Meditation in these days is often confined to the puja room. As soon as one emerges from the shrine, one is filled with all sorts of mental agitations. Hence, it has been declared: ‘Satatam yoginah’ (Be established in yoga all the time). This does not mean giving up all worldly affairs. Pursue your studies. Fulfill your duties. But in all these activities, use your Dharana power (the power of concentration). In the process, you Develop your powers of dhyana (meditation). Dhyana means single-pointed contemplation. Even in daily life, when one is in a reflective mood, he is asked: ‘What is the Dhyana you are doing?’ Dhyana means absorption in thought. It should be centred on only one specific subject. This is described in Vedantic parlance as Salokyam.

This means concentrating your thought on what you desire, whatever is the object or the subject. If it is a person, your thought is centred on the person. ‘Sa’ comprehends every aspect of Divinity. Salokya means absorption in the thoughts of Divinity. Through Dhyana you have to achieve the sense of oneness with the Divine. The various types of meditation practised today are concerned with the trivial. Through these methods the Divine cannot be realized. The very first requisite is control of the vagaries of the mind. Only then meditation can be effective. (SSS Vol.22)

Students must first practise Dharana. They may choose any object for the purpose of concentrating on it-a picture or a physical object. There is also an internal method of practising Dharana. When you close your eyes, a small dark spot appears before the inner eye. You may concentrate on this spot for 12 seconds without letting it move. By this practice, the power of meditation can be developed.

The practice of meditation leads to Samipyam (proximity to the Lord). This leads to the next stage, Sarupyam (experience of the Vision of the Lord). This may be compared to the arrival of a river to merge in the ocean. At first the ocean repels the advance of the river. After repeated attempts of the river to merge in the ocean, the latter allows the river to pass under its waves. Spiritually, this process of merger of the Jivatma with the Paramatma is described as Sayujyam (mergence in the Divine).

The first stage in the process is Salokyam, continuous contemplation of the Divine. Think about the Lord in whatever action you do. Then you achieve Samipyam, nearness to the Lord. Coming nearer, develop closer relations with the Divine. In due course, the state of Sarupyam is attained. The realisation that ‘you and I are one’ dawns. Then Sayujyam is experienced-complete oneness with the Divine.

The fourfold approach to the Divine is to be found in any philosophy or religion. The creeds may vary, but the spiritual process is one. (SSS Vol.22, pp. 148-152)