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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
 Posted - Feb 08 2014 : 04:41:10 AM
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Hi,
I am considering adding SAMYAMA to my current practice.
The main reason is that after my sitting pracice I miss something in order to make a smooth transition from the inner silence of sitting practice to my busy daily schedule. Sometimes the inner silence I experience during sitting practice lasts on during daily activity, resulting in an kind of «active but silent mood» which is very pleasurable for me but not suitable in both family life and job. Actually, I would like to «use » that inner silence as a foundation to enhance the way I interact with other people in my daily life, not to make me more silent! 
According to the SELF PACING recommendations, I tried to take more rest after DM for a smootheer transition, but it did not work at all. Actually, when resting longer I even went from a «silent mood» deeper to an even more introverted «sleeping mood», which is just not the direction I want to go. 
I read the AYP writings about SAMYAMA and – needless to say – I felt very attracted to it for building exactly that bridge from inner silence to daily life. I gave it a try in the last days and it felt great, both during SAMYAMA itself and during daily activity after sitting practice.
My practice before adding SAMYAMA was:
ASANA – 5 to 15 minutes, if schedule allows it
SBP – 10 minutes (with ujjayi and yogic breathing, but no bandhas and mudras)
DM – 20 minutes
REST – 10 minutes, most of it in savasana
The point is, I have been following the AYP method only for 3 months (coming from a former hatha yoga practice), so I wonder if it is OK to add SAMYAMA at this early stage. Also, I experience smooth conductivity during both SBP and DM, and energy is even stronger during SAMYAMA (the last SAMYAMA SUTRA is very, very intense), so I wonder if I am not getting to much overall energy movement and purification if I add SAMYAMA right now. 
I will appreciate the advice from the community – thank you in advance !  |
Edited by - Ecdyonurus on Feb 08 2014 04:42:59 AM |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Feb 08 2014 : 06:57:58 AM
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Rely on the knowingness which is planted in the soil of intuition, which is the inner guru guiding you to smooth integration of practices. When desire for progress is balanced on the beam of stability, the right course of action will arise without much struggle.
A peace that "passeth all understanding"... |
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Anima
484 Posts |
Posted - Feb 08 2014 : 7:22:54 PM
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Namaste 
I agree with Bodhi here. You will find what works for you. It sounds like there is flow.
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Dogboy
USA
2242 Posts |
Posted - Feb 08 2014 : 8:22:03 PM
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For my practice samyama has always been "the mint after the meal". If I get an upset stomach, it wasn't the fault of the mint.
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Feb 09 2014 : 08:16:04 AM
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Thank you for your inspiring answers!
quote:
Originally posted by Bodhi Tree
Rely on the knowingness which is planted in the soil of intuition, which is the inner guru guiding you to smooth integration of practices.
It is interesting that you write about "intuition" as a soil... this really resonates with me. During most of my life I did not trust my intuition. Actually, for 30 years I "buried" my intuition so deeply that I did not even know it existed. I am just starting now to set my intuition free and to rely on it. Sometimes it works, and the results are wonderful because good things happen in a smooth and natural way, without straining. But sometimes intuition does not work (or maybe it's just me listening more to screaming desire than to whispering intuition), and it hurts. So I think that it's good to listen to intuition, but it's also wise to be careful and maybe ask for advice before starting a new thing that could potentially be risky.
Concerning my question about adding SAMYAMA, I wonder if there could be a negative impact maybe not right now (as I wrote, it feels great both during and after that practice), maybe in some weeks. I read many reports in this forum about people experiencing overload, and a common aspect of these reports seems to be that people added too many practices too soon, experiencing good results for some time but ending suddenly in an overload after that. 
quote:
Originally posted by Dogboy
For my practice samyama has always been "the mint after the meal". If I get an upset stomach, it wasn't the fault of the mint.
Well, my question was if taking that mint after the meal would help making the stomach less upset.
quote:
Originally posted by Anima Deorum
You will find what works for you. It sounds like there is flow.
What do you mean by "sounds like there is flow"?  |
Edited by - Ecdyonurus on Feb 09 2014 08:19:40 AM |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Feb 09 2014 : 09:04:29 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by Ecdyonurus
I read many reports in this forum about people experiencing overload, and a common aspect of these reports seems to be that people added too many practices too soon, experiencing good results for some time but ending suddenly in an overload after that.
Yes, that's happened to me. I've had to back off with both Deep Meditation and Samyama due to overload. I also prematurely started a mantra enhancement.  But, in some sense, I'd rather lean towards progress rather than stagnation, and I think that's why I've endured some overload. But the whole goal is to reside in a state of ecstatic bliss, so with that goal in mind, practices become secondary to the preferred state of being. What would be the point of practices if the result was a constant state of discomfort? The whole point is to make life more enjoyable, peaceful, luminescent...so with that vision persistently at the forefront, I've learned to fine-tune my routine. Still learning, no doubt.
It's all trial and error. No way to get around it. I think a big pitfall on the path is believing that I'll cease making mistakes. Hopefully, the mistakes will dwindle in their negative effect, but perfection is something only found in the realm of the formless, I think.
What Yogani is selling here is a promise of ecstatic bliss, regardless of the external condition. That's why samyama is not used for manifesting precise circumstances, but rather infusing all circumstances with divine essences. It's kind of different from something like "The Secret", or the Law of Attraction, which is used for very specific material gain. Samyama is more based on a release of attachment to outcome.
Anyway, I've been using samyama for a couple years now (with self-pacing applied) and I've certainly seen plenty of real-life results. I value the tool highly.
