My obeisance to the Divine in you, Gary,

Interesting article. Thank you for taking the time and writing about meditation.

Meditation is not a subjective experience; one can learn to meditate correctly. It is a pure, proven science.

I don’t think you failed in your journey to enlightenment. Know that you are already an enlightened being, just not awakened yet. Meditation alone doesn’t offer enlightenment. Above meditation is compassion; kindness, peace, detachment, and forgiveness are essential. One also needs to work on negatively in them and try to see everyone as equal.

Meditation is a source to quiet your mind and reach the one-thought or no-thought state. Here you will experience the divinity in you. But to reach that, you must master the above.

One should meditate when they are calm and not when one is stressed. This way, in the future, when a stressful situation occurs, the mind will calm down naturally. This is after 1000 hours of meditation.

I hope you continue your path to enlightenment. You have a beautiful soul, compassion, and kindness that help you reach your goal.