ADDICTIONS | OUR FEATURED TOPIC Edge Meditation for September 2001 by Nirmal Kaur Khalsa IOn a very basic level, we're all looking for comfort in our lives. Because our society provides physical comforts in abundance, we start to expect more at the subtle level of mental comfort. In the past, this was largely the function of family and relatives; they provided love and acceptance for the good times and support in times of stress. As we've gotten more mobile and spread within cities and across states, "home" has become any place where we're paying rent. It no longer implies the connotations of family, lifetime friends and a stable neighborhood that it once did. So we reach, on the positive side, for more fulfilling jobs, creativity and friends who share our interests. But in our material wealth, it's all too easy to focus our searches in the material world where we find comfort in money, food, sex or drugs (both legal and illegal) instead. There we can easily get stuck, and the mental condition of addiction is the result, sometimes subtle, sometimes obvious, but always eventually unsatisfying. Ultimately, of course, we're searching for spiritual level comfort. This meditation, like all meditations, leads us toward that deep comfort, but it's of particular help in changing subconscious patterns and developing the willpower needed to break addictive behaviors. First, as usual, tune in to your higher self by sitting with a straight spine, putting your hands together in prayer pose and chanting on one breath "Ong Naa-mo Guroo Dayv Naa-mo" (I bow to the Creator, I bow to the Infinite Wisdom). The Ong, Mo, Dev and again Mo are held about four or five seconds; the other syllables are short. All sounds are in a monotone except Dayv, which is a minor third (a couple notes) higher. Repeat the mantra three times. Then stretch your arms straight out in front of you, put your wrists together, and spread the hands as if you were pushing against a wall with the right hand fingers pointing right and the left ones left. Open your eyes just enough to look at the tip of your nose. Now begin chanting Sat Naam, Sat Naam, Sat Naam, Sat Naam, Sat Naam, Sat Naam, Waa-hay, Gu-roo. Sat Naam rhymes with "but mom" and the double "a" in Waa is the same as in Naam. The accent is on the Sat's, the Waa and the roo. Chant in a fairly fast, very rhythmical monotone (each repetiton of the mantra takes about four seconds) and take a very quick inhale after each repetition. Start with three minutes and slowly build up to eleven. This is a bit challenging, but keep up and build your physical, mental and emotional strength to go through it. Conquer your mind and its negative messages, and you will find and live to your true destiny. Nirmal Kaur Khalsa is a certified kundalini yoga teacher with 27 years of experience. She's currently teaching in Kansas City at the 3HO Foundation and Woodside Health Club and can be reached at (816) 753-1781 or nirmalkaur@juno.com. KRI approved Copyright ©2001 Nirmal Kaur Khalsa SEPT 2001