If life is a continuous prayer, then what is meditation? What do we do in meditation? Whatever I do with eyes open I will do with eyes closed. I will close my eyes to feel the presence of God within me. This is meditation. Prayer and meditation are inseparable. You cannot really separate meditation and love. In prayer the senses are open. With eyes open you look at a symbol- let it be a cross, a statue of Christ or Krishna and sing the glory of God or chant. Prayer is using the senses. Meditation is silent. Meditation is a silent prayer, when we close the eyes, close the ears and close the mouth and listen to the inaudible talk of God. Those who meditate go into the inner chambers of silence and listen to the beautiful melodious sound of Om or amen, the continuous and non-stop sound. It could be the sound of church bells or the sound of a flute. I am talking to you now and simultaneously listening to the sound. Those who meditate know how to listen to that sound. With closed eyes they see the light of god, the light of the soul with the third eye. With eyes open we see the light of the sun and the moon but in meditation you see the light of the soul. With eyes open we see the play of energy through talk, sound and sight and with eyes closed in meditation you see the play of energy as the vibration of cosmic, pranic energy in each living being. Prayer is the expression of the beauty of the God through the senses and meditation is the silent prayer when the senses are made introvert.
Where to Knock In the Bible Jesus said, “Knock, it shall be opened. Seek, you will find. Ask you will get.” Where to knock? Knock in the inner chambers through meditation and they will be opened. The Divine Kingdom is not out side. In the Bible 3 times it is said in 3 different places in 3 different ways. Jesus said at one place “Go and tell, the divine kingdom is near.’ At another place he said,” Go and tell that the divine kingdom of heaven is at their hand.” At yet another place he said, “Kingdom of heaven is within you.” The kingdom of heaven is the happiness, health, wholeness and joy that we can get.
The Result What will happen through prayer and meditation? They bring completeness to life. Is it true? It is true through experience. We want to live a happy life, a healthy life, a life of understanding and love. These things are not just written in books or expressed through words. It is a possible truth. We can live a life of good health, balance, calmness of mind and inner peace in spite of any circumstances in life. Even in this modern society of the so-called stressful life it is possible to live a life of love and peace.
How to Live a Life of Balance and Moderation? Prayer and meditation help. I will relate a few things about how it helped in my life. Born in India, a premature baby, 7 months and a few days old this body came out of the mother’s womb. With whatever medical facilities were available at that time the soul in this body was struggling very hard to just survive. With many ailments and medicines everyday and with the doctor as the constant friend, even up to late teens, not a single day passed without medicines. The body was just skin and bone with out any flesh. All other brothers and sister were perfectly healthy. The mother would hug this body with tears in her eyes to see her son so weak, and would try all possible things to make him better but with no avail.
Kriya Yoga When I started practicing meditation, it is called Kriya Yoga, which is a continuous prayer combined with some exercises and breathing techniques and living a life of consciousness my whole life changed. Until now for more than 22 years I have not been to the doctor for any kind of treatment and am enjoying good health and working much more than before. I am talking through my experience. If it is possible in my life and I have also seen the change in many other lives, why should it not be possible in your life? Meditation and prayer can work miracles in life.
Breath and Emotion I will give you a simple example. A person is angry. Anger is one of the gateways to hell says the Gita. How to know when one is entering the hell? What happens when one is angry? The palpitation of the heart increases, the breath becomes fast, the face becomes red and the blood flows more to the hands and the muscles are tensed. The brain cannot get enough oxygen and the brain cannot think. At that time of anger we lose our brainpower and many brain cells die. We are not able to make good decisions and we loose our balance and repent later.
When one is under tension the breath becomes fast and the other things follow just like in the case of the angry person. Suppose you are in a traffic jam. I was in one on the way to an airport. Another person was driving. He was under great tension. “Swamiji, traffic jam” he said. I looked at him and smiled.” We will miss the flight “he said. I asked,” Who will miss the flight? You or me? If I am to miss the flight and I am not worried why are you? Can we fly over the cars in the front and go? Can we go back? When we can do neither and are here in the car with no one else, just you, God- and me, why not thank God for giving such a nice opportunity, which is rare to get instead of being tense?”
Controlling the Mind Mind is nothing but a flow of thoughts. Mind is like the flow of a river. God created beautiful streams of water and we pollute them. The river of mind is polluted with our negative emotions. But it can be controlled. Prayer and meditation is to control the pollution of the mind and to transform it into a peaceful loving, blooming, beautiful mind that will make life really beautiful. This is in our hands if we want.
When the breath is restless the mind is restless. When the breath is calm and peaceful the mind is calm and peaceful. This is what we try to do in Kriya Yoga. We practice a rhythmic controlled way of breathing. When one lives a conscious and prayerful life of inner awareness one can know it before an angry thought comes. One can get a warning and avoid it. Spiritual life, prayerful life and a meditative life are a conscious life style. To talk consciously, to think consciously, to breathe consciously and to do every work in God consciousness and love for God is a prayerful and meditative life.
Life becomes more enjoyable and peaceful through prayer and meditation. It is at our hand. Meditation and prayer are not really difficult. No one has to keep his or her feet up and head below. There is no need. It is not required to take cold-water showers. Meditation and prayer are always with the mind. If you change your mind the life will change.
It is Never Too Late It is not late. Nothing is late in God’s creation. Just now, from now we can begin.
Affirm that I am God’s child. God is always with me. In every breath I will think of God and I will not forget god. Whatever situations are to be faced I will not be heart broken or excited. I will be grateful to God, and I will radiate God’s love and joy. I will not have ego or anger. These are weaknesses. Weak people become angry. Smile is strength. Only Strong people can smile. How many people can really smile? The problem with the modern world is that people forgot to smile. Many times I look into peoples faces to see what happened to the cheerfulness. A baby is so joyful but we forgot how to smile. We entertain useless unnecessary thoughts creating tension and worry and we lose the charm of life. Prayer and meditation help.
Make your life a continuous prayer. Make your life an offering at the altar of god saying, “O God, You have given this life to me. I will make this life complete and beautiful with your presence. You will see your child smiling and singing your glory.”
Make life complete with prayer and meditation. God has given this beautiful opportunity. Sing like a child.
Father of all, My Mother of all
I am Thy child please listen to my call
I am Thy child I cry for Thee
Come to me God come to me.