I'm sure you will let it roll when the time is right.  |
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SeySorciere
Seychelles
1553 Posts |
Posted - Feb 10 2014 : 04:27:18 AM
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Dear E,
It is better to err on the side of caution, I believe. If you are unsure of your degree of stability, give it another couple of weeks before adding samyama. "Enlightenment" is going nowhere. It will still be waiting for you a couple of weeks from now or 40 years or 40 lifetimes from now...the latter more likely than the former . I often see a lot of new comers adding practices in a great rush and wanting more and more.. passion and bhakti.. but some years down the line, you will still be "chopping wood and carrying water"
Sey |
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Feb 10 2014 : 2:20:50 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Bodhi Tree
That's why samyama is not used for manifesting precise circumstances, but rather infusing all circumstances with divine essences. It's kind of different from something like "The Secret", or the Law of Attraction, which is used for very specific material gain.
Infusing all circumstances... that's one of the reasons why I am attracted by samyama.
I don't know the "secret" or the "law of attraction", but I can say that I am not looking for material gain in yoga. |
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Feb 10 2014 : 2:31:45 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by SeySorciere
It is better to err on the side of caution, I believe. If you are unsure of your degree of stability, give it another couple of weeks before adding samyama"
Well, I don't think that I have a stability problem. The "silent mood" I experience is always there after mornig practice as well as after evening practice, so I would call it stable. But I appreciate your advice. Have to think about it.
quote:
Originally posted by SeySorciere
"Enlightenment" is going nowhere. It will still be waiting for you a couple of weeks from now or 40 years or 40 lifetimes from now...
Interesting. Actually, enlightenment is not important to me, at least at this stage. I am into yoga for other reasons. To me, it's more about connection, equanimity and unity in daily life, without major spiritual goals. But maybe it's just because I don't unterstand what enlightenment really means... |
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tonightsthenight
846 Posts |
Posted - Feb 10 2014 : 11:25:33 PM
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Hello ecydyonurus
I know what you mean re rest after DM. There is a tendency to go into a deep trance in rest after practices, and that doesn't "bridge" into daily life very well.
To me, Samyama is the perfect bridge because it is bringing the deep peace of DM into action. It is the culmination of energy and meditation practice, putting those skills to work in the moment and resolving the paradoxes of duality in the present.
So I would say go for it, because its the bridge you're looking for. But do so with caution because Samyama can definitely contribute to overload. I tend to do small amounts, and rarely cosmic samyama. It can be too much, too soon and as Yogani says, less is more.
Jump in the shallow part of the pool and see how it feels. |
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Feb 11 2014 : 04:53:12 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by tonightsthenight
Hello ecydyonurus
I know what you mean re rest after DM. There is a tendency to go into a deep trance in rest after practices, and that doesn't "bridge" into daily life very well.
To me, Samyama is the perfect bridge because it is bringing the deep peace of DM into action. It is the culmination of energy and meditation practice, putting those skills to work in the moment and resolving the paradoxes of duality in the present.
So I would say go for it, because its the bridge you're looking for. But do so with caution because Samyama can definitely contribute to overload. I tend to do small amounts, and rarely cosmic samyama. It can be too much, too soon and as Yogani says, less is more.
Jump in the shallow part of the pool and see how it feels.
Hi tonightsthenight,
Thank you for your kind answer. Concerning that need of a bridge between yoga practice and daily life, I feel you describe exactly what I experience. This was not as important in the past when I was into hatha yoga, since the good mood and physical feeling i got from asanas and pranayamas was kind of connected to daily life in a direct way. Since i begun with meditation (also with other meditation techniques than AYP), things went more inward (obviously), and I started to feel that gap between yoga practices and daily life more and more. AYP seem to make that gap even more visible, probably because AYP seem to be more effective in my case then other things I tried in the past.
What is "small amount" of samyama? In the lessons It is said to start with 5 minutes using the 9 sutras, and to extend to 10 minutes after some time. I tried the 5 minutes version. Is it possible to reduce it even more? I guess, one should skip some sutras. How do you handle this?
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tonightsthenight
846 Posts |
Posted - Feb 11 2014 : 1:17:51 PM
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Yes, its all about integrating practices into daily life. That is the key that unlocks all the doors
Asana and pranayama are physical practices, using the body, as you noted. So its natural to feel more grounded in daily life after these practices.
As you say, AYP takes a direct path to the Self rather than beating around the bush. These practices can be disconcerting even for experienced yogis. That's why Yogani strongly advocates self pacing.
Small and large amounts are relative. I can tell you that for me, a minute or two of samyama is enough. Beyond that, there are many deeply intense experiences but also overload.
Its all pluses and minuses. I miss out on the benefits of a regular complete sutra practice. However, I am able to slowly sensitize my nervous system and make progress over time.
My favorite phrases that apply: less is more, & its a marathon not a sprint.
Hope that helps. |
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Ecdyonurus
Switzerland
479 Posts |
Posted - Feb 12 2014 : 04:49:39 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by tonightsthenight
Small and large amounts are relative. I can tell you that for me, a minute or two of samyama is enough. Beyond that, there are many deeply intense experiences but also overload.
Its all pluses and minuses. I miss out on the benefits of a regular complete sutra practice. However, I am able to slowly sensitize my nervous system and make progress over time.
My favorite phrases that apply: less is more, & its a marathon not a sprint.
Hope that helps.
That helps a lot!
Which sutras do you use when doing samyama for just 1 minute? And how did you select those (or maybe that?) sutra? |
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Adding SAMYAMA to soon?
