Baba
Namaskar,
In the letter about dhyana and concentration of mind, there is reference to certain religions where the followers move about when doing their prayer or worship, in which case the mind cannot concentrate properly.
Below we identify some of those religions:
1. Christians: In their approach to prayer, Christians kneel and then stand up and then kneel again. So they move when doing their worship. And in other Christian worship sessions they talk the whole time. So that is another way that they move their physical frame instead of remaining still.
2. Muslims: In their call to prayer, the Muslims also move their body and limbs in various directions - upwards and backwards. Then they place their forehead to the ground and then come up again etc. So there is a lot of movement in namaz.
3. Hindus: In their various forms of idol worship, such Hindus get up and down and may even feed their chosen deity. Or sometimes they lie down in prostration and then get up - and in then drag themselves foward - rise up - and then go down in prostration again. And there are many other ways that Hindus move their bodies when worshiping their deity.
All of the above three religions move their physical bodies in worship; they do not engage in silent, motionless meditation
4. Buddhism: Some of the various Buddhists sects do remain silent and still, but their approach to meditation involves emptying the mind. Theirs is an atheistic approach devoid of devotion.
So the only answer then is to seek out a path that engages in sustained, quiet, God-centered meditation. That is the Ananda Marga method of sadhana.
Here below are some quotes from the main letter...
Ananda Marga ideology states, "If someone is constantly thinking that he will have to sit down at a certain time, stand up at a certain time, catch hold of one's nose or ears at a certain time, the mind will automatically tend to become restless. Such is the intimate relation between the body and the mind." (Ananda Vacanamrtam-17, The Meaning of “Krśńa” in Rája Yoga)
In our Ananda Marga system sadhakas are taught to do sadhana in postures like padmasana or siddhasana. This very science is not known to common people. That is why in their rituals they move about: Sometimes standing, then kneeling, then sitting, then placing their hands on their head etc. On other occasions they talk the entire time so their jaw and tongue are moving, and other times they move up and down and all around. But all these movements are distracting to the mind.
Namaskar,
In the letter about dhyana and concentration of mind, there is reference to certain religions where the followers move about when doing their prayer or worship, in which case the mind cannot concentrate properly.
Below we identify some of those religions:
1. Christians: In their approach to prayer, Christians kneel and then stand up and then kneel again. So they move when doing their worship. And in other Christian worship sessions they talk the whole time. So that is another way that they move their physical frame instead of remaining still.
2. Muslims: In their call to prayer, the Muslims also move their body and limbs in various directions - upwards and backwards. Then they place their forehead to the ground and then come up again etc. So there is a lot of movement in namaz.
3. Hindus: In their various forms of idol worship, such Hindus get up and down and may even feed their chosen deity. Or sometimes they lie down in prostration and then get up - and in then drag themselves foward - rise up - and then go down in prostration again. And there are many other ways that Hindus move their bodies when worshiping their deity.
All of the above three religions move their physical bodies in worship; they do not engage in silent, motionless meditation
4. Buddhism: Some of the various Buddhists sects do remain silent and still, but their approach to meditation involves emptying the mind. Theirs is an atheistic approach devoid of devotion.
So the only answer then is to seek out a path that engages in sustained, quiet, God-centered meditation. That is the Ananda Marga method of sadhana.
Here below are some quotes from the main letter...
Ananda Marga ideology states, "If someone is constantly thinking that he will have to sit down at a certain time, stand up at a certain time, catch hold of one's nose or ears at a certain time, the mind will automatically tend to become restless. Such is the intimate relation between the body and the mind." (Ananda Vacanamrtam-17, The Meaning of “Krśńa” in Rája Yoga)
In our Ananda Marga system sadhakas are taught to do sadhana in postures like padmasana or siddhasana. This very science is not known to common people. That is why in their rituals they move about: Sometimes standing, then kneeling, then sitting, then placing their hands on their head etc. On other occasions they talk the entire time so their jaw and tongue are moving, and other times they move up and down and all around. But all these movements are distracting to the mind.
In such types of ritualistic prayers when the body is moving hither and thither, then the mind also gets restless. So altogether the idea is that the body should be motionless while doing sadhana. And in that condition naturally sadhana will be better. Also bear in mind that there should not be any confusion about our movement in kiirtan. Kiirtan is not sadhana it is sadhanaunga - a helping tool of sadhana. That is why after doing kiirtan we always sit for meditation.
