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Meditation - FAQ
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Q. Can you describe the differences between prayer, meditation and Transmission?
A. Prayer is an expression of supplication usually manifested through the solar plexus; it may, at its highest, also contain energies of the heart, as an unspoken communion, heart-to-heart, with the Divine Source of which we are a part.
The solar plexus is the seat of the emotions, of the astral nature ("astral" and "emotional" are synonymous terms) and the heart is the seat of the higher astral and the spiritual aspiration. The aim of the evolutionary process humanity is going through is to shift from the almost totally emotional response which is prevalent in the world, to the heart response, thus changing emotion into love.
The astral body, the body of emotions, was evolved in humanity during the Atlantean race. This was a long period of time, from twelve million to about ninety-eight thousand years ago. During that racial experience humanity perfected the astral body - its sensory, feeling, emotional body. So well did Atlantean man perform that task that the astral body is the most powerful vehicle that humanity has today.
Most of us are emotionally polarized and are swept by the energies of the astral plane. It causes havoc in humanity and is the source of most of our problems and difficulties. The sooner humanity can use the mental plane to control the energies of the astral plane and lift them up to the heart centre, the sooner humanity will begin its progress into divinity.
In fact, the Master D.K. has said that the most important thing you can do, the greatest gift you can give to the world, the greatest service you can perform, is to control your astral vehicle. As soon as you can control that vehicle, that which was astral energy becomes transmuted into love. The activity of the solar plexus is then relegated to that of absorbing energy from the spleen which galvanizes the physical body. Through the spleen that energy is distributed throughout the body as a whole, while the emotional energy is lifted up and expressed through the heart as love. The astral body is meant to be like a mirror - a still pool in which the buddhic level, the spiritual intuition, can be reflected. For most people it is a churning cauldron, swept willy-nilly by all the emotions to which we are prone. Until we conquer these and transmute them into love, we cannot become divine. But when we do, we take the first step into divinity.
Prayer at its best is aspiration. The
higher the aspiration, the more heart activity it will involve. Meditation is the means par excellence of becoming aligned with and gradually infused by the energy of the soul, the Higher Self. It is the mode of bringing us into at-one-ment with the soul. Invocation is something different, and Transmission is allied to invocation. It is the calling out of energy from a higher spiritual source and the transmission of that energy to a lower source. Transmission is a bridge between the higher source, Hierarchy, and the lower source, humanity in general.
Q. Why is meditation so important?
A. The soul is the reality, not the man or woman. The physical plane is real from its own angle, but from the angle of the soul it is not real, it is relative. Our problem is that we take it as the whole while it is only a relative part of a much greater whole. The part can not see the whole but the whole sees the part -- and the different parts. From the point of view of the soul, its effort in incarnating again and again is to create a series of bodies which will gradually build this bridge and unify what was fragmented. The involutionary process into matter is reversed and the spiritualizing of matter takes place.
We spiritualize matter through our own bodies. The soul creates a series of bodies, each incarnation at a higher turn of the spiral, a higher vibrational rate (if all goes well) until we have a body through which the soul can express itself without too much limitation, and eventually without any limitation.
Meditation is the process which sets this in motion. That is why, in every religion and training, at the basis of all paths of ascent, is meditation of one kind or another. It may not be Transmission Meditation, or the various meditations you have come to know or read about; but some form of meditation, an alignment with the soul and its nature, must take place, because it is the soul who has incarnated. The soul cannot be avoided or bypassed. The soul is the reality. That reality has to be recognized, and the method by which it is recognized is through the creating of the bridge, the path of return. We do it one step at a time....
Q. You said that we need to make use of the energies which come to us in meditation. What do you mean?
A. ...The time has passed for meditating alone, getting on with one's own personal spiritual salvation, without at the same time accepting the need, the duty of service. The nature of the soul is to serve. The soul knows only altruistic service and comes into incarnation to serve. So what is the point, as a meditator, of spending all the time and effort getting into touch with the soul and not carrying out its purpose? The soul is carrying out the Plan of the Logos. It is a great sacrifice for the soul to do so because it is so limited at this physical level. It gains experience at this level, but the true reason behind the incarnating process is the carrying out of the Will of the Logos through the sacrificial decision of the soul itself.
When the soul pours its energy into the vehicles - physical, emotional/astral and mental - these vehicles are stimulated; the soul seeks to grip the personality and turn it into a reflection of itself. The personality senses this and resists. Then there follows several lives of a
long, drawn-out battle between the soul and the personality with its powerful desire nature. The soul inevitably wins because it is a higher agency; its energy is stronger and the law of evolution is working behind it. Eventually it will turn that personality into a reflection of itself. But it can only do so when the personality gives in and begins to reflect the quality of the soul. Then the spiritual Will, the spiritual Love, and the higher mental nature can reflect through the personality, and the man or woman becomes a living soul.
All those who have engaged in meditation will have been engaged, whether they know it or not, in aligning the physical brain with the soul, the personality vehicle with the Higher Self. That is what meditation is for. When we meditate and do not use the soul energy in purposeful service, the result is always some disturbance of the equilibrium of the energies in the etheric body. The centres get blocked; the result is inevitably neurosis or physical plane illness of some kind. This is why you find so many more advanced people rather neurotic. They dam up the energy coming to them from the soul level. They do this by not using that energy in service. They use it selfishly - in other words, they misuse it. This is a stage we all go through and there is no condemnation involved. The way to avoid neurosis is to use soul energy correctly. It is the most effective way to avoid neurosis and other illnesses, apart from those, of course, which are karmic, stemming from our past.
