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GEM24
India
12 Posts |
 Posted - Sep 09 2005 : 04:00:53 AM
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Hi all,
This is Gavin. I have been a silent member of AYP for about a year now. and find the teachings wonderful.
I have a question regarding Inner Silence.
How do we recognize Inner Silence?
Are there any milestones on the road toward inner silence that we can recognize so that we know that we are moving in the right direction?
Thanks in advance for any reply.
regards
Gavin
Do what u do, DO WELL |
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lucidinterval1
USA
193 Posts |
Posted - Sep 09 2005 : 09:16:30 AM
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Hello Gavin,
It is good to hear from you. And this is a wonderful question.
Inner silence can be recognized in many ways. It is the real you, behind the mask of ego. It is being able to witness life's dramas without getting caught up or attached to them. Your inner peace or happiness is not conditional. You recognize gossip and can easily choose not to become part of it. During meditation, if thoughts pop into your head, you do not get discouraged, you gently brush them away and can easily go back to the mantra. In time, the subtle mantra is all that is left. It is the woman during childbirth that is ok with the pain because she understands that her suffering or sacrifice is nothing compared to the gift of life that she will bring forth. Inner silence is to be unmoved by emotions. It is the awareness beneath them. It is what I call a lucid interval.
It is a natural outcome of AYP. And the longer that we stay with it, the more it will increase in frequency. My personal goal is to try to achieve inner silence throughout the day. I have a long way to go, but with AYP, progress has been significant and steady. The pendulum of emotions becomes still.
With Peace,
Paul |
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lucidinterval1
USA
193 Posts |
Posted - Sep 09 2005 : 11:00:08 AM
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Here's some more...
Being able to pause before you speak.
Remaining calm when a car cuts you off in traffic.
Remember the scene from The Matrix where Neo turns to look at the Woman in Red? Guess what he lost his inner silence at that moment.
The ability to remain in front of orgasm.
Taking into consideration others feelings before your own.
Stopping to notice the sunrise or sunset.
Appreciating the texture of water as it moves across your tongue and slides down your throat.
Anyone else?
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Anthem
1608 Posts |
Posted - Sep 09 2005 : 1:58:02 PM
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Hi Gavin,
I'll take a shot, I won't be able to be as poetic as Paul but to me inner silence is when there is no constant speaking going on in my mind.
The first step in my experience was when I paused and took notice, that there was very little and at times no conscious talking going on. Later I became aware of my subconscious mind and what it was repeating to me. Then soon that became more silent as well and the separation between the two seems to disappear. Your mind no longer takes control of your actions, you witness your reactions and then choose how you want to act on them or not. I feel more love and compassion and have more awareness of other people's feelings, motivations and circumstances. You become aware that emotions are energy that you can direct any way you want to and that your soul is the creative force of your life.
That's it so far for me, I am looking forward to what comes next!
Anthem11
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Manipura
USA
870 Posts |
Posted - Sep 09 2005 : 2:52:48 PM
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Gavin - I'm not sure if this relates to your question, but here goes:
It's been 6 months or so since I started the AYP practices, and so far meditation has been pretty dry; always feeling like I'm missing something. But for the past couple of weeks, I've been experiencing something radically different during meditation. I gently follow the mantra, without any particular emphasis on pronunciation (this seems to be key - not controlling the mantra), and maybe 10 minutes later, I find myself slowly entering into a large space. I stay with the mantra, and very quickly it opens up into a vast, inner space. The closest thing I can describe it to standing blindfolded in an enormous, enclosed interior. I suspect that this is where the idea of the cathedral was conceived. My jaw spontaneously drops to make more room for the space in my head, and it feels like every atom in the surrounding space is charged with some sort of holy energy. I've felt this coming for a while, but only recently have "entered" the space fully. Orgasmic doesn't quite describe it, as I'd pass on any orgasm to be there; bliss, or ecstacy, is more like it. The interesting thing for me is that I've been in this inner space before, when I was a kid, but it was shamed out of me by my parents by the time I was 5 or 6. Finding myself in this space again is a pretty emotional experience.
