Nadabrahma Meditation

Theology becomes alive only when a person is alive who knows god -- not by thinking but by existential experience -- and who is not satisfied only by knowing it but who tries to convey his experience to others who have not known it, who starts a scientific approach towards it. Theology exists only in such a person. This is the meaning of 'dharma shastra'. So try three things, remember three things: one has to become deeply involved so that one can experience and taste religion on one's own, but one has not to lose one's reason completely -- otherwise there will be ecstasy but then you will not be of any use to others. You will enjoy it but you will be dumb... you will not be able to convey. So don't lose the reason completely.

... The problem arises if the heart is closed. But conditioning never reaches to the heart, never. the heart remains unconditioned. and we can by-pass that head -- that is not such a big thing. I can go on hammering on it -- don't be worried. [A visitor says he has been practicing Vipassana and likes the Nadabrahma meditation. He asks if he should try other meditations.] If Vipassana suits you there is no need to go on trying. Vipassana goes to the very core. Nadabrahma will be very helpful, because between it and Vipassana there is no contradiction. So you can do two sittings of Vipassana and one of Nadabrahma...

As you go deeper in meditation you will hear this music. Zen people call it the sound of one hand clapping. In India we call it nad; nad means: there is no instrument. There is nobody playing but still the music is heard. It is uncreated music, unstruck music. And this is our very being, but we are lost in the noise of the head and we cannot hear the still small voice within. The whole work of meditation is to move from the noisy head to the musical heart. And once this starts happening you are on an incredible journey. For the first time you will feel ecstasy arising in you, for the first time a subtle spiritual drunkenness -- one becomes a drunkard. Deva means divine, mouni means the silent one -- divine silence, and that has to be the key for you.

Thus, by meditation, they achieve the ultimate reality , which is unthinkable, unmanifest; the one of endless forms, the ever-auspicious, the peaceful, the immortal, the origin of the creator, the one without a beginning, a middle and an end; the only one, the non-dual, the all-pervading, the consciousness, the bliss, the formless, the wonderful.

To use a name as a repetition has its own difficulties. It is easy to throw out all else, but then it is difficult to throw out itself. If you have used "Rama" to throw out all other thoughts, it will become rooted in you, and then you cannot throw it out. It will be very difficult and very painful. Then something else will be needed to throw it out. As far as I am concerned, I never suggest this method. It is better to begin with no word. Then how to begin? Take the total energy of your body and mind as the beginning. Let you total body-mind energy be involved in it. Make it so active -- let your body energy, your mind energy becomes so active, so active at the peak -- that thoughts dissolve, because thoughts cannot exist at the peak. When your energy is moving…

So today you are being initiated into the world of religion with the hope that one day you will go beyond it. This is only a transitory period. It is just a remedy; one is ill, we prescribe a medicine.When the illness is gone the medicine is dropped. Religion is medicinal.We are all ill from so many desires -- one desire is prescribed: put all your desires into one. It will be difficult to drop them suddenly; it will be easier to put them into one desire. And when all have disappeared and only one desire has remained, drop that too. Take the help of one desire to drop many desires but that is medicinal, it is a remedy. When the illness is gone, throw the medicine too. Then become desireless... and that state of desirelessness is liberation. [Deva Amoda -- divine fragrance....