The Foundation of Yoga Practice

Medidation(Dhyana)

Meditation and its Relation to The Truth.

The Purpose and Aim of Meditation:

To experience and realize:
Who am I?
What is God? - or -
What is the Truth?

Three Stages of Meditation in Yogic Philosophy:

Dharana: concentration
Dhyana: meditation
Samadhi: super-conscious state

To bind the mind to one object or place is dharana, concentration.

When dharana deepens, the continuous flow of cognition towards that object penetrates the object. This penetration is dhyana, meditation.

When only the object remains and subjectivity dissolves, the object's essence is perceived and experienced. That is called samadhi, super-conscious state or contemplation. In this state, the Truth will be revealed and the Pure Self emerges alone.

Objects and Methods of Meditation:

Self Inquiry: Who am I?
Everyone says, "I ..." at first when speaking about anything. However, who am "I" really? Employing "I" as the key, remove various images and thoughts adhering to the "I-consciousness." Isolate the pure "I" from all else. The True Self is never born and never dies. When you persist ceaselessly with Self Inquiry, only the "I" will remain. Inevitably and eventually, the True Self emerges alone.

What is God?
Visualize or think of one's own personal god or of enlightened beings in the center of one's heart and continually focus on that object. Consequently, one will penetrate into the essence of the object and unite with it as one.

What is the Truth?
Discriminate between your experiences and ideas, to discover whether they are the Truth or not. Examine whether experience and ideas meet the following conditions:

— Eternal — Equal — Absolute —

From this discrimination, non-truth is renounced. Then only Reality shines forth, and transient conditions disappear.

Postures for Meditation:

The best postures for meditation are Siddhasana, adept's pose, and Padmasana, lotus pose. If it is challenging to sit on the floor in either of these sitting positions, you can sit straight on a chair, or even lie on the floor to meditate. When one heightens one's passion to know the Truth, one will be absorbed in meditation at all times and under all circumstances.

* Asana and pranayama practices still the mind in preparation for meditation.

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