The Magic of Meditation
Following the pandemic, many researchers endeavoured to prove that an end to long Covid was possible. All efforts failed—until scholars began experimenting with meditation as a method of stopping the cytokine storm: the body’s natural immune overreaction linked to long Covid symptoms and chronic fatigue syndrome.
Yes, long Covid responses are natural immune responses—but they are not appropriate.
Meditation intervenes in this immune system trigger, helping to calm and pull back the aggression, eventually restoring the body to a previous “register point.” It works like magic, resolving many everyday problems such as anxiety.
I had a choice long ago: to follow the teachings of Buddha or Gorakhnath. (I found out two decades later they occupied the same forest and studied the same Tantra.) I chose Gorakhnath because of the ‘nothingness’ clause that seemed to paraphrase all of Buddha’s teachings.
“Stop thinking” wasn’t enough for me to step on—to stabilise myself with.
Last year, my good friend Lynne introduced me to a teacher, Adyashanti, who said:
“The spiritual instruction to just stop is not directed at the mind, nor to feelings or the personality. It is directed to the afterthoughts that come and take credit or blame for all the mind’s workings.”
How did I miss that?
Buddha’s insistence on nothingness or emptiness was not to discipline me—but to discipline the ego, which always wants the last word.
Once we understand the components of the “Mind,” we quickly grasp the principles of meditation. The wavelengths of our active thoughts aren’t what prevent stillness—it’s the ego’s interruption between each wave: cutting in with snarky remarks, memories, odd justifications, temptations, and cravings.
The ego is not the enemy—it’s what raised you. It told you when to cry, when you were hungry, and defended you when you felt threatened. But now… you are grown. And you can survive without the caricature the ego has become—overreactive and unrealistic.
Meditation, over time, becomes a system of emptying. When you sit with your thoughts, one at a time—slowing down and waiting for the next—be subtle in your awareness and watch for when the ego chimes in. It will. And the more you recognise its name-blame-shame game, the quicker you can calm it, befriend it, and eventually master it.
“Ego, thank you. Rest. I’ll be back soon. I’m okay alone for a bit.”
Time begins to slow. The space between thoughts lengthens. Eventually, your mind will sustain a wavelength in Theta—a state capable of profound healing and personal evolution.
The body changes.
The brain changes.
Your life changes.
