Meditation Follows Concentration - Part 3

Sitting on your favourite meditative pose and keeping the head, neck and trunk erect, close
your eyes and gently concentrate on either the tip of the nose, space between the eyebrows, the
heart-lotus or the crown of the head. When once you have selected one centre of concentration,
stick to it till the last with leech-like tenacity. Never change it. Thus, if you have chosen to
concentrate on the heart-lotus after having tried the other centres, stick to the heart-lotus alone.
Then only you can expect rapid advancement. Meditation is of two kinds viz., Saguna (with Gunas or qualities) meditation and Nirguna (without Gunas or qualities) meditation. Meditation on Lord Krishna, Lord Siva, Lord Rama or Lord Jesus is Saguna meditation. It is meditation with form and attributes. The Name of the Lord is also simultaneously repeated. This is the method of the Bhaktas. Meditation on the reality of the Self is Nirguna meditation. This is the method of the Vedantins. Meditation on Om, Soham, Sivoham, Aham Brahma Asmi and Tat Tvam Asi is Nirguna meditation. Put an iron rod in the blazing furnace. It becomes red like fire. Remove it from the fire. It loses its red colour. If you want to keep it always red, you must keep it always in fire. Even so, if you want to keep the mind charged with the fire of Brahmic Wisdom, you must keep it always in contact with the Brahmic Fire of Knowledge through constant and intense meditation. You must, in other words, keep up an unceasing flow of Brahmic Consciousness.
Meditation is the most powerful mental and nervine tonic. The holy vibrations penetrate all
the cells of the body and cure the various diseases that human flesh is heir to. Those who regularly meditate save the doctor’s bills. The powerful soothing waves that arise during meditation exercise a benign influence on the mind, nerves, organs and cells of the body. The divine energy freely flows like the flow of oil from one vessel to another, from the Feet of the Lord to the different systems of the practitioner.
From - SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA