Q: I
am going through a difficult divorce. Will meditation help me get through it?
A:
Yes it will, but keep in
mind that meditation is not a Band-Aid designed to deal with only the crisis at
hand. It is a long-term practice that has many benefits. One of these is the
development of an increasing tolerance for high stress situations. So,
meditation will help in your current situation, but will also, over time of
regular practice, make you permanently more resilient in high stress situations
in general.
Why is this so? It is an interesting and observable phenomenon relating to the
gradual rise of pure bliss consciousness in the nervous system. As we meditate,
we find, over time, that there is more "silence" in us. It is not that we become
silent in our outer life. We will probably seem much the same to others -
perhaps a bit calmer. But inside we are more still, not moving around randomly
in our thoughts, feelings and inner physical reactions as much as before. Less
jangled, you know. This experience of inner silence continues to grow as we
continue to meditate every day for weeks, months and years. As this is
occurring, we notice that daily upheavals in life do not throw us off as much.
Things that used to upset us don't as much. We become steady inside. If there is
a sudden event, like a bang, that used to make us jump before, we may not even
move now. We will experience it from someplace inside that is not affected. It
goes right through, leaving little trace of tension. Does this mean we become
cold and unfeeling? Not at all. We still feel, actually become more
compassionate, but we are not swept away by emotions as we were before.
This is the essential thing about not being undone by stressful situations: this
inner silence, this inner immovability.
From a spiritual perspective, it is well described by Jesus when he says, "The
wise man built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods
came, and the winds blew, and beat upon the house, and it fell not: for it was
founded upon a rock."
If you build your house upon the rock of your inner silence, nothing will be
able to knock you off center. This is why meditation is one of the best stress
therapies known. As with preserving good health, meditation is best for
cultivating the nervous system in advance, stabilizing balance and inner silence
before the storms of life rear up.
Besides these practical, everyday-living benefits, inner silence also is the
foundation for the rise of divine ecstasy in the nervous system, and refining
our perception of the world around us in a celestial way. The rise of silence in
the nervous system is the first stage of the enlightenment process.