The Path of Perfection: Practice! Practice!

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Buddha said, “There is no way, the way is made by walking.” When someone truly feels the need to realize the higher Self, where are they to begin? There are hundreds of practices or techniques claimed by different schools of philosophy or spirituality. How do we find a practice that is best suited for us?
Practice is the Key to the Path of Perfection

by Baba Shuddhaanandaa Brahmachari

All practices have one common goal and that is to lead us to the state of Pure Consciousness. The mind’s impurities and illusions need to be removed before we can realize this state of Pure Consciousness. The only point of all practice is to purify the mind, to cleanse the mind of its illusions and impurities to realize the Absolute Truth.

The peace and happiness that we all are seeking is not out there. It is only found in the state of mind purged of all its impurities through continual remembrance and meditation of our eternal Self within. Only a soulful life is a joyful peaceful life; all else is transient, fleeting, apparent happiness, far from real Joy of the Spirit.

That is why there is a need for meditation and breathing practices. They will help us to go within and to cleanse from within. They create the space within us to attract higher thoughts. They create the inner space for the best to come to us in life. De-cluttering the mind is the first job.

It does not really matter which breathing or meditation practice we choose in order to begin the process of clearing our minds. What is most important is that the practice is consistent and focused and comes from our heart. An unfocused mind is the breeding ground of a lot of stress in life. Most often, the mind is in a mode of distraction. It is restless. It is only when the intellect decides with a firm affirmation to focus on anything that the mind starts to pay attention following the dictate of intellect. Paying attention is one of the major challenges. Mindfulness distills the focus with clarity, and that brings about a paradigm shift of attitude to life and its responses.

OM Times is a leading voice of the Conscious Community with articles covering the full spectrum of Conscious Living. Click here to see all we share.