Peace of Mind: Relax and Surrender with Suryayog

By Anita Madan  

Suryayog or Sun-meditation is one of the most rewarding and natural of all human activities, says Swami Surya Jowel. It produces wonderful results at all levels of our being - physical, mental, emotional, intellectual and spiritual.

It connects us with our very own inner powers of vitality, clarity, light and love. It removes blocks and so unfetters our natural abilities. It helps us to improve ourselves. Our relationships become centred, balanced, and more loving. It cultivates awareness and the quality of being alive. Suryayog is not just a technique for relaxation; it is the path of surrendering to the Absolute.

To man's eternal quest for answers to oft-repeated questions - Who are we?; What are we here for?; What is the nature of the universe? - the insight comes more from the subconscious rather than the conscious mind. This quest leads to stilling the mind. Meditation is neither a method, nor a process; it is the oneness with our inner Surya.

Patanjali in the Yoga Sutra says that "The fluctuations of consciousness created by gross and subtle afflictions are to be silenced through meditation." Meditation has different levels and the highest is Suryayog - it is laya or merging with nature. Where meditation stops, laya begins. That is the state of sat-chit-anand.

During meditation the powerful, soothing waves that arise exercise a benign influence on the mind, organs, cells and nerves. Hence meditation has been found to also reduce stress, strengthen the immune system, and help in the body'shealing processes. During meditation the breath and brain waves slow down, blood pressure and metabolic rates decrease, and circulation and detoxification of the blood increase.

Studies of patients with coronary artery disease show that a combination of meditation, Suryayog, and a natural vegetarian diet could reverse disease. Regular meditation makes the mind calm and steady. It makes one intuitive, creative and inspired.

Concentration is a pre-requisite to meditation. Fixing the mind on an object, whether internal or external, for a given period of time is concentration. A person with the ability to focus his mind totally on the work at hand, is able to complete it in record time and still turn out work of exceptional quality. This applies to people engaged in a varied spectrum of activities, whether physical or mental.

A person whose mind is filled with all kinds of wants and desires will not be able to concentrate even for an instant. Regular concentration will steady the mind, harbour good health, create clarity of vision, improve efficiency and develop insight and intuition. But for concentration to be effective it is essential that pranayam, purity of thought and discipline be a part of life and reduction of wants, anger, desires and the like be destroyed. Focusing the mind totally on what one is doing with no awareness of the world around is a kind of meditation.

Meditation is a discipline. It has to be acquired. Sometimes, it is not easy for a layman to meditate no matter how much effort is put in. At that time, if there is a great desire to move on the spiritual path a guru or guide comes to you. A mantra or a method given by him to you to enable meditation helps you to forget the world, body consciousness and desires.

It helps the mind to focus and so makes effective meditation possible. Swami Surya Jowel, founder of the Suryayog movement, says that doing Suryayog daily will balance the five elements in the body (fire, earth, ether, air and water), the seven chakras and planetary vibrations, purifying the halo of light. One can reach the divine through Suryayog, which is the enlightened form of prayer-cum-meditation.

(www.suryayog.org)

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See also: Peace of Mind, Peace on Earth, Life and Beyond, Love and Happiness, Body Mind and Soul)