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Just Stop Drinking!

This is the seventh in a series of posts intended to shed light on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the authoritative text on classical Indian yoga, or meditation.

So far Patanjali has told us:

  • the definition and goal of yoga (enlightenment);
  • the key to success;
  • how to monitor progress;
  • the type of effort it takes; and
  • about an alternative route.

Now he lists obstacles and symptoms we may face in our pursuit of enlightenment and how to overcome them.

Chapter 1, aphorisms 30- 32, loosely:

1.30  there are nine distractions which can become obstacles to attaining enlightenment: illness, dullness, doubt, negligence, laziness, cravings, misperceptions, failure and instability

1.31  symptoms of obstacles include distress, despair, trembling and uneven breath

1.32  concentrating your mind can remove the obstacles

In short, distractions become obstacles when our focus shifts to whatever distracted us – so the trick is not to become distracted!

It’s sort of like saying, “stop eating if you want to lose weight”, or telling an alcoholic all they have to do is stop drinking. A LOT easier said than done – though the point is valid.

For info about private lessons or workshops in self-discovery and peace of mind see the ‘Contact Us’ page of this site.

God bless, Skip

#patanjali   #consciousness   #meditation

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A Shortcut(?) to Enlightenment

This is the sixth in a series of posts intended to shed light on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the authoritative text on classical Indian yoga, or meditation.

Sankhya and Yoga are two of the six schools of classical Hindu philosophy. Sankhya points out that Consciousness is unlike anything else known to man; it’s literally intangible; it’s not subject to the laws of nature; it’s not constrained by time and space; and it can’t be explained [that was true 3,000 years ago and is still true today]. If Sankhya is the postulate that Consciousness is essentially Divine, Yoga is the proof. Yoga is a path to discovering the fundamentally Divine nature of our own essence.

So far in his blueprint for lasting peace, Patanjali tells us:

  • realizing the nature of our own awareness or Consciousness (i.e., enlightenment) typically involves an inward journey beyond our thoughts;
  • that we’ll encounter five types of thought along the way;
  • that the primary path to enlightenment (meditation) is often long and fraught with distraction, thus the key to success is never giving up while always letting go;
  • how to recognize whether we’re making progress; specifically, that we’ll encounter five distinct states of meditation;
  • that attaining enlightenment typically requires steadfast and prolonged conviction, determination and effort.

Now he tells us that there’s a shortcut: devotion.

Chapter 1, aphorisms 23-29:

1.23 “ishvara pranidhana va”; loosely, “alternatively, enlightenment can be attained through devout service to God”

From Swamij.com, “[T]he word Īśvara is used to denote a state of collective consciousness. Thus, God is not a being that sits on a high pedestal beyond the sun, moon, and stars; [herein] God is actually the state of Ultimate Reality. But due to the lack of direct experience, God has been personified and given various names and forms by religions throughout the ages.”

1.24 “klesha karma vipaka ashayaih aparamristah purusha-vishesha ishvara”; loosely, “God or Consciousness is unaffected by karma and thus suffering”

1.25 “tatra niratishayam sarvajna bijam”; loosely, “God is all-knowing”

1.26 “purvesham api guruh kalena anavachchhedat”; loosely, “God is unaffected by time and space”

1.27 “tasya vachakah pranavah”; loosely, “the sound “AUM” [or “Amen”] may be used to represent God”

1.28 “tat japah tat artha bhavanam”; loosely, “it helps to reflect upon the meaning of AUM [or “Amen”] while repeating it”

1.29 “tatah pratyak chetana adhigamah api antaraya abhavash cha”; loosely, “devotion to God removes the obstacles to enlightenment”

The end goal of classical Indian yoga or meditation is to realize the literally intangible, essentially divine nature of our own and collective Consciousness. Here Patanjali says it may be easier and quicker – and you’ll get to the same place physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually – if instead you cut straight to the chase and devote your life to “God” (i.e., in service to others in the name of the Divine). In reality, I suspect anyone who realizes the existence of God (either via meditation or devotion) likely spends the rest of their life in service!

