soul.

Is proper breathing an asset to proper Meditation?

Your breathing will adjust itself during Meditation. Do not force a particular pattern onto your breathing. Breathe naturally and allow for the forces of Meditation to regulate the breath without your interference. Observe the breath and listen to your thoughts as the uninvolved witness of a natural process.

What is the best posture (asana) for Meditation?

The best posture for Meditation is one that you can hold indefinitely. When you meditate, do not set yourself a certain time limit. Time limits are completely contrary to the process of Meditation.

If life desires your participation in other activities, life will make itself known to you. Do not worry about that. When you meditate, meditate with full concentration and full awareness. Do not keep anything in your mind that distracts you from your Meditation.

However, if you know, for example, that you have to pick up your child from school in a little while, fully meditate on this event. Make this event your Meditation. See the bliss in it. Experience your conscious Self fully in it. Love the event. Love your child. Love yourself. There is nothing distracting about this event. Take the event as an aid for your Meditation.

Should one meditate in seclusion in order to make the best possible progress?

There are certain times during your Meditation practice when external stimulations are annoying to you and keep you from going deeper into your Meditation. When that is the case, find a place where you can meditate more deeply. However, all the expressions of life are pointers toward the conscious Self, which is the goal of your Meditation.

Even if you are sitting in seclusion, the buzzing of a fly can make you so upset that you jump up and chase the little creature around the room. The more quiet your surroundings are, the more you notice sounds that are usually covered by the everyday noises around you—for example your breath and your heartbeat. Even those you could find annoying if you attempt to go deeper into your Meditation.

Therefore, it is better to let your environment do what it does, and you focus on your Meditation. Someone once said to keep your attention on the conscious Self, even if your head is about to be chopped off. This shows the seriousness that this spiritual teacher attaches to the attainment of the state of liberation. People are the crowning achievement of creation, and the experience of the conscious Self is the crowning experience of life. The whole purpose of life is to create an organism that is capable of this conscious experience. Once you have it, what more is there to life, what more can you achieve, what more desires can you satisfy? Once you have the highest in your hand, you do not throw it away again.

What books are a help with Meditation?

Meditation connects you with the deepest source of fulfillment within you. This source is pure awareness that sparks itself into the experience of blissful consciousness. This consciousness is your goal in Meditation. Any book that keeps reminding you of this goal is a valuable asset for you.

Is there a way to prepare for Meditation, so that I do not spend valuable time during Meditation getting into the proper mindset?

The best way to prepare for Meditation is to never leave the state of Meditation. Always remain in this state of blissful and one-pointed awareness. This state is also called the glance of the Guru. Always remain in the glance of the Guru. That is the path to liberation, the storehouse of fulfillment, and the attainment of endless bliss.

Is love an important ingredient in Meditation?

Love is an important ingredient in anything you are involved with. Without love, you cannot properly function in life. Love connects you to your surroundings. Love brings forth your best qualities. Love is truly essential in all your undertakings. Never neglect love. Never feel that love is unimportant and that it is a waste of your valuable time.

Is the repetition of a Mantra valuable during Meditation?

It can be. It all depends on your intent when repeating the Mantra. Is your intent to allow the Mantra to free you from all your attachments? Or, is your intent to use the Mantra as a weapon against others, to gain control over others, to make yourself superior to others?

Only when you let the Mantra fill you without reservations from head to toe with its energies can it be useful in helping you make progress toward liberating yourself from the limiting influences of your emotional and conceptual mind.

Is the contemplation of a Mantra useful to get into a proper meditative state?

Contemplation of a Mantra would indicate to me that you are contemplating the meaning of the Mantra. Let’s say you are using the name Rama in your Meditation. Rama was considered an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. When you contemplate the name Rama, are you contemplating Rama’s life? Are you contemplating the heroic deeds this warrior king performed as described in the Ramayana?

Contemplation usually takes place in the realm of the mind and may lead to a devotional or otherwise emotional state of mind. Devotion can help you overcome your small-minded selfishness, if it is strong enough. If you see yourself as the servant of the Divine, then you can find liberation through devotion.

Liberation simply means overcoming the notion that you are a powerless person who is performing individual deeds without understanding why. When you are liberated, you see yourself as an interconnected entity that is responsible for everything that happens in your life. After liberation, the notion of “others” who are doing things to you vanishes, and you find yourself alone in complete nakedness as the creator of your universe, surrounded only by your own energies.

What is a good time during the day to meditate?

Any time you are called upon to meditate is a good time. When your inner voice asks you to look within, then follow this voice fully. Do not put off meditating until some later time. There may be no later time. Meditate now and revel in the bliss of your conscious Self.

What is the best way to learn how to meditate?

The best way to learn how to meditate is by doing it with all your heart. Really delve deeply into the process and find the secret that has been hiding inside your being. Swim in the bliss of your conscious Self. Go deeper and deeper inside yourself and enjoy the beauty that awaits you there. Thank life for all that it is giving to you, and thank life for having made you into the conscious entity that you are. Say “Thank you,” and allow yourself to be drenched by wave after wave of the sweetest bliss.