In Focus

• Meditation for the Busy Man By Ma Prem Tao
• Become the Master of your own life By Swami Satya Vedant
• A stronger dope called Meditation By Lakshen Sucameli
• Meditation for the Busy Man and Woman By Ma Deva Naisha
• The Marketplace: Most Fertile Ground for Meditation By Ma Anand Bhagawati

The world is not going to be slowing down anytime soon.
In fact it’s spinning faster and faster.
And there is no shortage of things to do, or problems to be solved.

From what I see, this is what life’s focus becomes, should meditation be absent in your life. I cannot even imagine life these days without taking times during the day to stop, relax, be, close eyes and bring the breath back into the body; filling up again and returning the energy to oneself by stopping it going out.  What a divine moment, coming back to the essential feeling of self, remembering what is important now, in this moment, and who you are.

Ahhh… Yes… The sweetness…I am back in…connected.
A natural, inner, taking-stock as the unessential just melts away.
The frenetic emotions dissolve along with the driving, demanding thoughts.
This is my first choice meditation.
There are a myriad of meditation methods.

Busy, busy, busy, stressful busy, running, running, trying to keep all those balls in the air is exhausting and what’s worse is it’s become a way of living life for a majority of people.

You know what I’ve noticed? The more you run, the tighter time becomes and the more it seems to shrink. The faster it goes, the more you are anxiously running to beat it.   Osho says:

“The West has made people too time-conscious, not knowing where they are going, but speeding to get there because time is short.

I have heard: Once a pilot communicated on the intercom to his passengers: It seems everything has gone wrong: the radar is not functioning, the radio is out of order, even the compass has ceased to function; but don't be worried, we are keeping the same speed. 

But this is what is happening to the modern mind: everything is out of order except speed. Where are you going? For what are you going? Of course, you are going fast, but you are going so fast that you have no time to look at where you are going and why you are going there.”
OSHO
Returning to the Source Chapter-3

Let me share something quite marvelous with you. I have found that when I am relaxed, connected, even with many things on my plate to accomplish, and I move in a deliberate, organized, yet natural flow from this place of meditation, that time seems to expand and I can hardly believe that so much has taken place and yet not much time has passed.  It’s an interesting phenomenon. What does it depend upon?  Where I am, in context with myself. That’s it! Nothing else.

It is all too common for one’s inner space to feel limited and confined, as almost every moment can be filled with something.  But that feeling is in itself a signal to turn one’s eyes within just for a moment, and come back home; that you are too scattered and your energy too diffused out there. Though this may seem a simplistic philosophy, it is well-tested, and the crazier life becomes the more I cherish this loving practice as it works for me; and even more profoundly in super-active times.

There are an untold number of methods of meditating. For new meditators and for people who are not accustomed to stepping back in and unsure how that actually happens, Osho’s active meditations are ideal. Exercising, more folks are doing now, not only a select few, and that’s a good basic start towards the next step, having experienced the zone. Living here in gorgeous Hawaii all one needs to do is stop and gaze at the beauty all around.  Stepping into the salty ocean, having a swim in silky, living, water or even just looking at it will help somewhat. And we all are surrounded by beauty wherever we live. Nature everywhere is magnificent and calls us home.

Recipe For The Modern (Wo)Man.
1. Exercise (any kind) to release the excess physical energy and potential demons. Make room for it wherever you can in your day. You’ll feel better.  
2. Get a good night’s sleep. In intense times getting enough rest is a precious pearl. Replenishes the body’s nervous system; balances the hormones.
3. First thing in the morning do your meditation of choice. Set yourself and your compass for the day. Radiating an intention from the deep, silent core creates and flavors your day.
4.  As (if) the compass needles get out of whack during the day, just duck in somewhere quiet and reconnect.  That alone would change our world.
5. Acknowledge your good fortune, often. For me a big source of gratitude is the life that I have. I have so many choices and am free to make them. My world is what I perceive it to be.
6.  Love, love, love and laugh. Even if alone. Make yourself laugh. And do what warms your heart. Each day do something that makes your heart rock.
7.  If you run (solely) after money, it will in all likelihood run faster. Let your heart and your passion lead you to success.
8.  Let your energy be active in the way it wants to be. Don’t stifle your life force.

