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THE DYNAMICS OF MEDITATION
Then we will encounter our mind, which is always busy running. Our thoughts are like the cars moving in the street, and before we begin our meditation there is a great traffic jam within our mind. It is rush hour and hundreds of thoughts are moving through our mind at once. Meditation means to allow this jam-up to clear. We don't add new thoughts now. Instead we sit and wait and watch, gradually becoming the calm spectator of this internal flow. Then we can see what is hidden in our subconscious.
The Use of Mantras: Veerum and Sohum
If we have difficulty slowing our thinking process, we can begin to use a mantram. In Sanskrit, man means mind and tra means to control or lead. We bring control over our mind by using a mantram. The mind is like a monkey, jumping from one branch to another. If we tell it not to jump around, it will go even faster. It is like a child: if you tell it not to do something, immediately it starts doing that thing even more. If you sit to meditate and try not to think, the mind will find a million topics to think over. To quiet the monkey, we give it a banana. Then it stops to eat and becomes calm. A mantram is like a banana which we give to the monkey-mind so it will become quiet and peaceful. We give it this word or phrase to work on, to keep it busy and happy.
** But a mantram is also more than this. The mantras we use are words which are filled with a deep meaning and pregnant with universal energy. They were originally used by the saints and seers of ancient times, thousands of years ago, and they have a great significance in lifting our thoughts and inspiring our lives.
