Reminder: add the words: ‘only if it is for my highest good’ in your affirmation.

Stress affects functions in all parts of the body. In particular, hormones can be vulnerable to the damaging influences of chronic stress. The adrenal glands are the first line of defense against stress (the “fight or flight” response), and can be fatigued with constant demand. You will experience high and then eventually very low levels of cortisol and DHEA. When this occurs, other hormones may also be thrown off balance, creating their own set of symptoms and problems. You have to manage your stress if you want to remain healthy.

Yoga is relaxing and can create energy needed for reducing stress. It involves an awareness of slow, controlled breathing and stretching and posing the muscles of the body.

A study conducted by the Center for Integrative Medicine of Thomas Jefferson University showed that a one hour session of yoga lowered cortisol in participants with no previous yoga experience, and after seven consecutive days, a significant decrease was seen.

A recent report in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine states that practicing yoga may boost a neurotransmitter associated with anxiety and depression. Researchers at Boston University School Of Medicine and McLean Hospital followed eight people who practiced yoga regularly, using MRS (magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging) to measure gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, in their brains. GABA is a chemical messenger (the most prevalent one in the brain) whose function is to reduce the activity of the neurons to which it binds. That is, it inhibits over-excitation. After an hour of yoga, a 27 percent increase in GABA levels was found. Eleven control subjects who had read for an hour showed no increase.

Practicing yoga can be a very important part of your physical stress recovery plan. It is inexpensive, easy to do, and is not “stressful” on your body. It will reduce stress hormones, relax your mind, and de-stress your body. Try yoga for your health.

Dr Peter Lind is a practicing chiropractor utilizing newly developed procedures and protocols to remove the affects of stress on the body. He continues helping hundreds of people on his website http://www.stress-less-living.com

The secret level of practice is the level of non-conceptuality, and hence is, in its essence, un-knowable & un-speakable. (Yes, writing about it is paradoxical, and at best can be the proverbial “finger pointing to the moon”!) In terms of the Three Treasures, this is the level of shen/spirit. As practitioners, this is the level at which we are “stunned,” or “in awe;” the level at which we have direct (non-conceptual) experiences of a vastness, a brightness, a bliss which shatters all of our previous notions of what this level (reality!) might be like. As teachers, this is the level at which we offer what in Buddhist practice is known as “pointing out” instructions (and more specifically: pointing out the Nature of Mind). Instruction, here, takes the form of “mind to mind” transmission (something of a misnomer, since at this point in our practice, body, mind & breath are so finely braided as to be almost indistinguishable).

Even metaphor, at this level, becomes inadequate: for this terrain, though it is the essence of everything we’ve previously experienced, is not “like” anything else. (It inhabits a category all its own; It is the set that includes all other sets, and ~ in the moment of “including” them ~ transforms them completely.) Ultimately, this is the level at which teacher & student are no longer two, but rather ~ at least in certain “alchemical” moments ~ inhabit a single shared “space” (which might be called Truth & might be called Love). And in this shared space there is the felt sensation (indescribable!) of a “union” or “wholeness” which in its sweetness & intensity matches (and then far surpasses) the bliss of sexual union, of the complete dissolution of ego (and hence: in Buddhist, Taoist & Hindu traditions images of sexual union are often used as gateways, as skillful means, to access this level of practice).

In terms of our relationship to the world, this is the level at which we understand directly that we (and all other beings) are part of a single luminous emptiness, and ~ simultaneously ~ the whole of it. In fact the term “relationship” ceases to have meaning, because ideas & perceptions of “self” and “other” (“me” and “world”) have dissolved completely. The “body” of the practitioner has become the “universe.” In terms of Buddhist practice, this is the level of Dharmakaya: the body of truth ~ the radiant core of the sun.

[If you haven’t already discovered Alex Grey’s collection of paintings, Sacred Mirrors, I recommend it highly. He does a wonderful job, in this book, of portraying visually these three levels of practice, as they manifest through the human body.]