For info about private lessons or workshops in self-discovery and peace of mind see the ‘Contact Us’ page of this site.

God bless, Skip

#patanjali   #consciousness   #meditation

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The Path to Enlightenment

This is the fifth in a series of posts intended to shed light on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the original authoritative text on classical Indian yoga, or meditation.

Chapter 1 of Patanjali’s outline consists of 51 lines. So far we’ve looked at sutras 1-18:

1-4         Yoga is transcending thoughts to experience Consciousness;

5-11      There are five types of thought to transcend: correct, incorrect, imagined, neutral and remembered;

12-16    The key to success is never giving up & always letting go;

17-18    There are five levels of meditation; the first four involve focusing on something; in the fifth, we effectively merge with our own Consciousness

In the next four aphorisms, Patanjali identifies what’s required to achieve the fifth stage of meditation or enlightenment, and how long it might take:

Chapter 1, aphorisms 19-22:

1.19 “bhava pratyayah videha prakriti layanam”; loosely, “some people are predestined or predisposed to experience enlightenment”

1.20 “shraddha virya smriti samadhi prajna purvakah itaresham”; loosely, “for others enlightenment requires faith, vigor, mindfulness, meditation and wisdom”

1.21 “tivra samvega asannah”; loosely, “success comes readily to those with conviction”

1.22 “mridu madhya adhimatra tatah api visheshah”; loosely, “though the time it takes is affected by the degree of effort one puts into it”

Since most of us weren’t born predisposed to experience enlightenment, we pursue the inter-connected, five-fold path of:

  • Faith – cultivating a sense of certainty that this pursuit is the right thing to do;
  • Vigor – fostering the conviction and energy that we can succeed;
  • Mindfulness – maintaining awareness of whether we’re acting in accordance with our goal;
  • Meditation – seeking the objective, subjective and intuitive knowledge that comes from meditating;
  • Wisdom – acting upon the correct knowledge that comes from meditating

For info about private lessons or workshops in self-discovery and peace of mind see the ‘Contact Us’ page of this site.

God bless, Skip

#patanjali   #consciousness   #meditation

 

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Levels of Meditation

Curious about the mental and spiritual aspects of classical Indian yoga? This is the fourth in a series of posts introducing Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras – the original, authoritative Indian yoga text.

Patanjali begins his Sanskrit outline with a description of yoga: the transcendence of thoughts into Consciousness (i.e., “enlightenment”), followed by a description of the various types of thought we need to go beyond, and the key to success: never giving up & always letting go.

In the next two aphorisms Patanjali introduces the five progressive stages of meditation, the primary means to become enlightened.

Chapter 1, aphorisms 17 – 18:

1.17 “ vitarka vichara ananda asmita rupa anugamat samprajnatah“; loosely, “there are four levels of meditation “with seed”: attention, concentration, contemplation and absorption”

1.18 “virama pratyaya abhyasa purvah samskara shesha anyah“; loosely, “with sufficient practice we experience meditation without seed”

As we progress through the four deepening levels of focusing on an object, our understanding of the object expands. Awareness of observable characteristics gives way to intuitive insights about the object. In the fourth, deepest level of focusing on an object, we become fully immersed or absorbed in it, literally unaware of the distinction between ourselves, the object and our observation of it.

From Bernard Bouanchaud’s “The Essence of Yoga”, “In the successive states of union with an object, consciousness does not change. The mind of the person becomes more and more transparent, until consciousness reflects the object of contemplation with purity.”

From Swamij.com, “[T]he meditator systematically moves inward, through four levels or stages of concentration on an object, and then progresses to the stage of objectless concentration” – sort of like with and without training wheels as we learn to ride a bicycle.

