Lesson 15 - Meditation Q&A – Restlessness

From: Yogani
Date: Wed Nov 19, 2003 1:01pm

New Members: It is recommended you begin reading at the beginning of
the archive (the first lesson is, "Why This Discussion?"), as
previous lessons are prerequisite to this one.

Q: Since beginning, I felt some nice peacefulness and calmness for a
few days. Then I started getting restless during meditation and
irritable during the day. What's going on?

A: While cleansing the nervous system with meditation seems a simple
enough process, it is quite delicate. The procedure we use is simple –
easily thinking the mantra, letting it refine naturally, losing the
mantra, later realizing we are off it, then easily going back to it
without attempting to hold it clearly or unclearly… and so on for
twenty minutes twice each day. But do not be deceived by the
simplicity. Do not take it lightly. This is an advanced and powerful
practice. We are facilitating lifetimes of obstructions to be
released naturally from deep within us. These are stresses and
strains embedded in our nervous system that restrict our vision of
the truth in and around us. Some restrictions we were born with.
Others we have added in this life. It all is being released bit by
bit during meditation. It is a huge undertaking, with profound
results.

If the purification process is a little out of balance, some
discomfort can happen -- Restlessness. Irritability. Unpleasant
physical sensations. Fidgeting. Unpleasant thoughts. Things like
that. Fortunately, there are ways to balance the process of
meditation if there is some discomfort. The first thing to do is take
plenty of time coming out of meditation. Remember that during
meditation a process of inner cleansing is going on. You might not
feel much is happening, but if you jump up from meditation without
resting first, you could feel irritable for some time afterwards –
maybe even all day. Don't take it out on your loved ones, friends and
coworkers. See it for what it is, an imbalance in your practice.
Always take at least a few minutes of doing nothing (relaxing, not
thinking the mantra) at the end of meditation. This allows stresses
and strains being released from the nervous system during meditation
to dissipate harmlessly. Then, when you get up, you will feel light
and refreshed. If you don't, you are probably not resting long
enough. So rest at the end as long as necessary to enable a smooth
transition from meditation to activity. You may even wish to lie down
for a while at the end of meditation. Everyone is different. Find
what is the best for you coming out of meditation.

Some people respond very quickly to meditation. A little bit may go a
long way. This is a good thing. If you are one of these, you are
blessed, but you must be careful to balance your routine so you won't
be uncomfortable due to a high rate of inner cleansing going on. If
lying down and resting for a while after twenty minutes of meditation
does not settle things down, then it may be necessary to shorten the
time of meditation to fifteen minutes. If it is still uncomfortable,
try ten minutes. Find your balance. And always take your time coming
out.

Sometimes physical discomfort can happen during meditation. This is
usually a symptom of the release of obstructions in the nervous
system. If it interferes with the easy process of meditation, then
pause with the mantra and allow the attention to be drawn to the
physical discomfort. Just be with it for a while. Usually, this will
dissolve the discomfort naturally. Once it does, go back to the
mantra and continue your meditation until your time is up. Count the
time you spent with your attention on the physical discomfort as part
of your meditation time. If the sensation does not dissolve, lie down
for while, until the sensation subsides. It is a good thing. A big
obstruction is going. Let it go easily, naturally. The same procedure
applies if you are overcome with a barrage of overbearing thoughts,
which may or may not be accompanied by physical sensations. If you
can't easily go back to the mantra, just be with the thoughts until
they dissipate enough so you can easily pick up the mantra again.
Remember, meditation is not a fight with physical or mental activity
we may have. These are all symptoms of the release of obstructions
from deep in the nervous system. We just let them go. Our job is to
follow the easy procedure of thinking the mantra and allowing the
process of inner cleansing to happen. This is not a war on the level
of the conscious mind. You can never win it that way. We are working
from the inside, within and beyond the subconscious mind. In order to
do this we must allow the natural ability of the mind to take us in.
So learn to think the mantra easily, and let it go in.

Meditation is the most effective means of operating deep inside the
subconscious mind and cleaning it out. With meditation we easily go
beyond the subconscious mind to our underlying consciousness, the
source of all that is true and evolutionary. It is our consciousness
that removes the inner obstructions, if we give it the opportunity
through meditation. Over time, as the obstructions are removed, we
find more and more peaceful silence in our daily lives. This is the
dawning of enlightenment, our natural state. So keep cleaning the
window of your nervous system every day.

The guru is in you.

<  Previous  |  Next  >