Mind Exercises

It this is true, then it must be accepted that for most of us meditation is an impossibility. And indeed, it is so, because it happens in the rarest of the rare cases of individuals that the mind may be free from all its accumulations. What significance has meditation then for the common man? In one sense, probably none at all. But we need not be disheartened by this bitter truth, for it has been proved by many scientific experiments conducted at many places in the world in recent years that meditation is of immense value for the average individual of our times, because it helps to relieve tensions, gives rest to the body and mind, and brings about the much needed psycho-somatic balance which is lost by hurry and worry. Meditation has been found very useful in the treatment of disorders like hypertension, insomnia, and in fact in all cases of disorders which are produced by strain, anxiety, frustration, and so on. Meditation has been found to Yield very encouraging results in cases of drug addiction, alcoholism, excessive smoking, and the like. It has been demonstrated that meditation helps to reduce criminality and it can be employed as a valuable tool in the correction of criminal behaviour. Meditation can thus play an exceedingly important role in the conflictern, tension-filled world of our day. Of, course, all these results are mainly the outcome of a relaxed state of the body and mind, rather than of any particular technique of meditation. But then, meditation does have importance in inducing relaxation. It might fail to induce freedom, and it may indeed, be true, as pointed out by J. Krishnamurti, that all effort to meditate is the denial of meditation. Yet, meditation is useful for all of us in daily life because of its soothing and relaxing effect.

This brings us to one final question, namely, how to practise meditation actually? Or rather, what is the simplest way of practising meditation? We shall here describe a simple technique called prana-dharana. Prana here means the air we breathe in and out. Dharana means its awareness. Breathing is the most basic act of life which continues from birth till death. We are not usually aware of it unless the attention is specially drawn to it. Prana-dharana involves applying the mind to the flow of air in breathing. Its technique is as follows:

Sit in a meditational posture with the back straight and the eyes closed. It is advantageous to sit in a posture like Siddhasana, Padmasana, or Swastikasana. But if that is not possible, then just sit steadily with the legs crossed. If pranayama is practised already, then meditation becomes easier. Keep the knees well on the ground, and do not stoop or pull the shoulders back. Keep the whole body relaxed, holding the whole frame steady without there being any pull or pressure felt along the thighs, at the feet, knees, or along the spine or neck. Keep the abdominal wall completely free of any stretch or tension. Let it move back and forth very smoothly and effortlessly with each respiration. Keep the facial muscles fully relaxed and the mouth closed with a slight gap between the two jaws so that the upper and lower teeth do not exert any pressure on each other. Keep the tongue touching the palate, its tip touching the back side of the upper front teeth. Let there be no movement of the lips, tongue, or the lower jaw. It is important to keep the eyeballs and eyelids steady and the muscles of the forehead relaxed.

Every part in this whole posture should be very comfortable, steady, and relaxed. That is one essential thing for meditation. There should be no strain anywhere in the body. Now start being aware of breathing. Let the flow of air be uniform, rather slow, and smooth. Do not exercise any control or effort. Do not hold the breath. Do not utter any word or see any image. This is very important. Whenever we are left to ourselves and have nothing particularly to attend to, words and images come to our mind, and that is how we entertain various thoughts. We go on speaking to ourselves and in doing this, there are incipient movements of the apparatus of speech. We are never aware of them. Unless we put an end to the words and images arising in the mind, it will go on thinking endlessly. This is what happens when we sit quietly. The mind uses the two vehicles of words and images to move unceasingly through the past, present, or future. It is essential to stop the mind from using these vehicles. The words can be stopped if the lips and tongue and the lower jaw are all held motionless and completely still. To put the images out the best thing is to keep the eyeballs and eyelids steady, yet relaxed. Keep the eyes fixed as if you are looking far away in the plane of the eyes (with the eyes closed) without visualing anything there, not even a dot, or a flame, or the letter AUM, or any such thing. It is like looking far into blank space with a vacant look. If you succeed in putting away words and images in this way, then you are already on the threshold of meditation. Go on watching the process of breathing and the flow of incoming and outgoing air, feeling it at the midpoint of the eyebrows (bhrukuti-madhya). There should be no friction of the air, no sound, and no effort. This is pranadharana, which should go on smoothly for ten to fifteen minutes. It is not necessary to sit for long ours. The essence of this meditation is relaxation, and awareness of breath, freeing the mind from all else.