THE SCIENCE OF MEDITATION

To validate a genuine science, facts are first observed, then generalisations made and lastly principles elaborated and conclusions drawn. Without proper analysis any science is doomed. No science can be built upon mere theorising or speculation.

The science of meditation offers us the means of observing the internal states. The instrument is the mind itself. This is man’s only means of knowledge. In the vast majority of humans the powers of the mind are like dissipated rays of light. Only when they are concentrated will they illumine. The power of attention when properly channelled towards the inner realms will analyse the mind and illumine facts for us.

When through minute analysis of his mind man comes face to face with the one truth, the indestructibility of the mind, the eternally pure and perfect, man’s miseries, his sufferings will vanish. All misery is rooted in fear of the unknown and in unsatisfied desire. When man will discover that death cannot touch him his fear will cease. When he knows that he is perfect, he will no more have vain desires; hence no more sorrow when unable to fulfil them. There will be perfect bliss in this very life.

Consciously or unconsciously everyone is using meditation both in the internal and external worlds. The scientist thoroughly observes the external world. The yogi directs the same minute observation to the internal world. Our indiscriminate upbringing has taught us to pay attention to the external only, never to the internal. To the majority this faculty of observing the internal is lost. To prevent the mind from going outside, to concentrate all its powers and throw them upon the mind itself is no simple task. It requires a great deal of practice. Yet it is the only means one has to make the mind know its own nature and analyse itself. That is the only scientific approach to the subject: concentration.

The mind naturally goes outwards; hence concentration on the external is easier. However, in the case of religion the subject and object are one. The object is the mind. The mind is internal and it is necessary to study the mind itself. Fortunately, the mind has the power of reflection. That is why we can talk, work and think at the same time. While we talk, a part of our mind is aware of us speaking. While we are thinking, one part of the mind can track what we are thinking.

In the external world it is comparatively easy to observe facts. One can choose from a variety of sophisticated instruments. But in the internal world there are no such instruments. We cannot depend upon any external help for meditation. And mere theorising would not do. There is a long way between intellectual understanding and its practical realisation.

Intellectual religion can only assert the freedom of the soul. Meditation is practical religion. The only instrument is man’s mind, his most precious possession. To understand the science of meditation one has to understand the mind, its purpose and function. Meditation is an analysis of the mind, an understanding of the supersensuous realm and a discovery of the spiritual world.

Man’s existence cannot be limited to awareness (consciousness) and memory, instinct or habit (subconsciousness). Meditation reveals to man the superconscious state. Both the superconscious and the subconscious are silent witnesses of the conscious. The striking difference is that the subconscious is a passive witness, while the superconscious is a witness-consciousness. The one is ignorance and the other is knowledge. The average man makes use of his surface consciousness and relies entirely on his vast pool of subconsciousness. He remains unaware of the immensurable vastness of his superconsciousness.

Scientifically it has been shown that most humans make use of less than 10 % of their potential. The vast mass of humanity is very little removed from the brute. In many instances the power of control is little higher than in beasts. One is inclined to say in many the power of control is even less than in beasts! The majority has very little control over the mind.

Meditation teaches man that all knowledge has its source in the concentration of the mind. The three states merged, reveal to man his untapped intelligence: the other 90% or more of his true potential. Our consciousness is only a part of the three states that constitute our nature and that project it into infinity. Through constant practice of meditation the mind gradually unravels its innermost secret wealth and treasures. Man discovers new worlds manifesting themselves in the once dark abyss of his illumined mind.

Man’s spiritual perfection is the goal of meditation. The whole object of meditation is to raise the kundalini, that spark of the great primal energy lying dormant in man. It is the dormant divine energy in all humans. Awakening of the kundalini is man’s spiritual birth. Only an awakened kundalini makes meditation successful. Without this inner light man cannot evolve. Only an awakened kundalini can end man’s eternal quest and reveal to him the mystery of life, of his birth and of death.

According to yogis there are two ‘pathways’ in the spinal cord, ‘Ida’ and ‘Pingala’, through which the afferent and efferent currents travel. They are the two lesser psychic currents. The channel called the ‘Sushumna’ runs through the centre of the spinal cord. Vital force is stored in the sushumna. It is the live filament through which the kundalini rises. Its extremities end in the muladhara chakra at the base and the sahasrara at the top. It is the live ‘passage’ of salvation.

