Meditation
Unification
It is expected that by the constitution of Society, different groups and cliques will disappear and satsangis will love each other as brothers. Kindly send this letter to Babu Sawan Singh also for his information.”
1) Most of the citations from Baba Ji’s letters in his books were translated directly from the Gurmukhi originals. The reader wishing to read his entire correspondence with Baba Sawan Singh Ji may consult Spiritual Gems (Beas 1958).
2) Baba Sawan Singh Ji in a letter to one of his disciples makes the necessity of a living Master in the Mystic Path very clear indeed: “When I was in the hospital on account of the fracture of my leg, one day when I was meditating, Baba Ji’s form appeared before me. Baba Ji, or rather what seemed to be his form, said: “If, in a case of emergency, meat and drink are used, there is no harm.” But when I repeated the five names, he got up and walked away. Now because I had seen Baba Ji in real life and could visualize him, I found out this trick. But those people who concentrate on the old Masters who passed away thousands of years ago are likely to be misled. It’s (the Saint’s) eyes and one’s forehead cannot be imitated. Hence, you always require a living teacher for the pupil, a living physician for the sick, a living husband for the wife and a living ruler for the people. I maintain that no one else can help a disciple so much as a living Master.”
To Be selfless
A way to be selfless is for the disciple may give for the good of the Master’s cause, but at the same time, he should see how much he could really give. If he does not care for the welfare of his own children, then that is not fair, So we have a rule here. Those who give more than a certain amount, they come to me. This is a very strict condition given to Salip Singh. He may accept ten, twenty, or thirty rupees, but those who want to give more than that must come to see to me. Sometimes I accept, sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I return full, sometimes I return half. So a man should share with others, but in degrees. Let him start with the least, maybe 1/40th, or 1/20th. 1/10th has been the average. Those who cannot afford to give 1/10th, let them give 1/20th, let them give 1/40th, let them share even a single pie. So those who want to progress on the spiritual way must earn their livelihood by honest means, and then share with others.
Do you know why I don’t accept money from those who are not initiated? Who knows how they earned the money! When a man is initiated, he is cared for by the Master. Those who have not been initiated, their money is not looked after by anybody.
Whatever they give will have to be repaid. You must have compassion, you must share with others. Don’t give anything with the hope of return, for something that you will have in the afterlife. That is not what is wanted. Give it once and for all, share with others. They are your brothers and sisters in God. Do you now understand what is meant by charity? These things are not explained in books. Don’t accept anything for your own personal self. So, the main rule is, earn your own livelihood by honest means, first of all, and then share with others, maybe the least amount that you can. The more you can give, while looking after your family circumstances, so much the better. Then, you will ultimately give everything for the sake of God. We should give without the least hope of return, as a selfless service. We are all brothers and sisters in God.
There was once a saint, Bab Kahan was his name, to whom Baba Sawan Singh used to give Rs. 10 every time he met him at Peshawar. Once Baba Sawan Signh was on field service and earned a good amount, one or two thousand rupees. He met Baba Kahan again at that time. I also met him, since I was in Peshawar at the time.
Baba Kahan said to Baba Sawan Singh, “Well, look here, I want Rs. 20 this time.” The Master said to him, “What, are you becoming greedy?”
“Not the least,” replied Bab Kahan, “I want the extra so that the poison may be taken away from all this money that you have earned. Before you were earning less, and I took Rs. 10 and it was given away to the poor. I want Rs.20 now only for the reason that you have more money. Let it be shared with others.” He did not accept anything for himself. This is what is meant by giving.
If we give something, and we want some return, that is not selfless service. In your diaries, you have got one column for this. It means something, and it is for your own good. Do you follow the purpose for which charity is meant? If you want return, action and reaction will come back. But a mother, whose children are hungry, will take out a morsel from her own mouth and give it to her children. She does not care for any return. So, help others with that angle of vision, with that spirit.
We give sometimes for show. That is for name and fame only. That kind of charity is no charity. Christ said, “If one hand gives something, let not your other hand know about it.” So this is what is meant by charity.
YOGA MEDITATION SKILLS
The practice of yoga aims for “Enlightenment” and also “Self-Realization”. In order to achieve this state, one must be able to focus and bring himself to meditate at a level or depth where he discovers the Center of his consciousness. In doing so, one must have a set of skills to reach one’s self within. It might be confusing at times when we hear the words techniques and skills. To simplify it, techniques are methods by which one enhances a certain skill. In Yoga, the more important thing that one should be able to focus on is the skill and not so much on the techniques.
The third structure of Yoga is Meditation. Before one can learn how to properly meditate, they have to cultivate or hone their skills. To be guided with the right way of meditating, here are 6 skills that are needed to achieve a deep level of Yoga meditation.
SKILL 1: RELAXING THE BODY
Beginners would have a hard time relaxing the body especially if they come from a stressful day at work or home. All your body muscles are all tensed and you should be able to loosen all the tightness and the stiffness in your body. So how does one gain or improve the skill of relaxing the body at their own desire and will? The key here is repetition. The more one practices, the more one will come into terms of easily loosening up. There really is no shortcut to this. Relaxation exercises should be regularly practiced even if you’re not in Yoga class. At first, it would help you to listen to nature’s sounds like the sound of water rushing, rain falling, birds chirping. Find something that can aid you in relaxing your body until such time that you can do it on your own.
SKILL 2: SITTING COMFORTABLY IN A STRAIGHT AND STEADY POSUTRE
There are several meditation postures in Yoga that is in the sitting position. Poses like the Friendship pose or theMaitriasana, Easy Pose or Sukhasana, Accomplished pose or Siddhasana, and the Auspicious pose orSwastikasana would require one to have a skill where they can sit straight, steady and comfortably with which adjustments are made in positioning of cushions, legs, feet, arms and spine so that there is alignment with the head, neck and trunk.
Development of this skill may take over a long period of time but one can easily practice by sitting straight in a chair.
In meditation, it is equally important that one knows how to breathe properly. Breathing should be slow, smooth, deep, and serene. This way one’s breathing is regulated without pauses which makes it possible to have a balanced energy that will lead one to a deep meditation.
SKILL 4: WITNESSING AND LETTING GO
One misconception when in meditation is that one should eliminate the stream of thoughts in one’s mind. The truth is that one should actually allow the train of thought arising without interruption and be able to let go of it. It usually takes a lot of effort to develop this new skill.
SKILL 5: INSPECTING & PROMOTING QUALITY & HELPFUL THOUGHTS
It is one skill to witness and let go but it is another skill to be able to discern which one is helpful to you. When one is able to decide which one thought is best then he/she can promote these helpful thoughts translate into positive energies, words, and actions.
SKILL 6: MAINTAINING EQUANIMITY
Finally, the last skill is how to maintain the Equanimity. This simply means that one should not let themselves be able to disturbed by any situation whether in meditation or in life. It is a gradual development and it takes time to build and improve this skill. It does not really equal to being emotionless but rather keeping the emotional response for an extended period of time compared to having it quickly change or fade as a new situation or incident arises.
All these 6 skills should work hand-in-hand to attain the best level of meditation.