When we meditate beyond thought (i.e., “without seed”), our consciousness – i.e., our awareness, which is always “on”, which never changes – is aware only of itself; this is the point of self-realization or enlightenment, a moment of great peace, clarity and compassion.

The four progressively intuitive levels of meditation “with seed” coincide with the four progressively subtle aspects of our mind. For example, assume that we’re focusing on a candle, a metaphor for Consciousness. The stages of meditation might be described as follows:

1. Our conscious mind – the aspect we “hear” – analyzes, discriminates, and judges; this is the aspect of our mind associated with the initial stage of meditation (attention); at this point we’re making an initial cognitive evaluation of the object of our contemplation. Focusing on the candle, I may think to myself, “it’s a candle; it generates heat and light”.

2. Drawing further inward, the outermost aspect of our sub-conscious mind processes our senses and movement; this aspect of our mind is associated with the second level of meditation (concentration); at this point we’re effectively making a sensory evaluation of the candle. I may think about its size, shape, smell, whether it makes sound as it burns, its texture and weight.

3. The middle aspect of our sub-conscious mind stores our memories and emotions and is associated with the third stage of meditation (contemplation); at this point we’re making a more subjective, initially intuitive evaluation of the candle. If I’ve had past experiences with candles those memories may trigger insights or intuition about the function or nature of candles (e.g., I may “see” aspects of the metaphor for Consciousness).

4. The innermost, subtlest aspect of our mind is our sense of “I am”, the innate, deeply rooted perspective from which we witness life and recognize that we are a unique being. This aspect of our mind is associated with the final, deepest level of meditation “with seed” (absorption); at this point, we lose the distinction between ourselves, the candle and the fact that we’re focusing on it – in effect, we lose our sense of individuality and “become one with” the object of our focus. Thoughts are no longer objective or subjective; rather, they’re entirely intuitive. I may identify with the candle to such an extent that I realize things about it that no amount of cognition or prior experience could tell me about its essential nature.

5. Thereafter, continuing to meditate, having exhausted or emptied our mind of all candle-related considerations, we meditate without specific focus, “without seed”, beyond thoughts. Having no thoughts or emotions to be aware of, our Consciousness becomes aware of itself – at which point we experience a state of bliss: a state without judgment or worry; a state of peaceful stillness, quiet acceptance and belonging.

For info about private lessons or workshops in self-discovery and peace of mind see the ‘Contact Us’ page of this site.

God bless, Skip

#patanjali   #consciousness   #meditation

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Key to Success

This is the third in a series of posts intended to introduce Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras to those interested in the spiritual and mental aspects of classical Indian yoga. This series focuses on the first 100 lines (aka aphorisms or sutras) of Patanjali’s epic 3,000-year-old Sanskrit “poem”.

Having described yoga as the transcendence of thought into consciousness, and described the nature of the thoughts we’re trying to go beyond, Patanjali now implicitly acknowledges that the process takes a while and isn’t easy, by sharing the two-fold key to success: never give up & always let go.

Chapter 1, aphorisms 12-16:

1.12 “abhyasa vairagyabhyam tat nirodhah”; loosely, “practice and non-attachment lead to success”

1.13 “tatra sthitau yatnah abhyasa”; loosely, “practice means never giving up”

1.14 “sah tu dirgha kala nairantaira satkara asevitah dridha bhumih”; loosely, “by practicing continuously and earnestly over a long time efforts become habitual”

1.15 “drista anushravika vishaya vitrishnasya vashikara sanjna vairagyam”; loosely, “non-attachment means always letting go (mastering desire)”

1.16 “tat param purusha khyateh guna vaitrshnyam”; loosely, “with ultimate self-awareness all attachments fall away”

From Swamij.com:

“[T]here are two directions that one can go in life…One direction is towards truth, reality, Self, or spiritual realization. The other direction is opposite….