My definition of being successful today is: having immense love in your life.

This is an extraordinary time.
The very nature of our present world is making us all meditators, some sooner than others. Times are tough for many people and yet tough times invariably produce soul-searching, no matter who you are. People look within to see what really matters to them, as they no longer can look outwards for their old signs of security, balance and harmony. And that is the glory of this amazing, anguishing, awesome, demanding time of our lives. I saw the dark era of Bush that we just gratefully passed through, as being the vehicle for awakening the most number of people in the quickest possible time. Well it did take two terms! And I see the challenges now as being the next stage of our full awakening.

Meditation, the means by which each human being can connect, not only to the glory of his/her humanness, but experience the beloved grace of essence.

Multi-tasking? Oh my God!  Just yesterday I announced that I am moving away from any lifestyle that requires multi-tasking. I’m heading to the rhythm of my heart allowing time to day-dream, be still, dance and love and let the voice of my inner guidance have its way with me.

Cell phones/I-Phones/Blackberrys and The New Ones To Come

Convenient, now an essential of life, but there is no longer a moment when we are not available.  I have emancipated myself.  I am no longer taking the phone into the bathroom with me…

Closing Words
I consider myself a good example of the ordinary person on the street.  I have to deal with the same issues, go through the same everyday processes and life choices that everyone has to make and I feel what everyone feels. I always thought that was so, so that I would know from my own experience what others feel and have gone through and that would make me a better counselor. But who knows?  Whether I have spent time in Poona or in Tibet or in Shangri-La, or have been of help to others or have been of help to myself, it seems to make no difference. There are no shortcuts and we are all on the same journey.

If ever there were a time to drop out, this is it. Everything that has been learned felt and intuited, has been a preparation for this time. I’m dropping out.  I don’t mean dropping out of the world per se, that I will no longer do anything. I have to still support body and soul and enjoy doing things, but rather dropping out of the outer frenzy, the worldly machinations made to draw us into itself.  I am dropping out by dropping in, deliberately, to squeeze the juice out of life as Osho said, a phrase and a philosophy that I just love. I like to imagine that this will support my deep desire and intention to live fully until I die, the essence of tao in every way and in every moment, that no matter what is taking place, to experience it as meditation, present and accounted for, with a fully operational heart and head.

Closing Story – Enjoy.
STORY -  Washington, DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007.

The man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approx. 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.  After 3 minutes a middle- aged man noticed there was a musician playing.  He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

 4 minutes later:  The violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

 6 minutes:  A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at

 his watch and started to walk again.

 10 minutes: A 3-year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced their children to move on quickly.

 45 minutes: The musician played continuously.  Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money, but continued to walk at their normal pace.  The man collected a total of $32.

 1 hour: He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one

 applauded, nor was there any recognition.

 No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5million dollars. Two days before Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.   This is a true story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the Metro Station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste, and peoples’ priorities. The questions raised: "In a common place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?"

 One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:  If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made.... How many other things are we missing?

Ma Prem Tao

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Osho’s acute observation is that, increasing drives to have and possess as well as to use more and more things is based on a very fallacious assumption – having more is being happy! And this very assumption leads people to go after money, work overtime, and eventually cripple one’s mind and body. Man’s whole identity lies ultimately with money which lands him in a precariously vulnerable condition – being a spiritual drop out.

