After the interview was over, I left Sathya Sai Baba's room and thought, can I take his words literally? What is the point of photographing yourself as Krishna? Or maybe it was just a joke? What will my friends and relatives say when they see my photo in the image of Krishna right on the altar? It all looked like madness.
A few days later I met with an American acquaintance, Mark, who lived in a neighboring house. I decided to tell him I recently had an interview where Sathya Sai Baba taught a strange meditation technique.
Mark listened attentively to my story, smiled, and said that two years ago, he also had an interview, and Sathya Sai Baba recommended exactly the same technique to him. Sathya Sai Baba told Mark that it is not necessary to photograph oneself in the form of Krishna, one can choose any image that is closer, for example, the image of Jesus Christ or Buddha.
Hearing this, I immediately wondered if Mark tried to take such a photo and what were the results? He said that, at first, he also doubted how literally this strange advice of Sathya Sai Baba should be taken.
When Mark returned to America, he decided to try it anyway. He found beautiful Indian clothes suitable for dressing up as Krishna, found a good photo studio, and arranged to go dressed as Krishna ready to be photographed. After that, he printed a large photo, the size of almost the entire wall, and then hung it in the room in which he practiced meditation daily.
Every morning he concentrated and meditated on this picture for twenty minutes, trying to vividly imagine that he really was Krishna. When I met Mark, he had been practicing this meditation for over a year. As a result, his perception of himself completely changed, and his relationship with the outside world changed significantly. Many conflict situations even began to level off.
Relatives and business partners began to treat Mark in a completely different way. All those around him began to listen to his opinions and respectfully relate to everything that he did, although this had not happened before.
The office began to perceive Mark as a very respected and authoritative person, although he did not specifically try to convince anyone of this. Conflict relations with some relatives were corrected, and the business clearly began to bring more income, and all this happened as if by itself.
The practice of meditating on his photograph as Krishna took only twenty minutes a day, and yet it completely rebuilt his energy, harmonized his emotional state, and changed his life circumstances.
Subsequently, I met another person whose name was Dr. Rao. He told me a similar story. At one time, I often went to the Ayurvedic clinic of Dr. Rao, which was quite famous in Puttaparthi. Many times, I witnessed how patients came to him who did not have enough money to buy the necessary medicines. If Dr. Rao understood that a person needed help, he would give a course of treatment completely free of charge.
Dr. Rao was known as a great master of Hatha Yoga. Despite his advanced age, he was very flexible and in excellent physical shape. He excelled at complex yoga exercises requiring tremendous flexibility. Every day he held free master classes in Hatha Yoga.
I attended his classes, and also talked with him on various esoteric and philosophical topics. Dr. Rao was a specialist in Ayurveda, an excellent yoga teacher, and also had a deep knowledge of Vedic philosophy.
I was able to find out that Dr. Rao also received recommendations from Sathya Sai Baba to meditate on his photograph as Krishna. Dr. Rao has been practicing this technique for many years. He told me this is a very powerful and effective meditation technique. Subsequently, he recommended several of his patients and yoga students to practice this amazing meditation.
58. Meditating on Your Own Name Helps Change Your Life
The words of Jesus Christ about the need to love your neighbor as yourself are often remembered. Christ said, “as yourself,” which means that you must love yourself first of all. How can we love the people around us if we sometimes don't love ourselves?
Love for oneself is mysteriously connected with the perception of one's own name. Think about it, do you like your name? Do you feel comfortable being addressed by your first name? Repeatedly Sathya Sai Baba said that it is very beneficial to meditate on one's own name.
The essence of any prayer or mantra is the sacred name of God, and this name can be the name of Jesus Christ or Lord Krishna. There is tremendous power in the names of God. In the Vedic tradition, there is an ancient knowledge that all the power of God is in his Holy Names.
Any mantra carries energy power only because it contains the names of God. Sanskrit is the most complex language in its grammar and the richest in its vocabulary; there are not so many names of God as there are in Sanskrit in any other language of the world.
Many world traditions include the practice of repeating the names of God. In Zoroastrianism, there is a tradition of repeating one hundred and one names of God. In some branches of Islam, there is a practice of repeating the ninety-nine names of God. Seventy-two names of God are practiced in Judaism and Kabbalah.
The name that you bear in this life, in fact, is also the name of God. Your divine essence is in your name. The practice of meditative repetition of your name helps you to accept and love yourself, as well as get closer to understanding your divine Higher Self. Try it.
59. Conscious Breathing – Conscious Living
Sathya Sai Baba often preached a meditation called "So-Ham." I think it's safe to say that this was the most important meditation technique he taught. Sathya Sai Baba never said that he taught Kriya Yoga, but in fact he taught various elements of this great tradition.
So-Ham meditation is one of the most important practices of Kriya Yoga. The first sound "So" means God the Father. The second sound "Ham" comes from the word "aham," which means the individual Soul. This technique is performed as follows: the sound, “So” is mentally pronounced on the inhale, and the sound “Ham” is mentally pronounced on the exhale. During the execution of this technique, it is necessary to be aware of the breathing process.
For this, mentally pronounce “So” on each inhalation and “Ham” on each exhalation.
Since ancient times, the Yogis of India have noticed that the nature and speed of breathing is associated with the emotional state. The simplest example is well known to everyone. A person who is in a state of deep rest breathes slowly and shallowly. A person who is under stress begins to breathe quickly and deeply. Since various emotional states affect breathing, it is logical to assume that mindful breathwork can also affect emotional states.
In ancient times, Yogis noticed that the circulation of vital energy in the body is also associated with breathing. In Sanskrit, life energy is called Prana, in the Chinese tradition Qi. The harmonious movement of vital energy through the body is directly related to the nature of breathing. In order to balance the flow of vital energy in the body, it is necessary to consciously work with breathing, which is why the correct practice of meditation begins with conscious breathing.
Conscious breathing is the key to many things: healing from diseases and gaining good health, peace of mind and inner stability, releasing stress and overcoming depression. All this can be achieved through the practice of So-Ham meditation.
Conscious breathing allows you to gain and accumulate significant vital energy, which can be redirected to the harmonization of family relations and the prosperity of business, creativity, and spiritual practices.