Support for Your Practice

“You are now embarking on the most extraordinary journey, the most exacting and rewarding adventure, open to a man or woman. I haven’t tried to conceal the fact that learning to control your mind is difficult – the most difficult thing in the world. But I want to remind you always that what you are seeking is glorious beyond compare, something far beyond my capacity, or anybody’s, to render into words. In my heart I have no greater desire than that you should reach the goal. Accept my wish for your great success!”
– Eknath Easwaran, Passage Meditation

I am interested in trying passage meditation.

Easwaran’s book Passage Meditation is the best overall source for a complete view of the program. You can read complete chapters online or purchase the book here.
Have you found a passage or passages that appeal to you? You can browse through some selections specifically chosen for meditation here.
And if you have trouble memorizing, some tips can help you.
You might like to read Blue Mountain, our free quarterly journal. It includes uplifting articles from Easwaran and interviews with people who are practicing passage meditation.
An introductory retreat is an ideal place to learn about passage meditation, try out the program in the company of other seekers, and have your questions answered by longtime meditators.
Did you know that passage meditation is an eight-point program? Click here to learn about the seven other tools for spiritual growth that can be used throughout the day.

I would like to establish a regular practice.

If you would like to simplify your life to make more time for your meditation practice and the other things that are important to you, Easwaran’s perspective on slowing down offers some ideas and insights. For more in-depth guidance, Take Your Time is as readable as it is practical.
Our introductory and refresher retreats are designed to help you set up a regular practice in a way that works for you. We also offer programs tailored to the needs of young adults and seniors.
For a short dose of daily inspiration, many people turn to Easwaran’s Thought for the Day. You can read it online, have it delivered to your email address, or purchase it in its book form, Words to Live By.
Have you found a variety of passages that appeal to you? If you learn by listening, you can hear Easwaran recite a few passages here. And if you would like a wider selection and own a cassette player, Sacred Literature of the World offers a wonderful variety of inspiring passages. You can also read many passages here. The new anthology Timeless Wisdom is filled with many beautiful selections.
Do you receive our free journal, Blue Mountain? Having an inspiring article from Easwaran and interviews with other meditators appear in your mailbox each quarter can bring a fresh boost of energy and enthusiasm to your practice.
Would you like to learn more about the rest of the program of passage meditation?

I have been meditating every day for a month or more.

Spending time in the company of other passage meditators, either in person or online, provides invaluable support to one’s practice. You are now eligible to join any of our local fellowship groups.
You are also eligible to subscribe to our email fellowship group and, if you are between the ages of 18 and 35, our young adult email fellowship group. Even if you are just listening in, the inspiration, encouragement, and rejuvenation that are found through this companionship can make all the difference in your spiritual journey.
Is your meditation getting stale or mechanical? If so, memorizing a new passage can breathe some new life into your practice. Many passages are available online, and you also might want to have one of Easwaran’s anthologies of passages he selected expressly for meditation. God Makes the Rivers to Flow includes many features such as biographical summaries of those who wrote the passages and a guide for using specific passages to shed unwanted habits. Timeless Wisdom is a more compact edition, designed as a companion for Passage Meditation.
Attending a retreat in your area or at the Blue Mountain Center will get your practice off to a strong start. You’ll meet others who are just starting the program and have your questions answered by those who have been practicing it for many years. We also offer special programs for young adults and seniors.
To reap the greatest rewards from your meditation periods, deepening your understanding and practice of the other seven points in the program of passage meditation is essential. For example, using a mantram during the day will greatly support your meditation. Here is a list of mantrams to choose from. You can also read online instructions for choosing and using a mantram.

I have been meditating daily for 6 months or more and want to deepen my practice.

You are now eligible for an in-depth retreat. These intensive weekend and weeklong programs are designed to help you take your practice to a new level by improving your meditation and helping you integrate the other seven points into your day in powerful ways.
As your meditation deepens, you start to notice more and more about the workings of the mind. Easwaran’s fresh perspective on the thought process offers not only wise guidance but lighthearted entertainment. Two fascinating sources are the DVD series Dynamics of the Mind (view a short selection here) and the book Conquest of Mind.
If you haven’t already joined a fellowship group, whether one that meets in your area or online, doing so will boost your practice immeasurably.
Are you finding and memorizing enough passages to keep your meditation fresh? The book God Makes the Rivers to Flow includes dozens of beautiful inspirational passages from major spiritual traditions, background notes on each passage, and other features. If you’d like a more compact edition, have a look at Timeless Wisdom.
Easwaran never tired of telling us how valuable the mantram is for spiritual growth. As you may have already discovered for yourself, one of many benefits of using the mantram during the day is that it helps keep your mind calm, so that you go into your next meditation period with greater focus. For an in-depth exploration of this simple tool and its many applications and benefits, see The Mantram Handbook.
Easwaran considered The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living his major work. It can be read and re-read over a lifetime of ever-deepening insight. The End of Sorrow, volume 1 of this three-volume commentary, is a great place to start.

It takes effort to develop a regular practice of passage meditation, yet people all over the world continue to make time in their daily lives for this dynamic program.

Having the right support at the right time can keep you going deeper, which brings increasing benefits.

RESOURCE

Thought for the Day

Sign up for a free daily email message. Start your day with inspirational quotations accompanied by Easwaran’s wise and practical commentaries.

RETREAT

Learn Passage Meditation

The BMCM offers retreats on passage meditation for beginners, experienced meditators, young adults, and those over 65 or facing life-threatening illness. For more information follow the link – or call us at 800.475.2369 or 707.878.2369.

VIDEO

View video clips

DVD 30: “Meditation is good for long vision. Whatever the consequences of certain acts, we can put on steel-rimmed spectacles and see those consequences.”

BOOK

Passage
Meditation

Bring the deep wisdom of the heart into daily life by meditating on spiritual passages that embody your highest ideals.

ARTICLE

Invitation to a Journey

"The need to return to the source of our being is nothing less than an evolutionary imperative – the drive to realize our full human potential."

BOOK

Upanishads

More copies sold in the past six months than all other English translations combined.

Cookbook

Laurel’s Kitchen

The complete cookbook and reference center for the whole-foods kitchen.

ARTICLE

Swimming
Against the Current

“Can you spend time with those you dislike for the sake of the greater good? If you can, you are making good progress on the spiritual path.”

BOOK

Take Your Time: How to Find Patience, Peace, and Meaning

Step back, slow down, find a doorway to joy and serenity where you least expected it.

RESOURCE

Instruction in passage meditation

"This is the heart of my program: meditation for half an hour every morning, as early as is convenient. Do not increase this period; if you want to meditate more, have half an hour in the evening also, preferably at the very end of the day."

PASSAGE

Saint Teresa of Avila: Her Heart
Is Full of Joy

“Her heart is full of joy with love, For in the Lord her mind is stilled.” Follow link to read passage and hear Easwaran recite it.

AUDIO

Hear Easwaran speak

Meditation is a two CD set giving a lively introduction to the practice of passage meditation.

ARTICLE

Stormy Seas

“Few human beings are born with the ability to weather storm and stress with grace. But everyone can learn.”

Email us your comments and requests for information | Blue Mountain Center of Meditation, PO Box 256, Tomales, CA 94971 USA
Telephone: 800.475.2369 or 707.878.2369 | Facsimile: 707.878.2375 | © 1997–2008 by The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation

| This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

Blue Mountain Center of Meditaton, PO Box 256, Tomales, CA 94971 USA Telephone: 800.475.2369 Facsimile: 707.878.2375
© 1997–2008 by The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation