The Evolutionary Stages of Consciousness

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ALLTHE

SECRETS

OF THE

UNIVERSE

AND BEYOND

SWAMIAVIDYANANDA



FOREWORD

By The Deathless Master,

Satgurudeva Mahavatar Babaji

I have known Swamiji for many of his incarnations now, and can personally testify

that he is the most pathetic and absolutely worthless excuse for a disciple I have ever had,and I’ve been around for a really long time! I well remember that dark and dismal day

when he first appeared, with his ghetto-blaster and collection of heavy-metal rock and

roll CD’s, at my secluded hermitage nestled far above an opalescent lake (where Iwindsurf on weekends) that is fed by rainbowed waterfalls, high in the Indian Himalaya

beyond Badrinath. It was here in my cave that I attained soruba samadhi, the state of

physical immortality, at the age of sixteen. When he requested that I initiate him into theancient Swami Order, I had to muster all of my powers of yogic self-control in order to

refrain myself from throwing him off the nearest cliff, or simply dematerializing him.Anyways, against my will (“Thy will be done!” – You know I’ve got to stop doing that

mantra; they really crucified a good buddy of mine, J.C., a hip dude from Israel, for usingit.), I bestowed sannyas on Swamiji and gave him the monastic name of Avidyananda,

which means “the bliss of ignorance.” His favorite saying to this day is “What you don’t

know won’t hurt you.”

The unpretentious title to Swamiji’s new book – All the Secrets of the Universe and

Beyond – is quite appropriate. They will still be secrets after you finish perusing thisextremely incoherent and confusing treatise; perhaps the worst ever drafted throughout

all of the countless Kali Yugas, or Dark Ages. I simply couldn’t wait to stop reading and

to put it down! In keeping with my vow of satya, or truthfulness, I cannot recommendthis book to anyone except politicians, like George W. Bushwhacker, who are alreadyutterly confused anyways. Hopefully it will keep them distracted for a while during

which they won’t be able to muck things up any further.

In closing I will quote another one of my disciples, Swami Beyondananda who at least

has a sense of humor – “The only thing I don’t like about my higher self is that it’s

always getting high without me!” For all of you who can relate to these words, but are tooapathetic to do anything about it, I would suggest his easy-to-read, short and concise The

Lazy Man’s Guide to Enlightenment.

Babaji

In the year 306 of the ascending Dwapara Yuga, or Electrical Age



THE

EVOLUTIONARY STAGES

OF

CONSCIOUSNESS



DEDICATED,

WITH DIVINE LOVE, TO

THE REVEREND MOTHER

YOGACHARYA MILDRED HAMILTON



THE ONE PURE AWARENESS

I Am the WITNESS -

always blissful equanimity

- right now, right here

beyond all hopes and fear !





TABLE OF CONTENTS

A – Pseudo-Title & Foreword, and Genuine Title Page

B – Dedication Photograph, and Cosmic Affirmation Poem

C – Table of Contents

CHAPTERS:

I – Body, Mind and Spirit

II – “The Holy Science”

III – Physiology of the Astral and Causal Bodies

IV – The Eightfold Path of Yoga

V – Patanjali’s Kriya Yoga Sutras

VI – Raja Yoga

VII – The Five Levels of Preliminary Meditative Absorption

VIII – The Bhagavad Gita and Its Symbolism

IX – The Four Levels of Savikalpa Samadhi

X – The Generation Stage of Nirvikalpa Samadhi:

Its Transcendence and Integration Phases

XI – The Process of Liberation and Karma-Destroying Visions

XII – The Completion Stage of Nirvikalpa Samadhi:

Supreme Enlightenment and Liberation;

And Wielding the Siddhis, Miraculous Yogic Powers

Appendix : “The Evolutionary Stages of Consciousness”





BODY, MIND AND SPIRIT

“BODY-MIND”

LEVEL #1: UNCONSCIOUSNESS – This stage represents: a) the state of deep sleepthat, according to various texts on yoga, is actually the awareness of nothingness; and b)

the passive inertia of gross matter.

LEVEL #2: SUBCONSCIOUSNESS – This stage represents: a) the state of dreaming;

b) the depository of memories; c) instinctive drives; and d) the active response to stimuli

as found in plants, animals and man.

LEVEL #3: PHYSICAL CONSCIOUSNESS – This stage represents the most basic

state of ordinary wakefulness, perception of one’s body and the material world through

the physical senses. It is the worldview as held by the consciousness of an animal, or a

human baby. At this stage one’s ego, or sense of being a separate self, is based on a primary identification with the body and its sensory impressions, which, throughout the

next six levels below, expands to also include the mind with all of its thoughts andfeelings.

LEVEL #4: MAGICAL – This stage represents the primitive belief that the forces of nature can be harnessed in order to control one’s environment through intention and

specific rites. It is exemplified by shamanism, or the process of “wish fulfillment” in the

development of a small child as described in modern psychology.

LEVEL #5: MYTHOLOGICAL – This stage represents the dogmatic belief that a

particular god or goddess of any given culture may be invoked to manipulate the worldon one’s behalf through the power of ritualized worship and egocentric prayer. It isepitomized by religious fundamentalism , a form of cultural conditioning in which one

simply accepts blindly, on an emotional level, what he has heard or read without any

critical discernment, nor real effort to verify its actual validity.

LEVEL #6-8: RATIONAL – These stages represent discrimination based on the mental

powers of logic and reason. They are subdivided into a) the early phase; b) the middle, or developmental, phase; and c) the late, or mature, phase where one has become adept at

playing the various roles his life has created.

LEVEL #9: EXISTENTIAL – This stage represents the rite of passage to super-consciousness, or transcendental awareness. Here, a profound and intense dissatisfaction

with the limitations of body and mind, and deep contemplation on the true meaning of

one’s own existence, finally culminate in a yearning for the bliss of freedom in Spirit.

*******



I have only touched in passing on these initial stages of consciousness, levels that

form a basis for the progressive unfoldment of increasingly more complex worldviews:

physical, magical, mythological, rational, and existential . For an absolute wealth of information regarding these, the many intricate facets of cognition involved, and their

correspondence with social and cultural developments throughout the hunter-gatherer,

agrarian, empire state, industrialized nation, and information age, phases of man’sevolution over the last few thousand years, see The Collected Works of Ken Wilber.

In radical contrast to the mythological worldview as most blatantly personified byreligious fundamentalism, which is pre-rational and ethnocentric, genuine spirituality is

not only trans-rational and transpersonal, but also universal. It is grounded in the direct

perception and experience of the all-pervading Spirit beyond name and form – puremystical realization as told by saints and sages around the world through the ages.

*******

“This existential question is within everyone: What is the meaning of life? But inwords themselves there can be no answer. That which is inside us – call It the witness,

observer, consciousness; call It whatever you like. It is nameless, so give It any name youwant – God, nirvana, liberation, whatever you choose – fullness, emptiness, or being,

whatever; It is without name and within you – submerge yourself in That .

I am not saying that you will find answers; the questions simply dissolve and

disappear. Then your very consciousness itself will become the answer. When you go

beyond questions the joy of life, the great benediction and blessing, comes raining down.

You dance, you hum a melody, you sing. Samadhi, or divine ecstasy, has flowered. Nowyou do not ask anything for there is nothing to ask. Life is no longer a question; it

becomes a mystery instead, not a problem to be solved but a mystery to be lived, to be

danced, to be sung – A mystery to be celebrated !

Go within – beyond the body, beyond the mind, beyond emotions – go deeper and

deeper within.... When we search outside of ourselves, our life seems to be withoutmeaning. But when we search within, we ourselves become the meaning of life. There is

only one thing in this universe that does not come and go. It is pure awareness, the

witnessing consciousness, inside all of you. And when you are free of your little self, the

ego, you discover the sacred and divine revealed within you. You find that what you weresearching for had always been present inside of you, simply waiting for you to awaken.”

(Enlightenment: The Only Revolution – Discourses On The Great Mystic Ashtavakra, pages 240 & 346-47, by Osho)

*******



“SPIRIT” Evolution is basically a process of transcendence and integration. One’s sadhana, or spiritual practice and discipline in all of its varied forms, is the primary driving force.

Peak experiences into higher levels of consciousness that are increasingly stabilized

through repetition are the quintessence of transcendence. On the other hand, you willinevitably find yourself falling back repeatedly into lower states, too. Meditation in its

broadest sense means utilizing the power of concentration to focus on a specific aspect of

Spirit, and to experience it directly through intuitive awareness. The process of integration means to abide in the aftereffects of meditation to the best of one’s ability – a

deep sense of unshakeable peace, or a continuous flow of joyful bliss, for example –

throughout the various activities of the day. Your particular level of consciousness is

determined by its “center of gravity” – the overall mean influence of every higher and

lower state that you are experiencing, whether it is drawing you towards, or repelling youaway from, the realization of oneness with God. Onwards and upwards! Transcendence,

generated by intensive sadhana practiced with fiery resolve and the utmost devotion,creates the space for an accelerated process of integration so one can complete as quickly

as possible the next step forward on the path of spiritual evolution....

“Pure yoga is superconsciousness: the various procedures, if attended to, lead to this.

Only when involvement is focused on enlightenment are you truly on the spiritual path.”

( Life Surrendered In God – The Kriya Yoga Way Of Soul Liberation, page 144, by RoyEugene Davis)

NOTE: All of the quotes throughout this treatise may have undergone some minor changes in wording, or have been somewhat condensed, on my part without, hopefully,affecting the essential meaning. This has been written so as to serve as a reference guide

for my own journey of awakening, to be shared with a small circle of friends, and to also

fulfill a request made by my guru, so many years ago, that I complete my graduatestudies in Eastern philosophy and religion. My next step will be to stop Phi Dling around,

and get down to pursuing a real Master’s degree!



“THE HOLY SCIENCE”Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri, the guru of Paramhansa Yogananda, was requested in

1894 by Mahavatar Babaji to write The Holy Science as an exposition on the underlyingharmony between the scriptures of Christianity, to include the highly symbolic book of

Revelation, and those of Sanatana Dharma, “The Eternal Religion,” of Hinduism. The

sutras of Sri Yukteswar are based on the Sankhya-Yoga philosophy of India.

“All inherence, perception, and understanding about creation are explained in Sankhya

philosophy. Yoga is the science or techniques for practical realization of the philosophical

truths of Sankhya. The word yoga signifies “union,” mergence. When the soul of manunites with the Spirit, the union is described as yoga.” (God Speaks with Arjuna – The

Bhagavad Gita – Royal Science of God-Realization, pg. 267, by Paramhansa Yogananda)

“The first aphorism in Sankhya declares that the highest necessity of man is theeradication of physical, mental, and spiritual suffering at the root, so that there is no

possibility of recurrence. Yoga philosophy teaches the technique by which the threefoldhuman afflictions can be removed forever. Vedanta, which means “end of the Vedas”

(complete knowledge of all truth to be known), describes the Omnipresent and Eternal

Spirit, the ultimate goal of man. The first aphorism in Vedanta states: “So begins theinquiry about Brahman, the Infinite.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 1027, Yogananda)

“The purpose of this book is to reveal as clearly as possible that there is an essential

unity in all religions; that there is no difference in the truths inculcated by the variousfaiths; that there is but one method by which the world, both external and internal, has

evolved; and that there is but one sacred goal admitted by all scriptures.... The book is

divided into four sections, according to the stages in the development of knowledge. Thehighest aim of religion is Atma-jnanam, Self-realization. But to attain this, knowledge of

the external world is necessary. Therefore the first section of the book deals with Veda,

“The Gospel,” and seeks to establish fundamental truths of creation and to describe itsevolution and involution.” (The Holy Science, pages 4-6, by Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri)

The following quotes are from this first section exclusively. I found it to be absolutely

essential to reword and simplify some of Sri Yukteswar’s explanations in order to makethem comprehensible. I also took the liberty to make a few small adaptations in the

translation of Christian scriptures.



“THE GOSPEL” SUTRA 1

“The Supreme Aspect of God, Parambrahma, is everlasting, absolute and complete,

without beginning or end. It is one indivisible Being.”

“The Infinite and Eternal Spirit, Parambrahma, is the only real Substance, Sat , and

constitutes all and everything in the Universe.”

*******

“Truth is one, sages call it by various names.”

( Rig Veda, the oldest extant scripture on planet Earth)

“The transcendental Supreme Spirit exists in relationship to the vibratory cosmos but

is also beyond it. Sat , or Being; God the Father, of the Christian Bible; Brahman of the

Bhagavad Gita and Vedanta philosophy; Paramatma of the yogis; and Purushottama arevarious names of this unchangeable One Absolute Spirit existing beyond the dream-

structures of vibratory creation.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 713, Yogananda)

God is described in the Hindu scriptures as Sat-Chid-Ananda ( satchidananda). Sat isExistence, Being, Substance, Reality, and Truth – or that which is permanent and

unchanging. Chid is Pure Nondual Awareness, Omniscience, Cosmic Consciousness, and

the Attracting Magnetism of Divine Love. Ananda is Spiritual Joy, Bliss, Rapture, andEcstasy. Sat-Chid-Ananda can be rendered in numerous ways – “The Ultimate Reality of

Divine Love and Spiritual Ecstasy” or, on a personal level, as “the always blissful pure

awareness at the very heart of being,” for example. The translation most favored byYoganandaji is “ever-existing, ever-conscious, ever-new joy,” or simply – “God is Bliss.”

The sacred works of India, and the testimony of the enlightened masters, proclaim that

oneness with God, or Spirit, is the realization of Eternal Life, Absolute Omniscient

Consciousness, and the Highest State of Bliss. (“It’s all too much! And that’s just alright by me.” – Yogi Rob)

*******

SUTRA 2

“ Parambrahma is the origin of all wisdom and love, the root of all power and bliss.”



“The Almighty Force, Shakti, being Ananda or Eternal Bliss, which produces the

world, and the Omniscient Feeling, Chid , which make this world conscious, demonstrate

the Nature, Prakriti, of God.... As man is made in the likeness of Spirit, directing hisattention inwards he can comprehend within himself the same Almighty Force and

Omniscient Feeling, as the very properties of his own true nature, or Self.”

“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God.” – Genesis 1:27

*******

SUTRA 3

“ Parambrahma causes inert Nature ( Prakriti ), to emerge as creation. From Aum

( Pranava, the Word, the manifestation of the Omnipotent Force), come kala, time;

desa, space; and anu, the atoms (or basic units of vibratory structure, tiny solar

systems of fine material essences).”

“The Word, Amen or Aum, is the beginning of creation. The manifestation of

Omnipotent Force (Repulsion away from Spirit) and its complementary expression of Omniscient Love (Attraction back to Spirit) is vibration, which appears as a particular

sound: the Word, Amen, or Aum. In its different aspects Aum represents the idea of

change, which is time, kala, in the Ever-Unchangeable; and the idea of division, which isspace, desa, in the Ever-Indivisible. The ensuing effect is the idea of particles, the

innumerable atoms, or anu. These four – Aum, time, space, and the atoms are essentially

one and the same, a fourfold vibratory configuration that is substantially nothing more

than ideas.

The emanation of the Word creates this visible world. The Word, Amen, Aum, is

inseparable from and nothing but God Himself, being the manifestation of His Eternal Nature, just like fire and its power to burn.”

“These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creationof God.” – Revelation 3:14

“In the beginning was the Word, and the word was with God, and Word was God....

All things were made by God: and without God was not anything made that was

made.... And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.” – John 1:1,3,14

*******

SUTRA 4

“The basic vibratory structure of creation is anu or the atoms. En masse they are

called Maya or the Lord’s illusory power, that is reflected individually within each

incarnate soul as avidya, ignorance.”



