Meditation on Gurumayi’s Words
Makara Sankranti
by Eesha Sardesai
Respecting Your Time
After Gurumayi asked us what we have been doing lately, especially since January 1, she inquired more specifically about our thoughts and plans around her Message. Gurumayi asked us what words from her Message have been scintillating in our consciousness. (When Gurumayi said this, I thought of the satsang title, envisioning each word from Gurumayi’s Message glowing iridescently, as though in the light of the sun.)
Gurumayi also asked if we’d thought about how we want to meditate on her Message. And she gave us the instruction to “think of the Message at a time when you should be thinking of the Message.”
I’ve been pondering this instruction ever since we received it. What does it mean to think about the Message when I should be thinking about it? I’ve come to this understanding: there’s a difference between designating time to do something (such as studying or practicing Gurumayi’s Message) and actually honoring that time. This distinction has probably always existed, dependent as it is on the whims of the human mind, but I think it’s fair to say that it’s widened in recent years, what with the rapid advancement of digital technologies. It’s so easy to allow ourselves to be distracted. It’s so common to see someone glance at their phone while in conversation with others. It’s become almost habitual to sit down to do something, only to jump up a moment later to do something else.
A colleague of mine, someone who has been following the Siddha Yoga path for many decades, once shared with me her insights on this. She was very firm about people maintaining focus on whatever it is they have set aside time to do. She gave the example of eating. If you have sat down to eat and offered your food to God—as is the custom on the Siddha Yoga path—then you have, in a sense, consecrated that time. If you get up before having eaten even a morsel of food, let’s say to grab some salt or to check your messages, then you are reneging on the commitment you have made. You are not valuing your time. And by extension, you are not valuing yourself.
This Siddha Yogi gave another example to drive home the point. If several Brahmin priests have taken their seats around the sacred fire for a yajna, they need to stay focused until their offering is complete. They can’t just start having chai-pani in the middle of the ceremony! What use would their offering have if it were done in such a disjointed manner? What fruit would it bear?
Audio recording by Eesha Sardesai