How does one meditate effecetively, so she can obtain inner peace and have emotional stability?

Question

How does one meditate(give specific techniques, steps how to, etc please) to obtain inner peace, emotional stability, and true mindfulness and awareness?

Answer 1

One of the initiations through which we pass while in the presence of the Maharshi , is true meditation, which years of study of occult literature had assured me was the key to the awakening of supra-physical consciousness. During my allegiance to Theosophy I practised different forms of meditation in accordance with their literature. From what I have since found out, the knowledge given was for beginners.

Their aim was to direct the mind into certain deliberately chosen channels of thought. There were meditations on different themes such as Beauty, Love, Purity, Wisdom, Devotion, God, The Creator of the universe and so on. The object was to keep these ideas in the mind as long as possible, and to imagine the working out of these virtues in the consciousness. Such 'meditations' can create certain currents of thought in the mind, conditioning it to a positive force which activates the thinking. Such exercises have a certain usefulness, for it is said:'a man is as he thinks'.

In other words, the manner of a man's thinking creates his worthiness.
If he associates himself with good and positive thoughts his nature will be improved; if with negative and evil currents- he will retrograde and fall. All this is true in the relative field, but is founded on the assumption that man's consciousness is derived from his thinking apparatus or mind.

Man can elevate his mind, as do the Yogis, and perform 'miracles' as have many of the saints of all religions. The mind is a power, and when controlled and directed, its force and subtlety are apparently unlimited. But only apparently, for the power of the mind is based on the false notion that there is one who thinks, and an object of thought. This is the old lie of duality, and its end cannot be brought about by the ennoblement of the instrument(mind).

The subject and object still exist. This conception hinders the realisation of the unreality of the outer world. And to count this as real is an insurmountable obstacle on the path of realisation of the true Self in man.

So long as man's consciousness is unable to merge in the whole, there will always be the necessity for rebirths and incarnations in matter. The bewitched circle is closed.

Strangely, from the first days of my stay at the Ashram, my old mental meditations were forgotten and I could not practice them in the presence of the Master.So it still is, and for me there will be no return to those old currents of thought. Every day there is a more and more urgent inner inclination to be still, to remain without thought, to merge in the silence.
The inaudible inner voice tells me that there lies the truth.

Maharshi himself insisted on the necessity for meditation, but what did he mean by this term 'meditation'? He calls true meditation 'silence', being still', 'stillness'. So it was the same power which drew me then and now.

While one is immersed in water one cannot see anything above the water's surface. The world above is veiled from sight. To gain the wider horizon one has to rise out of the water, and only then will one realise how limited was one's former vision. So long as man is merged in the world of thought - the realm of mind- his consciousness will be bounded by its limitations.

Thought must always have an object, however sublime it may be, thus there must always be two, not one.Therefore, thought and its process is a blind alley.

The Master's power released me from all desire to follow this by-path. It was simply forgotten, as mentioned before. I am not a believer in miracles. So I cannot put the help and activity of the Master into this category. But the fact remains, and that is all that matters In this manner, I came at last to the secret of true meditation. This state when I am aware of being apart from the thinking process can be called true meditation. This Awareness is the source of all Life, of that which is my life. It is the source of everything. From It alone I draw all that makes possible what I say on these pages.

How can one enter this state of supra-mental meditation? Analysing the process in myself, I find that FIRST must come the stopping of all thoughts. The Vichara ripens in the mind so that interest in the thinking process vanishes, and the stilling of the mind, so difficult in the past, becomes easy.

SECONDLY, when the mind is still, there arises a strong urge to be united with the whole, but what this whole is, cannot yet be conceived and I feel that I could never attain it alone. The closest comparison is melting and dissolving in That which alone Is. It is different to leaving the body or ego for there is no movement. One remains where one is, but is not what one was before. Everything that could be seen or felt before is now apart from me. No more can be told.

THIRDLY, the state of unity with the whole brings an unshakable certainty that only this state is real and permanent. That it is that last refuge which one has always sought, and from which one can never more be lost.There is nothing beyond it, for - it is all.

The conception that we know as 'death' is obliterated, but this does not mean that we are in that state thought of as 'life after death'. The only fact one knows is , that this life will always go on.

In this state of being there are no such false distinctions of time as past, present, and future.

It is possible to force language to convey to the mind something of that which one brings back from such a meditation, but it is likely to be of no avail, and more likely to be misunderstood. What I can express is tragically little.

There is a mysterious experience which proves the power of the Vichara. The Master insisted that we should not use it as a Mantra, that is, as words only, but soak each question with the desire to know 'WHO AM I?'. By using the Vichara in this way, after stilling the mind, the answer comes of itself, but without words or thought- you know who you are.

What follows-is inexpressible

This is the great service which Maharshi performed for humanity-the welding of this infallible instrument of achievement, the inspired VICHARA.
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"Pursue the enquiry "WHO AM I" relentlessly. Analyse your entire personality. Try to find out where the I-thought begins. Go on with your meditations. Keep turning your attention within. One day the wheel of thought will slow down and an intuition will mysteriously arise. Follow that intuition, let your thinking stop, and it will eventually lead you to the goal".

