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karl
United Kingdom
1812 Posts |
 Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 06:50:20 AM
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I have been meditating for around a month. Regular morning and night before meals. 10 minutes pranayama followed by 20 minutes deep meditation using the 'I am' mantra.
When I first started meditation I found a lot of things going on, from physical to visual and moments of almost sleeping. Through out this time I found the Mantra to be easy to repeat but several times it just slipped away and it felt like I was coming back to it with a bit of a start.
Now it seems that I can concentrate on the Mantra very easily and the visuals have reduced. In place I find that after a few minutes I get a feeling like a rush of energy surging through my body like an electric current. I am learning to control this as when it started it felt like I was about to explode. Sometimes I let the current die down and just float around on the blissful feeling for a while before closing the circuit breakers again. I am concentrating on one image which appears to be a brilliant white star that sometimes dissolves into a misty sphere with a figure inside.
Yesterday I found that my forehead became very sensitive and my vision was almost cross eyed as if I was trying to focus on things with my forehead.
I wonder if I am going in the right direction with my meditation, or should I be fading out a bit more as I was at the beginning ?? |
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tadeas
Czech Republic
314 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 10:50:51 AM
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Hi Karl,
the main thing is to keep it simple and always return to the mantra when you realize you're off it. The experiences you're having are a symptom of purification and there can certainly be many experiences. But it's just "scenery" along the way. To progress, it's necessary to always come back to the practice you're doing and let the scenery go.
If you're concentrating on an image in meditation or doing anything apart from repeating the mantra, just pick up the mantra again and let everything else go. It doesn't matter what state of consciousness or what visions or energies you're feeling in meditation, the process is always simply returning to the mantra whatever may be happening and not paying attention to anything else.
There'll be a lot of cycles of purification and visions. Such things come and go. They don't matter much, because we're engaged in a long term process of purification and no one event really means anything.
If the energy in your body is too much to handle or if you're having any unpleasant symptoms, then you will have to self-pace, i.e. reduce the amount of your practice until things settle down a bit.
The cross eyed vision sounds like spontaneous sambhavi mudra (lesson 56). It further stimulates energy in the body, so be careful with it. It's best to take the practices in order they're in the lessons so that your development is stable.
Take care :) |
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karl
United Kingdom
1812 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 12:02:04 PM
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I shall have a look at the lesson as suggested.
Thanks for the answer, the thing I'm finding is that I am on the mantra 100% of the time, so instead of coming back to it, I never leave it. The vision and there is only one is running simultaneous with the internal chant. Mind you I am a drummer, so managing four things simultaneously is sort of natural.
OK that lesson was right on the money, but within meditation and not during spinal breathing. Within spinal breathing I have a strong current flowing up and down my spine and its cool during inhale and warm during exhale. Sometimes the current seems to illuminate areas of the body, particularly around the shoulders.
The really powerful stuff happens during meditation and feels exactly like my whole body is a channel for a rush of energy......infact it sometimes feels a bit like it is outside as well. The feeling qround my forehead has only happened once so far and felt like a cool current of air passing through my brain....a bit like breathing through my forehead.
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Edited by - karl on Dec 02 2008 12:23:24 PM |
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gumpi
United Kingdom
546 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 12:18:48 PM
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I've been having a similar sort of thing. Is it like you will be saying the mantra inside and then suddenly you feel gone inside somewhere, faintly conscious then snap out of it back to the mantra? I think this is what people around here call the void. I think it is the thought-free state of consciousness. Also you get a kind of electric shock coming into the head and down into the body which feels blissful? I have been getting that.
I like the blissful feeling. It feels really full and warm, and i let it go into my body where it seems to mix with the energies that pranayama bring in the spine and back. Feels great! This is just the tip of the iceberg for me because i smoke pot and drink alcohol regularly which has upset my health badly.
I think you are seeing the star of the spiritual eye? In AYP it is known as scenery but in the Kriya yoga tradition it is the gateway to the astral realms and samadhi and it is focused on heavily. It is the one thing i have only ever wanted to experience and i haven't, so you are quite "lucky". It is up to you whether or not you want to regard it as scenery.