Buddhist practice also offers a fourth “body” ~ the Svabavikakaya, which points to the ultimate unity of the other three bodies. It points to the fact that once we’ve made our way through these levels, walking the path of our chosen tradition, we realize that all along all three levels were “here” ~ but just not (consciously) available to us, in their fullness. But now, having completed the journey, we are consciously aware of all three levels, and are able to “slide” between them, much as one would tune a radio dial. We’re able to project our awareness into whatever spectrum, whatever frequency-band, we wish to. Our existence as human beings at this point is, truly, a dance: a kaleidoscopic play of light & color; a perpetual love-making …

Elizabeth Reninger holds Masters degrees in Sociology & Chinese Medicine, is a published poet, and has been exploring Yoga ~ in its Taoist, Buddhisst & Hindu varieties ~ for more than twenty years. Her teachers include Eva Wong, Richard Freeman & Mingyur Rinpoche. For more yoga-related essays, please visit her website: http://www.writingup.com/blog/elizabeth_reninger

Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elizabeth_Reninger

Yoga and Qigong practice is traditionally spoken of as occurring on three levels: the outer, the inner & the secret. These three levels of practice have similarities to what in Taoist practice are known as the Three Treasures (Jing, Qi & Shen); and also to what in Buddhist practice are known as the Three Bodies (Tri-Kaya) of the Buddha/Awakened Mind (Nirmanakaya, Sambhogokaya & Dharmakaya). [They also have a less precise but still resonant relationship to the Hindu yogic system of the “five sheathes.”]

The outer level of practice is the most superficial (or densely vibrating) level. In qigong, it is called the level of the “tendons” and is associated ~ in terms of the Three Treasures ~ with Jing/essence (which, among its physical substances, includes cerebral-spinal fluid, marrow & sexual fluids). In terms of an asana practice, this is the level at which one focuses on physical alignment: on creating a structure (of bones, muscles, organs, tendons) conducive to entrance into the deeper levels of the practice. This is the level at which one learns a “form” which (like a mandala, a yantra, or good feng shui) can then serve as a portal through which the energies/insights of the inner levels of the practice can more easily flow. So as practitioners, this means learning the particular form(s) associated with our chosen tradition.

As teachers, this means offering instruction (written, verbal and/or “hands-on”) in these forms. In terms of our relationship to the world, we’re operating primarily within a Newtonian cause-and-effect sort of paradigm. In terms of Buddhist practice, this is the level of the Nirmanakaya: the body of form (which is likened to the warmth we experience from the rays of the sun); the body that is visible to (and which appears in response to the aspirations of) “ordinary” human beings, i.e. beings still operating primarily on this “outer” level.

The inner level of practice is the level of light, sound & color: of vibration that is actually experienced as moving/fluid (vs. the experience of solidity that is characteristic of the outer level). In qigong practice, this is the level of the meridians and is associated ~ in terms of the Three Treasures ~ with qi/life-force (the “substance” that flows through the meridians). In an asana practice, this is the level of the pranic body/bodies. It is at this level that one begins to work with the “internal forms” or energetic structures of bodymind. It is the terrain of what in Taoist practice is called Inner Alchemy.

As practitioners, we begin to pay attention to the relationship between particular (outer or inner) forms and the flows of energy/awareness that they create or allow. As teachers, we have added to our repertoire of verbal & physical adjustments/instructions, the capacity also to work with our students energetically ~ to use the energy of mind/intention to offer “corrections” directly into the subtle bodies of students. It is also skillful, at this point, to allow our verbal instructions to become less literal, and more metaphoric: to use language to create flow between what previously were more rigidly-held conceptual categories.

In terms of our relationship to the world, we’re operating now in the realm of what the Vietnamese Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh calls Inter-Being: a web of relationship, of interdependency. And things are becoming more & more Einsteinian: the principles of relativity (as well as quantum mechanics) becoming more & more operative. Co-incidence, simultaneity, and a sense of “magic” become more prominent features of our lived experience. We begin to intuit: there’s more going on here than I had previously suspected … how wonderful! In terms of Buddhist practice, this is the level of the Sambhogakaya: the body of enjoyment; of light/color/sound as vibration (likened to the rays of the sun); the manifestation of awakened mind that is perceivable only to beings who have a certain level of attainment in their practice.

– click here for part 2 of this article.

I have pondered that question many times. I used to believe that I came here to “save the world” from its frightful destruction. With world peace as my vision, I was driven to reach as many people as possible through teaching, counseling, books, tapes, lectures, workshops, and the media. I was determined to help people love themselves and feel their inner peace-their greatest contribution to world peace.

My logical mind told me that I was succeeding in my life mission. But my low energy and chronic physical pain caused me to have some doubts. I felt miserable! All the stress I put myself through resulted in tight muscles, spinal misalignment, and troubled organs and glands. I suffered with many allergic reactions from foods and toxic environments.

Even though I hated giving up cheesecake and coffee, pizza and other favorites, deep down I knew it was all perfect. I realized that in order for me to accomplish my primary mission, I had to “clean up my act.” If I wanted to play in the big leagues, I needed to play by their rules. My spiritual part reminded me that I chose to walk in the light.

During my morning meditations, I surrendered to my service and asked my guides and God, “What would you like me to do today?” The answer was always the same, “Beloved one, be in peace.”

Noticing all the pain and misery in the world and myself, I realized that earth is like a remedial class. We all flunked self-love and we came back to get it! And only when we feel that self-love, can we experience inner peace.

Now I am clear that my divine purpose for being here is for My soul growth. My cosmic mission is to live on this third-dimensional (fear-based) planet with a fifth-dimensional (love-based) consciousness. My mission is to transcend my will and to allow the all-loving God to work through me.

My mind knew that concept before but now my soul experiences it. Now I am focusing on the essence and not on the form. And the essence is unconditional love and joy. My lesson here is to “love myself to peace”, to be in that love space no matter what I or others are doing or not doing. It is to transcend what my mind thinks or understands, to remain centered and totally accept whatever happens as divine.

This is my most difficult challenge. I know that I am succeeding when I maintain a love space or return to it quickly even after a personal disappointment or upset. I feel such joy and peace when I overcome my fears and return to my faith. Since I have totally surrendered to living my life from love and light, I am so much happier and healthier. I need much less from the outside world to feel good. No longer do I drive myself to be so goal oriented. I still have the same vision of world peace, and I am still committed to reaching as many people as I can in my lifetime. But now I am coming from love and not fear. Now I am doing it God’s way.

The focus of my accomplishments each day is not what I do but how much I feel love, joy, and inner peace. It feels wonderful to be crystal clear of why I am here-of my cosmic mission.

About the Author

Copyright 2007 by author Helene Rothschild, MS, MA, MFT, a Marriage, Family Therapist, intuitive counselor, speaker, and author. Her newest book is, “ALL YOU NEED IS HART! Create Love, Joy and Abundance~NOW.” A Unique Guide to Holistic And Rapid Transformation. Free newsletter, MP3 audio, and e-book. Special generous offer on November 14, 2007! http://www.lovetopeace.com , 1-888-639-6390.

While many people have always thought of Yoga as some mystic Hindu practice, that image is rapidly disappearing – almost as fast as the stresses of our modern lives are increasing. The American Academy of Family Physicians has noted that stress related symptoms prompt two-thirds of the office visits to family physicians. Exercise and alternative therapies are now commonly prescribed for stress-related complaints and illness. Even a recent issue of Consumer Reports suggests Yoga for stress relief.

As an effective method of stress management, yoga is spreading into the business world, the helping professions, nursing and old age homes. It is also being used in the treatment of alcoholics, hyperactive children and youngsters with learning disabilities. Yoga centers are getting stiff competition from adult education classes of community colleges, boards of education and parks and recreation departments.

There are many kinds of yoga to study, and there can be endless years of practice for the willing student. Many of the problems suffered in modern life can be erased by following a regular yoga routine.

Reasons to practice Yoga

1. Yoga can release the tense muscles caused by hours of sitting at a desk.
Yoga differs from other forms of exercise in that it involves motions that don’t cause strain on the body. It isn’t an aerobic exercise, but it uses almost every muscle in your body. Over time, your limbs are strengthened – helping to combat the aches and pains caused by our sedentary lifestyles.

2. Mediation during Yoga can enhance concentration.
Breathing deeply can improve vitality by increasing the amount of oxygen that reaches the brain. All forms of yoga incorporate the practice of proper breathing techniques for relaxation, to rest the mind from its constant chatter, to experience an internal calm, and to energize and purify the body.

3. Yoga is fun an easy for children.
Yoga is great fun for children and teenagers and it’s easy for them to do, as they are already flexible. Yoga can help them retain that flexibility. It can also help to develop their self-discipline. Practicing yoga is good for developing coordination and can help to improve concentration – which many children and teens find difficult.

4. Yoga is the ideal exercise during pregnancy.
Practicing yoga can improve backache and help to lift depression. Many women who practice yoga have said that it helped to make their labor easier and shorter. The meditation side of yoga is also calming and centering during pregnancy.

5. Yoga can combat feelings of anxiety and depression.
Practicing yoga can alter your brain chemistry. Some yoga positions in particular are effective in stimulating the pituitary gland to release endorphins and to reduce the level of cortisol (the stress hormone).

Many people beginning to practice yoga as stress management may feel unsure if they are doing it right. Trust yourself and trust the process and let it develop. Keep your focus on what is happening in each moment. As stress levels in our society reach new heights, yoga can provide you with the means for handling stress, diffusing tension and increasing the quality of your life!

I am an Earth Healer. I am a religion of 1. Each month I join other Earth Healers here at http://www.therapeuticreiki.com and together we HEAL the universe and the universe smiles.

The Dala Lama says “It may be necessary to find new forms of religions”. In a way that is what we do with our healing energy when we send it out to the universe, each one, a prayer, a religion of one.

My normal process for sending energy is to begin by healing myself, each of my chakras and then reaching out I heal those close to me, then I move out to the animals and all the Earth elements, until I am finally out at the edge of the universe and there I send the Deity energy and thank him-her for the healing I get every day.

On this day’s We Are On World meditation, I was about a half hour into it and while sending energy to the Deity I heard his-her voice. ¨Can I ask you a question?¨ ¨Please do¨ was my response.

¨Why do you always start your healing close and then move out to the universe?¨ I thought about this weeks meditation with the Lama in town, his message was that we should learn to give as much compassion to other animals as we do our pets.

Why do we tend to hold tight to those close to us yet ignore the suffering at a distance?

I responded to the Deities question. ¨I am selfish, I want to make sure I touch those that touch me.¨

He spoke again, ¨I hear so many times in your meditation you say ¨We are all one energy,¨ do you truly believe that?¨

¨Yes I do.¨ I responded. Then HEAL that one energy and you HEAL all that there is. There is no big, no small, no close, no far away, it all just is. If you HEAL, love and care for that one energy, you heal, love and care for all beings, elements, particles and atoms, those close to you will receive the same amount of healing energy and the rest of all that exists will enjoy your love.

You are a (wo) man of calling, an Earth Healer, a religion on one, doing what you do best, HEAL (Healing Earth and Life) and for that I thank you all! I would like to add my thanks to his-hers to all of you who gather here and HEAL.

Love, Peace and Understanding,
Ziggy
C.E.O. (Concerned Environmental Officer)
H.E.A.L. (Heal Earth and Life)
www.healchile.com

“I had another very nice visit from my Shaman friend, who gave this very touching speech. I have blown up the golden rules and plan on reading them every day to keep my humble, Love, Peach and Understanding. I will see you in the new Garden Of Eve we are creating with our positive energy.”

=== SHAMAN’S GOLDEN RULES ===

Father and Mother

Many, many light years ago, he traveled the universe enjoying all that he had created. He found beauty in everything and felt love in all that existed. Yet something was missing and then he saw her in a dream. She was so exquisite and so delicate. She exuded energy, and healed all that she held. Her colors were like none he had ever seen. Her passion was so deep and alluring he knew he had to have her in his life.

For the next seven days he work on his masterpiece duplicating what he saw in his dream. Every detail sprang forth from his fingertips as if it were a part of him. When she was finished he knew he had only to breath life into her and she would be his forever. Sitting there he pulled all his energy to the center of his being, he went deep inside himself to his core and unlocked his heart. He opened it and poured forth his love, covering her and letting it seep deep into her being.

She opened her eyes and he knew from that day forward he would never be the same. Life sprang from her very being, pure clean liquid poured out from deep, deep inside her womb. He reach down and took her hand and in a second he knew they would have many, many children together.

Their children came forward, each one of them so different and so unique they taught their mother and father to appreciate the little things in life. Laughter filled the air as they played in the paradise their father had created. His guidance and compassion made them strong. Their mother’s love feed them and kept them from harm. They went forth and multiplied spreading their mother and fathers love to all their children, teaching them the ways of the oldest ones.

The golden rules they abided by were simple.

Show respect for anything older than you, show compassion for anyone who has less than you, leave all that you touch clean and pure, put in as much as you take out, keep the door to your heart unlocked, and always remember who brought you into this world.

Living by these simple rules seemed so easy and left everyone who followed them happy and content. Yet somehow as time went on some people began to ignore these basic rules. The distance they created from their mother and fathers original intent created a distance inside them. The further away they got the unhappier they became. The unhappier they became the angrier they grew. Soon they were fighting amongst them selves blaming each other for their unhappiness. They began abusing their mother, showing no respect for anything older than themselves, they had no compassion, locked their hearts away, poisoning all that they touched, taking so much more than they put in and forgetting who had brought them into this world.

Their mother and father stood by and watch with sadness in their eyes as there children ran adrift. The children, feeling like lost souls were unsure of what to do so they got down on their knees and prayed.

“Heavenly Father forgive us for what we have done, in our ignorance we have abused our Mother Earth and in doing so have abused our self’s and the home you have made for us. Please tell us what we must do to make it right.” From the heavens boomed a voice loud and clear. “It is simple, just follow the golden rules and the rest will take care of itself.”

“Show respect for anything older than you, show compassion for anyone who has less than you, leave all that you touch clean and pure, put in as much as you take out, keep the door to your heart unlocked, and always remember who brought you into this world.”

==
“I am so blessed these days, I was introduced several weeks ago to one of the Lamas, Lama Norvu, he is stationed at the Stupa here in Chile, it is one of only two that are located outside of India, the other is in Brazil.

For the last couple weeks I have attended meditaion sesions he has been holding in nearby Pucon. He invited me to go with a small group to the meditaion hall located on the property on the 28th for a healing and meditation dedicated to sending gratitude and energy out to the suffering in the world.
It would be an early moring meditaion and I thought wow what a way to kick off my World Healing Day, God is so good to me.

It has been snowing here for several weeks and I was so ready for the sun to shine and shine it did, I woke to the most perfect day and the enrgy was so easy to feel, as if it followed me as I prepard for my day. Joining several other friend we road and walked to the top of the mountian where the hall is located, the Stupa.

Link to the Stupa

Several in the group had just a few hours before watched the total eclipse of the moon visible here as the sun rose and the moon set. One can not help but admire the amazing views as you make the hike up to the Stupa, the snow covered Andes mountains in the back ground and the active volcano Ruka Pallin in the for ground surround you with the power that is Gods creation.

The first thing you see as you enter the property is the tower that rises above the Stupa (see photo) it is located in the center of the property and there is a gravel path surrounding it, we did our bows and prayers and then walked around it paying tribute to the Buddha that lay behind a glass shield on the top.

The mediation hall is made of wood and sits on the back of the property, Lama Norvu told me of their plans to build 20ft tall cement standing Buddha on the lawn in front of the hall and to surround it with several small mediation rooms. He said this would be a receptacle for the transmitter they had built in Nepal that would send energy and prayers directly to this location and that it was determined that this was a very powerful place and from it much healing would come.

I smile as I thought of my plans to build an earths healing center just 1000 yards from this spot in the valley below. We entered the hall and lit incense, candles and filled the chalices with water. The Lama assumed a position on the small platform in the front of the room and we took our seats on the small pillows to his side.

The mediation was to be for the relief of suffering of all beings on the planet, we were instructed to bring into the room all our friends and family and even our enemies if we had any. I thought about our world healing group and how it was gaining momentum, I thought about all the special people who though out this day would send their healing energy to help the planet and its inhabitants and I mentally brought each of them into the room and connect them to this special spiritual place and ask the powers that were here to boost the power of their offerings and help manifest all that was ask for.

The mantra was started and as it moved along I could feel the energy that being connected to others brought. I saw the winds of the south as they blew through the trees out the window and thought about how they cleaned the air we breath and kept us all alive and I added my energy to its cleansing, I saw the water on the altar and thought about the water of the west and how we all depend on it for our life as I sent my cleansing energy to all the water of the planet, I saw the fire in the candles and thought about the warmth of the sun and the glow of the northern lights and how their energy helps the food grow that all inhabitants of mother Giai depend on for nourishment and I added my strong pure energy to its.

I smelled the incense and thought about the east and the earth and how it provides us with so much we depend on to live and I sent it cleansing energy directly to its center.

Then I saw us all sitting in a circle and it hit me all of the elements depend on us, they depend on this energy we are sending as much as we depend on them and that with out any one of us the others would not survive and I prayed for all the suffering in the world and I pulled in the energy from the lotus flower I was sitting on and I sent it out 1000 times more powerful to help heal all that was in need and I felt peace. All around the world gatherings are taking place to help Heal.

The GoGratitude movement (http://www.gogratitude.com )
The Celestine Global Prayer Project (http://www.celestinevision.com/ )

Our world healing movement ( http://therapeuticreiki.com/blog/ ) and many others all for the purpose of improving the planet we live on and the being that enjoy its greatness. I thank you all for the energy I feel in your healings and I thank God for his compassion for us all.”

