Dating : Why Love Is the Secret of Meditation (and How to Get It)

“Neither a lofty degree of intelligence nor imagination nor both together go to the making of genius. Love, love, love, that is the soul of genius.”

— Mozart

When I started meditating 2 years ago, I watched YouTube videos that told me meditation is about choosing an anchor for the mind — say the breath — and focusing on it for as long as possible.

And so I followed that definition to the letter. But there was one problem. It wasn’t getting me anywhere. I desperately tried to meditate.

I googled all possible solutions to fix my ‘problem’. I worked on my posture, did yoga asanas, experimented with various kinds of cushions, changed the direction of my body, etc.

But when I truly discovered what meditation is, I realized the key components I’d been missing — love!

Love is behind all achievement. The amount of success a person achieves is directly proportional to the amount of devotion he has towards his goal.

For no one can stop you from achieving anything that you love. Love is the greatest catalyst.

What can stop you if you really love something? Nothing. Can anything else stimulate our willpower and determination like love? No.

Paramahansa Yogananda defined meditation as: “concentration only to know God.” But what’s concentration without love? Nothing.

If I tell a teenage boy to concentrate on a dirty pig playing in the mud, his mind will find every excuse to wander. But if I tell him to focus on a girl he likes — he could probably stare at her for hours!

That’s the power of love right there. The same is true for our meditations. Without the power of love, our concentration lacks vigor and vitality. This is also why many people who make mindfulness mechanistic don’t find it fruitful.

But when love for God pours out of your heart, how easy is it to concentrate!

Consider the powerful words of Yogananda,

“You have to make God break His vow of silence; then He will speak. That is what makes it difficult to know Him. It requires devotional perseverance. How many years I secretly cried for God!”

He goes on to add a crucial piece of advice for all spiritual aspirants:

“You must sit and pray and cry and churn the ether with your yearning until all space is aflame with your devotion. Until you don’t know time at all. Those who pray with the watch-consciousness never get anything. That is why I follow no routine. I go by my Spirit within.

God must come first. No matter what comes, it must be secondary. God first! The wise ones say, ‘Thou art more tempting than temptation.’ What joy, what Love He brings! Every second of your life is a romance with God. Ecstasy after ecstasy.

Union with God through devotion (Bhakti), and law–this is the path for you. There is nothing more sacred and fulfilling than devotion to God. Because you call Him your own and there is nothing you consider your own, except Him.”

If all this seems out of your current spiritual ‘paygrade’ so to say, don’t worry. I feel the same way!

But the question is not how do we feel about the ideal. The question is how do we get there?