An article by Rahul Sharma 

{ **Raw Spirituality -> Truth minus Noises ; based on personal experiences over the years while being on Spiritual Journey at Enlightenment & You** }

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Preface : 

While on the spiritual journey , our mind or brain (or whatever you may like to call it) keeps on raising various questions or doubts  . For those , who despite all these distractions & play of mind continue to be on the path of Dhyan , most (if not all ) of these doubts get cleared by themselves in due course . However , unfortunately , for many,these doubts,these confusions & misconceptions raised by mind end up being the reasons to deviate or to completely turn back from Meditation .

While I am not a Guru and certainly not an enlightened being , but luckily , the nature or the divine has helped me to continuously be on this auspicious path of seeking thyself for quiet sometime now. The very purpose of writing this blog is to answer,  based on my own experience , some of the  basic questions/doubts which usually bother the beginners as I sincerely wish that whosoever flag starts his/her spiritual journey ,finds no reason to quit this path.

Further , by the title  ‘Answering the unanswered’ , I don’t mean that these questions have never been answered and that I am the first person to address them..No..they must have been answered N no. of times earlier (As a matter of fact even I myself have tried answering them in one of my earlier blogs too). What I mean is that these questions were more or less unanswered or at best unconvincingly answered for me  till few months back as I was largely dependent on what I had read in various spiritual books or what I had seen in YouTube videos.However, now,in this blog,  whatever I am writing  is based on my very own experience,  based on what exactly I have  felt and understood .

The Matter

# Q 1. So many people keep on saying that Meditation is great for peace of mind, it does wonders, all should do it blah blah blah. But when one says start meditating, what exactly has to be done?

My View :See , the biggest problem / roadblock for beginners  in the path of Meditation is that they think of Meditation as a process, a method which will help them attain benefits –  peace of mind, happiness etc. and hence they want to learn it quickly for quick results and that’s why they are bound to face failure. I too was in this category when I started off.

 Don’t seek anything. Don’t look for results.

Please understand. Meditation is not a magic stick , even the most enlightened persons fall sick, they all have their share of pain but its just that, they don’t get even slightly perturbed   by so called sorrows.

So we need to first understand the fact that Meditation is not a method, it is not a process. Rather, Meditative state is our basic natural state to be in. By default, we are supposed to be naturally meditating during eating, sleeping etc. all 24 *7 but due to various reasons , we get deviated from our natural blissful state and hence certain practices ( physical & spiritual Yoga) are required to get back to where we were.

 As for what exactly has to be done for Meditation, well the funny part is that you don’t have to do anything. Just sit and do nothing for few minutes, with your eyes closed or open whatever way it suits you (though initially I would recommend with closed eyes).

Stop trying to focus at centre of forehead or in between eyebrows or at the tip of nose etc.  Initially, just sit quietly, let itching on forehead or the arm happen, let there be n number of sounds entering your ears, let thousands of thoughts jump & dance, don’t ever try to stop them or suppress them, for that will never happen. Just observe everything with full awareness for few minutes .Eventually you will find everything settling down. Thoughts will never be zero but jugglery of mind gradually slows down. For the first few days or months, it will take a little longer for this settling to happen but as you progress on this path, thoughts start slowing down within few minutes .

So remember the thumb rule for meditation – daily just sit & do nothing for few minutes  – morning , afternoon, evening or even at night. Usually it is said that early morning or evenings are best time to meditate. Well may be yes  but I believe (especially for starters) all that matters is that one should do it –  whenever & wherever possible.

# 2. I have been trying to do meditation but nothing is happening despite my sincere efforts.

My View : Nothing will happen. No magic is gonna happen. In fact the very purpose of Meditation is to converge towards this nothingness (Shunya / Zero). So don’t expect anything.

Always remember the basic rule of Meditation – Don’t seek anything, just be! Just keep on meditating, accepting it as a mandatory routine like brushing the teeth etc., without thinking of what will you get in return.

Besides stop ‘trying’ to meditate, daily just sit & do nothing for few minutes , Meditation will automatically start happening when over a period of time you yourself start realizing what all this is about !

# 3. I sit quietly in the lotus posture for long duration still I am not getting the peace of mind.

My View :  

Well that’s because you are doing a kind of trade here by seeking the peace in return of doing meditation. It’s like you are making a conscious effort to achieve something while pretending to be seated & doing nothing. It doesn’t work like that. This sub conscious & desperate desire to be peaceful is exactly what is stopping you from to be the one.

Keep on sitting in Dhyan , as the self enlightenment gradually seeps in,  the feeling of peace ,joy & blissfulness will definitely prevail .But don’t make this  peace or joyful state as your goal. As mentioned above, daily just sit & do nothing for few minutes.