Abhyasa [Practice or “never give up”] means cultivating the lifestyle, actions, speech, and thoughts, as well as the spiritual practices that lead in the positive direction…

Vairagya [Non-attachment or “always let go”] is the practice of gradually letting go of the mental colorings that lead one away from the spiritual…

Love is what is left when you let go of all the things you love.”

For info about workshops in self-discovery and peace of mind see the ‘Contact Us’ page of this site.

God bless, Skip

#patanjali   #consciousness   #meditation

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The Thinking Process

This is the second in a series of posts intended to shed light on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, one of two authoritative texts on the ancient Indian practice of yoga or meditation [the other being the Bhagavad Gita].

For context, the first few aphorisms or sutras described yoga as the process of transcending our thoughts to experience Consciousness.

These next several sutras describe the types of thoughts we’re trying to transcend, in part so we can discriminate between them and cultivate those conducive to clarity and peace of mind.

Chapter 1, aphorisms 5-11:

1.5 “vrittayah pancatayah klishta aklishta”; loosely, “there are five types of thought; they may be influenced by conditions that further obscure Consciousness”

1.6  “pramana viparyaya vikalpa nidra smritayah”; loosely, “[the five types of thought are] correct, incorrect, imagined, neutral and remembered”

1.7  “pratyaksha anumana agamah pramanani”; loosely, “correct thoughts are verifiable by observation, inference and authentication”

1.8  “viparyayah mithya jnanam atad rupa pratistham”; loosely, “incorrect thoughts are caused by misperception”

1.9  “shabda jnana anupati vastu shunyah vikalpah”; loosely, “imagined thoughts have no basis in reality”

1.10 “abhava pratyaya alambana vritti nidra”; loosely, “neutral thoughts are non-cognitive observations”

1.11 “anubhuta vishaya asampramoshah smritih”; loosely, “remembered thoughts are impressions that remain of the other four”

From Swamij.com, “By learning to observe the thinking process, and then to discriminate between these five types of mental objects, we start to gain a mastery over them and their ability to control our actions, speech, and thoughts…Of the five kinds of thought patterns, pramana, or correct knowledge is the one to cultivate.”

For info about workshops in self-discovery and peace of mind see the ‘Contact Us’ page of this site.

God bless, Skip

#patanjali   #consciousness   #meditation

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What is Yoga?

Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras is a 3,000 year old, 200-line “poem” which outlines the science and practice of meditation: a path to self-discovery, peace of mind, and ultimately enlightenment.

Patanjali memorialized the classical Indian discipline of yoga or meditation as it had been passed from teacher to student for hundreds of years before the advent of written language. Due to limitations inherent in the form of the text and translations, students are advised to study multiple interpretations and explanations of Patanjali’s work to arrive at their own understanding of this ancient treasure map.

For those who may be curious about the “mental” and “spiritual” aspects of classical Indian yoga, we’ll revisit the first two chapters of Patanjali’s outline, one section at a time – beginning with the introductory lines of Chapter 1, which address the question, “What is Yoga?”

Keep in mind that classical Indian yoga is a path of self-discovery: an effort to realize our true nature: the essence of who we are which lies deep within us: our immutable consciousness.

Chapter 1, aphorisms 1-4 – in short, “What is Yoga?”:

1.1 “atha yoga anushasanam”; loosely, “now we’re going to discuss yoga”

1.2 “yogash chitta vritti nirodhah”; loosely, “yoga is transcending our thoughts”

1.3 “tada drashtuh svarupe avasthanam”; loosely, “to realize our essence”

1.4 “vritti sarupyam itaratra”; loosely, “otherwise, we identify with our thoughts”

As summed up by Swamij.com: “When activity of all levels of mind have been transcended (1.2), we experience pure consciousness (1.3). However, the rest of the time, mind flows towards the many sensory experiences we have, as well as towards the streams of memories and fantasies (1.4).”

For info about workshops in self-discovery and peace of mind see the ‘Contact Us’ page of this site.

