I have learned over the years that people in Western
cultures find it difficult to practice the Eastern idea of
meditation with a blank mind. Paramahansa Yogananda,
who started the Self Realization Fellowship years ago,
understood this when he tailored the techniques from
India to the Western mind. This is why my meditations
in this book and others have guided imagery and
suggestions.
Visualization techniques entice your subconscious
mind to heal the body. The subconscious mind
understands only symbols and pictures, so visualization
connects you with it. As the saying goes, change your
mind and you change your life. Healing visualizations
are also essential if a healer is working on a sick person
some distance away (see this page).
Choose a meditation spot where you will not be
disturbed. Play your meditation tape or a soft, nonvocal
tape of music. To begin a meditation, sit in a straight-
backed chair with your feet flat on the floor and your
hands in your lap. If you prefer, you can sit cross-legged
on the floor with a pillow under the back portion of
your buttocks. This will tip you slightly forward so that
you rest on a portion of your knees. If you are ill and in
bed, lie flat on your back with a pillow under your knees
and another under your head. I don't recommend lying
down unless you can't sit because the prone posture is
conducive to sleep. If you really want to try a yogic pose
for meditation, most people can safely do the half-lotus.
Sit cross-legged with one foot on the opposite thigh but
the other foot on the floor. Don't use this position if it
causes you pain. Meditation isn't about enduring pain
but about relaxing and connecting with the flow of
universal energy and information.