A SUMMARY OF THE MEDITATION ''I AM''
The meditation 'l AM' is the Core practice of Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj. In these verses (which are extract from the book I AM THAT) Nisargadatta gives the fundamental ideas about the meditation ‘I AM’.
Appearance and disappearance,
birth and death these are qualities of
‘I am’, they do not belong to you, the
Absolute.
The ‘I am’ is the sum total of all that
you perceive, it’s time-bound, the
‘I am’ itself is an illusion, you are not
the ‘I am’ you are prior to it.
You have ‘to be’ before anything else
can be, your sense of ‘presence’ or
the feeling ‘I am’ is really
fundamental to anything that has to follow.
Only the ‘I am’ is certain, it’s
impersonal, all knowledge stems
from it, it’s the root, hold on to it and
let all else go.
This ‘I am’ is ever present, ever available.
Remember the knowledge ‘I am’
only and give up the rest, staying in
the ‘I am’ you will realize that it is unreal.
You must meditate on the ‘I am’
without holding on to the body-mind,
the ‘I am’ is the first ignorance,
persist on it and you will go beyond it.
Putting aside everything, stabilize in
the ‘I am’. As you continue with this
practice, in the process you will
transcend the ‘I am’.
Immortality is freedom from the
feeling ‘I am’, Yet it is not extinction.
On the contrary, it is a state infinitely more real,
aware and happy than you can possibly think of.
Only self-consciosness is no more.
Keep focused on the ‘I am’ till you
become a witness to it, then you
stand apart, you have reached the highest.
All your efforts should be directed towards
coming to that pure state of 'I am' and reside there only.
If you do this with great sincerity and earnestness
you are bound to transcend the 'I am' one day.
So understand the importance of earnest 'being'.
When the ‘I am’ goes all that
remains is the Absolute, give all your
attention to the ‘I am’.
Remain focused on the ‘I am’ till it
goes into oblivion, then the eternal is,
the Absolute is, Parabrahman is.