God bless, Skip

#patanjali   #consciousness   #meditation

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The Spiritual Path

What we’re seeking remains elusive…

It’s one of those things that once we see it, we can’t un-see it, but after a while the realization fades from our mind’s eye, to be recalled either when something triggers it, or willfully.

It’s counter-intuitive to look inside ourselves to find what’s “missing” from our lives. Rather, it’s natural to search elsewhere for love, satisfaction, affirmation; to calm one’s fears and abate one’s desires; to ease stress, anxiety; to find purpose and fulfillment.

According to ancient Hindu legend, the gods agreed to hide the secret to everlasting peace (i.e., the realization of one’s own divine essence) from mankind because we were abusing it. After some debate, the gods agreed not to hide it deep in the earth, or in the deepest ocean, or on top of the tallest mountain – but rather within our own being, knowing that would be the last place we’d look for it.

…and demands dogged pursuit.

Realizing the immutable, eternal nature of our own consciousness is only half the battle. Once discovered, it’s a matter of keeping it in mind, that we don’t lose sight of it and slip back into our historical, natural patterns of perception and behavior, as beautifully described in this excerpt from “The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying,” by Sogyal Rinpoche:

“In the Sufi Master Rumi’s “Table Talk,” there is this fierce and pointed passage:

The master said there is one thing in this world which must never be forgotten. If you were to forget everything else, but were not to forget this, there would be no cause to worry, while if you remembered, performed and attended to everything else, but forgot that one thing, you would in fact have done nothing whatsoever.

It is as if a king had sent you to a country to carry out one special, specific task. You go to the country and you perform a hundred other tasks, but if you have not performed the task you were sent for, it is as if you have performed nothing at all. So man has come into the world for a particular task, and that is his purpose. If he doesn’t perform it, he will have done nothing.

 

All the spiritual teachers of humanity have told us the same thing, that the purpose of life on earth is to achieve union with our fundamental, enlightened nature. The “task” for which the “king” has sent us into this strange, dark country is to realize and embody our true being. There is only one way to do this, and that is to undertake the spiritual journey, with all the ardor and intelligence, courage and resolve for transformation that we can muster.”

An illustrative tale

Click on the link below to hear Danny Kaye tell “The Tale of the Name of the Tree.” As only he could, Kaye shares a childhood story, the moral of which is that unrelenting determination doesn’t just lead to success, it can literally unlock the key to life.

Danny Kaye – “The Tale of the Name of the Tree”

God bless, Allan

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Now all fear of death is over and done

Here’s an excerpt from The “Tibetan Book of Living and Dying,” the international bestseller by Buddhist master, Sogyal Rinpoche in which he describes realizing the nature of Consciousness: the holy grail of Patanjali’s classical yoga. Christians and Jews refer to it as “being reborn”; yogis refer to it as becoming “enlightened”; Sogyal refers to it as a “resurrection”. I’ve changed none of Sogyal’s words, except to clarify in three places that what some Buddhists refer to as “nature of mind,” yogis refer to as “consciousness”. – Allan

THE CHANGELESS

Impermanence has already revealed to us many truths, but it has a final treasure still in its keeping, one that lies largely hidden from us, unsuspected and unrecognized, yet most intimately our own.

The Western poet Rainer Maria Rilke has said that our deepest fears are like dragons guarding our deepest treasure. The fear that impermanence awakens in us, that nothing is real and nothing lasts, is, we come to discover, our greatest friend because it drives us to ask: If everything dies and changes, then what is really true? Is there something behind the appearances, something boundless and infinitely spacious, something in which the dance of change and impermanence takes place? Is there something in fact we can depend on, that does survive what we call death?

Allowing these questions to occupy us urgently, and reflecting on them, we slowly find ourselves making a profound shift in the way we view everything. With continued contemplation and practice in letting go, we come to uncover in ourselves “something” we cannot name or describe or conceptualize, “something” that we begin to realize lies behind all the changes and deaths of the world. The narrow desires and distractions to which our obsessive grasping onto permanence has condemned us begin to dissolve and fall away.

