Tributary requisites serve as a fertilizer in the garden of spiritual life. Without making it an integral part of our life, we cannot realize the fruits of meditation . Tributary requisites not only enhance the spiritual level but also improve the social, professional, intellectual, physical and emotional aspects of our life.
One who wants to practice Preksha Meditation must follow the following five Tributary requisites (Upsampada) or the guiding principles:
1. Mindfulness (Bhavakriya):
Mindfulness or Bhavakriya implies the unison of mind, emotions and activity. It has three aspects:
Present-mindedness: Itmeans to remain conscious and aware of each and every moment. Present-minded action is contrary to mechanical (absentminded) action. When one is engaged in doing something, it is not proper to be carried away by one's imagination which is not connected with the work in hand.
Habitually, one wastes his time and energy in useless recollection of the past or irrelevant imaginations of the future. But neither the past nor the future is real. Only the present exists and is real. One who lets the present slip away, is never able to re-capture it, and hence, Mindfulness is the only means of capturing the reality of the present. It means present-minded action.
Complete awareness of one's action: Habitually, again, one thinks with 'half a mind', that is fragmenting the mind, and engaging only a piece of it in the work in hand, while the rest of it is allowed to wander about. When the mind is totally engaged by the work in hand, the result is Mindfulness or Bhavakriya. Synchrony of mind and body saves much waste of efforts and energy, increases efficiency and results in greater success.
Un-interrupted (spiritual) vigilance: One must be continuously aware of his ultimate aim, which is twofold: (a) Purification of mind and (b) Awakening the supine Will and other inherent powers.
2. Act - Do not "Re-act" (PratikriyaVirati):
Habitually we react to external stimuli, that is, we are generally overwhelmed by retaliatory emotional forces within us demanding appropriate action. But, surely this cannot be called "action"; it is, in fact, "re-action". Disciplineof the reasoning mind controls the re-active forces and results in appropriate "action", rather than "re-action". One should endeavor to establish control and avoid retaliatorybehavior.
This principle is about being‘action-oriented and not reaction oriented’. However, reaction has become an integral part of the human nature, in spite of the fact that every individual desires for freedom. Everything that we do including talking, hearing, seeing, eating, reading, etc. both involves and generates some sort of reaction. The realistic path to freedom is to free our consciousness from impurities of thoughts and emotions. To defeat anger , ego, deceit , and any other reactive attitude, we need to practice equanimity and restraint from reactions of all sorts.
3. Amity:
Behaviour of a spiritual practitioner should radiate friendliness, compassion and sympathy. This is possible only when one is able to countermand one's reactive tendencies by reasoning and avoid retaliatary thoughts and actions. Subjugation of retaliatary impulse results in friendly and compassionate behaviour. The practitionershould be ever vigilant in this respect and cultivate amity.
4. Diet:
Dietics is an important facet of meditational practice. Intake of food deeply influences not only our physical health, but also mental tendencies and emotional states. Habitually we eat too much. This overloads our digestive system and results in indigestion etc. This in turn, further weakens not only the digestive organs but vitiates the entire organism, including mental tendencies and emotional states.
Practitionershould be vigilant towards his diet.Over eating or eating unpalatable food is prohibited for a practitioner. It is one of the biggest obstacles in the path of meditation. He should particularly abstain from such foods and drinks as are unsalutary to one's health, physical as well as mental.
5. Silence:
It is - controlled speech or complete silence. We speak in order to communicate with one another. However, habitually we speak too much and too long. Practitionershould be careful to effect full control over his speaking mechanism. It should be used only when necessary. His speech should be modulated and measured.