Bhanumathi Narasimhan, sister of Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and meditation teacher since several decades, speaks about meditation and why the world needs it today.
How much do we need to concentrate to have a good meditation?
Meditation is actually de-concentration. Concentration is a benefit of meditation. Concentration requires effort and meditation is absolute relaxation of the mind. Meditation is letting go, and when that happens, you are in a state of deep rest. When the mind is relaxed, we can concentrate better.
Gurudev says, “Meditation is the delicate art of doing nothing!” There are three golden principles that help you to meditate – so for 20 minutes we say, ” I want nothing, I do nothing, and I am nobody” and after that take all our labels back!
Is meditation a religious activity? Can an atheist meditate too?
Yoga and meditation are ancient practices that transcend all religions. For meditation, there is no bar on any religion. It is for all. In fact, meditation has the ability to bring religions, nations and faiths together. Just like the sun shines for everyone, and the wind blows for everyone, meditation benefits everyone.
What is the right age to start meditating?
Meditation is universal and adds value to lives of people of all age groups. One can start mediating at the age of eight or nine. Meditation has a cleansing effect like shower. You can take a shower in the morning and you go about your daily activities. You don’t have to keep on taking a shower throughout the day. Similarly, you meditate and calm your mind, then go on with other activities. It is not easy to keep yourself undisturbed, but with the regular practice of meditation, it becomes easy.
Does meditation remove stress?
Certainly. There are several benefits of meditation besides reducing stress levels.
It Improves the bio-energy in our body creating a positive and harmonious energy around us.
Improves health and prevents many mental and physical illnesses.
Helps you maintain a pleasant mind.
Improves concentration.
Improves intuitive abilities
It helps you to be in the present moment.
Whether you want to take a walk on the beach, go for a swim or go scuba-diving, the ocean is there, available for you. It is the same with meditation. You can use it to improve your health or mental faculties, or if you want to go further, spiritual elevation can happen.
How many hours of meditation does it take for a person to experience the ultimate?
You do not have to sit for hours to have a deeper experience in meditation. The connection with that deep inner core of your being, your source can happen in just a fraction of a moment. For example, just a 20-minute practice of Sahaj Samadhi meditation every morning and evening is sufficient to take you on this beautiful inward journey. As you practice your meditation every day, the quality of your meditation will improve gradually.
Can you tell us more about sahaj samadhi meditation? How is it different from other meditations?
Sahaj samadhi meditation is a natural and effortless way to experience the profound state of our being with the help of your personal mantra for meditation. Other meditations bring deep relaxation but sahaj helps to release the deep-rooted impressions stored in the layers of our consciousness. It connects us to our source within directly. It is like having the password for direct connection to the Self.
How does meditation find a place in the daily struggle between personal and professional life that people are faced with?
When you realize that you are multi-faceted, multi-dimensional, you can multi-task. You recognise this innate ability when you are in a calm and serene state of mind achieved through meditation.
When you meditate, the same work that you normally perform in four hours, you can do in two hours. So two hours more are given to you to balance between work and family. It is necessary that you give prime time to yourself, to relax yourself, to realize your potential to do better. Otherwise you limit your capabilities. And when you meditate, you realize the expansion within you, that limitlessness within you. Meditation helps you to blossom to your full potential.
When there are so many issues we are faced with today as individuals or society, how is closing your eyes and meditating going to help?
On the contrary, meditation empowers you to face problems with a smile. Skills develop in us to handle situations in a pleasant and constructive manner through yoga and meditation. We develop the ability to accept situations as they are and take conscious action instead of brooding over the past or worrying about the future. Meditation nurtures inner strength and self-esteem. It acts like an umbrella during rainy days. Challenges will arise, but we can still move ahead with confidence.
Can meditation help the victims in Syria or Kashmir or those impacted by such violence?
Such situations are time and again a reminder for us to focus on how to control our own mind and emotions. Due to lack of control over your own anger and aggression intolerance towards certain ideologies develops and violence erupts. This can change only when you have a better understanding of life and its real significance. Meditation brings a different dimension to life. It is not just about food and shelter. It is something higher in life, a higher state. The mind is the same whichever time you live in. If it has violent tendencies it can be cured through meditation and yoga. It is high time now.
In olden days, travel and information outreach to far off countries took a long time and so violence seemed to be only in pockets. However, today we are all connected through social media and the whole world is compressed into a global village. We can no longer stay in our own cocoon and say, “oh it is not in my house”.
We need to now focus on non-violence, peace and serenity, on how to control our own mind. Yoga and meditation is a time tested solution. People who have adapted the path of spirituality and non-violence have always succeeded in life. It is not about individuality. It is not about certain sections of society. It is all about recognizing that we are all connected and part of one universal being.
That is a secret to be experienced 🙂 I invite all of you to come and meditate and have that glimpse of the infinity that you really are! I can say authentically that mediation brings a positive change in our outlook.
Bhanu Narasimhan has played a key role in The Art of Living Foundation, since its inception.
Bhanu has been instrumental in instituting the “Care-for-Children” program, which provides education for underprivileged rural children, free of cost. The first school to be supported by this program started in 1981 with 30 children in rural Bangalore. Now, 30 years later, there are in over 383 schools in the tribal and rural belts of India, educating over 33,590 children from economically challenged areas benefit annually. She is especially focused on education for girls and empowerment of women.
Bhanu teaches Sahaj Samadhi Meditation and has initiated thousands of individuals around the world. A gifted singer, Bhanu has several albums to her credit comprising devotional bhajans and shlokas heard by people across the globe irrespective of their nationalities.
She holds a Masters Degree in Sanskrit Literature from Bangalore University. She is married with two sons, and lives in Bangalore, India.
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