Simon G

Each day can bring up challenges for us as we live our lives. If we have a practice such as meditation, where we are trying to purify and bring the mind under our control, life itself becomes the testing ground.

As the tests and challenges come, we can see from the way we react how much we have progressed, how the technique and the practice has worked.

Shiva Rudra Balayogi (Babaji) gives the example of someone training to be a doctor. ‘When you go for medicine, for four, five, six years you read and want to become a doctor. So what you have read and what you have practised, when you have experienced, what you know comes to light only when you go out and try to become a doctor. In the same way, for every person who can claim they are doing a lot of meditation, it comes to light only when they behave in the society, in their day to day life. Their attitude, their words, their thinking. All these things tell what they have practised and what they have not practised.’

Whatever the state of the mind, it will behave in that way. Babaji says, ‘You can cheat the whole world, but you cannot cheat your own consciousness’. We know what is in our own mind, first and foremost. And whatever is in the mind will come out, it will behave as it is habitual to behave.

Since meditation is a purification process it will cleanse the mind of its habitual thinking as long as we practice consistently every day. So our behaviour, our thinking will undergo a transformation. We would be able to remain composed in life in spite of any difficulty that comes up and achieve the best concentration of the brain. We be able to behave in a mature, considerate way always.

More and more in the world today, people have high expectations that things should happen instantly. When it doesn’t one is likely to lose patience.

But everything takes its own time. Like when we are cooking a meal, we need to wait for the vegetables to cook properly, otherwise it would not be ready to eat.

Once the proper technique to meditate is known, we need to simply apply the technique and adopt patience. If we are in a  rush and demand that the result should come here and now we will become frustrated and end up giving up the practice.

Babaji mentions that patience gives you ‘the ability to bear with, wait and go for the actual result’.

In meditation, the actual result is achieving that elusive peace and happiness, that contentment. This happens when we go on practising the technique to just watch. Our mind becomes more and more concentrated, settles down and becomes quiet. Then we can experience that real peace.

Click the video above of Meditation Master Shiva Rudra Balayogi (Babaji) talking in detail about the importance of patience.

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The brain is an amazing physiological organ in the body. Through the brain we can think, act, apply wisdom, and achieve many things.

But if we simply go on believing everything the brain is reflecting we will get affected. Instead of being the master of this organ, we become the servant and dance to its tunes. So we need to be the master. Whatever the brain is reflecting, we don’t have to be affected, we can exercise restraint and proper judgement.

If someone acts in a certain way we might judge quickly that person to be a bad person. But actually that person could be our well-wisher, simply we may have rashly misjudged their actions. So that is the danger – we can see a friend as a foe and a foe as a friend.

Through meditation we are able to de-link ourselves from the brain’s clutches. We can think freely, see the reality, keep our mind intact and in peace. We can use the brain to its best ability to live successfully in the world.

As Meditation Master Shiva Rudra Balayogi (Babaji) explains;

‘When you practice deeper meditation and achieve control of the mind you are able keep the mind totally quiet and withdrawn from the clutches of the brain. You are also able to discriminate good and bad, right and wrong independently by using your brain but not by the brain’s order only. You are able to exercise determination, remain disciplined and not become a victim of the brain’s reflections. This we call as an exercise of will power. As we practice deeper meditation we also discover that we do not have to depend for happiness on the world’s objects which are reflected by the brain, but keeping the mind quiet supreme peace can be experienced.’

The ancient sages of India said there are six ‘shapes’ or ‘enemies’ (Arishadwarga) that the mind goes into. Greed, anger, stinginess, false pride or ego, attachment to materialistic things and jealousy. All of us would recognise these shapes. We know that when our mind goes into one or more of these, it is the first casualty.

Say we lose our temper. Before anyone else gets affected, we experience and are affected by that anger in our mind first. It may take a long time to cool down properly. One hundred times we may resolve, ‘I never want to do that again. Why did I lose my temper? I should have restrained myself’. But one hundred times we may again jump into these shapes in a similar circumstance. Why does this happen? It is because the mind has become so habitual –  it seemingly acts automatically. This means we have lost control of our mind, we are unable to restrain it.

So that is why it is important to remedy this for us to regain control of our mind. Only then there is peace, security and contentment. Meditation is that method taught since ancient times to purify the mind of its habits, cool it down and bring it under our control. As Meditation Master Shiva Rudra Balayogi (Babaji) says,

‘When you are driving a car on the road, imagine how it will be if that car has no gears and brakes. Such a car can be disastrous for the driver and dangerous to others. The uncontrolled mind is like that. When emotions take over and one lets loose the tempers of the mind, such a monkey-mind can be disastrous to that person and dangerous to others. We need to regain control over it and bring it to a halt like a runaway car.’

The mind often loses its peace because it is either brooding about the past or is anxious about the future. But the past has finished – it is not going to come back under any circumstances. We can use the past to learn from any mistakes we may have made, but other than that we can let go.

The future also hasn’t happened yet – there is no evidence of it until it comes to the present. We can, and we often must plan for the future, but we don’t have to be anxious unnecessarily. The present moment is, in fact, the only moment that exists. Meditation is that training where we keep the mind in the present moment.

As Meditation Master Shiva Rudra Balayogi (Babaji) says, ‘When you do not brood about the past or become anxious about the future, you are ready to face the moment – that is the power of now. Then you able to focus a hundred percent of your concentration in the present. You can shape a better future by putting perfect effort in the present. The meditation practice helps you neutralise your mind into the present.’

