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What exactly is it one gets out of meditation?
What is Samadhi?
Why should I care about meditation?
Why do I need a teacher?
Who is the teacher?
Why aren't more people interested in this type of study?
Ok, I'm interested. What have you got?
A few final words . . .
What exactly is it one gets out of meditation?
Meditation offers the opportunity for you to evolve to where you can leave your sense of limits behind and begin to experience direct contact with infinite awareness. This takes time, but you will feel progress along the way that is satisfying, especially when studying with an advanced teacher. It is a unique opportunity, since teachers who are "can-do" proponents of Samadhi are so rare.
If you are new to the study and have a lot of "samskaras" (tendencies) to work through, you may feel some discomfort as the kundalini detoxifies your system. Everyone goes through it, and it is quite common. After that, you will have the normal ups and downs that anyone has when approaching a particular type of study. What you get out of it depends on the degree of your intent and intensity of your practice.
What is Samadhi?
Samadhi is a meditative state where thought stops and the mind merges with infinite awareness. There are vast amounts of energy, knowledge and bliss associated with this state, and the ability to go into Samadhi is extremely rare. It is considered by advanced meditators to be the beginning of a human being’s conscious evolution toward enlightenment.
Though not generally associated with any Western philosophy, there is a body of literature and experience dealing with Samadhi in the East, particularly in the Yoga of India.
Why should I care about meditation?
To a large degree, the experience and knowledge of this path has evolved in the East, and so far, there is very little cultural support for it in the West.
But if you, like so many others in the West, find yourself hungering for the experience of God, and not merely words or teachings, this may be something you will want to investigate for yourself.
Why do I need a teacher?
The traditional way that this art has been taught is by direct communication between the teacher and the student.
It is true that you can simply stay at home and meditate by yourself, but the difference between that and studying with a teacher who can go into Samadhi is like the difference between seeing the Olympics on television and actually training every day with a Gold Medal winner. There is a tangible difference in progress and intensity.
Studying with such a teacher may not be for you, but the way to find out would be to come to an evening meditation and experience it for yourself. If it feels right for you, then you may want to stay with it for a while and see what happens.
Who is the teacher?
Mark Griffin is a Westerner who studied with Swami Muktananda for eight years until the time of his passing in 1982. He began going into Samadhi while studying with Muktananda, and advanced his study with Kalu Rinpoche for six years after that.
He founded the Hard Light Center in 1989, and feels a tremendous responsibility to this path.
Why aren't more people interested in this type of study?
There are many people who are not interested in this study simply because there so many other life experiences they must go through before spiritual development even becomes an issue for them. For those people, this study will appear impractical or simply uninteresting.
But for those who feel they have had the other life experiences they needed, and are ready to step upon the path to enlightenment, this study will make perfect sense. It may not be fully understood at first, but it will feel good intuitively.
So the reason that more people aren't interested in this type of study has more to do with why people aren't ready than with why more people aren't interested. And in the West, where outer achievement is supported more than inner development, it is no wonder that more people are not interested or ready to begin this tremendous undertaking.
Ok, I'm interested. What have you got?
The Hard Light Center of Awakening offers several different types of programs. First, there are the public meditations, which are advertised regularly. These are informal sessions which include meditations with Mark, lecture, and question and answer periods.
The next step is formal study. We meet once a week in a hall and study with Mark. These sessions take the form of meditation, lecture, and question and answer periods.
For accelerated sessions, there are intensives (usually one day). These take place about every four to six weeks, and are concentrated periods of meditation in which you can more fully immerse yourself in your practice without the distractions of daily life. There are breaks between meditation sessions.
Several times a year, Mark offers a philosophy class, which is generally held at the regular class location. During this class, he goes into detail about a particular book or body of knowledge which helps to illuminate some of the points that can seem unclear when first approaching this study. Between the lectures there are periods of meditation, and of course, the usual tea and cookie breaks to clear the head.
And finally, there are retreats. These are three or four day sessions: sometimes they are held in a retreat center rented for the occasion, sometimes we camp. During a retreat, you can concentrate fully on your practice without the usual worldly cares. It is a chance to focus and meditate with intensity, and to get away from it all.
A few final words . . .
It is taught in yoga that the only thing you carry with you from lifetime to lifetime is your level of awareness. This determines everything in a person's life: where you are born, and under what circumstances you are born.
If, in your seeking, you come to recognize the value of studying with a teacher, then you should know how rare it is to have the opportunity to study with one who can go into Samadhi. It offers an opportunity for really accelerated advancement, should this be your cup of tea.
Although Mark is a very serious teacher, he knows that this process of spiritual development takes time, and so tries to make the path an enjoyable one. He asks all those interested in the path of Self Discovery to approach it with an open mind, and in the spirit of adventure and humor.
To check for the latest public, class, and intensive/retreat dates, please check out the Hard Light Calendar, or call or write for information:
Hard Light Center of Awakening
23852 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 488
Malibu, CA 90265
Tel: 877-325-4448
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