“Oh tranquil spiritual aspirant! Spiritual practice (sadhana) is your great bow. Set the arrow of your mind, sharpened with meditation, on this bow. Now, inclining your mind toward Him, pluck and twang the string of the bow and pierce your target – that indestructible Supreme Soul.” – Anandamurti (Subhasita Samgrapha II, 34)
- Place water on your hands and face or perform a 1/2 bath which calms and directs the nervous system, promoting mental alertness
- Certain foods cause mental agitation
- Bring the mind and heart into a very narrow inner focus with gentleness
- Focus the mind on mantra, visualization, and a devotional, loving feeling
If you did sadhana for 2 hours and concentrated on your mantra for 5 minutes without any other thought, that would be more than enough for 1 week. – Anandamurti (Baba Unparalleled)
- 5 minutes is better than 0 minutes
- You can retrain the mind
- Please sing aloud, infusing yourself and your surroundings with the vibrational waves of Baba Nam Kevalam
- Be persistent and determined in your practice
- In spiritual meditation we concentrate on a mantra associated with the highest GOOD, the Supreme.
- Create a special place at home for meditation
- Meditate outside in nature maybe once a week
Ananda Marga is the perfect sadhana, and more people are learning Ananda Marga Sadhana. … The practice of sadhana is the most significant aspect of life. So when you sit for sadhana, don’t think about anything else – let this universe disappear. Do not compromise sadhana time.”- Anandamurti (Baba Unnparalled)
- Be systematic in your meditation practice
- Concentrate your attention on only one thing, The Great
- Observe the breath coming in and the breath going out
- Surrender and persevere towards that Inner Guiding Divine Light
Iishvara Pranidhana requires that you ideate sincerely on the Supreme with your mantra. So do not meditate mechanically. Do your meditation wholeheartedly. Then you will get results. If someone practices Iishvara Pranidhana mechanically for 24 hours, they will get nothing. However, if they practice it earnestly for just 5 minutes, they will see results… Beginners should spend more time on Iishvara Pranidhana and get established on that lesson before spending more time on Dhyana. – Anandamurti (Baba Unparalleled)
- Imagine that the Supreme is your subject
- Visualize and feel that you are the object of the Supreme’s meditative focus
- Feel the Supreme is surrounding you, seeing you, meditating on you, caring for you
- Ground your daily life in the yoga ethics of Yama and Niyama
“…it is of vital importance to remind ourselves every day that we are not just physical creatures, we are spiritual beings, in whom dwells a spark of the Divine which can never be extinguished.” – Shri Eknath Easwaran