As this happens we catch repeated and glowing glimpses of the vast implications behind the truth of impermanence. It is as if all our lives we have been flying in an airplane through dark clouds and turbulence, when suddenly the plane soars above these into the clear, boundless sky. Inspired and exhilarated by this emergence into a new dimension of freedom, we come to uncover a depth of peace, joy, and confidence in ourselves that fills us with wonder, and breeds in us gradually a certainty that there is in us “something” that nothing destroys, that nothing alters, and that cannot die. Milarepa* wrote:

In horror of death, I took to the mountains –

Again and again I meditated on the uncertainty of the hour of death,

Capturing the fortress of the deathless unending nature of mind [aka “consciousness”].

Now all fear of death is over and done.

 

Gradually, then, we become aware in ourselves of the calm and sky-like presence of what Milarepa calls the deathless and unending nature of mind [aka “consciousness”]. And as this new awareness begins to become vivid and almost unbroken, there occurs what the Upanishads call “a turning about in the seat of consciousness,” a personal, utterly non-conceptual revelation of what we are, why we are here, and how we should act, which amounts in the end to nothing less than a new life, a new birth, almost, you could say, a resurrection.

What a beautiful and what a healing mystery it is that from contemplating, continually and fearlessly, the truth of change and impermanence, we come slowly to find ourselves face to face, in gratitude and joy, with the truth of the changeless, with the truth of the deathless, unending nature of mind [aka “consciousness”]!

– The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, Sogyal Rinpoche

* one of the most widely known Tibetan Saints

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A self-guided meditation

Want to take your chattering mind offline for a few minutes? Want to take a break from dwelling on the death of democracy and the spread of the corona virus?

Here’s an easy-to-follow recipe:

Record yourself reading this post aloud – slowly and in a calm, loving, reassuring voice [or listen to the recording inserted at the bottom of this post].

 

Preparation:

  • Find a quiet, comfortable place to sit.
  • Sit upright.
  • Practice anulom vilom breathing for a few minutes [refer to the January 12 post on this page].
  • [Here’s where you might start your recording].
  • Close your eyes almost all the way.
  • Draw your attention to your relaxed, rhythmic breathing: note the sensation and duration of each inhalation and exhalation.

You’re about to take a journey deep inside yourself, through six “energetic layers” of your being to the essence of who and what you are – moving from the densest to subtlest aspect of yourself: from the outside in.

 Your outer body

Starting with key aspects of your outer body, draw your attention from one to the next – pausing briefly to feel each, to exhale, releasing any tension or stress:

  • Begin by drawing your attention to your toes.
  • Then to the soles of your feet.
  • Then to your calves.
  • Then to your knees.
  • Then to your thighs.
  • Then to your hips.
  • Then to your waist.
  • Then to your lower back.
  • Then to your mid-back.
  • Then to your upper back.
  • Then to your neck.
  • Then to your head.
  • Then to your shoulders
  • Then to your upper arms.
  • Then to your elbows.
  • Then to your forearms.
  • Then to your wrists.
  • Then to your palms.
  • And then to your fingers.

These are the energetically densest parts of you. These are the parts that protect and propel you throughout each day. In whatever way makes sense to you, express appreciation for these aspects of yourself. Thank them for doing their job and let them know that for the next several minutes they may rest.

 Your energy body

Now, leave your outer body behind and turn your attention inward to your softer, more subtle energy body – and do the same thing: draw your attention from one key internal organ system to the next – pausing briefly to “feel” each of them, and exhale, releasing any tension or stress from each:

  • Begin by drawing your attention to the area below your waist, to your reproductive and elimination organs and systems.
  • Then draw your attention upward to the area behind your navel, to your stomach and other digestive organs and systems.
  • Then draw your attention upward to your heart. Pause here and see if you can literally feel your heart beating – as it pumps blood through every cell of your body.
  • Then draw your attention upward to your throat, the source of your voice and the passageway that connects your brain with the rest of your body.
  • And then draw your attention upward to the area behind your eyes and between your ears to your brain.

