Meditation, as a stress reduction or stress management technique, is increasingly becoming popular in the West. But is there all to it? It just helps to manage stress and improve our physical health? Could there be more to it than meets the eye? Actually yes, there is… lots more.
Some meditate on the breath or on a point of light or the third eye, others on the eternal sound of Oṁ, still others on the seven chakras in the body, etc. In such practices, while one is focusing on the object of meditation, one is also trying to balance the breath and become more aware of it. In other words, on the one hand, we are required to focus the mind on one object (light, third eye, Oṁ, chakra, etc.) while on the other hand, we are asked to focus on the breath as well. We cannot focus on two different items—an object and the breath—at the same time. As a result, these meditation techniques are more like mechanical exercises of the mind, where success is largely dependent upon will power. Besides, they aim at stilling the mind, which is a perilous task. So, is there another meditation technique that is easier?
The simple answer is yes! The main point to note is that people prefer to meditate on the above objects when they generally don’t believe in God. But when one believes in the existence of God, why not focus on Him? The reason for doing so is that the end result is far greater, more meaningful, and transformational than focusing on any of the afore mentioned objects.
God is divine and our body, mind, and senses are made from the five material elements of earth, water, fire, air, and space. As a result, we are incapable of seeing, hearing, sensing, understanding Him. However, since it is our inherent nature to love, we are capable of loving Him. This may seem as an oxymoron – that we can’t see or hear or touch Him and yet we can love Him. But yes we can!
In order to meditate upon Him, we must learn to love Him. As our love grows, the meditation becomes easier, a joy, and fun. It’s something one looks forward to daily. To do this, sit with your back straight and close your eyes. Now imagine a form, any form of His. You are free to make up a form based on an image, a photograph, a sketch, a deity, etc. i.e. anything. He doesn’t have to standing still either. He can be hiking, cracking jokes, playing soccer or basketball, eating an ice cream or a slice of pizza, etc. In other words, He is active and not a statue. Consequently, meditating on Him becomes easy.
The reason for focusing the mind on God is that He is divine and all pure. If the mind is attached to someone or something divine, the result is also divine. On the other hand, if our mind is attached to someone or something in the material world, the result is material. Let’s try to understand this with an example. If one mistakes a snake for a rope, what will be the result? The snake will bite and we will die. The result, in other words, is based on the properties of the object (snake) and not on our perception of the object (rope). Here is another example. Prahlad meditated on the loving form of God while sitting in blazing fire and walked away unscathed. His focus on the divine yielded divine results. Thus, God is all pure and as a result of focusing our mind on Him, we too can become pure.
In such a meditation, we do not have to worry about our breath or our posture or anything else. The goal is to absorb the mind completely in in the Names, Forms, Virtues, Abodes, Pastimes, and Saints of God. As we become better at practicing this meditation, also called Roopdhyan (roop = form; dhyan = meditation; meditation on His forms), positive changes in our personality come about that tend to be ever-lasting. Try it and share your experience!