SIVANANDA DAILY READING FOR 18 SEPTEMBER SAMADHI

Still the waves of the mind and hold it steady in nirvikalpa samadhi
(unconditioned state of superconsciousness). This needs constant,
protracted practice of meditation. There may be breaks in the
meditation in the beginning, but practice makes you perfect. Later
you will be able to remain absorbed in meditation for long periods.
You can merge yourself in samadhi, with a mind like a flame protected
from wind.

Before getting sanguine success in meditation get victory over the
pose first. Sit upon your seat with the steadiness of a rock ­ for two
or three hours. If the body is steady then the mind will also be
steady.

Do not mistake a little concentration or one­pointedness of mind for
samadhi. Simply because you have risen a little above body
consciousness, on account of a little concentration, do not think
that you have attained samadhi.

Separate the mind from the body and unite it with the supreme self.
This is known as samadhi or the superconscious state. This will give
liberation or freedom from births and deaths. Samadhi is obtained by
practice for a long time and with zeal and enthusiasm.

Samadhi is the highest goal which one can attain through meditation.
It is not a little thing that can be attained through a little
practice. To attain samadhi one should observe strict brahmacarya
(celibacy), dietetic restrictions and one must have purity of heart.

If these are not attained there is no possibility of attaining
samadhi. These are preliminary qualifications and should be well
grasped. Then only one should try to enter the portals of samadhi.
None can enter there unless he is a great devotee of the Lord.

Moksa (liberation) is loss of one's personality in the divine. It is
deliverance from the delusion of personality. Just as the river
becomes the ocean itself, the individual soul becomes the mighty
supreme soul, with higher consciousness, transcendental bliss and
knowledge.