Word: mantra
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...formal talk in the university auditorium, then forgather with a more committed group for a symposium where he sets a tone of informality by occasionally taking off all his clothes and encouraging his interlocutors to do likewise. This may or may not be accompanied by the chanting of a mantra or two. His earnings from such activities currently run to a minimum of $30,000 a year, most of which he gives away to needy young writers and film makers. His own pad in New York's East Village serves as a communal hangout for the hung...
...asked one girl in the first row. Well, she had been distracted by other thoughts, and by a record player in the room next to hers. Jarvis nodded knowingly, and said that outside noise, and thoughts, and feelings would not harm meditation. "How about if the speed of the mantra changes?" one fellow asked. Jarvis was pleased. "If the mantra changes speed, that is good," he answered. Another boy stood up and was really worried--he had forgotten his mantra completely during meditation! To everyone's surprise, and possible dismay, Jarvis smiled encouragingly. "Forgetting the mantra shows right meditation...
...scrupulous about meditating before, not after dinner, I did not try to force any particular feeling; and I "came out" of meditation slowly--three pointers Jarvis gave us for best results. The first two weeks were really a new experience. When I meditated, the echo of my mantra vibrated through my consciousness; my limbs felt heavy and deliciously drugged, while my mind remained alert. Emerging from meditation was akin to emerging from deep sleep, except that when my body slept my brain frolicked...
...wore off; I don't pretend to know why. I think I began to take Jarvis at his word--I permitted other thoughts to pass freely through my mind. And since I did give my awareness free play, after a while the other thoughts--books, girls--pushed my monotonous mantra out of mind most of the time. Yet "forcing" the mantra was the practice we were warned against most. In any case, I find it impossible to return to the old technique...
...Good. Now let your mantra begin just as easily as those thoughts...