Vedic Meditation is a simple, mental technique that uses a mantra, or sound, to guide the mind to subtler states of awareness
Vedic Meditation is different from other styles of meditation in that it's easy and effortless.
It is designed for the busy householder - people with jobs, families, and responsibilities. People like you and me.
Most other types of meditation require a level of focus or concentration, thereby requiring the use of effort.
In Vedic Meditation, we don't control the mind, and we don't try to quiet our thoughts.
Vedic Meditation is a simple, mental technique that uses a mantra, or sound, to guide the mind to subtler states of awareness.
The Vedic tradition believes the mind is noble by nature. The mind is filled with racing thoughts because it is looking for greater happiness.
The mind is searching for happiness because that's what the mind does. Trying to quiet the mind from thinking would be like trying to stop the heart from beating.
Just like the heart beats and the lungs breathe, the mind thinks.
The mind bounces from thought to thought, looking for the one that will bring it happiness. The mind is trying to find an answer to our life's dilemma.
Even if that answer is that we are somehow deficient, the mind reasons, "At least I know why things suck - it is because of me and all the things I've done wrong."
Having the answer is more comforting to the mind, for it believes that even if we are the problem, at least we know what the problem is. It's convenient to use ourselves (or someone else) as the cause of our suffering.
The mind is searching and searching for happiness, but guess what? It will never find it because it is searching in the realm of thought which belongs to the relative world. Everything here is impermanent. The only constant is change.
In Vedic Meditation, we allow the mind to do what it does: search incessantly for greater and greater happiness.
Then we add one more piece to the picture of the mental landscape, a mantra.
The word mantra comes from two Sanskrit words, manas and trayate.
Manas means mind. Trayate means a vehicle. Not necessarily a physical vehicle, but something that brings us from point A to point B. Trayate is the same root word where we get our English words like train, transit, and travel.
The mantra is, in essence, a mind-vehicle, a sound that brings our consciousness to more subtle states of awareness.
The mind is like an ocean, containing a vast expanse of stillness and quietude at its center.
Yet we remain stuck at the level of thought, the endless crashing of waves at the shoreline. We mistakenly believe that's all there is, that this is our identity.
We have forgotten that we are a vast expanse of timeless Being, pure Bliss at our core. We have become so disconnected from this place that we no longer remember it exists.
In Vedic Meditation, we introduce the mantra as one more guest to the party of thoughts we are having in our head.
The mind is spontaneously charmed by the sound of the mantra and will follow it of its own accord. Just like the mind will automatically be drawn to a shooting star when we're star-gazing.
In Vedic Meditation, we use no effort or concentration. We allow the mantra to do its thing - carry the mind from the realm of thinking to the awareness of Bliss.
The whole process is easy and effortless, making Vedic Meditation a supreme option for those of us who seek a break from the demands of mental activity.
What questions do you have about Vedic Meditation? Send me a message, and I would love to help!
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