The first stage of Meditation is in fact an attempt to focus and concentrate on something, attempt to keep a rein on your thoughts, so your mind could keep focused on the chosen subject or item. Focusing on the item, person, thing or subject for Consideration is a very important step, because people of chaotic, distracted minds don’t like contemplation or reflection, they don’t want Meditation and often critically attack Meditation, although it is a Holy, Divine Art. Usually, two categories of people aspire to work on meditation, Good people or people with plenty of problems and worries, and both these categories have  huge profits from the deeper and deeper studies on the Art of Meditation, from tidying up the flow of chaotic thoughts, dreams. Those who have reached that point can always think and keep focusing on the chosen item as long as they want to, then they go into the final phase of the first stage of Meditation Art, the phase of Controlling and Mastering the Mind.

A chaotic mind that can’t focus, a lazy one that loses thoughts, full of fears or in depression, sadness or sorrow is in fact seriously ill, and the Art of Meditation at this pre-introductory, kindergarten level is rather like a Therapy, Healing the sick mind, and usually also the heart sick of pain, and the whole Self. Chaos, accidental flow of various thoughts and associations is a very serious disease of the mind and the root of all psychical and psychosomatic suffering. A man has been created to be the Lord and Master of Thought, Thinking Self, so chaos, fears, sadness, depressions and weaknesses should be eliminated. And that is the kindergarten level of work for you, people, which all of you should quickly master. Exercise focusing on a chosen thought, feeling, picturing, experiencing through longer and longer periods of time in order to be totally wrapped up in the issue and not to digress from the subject. For some people it’s hard to focus on the image of a bonfire for at least one minute, but a man should be able to do it for long hours. We strongly recommend  focusing on the image of a flame or sun, the source of natural light, because such an image helps to remove bad depressive or timid thoughts, experiences, mind reactions and finally develops the ability of Focusing attention and Meditating.

In the second stage of teaching the Art of Meditation, thinking, repeating words and phrases, imagining items, people, ideals, deities, angels, signs or scenes is deepened with the feeling of what you’re thinking about. Then we can talk about the deep Meditation, or about Feeling-Thinking and this way we discover the internal sphere of Intuition, sensual experience, sensing, feeling and precognition. The work of Mind, the Self, becomes alive and flexible, it easily adapts to situations, conditions and circumstances because it’s neither firm nor schematic, which enables deep creative work, innovating, creative improvements. So in the second stage there appear the signs of artistry or scientific genius and intuitional accuracy enabling you to be on time, fulfill your duties, be a conscientious man who appears where something wonderful and helpful for your realization is present.

Although a man at the first stage uses rather his knowledge and the information he remembers, then on the second stage he becomes soft and adjustable and very creative. In the  process of feeling and focusing the people who have experienced tough moments in life can quickly and effectively overcome their problems, feel as if reborn and can change their lives totally, usually also they can start a new life in a new place. Then there is no problem with choosing what’s appropriate or with keeping commitments, which are the consequence of their own choice. We can say that in the second stage, after tiding up the flow of thinking, silencing the chaos of thoughts, dreams and experiences a man stops gathering problems and troubles. He stops feeling lost in life and in that place there appears a creative and sometimes surprising solution of a situation, and everything is supported by the depth of the inner self, which is not present in a person who can’t focus on any subject at least for an hour or two.

During meditation sessions a man should not forget about the subject, and keep all the time total consciousness of the mind and he should be fully committed, immersed in the exercise, in his practice. Being, thinking and feeling what is happening at the moment is very important and helpful, and relaxing and silencing, dispersing all unpredictable reactions of mind, especially discouragements, impatience and irritability is a beginning. Focusing on read or listened Meditation instructions and keeping focused on the process of thought or imagination or recollection is in fact a beginning. Meditation is deepening the subject or item of focus, consideration till total immersion, reflection and deep feeling of what we think and imagine. Of course you should not lose consciousness. The process of finishing the Meditation must be always rapid if there is such a need or if the exercise ends and there is no need of losing connection with time, place and surrounding. Déjà vu, highs or cutting off from reality is not Meditation, but the beginning of a mental disease of schizophrenic type and such tendencies should be treated. Thinking not about the subject, but about something that is not happening during lessons and exercises is not a real meditation.

Meditation is the way of mastering the mind, the self by developing the thinker’s feelings and conscious striving for Perfection. The higher, third level of work enables the constant feeling of Divinity, Ecstasy, Delight and Joy, from your inside, no matter what happens in the outside world. Experiencing the felicity, Anandam as we call it in the East, doesn’t mean quitting your daily life activities, but overcoming the difficulties with the feeling of internal Joy, Ecstasy, without narcissism, without collecting suffering, without discouragement, but reasonably with a deep ability to analysis and synthesis of situations, circumstances and events.

Himalaya Master