WHAT IS MEDITATION
What is meditation? Is it a technique that can be practiced? Is it an effort that we have to make? Is it something that the mind could achieve? It is not. To call it a process or destination is way off the mark.
The best efforts of the mind and all that it can do are not meditation. That’s actually something beyond the mind, the mind is absolutely helpless there. The mind cannot penetrate meditation.
Singhania’s recent achievement of reaching almost 70000 feet taught us that that is the border between earth and space. Similarly where the mind ends is where the meditation begins. This has to be remembered, because in our life, whatever we do, we do through the mind. And then we turn inward, we fall back yet again on thinking in terms of technique, methods, doings, because the whole of life’s experience shows us that everything can be done by the mind. Yes. Except meditation.
That’s because the meditation is not an achievement – it is already the case, it is our nature. It does not have to be achieved; it has only to be recognized , it has only to be remembered. It is there inside, waiting for us – just a turning on and it is available. We have been carrying it always.
It may sound hard to understand, like some kind of weird abstract concept. But in fact, meditation is our intrinsic nature – it is us, it is our being, it has nothing to do with our doings. Once we understand what meditation is, matters become very clear. Otherwise we can go on groping in the dark, running from one spiritual teacher to another, without even figuring out this mystery
The fact is, meditation is a state of mind. The mind is confusion, it’s never clear. It cannot be. Thoughts create clouds around us, very subtle clouds. In the mist created by them, our clarity is lost.
When thoughts disappear and there are no more clouds around us, when we are in our simple being, clarity happens. Then we can see far away; then we can see to the very end of existence; then our gaze becomes penetrating, to the very core of being. But we have to get past the noise of the mind.