A Direct Taste of Meditation

In one of our study circle sessions, one friend asked the following question: “What is
meditation in its simplest form, dear? I remember you said that: ‘Meditation is the
readiness to attend to life in the present living moment of the universe without any
departure from the actual attention to the herenow, without the interference of past
experiences (memories) in terms of thoughts, and without holding on to anything specific. In
meditation, there is only pure continuous experiencing without an experiencer or narrator
interfering with the onwards flow of existence. Meditation involves flowing freely with
existence in the present of time, space and the universe. It is the shifting of attention from
the constricted space of self-consciousness to the boundless universe of experiencing in the
herenow. It is meeting the reality of the moment and staying attuned to it.’ This definition
is appealing to the mind and intellect but the heart is still discontented. I feel that I need a
direct taste of meditation. Is that possible, dear?”

That was indeed a big challenge: to move together with someone in the direction of having
a direct taste of meditation. Still, deep down, there was an urge to rise up to that challenge
as an opportunity to try something new with the intent of sharing the joy of meditation with
someone having the felt need for that.
-OK. Let’s try that, dear for your own heart’s content. Please, come closer. Tell us what is
your actual feeling right now?
--I’m here, dear, present and ready for a direct taste of meditation.
-Excellent, dear. So you’re committed to that. You say that you are here, present. Right?
--Yes, this is my actual feeling at this moment.
-Excellent, dear. Let us move very slowly and gently into this.
--Yes, I’m ready.
-Do you have the sense of being alive in your feeling of being present here?
--Yes, I can feel I’m alive.
-Excellent, dear. Just stay with that feeling of aliveness for some moments. Just be that
sense of aliveness. Do not think about it, do not imagine it, do not say anything to yourself
about it. Just stay calm and relaxed with that feeling of aliveness.
--Yes, I’m with that feeling of aliveness.

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-Excellent. So now stay with that in silent stillness and do not say anything or make
unnecessary movements with your body. Now feel the warmth of the living body and stay
with that warm feeling. Just stay silently with that feeling for some moments. Be aware of
the body and of its warmth, let the body’s warmth fill your awareness. Now, be aware of
the breath moving in and out. Just be aware, do not think or say anything about the
awareness of breath. Feel the breath getting into the body and feel the breath moving out.
Moving in, then moving out. Stay aware of the breath for as long as you can while
maintaining a relaxed posture.
So now, the warmth of the body and the movement of the breath are in your awareness. A
sense of calm, relaxation and joy pervades your awareness, be with that. Now expand your
awareness to listening to any sound coming to the ears. Do not label the sounds; do not
think about them; do not judge them. Simply let them be in your awareness just like the
warmth of the body and the movement of the breath. Now expand your attention to any
thoughts popping up in the space of the mind. Just be aware of them as you are aware of
the sounds coming to consciousness and the breath. Stay calm, relaxed, joyful in the
awareness and aliveness: paying attention to the warmth, the breath, the thoughts and any
other sensations arising in that continuous awareness. Stay in that awareness for some
moments.
Now, pay attention to awareness, to the fact of being alive and aware, to the sense of
awareness and aliveness. This silent alive awareness contains everything that is happening
in the present moment, as being captured immediately by the senses and the mind. As a
container of everything, it appears as a space of silent alive awareness. Now, pay keen
attention to that all-encompassing space of awareness and stay with it without saying
anything, without thinking anything, without wanting anything. Just be with that space and
as that space. The space has no beginning, no middle, no end. It has no specific colour, it
has no sex, no form, no name, no reaction. It is just here, allowing everything: the
sensations, the breath, the thoughts, the feelings, the sounds, the reflected lights, the
movements in and around the body, the movement within the mind - allowing everything to
exist and flow. It does not interfere with their existence in any manner whatsoever. It is
there containing everything like space. It is a boundless space of aliveness, awareness and
joyfulness.

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Now stay with this boundless space of aliveness, awareness and joyfulness and stay as this
boundless space of aliveness, awareness and joyfulness. You are the container of
everything. You are untouched and undisturbed by anything in particular. You are the Life
or aliveness that allows everything else to exist and to come into consciousness. You are
the Life sustaining and permeating everything within the boundless space of silent and
immutable awareness. Stay as That for as long as possible and comfortable.
As you regain your normal consciousness, open your eyes gently and see the space around
and everything it contains here and now. The space around with its contents, including the
body, the mind, the thoughts, the sensations, the feelings, the dreams, other bodies, other
objects, clouds, birds, trees, oceans, any other thing in particular- that space reminds you of
your real nature as the boundless space of silent aliveness and awareness. Identifying
yourself with any content of the space is like going into a dream, a fantasy, an illusion.
Connecting to the space of aliveness and awareness is enlightenment.
Now, it is your responsibility and freedom to get yourself attuned to That space or to
identify yourself with anything or something in particular. But remember, you are the
boundless space of aliveness and awareness associated with this body/mind complex
through which the universe is experiencing itself from moment to moment. The body/mind
complex, the human aspect is space-bound, time-bound and conditions-bound but the Life
sustaining everything at every moment of existence is boundless, timeless and
unconditioned. You are that in truth. Recognise the truth, accept it, appreciate it and give it
space to act in and through your enlightened mind.
I hope you have been able to have a glimpse or a taste of meditation and its liberating
potency.
Thank you for your interest in meditation.

koosradha@gmail.com