MEDITATION: WHAT IS IT?

By John Maerz BA LMT

     All of us at some time have seen that petite person walking a ninety pound dog and asked ourselves, "Who's walking who?" The humor is in the fact that the dog, which is supposedly not as smart as we are, has the control. We chuckle to ourselves and say that we wouldn't care to be in that person's shoes and move on with our life thinking that we are in complete control. For most, nothing could be farther from the truth. We are prisoners within our own body and minds. No? Then ask yourself who is hungry...you or your body? Who keeps obsessively thinking about the same situation over and over late at night when we can't sleep...you or your mind? You are not your body. You created it to serve your needs NOT to cater to its needs. You are not your mind. Your mind is a tool that helps you to figure out how to do what your heart tells you to do. Still not convinced? Try this. Close your eyes for a few moments and watch and listen to the dialogue in your head. Who is observing the dialogue and the pictures that appear before you? It is something OTHER than your body and your mind.

     In recognizing this you have taken your first steps in meditation. Meditation is NOT concentration but allowing the dialogue to happen without getting absorbed by it. Notice also that when we think of things that might be and things that have already occurred we miss what's happening now. When you closed your eyes you were right here, right NOW. Usually, we spend most of our time "thinking" about what we must do, what we've done, what we regret, what we wish, what we need and any other excuse that the conscious mind can drum up to keep the control and the attention in the past or future. It's exhausting. This is the only way that the mind and body (ego) can keep us serving them. That dog earlier on is a combination of our mind and body that we have fed too much and now it expects to drag us along looking for its next dish of Alpo. We've given away our power to act by yielding to the past and future. Acting is NOW. Creating is NOW. It's good to have a plan but only to use as a possible guide NOT a requirement. Requirements close off options. If we close our eyes and repeat our exercise a little longer each time, without getting sidetracked into the future or past, we will feel more rested and relaxed each time. Like a small child that needs gentle reminders over and over, eventually, the body and mind get used to letting go. In spite of itself it becomes more rested and focused in the NOW. This is, probably, why Ram Dass says, "Be here NOW!" He’s telling us to meditate! Simpler than you thought, isn’t it?