Have you ever tried to create something or solve a problem when you’re pissed off? How did that go for you? Creating a sustainable solution is impossible when we are pissed off. The vibration of “pissed off” is vastly different from the energy of “ah, things are working out”. Those are clashing resonances. So taking pissed off energy into problem solving or creation, is both unpleasant and unproductive. You may be questioning this idea and thinking of a time your pissed off energy fired some action you thought was productive, but if you go deeper you’ll realize the actions rising from “pissed off” are usually vengeful and destructive. Most of them creating more mess that later has to be cleaned up; whether in our own hearts or in our communities. So pissed off is not fertile ground for solution and creation. Its like sticking seeds in cracked dry desert. It won’t bring fruit.
The yoga practice points out again and again that the energy you take into anything is the deciding factor in shaping outcome. So, how do we meditate when we are pissed off? The yoga sutras actually address this very question.
The three aspects of meditation are called Darhana, Dyhana and Samadhi and they describe the process of using mood to dictate appropriate time for planting seeds of intention. Just as a farmer knows she must tend to the fertility of the soil before even picking up seeds, the wise yogi knows to tend to his mood/energy before opening his mouth to speak and opening his mind to create. Darhana is a field of emotion. Dyhana is a single point of focus or a specific seed of intention. Samadhi is the natural result of clear seeds being planted in fertile soil…joyful growth! A fertile field of emotion is one in which we are relaxed and open to new possibility. In this state of calm arousal, creation and specific focus on new things comes naturally and feels good. When this is our mood, it is a good time to close our eyes and use meditation to carve out images of our bright future and breathe the breath of life into them. But does this mean, when we are pissed off, meditation is useless?
No. Sometimes our meditation is simply about self-soothing. We stay away from specifics, and just reach for slow breath and feelings of relief. We are tending to the soil and forgetting about the seeds for now. Our mantras might sound something like this, “I don’t have to figure it all out now. Things have a way of working themselves out. There are others who have been where I am and have found a way back to well being, connection and abundance. I’m going to give myself a break and just breathe. I know when I’m relaxed I tend to get clear inspiration and certainly I feel better when I clear my mind and breathe like this…” This is Darhana… this self-soothing is an aspect of meditation. Sometimes it is all we do. Just like the farmer who some days works solely on soil fertility, leaving the seeds for a more appropriate time.