Between all the dejection on the job hunt front, I had a private moment of glory today - a moment too menial to be shared with anyone else yet too special to be not saved for my future reference.
I have had an internal conflict against the entire idea of meditation for it offers you only a temporary haven not a permanent abode. And the concept of sitting and observing my thoughts just bores me. My argument has been that if meditation is just about observing one’s thoughts and actions, I could as well try to do it consciously day and night, instead of a periodic ritual. And I have been trying to do that, to some extent at least. But I hadn’t found a supporting theory to my idea so far. None of the gurus or philosophies seemed to be talking about extending meditation to all walks of your life.
J Krishnamurti is by far the most inspiring philosopher to me, for he doesn’t answer my questions but inspires me to admit that I don’t know a lot. He doesn’t offer a path like a guru; instead renders me as the strongest entity in my life. I saw a JK video for the first time today where he discussed meditation with Dr Allan Anderson. And he talked about the thing I had unheard of anywhere else but my mind - futility of the meditation that does not involve your entire being. Hence, my favorite philosopher has become the only person so far who voiced out this irrationally significant thought of mine. And as an imperfect individual, I seek incredible pride and joy from this fact.
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Just saw this video, and its second part as well, its revealing to say the least. I guess it depends on the way one looks at it, for me, instead of being an argument against meditation in itself, JK here rather explains the meaning of meditation as being "the perfume that permeates every aspect of life". As opposed to being a mere ritualistic practice, meditation is rather a way of life. Though per se, this is not an argument against the ritual of sitting in silence, and watching one's thoughts, for this ritual prepares the mind to be sensitive/aware/awake enough to actually be able to watch the thoughts and emotions as they arise (without resisting them or yielding to them, just watching them), even while carrying out normal daily activities. Just my two unsolicited cents based on my insignificantly little experience:)....and then of course there is no single path or way to inner peace or happiness, to try to be a better human being first before anything else, would be the starting point of any such pursuit I guess. Thanks for the post!!:)..ankush.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Ankush. I completely agree with you. Perhaps the title of my post doesn't correctly represent my thoughts. I am not against meditation as such. I am just against the idea that meditating daily for a few hours is the only path to truth. Being a rather unplanned person by nature, I am against the necessity of following any spiritual discipline. I am against the idea of forcing any belief upon oneself to find the truth. I have seen and known people who find obvious and immense relief in meditation but find life too difficult when they cannot find a few moments of silence in their day. You see meditation, being a practice after all, can also become an attachment if not extended to all walks of life.
ReplyDeleteBesides, I've always felt that my connection to the divine must be constant (even if little), not periodic. But I just couldn't understand or justify myself. JK has helped me see sense in my own thoughts and freed me from my self-created barriers. If you have read JK, you'd know he'd even argue against "trying to be a better human being" :) But I get your point completely. Everyone has to carve his own path. Perhaps your starts from being a nice human being and mine starts from silently observing my world.