Whenever you sit for meditation, it is always helpful to begin with the breathing, to prepare yourself, body and mind, through the breath: quick breathing, vigorous breathing followed by the rhythmic breathing.

So whenever you sit, begin with the breathing, so that you are prepared to arrive at meditation, so that you are centered in yourself, centered in the heart – the heart of your being.

Through the breathing you are energized, through the breathing you are harmonized, through the breathing you prepare and centre yourself.

You internalize – you stabilize. So through the breathing kriya, you therefore are prepared, and arrive at meditation. You arrive at harmony.

Deep and long breaths: full breath, and empty out completely. Strong breath – so you can hear the breath while you watch over it, while you are present with it. Through the rhythm you will be centered. Practice makes perfect.

So meditation through breathing; this is the sitting breath meditation – you can also have the walking breath meditation: when you walk, use your breath to be synchronized with your steps.

So there is all the time for you to be in meditation. It is not only when you are in here, in this room. Even the room outside, the whole world outside is for you a place – through your activities – to reach to meditation.

Breathe deep, breathe long, breathe strong. Take a full breath as you draw in the breath, as you pull in the breath. Be with it; be with what you are doing. And when you push out the breath, empty out completely. Feel the emptiness – be with it.

And when you are drawing in, when you are filling up – always a full breath – feel the fullness. So from fullness to emptiness and emptiness to fullness, creating a rhythm. Through that rhythm, arriving at harmony and a centring in your being.

There may be moments when it is easily arrived at, there may be moments when it is not so easily arrived at: persevere, continue. To be consistent is to make it complete.

Be present throughout whatever you do, be conscious of what you are doing. Allow yourself to be drawn in through the process, the kriya of breathing. Let yourself loose, allow the breathing, be relaxed.

There is no other concern for you – you are reaching to your centre. It will intoxicate you as a result of the harmony, as a result of being centered.

It is the beginning of your freedom; it is a door to your awakening, to a new way of seeing, to a greater Self-discovery. You are being with yourself, and through that, you are being with the whole of the Reality.

Continue with your breathing: breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out. This is the rhythm – this is the pulse of your being.

It will bring you to your being; it will bring you to your center. It will bring you to the door that opens you to the whole Reality. It will bring you to yourself; it will bring you to God.

Put the whole of yourself behind this, behind what you are doing. Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out: deep breaths, long breaths, strong breaths – watch over it.

Things may come up in your mind – thoughts. Things may come up: feelings, emotions –even so passions. Things may come up from the body – lethargy. Continue with the breathing – allow all else to pass.

So you vent: it is a venting of things that come up, rise and pass away, while you remain centered and watching, behind, beyond, keeping with the breathing.

Chanting:

Asato Ma Sad Gamaya

From incompleteness reach me to completeness Oh! Lord.

Tamaso Ma Jyotir Gamaya

From darkness reach me to illumination, to light Oh! Lord.

From ignorance reach me to Wisdom.

Mrityor Ma Amritam Gamaya

From death reach me to Immortality Oh! Lord.

This is my prayer unto thee.

Arya Vihar

30 December 1999