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hyperspesh
United Kingdom
1 Posts |
Posted - Oct 12 2009 : 11:53:29 AM
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Dear Sri Yogani, Im listening to your Hawaii radio interviews... Love your material as always. Just wondering, do you have any information on the nada brahma or nada yoga? Im finding the sound current is appearing in meditation, particularly in the head and heart, and that focussing on this will make it louder or more intense. I feel its a an important part of my path as being an intense musician in my teenage years was what helped me open to a lot of the original ecstatic energy I first experienced. Its the vibration, but also because playing jazz and improvising, you have to continually draw the attention to the present moment. I would love to go deeper into the nada brahma... Love and gratitude James.
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yogani
USA
5241 Posts |
Posted - Oct 12 2009 : 12:10:11 PM
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Hi Hyperspesh:
Many practitioners have experienced inner sounds during meditation and at other times. If you want to explore doing a practice with it, that is your choice. I'd suggest not doing it during your regular meditation with mantra, as you will be replacing the practice that is bringing the experience with the experience itself. It is purification and opening that brings such experiences, and as you know, we always easily favor the mantra over experiences that come up during meditation when we realize we have gone off.
Nada meditation is a common practice in some of the traditions, kriya yoga in particular. They use it instead of mantra meditation, and it is called "omkar."
We do not use nada meditation in AYP for one simple reason. It is not consistent. Sometimes nada is there, and sometimes it isn't. So much of a nada yoga practice can be spent waiting around for something to occur.
This isn't to say you could not use nada as an add-on. If your heart is in it, and the vibration is there, enjoy it, preferably not at the expense of deep mediation and other structured practices you may be doing.
A measured approach is suggested to avoid overdoing, particularly if nada leads you toward the crown. If you begin to get over-done, make sure to self-pace.
Others here with nada experience may have additional input.
All the best!
The guru is in you.
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Katrine
Norway
1813 Posts |
Posted - Oct 12 2009 : 1:47:22 PM
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Hi Hyperspesh
I can only second Yoganis advice when it comes to not focusing on the sound while in meditation.
I hear the sound all the time...whether during sittings or not.... noisy environments or not...but focusing on it would always bring strong ecstatic surges and quickly lead to overload. It is also my experience that the attention would be drawn to the crown.
The sound here has no particular location...it is everywhere.....
One gets used to it after a while :) It is the sound of that which we bow to.....so staying open....but with "lowered ears"....is what I found generated most peace and stability.....and what the sound vibrates.... is received as long as that relaxed openness is there.
All the best
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michaelangelo7
USA
89 Posts |
Posted - Oct 12 2009 : 3:32:15 PM
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people who do not practice nada yoga will tell you to stay away from it. people who practice it will tell you it is the most rewarding yogic practice because of the sound quality and joy and bliss that it gives.
i say practice it. because i do. everyday. it is entirely consistent and is heard in the head at all times, but the sound currents get much more heavenly when in an immobile position whether its laying or sitting, i prefer laying down. its the only thing i practice because its just too pretty and amazing and i love it. it also goes by another popular name "surat shabda yoga". in the beginning it may be just like a humming or ringing or vibrating sound but it should mature and end up sounding like the blowing of a conch or flute or whistle and even thunder rumbles as well sometimes. ive seen each master rank a certain sound higher than another, each yogi will say one sound is higher or better than another, its all personal preference as to what sound is more enchanting and blissful to you
http://www.yoga-age.com/amrita/nada.html http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SantMatFellowship/
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Edited by - michaelangelo7 on Oct 12 2009 4:00:11 PM |
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howard2224
USA
4 Posts |
Posted - Jan 17 2020 : 10:25:41 AM
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Hi Yogani,
It's feels like you are inferring that if nada was consistent, then it could be used in deep meditation to replace the mantra.
I hear it continuously during and outside of meditation. Even during samadhi.
If you are inferring this, then it would feel easier and more natural for me to easily favor the nada when I have thoughts in meditation.
quote: Originally posted by yogani
Hi Hyperspesh:
Many practitioners have experienced inner sounds during meditation and at other times. If you want to explore doing a practice with it, that is your choice. I'd suggest not doing it during your regular meditation with mantra, as you will be replacing the practice that is bringing the experience with the experience itself. It is purification and opening that brings such experiences, and as you know, we always easily favor the mantra over experiences that come up during meditation when we realize we have gone off.