These are the energetically subtler physical parts of your body that sustain you, that keep you alive. In whatever way makes sense to you, express appreciation for these aspects of yourself. Thank them for ceaselessly doing their job and let them know that for the next several minutes they needn’t work so hard.

 Your conscious mind

Now, leave your physical body behind and turn your attention to your non-physical mind – specifically, to your thoughts and the voice in your head. These are evidence of your conscious or “thinking” mind.

Pause here to contemplate the following about this miraculous, critical aspect of yourself – which you can control:

  • This is the aspect of your mind you’re most aware of; you “hear” it functioning; you use it throughout each day to judge, analyze and make decisions.

 

  • This aspect of your mind functions like your heart and lungs: single, consecutive, constant beats, breaths, and thoughts. [Skeptical? Try simultaneously solving two simple math problems – or simultaneously counting and reciting the alphabet. Similarly, you can no more stop your thoughts than you can stop your heart or lungs!]

 

  • You can control the direction and duration of your thoughts (as you were just doing when you brought your attention to the various parts of your physical body).

 

  • While you can’t stop this part of your mind from functioning, you can pause the judging, analyzing and deciding to quietly, consciously, mindfully observe your sensations and actions.

 

  • There are three types of original thought: you can perceive something correctly, incorrectly or you can imagine it. You can also use this aspect of your mind to call up memories from your sub-conscious mind.

 

  • There are five internal influences that affect your thoughts. [The key to addressing them is recognizing that you have more power over them than the external factors that trigger them.] The depth or absence of your faith in the existence of a higher power has a huge impact on your thoughts as it affects how you perceive life generally. Thereafter, the other influences on your thoughts are ego, desire, aversion, and fear.

This is the most observable aspect of your nonphysical mind. You use this part of your mind throughout each day to decide what to wear, what to eat, what to do, and how to do it. In whatever way makes sense to you, express appreciation for this part of yourself. Thank it for ceaselessly doing its job and let it know that for the next several minutes it needn’t work so hard.

 Your sub-conscious mind (level 1)

Now, step beneath your relatively noisy conscious mind into the quiet of your sub-conscious mind (i.e., the aspect you’re typically unaware of). Your sub-conscious mind is always “on”; silently “running the ship”; it multi-tasks flawlessly as long as your conscious mind isn’t distracted. Your sub-conscious mind has three primary responsibilities, each corresponding with a distinct energetic density or layer.

This outer, most energetic layer is the “doing” aspect of your mind; it’s responsible for bodily functioning; specifically, sensory processing and bodily movement.

For the next few moments you’re going to draw your attention from one of your senses to the next – pausing briefly to fully experience and appreciate each of them:

  • Begin by drawing your attention to your sense of hearing. How many distinct sounds can you hear? What’s the loudest? What’s the quietest?

 

  • Draw your attention to your sense of smell. How many things can you smell? What’s the most obvious? What’s the most subtle?

 

  • Draw your attention to your sense of taste – to your pallet. Can you still taste whatever you last had to eat or drink?

 

  • Draw your attention to your sense of touch; specifically, to the sensation of sitting; of resting your hands in your lap; of your feet on the floor; and the feeling of the clothes against your skin.

 

  • Draw your attention to what you “see” in your mind’s eye (keep your eyes almost closed). Is whatever you “see” clearly defined? Does it have color?

This aspect or layer of your mind is responsible for keeping you alive, constantly receiving and processing external data and executing all your bodily functions.

In whatever way makes sense to you, express appreciation for this part of yourself. Thank it for ceaselessly doing its job and let it know that for the next several minutes it can relax.

 Your sub-conscious mind (level 2)

Now, step down beneath your senses to the next-to-the-last layer of your tangible being: the level of your mind where your memories are stored.

