Note: For the complete lessons, with additions, see the AYP Easy Lessons for Ecstatic Living Books.

Lesson 178 - Q&A – Dharma

From: Yogani
Date: Mon May 3, 2004 11:15am

New Members: It is recommended you read from the beginning of the web archive, as previous lessons are prerequisite to this one. The first lesson is, "Why This Discussion?"

Q: I have been an outdoor painter for many, many years. Though I have never sat to purposely meditate, I can not recall once while in the 'painting process' consciously 'thinking.' There is the 'stillness' of being in right brain mode, that I always felt was my meditation. I'm not far into the messages, but finding them interesting and will probably try 'meditation without painting'...

A: Your "painting meditation" is beautiful. Everyone should be so blessed to find inner silence in the work they do. I'm sure it has brought you much peace and spiritual growth over the years. It is called our "dharma" – activity we do which supports our spiritual unfoldment.

Adding sitting yoga practices such as deep meditation and spinal breathing will broaden and stabilize your presence in silent pure bliss consciousness. One of the wonderful characteristics of yoga is its connectedness through our nervous system. By this I mean that your painting meditation will help your sitting meditation and vise versa, and so too will breathing (pranayama) methods interconnect with the other practices you are doing. All yoga practices connect through our nervous system, producing a leveraging effect, taking us ever higher.

By the same principle, one kind of practice will often lead us to additional kinds of practice. The nervous system instinctively knows what it needs once the inner doors begin to open. So, it is likely that your painting meditation has increased your receptivity to other methods of yoga.

I wish you all success on your continuing inner journey. Enjoy!

The guru is in you.

Note: For detailed instructions on employing desire and action on our spiritual path, see the AYP Bhakti and Karma Yoga book.

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