4.    Creating an atmosphere: The meditation room should not be cluttered with things. Preferably meditation room should be empty. Because outside emptiness invites inner emptiness all the time. On a deeper level if our room is not arranged properly then it signals that our life is not arranged properly, there is confusion in our life. I have sensed many times when I arrange things in my room in a proper way then the whole energy of the room changes.

a.     One should light a fragrance to create a good atmosphere. I prefer Dhoop, Agarbati or Lobhan. Each fragrance is associated with a particular chakra also. E.g. we can use sandalwood and lavender for third eye. Fragrance is food for entities also. By lighting good fragrance we invite good entities which in turn help us in our growth. On the contrary energy released during unethical sex feeds negative entities.

b.    If possible then meditation room should not be used for any other purpose. In India each house has one room which is used only for religious purpose meditation, praying etc. If we can not find a particular room then a small corner in the house could be used. But then also that corner should not be used for some other purpose. Otherwise energy becomes confused. This seems to look strange but this is a fact. So I repeat again “energy becomes confused”.

5.  Timing of meditation: preferably one should meditate at the same time, same place and wearing same clothes only. I mean that clothes should not be used for any other purpose but only for meditation. Meditating at same time every day has some benefits.

a.  Over the period of time our body and mind becomes calmer on its own as we get close to meditation time.

b.  For every sincere meditator there are always some good entities or angel which helps and guides the meditator. When we are irregular with time then it irritates them.

c.  When we try to meditate at fix time every day then it helps in improving our will power. Will power is very crucial for a meditator. Many times we are on the cross road and are tempted to make a wrong decision then will power comes handy. More over will power is related with navel chakra. So it helps in development of the navel chakra also. More will power we have, more we become at ease with life.

d.  Early morning time is very good for meditation and then evening time when sun is setting is again good for meditation. For some people it’s very difficult to wake up early in the morning. So there is no need to force oneself to wake up early in the morning and meditate unless one is following the path of yoga or will power. But at the same time one should always follow ones Guru's Words as many times the guru pays importance to do early morning meditation.

e.  Not all people can wake up early in the morning. As every one's body clock is different. But modern life style has disturbed our body clock so it’s difficult for us to decide what our natural waking time in morning is. Best way is to start listening to body clues and realign the body clock. Listening to body clues mean that when body is hungry then only we should take our meal, when body wants to sleep then we should go to bed. Just a simple friendship with body and it’s worth it. Body is one servant who obeys us for so long and we never care about it.

f.   One should avoid reading, television before going to sleep. As this makes chances of falling asleep more difficult. More the mind is at rest, more easily we can sleep. Before sleeping we should meditate for half an hour. Gautam Buddha and Osho both have given much importance to meditation before sleeping. When we enter sleep with meditation then whole quality of sleep changes. Some where meditation stays with us through out the night, comforts us like a caring mother and we wake up more fresh and calm.

g.  Similarly one should meditate the moment one wakes up. The whole quality of day changes with early morning meditation. Even 5 minutes laughter just after waking up is a good way to start the day.

6.  Music: Music affects our state in a great way. With right music we can change our state.  Instrumental, soft, devotional or chanting is very good.

7.     Body Posture: Best posture for meditation is cross-legged position.

a.    For many people especially western people and elder people it’s not easy to sit cross legged for a long time. So they can avoid this cross legged position and sit in a chair. Because if one is not comfortable while meditation then all attention goes at the pain. But again it depends upon person to person. If some one is following the path of will or yoga then that person can force its body to sit cross legged. Slowly with time body obeys. Yes body obeys but it can cause injury also. There are two schools of theories in regard to this:

                                                               i.      When we decide strongly that we are going to sit cross legged for one hour and no matter what come I will not change my stand. Then body and mind obeys. But it can cause injury also.

                                                             ii.      The second school of theory says we should be relaxed and spontaneous in meditation. Slowly as mind calms down and with practice we will learn to sit cross legged for longer periods of time.

                                                            iii.      Both schools of thoughts are right. We are not able to sit cross legged for longer period because our body/mind is not pure right now. Slowly as impurity is cleaned then purity resurfaces. We are already pure but this purity is hidden by impure mind. So as purity comes longer period of time sitting happens spontaneously. This purity can come with time or by forcing one to sit cross legged also. As cross legged position conserves energy which is used in going deep in meditation. Once our body starts obeying us then cross legged position helps in meditation. I have personally followed both. Injured my left knee and now practice spontaneity in all actions of my life.

b.  Mudras: By aligning the fingers in particular order give rise to mudras. Mudras are great help for meditation. Different mudras have different affect on us.

c.     Eyes closed: We lose 80% of our energy through our eyes. So in meditation our eyes should be closed. In reality even with closed eyes some amount of energy is lost. Best position is eyes half closed and half open. In half closed eyes no energy is lost. But one should not force it. Otherwise it will become a hindrance to meditation. Half close eyes are natural state in deep meditation when eyes go upwards. At the most one can put a cloth in one eye.

d.     One can cover ones head with a cloth and best is Joker's or Sufi's long cap. It helps in conserving the energy.

8.   Right breathing: Many people breathe in a wrong way. The best way to see right breathing is to see a small child breath. When we breath in then our stomach goes out (chest goes inside) and when we breath out then our stomach goes in and chest goes out. With little practice one can breathe naturally which in turn will eradicate many of our disease and will give more vitality to us.

a.    Pranayam: Special breathing exercises are discovered long back in India are called Pranayam. Pranayam practices helps in great way in cleaning our system, Nadis and are a  great boost for meditation. But one should learn Pranayam from a good teacher. Otherwise it can also affect negatively; like a headache.

9.  Group meditation: Group meditation uses the energy of many people to attain a peak in meditation. People can hold hands together and do group meditation.

a.     One should hold another person right hand in its left hand and give his right hand to other person. “Take from left and give from right” is the rule.

b.     Meditation can also be done with opposite sex person. In fact then meditation becomes very easy as opposite energy mingles and then one can go deep in meditation easily.

10. Cultivate Happiness: This is one of the most important Qualities a meditator should have. No matter what happens one should remain cheerful.

11. Perseverance and patience:  Meditation is a knack which we can learn in one day or one month. So one should have patience and should not expect for any results.

12. Special Days: There are some special days which are very conductive for meditation. E.g. Full Moon day, No Moon day, Lunar and Solar eclipse, religious festivals and days in Hindu calendars like Ekadashi etc.

13. Fasting: fasting is a good device to give body a chance to clean it’s internal system and which makes the mind calm. But the way we break the fast is also very important. Only certain food we should take for next day after the fast.

14. Visual Aids: many times in a day we forget to be aware of thoughts. Small picture of Guru in a room or in our desktop can remind us of our forgetfulness. Any thing which helps in removing our forgetfulness is essential. Similarly every 30 minutes we can close our eyes for a while and go back to our center.
                                                                                                                                                                        

 
















Jiddu krishnamurti