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Witnessing

As mentioned before, the witnessing stage is a whole new ball game. It should be pointed out that there is witnessing and there is witnessing. There is a continuum of development as witnessing emerges. It begins as a passive inner condition perceived as a separation from the events going on around us, often first noticed during the occurrence of dynamic events. Everyone has had the experience of time standing still when a dynamic event occurred, like a car crash, explosion or other sudden change in our physical environment. When the witness begins to emerge, ordinary events are gradually experienced more in this way also. As witnessing continues to advance, our body, thoughts and feelings become objects of perception that are separate from our sense of self, our witness. This is an important development.

Before the witness has developed to the point where our thoughts and feelings become objects of perception, self-inquiry will be mostly non-relational, meaning not fully connected with who we are pure consciousness. The dawn of the witness sets the stage for real self-inquiry, and an ongoing change in our life experience, for this is when the process can move beyond ideas to the direct experience. And the direct experience is beyond all experience. In the initial witness condition, we are experiencing, but we are not the experience. We are beyond it, seeing from the point of view of separate pure awareness.

There are a few more steps beyond the emergence of the witness that we must go through. It is not enough to be strongly established in inner silence, seeing the changing world as separate from ourselves. We must do something with it to move it forward. Evolution compels us to do so. With a little nudging, it happens naturally enough. This is where self-inquiry can have its greatest impact on our over all path to enlightenment, because we are able to make conscious choices based in our stillness. We see our thoughts, feelings and perceptions of the world for what they are, without being entirely identified with them. We are then able to engage in a way that is liberating rather than binding, both for ourselves and for others.

Other yoga practices are an aid to this process, such as samyama, spinal breathing pranayama, and additional practices that cultivate ecstatic conductivity (kundalini awakening) in the body. As we become more established in both inner silence and ecstatic conductivity, we experience refinements in perception and the movement of dynamic stillness into our thought processes. These developments support steadily increasing effectiveness in relational self-inquiry.

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Dispassion

The condition of dispassion is one of the primary goals of self-inquiry. Those who are very enthusiastic and dedicated to self-inquiry are very passionate about developing dispassion. This is non-relational self-inquiry, of course. We all have to begin somewhere. We can't begin at the end, though we may certainly be passionate about the ideal we have chosen, and that serves a purpose. It is our bhakti (devotion to our chosen ideal).

Dispassion is not a doing at all, and is beyond self-inquiry itself. It isn't even a letting go, for it is beyond choice. Dispassion is a state of being. It is the subject (the witness, our sense of Self) developed through an integration of practices to the point where all the objects of experience are taken in stride, without identification. This applies to events, relationships, and all that is going on in the body, heart and mind.

Is dispassion a state of indifference, a state of uncaring? Does it mean we do not act or react in the world? It does not mean that. It is just the opposite. Much of spiritual development is paradoxical, with less becoming much more.

The gradual emergence of dispassion means we are becoming more free to act for the good of all. Inner silence will move to do this through us more and more, the further we travel along the path. It is the paradox of enlightenment. The more we have gone beyond, the more engaged we will become for the benefit of others. This is the nature of divine consciousness.

We really have to give credit where credit is due. Deep meditation (if we are doing it) is the primary cultivator of dispassion, because dispassion is an advanced stage of the witness. A stand-alone path of self-inquiry can lead to dispassion also, but it is rare. To succeed, self-inquiry must ascend to the level of meditation, the transcendence of all objects of attention. If self-inquiry is done like this over time, then the witness will dawn and, in more time, there will be dispassion. It is a difficult path, because it lacks a structured and efficient routine of practice. The concept of practice itself may be lacking. Self-inquiry of the stand-alone variety will be about constantly remembering to release all objects of perception, including all thoughts, feelings and perceptions of external objects. When self-inquiry becomes a deeply ingrained habit, then that will be a kind of ongoing meditation. How an approach like this will fit into daily life is another question, since it requires ongoing self-inquiry to be incorporated into every nook and cranny of our daily life. This may not be practical for someone with a family and career. There can be direct conflicts, particularly before the witness has dawned.

