Meditation Affects Life – Yours and Others
A story my teacher tells, “A man taking her ‘intro to meditation’ series explained he was taking the course because his employees were complaining. They told him that his stress level was affecting the quality of their lives, so he needed to do something about his stress. At the end of the first evening, he came to her to request that she not tell anyone he was in the class; he wanted to keep it a secret. The next week he reported that he was meditating every day. His meditations were going very well and everyone at work was really glad he was taking the class! She asked him what happened to the big secret. He said by the third day, he had to tell his employees. They kept telling him that he was ‘so different’ and they were wondering what was making this change in him.”
Not only was he less stressed, he was serving as a conduit of Grace already. His employees were deeply affected. This really happens to you very quickly. Svaroopa® yoga and meditation makes you become more and more a channel of Grace. That’s because this is the yoga of Grace. What you are doing in the breathing and poses is aligning yourself with Grace. Then Grace can take care of you. Meditation intensifies and quickens your alignment with Grace – the goal of knowing that you are DIVINE.
Your yoga practice turns you into a channel of Grace. You are calmer, more peaceful, more energized and relaxed, not only during yoga but all the rest of the time. Even the next day at work, and even when you spend time with dear ones (who can still be challenging), you are in a better mood.
Grace is ever – present, yet it is magnified by your practices. Your teacher serves as a conduit of Grace, as does her or his teacher. Your yoga community aligns you with Grace. Yoga gives you tangible way to draw Grace into your life, like you draw breath into your lungs.
It’s Grace that turns you inward into an expansive way. In meditation, you invoke Grace when you repeat mantra and meditate on your own Self. You invoke Grace when you lengthen your tailbone and open your spine.
[Source: Teachings by Swami Nirmalananda Saraswati, spiritual leader and master teacher at Svaroopa® Vidya Ashram in Pennsylvania. (C) 2014, S.T.C., Inc., All right reserved. Svaroopa® is a registered service mark of S.T.C., Inc.]