Nada meditation is a common practice in some of the traditions, kriya yoga in particular. They use it instead of mantra meditation, and it is called "omkar."
We do not use nada meditation in AYP for one simple reason. It is not consistent. Sometimes nada is there, and sometimes it isn't. So much of a nada yoga practice can be spent waiting around for something to occur.
This isn't to say you could not use nada as an add-on. If your heart is in it, and the vibration is there, enjoy it, preferably not at the expense of deep mediation and other structured practices you may be doing.
A measured approach is suggested to avoid overdoing, particularly if nada leads you toward the crown. If you begin to get over-done, make sure to self-pace.
Others here with nada experience may have additional input.
All the best!
The guru is in you.
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Edited by - howard2224 on Jan 17 2020 1:18:32 PM |
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Christi
United Kingdom
4514 Posts |
Posted - Jan 18 2020 : 10:19:40 AM
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Hi Howard,
quote: It's feels like you are inferring that if nada was consistent, then it could be used in deep meditation to replace the mantra.
I hear it continuously during and outside of meditation. Even during samadhi.
If you are inferring this, then it would feel easier and more natural for me to easily favor the nada when I have thoughts in meditation.
The Omkara nada cannot be used to replace the mantra in AYP Deep Meditation. If you were to do that, it would be a different practice, and we would not be able to predict the results.
There are three main reasons for using a mantra in meditation. One reason is that it provides an object for our meditation, to keep returning the attention to, whenever we realize that we are off it. A mantra is very effective for this, as it is present even in the initial stages of samadhi, when the physical realms are transcended.
The second reason that we use a mantra, is because of the specific vibration that the mantra has in the body. Different mantras will produce different purificatory effects in the subtle neurobiology. The AYP mantras are designed to purify the subtle neurobiology in certain ways, and we can manage the mantras used, through self-pacing, in order to regulate the process of purification and awakening. If someone were to switch to the inner sounds as a meditation object, then that regulated process would be ended and it would simply be a case of hoping that everything works out fine. Maybe it will, maybe not, but we would not be able to offer any advice with confidence if it does not, other than to come back to using the AYP mantras.
The third reason for using a mantra, is that it is always available, except in very deep states of samadhi. Even though you can access the inner sounds now, can you be sure that you will still be able to next week, or next month or next year? If not, and you were using the Omkara as a meditation object, then you would need to switch meditation objects again, which can lead to delayed progress on the path, as it often takes time to settle in with a new object.
See this lesson on the ways in which the various AYP mantras affect the subtle neurobiology:
Lesson 188 - Mantra Design 101
See this lesson on making modifications to the baseline AYP system.
Lesson 384 - Baseline Systems of Practice and Research on Modifications
Christi |
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Dogboy
USA
2294 Posts |
Posted - Jan 18 2020 : 10:56:02 AM
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quote: Even though you can access the inner sounds now, can you be sure that you will still be able to next week, or next month or next year?
Good point. Change is constant. |
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howard2224
USA
4 Posts |
Posted - Jan 18 2020 : 3:02:01 PM
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Thank you Christi,
I'm going to sit with your second reason for a while because you made a good point about the nervous system being changed by the specific qualities of the mantra. I have read Mantra design 101.
quote: The AYP mantras are designed to purify the subtle neurobiology in certain ways
Does this mean that before the whole nervous system is completely pure, that some aspects get purified over others in a certain order depending on the mantra?
quote: We do not use nada meditation in AYP for one simple reason. It is not consistent.
Yogani said that this is the only reason why It isn't used on DM. It makes me wonder if it still would purify the nervous system in an ideal way but only if it were consistent.
To our third point, my confidence is coming from the fact that I've heard the sound from childhood up until now with it only slowly getting more pronounced with more diverse sounds. That's why I feel a low chance of it suddenly waning. I have never known what complete silence sounds like.
Thank you for the support Christi what you say makes sense.
I wish Yogani would help clarify what he meant even further.
quote: Originally posted by Christi
Hi Howard,
quote: It's feels like you are inferring that if nada was consistent, then it could be used in deep meditation to replace the mantra.
