“A Guide to Spiritual Practice”

“Here is what I do every single day to bring myself closer to Great Spirit”

“Having a Daily Spiritual Practice is Vitally Important”

Meditating for 1 Hour AM and PM - Meditating for 1 hour AM and PM for those on the spiritual path is important. Those like the Dalai Lama, Pope Francis, and many others meditate for much longer periods of time. Meditation opens up the mind allowing mind chatter to subside so we can hear the still small voice of the Universe. Many others like Paramahansa Yogananda and Ramana Maharshi also recommended meditating once a week for 6 to 8 hours at a time or longer. Thus we are able to find the true self and let go of the ego and allow ete
al happiness to filter in thus with a smile on our face we can move forward with the day. Jiddu Krishnamurti said, “To understand the immeasurable, the mind must be extraordinarily quiet, still”.

Minimum of 30 Minutes of Prayer Daily - Praying for 20 to 30 minutes daily is very important for those on a spiritual path. Prayer is a petition to the Universe for the good of all. Prayer is all about allowing the Universe to filter into our life and spreading happiness wherever we go. Prayer allows us to connect in a different way than meditation because we are petitioning for the good of all and the love and benevolence of Great Spirit. Also to thank Great Spirit for everything in our life… all the good and the bad, this is very important. And asking for the healing of those who are suffering. First lighting some incense and doing a cleansing of the house in the morning, and then sitting down in prayer thus allowing love to filter into our soul washes away all anxiety and tension… and makes the day run smoothly. Paramahansa Yogananda said, “Imbue yourself with faith that your heart’s craving is being felt by God. Be fully convinced that he has listened”.

Silently Saying the Name of God All Day Long - Saying the name of God over and over again is a way to move good karma in our direction by wiping away negative karma. With all the past lives that we have all lived, we have accumulated lots of negative karma because we were not cognizant of what we were doing in those lives. Be the name Jesus, Buddha, Rama, Krishna, or any other personal name of God… it does not matter. Just saying the name silently over and over thousands of times daily allows negative karma to be washed away and good karma to be amassed. Thus good things move in our direction. Ramana Maharshi said, “The degree of freedom from unwanted thoughts and the degree of concentration on a single thought are the measures to gauge spiritual progress”.

Constantly Turning Around All Negative Thoughts - Turning all negative thoughts around into positive thoughts takes some practice. To have a negative thought is pretty normal for the average person. But to take that negative thought and say “No let’s send that person love, or let’s see the good that comes from this situation”. Thus catching one’s self when a negative thought comes in… and bless it and reward thyself with a positive thought. This does not happen ove
ight, this takes time to have take place automatically and then negative thoughts become fewer and fewer… but it will happen with practice. Sai Baba said, "Fear Is Nothing But a Bundle of negative thoughts. Counter It With Positive Thoughts”.

Singing and Chanting to Great Spirit for 30 Minutes Daily - With a happy heart singing or chanting a song to Great Spirit uplifts the heart and washes away all stress. This allows one to be free… free of all negativity… free of the day to day grind and thus knowing without a doubt that we are spirit and not these flesh and blood bodies we are endowed with. There is nothing like singing a song of devotion to Great Spirit to perk up a person’s spirit and allow joy to filter in. Swami Prabhupada said, “To chant God’s holy name means to associate directly with Him”.

Spend Your Day in Devotion Helping Others - Even if we work at some job we can devote our time to helping those around us. Being helpful, wearing a smile, helping those in need, it’s not that hard to do but most of us don’t take the time. Sai Baba said, “A life devoted to the service of the weak; is a life spent in the thought about the might and glory of God”.

Having a set spiritual practice is vital in this day and age… and it will also bring a smile to your face.

Many Blessings to Everyone!

Dr. Paul Haider