Why does people choose to go to gym every day and exercise their bodies, but they do not choose meditation to exercise to master their minds?
There is one only answer to that question, but before I go there, I would ask you a question.
What is that thing, that when you decide to start something new, does not let you keep going, does not let you even start?
Now, if you have some genuine connection with yourself, your answer would come on its own, but just in case you did not reach there yet, I'm here to help you.
There was a time in my life, when I just broke up with someone I loved very much. It was one of those wake-up call relationships where you are completely into the other person, you care only about him, and his needs comes before yours, and you get so lost that you totally forget about yourself, and what do you need, and how do you feel, and you end up completely broken. And that was me, a long time ago. I felt I lost everything I ever cared about, I found myself alone and with absolutely no idea of how to move on in my life and what to do next. I felt so ashamed that I would avoid to talk about what happened even to my best friend. I felt utterly humiliated, a complete failure. I felt so small, as I never ever felt in my life before. And I knew inside, that I would have to change something so badly in me that I was absolutely terrified of even thinking about it. My energy was so law that breathing was already much of effort. I knew inside that I need to take a step forward and move, and I searched for help in books, in therapists and I went to meet a counselor, but guess what?
My mind was so resistant, that I had a lot of difficulty to move on my path of healing. And that's exactly what happened. Sabotage. Ta-da! You know that word? Sabotaging is one of the favorite ego games. Mr.EGO says to us, don't worry, I'll keep you safe, I'll take care, you just listen to me, it's my job to protect you, I'll figure it out, what do you think they're going to say to you that I don't already know, and because Mr. EGO fears so much to be put aside, what it does is, that whenever the occasion crosses your path when you could jump into a new experience and finally get your self on the rescue boat, he drowns you, just long enough, to let that boat pass by.
So, the answer to the question of why do people choose to go to gym but not to meditate is your EGO. Your Mr. E cares about your look, your body image, your external appearance, what will people say, if you look intelligent, and he is utterly terrified of defeat, of failure, of not being listened to, of not being seen. And that's what meditation does. It brings you to your inner core, and your inner core is behind your ego, your inner core is this energy center inside you, that's pure and unconditioned, it's extremely wise and its intelligence is soft and innocent, but yet so powerful. The EGO is that thick curtain that prevents you to see yourself and the world in its true colors. The colors of love, the colors of total acceptance and compassion and unity and self-respect. And by self I don't mean the personality we built with the help of our egos, but rather that light center that we carry inside, that's ego-less.
Meditation can destroy much of your ego centered living. Can shatter much of the image you created around yourself as a wall to not be reached in your beautiful soft core. Can bring you back to earth and show you the truth of who you are. Meditation is not a soothing lullaby that you sing before falling asleep, is rather a great wake-up practice, to show you all the life you've lost listening to the wrong voice. Meditation can show you the way to a total and passionate living.
So, if you find yourself in front of a rescue boat, will you ask yourself, who's the one choosing?
With love,
Sati Shama