What has further exasperated the situation is that the work begins to get more and more fragmented besides being repetitious as well. Beneath the chase for money and the rat race for going ahead of all, the physical and mental state of man continues to get eroded leading one to daydreaming, frustration, and resentment. The feverishly busier a man becomes to fulfill his unmet desires, the greater the eruption of anger against people at work – including the employer, fatigue, and almost complete breakdown of ability to relate meaningfully whether at home or at the place of employment. Furthermore, the training deeply rooted in childhood to manage tension at work submissively leads one to repressing one’s emotional energy thereby making the person vulnerable to aggression and subsequently gets one into psychosomatic illnesses. Osho’s insight in this matter is clear, he says: “If you suppress energy then you will become aggressive -- don't suppress energy. This is one of the deepest problems for modern man.”
OSHO
When the Shoe Fits, Chapter-10

Moreover, both, the utilitarian ideologies and the unprecedented breakthrough in technology have opened the floodgates of unrestricted greed on the one hand and the sense of powerlessness and isolation of the individual on the other. One thing seems to be apparent: modern man cannot survive as what Osho calls, an “ambiguous being.” Man can no longer live a suspended existence. Hence Osho’s whole vision is given to building bridges between the polarities of work and meditation.

Osho explains, life is a continuum between movement and rest, action and let go, tension and relaxation, using and regaining energy. The human organism reacts in busy and stressful situations with the same pattern of response. Repeated for years physical, mental, emotional responses become habitual, conditioned. Unconsciously we move, think, sense, feel in known ways only – we avoid unknown territory. In our busy lives, the individual stress pattern is mainly directed by the unconscious.

So, in Osho’s view, how to become conscious of our unconscious is what meditation is all about. By becoming aware of our conditioned responses and patterns of behavior while being lost in our busy world we expand our freedom to choose an authentic way of life; we discover the dignity of being the masters of our busy life and our actions.

As far as meditation is concerned, Osho’s repertoire is vast – it contains something for everyone, something for all situations. There are special meditation techniques for working men and women, for couples, and for children. Osho reminds:

“Whatsoever you do, do it with deep alertness; then even small things become sacred. Then cooking or cleaning become sacred; they become worship. It is not a question of what you are doing, the question is how you are doing it. You can clean the floor like a robot, a mechanical thing; you have to clean it, so you clean it. Then you miss something beautiful. Then you waste those moments in only cleaning the floor. Cleaning the floor could have been a great experience; you missed it. The floor is cleaned but something that could have happened within you has not happened. If you were aware, not only the floor but YOU would have felt a deep cleansing. Clean the floor full of awareness, luminous with awareness. Work or sit or walk, but one thing has to be a continuous thread: make more and more moments of your life luminous with awareness. Let the candle of awareness burn in each moment, in each act.”
OSHO
The Beloved, Vol.1, Ch4.,Q.1

Swami Satya Vedant

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I still remember my first Dynamic Meditation more than 30 years ago.

Already after the first stage of chaotic breathing, I entered in a sort of LSD experience that lasted even after the meditation ended and I say to myself : “Wow ! This is ´pure dope´ for free ... and without negative side-effects. I want to know the Man who invented it !!!”

In fact at that time, as other people of the so-called hippies generation, we were experiencing several kinds of dopes not just for fun or to escape from the world ... but as a way to explore deeper realms of reality.

You may remember those American scientists, psychologists and artists like Timothy Leary, Richard Alpert and Allen Ginsberg who became famous in the ´60-´70 spreading their message of ´turn on, tune in and drop out´ !

There´s a story about Richard Alpert arriving  in India and offering a full box of LSD to Sri Karoli Baba who took the pills and remained totally unaffected !                
Later on Mr. Alpert became his disciple and was called Ram Dass. 

There are no anecdotes like that in Osho´s life, but I remember having heard Him answering to people who asked: “What do you do for those who are drug-addicts?”    “I am giving them a stronger dope: it is called Meditation!”

Simply, clear and with His usual provoking and dialectic capacity, Osho transformed the contest of the question into a different approach to the problem.
 
In fact, the problem is no more that of the ´search´ of the hippies, or that of the artists along the ages using some kind of substances to improve their inspiration ... and not even that of traditional cultures as in Central or South America using peyote and Ayuwaska in order to get a ´vision´.    

