When you have turned your attention inward to the Cave of the Heart, you can begin to taste the nectar of unconditional love. It may come as a subtle sensation first, in fits and spurts, seeping through the gaps in the armoring of your Heart.

As your awareness of this internal Source deepens, the ego-mind and the pain-body will begin to resist you. Let there be no doubt: your focus on divine love and freedom from suffering brings about the end of their control over you, and their very existence, and they are fighting for their survival.

In this inner battle you have many supports. One of them is the power of mantra. These ancient words or phrases have been given to us by great sages and have been used and further empowered by millions of people over the centuries.

The power of mantras is subtle, but it is great; indeed it is unconquerable. It is known only to those who use them to become free. And it is known not through the mind, but by the direct experience of consistent practice.

When you begin to turn inward and connect your awareness with the Heart, notice the quality of your inner focus. You may find it anywhere on on a continuum from tenuous and shifting to solid and stable.

Then begin to say your mantra, imagining that its sound emerges from the depth of your Heart. You can say the mantra out loud, whisper it just under your breath, or repeat it mentally only.

Experiment to find out which way works best for you at any time. The general rule is that the louder voice works better the more distracted your mind is. Even in the silent repeating you can forcefully ‘yell’ the mantra in your imagination to overcome a disturbance, and then allow the inner voice to become normal again.

I personally love the mantra “Ram” best. My guru gave it to me and I know its great power to first focus, and then transcend the mind. But you do not have to use the same mantra. You can use any that speaks to your Heart and has power for you. As a Christian, it may be more powerful for you to use the word “Jesus,” and so on. Follow your own instinct in that.

After a period of experimenting which mantra works best for you, it is recommended that you stay with one primary mantra for this inner Heart-focusing. To use one consistently as your primary tool will empower it for you.

When I sit in my stillness, centered in the Cave of the Heart and I repeat “Ram, Ram, Ram,” the effect becomes quickly apparent. The mind focuses and becomes still. There is a sense of a profound and deepening calm. It takes me deeper and deeper into the Heart.

This deep Heart-focus is the most delicious of all sensations. And it is not simply a sensation; it is far more than that. It is a merging with my Heart-essence, a profound peace, a cosmic recharging, if you will.

But most of all it means getting in touch with my true Self. It is the space in me – and in you –  that is timeless and unmoved by the waves on the surface of mind. It is the depth of the ocean, blissful and calm.

This depth of true peace is already present in all beings. It is the essence of what we are, but few know it. You can access it now.

Your life may still be winding its way like a river through the fields of time with its many currents, eddies and whirlpools. But the river is also the ocean. It has in it always the taste of the great stillness and the love of its own depth.

In this stillness, in this delicious Heart-centeredness, the mind itself transforms and becomes its higher manifestation, intuitive intelligence, the Heart-mind.

Now the mind no longer supports the ego but your liberation. Now you have ‘pulled the plug’ on the unconscious addiction of the pain-body to living in a continuous struggle. Your awareness no longer supports it.

Instead the inner call of the Heart becomes increasingly powerful. It elevates all aspects of your existence that still need to be healed and transcended. Your own wisdom is now safely guiding you home.

With love,

Ram Giri