I hear it continuously during and outside of meditation. Even during samadhi.
If you are inferring this, then it would feel easier and more natural for me to easily favor the nada when I have thoughts in meditation.
The Omkara nada cannot be used to replace the mantra in AYP Deep Meditation. If you were to do that, it would be a different practice, and we would not be able to predict the results.
There are three main reasons for using a mantra in meditation. One reason is that it provides an object for our meditation, to keep returning the attention to, whenever we realize that we are off it. A mantra is very effective for this, as it is present even in the initial stages of samadhi, when the physical realms are transcended.
The second reason that we use a mantra, is because of the specific vibration that the mantra has in the body. Different mantras will produce different purificatory effects in the subtle neurobiology. The AYP mantras are designed to purify the subtle neurobiology in certain ways, and we can manage the mantras used, through self-pacing, in order to regulate the process of purification and awakening. If someone were to switch to the inner sounds as a meditation object, then that regulated process would be ended and it would simply be a case of hoping that everything works out fine. Maybe it will, maybe not, but we would not be able to offer any advice with confidence if it does not, other than to come back to using the AYP mantras.
The third reason for using a mantra, is that it is always available, except in very deep states of samadhi. Even though you can access the inner sounds now, can you be sure that you will still be able to next week, or next month or next year? If not, and you were using the Omkara as a meditation object, then you would need to switch meditation objects again, which can lead to delayed progress on the path, as it often takes time to settle in with a new object.
See this lesson on the ways in which the various AYP mantras affect the subtle neurobiology:
Lesson 188 - Mantra Design 101
See this lesson on making modifications to the baseline AYP system.
Lesson 384 - Baseline Systems of Practice and Research on Modifications
Christi
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Christi
United Kingdom
4514 Posts |
Posted - Jan 19 2020 : 03:06:43 AM
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Hi Howard,
quote: I'm going to sit with your second reason for a while because you made a good point about the nervous system being changed by the specific qualities of the mantra. I have read Mantra design 101.
quote: The AYP mantras are designed to purify the subtle neurobiology in certain ways
Does this mean that before the whole nervous system is completely pure, that some aspects get purified over others in a certain order depending on the mantra?
Yes, that is right. Each aspect of the AYP mantra has a different effect on the subtle nervous system. The basic AYAM mantra purifies the subtle nervous system between the root and the ajna chakras. So, it has a similar effect as Spinal Breathing Pranayama. The SHREE aspect of the mantra brings prana up into the higher centres and especially the crown chakra. OM vibrates in the medulla oblongata (the brain stem) and can also resonate down through the root chakra. NAMAH resonates in the heart and out beyond the nervous system.
So, there is a natural progression in terms of purification, working with mantras in the AYP system, with different syllables being added at different times throughout the sadhana. If someone adds syllables too early, they will feel it and can step back. This degree of control over the process of purification, would not be there by using the inner sounds as a meditation object.
I do not know if it would be safe or not, in terms of the process of energetic awakening, to meditate on the inner sounds alone? Clearly Yogani is not sure either, as he writes above to be careful if you find yourself being drawn towards the crown and to self-pace if necessary.
In terms of silence, when we transcend the mind, everything is silent. But we need to have a structured and effective practice that will lead us towards that. This is a fourth reason why it may not be wise to change the meditation object to the inner sounds. If something arises in our meditation and we switch our object of meditation to that, then where would we stop? If the inner sound currents end and divine lights appear instead, would we then meditate on the lights? What if the lights then fade and celestial visions appear, would we meditate on the celestial visions? We could easily end up switching meditation objects the deeper we go into stillness, or, in a worse case scenario, we could end up simply chasing experiences. And chasing experiences is not the same thing as the transcendence of all experiences (samadhi). That in turn, is not the same thing as liberation.
I have only briefly used the inner sounds as a meditation object in my own practice, and that was many years ago when I was taught nada yoga in a Buddhist monastery. I have mostly regarded the inner sounds as scenery, and as an effect of the practices. Inner sounds have come and gone over the years and have changed over time.
Christi
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howard2224
USA
4 Posts |
Posted - Jan 21 2020 : 12:12:12 PM
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Thank you Christi for your excellence. |
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