When the Student is Ready

by Deepak Chopra

Life is a story we weave together from the thoughts, feelings, and emotions we experience each moment. Yet we live the majority of our life in the memories of our past and the expectations of the future. Rarely do we live in the purity of the present. These past memories and future expectations that we embrace throughout the course of our lives are what breed the stresses we feel in each day. In fact, the average person is a bundle of conditioned reflexes and nerves which is constantly triggered by situations and circumstances. Often the circumstances are simply the ups and downs of living each day. But there are times in our lives when the stresses, pressures, disappointments, and anxieties can become overwhelming.

As we weave through life, some people find themselves in relationships that have become toxic or end unexpectedly; in other instances, life-long careers stop being nurturing or stop all together; and there are even times in our lives when imbalances in our health and well-being can suddenly start to manifest themselves as states of dis-ease. So often we have defined ourselves as the roles we play in particular relationships or jobs. For example, “I am a mother,” “I am a wife,” I am a manager,” “I am a vice president.” When, for whatever reason, these roles and aspects of our lives – which we have used for so long to identify ourselves and bring us self-esteem – stop satisfying our needs, we can feel a sense of loss, emptiness or confusion.

However, there is a timeless way to recapture this connection to our true self: the practice of meditation, which allows us to gradually bring harmony, laughter, and love back into our soul and, in the process, rediscover our unconditioned self. By gently washing away the stress, tension, fear, and confusion that often accompanies one who is at the crossroads, we can regain our connection to a calmer, more peaceful life. And from that moment on, a life filled with joy, harmony, balance, and peace is ours for the asking.

Over the years, I have often been approached by people who tell me that after they had developed a meditation practice that lasted weeks, months, and even years, for some reason they just stopped meditating. In some cases, the routine of their lives took a new direction and they no longer felt they had time for a ritual that would connect them with stillness and silence. In other cases, they began a new job and they chose to commit all their time and energy to it rather than their meditation practice.

Some have complained that they found themselves falling asleep or getting frustrated with the lack of progress they were experiencing. Of course, this is all part of the process of releasing the thoughts and stresses that will ultimately connect us to pure consciousness – the magical bliss of the gap. But without proper instruction, there are those who misinterpret restlessness as an impediment rather than as a positive part of the process.

Then of course, there are those who have waited their entire life to begin a meditation practice and have now come to a point where they are ready to reduce stress, ease anxiety, bring calm to the chaos, experience peace of mind, and connect more closely with their inner voice on a path to higher states of consciousness. There is an ancient Buddhist expression: “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” This is very true in the context of meditation.

Whether you have: 1) meditated and enjoyed it but haven’t developed a regular practice; 2) taken a hiatus from meditation and are ready to return; or 3) have never before tapped into that stillness and silence within you, today can be the first step on the path to discovering your soul. Once you have glimpsed your soul, everything else that happens in life seems to shine with the brilliance of bliss.

Each year the Chopra Center offers a meditation experience called Seduction of Spirit, where Dr. David Simon and I teach hundreds from around the world some of the timeless tools of attention and intention. We begin each day with yoga instruction, we ground our meditation practice, and we explore the Seven Spiritual Laws. Each day we add another layer of advanced meditation technique to the process, helping us to connect more deeply with the silence and stillness that rests within all of us. We journey as one family into pure consciousness for 6 straight days.

This year we’ve chosen the peaceful, natural surrounds of Horseshoe Bay in Austin, Texas, to act as the backdrop to this transformational week. Whether one seeks stress release, anxiety management, self-discovery, yoga exploration, higher states of consciousness or an opening of the heart, this is a transformational experience for those looking to move beyond the challenges and roadblocks that can stand between each of us and peace of mind. I look forward to meeting you at this Chopra Center classic meditation retreat.

Love,
Deepak