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karl
United Kingdom
1812 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 12:50:27 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by gumpi
I've been having a similar sort of thing. Is it like you will be saying the mantra inside and then suddenly you feel gone inside somewhere, faintly conscious then snap out of it back to the mantra? I think this is what people around here call the void. I think it is the thought-free state of consciousness. Also you get a kind of electric shock coming into the head and down into the body which feels blissful? I have been getting that.
I like the blissful feeling. It feels really full and warm, and i let it go into my body where it seems to mix with the energies that pranayama bring in the spine and back. Feels great! This is just the tip of the iceberg for me because i smoke pot and drink alcohol regularly which has upset my health badly.
I think you are seeing the star of the spiritual eye? In AYP it is known as scenery but in the Kriya yoga tradition it is the gateway to the astral realms and samadhi and it is focused on heavily. It is the one thing i have only ever wanted to experience and i haven't, so you are quite "lucky". It is up to you whether or not you want to regard it as scenery.
Originally I would enter what you term the void.....but not anymore. I seem totally concentrated, the mantra is easy and steady. The star seems to want to connect with me, or me to the star (sometimes I am not sure which is which. There seems to be energy in the star.......I feel like I am staring at an atom bomb mushroom cloud and somehow not getting exactly how powerful it is. The energy seems to mix with the energy inside me a bit like fresh water meeting cold water and it seems like only a small portion of the stars energy is reaching out. reminds me a bit of the 'eye' in Lord of the Rings but very much brighter and far more focused.
Concentrating harder on the mantra does not diminish the image. It's hard to let go because the feeling is intense |
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tadeas
Czech Republic
314 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 12:50:48 PM
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Karl, sambhavi is done both in spinal breathing and in meditation when it becomes automatic. (But start practicing it only after, you feel stable with your everyday routine.)
The energy rushes you're talking about are symptoms of energy moving through the body. It is a normal part of development. Since your energy seems to be pretty active, it's important to keep working on the "stillness" side of the englightenment equation. If energy symptoms occur on the ground of your own inner silence, everything can go smoothly. It can be a rough ride the other way - without inner silence.
If there's a vision, then you have the choice to take attention that is on it and place it on the mantra. The process of deep meditation doesn't have as it's goal to stay on the mantra all the time. It's OK to lose it, and then gently come back. Anyway, just continue doing it and things will settle down :) |
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karl
United Kingdom
1812 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 12:56:56 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by tadeas
If energy symptoms occur on the ground of your own inner silence, everything can go smoothly.
I dont understand that sentence ?
I will take your advice and cultivate the inner silence with a bit of self pacing just in case things get a bit too forceful.
Got to say that I am glad to talk to others going the same route as it is such a personal and intense journey that friends and family struggle to understand.....suggesting they try for themselves usually results in disapproving looks and cries of 'preaching' so I keep quiet now. |
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tadeas
Czech Republic
314 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 1:04:53 PM
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It means that if there's no inner silence to merge with intensifying energy (kundalini), it will likely be a difficult process, because there is not enough balance. For a smooth journey, it is necessary to have equal amounts of stillness and energy.
More on these principles in this lesson: http://www.aypsite.org/69.html |
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gumpi
United Kingdom
546 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 1:07:47 PM
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Karl, UK eh? Same here. My parents have always thought my interest in yoga related stuff was "weird". Hehehe, typical British kind of response i guess.
You have only been meditating for a month and you are getting all this? WOW. Took me 7 years to get this far! hahahaha. I am just about to get to the stage you are talking about, not losing the mantra but keeping awareness of it all the time. Trouble is with me the f******* music and tunes that my mind likes to sing which get in the way! It is such a subtle and delicate thing trying to make friends with the thoughts to favor the mantra.
I would say only you know when you are ready to charge ahead. If the star is inviting you, if it was me i would invite it to me! It is actually having sex with God! |
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Shanti
USA
4854 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 1:58:57 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by karl
Originally I would enter what you term the void.....but not anymore. I seem totally concentrated, the mantra is easy and steady.
