Granted, the name of this meditation category implies pretty impressive results. Does one really become enlightened through practicing it? And if so, how many millions of enlightened individuals are currently wandering the earth? Well, answering in order of the questions: yes, you can—but enlightenment requires a ton of work, not to mention adopting a profoundly detached attitude toward one’s self (the Buddha supposedly offered his body to hungry tigers), so therefore…no, millions of enlightened beings are not currently wandering the earth. However, there are no doubt some.

Next question: What do we mean by enlightenment? Primarily, it’s understanding the following–not just intellectually, but through living it; it becomes one’s modus operandi.

“All manifestations in the world, including people, are like waves in the ocean; although in a sense they can be said to exist, they aren’t actually separate things. Human ignorance and suffering arises because we believe we are, in reality, separate from the rest of existence. We become identified with our bodies and individual lives and filled with self-concern about our survival and well-being, forgetting that, in truth, we are just waves in the infinite ocean of existence. If we can become more identified with the ocean than with our limited, temporary manifestation, we can attain a deep sense of peace and freedom.”                                                      -Domyo Sater Burk, Zen monk and author of Idiot’s Guide to Meditation

So, how do you achieve the exalted, rarified state of enlightenment? I’ll discuss two types of meditation that lead one in the right direction: Hindu-derived meditations, which are called yoga—but which don’t necessarily involve the physical exercises we know as yoga in the west, and Insight Meditation, which is a Buddhist meditation that’s also known as Vipassana. They’re each quite different, and therefore I’ll devote an entire post to each of them, which means this series of posts on meditation will extend quite a bit longer than I had originally intended. Still, meditation is an important practice in eastern traditions and is growing ever more popular in the west, so I believe it more than warrants the space.

Yoga meditations

Like many spiritual paths, these expect the adherent to engage in ethical and restrained behavior and thought. The meditation specifics vary per school, but often they include breathing techniques, the focusing of one’s mind on a chakra (an energy center within the body), and the reciting of mantras.

1. Concentrating on one’s breathing helps ease the body and mind, as well as improve focus. In some schools, such as Kriya yoga, use breathing to affect the flow of energy within their bodies. One technique is Nadi Shodhan Pranayama, which alternates nostrils.

Place the index and middle finger of one’s right hand between the eyes, and the remaining fingers around the nose. The thumb will be on the right nostril.

• Breathe deeply into the left nostril while closing the right nostril.
• Alternate pressure, and exhale out of the right nostril.

Next, begin training the mind to focus, rather than allowing one’s attention to flow willy-nilly from one thought or sensation to the other. As many practitioners will attest, this is easier said than done. Therefore, many yoga practitioners utilize either of the following:

1. A mantra. In Hinduism as well as many other eastern religions, some sounds are believed to have potent  impact. Take for instance, Om, pronounced ahh-oh-m. Each part of the word indicates a stage in creation, and the entire word is believed to mimic the first sound or vibration that emanated from the Void, thereby beginning the creation of the Universe. Often it’s inserted into longer mantras, and these are recited aloud or silently 108 times (for reasons I don’t have the space to go into). On the other hand, many meditators recite them only until their minds are still and calm.

Two particularly effective mantras:

Om namah shivaya          This mantra is commonly understood as “I bow to Shiva (God)” or “I bow to the divine inner Self.” However, its more literal translation is “I offer to Shiva a respectful invocation of His Name.” Practitioners believe it’s a powerful healing mantra for both the body and mind, and that it brings them closer to their divine nature.  It’s pronounced as follows, with the accent in “Shivaya” on the second syllable:  Ohm nah-mah  shee-vie-yah.

Om mani padme hum      In Matt Caron’s Blog.sivanaspirit.com, he writes, “According to Tibetan culture, it is said that all the teachings of Buddha are contained in the mantra Om Mani Padme Hum, and that to know the phrase is to know enlightenment.” He describes each syllable as establishing the following characteristics: Om (ohm)- generosity.  Ma (mah)- ethics.  Ni (nee)- patience.  Pad (pahd)- perseverance.  Me (meh)  concentration.  Hum (hum)- wisdom.

1. Chakra focus. In yoga, the practitioner concentrates on one or more of the 7 primary chakras, which are centers of energy aligned with the spine. The first is at the base of the spine, the second is halfway up to the navel, the third is at the navel, the fourth is at the heart, the fifth is at the neck, the sixth is between the eyebrows, and the seventh is at the top of the head.

In some forms of yoga, like kriya yoga, one uses breath work, recites Om at each chakra, imagines knocking each center slightly, and engages in many other techniques to encourage a flow of energy up the spine and through the energy centers. Once it exits the top of the head, the practitioner experiences Enlightenment. (However, not all practices believe kundalini to be essential. In fact, Zen and Insight meditation consider it irrelevant. http://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~keutzer/kundalini/kundalini-faq.html

At any rate, through focusing on the heart chakra and up, awareness of the body ceases, one’s breath slows, and all thought expires.  In very deep states, one attains an elevated state that remains for some time after the meditation ends, even for days.

I’ll end this post here. Hopefully, the differences between this type of meditation and devotional meditation, the subject of my last post, were made clear. However, if they weren’t, perhaps my next post on Vipassana meditation, which also falls within the Enlightenment Meditation category, will clarify matters. In the meantime, if any of you have had any experience with yoga, please send in your comments. I’m sure others would find it helpful!