The yogis state that the sushumna, which is usually closed, has to be opened by the power of meditation. The energy has to be sent down to the base of the spine causing the kundalini to rise. The kundalini will ascend from one centre to the next one along the sushumna, altering the senses. One is spellbound. One begins to see this world changed. It is bliss. When the kundalini goes down to the lower centres, one again becomes the old self. When the kundalini ultimately reaches the brain through all the centres, everything vanishes and man perceives nothing but the One Existence. Nothing else exists. He is the One Existence. No more a slave, he is a transformed being.

There are three stages of meditation. ‘Dharana’, the first stage consists of focusing the mind upon one object excluding every other object. The mind will waver in the beginning. Gradually it becomes fixed to the object: this is the second stage, ‘Dhyana’, meditation. The highest stage, ‘Samadhi’, is attained when the mind loses itself in the object. There are no more two. The mind and the object are one, identical.

Concentration, meditation and Samadhi are the three stages to God realisation. Samadhi is the final state of meditation and God realisation. It is the tranquil state of mind where the conscious mind has completely subsided and the Self manifests itself in its exalted, glorious nature; the state of pure being, perfect purity, peace and calm, the state where divine communion is accomplished; the state where the individual spirit becomes merged with the Universal spirit and realises perfect oneness. It is the state of salvation in this life; man transcending the bondage of births and deaths and attaining freedom; the state of spiritual realisation, God consciousness. True religion begins after one reaches the state of Samadhi.

Meditation does not depend on anything external: the mind is the only means. When we meditate we focus on the superconscious state of the mind, beyond the senses. Experiences through the senses are coated with a thick layer of negativities. The soul can thus no longer reflect its purity, its true nature which is Sat-Chit-Ananda (Knowledge, Existence, Bliss). Meditation removes attachment. Meditation teaches one non-attachment. With the mind indrawn and still, man loses his physical identity. External distractions through the senses and from within from the subconscious are easily restrained. The less the body-consciousness the closer man is to his spirit.

In meditation all the powers of the mind are concentrated and turned back upon itself to penetrate its innermost recesses to reveal its secrets. Meditation proper means the mind is turned back upon itself. The mind stops, all thought waves stop and the world stops. Consciousness expands. Each new meditation will add to one’s growth. Meditation is a reality and makes man’s existence a reality in this life and in the beyond. It helps us gain mastery over the mind to acquire knowledge of our real divine nature.

Meditation will gradually bestow upon us the certainty that God is within us all, king or pauper, saint or sinner. Only then will we come to the foundation of beliefs, the real genuine religion. Whether we have souls, whether life is of a nanosecond or an eternity, whether there is a God in the universe, more gods or none, all will be revealed to us.

Meditation is the highest form of prayer, the highest activity. It opens the door to the unique privilege of exciting spiritual experiences, rapturous visions, moments of pure beatitude, supreme peace and ecstasy, which no words can ever describe. Unless there is complete surrender to God we will not be able to go beyond our limited consciousness to reach a higher level. Real meditation is this complete surrender to God. Only through meditation does God reveal himself to us.

Meditation reveals the true meaning of Divine Love. It is love in its purest form and eternal. The greatest expression of this pure love is in the relationship between Guru and disciple. There is not the slightest tinge of selfish love. It is love for the sake of love; to wish for perfection for the loved one, to feel pure joy in thinking of the dear one. Only this sterling love can lead to unconditional love for God.

Meditation has a universal influence on our life. The world is changed through the power of meditation. It completely overhauls our strayed nature, lifting the veil of ignorance and reveals our true identity. Consciousness is raised to a higher level. Growing awareness brings major transformation, freeing us from the fetters of mortal life, birth and death.

Meditation is an imperative for ailing humanity. Only if meditation were to become the main spiritual activity of mankind would the whole of humanity become able to realise the real purpose of life. Spirituality is when man is able, while treading sacred earth with his feet, to make his spirit soar high to almighty God.

God is to be known here in this life. If He has not been found here, He would be found nowhere else. This in brief is the science of meditation.