On the other hand, if deep meditation and other sitting practices are undertaken in a structured twice-daily routine, and life is lived normally, the witness will be coming up naturally as a support to family and career, and also as a support to undertake self-inquiry in a way that does not disrupt the normal flow of life. Deep meditation provides the witness, and self-inquiry provides the perspective in a way that is not replacing everyday life and activities, but enhancing them.

Dispassion is at home in the marketplace, as well as in the remote retreat. It is all the same. The combination of daily deep meditation and gradually emerging self-inquiry provides flexibility for living, and is a much faster path as well.

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Originally posted by Blanche

Hi Wil,
As you already know and probably you have already done, "bhakti" may be used as a sutra in samyama. Yes, dispassion would be part of the practice, just like with any other sutra, like in any samyama practice, like in any yoga practice.

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If we are off into ecstasy, sooner or later we will get that wakeup call that says, "Hey, you are ignoring your body, your health, and the practical things in your life. It's time for a change."

Then the ecstatic energy honeymoon is over and the work of integrating our ecstatic condition back into our everyday life will occur. That's the real marriage of stillness and ecstasy. It's a good thing. After the ecstasy, it is about ordinary living, and that is when stillness and ecstasy will find their balance. This is also when we find ourselves to be expressing more and more as "stillness in action" in all aspects of our life. Nothing glamorous. Just ordinary life, lived in an extraordinary freedom.

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Originally posted by Wil

...For instance, I seem to not respect schedueles or external reminders enough as I feel that action has to come from inside. Even if it seems like an excuse, it is nonetheless a decline in my consistency for other life pursuits. On the other hand, I just automatically let go of a lot of memory software so I seem to need reminders for goals and whatnot. Man, this situation is strange. For good or bad, it just seems like I can't engage in school or social activities the way I used to. I can trust that it will be okay but I can't lower my social and financial standards.

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Originally posted by Dogboy

I does sound like you are dissatisfied, so this state is worthy of your attention so change can happen. I don’t think this is the Yogani lesson you were thinking of, but it might be relevant to your feelings: From lesson 424

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If we are off into ecstasy, sooner or later we will get that wakeup call that says, "Hey, you are ignoring your body, your health, and the practical things in your life. It's time for a change."

Then the ecstatic energy honeymoon is over and the work of integrating our ecstatic condition back into our everyday life will occur. That's the real marriage of stillness and ecstasy. It's a good thing. After the ecstasy, it is about ordinary living, and that is when stillness and ecstasy will find their balance. This is also when we find ourselves to be expressing more and more as "stillness in action" in all aspects of our life. Nothing glamorous. Just ordinary life, lived in an extraordinary freedom.

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Perhaps you are unbalanced in some way?

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It is certainly possible to do all of this within a normal working life. In fact, there is an advantage being active doing things other than sitting practices during the day. It integrates the results of our practice, making them very strong and stable. The yogi who cannot navigate in the real world is incomplete. So we are the lucky ones with practices and responsibilities in the world, a potent combination for spiritual progress.

As you continue, you will find your conduct improving in all matters, as this is what abiding inner silence brings over time. You have already expressed some concerns about your "faults." This is your inner silence speaking. Just listen and see how you might make adjustments in conduct as you go along. It is all for the good.

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Originally posted by Wil

...I'd gladly appreciate a comment on my deviating samyama practice btw...gathering my emotions in an impulse, and doing samyama on that, any problems with that?

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Originally posted by Wil

Hello,

Is there any guideline to know if Witness or Dispassion is creating the humble non attached feeling, or if it is perhaps overdoing symptoms of some subtle kind?
I have long thought about this but now this question surface. I am not ignoring the world, I am engaged but I don't seem to care that much. I have heard examples from here at the forum where one overdo practices and have a hard time enjoying anything, and with that, it becomes a paradox to me.

Wil

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