The modern men and women from the West, and now also from the East, are living in a fast lane world full of tensions and often, the way to overcome the problems, is getting into drinking or drugs.

But the state of relax and let go that alcohol and drugs can offer is just momentary as an helicopter that lifts up very fast, makes possible to see the high, but is unable to land and remain on the pick!

Meditation is a longer and more arduous process but, once one starts to walk on the path, there is a chance to reach and finally sit on that pick.

Anyway, the contemporary human beings are not willing to pay attention for something that looks difficult and long.  There are already too many ´difficult and long´ things to do ... why to add another one to such already busy life ?!

The vitality and naturalness are consumed by being productive for the economical system and for the sake of social moral codes. 
  
Osho was very much aware of the issue and created His Active Techniques in order to shake ´fast´ the mind and the body, make people feel natural and vital again and then ... meditation can have a chance to start!

The Osho´s active meditation techniques are among the most precious pearls left by Him. I do not know anyone who, after having experienced them, is not impressed by the results!

No matter if you are a lazy employer, or an hectic businessman.

Once you have closed your eyes for an hour and followed the stages of Dynamic, Kundalini, Mandala or Nataraj ... something is bound to happen. No matter if you are a spiritual seeker, or a fervent atheist.

In each case, you will experience something that can open a wider understanding of your life.

These techniques should become part of every school and university program around the world ... and maybe one day they will!!!

Lakshen Sucameli

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It’s OK to work hard, but don’t make hard work of it!  Sound familiar? Stress is an insidious disease of the psyche: a repetition of negative, angry, resentful, low esteem, low vibrational thoughts and feelings and a fearsome visualization of one’s own future. “What if it all goes wrong?” “What is the worst possible scenario?”  And when it occurs that way “I TOLD you that was going to happen” or “I KNEW they would do that”.

When Patanjali first put Yoga into written form as the Yoga Sutras, he defined the practice as having 8 'limbs' or 'branches'.  The 3rd Limb, "Asana" refers to the postures or Yoga poses that most people associate with Yoga today.  According to the Sutras, the 7th Limb, "Dhyana", is about Relaxation and Meditation and is therefore considered equally important as the postures.  It is not about doing the headstand or the lotus pose, but to 'Quiet the distractions of the Mind', something that most of us Westerners could certainly benefit from!

The word Yoga is the ancient Sanskrit word for Union – The Union of the Mind, Body and Spirit. As we move into our various yoga postures, we remind ourselves of the union of the mind and body, when the mind sends messages to our arms and legs to move into the asanas and how almost automatic this is.  We don’t really have to think too much about it if we want to, say, lift up our arm.  The mind says “lift arm” and the arm lifts, really that fast.  And of course the more we practice our postures, the faster this mind-body response becomes, until it is just like switching on a light.  

In class, when we refer to “Spirit”, we are referring to our Higher Power, The Prana,  The Life Force, The Universal One Mind that doesn’t care which religion we like or what the colour of our skin is or whether we are The Dalai Lama or George Bush or me or you.  We are all One. It is the Prana that right now is beating all of our hearts, breathing us, digesting our food, circulating our blood in an immaculately designed network of vessels, valves, arteries and veins. All the different aspects and systems in the body (respiratory, glandular, skeletal, immune systems etc.), all working individually and in Union with each other.

The Prana is the Perfect example of the Unconditional Love that the Universe has for us as individuals because it has been working for us this way since the moment of our conception, up to this point and continues to work for us for the rest of our lives. Whether we are thinking about it or not, whether we are aware of it or not, whether we even believe it or not, it still works tirelessly for us, giving us the gift of our precious lives.  What a Miracle this is!!

But there is a science to peace and it starts within the individual. So I have made a study of Peace Within; all aspects, all angles and many questions…and you know what, I have found it!  Admittedly, it is something that requires constant attention, but there is a scientific, fail proof formula to individual, inner peace and it goes something like this:

Thought/Vibration – voice – action – result.  It is The Law of Cause and Effect, the powerful Law of Attraction – and it is not negotiable.

