1.14: sa tu dīrgha kāla nairantarya satkārā ‘‘sevito dṛḍhabhūmiḥ

In this sutra, satkara is translated as devotion. While this is good, there is more. In satkara, sat means Truth (existence as it is), and kara comes from the same root askarma (action). This gives us a word that means an action that reveals the truth of the Self, that pure light of consciousness by which everything is known. The purest devotion is toward knowing our Self as the divine inner presence. We can see our discipline of daily meditation as a heartfelt devotion rather than an obligatory task. Perhaps in the beginning meditation didn’t fit our schedule, or we just didn’t have time every day, or it was boring. Now we can be devoted to our practice. Examine how you really feel about it. We may be devoted to many things: our spouse, children, parents, even our dog. Include meditation in this good company; do this for yourself. Practice becomes firmly grounded when well attended to for a long time, without break and with satkara—deep devotion. Remember this: Abhyasa (the practice) is for a long time, without interruption, with your whole heart.