If such an ill-prepared mind is forced to meditate, the individual develops frustration and, instead of evolving spiritually, will only degenerate. An agitated mind seeking sensuous joys has three fundamental imperfections. Unless these faults are removed, there can be no effective meditation. The first of them is the excessive flow of thoughts, i.e. the quantity of thoughts entertained by the mind is excessive. Secondly the quality of thoughts in the mind is poor and degrading and lastly, the direction, in which the thoughts are channelized, is towards lower values of life. These have to be carefully dealt with and directed, for, then alone can man gain a relative equanimity, which is an essential prerequisite for an attempt at meditation.
It is practiced by surrendering all activities to a higher ideal or altar and working without an egocentric attachment to the work itself or a craving for the fruits thereof. When one continues to practice this art of right action, the mind, instead of pursuing the senses, maintains the thought of the higher Ideal and thereby succeeds in reducing the quantity of thoughts.
The quality of thoughts is improved by Bhakti Yoga or the Path of Devotion, which is prescribed for one’s mental or emotional personality. Devotion is the same as love with one difference, that the latter is directed to lower objects and beings while the former is to a higher ideal. Devotion is developed by prayer, by mental prostration and surrender of the ego in dedication to the Lord or guru. When this is practiced regularly the quality and the texture of thoughts necessarily improve.
Lastly, the direction of thoughts can be changed by Jnana Yoga or the Path of Knowledge. This path deals with the human intellect in developing discrimination between the Real and the unreal through the study of and reflection upon the spiritual truths. When a seeker constantly reflects upon the sacred truths, his attention automatically recedes from the fields of sensuality, wherein it was hitherto indulging, and gets more and more established in the higher and nobler values of life.
In fact, man needs to practice all the paths together to subdue the three aspects of his personality. The extent to which each shall be followed would depend upon the nature of his inner personality. When a man is predominantly intellectual, he needs to take to Jnana Yoga and spend more time and effort in the study, analysis and reflection upon the contents of the scriptures. But he, who is more emotional than intellectual, requires bhakti with more prayer and worship. A third variety is a combination of the intellectual and the emotional temperaments, where both are almost equally developed. For him karma is to be followed, more since it caters to both aspects of his personality.
A man, thus pursuing the three paths, slowly gets relieved from the entanglements of the material world and turns his attention to God, With this achievement, the agitations in his mind are reduced and a tranquility is created within. Such an equanimous mind alone is qualified to obtain the best results from concentration and meditation. If, however, a seeker plunges into meditation without undertaking this initial preparation of the mind, his spiritual personality will not grow and all his efforts will fritter away. This advice is not meant to turn one away from the practice of meditation. It is only to caution the students that a lot of preparation has essentially to be gone through, if they desire to get the best results out of their efforts in meditation. The success in meditation is commensurate with one’s preparation and consequent equanimity of the mind.