The Conscious Life

Has meditation become an excuse for you to avoid facing life head on? I hope no

Meditation is often the common choice for many people who wish to awaken from a conditioned state of mind and free themselves from illusions. Indeed, meditation, when done correctly, can be an invaluable practice to help us ‘see’ through the intricate workings of our mind that are otherwise not obvious to us in our busy lives.

However, it’s important to know that meditation is only a means to an end. It is not an automatic doorway to freedom, and neither is meditative experience a substitute for life. Meditation is a training tool, not a goal in itself.

Why You Meditate?

When we meditate, we train ourselves to wake up from our dream state again and again. By learning how to meditate, we are practicing how to watch our mind without flinching or running away so as to gain a better understanding of the stories that make us feel and act the way we do. Knowing the stories that power our automatic behaviors and deepest feelings will allow us to release these misconceptions from our inner system. And finally, without the layers of stories filtering us from reality, we uncover our true self and gain true freedom.

Life is a Mirror

If you’ve been meditating for some time, you may have gone through the stage when you realized that your awareness has increased. Previously, you were going about life like a drunken person, mostly oblivious to what was driving you inside. Then one day, not only did you realize that you were able to witness your own stories during meditation, you also found that you were conscious of your thoughts as you walked, talked, and maybe even while you were sleeping. It’s as if someone has turned up the volume of your own voice so that you can hear it more clearly now.

While meditation equips us with the skills to face our inner self, it’s life that exposes our hidden stories.But, don’t be mistaken. That’s not the final result you want either. While meditation equips us with the skills to face our inner self, it’s life that exposes our hidden stories. Life is like a mirror that reflects our true face back to us, if only we would take a look. The real test of our consciousness comes when our off-cushion meditation meets the mirror of life. If we’re not careful, we would find ourselves darting from the reflection which life has shown us and fall into old stories and thinking again.

So, run not from life, my friend, especially difficult life situations. Often, it’s the hard lessons in life that can help us to strip away the stories that we held on the tightest. Ironically, these are also the lessons that we have been trying to avoid since the day we were born: separation with loved ones, job loss, financial difficulties, marital woes, family problems, chronic diseases and death. Yet they are also the most potent catalysts that can wake us from our dream.

“Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness. How do you know this is the experience you need? Because this is the experience you are having at this moment.” ~ Eckhart Tolle, A New Earth

If you are going through a tough period now, don’t give in. Resist the temptation to turn and run, and instead, face your life situation head on. Although it may seem counter-intuitive to run in the direction of pain and suffering, trying to wriggle your way out only means meeting with the same issues, albeit in a different scenario, again later in life. As life always has a way to find you and I again till the day we learn our lessons. And only by uncovering the gifts that life has prepared for us will we be able to achieve the purpose that has brought us to meditation.