Most yoga students begin their journey to health by taking “Yoga Classes,” which generally means physical yoga practice classes, called asanas (yoga poses). Did you know that Yoga, which means “union” in Sanskrit, is actually a much broader set of tools for health and healing? Physical exercise is only one aspect of this amazing science and art. Meditation is another aspect of yoga with an additional set of tools that can help create an essential practice for living a healthy and well-rounded life.

So what is meditation and how do you know you’re finding a quality meditation program?

• Meditation is not about following a guru who gives you all the answers. Instead, it should be about learning to follow your own heart, your own inner wisdom and truth.
• Meditation is not a religion. Instead, it should allow you to more fully embody your own chosen faith and discover for yourself the comprehensive truths revealed by a true spiritual teacher.
• Meditation is not about letting yourself be carried away by space. Instead, it should offer specific tools to focus your mind and help direct you on your own private journey toward truth.
• Meditation is not about taking hours out of each day to meditate. Instead, meditation should teach quick, practical techniques that can be done in just minutes at any time of day. Meditation should be about strengthening your connection to your inner wisdom throughout the day, not just during sitting time. There are some forms of meditation that teach simple techniques that are powerful enough to bring the light of your soul into your daily life. Use them to center your mind, open your heart, receive inner guidance, and gain more energy to live joyfully.

Most forms of meditation teach the mind to focus and calm down. This is a good start, but then where does the calm and focused mind go? In some forms of meditation, for example Purna Yoga meditation, the mind is taught to focus on what, in yoga, is called the heart chakra. The Heart Chakra is the seat of the soul in the physical body and houses the wisdom of the soul. As the mind begins to tune in to the wisdom of the heart chakra, it is gently filled with the wisdom of the soul, and this wisdom begins to manifest in everyday life.

Since meditation requires a willingness to grow and change, make sure your teacher is equipped to best guide you. Here are some things to look for in a meditation teacher:

• A good meditation teacher teaches from his soul instead of his mind.
• A good meditation teacher accesses eternal wisdom through the Heart Chakra and lives what he teaches.
• A good meditation teacher understands the importance of guiding the student to connect with their own Light and Love and not with the teacher.
• A good meditation teacher knows simple healing techniques for himself and his students.
• A good meditation teacher is not vulnerable to ego tricks that can fool teachers into thinking they are connecting with their soul, and they know how to test the ego when it claims to be the Truth.
• A good meditation teacher has developed a reliable intuition that allows his soul to direct his life.
• A good meditation teacher is a beacon of light in their classes and in the world, shining their Divine Essence through every cell, showing their students what is inside themselves.

All religions ask us to live from love; find a truthful meditation teacher who can teach you how to go to the heart where love awaits.

© 2008 Aadil Palkhivala