Question: I experience more peace in my life because of my meditation, but sometimes my meditations are not pleasant. Negative thoughts, painful memories, and fears often crop up. Am I doing something wrong?
Response: The fact that you are experiencing more peace in your life is evidence that you are doing something right! The immediate goal of meditation is not to have pleasant meditations, but to enter into communion with God, that is, to experience God‘s peace. It is not uncommon for unconscious thoughts, memories, and fears to bubble up into our awareness during meditation. Our instinctive response to such unwanted interruptions is to fight them or indulge them. We should avoid either of these responses. Instead, see them for what they are, mere impressions from the past that have no bearing on your life today. Let them be like clouds passing over you. Simultaneously, keep a portion of your awareness focused on your breath, your mantra, and your sense of God’s presence. When in doubt, surrender everything to God and Guru. If we can stay present in the manner I just described, sooner or later these uncomfortable interruptions will dissolve, and God’s simple, silent presence will remain. Remember, we don’t meditate to have pleasant experiences; we meditate because we love God. There is no such thing as a bad meditation!
Divine God and Guru,
As we breathe together,
I surrender this mind and heart to you.