“These atoms, which represent the four ideas mentioned above, are the throne of

Almighty God, the Creator, who by shining on them brings this universe into

materialization. They are known collectively as Maya, the Darkness, for they keep theSpiritual Light out of comprehension. An incarnate soul ( jivatman) is veiled by

ignorance, avidya, through the effect of Maya, Cosmic Delusion, which makes man

unawares of even his own true Self. Hence these fundamental ideas that give rise to allthis confusion are referred to as “beasts” in Revelation. Man, so long as he identifies

himself with his gross material body, holds a position far inferior to that of the subtle

essence to be found in the primal fourfold construct of manifestation. But when he raiseshimself to the level thereof, he not only comprehends this fourfold structure inside and

out (as his consciousness and physical form, respectively) but also the whole of creation,

“before and behind” in both its unmanifested and manifest aspects.”

“And in the midst of and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes

before and behind.” – Revelation 4:6

*******

SUTRA 5

“The Omniscient Love aspect of Parambrahma is Kutastha Chaitanya, Cosmic

Consciousness. The individual Self, being Its manifestation, is one with It.”

“The manifestation of Chid , Omnipresent Spirit and Omniscient Love, the force of

Attraction, or Life, is called Kutastha Chaitanya or the Holy Ghost, which shines on the

Darkness, Maya, to draw every portion of it back towards Divinity. But the Darkness, Maya, and its expression as ignorance, avidya, present in each man, being Repulsion

itself, cannot receive or comprehend the Spiritual Light. This Holy Ghost, the Nature of

Eternal Spirit as Cosmic Consciousness, is no other substance that God Himself; andthese reflections of spiritual rays, or individual souls, are called Purusha, the Sons of

God.”

“In God was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in

darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.” – John 1:4-5

*******

SUTRA 6

“An incarnate soul, as the evolution of Chid , Cosmic Consciousness, is endowed with

chitta, self-awareness and the power of feeling, that when spiritualized is called

buddhi , discriminative intelligence. Its opposite is manas, the sensory mind, in which

dwells the ego, ahamkara, the idea of separate existence.”



“Through the force of Universal Love, or the Holy Spirit, an incarnate soul becomes

spiritualized, like iron filings in a magnetic aura, and possessed of consciousness and the

power of feeling. This is called the Spiritual Heart, chitta, and the sense of being aseparate self, ahamkara, appears within it. Being thus magnetized, it has two poles, one

of which attracts it toward the real Substance, Sat , and the other repels it from the same.

The former is called buddhi, discriminative intelligence, which determines what is Truth.The latter is manas, sense perception and consciousness, being an expression of the

Almighty Force that creates the ideal world for enjoyment, Ananda, or Bliss.”

*******

SUTRAS 7-10

“Sentience, chitta, in which ahamkara, the idea of separate existence of self appears,

has five manifestations, or auric electricities, that make up the causal body of man.

The three qualities or gunas – sattva (positive), rajas (neutral), and tamas (negative)

of the five auric electricities produce jnanendriyas (the five sense organs),karmendriyas (the five instruments of action), and tanmatras (the five objects of

sense perception). These fifteen attributes plus sensory consciousness (manas) and

discriminative intelligence (buddhi ) constitute the seventeen elements of the subtle

astral body of man.”

“The five auric electricities that evolve from sentience, chitta, are in a magnetized

state. They result from the extremities of sattva and tamas, from rajas in the middle,

and from sattva-rajas and rajas-tamas produced by the intervening spaces. These

auric electricities are called panchatattva, the five root-causes of creation. Their

positive attributes, jnanendriyas, are the sense organs of smell, taste, sight, touch,

and hearing. Their neutralizing attributes, karmendriyas, are the instruments of

action – excretion, reproduction, locomotion, manual dexterity, and speech. Their

negative attributes, tanmatras, are the objects of the five senses.”

A fully enlightened being has become the pure reflection of a spiritual ray

emanating from the Source, and is know in esoteric Christianity as a Son of God.

However, for the ordinary man, the Self, or soul, is shrouded by ignorance and

compelled through desire to incarnate until liberation is attained. The fourfold

vibratory structure of creation, Maya, and the individuation of consciousness, chitta,

endowed with ignorance, avidya, and its ensuing result as the sense of separate

existence, ahamkara, or the ego – being “the son of man,” are expressions of the

force of Repulsion away from Spirit. Sentience, as self-awareness and the power of

feeling, is also simultaneously affected by the force of Attraction back to Spirit,

Cosmic Consciousness. As a consequence a magnetic field is created that produces

five auric electricities with their positive and negative poles of discriminative

intelligence, buddhi, and sensory consciousness, manas.