Answer 2

There are several suggestions one can do to meditate. You will have to find one that suits you comfortably. In fact, a true meditation is compared to someone taking water from a well. If you can follow with your eyes the movement of your hands as you put the pail down to take the water and as it goes up when drawing it from the well with a regular rythmn and your mind does not wander to another thinking except the drawing of the water then you are in to the right step of meditating and giving way to mindfulness..
The peace of the inner mind is not always found in the silence of your sorroundings but in the joy of the moment you are doing what you want to do unperturbed by the noise outside yourself.
Only you can find the way to your inner peace. Your emotional stability is in your acceptance to the truth that a perfect life is composed of imperfect pieces of puzzles that has the right shape to every right slot. Once you understand what life is then your awareness is broadened to all the possibilites of knowing.

Answer 3

Take a walk out into the woods, sit up on a rock and watch the animals come around. The squirels in the trees, running back and forth. By the creek you can see the fish swimming by.
The birds building a nest, they take good care of their children and never not even in a storm abandon their young.
We can learn a lot from the animals, we have turtles and they climb things you would never think they could climb.
on branches and leaves. Makes me feel close to God.

Answer 4

Just so you know, there is no set plan that works for everyone.

You must discover you own path!

What works for me may not work for others or you.

I encourage you to explore and discover the path that is best for you!

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Answer 5

LV Steve beat me to the breathing info...

I find it's helpful to also have the lights low and to be in a quiet place

Answer 6

Here is a great site for that http://meditation.org.au/ , the lessons are free, you only need to give your email address. I feel so uplifted and ready to begin the day when I do those exercises.

Answer 7

Music with Mantras - A Divine Experience

A feast of heavenly music awaits those who can tune in. If you don't know how, you can learn the art from the science of Mantra Yoga. The world around us is full of vibrations. Tyagaraja created a raga upon hearing the hum of a bee. But only a pure mind can receive the finer vibrations. Mantra Yoga helps us purify our minds.



The mind is impure when the male and female energies in us are not balanced. Mantras help us balance them. Dominance of masculine energy results in more aggressiveness; it needs to be balanced by passiveness that is a feminine energy. When one has more of acceptance, the female energy is dominant; so it has to be balanced by male energy or aggressiveness.



In pranayama, balancing is achieved through Moon and Sun energies, or Chandra-Surya bedha . In asana, balancing is achieved through physical postures. In music also, balancing the energies produces pleasing results. The art of balancing is one of the great disciplines in Indian scriptures.



In the science of Mantra Yoga, the balancing is achieved through certain mantras focused on specific chakras and invoking energy centres. Plants too have certain energies and according to ayurveda, when these energies are pooled, various forms of medicines are created.



The ego is also the effect of an imbalanced energy. The ego creates more pain than joy. The ego takes away our true freedom and binds us to our points of view. Both sanity of purity and insanity of the ego will be realised by chanting of mantras. The ego's vibrations are gross and it is bound by the gross. The vibrations of mantras are subtle and the state of egolessness is also subtle - so one can get in tune with these vibrations.



When one is 'egoless', then one's sufferings too become sacred. Our struggles have a cosmic purpose. When our minds are filled with devotion through chanting of a powerful mantra, we can make our struggles sacred. So we have to wait.



In the field of consciousness, when grace descends, a quantum leap happens which transforms our inner state. When grace descended on Kalidasa, he became a great poet. When you systematically learn how and when to chant various mantras, your third eye opens. Then one sees the deeper and finer vibrations that make life fulfilling.



Ramanuja was a great mathematician. While solving a problem he used to focus between his eyebrows, the centre of the ajna chakra .



Edgar Cayce, who passed away in 1945, was a great healer. He also used to focus on his third eye whenever he had to make intuitive prescriptions. Most of the great healers open their third eye. In India , one puts a bindu between the eyebrows to awaken the third or intuitive eye.



If you can learn the mantras correctly, understanding their meaning and perfecting the right way of chanting, your third eye opens mysteriously. Then a sacred life with a heavenly music enriches your life. The Mantra Yoga programme is designed for this purpose.

“Practice night and day. It is the greatest key to salvation. Meditation is the most effective way of destroying temptation. Once you can feel the inner joy it gives you, no evil will be able to touch you.”

The following tips will help beginning meditators to acquire a taste for the joys of which Yogananda spoke:

Intensity of effort is far more important than the time spent in meditation. Never meditate to the point of mental fatigue, strain or boredom.

Make an effort to meditate a little longer at least once a week. The greatest difficulty, in long meditations especially, is physical tension. Make an extra effort to keep your whole body relaxed.

As soon as you sit for meditation, get “down to business”. Don’t dawdle, as if telling yourself, “Oh, I have a whole hour, so what’s the rush?”

It is a good practice to stick to same time for meditation every day. Routine conditions the mind. You’ll find yourself wanting to meditate during those hours.

As soon as you sit to meditate, pray for depth and for guidance in your meditation. Pray also for peace for all humanity. Don’t isolate your sympathies from others; embrace all in your divine love.

We develop intuition by prolonging the peaceful after-effects of meditation techniques. After meditation, try to carry the meditative peace into everything you do. It may help to begin with outward activities that don’t involve your mind much. While doing them, chant inwardly to God.

Above all in meditation, be happy! If you want to experience peace, meditate peacefully. If you want to know love yourself, offer love first.

Answer 8

pray the Rosary

Answer 9

A glass of wine and solitude. Maybe a retreat with church

Answer 10

every time I get laid I have inner peace or piece.