Meditation confuses nearly everyone. What is it? How do you attain it? What’s it for? This is the topic of the first Living Tantra satsang.

A question from Chicago:

I was in a discussion the other day about meditation. The teacher was saying that to practice, we should focus on one mantra and not skip around, using different objects (icons) or mantras. The reason is that it would take away from us learning to focus and come to the one-pointed mindfulness.

I wanted to start meditating more and was thinking I should just stick to the Gayatri Mantra. However, I’ve practiced Bija mantras as well as just sitting and listening to my breath. I kind of like all three. Is it wrong to use all three at different times? Or I am making things more difficult for myself?

Shambhavi: Anandamayi MA taught that any path leads to Self-realization. Why? Because if you follow even a limited path through to its completion, a larger View will open out pointing you in the right direction. So, I first want to say that one-pointed mindfulness is not meditation. However, it is a useful beginning practice, especially for the many people whose constant experience is one of mental distraction. One-pointedness introduces a limited experience of quietude, and it alleviates our attachment to our habitual thoughts and emotions. This is useful for training people to move on to meditation techniques, and then the open, natural state of contemplation.

The second thing that’s important is following a teacher and a tradition. As Paramahamsa Niranjananda Saraswati likes to say: If you are thirsty and you dig 100 shallow wells, you will likely die before you find any water to drink. However, if you dig one deep well, you will live to drink another day.

If you are following a teacher, you should follow that teacher and discover the fruit of doing that. Every accomplished teacher teaches from her or his experience. If you mix and match based on your own preferences, your teacher may not be able to guide you correctly. You are more likely to remain in a state of distraction. You may not discover the fruits of any of the various teachings you are mashing together. You may get frustrated and quit. Or you may even harm yourself.

For most people, it is best to follow one tradition and one teacher at a time. This being said, of course simply sitting and listening to your breath is not harmful in any case. There is no need to be dramatic or dogmatic. On the other hand, mantras are powerful energies. Many of them should be practiced only under the guidance of an experienced teacher. If you have a teacher with whom you are studying, and that person gives you explicit instructions about practices such as mantra, it’s wise to follow that teacher for the time being until you realize the fruit of the teachings, or decide to move on for some other reason.

A question from Maine on a similar topic:

We know of concentration leading to meditation, and then on to contemplation. While much has been written about concentration and meditation, there is not a lot on contemplation, which is so integral to the whole process. Please give us your insights. Kind thanks. Namaste.

Shambhavi: Contemplation is the world enjoying itself. The world has infinite richness, infinite texture, infinite variety. It is total openness, the primordial intelligence, the great sourceless ocean of compassion, the play of the wisdom lights of the five elements, ceaseless curiosity, and endless permutations of space, time and timelessness. This is the reason why, at a certain point, simply sitting becomes the greatest adventure. At the same time, one discovers the the famous “one taste” of all life. So, contemplation is being with everything just as it is and enjoying that. Contemplation is not what humans do; it is what the entire world is. We discover ourselves as that, and then we enter consciously into the world contemplation.

Also, it is important to understand that this world enjoyment is not some limited mental appreciation. Nor is it an amazing experience, as we Americans are likely to say. There are no words to express the state of contemplation–the essence of the world. The Tantras often call it “delight.” You can discover it in every moment, every circumstance, every breath, every cell. Nor is it limited to what we commonly call animate life. The entire world is animated by contemplation. It is not hidden behind appearances, lurking out of sight in some transcendental realm. It is the essence of all. This can be directly known and felt. It is the teacher’s job to concretely introduce the student to this Reality.

In Ma’s love,
Shambhavi

Satsang is a new feature. You are invited to ask questions about your life, Tantra or anything you have read on Living Tantra.

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