Making Meditation Part of the Daily Routine
Margaret Schenkman, March 17, 2021
The first principle of Heartful living is all about how to meditate. This principle says:
‘Rise before dawn and offer your prayer and meditation at a fixed hour; preferably completing them before sunrise. Have a separate place and seat for meditation. As far as possible, develop the habit of sitting in one and the same pose. Give special attention to purity of body and mind.’
I had a lot of difficulty with this principle in the beginning of my Heartfulness journey. For one thing, I had begun to meditate to manage a health condition – not from any interest in meditation per se. Hence this principle seemed very prescriptive and irrelevant to me. Furthermore, I didn’t have any prior experience with meditation or yoga, and only a cursory introduction to eastern philosophies from a college course taken years previously; I didn’t have a context from which to think about meditation and wasn’t interested in the when, where or how to meditate. Amazingly, the meditation itself developed these abilities in the most natural way.
The meditation process was quite simple, and at the same time I found it a bit challenging. The process consisted of bringing my attention to my heart with the supposition that there was luminosity already within, and to allow my attention to rest there. When my thoughts wandered, I simply brought them back to my heart. At least it was supposed to be simple.
My first challenge was in ‘finding my heart’. I simply couldn’t conceive of how to connect with it, which showed me in retrospect how disconnected I was from this beautiful part of my being. Over the years, I have known people who connected with their hearts easily from the beginning of their meditation experience, and others who – like me – didn’t have a clue as to what the heart really is. I have a feeling that coming from a highly intellectualized background made it very easy for me to ‘be in my head’ and very hard for a long time to ‘be in my heart’.
Additionally, when I would try to meditate, I discovered that my mind was incredibly busy and undisciplined. This further compounded my meditation experience. I also began to observe how busy my mind was throughout the day – jumping from one thought to another, even when I was trying to focus on one task. Whew! I hadn’t realized what a ‘monkey mind’ I had and also hadn’t realized that the busyness was quite exhausting.
When I meditated with a trainer, I noticed that my mind was more disciplined than when I meditated on my own. Eventually I understood that the reason I could meditate so much more easily with a trainer was because of the transmission that flowed between me and the trainer. Transmission is a subtle yogic support that can be thought of as the pure energy associated with love – love without expectation or limit. I have come to understand that the trainers with whom I meditated were like ‘radio signal stations’ focusing that yogic energy that is available to all, but that is rarely recognized or utilized. As a scientist, I had a hard time wrapping my brain around the idea of this yogic energy or transmission. Yet also as I scientist, I am trained in observation and I could observe clearly the impact of the transmission. Indeed, I came to appreciate that the exceptional effectiveness of Heartfulness Meditation in allowing me to change in profound ways was because of that transmission.
Something about the meditation experience spoke to me so I kept on working at it, even though I was having so much difficulty staying focused on meditation, finding a comfortable position in which to meditate, and having the energy to do it. Over time, I learned that none of that seemed to matter – I was changing in fundamental ways month by month, week by week, and sometimes day by day. Just attempting to meditate seemed to be key.
Within a short time of trying to meditate, I found that my mind was progressively more disciplined throughout the day, so that my work became progressively more efficient. Over time, I also found that I was less reactive, more patient and more open. But that took time and is for another blog.
Also over time, I became interested in the philosophy behind the when, where and how of meditation – the wording of this principle. I came to appreciate that meditation can be a means of returning to the ‘oneness’ that existed before creation. The recommended time of meditation at dawn is the time which is when day meets night and the greatest stillness is present – reminiscent of the stillness that was present before creation.
The idea of having a place where one always meditates is reflective of the power of thought. This idea is similar to having a place where we work. When we reach that place, our thought is on work and we are already predisposed to work. Similarly, when we reach our meditation place, we are already predisposed to a meditative state. Additionally – over time – the vibratory state that we experience during meditation becomes more and more pronounced, affecting even the place where we meditate. I will always remember a friend of mine who had begun to meditate coming to my house, sitting in the chair where I always meditated, and saying ‘this must be where you mediate; I can feel the vibration’. He was particularly sensitive. His experience was evidence to me of how meditation can change the vibration of a chair – and eventually even of a home.
Having a meditation pose similarly puts us in a meditative state before we even ‘sink into the meditation’. Over time, I also learned why it is advised to meditate (if possible) in a lotus position (sitting with the legs folded inward and crossed) and with hands lightly clasped on the lap. This drawing inward helps to draw our energy back inwards towards the center, which is reminiscent of the original state before creation. Of course, some people can’t assume a lotus position due to joint and muscle restrictions, pain and other conditions. There’s no need to worry. I have learned that it is most important to find a position that is comfortable and that one can maintain for the total period of meditation time. And further, it is perfectly fine to move when needed during the meditation. It’s much better to be comfortable and meditating than to be in a particular posture and focusing on the discomfort of the posture!
The idea of purity of mind really relates to gradually simplifying everything that we carry with us during the day so that the mind is clear and quiet when we meditate. The Heartfulness practice has a few particular ways of facilitating that purity of mind that are so integral to the practice that it will be worth taking up that concept in the next blog.