I don't know if this is inner silence, or the pure bliss consciousness that Yogani writes about. I'd be interested to hear if anyone has had similar experiences. All I know from my own brief experience with these yoga practices, is that they are NOT subtle! If you're doing the practices as outlined in Yogani's book, you ARE moving in the right direction. For now, you may just have to take it on faith, but it won't be long til you start to be affected by your practice.
meg |
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GEM24
India
12 Posts |
Posted - Sep 10 2005 : 12:28:17 AM
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Hi,
Thank you all so much...definitely has cleared those cobwebs..thanks once again.
Gavin
Do what u do, DO WELL |
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david_obsidian
USA
2602 Posts |
Posted - Sep 11 2005 : 2:03:07 PM
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Hi,
it looks like we all experience it differently. Some people above are mentioning experiences in meditation, others the effect of inner silence in the long term.
>> I don't know if this is inner silence, or the pure bliss consciousness that Yogani writes about. I'd be interested to hear if anyone has had similar experiences. All I know from my own brief experience with these yoga practices, is that they are NOT subtle!
Ive had experiences very like these Meg. This sounds like Savikalpa Samadhi to me. This is an acute, on-the-spot, sudden migration into a much higher level of inner silence. I milestone in "inner silence" to be glad of, but for those who dont get it, dont worry because you can still get good long-term inner silence without it.
Meg, do you notice any effect on your breath at those times? Any noticeable slowing down?
quote:
Originally posted by GEM24
Hi,
Thank you all so much...definitely has cleared those cobwebs..thanks once again.
Gavin
Do what u do, DO WELL
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Edited by - david_obsidian on Sep 13 2005 3:36:28 PM |
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Manipura
USA
870 Posts |
Posted - Sep 13 2005 : 10:40:07 AM
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Do I notice my breath slowing down - no, but maybe I'll try that. I really don't have any control over it whatsoever; the most effective thing I can do is stay out of the way and completely release any intentions around it. In other words, it's purely grace, which can be frustrating for control freaks like me. I haven't experienced it for a few days, then this morning I experienced something slightly different: instead of the blindfolded-in-a-vast-cathedral feeling, my inner space felt full and fat, like loaves of something or other taking up every inch of space. My jaw spontaneously drops to make room for the space (or loaves). Again, not subtle; it feels rather epic. And very difficult to categorize, so I appreciate any imput or attempts at comparing similar experiences.
I checked out the Savikalpa Samadhi on a few websites. The only thing I can say is that my experience feels purely physical - there is no lapse in consciousness whatsoever. I scratch my nose, I hear the neighbors; but I'm fully engrossed in my inner activity. Seems like if it was some form of samadhi, my consciousness would block all these other things out. (?? is this true?? In samadhi, is one still conscious of one's environment?)
Thanks, David.
m |
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david_obsidian
USA
2602 Posts |
Posted - Sep 13 2005 : 3:56:01 PM
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Hello Meg,
>> I really don't have any control over it whatsoever; the most effective thing I can do is stay out of the way and completely release any intentions around it.
You're definitely on the right track there. I made lots of mistakes trying to control it in my earlier meditation years. It seems too nice a thing not to control .... The worst thing is that some of these efforts to control it may partly work.... and then negatively condition your meditation in a way that becomes very unhelpful and hard to get rid of.
quote:
Originally posted by meg
I checked out the Savikalpa Samadhi on a few websites. The only thing I can say is that my experience feels purely physical - there is no lapse in consciousness whatsoever. I scratch my nose, I hear the neighbors; but I'm fully engrossed in my inner activity. Seems like if it was some form of samadhi, my consciousness would block all these other things out. (?? is this true?? In samadhi, is one still conscious of one's environment?)
Thanks, David.
Yes, it's totally OK and normal NOT to lapse in awareness of surroundings when getting a Samadhi experience like that. Sometimes there may be lapses in awareness of surroundings but they aren't critical.