It’s only when the mind relaxes that we get that happiness, peace and a moment to enjoy. If the mind stops on a flower, thinking, “Oh how beautiful it is”, then temporarily we enjoy it. How does that happen? The mind stops on that object for a fraction of a moment. When it stops, we start thinking it is the object that has given us the happiness whereas in actual fact it is because the mind has become quiet. It is not into cravings, nor any analysations of ‘Is it good? Do I like it?’ For that moment, simply it is quiet.

So this is a clue into how we can achieve that real peace and happiness for ourselves. All objects in the world are impermanent, they come and they go, so we cannot depend on them for a permanent happiness.

As Meditation Master Shiva Rudra Balayogi advises, “You try to possess things, you try to visualise things to enjoy, to be happy. But instead of this, if you practice meditation, when you are trying to get the mind itself to become quiet, then that peace and happiness is always there, because the mind’s very nature is to be at peace.”

Meditation Master Babaji (Shiva Rudra Balayogi) says, ‘As the existence of the Supreme Consciousness is boundless, never-ending, its capability for creative imagination and illusion also are boundless and can be never-ending if allowed to grow. Just like if the elements like fire, wind or water flow go out of control, they can be so dangerous and destructive. The human mind’s imagination has both constructive and destructive powers. Proper thinking through consciousness is very important. Just see the achievements of humanity.

If consciousness is not applied properly and constructively anything can be equally destructive to humanity. That is why it is important that science, technology and all such subjects through which we are achieving so much, must go together with spirituality. The simple reason is that after all it is the human mind which has to use all the achievements. If such a mind is not cultured properly and made to think for the welfare of the entire world it can become destructive.’

Through a regular meditation practice we can purify the mind, make it peaceful and not let it go into negative and destructive thinking. Thinking and acting for the benefit of the whole society and world would become possible.

The mind at the moment is a bundle of thoughts. One thought after another arises, it seems to be never-ending. And since our mind is preoccupied with these thoughts all the time, it is unable to be aware of itself as Pure Consciousness. Through regular practice of meditation as the thoughts start to become purified, the mind becomes more and more peaceful. It returns to the original state of Pure Consciousness and settles there contented. The Self-Realized Master Babaji explains this in detail.

‘What is this mind? Can you show it to anybody, do you know the form? What it is, what is its formation, what is its color, what is the substance? Simply we know the thoughts that are in the mind, the shapes, the ideas, the labels that are in the mind, of good or bad, right or wrong about this world, and about the imaginations that we have a separate world that we would have built up. But nobody has seen the mind as it is. When the mind would not be into any imaginations, what is it? That is the substance mass of a Pure Consciousness and Energy. When it is pure, it is simply Purely Consciousness Energy of Existence. But, when it becomes impure with its own dirt and imagination effects and getting conditioned, it is unable to know about itself, it is unable to watch itself that it is a Pure Consciousness. A Pure Consciousness would have become impure thoughts and wrong habits.

And thus, long time has passed by, we don’t know, time immemorial mind has become habitual. The mind is the Pure Consciousness. Eventually if we are able to cleanse this mind, then we realize that we ourselves are that Supreme Consciousness of Existence, we are that purest form. We have become the mind, actually. Mind is nothing but us. That Consciousness is nothing but us. When we become aware that we are that purest form of existence, that awareness, when that happens, it settles there, that awareness. That is Supremely Peaceful, that is Immortal in Existence, Eternal, at all times. Supremely Peaceful, that is needed, and it can remain contented there. Because that formation does not require anything for its own existence. So that is what one can achieve, that is what is recommended.’

~Shiva Rudra Balayogi

Please click here to hear the full audio.

In life we may have to deal with difficult situations and people.
At all such times, how do we defend ourselves? How do we remain unaffected mentally if not physically? First it is important that mentally we are strong, have strong willpower and keep the mind away from such things. Although physically it may not be possible to run away from the situation, what is recommended is to remain unattached mentally.

For this, Babaji’s Master Swamiji gave the example of the tongue in the midst of thirty-two teeth.

The tongue cannot run away, it has to be there. To move in the midst of all the teeth it has to be very skillful so that is doesn’t get bitten by the teeth. It moves in-between, goes up and comes down yet remains detached. If anything is tasty it sends it inside. If it is not it makes you spit it out. As it does so it remains detached, it doesn’t take anything for itself. It simply does its job. In this way also we may need to live in this world.

That is the recommendation given by the great Masters. If we can face the moment, keep doing our duty without getting affected mentally, then we can live a peaceful and contented life. For this, meditation is the daily practice which trains our mind to remain concentrated and at peace. We would be able to face the moment but also restrain ourselves and not get emotionally affected. As the Masters have shown, with a dedicated practice a stress-free life can become possible.

By adopting a habit of sitting down to meditate and keeping quiet mentally, we can overcome the habits of the mind to be restless and run away.

Here is an answer that the Meditation Master Shiva Rudra Balayogi gave during one of the live Zoom Q+As that have been taking place every Saturday online.

Question: How do I maintain focus for a longer duration while meditating?

Babaji:

More practice is required. When you sit down for meditation, relax, be at peace, forget the outside world. At the time of meditation all you have to do is keep quiet mentally – remind yourself of this point. There is nothing else for you to attend. If there is any problem, any other needs in the world, you can attend after the meditation. Like this, when you feel determined and just watch again it’s like a dual battle – mind runs and you try to bring it back just by watching, watching, watching. By consistent practice; practice is the thing which can make you perfect. That is the only way really that one has to understand. By being habitual. Now the mind has acquired habits to run away, so you have to acquire habits to make it remain quiet and remain focused.

Watch the full video of this Q+A on YouTube. https://youtu.be/0S8eXQta734