Different Approaches to Meditation

What are the preferred conditions for meditation?

HYP page 40 - 43

The hatha yogi should live alone in a hermitage and practice in a place the length of a bow (1.5m) where there is no hazard from rocks, fire or water, and which is in a well-administered and virtuous kingdom where good alms can be easily attained.

The room of Sadhana (practice) should have a small door, without a window, holes or cracks, being neither too high nor too low. It should be spotlesly clean, wiped with cow manure and free from animals or insects. Outside there should be an open platform with a thatched roof, a well and a surrounding wall. The appearance of the hermitage should be pleasant.

What are our preferred conditions for meditation? (internal & external)

Meditation Postures

Meditation is…..

Ching-jing-wu-wei – Chinese saying which means “sitting still and doing nothing”

The path of Raja Yoga

Sitting still for a sustained period to meditate is working directly on the mind, an advanced practice for those with a settled mind.

The Spirit of Yoga Kathy Phillips

The biggest battle is to find the discipline to set aside regular time each day….Begin slowly, giving five minutes, twice a day, to sitting and breathing. With commitment, this will grow, organically into longer and longer period until you may arrive at a place where you can sit in meditation for half an hour or longer without any awareness of the passing of time. Pg 132

Yantra – maha shri yantra

The Heart of Yoga TKV Desikachar

You must understand the word mantra correctly. It is not a Hindu symbol but rather something much more universal: it is something that can bring a person’s mind to a higher plane.

Breath