To Prasadini about Keeping Mother Within

[Guest guest]

Dear Prasadini,

I cannot speak from having an illness that is so debilitating. But

perhaps I can offer some suggestions regarding how you are stuck on

keeping Mother within. It can be a challenge in the "world" to

remember this with all the distractions. But it is because of these

distractions, this is why is it all the more important to constantly

remember "Her." I can just share what things I do and perhaps there

will be something that will resonate for you.

 

When you are too ill to meditate, just picture Amma's beautiful form

while lying in bed with your closed eyes. You will find this

soothing. It also helps to do this before retiring at night.

 

Listen to bhajans whenever you can. Ironically, I used to listen all

the time, but now they just spontaneously spring up into my mind. It

is like a tape is going all the time with these beautiful songs.

 

Meditate at least once a day. Even if it means just meditating in

bed, that is fine. If you have to, you can meditate while lying down.

Teach others around you to respect your meditation time. Once they

realize you take it seriously, so will they (on some level!). I have

taught my kids not to interrupt my meditation time unless there is a

fire!! (or other emergency.) (And my younger son just took the IAM

program!!! Eventually these things can rub off!! LOL) There never has

been. They have even kept people who ring the doorbell at bay when I

am meditating. Be sure your door is closed as well to show respect

for yourself and this space of time. It takes almost a month of

practice to make this a habit. Once you do, you will find your

physical body will even crave it and miss it if you miss your time.

Try to do meditate in the mornings if you can only do it once a day-

after showering.

 

Meditation positively affects the subtle level of all of those around

you. So you can also look at meditation as not only helping yourself,

but making positive change to the world at large. It is also a seva.

 

Read any books you can put your hands on about Amma. Keep Her

pictures up around your home-and remember to look at them! I say that

because there are some times when I just don't want to look because I

can't be with her or I'm stressed out and this or that. But when I

stop and gaze at Her picture, I am reminded of Her infinite Love and

all else becomes insignificant.

 

It can be a challenge to keep up spiritual practices. There are

always errands, things to do, obligations and so on. But life will

not wait for us. The world will not somehow "stop"

so we can fit our sadhana in. We must make sadhana the priority and

fit in the rest. It is thru sadhana that everything else becomes

manageable.

 

I hope this is helpful.

 

in Amma,

adriane

[Guest guest]

Adriane wrote to Prasadini:

 

I cannot speak from having an illness that is so debilitating. But

perhaps I can offer some suggestions regarding how you are stuck on

keeping Mother within...

 

When you are too ill to meditate, just picture Amma's beautiful form

while lying in bed with your closed eyes. You will find this

soothing. It also helps to do this before retiring at night.

 

Listen to bhajans whenever you can.

 

Meditate at least once a day. Even if it means just meditating in

bed, that is fine.

 

Read any books you can put your hands on about Amma. Keep Her

pictures up around your home-and remember to look at them! ...

 

It can be a challenge to keep up spiritual practices...The world will not

somehow "stop" so we can fit our sadhana in. We must make sadhana the

priority...

Dear Adriane ~ though you wrote this email to Prasadini, it also applies to

me, since I have a debilitating chronic condition. Some of the things you

suggest I am already doing. I have a picture (from the calendar, and it is big)

so I can see it if I am in bed. I use this picture so often as a way to

center myself, make myself feel better, to feel connected to Mother, etc.

I do mediate, usually in bed, and I also say my mantra, sometimes before I

get up in the morning, and at night when I go to sleep, or other times when I

am not able to do anything because I am in too much pain.

 

I could use some more books about Amma. : ) I just finished reading

"Sacred Journey," which I loved, and Vol. 1 of Swami Paramatmananda's "Road to

Freedom." (I'm working on Vol. 2). I have the first volume of "Awaken

Children," which I've read several times, and could read over and over and

still learn

something new. But there may be other books and bhajan tapes that I already

have. Most of my "Amma stuff" is unfortunately still in storage in Oregon.

There is a chance my hubby and I may visit his family at Christmas (in UT), and

then we would go to Oregon and get some of our things that we want the most

(and also see my mom who is very sick).

 

I am hesitant to buy anything until I see what I already have (unless I know

for sure it is new) because I don't remember what I may have. I think

watching movies about Amma could be included as another way to stay connected

to

Amma. I am very fortunate because a friend on the digest and the people at the

Amma Ashram in Sante Fe sent me a LOT of videos for our new satsang group.

But not everyone can buy videos. Perhaps others who are ill, like Prasadini and

I, where it affects our lives almost every moment, every single day, could

"get together" online and talk about all chipping in for a movie, and then one

would watch and mail it to the next and to the next, and so on.

 

For those days that we who are ill have errands, we can fit in time for

Amma, but, in my case, it will most likely be something passive, while I am

lying

crashed out in myr bed. I can only do one or two errands at any given time

because I know that after 1 and 1/2 or two hours, my body will start to crash.

And when I'm really crashed, all I can stand to do is sleep. I have to keep

watch on myself if I'm doing errands, so I can tell if I am starting to get

to the point where it would not be safe for me to drive. In this case, usually

I would come home and immediately go to bed, but most often I would drift

off to sleep chanting my mantra.

 

I think it is difficult for those of us who are chronically ill to even,

sometimes, have the mental energy to consider what we might do. Ten years ago,

I

never would have imagined how limited I am (not so much as having a physical

injury, but in terms of energetic availability before I crash). I was a 24/7

person. But as Dixie taught us all, even if all we are able to do is lie

there an open our hearts to Mother, that is a very good thing.

 

Again, thank you so much for your wonderful suggestions. You gave me some I

hadn't alreay thought of. Jai Ma ~ Linda