Q& A with Swami Brahmananda: III

Q: Seekers who want to focus their minds or turn their minds inward sometimes feel dizzy or get a headache. Some people feel a very strong pull to the centre of the forehead. What do these symptoms indicate?
A: At the seat of meditation one should totally relax. If you feel dizzy or a strong pull to the centre of the forehead, that means you are not relaxing. Blood circulation should continue from top to toe.
Q: When a meditator turns inwards and is deeply concentrating, he sometimes experiences incessant waves of energy rising from the base of the spine to the head. The movement is serpentine or like electrical waves and they cannot be controlled at will. After they cease on their own, they leave the mind very quiet and meditative. Is this what is described as Kundalini? What is the effect of its rising in a spiritual seeker?
A: As a sincere seeker when you sit down and meditate regularly, naturally your energy level rises. At this juncture you should be very very careful. You should not waste your energy for cursing others or encashing it for petty gains. Quieten the mind, your energy levels will go up. You are right, you will experience higher peace.
Q: Swamiji, one gathers from your talks that it is primary and imperative for a meditator to live a truthful and ethical life, so that his mind is not splintered or gets unfocused. Could you please give us tips to quieten the mind? Your guidance would be of immense value and help to so many struggling seekers.
A: It is only by conscious living or by keeping a continuous watch over the behaviour of your own mind that one can quieten the mind. For details please read Poojya Gurudev’s book, “Meditation and Life”.
Thank you so much, Swamiji. My grateful pranams.
Prarthna Saran President Chinmaya Mission Delhi. From the interview of Poojya Swami Brahmanandaji in 2007, New Delhi.