It’s important to understand, however, that one is not trying to create some sort of unnatural state. The purpose is to bring these aspects of life – the body and the mind – into alignment with their fundamental nature. It’s not about trying to become, to make the essence of the mind become peacefulor alert. It is already utterly peaceful, utterly pure, utterly awake, it has always been alert and peaceful and wise and kind. But those qualities get occluded – covered over and obscured – by the flow of one’s days and activities: waking, sleeping, engaging with others, and the ten thousand things that we do. Meditation is not about trying to create something special, to get to a special state;meditation is more about uncovering what has always been and always is here. One is simply trying to bring the external conditions into alignment with that fundamental reality of human nature.

Ajahn Amaro, Finding the Missing Peace