See if this reply of Yogani's helps.
quote:
Originally posted by yogani
quote:
Originally posted by skorpion63
The thing is my mind never goes away from the mantra so there is no question of bringing it back. Does this mean i am doing something wrong or is it not working for me?
Hi Scorpion, and welcome!
It is fine. The fact that you notice the "mind never going away from the mantra" is a thought other than the mantra, right? This is normal. When noticed, just easily favor the mantra over that or any thought. There can be mantra and thoughts mixed together, with the mantra in the background or foreground. It doesn't matter. The procedure stays the same. We never force, just gently favor according to the procedure.
The mantra does not have to be a clear mental pronunciation. In a given session, or over a series of sessions, it will naturally change as purification and opening occur in the nervous system. There is nothing to monitor or judge about it. Monitoring the progress of meditation while doing it is not meditation. We easily favor the mantra over the monitoring. In time, it becomes an easy habit -- it is the habit of stillness we are cultivating. Whenever other thoughts occur, like "I am thinking the mantra all the time," just ease back to the mantra. This can be in a very faint and fuzzy place, and then gone to pure bliss consciousness...
You are doing very well. In some time, the process of daily deep meditation will settle in, and you will notice its affects more and more in your normal daily activity. Carry on, and enjoy!
The guru is in you.
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gumpi
United Kingdom
546 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 2:26:22 PM
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there is something wrong with this. The mental ability to concentrate is not a bad thing provided the concentration is balanced by relaxation. That is what i think karl is talking about. He has relaxed concentration.
Yogani must have assumed that the questioner had a problem with forceful concentration.
I don't see the difference between getting a repetitive song caught in your mind and concentrating on that or concentrating on a mantra that is only a couple of syllables. In fact i think the former is much more powerful if that is the case. Why should there be a difference? Are people very dense that their memory is so poor they can only remember 2 small words at a time? lol
The truth is this - you don't need anything to meditate except an ardent desire to concentrate and relax at the same time. You don't need any special mantras with special meanings or vibratory meanings. That cannot possibly be true since every single person is different.
BY all means relax, but don't think you need to do it a certain way. So long as you can stay awake and concentrate with your body still you can achieve the same effect (not affect). |
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karl
United Kingdom
1812 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2008 : 5:19:25 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Shanti
quote:
Originally posted by karl
Originally I would enter what you term the void.....but not anymore. I seem totally concentrated, the mantra is easy and steady.
See if this reply of Yogani's helps.
quote:
Originally posted by yogani
quote:
Originally posted by skorpion63
The thing is my mind never goes away from the mantra so there is no question of bringing it back. Does this mean i am doing something wrong or is it not working for me?
Hi Scorpion, and welcome!
It is fine. The fact that you notice the "mind never going away from the mantra" is a thought other than the mantra, right? This is normal. When noticed, just easily favor the mantra over that or any thought. There can be mantra and thoughts mixed together, with the mantra in the background or foreground. It doesn't matter. The procedure stays the same. We never force, just gently favor according to the procedure.
The mantra does not have to be a clear mental pronunciation. In a given session, or over a series of sessions, it will naturally change as purification and opening occur in the nervous system. There is nothing to monitor or judge about it. Monitoring the progress of meditation while doing it is not meditation. We easily favor the mantra over the monitoring. In time, it becomes an easy habit -- it is the habit of stillness we are cultivating. Whenever other thoughts occur, like "I am thinking the mantra all the time," just ease back to the mantra. This can be in a very faint and fuzzy place, and then gone to pure bliss consciousness...
You are doing very well. In some time, the process of daily deep meditation will settle in, and you will notice its affects more and more in your normal daily activity. Carry on, and enjoy!
The guru is in you.
Haha. Yes I understand perfectly now. It's quite funny when I read it like that. The more you try to 'not' do something, the more it is attracted to fill the space and you do more of what you are trying to avoid. Doh  I should have figured that one out myself as I coach enough people through similar situations in life. Thanks very much for all the posts and help. |
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