You’re going to spend the next few minutes using your conscious mind to reach down into this aspect of your typically sub-conscious mind to call up specific memories and examine them.

You can do this with any memories – but for this exercise, you’ll recall two hopefully pleasant ones:

  • First, recall your most recent meal. Consider it with each of your senses. Was there a sound associated with eating it (e.g., was something crisp or crunchy)? Can you remember what it smelled like? What it tasted like? Can you remember holding the fork or spoon – or the sensation of holding whatever it was? Can you see what it looked like, it’s texture, size, shape and color?

 

  • After holding those recalled sensations in your conscious mind for a moment, let go of that memory and recall the “happiest moment of your life”. Go with whatever first pops into your conscious mind. It doesn’t matter what it is – or if indeed it was the happiest; you can always do this with other memories later. Where were you? Who was there? Can you see the moment in detail? Were there particular sounds or smells (e.g., if it happened near the shore, can you hear the ocean and smell the salt air)? Do you recall any taste associated with it? Can you recall the physical sensations associated with the experience (e.g., were you sitting, standing, laying down – how did it feel)?

Imagine life without this quieter, less energetically demanding layer of your sub-conscious mind – without the ability to recall everything you’ve learned and experienced. It would certainly make life a lot harder!

In whatever way makes sense to you, express appreciation for this part of yourself. Thank it for tirelessly doing its job and let it know that for the next several minutes it can relax.

 Your sub-conscious mind (level 3)

Now step beneath your memories and experience the quietest, most subtle vestige of your mind: your mental “root”: the vantage point from which you witness life; your elemental sense of “I am”.

This is your instinctive awareness that you are alive and unique, distinct from everyone and everything else – the “I am” perspective from which your conscious mind may occasionally egotistically think “I am smart, tall, fast, lean, happy, etc.”

One way to access this prime aspect of your mind is to imagine losing something. Loss inherently evidences and exposes this vital aspect of you. While the sensation of loss is far more powerful than one’s innate sense of self, the former may be used as a trailhead to uncover the latter.

Bring to mind one of your favorite things. It could be anything: an article of clothing, a musical instrument, a piece of jewelry, a car, your favorite ice cream. Contemplate it as you did before with each of your senses – and then imagine it’s suddenly taken away from you. Beneath any discomfort you may experience is your fundamental sense of “being”. Contemplate the distinction between the uncomfortable feeling of loss (the affect) – and the sense of “you”, who’s feeling it (the affected). The latter is evidence of this foundational aspect of your mind.

In whatever way makes sense to you, express appreciation for this primary aspect of yourself. Thank it for ceaselessly doing its job and let it know that for the next several minutes it can relax.

 Your consciousness

You can’t step down any further. Your mental “basis” is the subtlest, quietest level of your mind that you can experience; however, there is something within you that’s subtler than it: your awareness OF it – but because of its nature, you can’t literally experience that.

Your awareness or consciousness is unlike anything else known to man.

You know it exists, since without it you wouldn’t be aware of your body, sensations, thoughts and memories.

But your consciousness isn’t tangible. It doesn’t consist of atoms and energy like everything else. It can’t be measured. It has no shape or form. It can’t be altered. It can’t be destroyed. Unlike everything you’ve ever been aware OF, your awareness itself hasn’t changed since you first opened your eyes.

That said, spend a few moments consciously imagining the utter stillness and silence of the aspect of you that literally never changes. Consider its power: the indestructible, eternal, observing nature of the aspect of you that literally isn’t “born” and doesn’t “die” in an earthly sense.

In whatever way makes sense to you, express appreciation for this part of yourself – the aspect without which you wouldn’t even know you’re alive – and thank it for ceaselessly doing its job.

 

Now, whenever you’re ready, having spent some time getting to this tranquil state, take a few minutes to slowly bring yourself back to the present. Return your attention to your senses, to your breath, and then slowly open your eyes.

Namaste