We all know the importance and benefits of meditation and we really want to meditate. But some of us struggle with regularity when it comes to meditation. Our knowledge does not translate into practice. We will find time for exercise, internet browsing, travel, books , entertainment, time pass but not for meditation. This happened to me multiple times in my spiritual journey of 12 years and those times frustrated me. For me, meditation is a need. It is not a luxury or an optional pursuit. If I don’t meditate a day, I feel my day to be incomplete. So, inability to meditate felt like a great suffering and I searched for ways to become more regular with meditation. Here are 6 tips that helped me whenever my meditation practice became irregular.
1. Associate with a teacher: Sometimes, our will to meditate may be weak. In such cases, when we associate with a teacher, it becomes easier to be regular with meditations. It was very difficult for me to practice kundalini meditation( a higher meditation) regularly but once I started attending the group meditation sessions conducted by my teachers Ruchi Sanjil, it became easier for me to be regular. The power of teachers helps us to be regular. I could stick to this path for this long only because of my association with my teachers. If you are struggling with meditation practice, check out the meditation sessions conducted by various teachers of IWC here and associate with any teacher.
2. Fix the time: Unless we fix a meditation time, we will not be regular. In current times, it is very easy to get distracted and miss meditation. Fixing the time will make regular meditation easier.
3. Make it enjoyable: Sometimes, mind resists to meditate. It feels meditation as boring or monotonous. In such cases, find ways to make meditation interesting by adding some visualizations or fun exercises before meditation or falling in love with chakras. There are many ways to make the process enjoyable. Find a way that works for you. Once the process becomes enjoyable, mind looks forward to it and it pushes us to meditate.
4. Have a strong reason: Unless we have a strong reason, we will not be motivated to meditate regularly. So, identify your answer for the question – “Why do I want to meditate regularly?” Do you want to transform some relationship? Do you want to manifest some desires? Do you want peace of mind? Do you want to improve your career? Do you want to become a better parent? Do you want to get enlightened? Yes, regular practice of meditation can give all these things. In my journey, I noticed that whenever I had a strong reason for meditation, I was quite regular.
5. Service: In meditation, higher beings and angels give their time and energy for our progress. So, to be entitled for their time and energy, we should give our time and energy to others. Hence, service is very important if we are serious about meditations. When my meditation stops, I know its time for me to do more service. Once I increase my service time, my meditation starts again.
6.Tithing: I realized the importance of tithing in the context of regular meditations recently. I always thought tithing is important for prosperity but it did not strike me that tithing is a necessity for regular spiritual practices. I have been tithing 10% of my income since 2012. In all these years, I am regular with wellness meditation but when it came to higher meditations, I was quite irregular. I know the power of higher meditations. Whenever I did those meditations, I experienced greater levels of stillness of the mind, my life changed in few days, big things manifested but the problem is I could not practice them regularly. It used to frustrate me as to why I am unable to do higher meditations. I am donating 10% of my income, doing service, taking care of my virtues as much as I can. What else should I do? I found the answer to this question recently. Answer is in tithing %.
During corona times, I watched a video and it inspired me to donate more than 10% of my income. I felt in such times, I should not focus a lot on saving money. My priority should be to reach out to others financially as much as I can. So, I donated more than 10% of my income towards basic needs, feeding and medical expenses of others. Voila! Unexpectedly, after few days of doing this, my higher meditations started effortlessly. And there is no stopping.
This experience taught me that for some of us, 10% donation will not be enough, specially if we want to do higher meditations. In such scenarios, donation % should be increased. I understand its not easy to donate more than 10%. But at the end of the day, its all about one’s priorities in life. For me, regular practice of higher meditations is very important and I am ok with donating more than 10% of my income. Every person should find their own priorities in life and strike a balance.
These are the 6 tips that helped me whenever I could not practice meditations regularly.
We can read any number of books, do all the courses on spirituality, meet great Gurus but knowledge alone cannot transform life. Practice of the knowledge is the key. May we all practice the teachings and progress spiritually and materially.
Sarve jana sukhino bhavanthu!