The Indian panorama of spiritual world is full of diversity, vividness and variety of “process” of meditation, that a novice in this field is fumbled and confused as to which “process” or “path” he should follow in order to reach his goal of Self-Realisation. In India if you walk ten miles in any direction you will come across some Guru, Maharaj, Swami or Baba worth noticing with his peculiar siddhi (occult power) challenging the scientific attitude on its own ground. But we should not go altogether on the face value of these siddhas,( the one who has achieved occult powers) but with caution and discrimination one should know the gem from semi precious stones.

However, these individuals in this field who are truly spiritual and can operate on the level beyond mind and intellect. These persons have seen God face to face and live in the presence of god. Gurudev and Krishnamurti are such cosmic spirits who are rarely found.

Osho in his book Meditation has described around 108 meditative processes, most of them are developed by himself but his emphasis is on Zen way of life ; Sri. V. V. Gokhale’s “Dhyanavidya” (Science of Meditation) describes 39 processes that are currently followed in India. These two books are quite representative on this subject. Daniel Goleman’s book “The Varieties of the Meditative Experience” is of interest for readers who want to know the 14 international paths and their methods, as he puts it “There are many different paths that the meditator can choose on his or her journey to spiritual enlightenment”, but he further advises “get beyond the emotional attachments to our own method” only “to arrive at the common end of transformation and enlightenment”.

By which side of Everest you are climbing is not important, but have you finally reached the peak and became an enlightened one ? We may be following a particular Guru or Teacher and his method of meditation for about 40/50 years, and exactly where we are ? We may not be at the door of final Satori or Enlightenment but are we at least at the 8th or 9th stage of Zen Bull Story ?(Appeared in the book “Zen Flesh and Zen Bones” by Paul Reps)

This is the question one should honestly put to one self and be out of sleep. If our approach is wrong then we must correct it, if our understanding of particular process of meditation is short of right perception, then we must again totally surrender to our Guru or Teacher and get directed for true meaning of his Initiation, the essence of his Grace, or Dialogue so that we may again start afresh and if possible in this very present body realize what we wanted to and mean by meditation whether it is ‘Nam’(sacred word) received secretly from Guru or Awareness as put it by Teacher in the open discussion.

Out of the labyrinth of “meditative processes” I want to concentrate on above two processes as we are deeply involved in them.

The Nam process advocated by saints like Dnyaneshwar, Tukaram and others and by Gondavalekar Maharaj and Gurudeo Ranade in the present times has its roots in our Indian way of spiritual life.

If I am to quote Gurudeo, “Nam (sacred word) is a symbol which carries with it the spiritual power, and ‘Namsmaran’ (repeating the sacred Mantra given by Guru) is a process of identification with God”.The ultimate stage of Nam is the process of identifying with God – a live Energy of Creation – or to let go oneself with the flow of life without your personal ego interfering in it.

Our everyday life of Sansar (material world) every act of the material life is useless unless it is related to God and this will one day dissolve our personal boundaries of mind and ego – one day we will be Gods. It means less and less of attachments with material objects or events or relations that bind us with desires, but being in Sansar(material world) executing all the duties with perfection not as a karta (head) but as a witness, is the key of spiritual journey.

The other process of meditation where in instead of ‘Nam’, ‘Choiceless Awareness’ becomes the witness of all that flows through our mind as time and space. In ‘Nam’ as the intensity of process deepens, the ‘me’ or ‘I’ as the doer in process is diminished gradually or suddenly. It depends how far the Sadhaka(the meditator) has understood the ‘how’ of process or in ‘Choiceless Awareness’, how far the happening of ‘witness process’ is achieved without the motive of achievement. In both the processes the ‘me’ should gradually or suddenly disappear and what remains is the non doer, non-witness, ‘just seeing’ the events of life as they happen.

So whether it is the sacred word or mantra or sound received from Guru or from the state or perception arrived at during intense dialogue in Satsang(a group of devotees)of choiceless Awareness. Both are psychological evolutionary stages instrumental in touching the state of cosmic existence.

One should understand that Nam is not at all only repetition or concentration but contemplation and going beyond the Word, Form and Thing and to know the web of Desire and our unconscious with a witness attitude.

The moment time and thought enter into your process, then ‘Nam’ is not ‘Nam’ or Choiceless Awareness is not Awareness . You are caught in an endless cycle of suffering.