Q. I disagree with you profoundly when you say that when people meditate on a certain situation it doesn't bring change. I actually think it does change the consciousness of the world.
A. I did not say that meditation does not bring change. What I do not believe is that meditating on starving people and seeing their stomachs growing large with food is going to do them any good. Many people believe that if you meditate on something as specifically as that it will happen – rather than acting to bring about the changes in the political-economic structures which will end starvation in this world for ever. I believe that the only way starvation will end is through the principle of sharing being accepted and a mass programme of aid for the Third World being activated by the nations as a whole. As Maitreya put it:
ìNothing happens by itself. Man must act and implement his will.î (Message No.31)
Q. There are many different meditation techniques available today; some systems do not stress the need for any moral qualifications before meditating. Others state that meditation, without the basis of a ëgood character' is dangerous. Can any form of meditation be undertaken when there are aspects of one's nature still
uncontrolled?
A. All meditation is ëdangerous' in that it upsets the ëstatus quo'. The effect on the lower bodies of the soul energy invoked by meditation is always disturbing (at first) to the ëlower man'. This need not cause major concern in most cases as equilibrium (at a higher vibration) is usually re-established before long. This process of disturbance and re-establishing of equilibrium is repeated over and over again until the third initiation can be taken. ëGood character' should not be equated with total control of the lower, personality, nature. If total control were required to begin meditation no-one except the highest initiates could start. The important requirement (and safeguard) is that the soul energy invoked by meditation should be utilized in some form of altruistic service. Otherwise, all sorts of difficulties, illnesses and/or neuroses can result.
Q. Can you explain the building of the antahkarana, the bridge of light?
A. The construction of the antahkarana, the bridge linking the physical brain with the soul, proceeds according to the effectiveness (more or less scientific) of the person's meditation. Meditation brings about the at-one-ment, through the bridge, of the soul and personality. Eventually three fires or streams of energy are put down by the soul and constitute the channel of communication between soul and brain. Through that channel the Light, Love, and eventually Will of the soul can make their appearance on the physical plane. The building of the antahkarana proceeds unconsciously from the soul down during meditation, and takes several lives to perfect.
Q. What does the personal meditation have to do with the building of the antahkarana?
A. An enormous amount. In the personal meditation you are gradually aligning yourself with the soul and experiencing the reality of the Self. The personal meditation directly strengthens the link between the personality and the soul. It aligns you with the soul, invoking soul energy. When you do the personal meditation, you automatically invoke and experience the soul; it becomes a reality. Every time that you do it, soul awareness is growing in you, becoming more and more powerful.
The soul is the intermediary between the Self and the individual. The meditation, if correctly used and assiduously practised, creates an unbroken link. The antahkarana is not a form, a bridge, a shape in a painting. It is awareness. When you do the personal meditation, you are becoming aware of who you are. This awareness grows until you become what you are. You are creating the path before you, building the antahkarana step by step before you. It is unfolding every time you do the personal meditation and Transmission Meditation. The combination of these two activities -- meditation and service -- builds the path of return.
Q. Which is the best kind of meditation for the new age?
A. There is no simple answer to this question. It depends on the individual s point in evolution, ray structure, background, tradition and so on. Meditations of all kinds are methods, more or less scientific, depending on the meditation, of achieving soul contact and eventual at-one-ment. In the new age group activity will be the main method of work and service. Group meditation will therefore become increasingly the norm. For those with a strong desire to serve, Transmission Meditation provides the most potent and scientific vehicle for service with, at the same time, the most powerful stimulus to personal growth.
Q. Will the reappearance of the Christ obviate the need for meditation?
A. No, on the contrary. The presence of Maitreya and the Masters in our midst will provide a great stimulus to all forms of meditation.
Q. Will there be new meditation techniques given by Maitreya? Will they be different from existing ones?
A. No. It will not be Maitreya's function to give new meditation techniques. That is like expecting the managing director of a large international company to train the office boys in office routine. Meditation techniques are, and
will continue to be, taught by disciples of the Masters. As time goes on and disciples become ready, meditation forms will be given by the Masters Themselves, working exoterically.
Q: What is the relationship between personal meditation and Transmission Meditation? Is personal meditation essential for making progress?
A: Transmission Meditation will enhance the personal meditation and the personal meditation will reinforce the efficiency of your Transmission Meditation. Personal Meditation is not essential for making progress, but it is very useful. It is one way, among others, to make progress.
Q. Is it necessary to have an everyday spiritual practice?
A. It depends very much on the individual and also on his/her point in evolution. For most aspirants and disciples, some form of meditation and certainly some field of service is usually necessary.
Q. Is it important to do one's personal meditation at the same time every day?
A. It is not essential but very beneficial if it can be achieved. The mind and body react to the regular rhythm thus set up and become predisposed to the inward focus necessary for the meditation. It is also easier to maintain a rhythm which is regular.
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