To put it simply, negative thought/low vibration – speech – emotional actions can only result in the low vibrational, tangible equivalent made manifest in our lives i.e. MISTAKES & TROUBLE!!

Creative Positive thought/high vibration – speech – emotional actions can only result in the high vibrational, tangible equivalent made manifest in our lives i.e. A HAPPY, CREATIVE, PRODUCTIVE LIFE!

Negative thought, if noticed and changed to a positive thought, positive speech etc., can therefore change the course of our destiny! Living and yoga teaching for many years in the greater Los Angeles area, I saw daily the utter desperation of people who live with acute stress on a moment-to-moment basis. And guess what many of them want to do about it?  Surgery!!  They want some stranger to physically remove some random part of their organism, which of course has certain individuals and pharmaceutical companies rubbing their hands together with glee, promoting and fear mongering in the media like crazy, and continuing the truly vicious cycle.

One of the greatest, most life transforming tools I have ever been gifted with is Autogenic Meditation. The technique was developed circa 1915 by the German neurologist & psychologist, Johannes Schultz.  It is a simple, self help method that promotes wellness and relaxation; reducing stress and restoring emotional and physical wellbeing, discouraging illness and even shortening the course of a disease. 

The procedure involves repeating a series of stock phrases, for example “I relax my toes, I relax my feet” etc. etc. going from feet to head, inside and out, imagining what it must look like inside one’s own body as we go along, using the most vivid of imagination.  An inner vision totally personal and unique to each one of us as individuals, unrelated to anything we may or may not have read in a medical journal; to imagine our lungs relaxing, our blood circulating at the perfect pressure and our kidneys functioning optimally etc. etc. Get a mental picture of it (it definitely looks like SOMETHING in there, right?), use your beautiful imagination, thereby eventually inducing a meditative state of complete relaxation. That inner image always sees the body, inside and out, functioning perfectly and relaxing easily at the command of the mind, (and with practice) just as fast as switching on a light.  And if anything feels different we focus on healing. 8-10 weeks of self-training is often sufficient to restore mental equilibrium, enhance coping skills and overcome sleep troubles.  Because stress can have such a negative impact on the body's immune defenses, autogenic training can also strengthen the immune function immeasurably.

At the end of each yoga class we have a 15 - 20 minute autogenic meditation to show people how to do this; to notice, be conscious of their own thoughts and the results have been interesting. We must be ever-vigilant about our thinking; we simply cannot afford the ‘luxury’ of negative thoughts and feelings. And from what I have seen, people are at least ‘curious’.   

The most important pre-requisite for autogenic meditation is to make time for it! Eliminate any obvious distractions, such as the phone.  Choose a quiet place where you feel at warm and at ease.  Then get into a relaxed position, preferably lying on your back on a padded surface.  To encourage relaxation, you might like to add a few drops of lavender oil to a diffuser or eye pillow and if you have a favourite meditation CD, headphones are a must. 

An eye pillow is very useful to keep the outside world outside.  Looking inwards and taking oneself on an inner journey through the vastness of one’s Inner Universe – as deep and profound and far-reaching as the Outer Universe, the Mind is just the gatekeeper between the two.  And remember, when you are finding your own place of Inner Peace, you are contributing in a powerful and positive way to the collective consciousness.

Practiced regularly, autogenic exercises can have a hugely beneficial effect on the autonomic nervous system and therefore all the organs of the body.  This simple technique can dramatically help relieve a wide range of problems caused by stress or nervous tension, such as palpitations, sleep difficulties, nervousness, stress, headaches, psychosomatic illness and chronic pain.

Finally, a note about ‘gratitude’:  Gratitude is the single most powerfully high vibrational energy for change.  If we can find something in our lives to be grateful for, (which shouldn’t be too difficult!) meditate deeply on that powerful feeling and replace that ‘something’ with our vision; being grateful that it already is, it is done.  If we live our lives in a constant state of gratitude; looking on the bright side – looking for the best in everything and everyone around us, not being attached to outcomes and being genuinely thankful for this wonderful existence - the only thing we can attract into our lives is a continuous stream of more and more to be grateful for, manifesting Itself most elegantly into our lives.