>> instead of the blindfolded-in-a-vast-cathedral feeling, my inner space felt full and fat, like loaves of something or other taking up every inch of space.
Yes, I've had fullness experiences too -- the other side of the coin of emptiness experiences. I remember having some of these as a kid too.
>> Again, not subtle; it feels rather epic. And very difficult to categorize, so I appreciate any imput or attempts at comparing similar experiences.
Indeed it's not subtle --- almost by definition. My interpretation of savikalpa samadhi is a sudden shuttling to a higher state of inner silence (or being). The very suddenness of it makes it not subtle.
From another point of view, (technical) it's a temporary starting-to-function with some deep aspect of your nervous system at a lower level of stress.
There are all sorts of grades of it. Also, a thing to keep in mind (for us and also for other people listening) -- when it happens, it's an event, not a state of realization. Someone's state of consciousness can get suddenly (and temporarily) higher. It's a gift, not a medal. At the same time though, it's good news when it happens. It's neither to be envied, held onto, believed-to-be-greater-than-it-is nor trivialized either, coz it is kinda cool when it happens.
>> Thanks, David.
Always a pleasure. Good luck not grabbing it!! 
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Edited by - david_obsidian on Sep 13 2005 4:11:53 PM |
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Adam West
23 Posts |
Posted - Sep 14 2005 : 03:56:17 AM
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Hello Meg,
My suspicion of what you are describing is a medium to deep trance state, with a good level of experience pure bliss consciousness. Not Samadhi, but certainly if entered into enough and maintained long enough, Samadhi would result :-) Just my interpretation :-) Sounds like you are making great progress! :-)
In kind regards,
Adam.
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Manipura
USA
870 Posts |
Posted - Sep 14 2005 : 1:16:11 PM
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Thanks, Adam. And thanks to David O - I replied to your message but I don't think it got posted - doesn't show up on my computer. I'm really interested in learning more about samadhi, and would appreciate any links you can recommend. It doesn't feel like a deep trance state. Not at all. I am fully present, I open my eyes, I scratch my toes, and it doesn't go away. This doesn't seem to me like it would be samadhi, but it may well be. It's really like entering a room, blindfolded. I checked out a few websites on samadhi, but the descriptions are conceptual: they elaborate in incomprehensible terms on what samadhi "is", rather than what it feels like. My experience is that the space is at times vast and vacant; at other times completely full and fat. But it is always the same space.
Any insights, or similar experiences, would be helpful. Thanks again -
m |
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Manipura
USA
870 Posts |
Posted - Sep 14 2005 : 1:32:43 PM
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This must be my week to be computer challenged - plz excuse my technical clumsiness, moderator! :) I see that my message(s) were indeed posted.
Yes, I realize intensely the grace behind the experiences, and I also realize that it ain't enlightenment! It's a cool thing, that's all, and probably just as much to do with my enduring neuroses than anything else. We're all pre-wired for something, right? Mine seems to be an internal vacation getaway.
m |
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david_obsidian
USA
2602 Posts |
Posted - Sep 17 2005 : 09:32:16 AM
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Hi Meg,
I don't think you have just a trance state either.
There is really no black-and-white about samadhi. There are only grades of it.
I was particularly interested in whether your breath slowed down or not. This is considered, everyewhere I think, as a necessary mark of a strong samadhi experience.
What strikes me as samadhi-like is your description. It is formless. You are not describing activity. There is a sense of emptiness, vastness, and/or fullness.
> Mine seems to be an internal vacation getaway.
Getaway is just fine, as long as you vacation right here. Life is a vacation -- the problem is, we just tend to bring too much baggage to make it fun.
-D
quote:
Originally posted by meg
This must be my week to be computer challenged - plz excuse my technical clumsiness, moderator! :) I see that my message(s) were indeed posted.
Yes, I realize intensely the grace behind the experiences, and I also realize that it ain't enlightenment! m
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Inner Silence Milestones
