Basics of Self‑Care Meditation

In the cavity of the heart, which is situated in the body, dwells the unborn who is eternal.

THE EARTH IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN THE EARTH, BUT THE EARTH DOES NOT KNOW IT. WATER IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN WATER,BUT WATER DOES NOT KNOW IT. FIRE IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN FIRE BUTFIRE DOES NOT KNOW IT. AIR IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN THE AIR, BUT THE AIR DOES NOT KNOW IT. THE SKY IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN IT,BUT THE SKY DOES NOT KNOW IT. THE MIND IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN THE MIND, BUT THE MIND DOES NOT KNOW IT. THE INTELLECT IS ITS BODY. IT LIVES IN THE INTELLECT, BUT THE INTELLECT DOES NOT KNOW IT. THE EGO IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN THE EGO,BUT THE EGO DOES NOT KNOW IT. THE CONSCIOUSNESS IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN THE CONSCIOUSNESS, BUT THE CONSCIOUSNESS DOES NOT KNOW IT. THE UNMANIFEST IS ITS BODY. IT DWELLS IN THE…

Let us understand two or three things about meditation, and then we will experiment with meditation. First, it is essential to understand that meditation has a very deep relationship with the breath. Ordinarily you will have noticed: in anger the breath moves in one way, in peace it moves in another. If lust seizes the mind, the rhythm of the breath changes at once. And sometimes, when the breath is moving very quietly—slow, deep—the mind experiences a most wondrous kind of bliss. All the conditions of the mind are deeply related to the breath. Therefore for the first ten minutes we will do a small experiment with the breath. In these ten minutes breathe deeply—as deeply as you can—without strain and without force, with no discomfort or trouble; and exhale just as deeply. If there is too much carbon dioxide collected in the lungs, the quieting of chitta becomes difficult.

While breathing, a support… The mind has the habit that it needs some kind of support. If there is no support at all, the mind will die. In that very death you will experience samadhi. When the mind has completely died, becomes utterly empty, then you will discover the self. So the mind wants food to keep itself alive. It demands a support—let there be some support. If you keep chanting Ram-Ram, the mind is very pleased; there is no problem. If you keep singing bhajans, the mind has no difficulty.

He said, “Even if life has been spent in scriptures, those lines are utterly useless. The lines should be these: There is no mirror of the human mind at all—where will the dust gather? Whoever knows this truth knows dharma.” He said, “There is no mirror of the human mind—where will the dust gather? Whoever knows this truth knows dharma.” And the master accepted him, and that rice-pounder became the head of the monastery thereafter. With the gradual practice of meditation it will become evident to you: there is no mind. The mind was an illusion. That dust upon it was a second illusion. There is no mind. And when you come to know that there is no mind, you will be filled with a transcendent experience. Only that experience leads a person into religion. And that experience becomes possible by awakening in your actions. So for these three days…

Question: OM. THAT IS WHOLE, AND THIS ALSO IS WHOLE. FOR ONLY THE WHOLE IS BORN OUT OF THE WHOLE; AND WHEN THE WHOLE IS TAKEN FROM THE WHOLE, BEHOLD, THE REMAINDER IS WHOLE. OM. PEACE, PEACE, PEACE. So the first thing is: hyperoxygenate. Let there be an abundance of oxygen in you. Remember this throughout these seven days. Two or three things will happen if you do this, but don't be afraid of them. When you start breathing deeply, your sleep will become shorter. This is not something to worry about. When sleep is deep and sound, its duration decreases, and as you begin to breathe more deeply, the depth of your sleep will increase also. This is why those who do hard physical work sleep so soundly at night.

Remember: you have only one energy. Either pour it into desire or pour it into meditation. If it pours into desire, meditation shatters; if it pours into meditation, desire shatters. You do not have two energies. Your estate is one. Everything depends on where you invest it. The worldly man channels his entire energy into desires. The religious man turns the current against desire; Ganga begins returning to Gangotri, back toward the source. This alone is meditation’s meaning. Meditation means: the energy that went into desire returns home. When your senses are slack and withdrawn, as the turtle withdraws his limbs, the meditator becomes turtle-like. Look at Buddha sitting—what a way he sits! Like a stone statue. Hand upon hand, foot upon foot—doors shut on every side, eyes closed—absorbed within. What is he doing there? This is your difficulty. People come to me; I say, ‘Sit silently sometimes.