For a while during his sadhana, Lord Buddha was performing severe austerities. One day, two musicians happened to pass by the place where he was sitting. One was saying to the other. "Do not tighten the strings of your instrument too much or they will break. Do not keep them too loose or they will produce no sound at all. Follow the middle path." These words hit Lord Buddha with great force. He felt that they had been said just for him. Immediately, he gave up his severe sadhana and began to follow an easy and natural one.

Meditation is a natural sadhana, and it has been recognized by all the saints and sages as the most direct means of perceiving the self. The Bhagawad Gita says, "Through meditation, the self is seen''. Meditation is universal. It is not the property of any particular religion or nationality. It does not belong to Hinduism, any more than sleep belongs to Hinduism. Is there such a thing as Hindu sleep or Christian sleep or Muslim sleep? Sleep is our own property, and in the same way meditation belongs to us. In fact, not only human beings meditate ; everything in nature is in meditation. When a bird glides in the sky, it is in meditation. When an animal stalks its prey, it is in meditation. The Upanishads say that the earth holds its position through the power of its meditation, that the wind blows through the power of its meditation, and that fire burns through the power of its meditation.