*******



SUTRAS 11-12

“The five sense objects, which are the negative attributes of the five auric electricities, being combined produce the idea of gross matter in five forms: k shiti, solids; ap, liquids;

tejas, fire; marut , gaseous substances; and akasha, ether. These five forms of gross matter

and the fifteen attributes, together with manas, sense consciousness; buddhi,discriminative intelligence; chitta, the Spiritual Heart, or power of feeling; and

ahamkara, the ego, constitute the twenty-four basic principles of creation.”

“Matter which appears to us in five different varieties – solid, liquid, fiery,

gaseous, and ethereal – make up the gross material body.... These twenty-four

principles that evolve the world of Darkness, Maya, Cosmic Delusion, and its

individualized reflection as ignorance, avidya, within the awareness of man, are

nothing more than the Nature, or Creative Power, of God’s Consciousness. In

reality creation has no true existence of its own, but is a mere play of ideas on the

only real Substance, Sat, the Infinite and Eternal Spirit.”

“And round about the throne were four and twenty seats; and upon the seats I saw four

and twenty elders.” – Revelation 4:4

*******

“Realizing the theoretical Sankhya philosophy by practical Yoga has a definite

meaning. The yogi “involves” creation (reverses the twenty-four evolutionary

processes of Nature, as expounded in Sankhya), starting with matter (the grossest

form of creation) and proceeding through the linked chain of the twenty-four

primordial qualities, whose origin is Spirit. By ascent of the consciousness through

the subtle centers of life and spiritual awakening in the spine, the yogi learns the

inner science of changing the consciousness of gross matter into the consciousness of

its primordial principles. He resolves the five vibratory elements along with their

manifestation of the five senses, five instruments of action, and five differentiations

of lifeforce from grosser to finer principles: changing the consciousness of earth into

that of water; the consciousness of water into that of fire; the consciousness of fire

into that of air; the consciousness of air into that of ether; the consciousness of ether

into that of the sensory mind (manas); the consciousness of sensory mind into that of

discriminative intelligence (buddhi ); the consciousness of discriminative intelligence

into that of the intuitive feeling of the heart (chitta); the consciousness of the

intuitive feeling of the heart into that of one’s sense of individuality ( ahamkara). By

thus dissolving the twenty-four principles successively into one another, the yogi

then merges the consciousness of one’s sense of individuality into that of the

primordial cosmic vibratory force ( Aum), and the consciousness of Aum into Spirit.

He thereby reaches the Ultimate and Absolute, the One from whom has sprung the

many.

By gradual steps the yogi in this way converts all consciousness of matter into the

consciousness of Spirit. This realization is not attainable through either reason or



imagination, but solely through intuitive experience. Such experience is, in nearly all

cases, the result of practicing meditation and yoga techniques as taught by the great

sages of ancient and modern India.... Sankhya-Yoga philosophy, therefore, is not

only analytical and discriminative knowledge of the cosmos but includes definite

methods for Self-realization. By Sankhya-Yoga the yogi perceives the exact nature of

his body, mind, and soul, as well as the cosmos in its entirety. Through scientifictechniques he attains by gradual steps the knowledge of the Ultimate Substance of

creation.”

(The Bhagavad Gita, pages 267-69, Yogananda)

(NOTE: The correspondence between the five elements and the senses is earth and

smell, water and taste, fire and sight, air and touch, ether and hearing. The

correspondence for the instruments of action is earth and excretion, water and

reproduction, fire and locomotion, air and manual dexterity, ether and speech. The

correspondence for the differentiations of lifeforce is earth and the eliminating

current (apana), water and the circulating current (vyana), fire and the assimilatingcurrent (samana), air and the crystallizing current ( prana), ether and the

metabolizing current (udana).

