Meditation doesn’t have to be a chore

First of all, a little chat point with my dear readers- My apologies for being on mute for some time. It’s important to take time off for yourself intermittently in order to re-energise, re-focus, and re-ground. So, that’s what kept me occupied. I am delighted to share my experience with you all.
We live in a noisy world of human and technical jibber jabber. To concentrate on own breathing is like trying to listen to the rustling leaf on a tree in the storm. Such a storm hits us all from time to time. I was meditating regularly and satisfied with the results, yet, over a few days, I noticed that the wandering thoughts were leading my focus astray. I had to navigate my mind to concentrate and re-ground my vibration.
Exercising is not really a fun activity for most people, but they go to the gym and get on with it by gritting their teeth since exercise is good for health; until such a time when it becomes an effortless part of the routine. Similarly, meditation is difficult when we don’t enjoy it. But sit us down in front of the tele or play games on mobile, an hour flies by. Why? Because we like that time spent. So, it gave me the idea that I had to spice up my meditation experience. So, here’s what I did.
Since childhood, I enjoyed reading stories, and later it inspired me to write narrative fiction. I spend hours writing or painting, without ever glancing at the watch because I actually enjoyed the activity. So, I decided to turn my meditation into a plot of beginning, middle and end. I made a mental note of most repeated thoughts that perturbed my concentration. Like, I was unhappy with how my new painting was not coming out as I intended, and I was stressed due to incessant toothache, etc. etc. In other words, nothing major, only a mundane regurgitation of events. I mentally arranged all these thoughts into a coherent script. As a child, I would recount in detail the good and the bad events to my parents as a habit. So, I applied my childhood trait to the narrative style of the script. My Nirankar- my ‘formless’ abstract God- is my eternal parent. Hence, I began to tell my day-to-day tale to my God-parent. ” I am trying my best to paint this portrait but can’t get the face shadows right- I seek your inspiration to complete my painting and if I can’t, it’s all on you. One of the reasons could be that I am having severe toothache, and antibiotics aren’t working. Who could be a greater doctor than you – so, here I am, your patient, treat me. If not, it’s your reputation at stake. But thank you for the recent family holiday.” The point is – the tale doesn’t have to be a complex plot or script, but more like a conversation style narrative. Pick the least stressful or the most recurring distraction. The technique is to transfer any thought into a tale to tell either yourself or, like in my case, communicate with ‘your’ version of god. Like any plot, the plot is progressive through three stages- beginning, middle, and end. So, this chat should develop and in the end, it must present a resolution- For example, I got the motivation to persevere to complete my painting satisfactorily, and after visiting my dentist I was reassured that antibiotics would end the pain. Both targets were met successfully. Someone who is new to meditation or spiritual training would wonder ‘what the big deal is with such low desires, and not even worth meditating. Then, for those beginners, I must reiterate that this training is not about evolving a desire but about learning to focus. The guidance to progress shall follow from within, subsequently. One step at a time.
I was pleasantly surprised that my concentration was categorically undivided while ‘telling my tales’ to God. I felt mentally lighter since I un-loaded all my stress by expressing my feelings without punctuating my prayers with the discipline of formal courtesy only. On certain days I would even recite a hymn, and tell Nirankar how much of it actually relates to my life. It won’t be an overstatement to say that every story of mine ended with making me feel closer to my God, and hence, elated. This is what it means for the vibrations to rise when the focus is grounded.
Meditation doesn’t mean ritualistic chanting or going through formal yoga asanas. Focus doesn’t have to be a chore. Be inventive and make it fun, or at least real by relating it to your real life.
******** For more on how to meditate and build focus, please read my book- ‘The 3Fs of Law of Attraction’
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