“Meditation through Choiceless Awareness is the process of understanding your own mind. If you don’t understand your own thinking, which is self knowledge, then whatever you think has very little meaning only a self hypnosis”.

The state where the contemplator of Nam and Nam and the process of Nam are one is the real state of Nem (sitting for Nam Meditation). The one who is aware ,of the process of awareness and object of awareness are not separate but one indivisible state where truth operates.

One or two words on the actual details of Nam and Awareness process. Please note this observations are the outcome of my personal experience.

If namasmaran is done with deep faith then such process becomes effortless, a kind of natural state, in harmony with your daily acts of everyday life. Whether you are cooking, sweeping, taking bath or doing your Nem (sitting for Nam Meditation), there is no difference in your state of mind, no change of psychological attitude, but one continuum of time and space where mind slowly and unknowingly comes to a state of stillness.

Wamanrao Pai in his book “Namacha Nandadeep” (Light of Nam) describes two types of Nam, one is Sadhak Nam( sacred word given by the Guru to a disciple ) and the other is Siddha Nam( the same word by constant repetition becomes a powerful) . Without the practice of Sadhak Nam you will not reach the stage of Siddhanam. Further he gives eleven sub divisions of Sadhakanam. His analysis of internal Nam based on Vaikhari (is to repeat the Nam loudly in a group), Madhyama ( is heard only by oneself), Pashyanti ( to repeat the Mantra in the mind without moving lips), Para (last stage where Mantra is repeated effortlessly in Samadhi) This analysis of Sadhaknam is extremely useful for the sadhak disciple . The interested sadhak should read his book.

Sri Gondavalekar Maharaj used to give only one Nam to his disciples while Gurudeo was giving different Nam to the disciples as per their evolutionary progress.

While K’s process of Choiceless Awareness, the perception of what is without time and thought e.g. without the interference of mind brings about Energy which is the source of our existence. And in that energy there is no division as perceiver, perceived and perceiving only one entity without word and form like the state when in deep contemplation of Nam, you are in the middle of breath.

So ‘Nam’ and ‘Awareness’ should merge into one another only to create the state of emptiness where Creative Energy of Cosmos exists. It is a natural effortless state with Energy.

Whether by Nam or Awareness the immensity of Cosmos should be felt. Your whole mind with its all levels of consciousness should be purified and transformed. In that state whatever you do it is the act of Cosmos, act of God. From our personalized word, form or deity, Nam becomes the Cosmic energy for which it stands.

Inhale Nam and spread it all over the body from head to toe. Retain Nam in the body holding your breath. Exhale Nam and let your consciousness spread over the cosmos outside. In so doing the Image of Nam finally merges with Cosmic Energy abandoning your body consciousness. You are in a no – ego, no – I, no – gravity state (attachment). You are in the Nameless state of middle of sushmna ,(middle breath) leaning neither to right nor to left paths. The state where even Gods aspire to be.

Nam is associated with breath process while Awareness is related to the process of mind where witnessing the movement of thought is done by Awareness synchronizing the rhythm of breath. The inner utterance of Nam at Para level is the real practice of Nem. If Nam is uttered without any reference to your breathing, then it is a dry infertile, repetition. It will never bring an enlightened state.

This is also true with Choiceless Awareness. If one who is Aware is without intensity and seriousness of purpose, then our Awareness is another conditioning and it will be only word without the essence, hypnotizing the listener. Without deep intensity, Awareness becomes mania.

Nam and Choiceless Awareness are not contradictory but complimentary. Their goals are not different, both are reaching Everest from two opposite sides.

Through Nam or Choiceless Awareness one has to forget one’s own religion and should dissolve in the universal religion. Then you are just Spiritual and nothing else.

The merging of Nam with the breath brings the trinity of the one who is uttering Nam, the Nam of the thing and the process of Nam should be one, as also in Choiceless Awareness, the one who is aware, the thing about you are aware, and the process of awareness should be one activity then only in that state Benediction descends.

By Kanhaiya Joshi
City: Aurangabad
State: Maharashtra
Country: India

References :

Meditation : The First and Last Freedom : Osho

The Varieties of the Meditative Experience : Daniel Goleman

Link : Yearly Publication of J. K. Teaching : Amsterdam

Dhyanavidya :V.V.Gokhale.

Namacha Nandadeep : Vamanrao Pai.

Discourses : Gondavlekar Maharaj.