GATHER YOUR ENERGY, RISE AGAIN

ARANI SERIES

Spark 40

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

GATHER YOUR ENERGY, RISE AGAIN

Meditation as a Ladder to Greatness


   One meaning of meditation1 is ‘concentration2,’ where we are advised to concentrate on a theme presented to us by the scriptures. Few among us realize what a great amount of energy lies hidden in our mind and how less we tap it. The resources within our mind are not so important to gain name or fame as they are to bring to us the sense of being integrated, strong and conflict-free. Success in the field of our work is then a secondary, side-product.

   The Upanishad chides us in a way by saying3, “The earth as though is meditating; the heavens as though are meditating; so is the space between them; rivers, mountains and divine women and men – all seem to be meditating. (Why don’t you too meditate?)” The basis for saying the earth, the mountains etc. are meditating is that all of them have a high degree of balance, steadiness and commitment to their functions or roles. We, in contrast, are unsteady, wobbling. Meditation can be our way to gain inner stability.

   With certain insights into the science of personality integration, the Vedānta remarks that greatness in any area of human endeavour is akin to the wholesome benefits of meditation. The suggestion is that meditation can bless us with certain collectedness where we work with dexterity; we cross hurdles with the stamina and tenacity that are otherwise not possible.

   The glitter and glamour of the external, material world delude us to stay busy with the realm of the senses. We do not work on our own rich, inner world. Even if we were to get 26 hours a day in place of the present 24, we would stay fully engaged with the list of tasks to perform, where all of them are about comforts, money, position and human relationships. As divine grace descends on us, we begin to work ‘from inside out’. As we meditate, for example, on a form of God, with an ardent desire to be pure and strong, the “forces at work” inside us align themselves to make that possible. Revealing great truths in the context of Om, another Upanishad declares4, “One gets whatever one wants!” In the world of management, they say the health of an organization is a reflection of its CEO. In a parallel, the condition of ‘our world’ is a reflection of ‘what we are’. The objective world (if there is one) takes a backseat; the subjective world comes to the forefront. My world is what I create; your world is what you create; his/her world is what he/she creates! Mystics sometimes put this in a strong, poetic language, “You are the world!”

   Let’s meditate. Let’s change. Our world then is bound to change.

Swami Chidananda

dhyānam vāva chittād bhooyah – Chāndogya Upanishad, 7.6.1

ekāgratā iti yam āhuh – Śankarāchārya on Chāndogya Upanishad, 7.6.1

dhyāyateeva prithivee… Chā. Up. 7.6.1

yo yad-icchati tasya tat – Katha Upanishad 1.2.16

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