Sometimes it seems as though I spend almost the entire meditation period doing nothing but daydreaming. Is this just stress being released? Or is it a sign that I am doing something wrong, such as not being aware enough of the mantra? I know we are not supposed to "concentrate" upon the mantra, but how much attention really should I put upon it? When it slips away, not into restful silence but into daydreams, should I knowingly put my attention back on the sound of the mantra, or just let happen whatever happens?

Dear ghop,

Just let happen whatever happens. In fact, if there could only be one instruction to guide one in correct, efficient, beneficial meditation, that's what it would be.

Throughout recorded history the benefit of meditation has been well known in and around India. The key truths, though, were largely dormant in books and oral tradition. Most folks, and many gurus, considered that tradition fanciful, or academic, or even unbelievable. The knowledge just didn't seem literally possible to those not living in enlightenment (that is, not living free from stored stress).

In 1958, a minor monk named Maharishi Mahesh Yogi had the desire to spread the knowledge of enlightenment that he learned from his guru, Brahmananda Saraswati. His travels took him to the USA, where he had an unexpectedly and overwhelmingly positive reception.

He taught that the secret key to enlightenment was meditating effortlessly. Believe it or not, this was a completely new idea. The standard schools of meditation taught that it was a difficult procedure, and could require several lifetimes to accomplish. They generally taught exercises of concentration and repetition, chanting and singing, trying to clear the mind of all thoughts, or focusing on a single thought, sensory perception, or idea.

Maharishi turned these misconceptions on their head. Any technique that could accelerate our progress toward enlightenment, he reasoned, must be completely effortless, since that is one of its most fundamental characteristics.

We now take this understanding almost for granted. It is clear from our own experiences in meditation that the less we do the better it works.

Daydreaming is just another form of stress release. It is very similar to the experience of a single thought gripping the mind (such as when a tune keeps running through our mind). Depending on how strongly a thought or a daydream grips the mind, it may or may not be possible to think the syllable effortlessly. The way to tell is simple. Think the syllable. If you can't without applying force, then active stress release is going on and there is no need to think the syllable. If you can think the syllable effortlessly, even while the thoughts or daydreams continue, then do so.

Eventually, when the stresses that caused your daydreaming are gone, there will be no more daydreaming at all. Instead, your mind will be yours. You will finally be able to have clear, powerful, life-supporting thoughts without the distraction of nonsense thoughts. Your desires will have fewer obstacles to achievement. This is the joy of life lived without accumulated stress.

You are well on your way.

Thank you for your beautiful question.

David Spector
NSR Meditation/USA

And thank you for your beautiful answer. This practice would be utterly impossible without the care, support, and guidance you are giving all of us. Thank you so much for your work and dedication!

Oh, my gosh! Thank you for your effusive praise. But I'm just having fun in my retirement years, you know.

David Spector
NSR Meditation/USA

I have had similar experience to Ghop, with random thoughts, which often form into a kind of story (the kind of thing you get just as you're falling off to sleep). After sometime (don't know how long) I come out of this kind of dream sequence- sometimes with a bit of a jolt.

The syllable is usually more obvious at the start of the meditation, and most of the time goes along with my heart beat (sometimes with the breath). Often I feel the heart beat in my head along with the syllable.

Is this what you would expect during NSR meditation?

Dear mikes101,

Your "random thoughts" are indeed the result of stress release. They show how effectively NSR is lowering your metabolism so your nervous system can finally get the deep rest it needs to dissolve stress (see http://www.nsrusa.org/about-stress.php).

"...sometimes with a bit of a jolt"

We don't realize how slowed-down our mind and body are until we see the contrast with the surface (concrete) level of thinking. At the end of your daydreaming, the jolt was the contrast with the more energetic level known as wakefulness. This is one way we know from our experience that transcendental consciousness is a unique state of the physiology (another way is from the accumulated research on Transcendental Meditation that shows this effect of transcending through actual laboratory measurement; see http://tm.org).

"The syllable is usually more obvious at the start of the meditation..."

Naturally, since we are starting it from the waking state of consciousness. We can experience it more clearly, like "problem-solving" thoughts. But right away it refines, becomes more abstract, or even disappears. This is its nature as a vehicle for deep meditation.

"...most of the time goes along with my heart beat (sometimes with the breath). Often I feel the heart beat in my head along with the syllable."

These are normal experiences in the early days of practicing NSR. We're not in any kind of trance; we're aware of activities around us and in our own body. However, as time goes by and some of our stresses are eliminated, we find these activities less interesting. They capture our attention less. When we start experiencing unbounded inner bliss, the outside world simply can't compete anymore. We then appreciate our true nature as powerful, compassionate beings.

But, don't forget, this wonderful and transformative experience can only happen when the stresses are really gone. So always be satisfied to have various side effects of stress release. They indicate that something very good is happening.

David Spector
NSR Meditation/USA