GITA FOR CHILDREN - Part VII

[Guest guest]

something about Meditation, especially because Yogis are supposed to be lost in

Meditation for long spells of time. The word Meditation is greatly

misunderstood, besides being interpreted in a narrow sense.’ 47. ‘To begin

with, I should mention that the text-book Sannyasi or Yogi, call him what you

will, is one who has lived with himself and for God for years and years. He has

not only practised austerities but has gone through a long and elaborate routine

of self-discipline, involving many and progressive stages. It is like going up a

ladder. Yogic Meditation is the top of the ladder.’ 48. ‘I won’t go into all

those details now, but I should call your attention to three stages involved.

They are: Concentration, Contemplation, and

Meditation.’ 49. ‘Concentration is something very common. Anybody who is

serious about what he is doing necessarily concentrates a lot. You, for

example, would totally concentrate on the target before shooting an arrow.

Well, that is concentration.’ 50. ‘Concentration is an activity of the brain

or the lower Mind. With some practice, anyone can easily learn to concentrate.

In fact, concentration is a must for all students.’ 51.‘After concentration

comes contemplation. This is a higher activity of the Mind. Let us say a

teacher has taught a lesson about plants. Later when the student is revising

the lesson, he could contemplate and wonder:

“How can the plant grow up without a father and mother? Or, are there an

invisible father and an invisible mother? When I feel hungry I ask my mother

for food. Which mother gives food and water to the plant? Why has God made the

plant so different? Incidentally, why has God created plants?” That is

contemplation.’ 52. ‘Coming now to Meditation, in simple terms it means

filling the Mind with God. When you contemplate, you start thinking of higher

things. Going back to the case of the plant, Meditation means thinking, “God,

how beautiful are the plants and the trees! Oh Krishna, when You were young,

You used to rest under trees. How I wish I was one of those! I

could have had Your Darshan for long periods of time!! Krishna, why don’t You

become a tree and make me a creeper twining round You?”’ 53. ‘Another example.

You go to your garden to pluck a rose for God. When you pluck the flower, you

must concentrate; otherwise you would get hurt by the thorns. Once you have

plucked the flower, you hold it in your hands and admire its beauty and

freshness. That is contemplation. You then say, “God, this flower I am offering

to You.” That is Meditation.’ 54. ‘In simple terms, Meditation is nothing but

remembrance of the Lord. You can go about your normal household work, chanting

My Name all the time – that also is Meditation. People do not realise this and

imagine that Meditation perforce involves sitting in a Yogic pose, closing your

eyes and all that. That is only ONE way of meditating! There are actually many

ways to meditate and the bottom line in all cases is remembrance of the Lord.

That really is the important point.’ 55. ‘Arjuna, people are made differently

and have a differing attitudes and aptitudes. Take running for example. Some can

run very fast but only over a short distance. Others have stamina and can run

not very fast but over long distances. The long distance runner cannot do what

the sprinter does and vice versa.’ 56. ‘You can see this in your own family.

Your brother Bhima is hefty and therefore the mace is the ideal weapon for him;

but for you, it is the bow and the arrow. In the same way, where Meditation is

concerned, people can adopt different techniques best suited to them. It is not

the procedure but the SPIRIT in which Meditation is done that is important.’

To be continued…. With Sai love from Sai brothers - ''

Courtesy: http://www.radiosai.org/Journals/Vol_04/01JAN06

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