Ma Deva Naisha, BSYA (C.I.)

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Two monks were meditating in the garden of a monastery when one asked, "Is it possible to smoke while meditating in the garden?" As the other didn’t know, they both decided to ask the abbot.

Next day, the first one was sitting under a tree looking depressed when the other passed by, smoking a cigarette. The first one could not believe it.
He said, "It seems you have not asked the abbot! But I did and he got mad at me and yelled, "Absolutely not!"

The second monk said, "What did you ask the abbot?"

The monk replied, "I asked, ‘Is it possible to smoke while meditating?’"

The second monk laughed and said, "That's why! I asked him, ‘Can I meditate while smoking?’ And he answered, ‘Yes, of course!’"

Meditation is linked to my everyday life, waking and sleeping. As I am snuggling into sleep, I tell myself to remain aware and conscious while falling asleep. This was not easy at first as I would fall into an unconscious state almost immediately. But slowly, by remembering this night after night, the ‘falling asleep’ changed, wide spaces opened up and a feeling of deep calm arose. The very quality of sleep changed and this alertness during sleep makes me aware that I am dreaming.

Waking in the morning becomes joyful with the awareness and gratefulness of another day to live and experience all that life offers – and by remaining watchful, the day unfolds effortlessly. I rarely feel the need to sit silently and watch my breath or the thoughts of the mind coming and going; it suits me to do all that during the day – for example while I am standing at a red traffic light I watch my breathing while also being aware of the light switching over to green; being totally in the here-now while driving in mad traffic is another way of meditation for me; one moment of unawareness and an accident can happen in a split second.  Working at the computer being aware not only of the screen and the letters and numbers on it, but also of the dance of the fingers on the keyboard.

Instead of walking around a supermarket comatose and zoning out (tempting, I know!), remain aware of your surroundings, of the other people, of the cashier busy running up your bill, be totally there! While preparing food be aware of all ingredients and their nutritious value and thus whip up a delicious meal with loving vibes that will be beneficial to the body. Greet your neighbor with awareness, really look into his/her eyes, acknowledging there too nestles a budding Buddha inside.

Most people don’t see or hear each other, wrapped up in their everyday dramas. Have you ever experienced how some react if you answer to their careless question of “How are you today? with “Actually, I am not feeling well!”? Their automatic answer comes, “Good, good!”

Osho quoted the following from Atisha:

“Atisha says: In the morning remember it is a new day, a new beginning. Have a decision deep in your heart that "Today I am not going to waste this opportunity. Enough is enough! Today I am going to be aware, today I am going to be alert, today I am going to devote as much energy as possible to the single cause, the cause of meditation. I will meditate in all my acts. I will do all the activities, the usual day-to-day activities, but with a new quality: I will bring the quality of awareness to them."

Welcome the new day. Feel grateful, happy that existence still trusts in you; there is still a possibility, the transformation can still happen. Start the day with a great decisiveness.

And in the evening again feel gratitude that the day was given to you, and feel gratitude for all that happened -- good and bad both, happiness and unhappiness both, because they are all teachers.”
OSHO
The Book of Wisdom, Chapter 17

Of course every day is different, there are days when I ‘lose it’, when I forget all about being centered,  when I let myself be buried by mad mind activity and can’t see the sky for all the dark clouds that suddenly turn up. It is nonetheless becoming easier to catch on to such digressions by becoming aware of them and returning to center. And all of a sudden the sun shines again in a brilliant sky.

Make the first step and start by waking up alert and a sense of wonder about this new day. And throughout the day turn again and again to the point of being aware of what you are doing and how you are doing it. And the periods of awareness and centeredness will increase by and by and become your very way of life! It is that simple…

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