Amma on meditition and devotion
''Dear children, when you sit to meditate, do not think that you can still your mind immediately. At first, you should relax
all parts of your body. Loosen your clothes. Make sure your spine is erect.
Then close your eyes and concentrate your mind on your breath. You should be aware of your inhalation and exhalation.
We should become aware of the process. Then the mind will be wakeful.
As you sit like that for a while, your mind will become calm.
''You can continue the
meditation by focusing attention on your breath.
Or you can start
meditation on the form of your beloved deity. Worship
becomes easy when we assign a specific form to
Brahman (Absolute
Reality), in
Manas Puja (mental worship). As soon as you get up,
meditate for ten minutes. After your bath, meditate again for half an
hour. In the beginning, it is enough to meditate for a short time. After
that, you can do your chores. Any
work you do with
japa and constant
remembrance of
God is also meditation.
''To concentrate in this age of materialism (
Kaliyuga), bhajan
is easier than meditation. By loud singing, other distracting sounds will
be overcome and concentration will be achieved.
Bhajan (devotional
hymns), concentration and meditation, this is the progression. In fact,
constant remembrance of
God is meditation. Children,
bhajan sung
with devotion would benefit the singer, the listener and also Mother Nature.
Bhajan is a spiritual discipline aimed at concentrating the mind
on one's Beloved Deity. Through that single-mindedness, one can merge
in the Divine Being and experience the Bliss of one's True Self.''
