 106. Meditation |
Is it possible that this is what is meant in Jesus' words, "Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the alter, and there rememberest that thy brother hath fought against thee; leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift." [Matthew 5:23-24] The readings are very clear on the kind of mental activity which is necessary:
Not that some great exploit, some great manner of change, should come within thine body, thine mind, but line upon line, percept upon percept, here a little, there a little. For it is as He has given, not the knowledge alone but the practical application in thine daily experience with thy fellow man – that counts.
The same thought is continued in the following:
It is just in living those things in the material manner that are the fruits of the Spirit, that bring with them their reward – which maketh for the understanding within thee. Love ye one another, show forth gentleness, kindness, speak softly, even to those that are harsh, upbraid not, condemn not, be long-suffering. Be patient, but as an activative principle, as an activative experience in thine own self.
Meditation as outlined here with physical and mental disciplines may seem, at first glance, too simple to be the best doorway to the spiritual consciousness. One should not be deceived either as to the importance or the difficulties to be encountered in moving through this doorway. This is the path which has been chosen by the great mystics of all ages. Beyond the short daily period of the search for the silence and the light lie the longer periods of silence through which it is possible to reach the deeper regions of the inner self.
These will be opened to him who is persistent in the disciplines of controlled attention and the daily practice of the spiritual laws with which he is familiar. Perhaps it is true, as Evelyn Underhill makes the point in the conclusion of her book, Mysticism, that each man in his own small way must eventually find and travel, as he is able, the same road traveled by the great contemplatives. The Edgar Cayce readings most certainly recommend meditation as the safest and surest way to the higher levels of consciousness.
-Edgar Cayce – A.R.E.
Trungpa States:
Meditation is a vast subject and there have been many developments throughout the ages and many variations among the different religious traditions. But broadly speaking, the basic character of meditation takes on one of two forms. The first items from the teaching which are concerned with the discovery of existence; the second concerns communication with the external or universal concept of God. In either case, meditation is the only way to put the teaching into practice.
