An alert mind never burdens itself with
unnecessary memories of what is done. Man is habitually bothered more by
the memories of the past actions rather than the work on hand. For
instance, when he takes his meals, instead of concentrating on eating, his
mind is agitated with umpteen other, mostly irrelevant, memories and/or
plans. He who keeps his mind fully engaged by whatever is being done at
the moment, is the true sadhaka. Complete harmony of body, mind and
speech is indeed very rarely achieved. And where there is no harmony
between the body and the mind, the result is agitation, tension and
restlessness. In fact, real sadhana comprises total harmony of
thought and deed - call it concentration, meditation or whatever you like.
Meditation does not mean suppression of
mental function. Any attempt towards its suppression makes the mind more
restless. The question then arises, what to do to achieve concentration?
The answer is simply-‘See yourself and realise the Self’.
As already stated, breath is an
essential constituent of the self. Realizing breath is a step towards
realizing the self. And so he who realizes his breath is a wise man. He
may not be a scholar but he knows his self, and is, therefore, wise.
Normally one pays no attention - makes
no efforts to breathe. Nevertheless breathing does not stop. Proper
breathing is very important. He who is indifferent to how he breathes is
ignoring his own self. Breathing, internal breathing, sense organs, body
and mind are all qualified to become objects of concentrated perception,
without which peace of mind cannot be achieved.
Today we live in a world of mental
tensions. Even routine chores like buying one’s necessities from a ration
shop or commuting, by public transport in a crowded city, produces
enormous dangerous tensions. The question is- what is the remedy? How to
avoid the injurious effects of the daily stress? Modern life-styles are
unlikely to change for the better. We must therefore find the remedy
within our own selves. Fortunately we do possess an innate protective
mechanism tropotrophic or relaxation response-which when triggered can
produce conditions diametrically opposite to those of stress. Regular
practice of 'easy-to-learn meditation technique’ is a potent remedy for
relieving mental stress and achieving peace of mind. It can also prevent
the onslaught of dangerous psychosomatic diseases.
Preksa Dhayana is such an
uncomplicated, easy-to-learn technique of meditation. It is comprised of
the following
1. Kayotsarga (Total Relaxation).
2. Antaryatra (Internal Trip).
3. Svasa Preksa (Perception of
Breath).
4. Sartra Preksa (Perception of
Body).
5. Chaitanya Kendra Preksa
(Perception of Psychic Centres).
6. Lesya-dhayana (Perception of
Psychic Spectrum).
7. Perception of the Present Moment.
8. Perception of thoughts.
9. Self Discipline.
10. Bhavana (counter vibrations).
11. Anupreksa (Contemplation).
12. Concentration.
Philosophy
