Listen to this talk free or purchase to download for playback on your own media devices.
Imre began by asking this workshop’s attendees what happens when they try to meditate. Some answers were that the mind wanders, trying to stop it wandering, and getting frustrated (heavy rain was falling during this section). Imre explained that these difficulties are universal to meditators and don’t mean we’re a failure. Humans have a mind which is unruly and the world’s distractions impinge on us all the time. The way is to keep working on what is the theme of this session, “Meditation is Constant Awareness”.
Imre set out the many disturbances we can face during meditation. There’s the mind, but also the body can become painful or wants to fidget, emotions come up or you fall asleep. All of these can make us feel annoyed or frustrated or depressed or even want to give meditation up. But it is precisely those negative reactions which stop you from being able to meditate.
One way through this is to simply relax into the fact that the mind wanders, the body fidgets! Meditation is a subtle art. It is something to surrender to – with the right understanding. Wanting success brings struggle, whether in life or in meditation. And that struggle upsets your peace of mind and your equilibrium leading to feeling on edge and sometimes annoyed, stressed-out, disappointed and these are big obstacles to meditation. If you struggle, you are in trouble! If you want a peaceful life, don’t struggle! Be non-struggling, non-grasping for success in meditation. When you say, “I want…” to attain whatever it is you want to attain, your peace of mind is gone. Your personality wants it and anything the personality wants is always a struggle, no peace of mind, no tranquillity, no inner harmony.
Meditation is Constant Awareness. This is the state of the Master Meditator, the Master Warrior. Imre guided the Group through a meditation which can be practised in life as well as in meditation. It is how to live our total lives, with inner dignity, no struggle, no annoyance, no frustration, just simple, constant awareness of everything which arises both inside and outside ourselves.
In the meditation, Imre talked through awareness of body sensations, of breathing, of the feelings, thoughts, sounds, Silence, and on to the Inner Presence, and the Divine Presence in Creation, and finally to Simultaneous Awareness of All Things – all of this to be with no opposition to whatever arises – simply, Meditation is Constant Awareness.
Following the guided meditation, Imre asked for people’s experiences of it and he gave much further advice, such as that awareness guides us also in knowing when to act and when not to in situations in life.