My yogic journey began with the study of hatha yoga. I studied it and eventually became a teacher of hatha yoga, for over 3 years. During this time I became a picture of health and my flexibility and concentration improved immensely.
The hatha yoga path I was on was somewhat austere. Many people on this path eventually took a vow of celibacy, much like a priest, and outwardly renounced the physical "enjoyments" in this world such as money, clothes, fancy cars and families. I didn't want to renounce outward so I began searching for another yogic path, I felt more comfortable with. I found Surat Shabd Yoga, a path of inward renunciation. It was a path that I came to realize was teaching me how to truly "Love."
This "Royal Path" or Surat Shabd Yoga was, for me, heavenly. The Teachers had families, jobs, houses, cars and contributed to society like others. The renunciation was more inward, thus some royalty in the past chose to follow this path so that they could retain their kingdoms.
The Inner Sound and Light we focus on when we practice Surat Shabd Yoga is natural and is within everything. It is at a very high vibration in human beings. It is part of who we are. It is a part of us and we are a part of it. Many people call it Consciousness.
Any practice of Yoga requires one to conquer the mind. This is not the easiest thing to do. The individual mind is part of the ego and it wants to remain in control. The mind for most of us, controls our Soul. The goal is to have the Soul be in control and have the mind follow it, not the other way around. Surat Shabd Yoga give us a natural way to give the mind something to do, by focusing it on the Inner Sound and Light.
The mind is the hardest part of us to settle. It thinks its job is to be in control when actually it should be a servant of our Soul which is the true leader.
There are a couple different ways you can practice Surat Shabd Yoga. The first way is to close your eyes and give yourself some words, a mantra, to repeat. They could be any words you choose and feel comfortable with. You can choose love, love, love or peace, peace, peace. You can repeat whatever you want. The second is to focus totally on the Sound and Light within.
Repetition of the word or words gives the mind something to do. It focuses the mind. We do not say the word or words out loud. We repeat the silently, to ourselves, with our mind only. The words should not make us think of some worldly event. They should not make us think at all. The goal is to train the mind to stop thinking except when we command it to do so.
Most people think meditation is hard to do. It is definitely not easy to control the mind. If we want to become a master meditator we should practice and train the mind just like muscles in the body. It is worth it. The mind is a great servant but a terrible leader. As you grow in your meditation it will become more and more enjoyable to you. You will come to love it.
We feel Love when we meditate because we come in contact with the source of Love, within us. There is a fountain of Love inside of everyone. We tap into it when we meditate. As we get deeper into our meditation, we start recognizing this same fountain of Love within everyone else. Once this happens, we start understanding that the real meaning of "Love" is total identification with that fountain of Love within all living things.
About the Author:
Tina T Willer, MBA is the author of Articles and E-books on Love, Meditation, Health, and Personal Finances. Great overall well-being covers all areas of our lives. Receive your FREE Ebook "Keep Your Love Alive", Here. Receive your FREE Financial Advice Newsletter Here.
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