Worship Happens in Meditation

Excerpts from Gurumatha Amma’s talk at the UN on September 8, 2006, on Meditation for Holistic Health and Self-Realisation

Meditation is a state of mind. It reflects the mind in a state of eternal bliss, and transcends the known states of wakefulness, sleep and dreams. It is a state, which only a few can experience. Although it is the most natural state of man, he should be equipped with the discretion to experience the joy of it, which is total awareness of body and mind. Under this state, the mind achieves complete equilibrium, and frees itself from the humdrum of daily life and the cycles of karma. Self-awareness and self-introspection are the functions in which one should continuously indulge to achieve this state. In a state of eternal awareness, the mind can differentiate between the real and the unreal, the perpetual from the fleeting.

Instincts have an impact on the body, triggering chemical reactions, which drive man toward action (karma), vitiating the body and leading to diseases. In contrast, by meditation, one can achieve a number of tangible benefits. In meditation, the mind is silenced and actions are suspended. Meditation rectifies the anomalies in breathing, fine tunes the heartbeat, and propels the body into a healthier state. Happiness, peace and good health are the natural effects of practising meditation. But it is not something to be practised for a day, nor is it tied to traditions and conventions. It rarely needs an aid – even mantras fail to yield results if one is not acquainted with the conditions to achieve the exalted state.

A healthy mind is always inward looking. A mind which is unconcerned about the affairs of the world but repulsed by the process of self-enquiry is not healthy either. A meditative mind deals with worldly affairs in a detached manner.

Recognising and appreciating the eternal beauty and power of nature, both external and internal, is worship. The feeling and experiencing an innate quality of yours in your meditation is God. Worship happens in meditation; it begins and ends in you. It is spontaneous and cannot be achieved with the intellect. Devotion is the outcome of this worship, in which you are both the God and the devotee.
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