By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas
So many are now praying. I realized this from the many ‘amens’ to the very good prayer posted on FB by Edith L. Polilin who, with her husband, migrated from Besao, Mtn. Prov. to Canada after retirement to be with their kids and/or grandkids.
I don’t know, however, if those who appreciated the piece did it only intellectually but not spiritually. Regardless, I want to throw my 5-cents worth into the fray.
I don’t just pray. I pray intensely. It is called meditation.
Intense praying or meditation is a science. It involves discipline, concentration and seriousness. It does not just involve the parroting of words in just a minute or two but the internalizing of the meaning. The process might be just a short one like 15 minutes to about an hour for ordinary people. For the monks in the Himalayas they do it for hours or even days, continuously..
The intensity of one’s meditation on God is commensurate to his ability to concentrate his mind. Those with scattered brains thinking of material things cannot intensely pray.
To achieve the maximum concentration, one should meditate in the most relaxed position. In this respect, sitting in lotus position (on crossed legs) affords the most concentration. It was even found out in an experiment in Harvard (or was it in Stanford?) that sitting in that position would make the brain waves subtler.
Lying flat on your back (dead pose) on a flat hard surface without pillow also relaxes the body. Meditating however in this position can make a person end up snoring, not meditating on God.
A person must also be healthy to have control over his body. This is the reason that good meditators are usually vegetarians. Such a diet sort of calms the body and the mind. How can one meditate or concentrate on God if he is suffering from a painful arthritis or other maladies?
Such also is the reason behind yoga exercises
To meditate well there are aids that can be used like nice music that does not distract but helps in concentration. So there are those chants for this purpose.
A mantra can be a great help by ideating on its meaning that ultimately leads you to a concentrated thought on God. It is not just an exotic word. By repeating it, the mind gets concentrated more and more on its meaning which is on God.
The effectivity of mantras were discovered about six thousand years ago. So they had been used for centuries by those who meditate or pray intensely on God.
And an important part of a meditator’s life is social service to help the less fortunate members of humanity. Without this, the process will just be selfish, and believe it or not, selfish people cannot really meditate. Meditation is going nearer to God, while selfishness is going farther.
After a good meditation, you are upbeat and just feel great.**