# 4. I meditate regularly yet I am unable to manage my Anger.

My View :  

It used to be my favourite question for I was ( or probably I still am) labelled as a short tempered & impulsive guy.

I would say , first of all stop managing your anger as in any case , it’s just impossible to manage it from outside. You might suppress your anger for say 20 days by stating to yourself that oh, since I am doing meditation so I don’t have the right to be angry anymore, but it will eventually come out as volcano on day 21st for sure. I have personally experienced that on more than one occasion in last few years before I finally realized that the only way out is in & not the otherwise .

Also , you will be continuously judged by people around who will keep poking you saying that hey, you do meditation but you just lost your temper ,  you just over reacted , you seem to be under anxiety attack etc.etc. Don’t bother. These things will happen. I have faced this situation so many times but just ignore them. Don’t argue for  you are the most honest and best  judge of whether some changes are really happening at fundamental  level inside you or not. You don’t need a certificate from anybody after all.

So just keep on meditating. In due course of time, as your inner world start making you realize the truth, all these strong emotions of hatred, anger, anxiety, extreme attachment etc. will automatically fade away. Till then, daily just sit & do nothing for few minutes.

# 5.Will meditation be of any help when practiced while leading a married life?

My View :

 Just because you cannot stand first in the class that does not mean that you should not join the school – This was the answer that I received when I asked same question on a certain platform.

Honestly speaking, for opening Ajna or Sahasrara chakra i.e. for reaching supreme consciousness, probably yes, you need to lead a life of ‘Vairagya’ because ultimately you are breaking all the boundaries of this physical world and looking beyond that.

However, for people who want to do meditation but are already married (Count myself in) or want to get married , there is absolutely no problem because being on this path itself will liberate you to some extent if not fully . This way, by the time you will reach the retirement age, you would already be half way there on your journey to liberation while many people will be struggling to start  Meditation practice at that age of 60 something which is really difficult because the physical body (which is just a medium though but still mandatory) just doesn’t support one’s fresh spiritual endeavours at that age . So guys, married or unmarried, daily just sit & do nothing for few minutes.

#6. Do we really need a Guru on the path of Meditation?

My View :  

That’s an individual choice .Some find being under the shadow of Guru liberating as they say that Guru acts as catalyst in raising their spiritual energy. It might be true for them and I respect their devotion however I personally don’t have a particular Guru, though initially I was influenced or say inspired by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev , Osho and Ramana Maharshi .

 Even now, on days when I don’t feel like meditating, I read a book or watch You tube videos of these enlightened souls however none of them is or will be my Guru. That’s because as you progress on this path, you start realizing the power of Guru residing inside you since the time immemorial. Those who are into meditation will immediately understand that why I am saying what I am saying. After few months, you understand one fact clearly that listening to or reading about an enlightened person can at best inspire you to commence your spiritual journey. Their teachings (which might be wonderful) or even their physical presence (which might be mesmerizing) can no way enlighten you. Each one has to have his  own journey. No two opinions about it. Nevertheless, I would still maintain that Guru or No Guru, it’s largely an individual choice.

# 7   Some good books to read / persons to follow to get started?

My View :‘To get started’ is the key word here as once you start realizing things , you no longer need any book or person to inspire you.

Having said that, there is no denying the fact that a good spiritual book or a good video of an enlightened being can surely get you started or get you back on track if you go haywire on the way.

So here are a few persons whose books/ videos have assisted me so far in my spiritual journey: Osho , Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev , Ramana Maharshi, Thich nhat hanh, BK Shivani, Sandeep Maheswari , Rumi and ofcourse , Jiddu Krishnamurti.

If I were to strongly recommend a single particular reference, then that would be Ashtavakra Gita  and hence a beautiful book on the mystic Ashtavakra –Enlightenment- The Only Revolution !

#Even though I have already said a lot about so many things above , but to summarize & to conclude , I would like to say that believe me guys , there is absolutely nothing beyond Buddha – Om Mani Padme Hum !   🙂

P.S. – I would gladly call myself  a seeker , a beginner on the spiritual  path , who has (by divine’s grace)  probably learnt & experienced  a thing or two.That’s it.Nothing more than that.

Would love to hear your thoughts  & feedback. Please do share / Re-Blog the post if you found it helpful .

Namaste & Good bye till my next write up !!

You may like to read some of the other Spiritual Blogs mentioned here :

1. Meditation is a journey , not the destination !
2. Don’t Hallucinate, Just Meditate !
3. Difference between Om & Aum !
4. My first Spiritual Journey : Sadhguru’s Isha Yoga Centre, Coimbatore, India
5. Learn extremely effective Meditation technique (Aumkar Meditation)in just 4 minutes !
6. Why Piece of Mind is a highly incorrect & contradictory phrase !
7. Best Spiritual Books to Read !