OM MANI PADME HUM
Tremendous feelings of peace of mind can be felt once you are able to calm your mind while in the practice of sitting in meditation. Efforts to keep the mind in this state will only disturb the tranquillity of this mental state. There must be patience, there must be just gentle awareness of your sitting, and whenever the thoughts should appear, you will just observe them, and they will soon fizzle away. But it is easier said than done, and many who have been trying to meditate have found it so difficult to sit even for a minute, and though some may be able to sit through a half hour or more, they have not been able to attain this state of thoughtlessness, but rather, they have been immersed with the thoughts that cross their minds. There is no easy way to still the mind except to sit every day for periods bearable to you so as to get the mind accustomed to the discipline of sitting, so as to get the body accustomed to the discipline of sitting, so as to let the mind be observed so that the arising and the receding of thoughts can be aware of.
Sitting must not be planned such that you have so many minutes to sit and then you will have to do something else. You have to be ready to sit for as long as you may sit. Preconceived thoughts of the next things to do will introduce too many ideas and disturbances to the mind. But sit you must, for that is the way to understanding your own nature and the nature of all things. Once you are able to feel some progress, do not be too excited, or else you will become impatient in the next sitting, and then your mind will be difficult to be calmed.
Allow yourself some time to get used to the idea of sitting to the sounds that may be troubling your meditation, and to being unable to sit for long before all kinds of sensations arise to distract you. Concentration is important, but too much effort on concentration shall not be conducive to proper sitting, for the mind may be tired or stressed by too much effort. Gently guide your mind to a state when there is no need to force out the thoughts from the mind, when there is no need to concentrate too long on a spot or a word or anything that you have chosen to be your point of concentration.
Relax and feel good each time you sit. Should there be anger or other strong emotional feelings in the mind, it is better not to sit until you have worked out these sensations, for they will certainly be troublesome to the beginners. But if it should be the time that you have set for meditational practice and you are affected by these problems, then you will have to sit and calm yourself first by dwelling on mercy, love, or compassion for those who have angered you and those who have distracted your attention. Apply the opposite feelings, and by taking slow, deep breaths, you will soon be calmed.
Right from the beginning, you must always try to enjoy the sitting; otherwise, you may be afraid to face the time set aside for practice, and meditation will then become boring as well as distasteful to you. This is the wrong view, and the right practices cannot be attained. But all these problems must first be faced and ironed out by each meditator during the early stages of practice. With effort, perseverance, and gentleness, sitting in meditation will soon become the most looked-forward-to exercise of the day. Whether practising alone or with a few friends, always ensure that incense is offered whenever there is an altar, whenever you have intentions to say prayers before each sitting, and whenever guidance is sought from Me. It is always a good practice to let the fragrance of the incense to fill the entire room so as to set the right condition for sitting.
Remember that sitting in meditation is not to be a struggle between yourself and your mind but a method by which the workings of the mind may be observed. Remember too that you must not sit and sit until you have attained the level of what you have heard that others have reached. There is no need to measure how long you have sat, how long you have practised, or how long you need to sit. It must be a relaxed exercise, which could be a minute or an hour depending on your state of mind at that particular period of the day. Once the sitting has begun, sit through and be aware of every sensation that affects you, and learn to watch them or bear with them, and apply the knowledge that pains, tiredness, and feelings of all kinds must surface when the practice has begun. Patiently overcome all these barriers, and they will no longer be worries of the future; otherwise, it will become a kind of self-torture, which will set the mind backwards.
You may start today to sit in a group practice for a longer period after the prayers have been recited. You may even one day try to say silent prayers in your mind by the method that you already know. You may even ask all who wish to try to learn to concentrate to be silent while you or a selected one may read a sutra or recite a prayer. It shall be your task to learn more about meditation, to experience mental peace, and then to pass it on to those who wish to live in this state of mind. There will be much to learn and much to teach. It is a pleasant task!
Tuesday, 12th April 1983 (2nd Moon 29th Day)