*******

“According to Sankhya, the twenty-four principles of the evolutionary process of

Nature, from Spirit into matter, are as follows: (1) Prakriti – the basic creative

power bringing forth all phenomena; (2) Mahat-tattva – Cosmic Consciousness, Sat,

referred to in Yoga as chitta, the sentience from which comes buddhi (discriminative

intelligence); (3) ahamkara (egoism); (4) manas (sensory mind); (5-9) jnanendriyas –

the five organs of sense perception; (10-14) karmendriyas – the five instruments of

action; (15-19) tanmatras – the five supersensible or abstract qualities of matter; and

(20-24) mahabhutas – the five subtle elements or vibratory motions, the

conglomeration of which appear as gross matter in solid, liquid, fiery, gaseous, and

etheric form.

In Yoga, which is concerned with the practical application of the principles by

which Spirit becomes matter and by which matter can be resolved again into Spirit,

Sankhya’s tanmatras (abstract qualities of matter) and the mahabhutas (subtle

elements of gross matter that arise from the tanmatras) are implicitly included as

one. The five pranas, or differentiations of lifeforce, are enumerated instead of the

tanmatras. Elaborated on, the Sankhya-Yoga cosmology is as follows:

Prakriti is the creative power of God, the aspect of Spirit as Primordial Mother

Nature. As such it is imbued with the seed of twenty-four attributes, the workings of

which give birth to all manifestation. From Prakriti evolve: (1) chitta (sentience, self-

awareness and the power of feeling – the basic mental consciousness – Sankhya’s

Mahat-tattva), inherent in which are (2) ahamkara (ego); (3) buddhi (discriminative

intelligence); and (4) manas (the sensory mind). From chitta arise five causal



creative principles ( panchatattvas) that are the quintessence and root causes of the

remaining twenty evolutes of creation. These causal principles are acted upon by the

three gunas, or qualities, of Nature (sattva, rajas, and tamas) and, polarized into

buddhi and manas, become manifested as (5-9) the jnanendriyas (five organs of sense

perception); (10-14) the karmendriyas (five instruments of action); (15-19) the

mahabhutas (or mahatattvas: earth, water, fire, air, and ether – the five subtlevibratory “elements” or individualized forces (motions) of the Cosmic Creative

Vibration); and (20-24) the five pranas (five instruments of lifeforce empowering

materialization, circulation, assimilation, metabolism, and elimination). The pranas,

together with the five subtle vibratory elements, inform all matter in solid, liquid,

fiery, gaseous, and etheric form.”

(The Bhagavad Gita, footnotes on pages 267-68)

*******

It would be worthwhile at this time to examine and review the key Sanskrit terms – chitta, ahamkara, buddhi and manas – as they are not only basic to an

understanding of Indian philosophy, but also involve essential processes in the

actual practice of yoga meditation. To make a concise translation for these, and still

do them justice, as each possesses various shades of meaning, is therefore difficult.

Context plays a vital role. I have edited some of the renderings by Sri Yukteswar

and Yoganandaji so that they might have a greater impact on me personally.

“The mind (chitta) is made up of three components – manas, buddhi, and

ahamkara. Manas is the recording faculty which receives impressions gathered by

the senses from the outside world. Buddhi is the discriminative faculty that classifies

these impressions and reacts to them. Ahamkara is the ego-sense which claims these

impressions for its own and stores them up as individual knowledge. For example,

manas reports: “A large animate object is quickly approaching.” Buddhi decides:

“That’s a bull. It is angry. It wants to attack someone.” Ahamkara screams: “It

wants to attack me! It is “I” who am frightened. It is “I” who am about to run

away.” Later, from the branches of a nearby tree, ahamkara might add: “Now “I”

know this bull is dangerous. There are others who do not know this; it is my own

personal knowledge, which will cause me to avoid this bull in the future.” ( How To

Know God – Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, pages 1-2, by Swami Prabhavananda)

Chid , emanating as Cosmic Consciousness pervades every single atom

throughout limitless space. It is the power of Attraction back to the Source – Spirit,

Absolute Pure Consciousness, which lies beyond all of creation. When an incarnate

soul ( jivatman) is created, the macrocosmic Chid evolves into the microcosmic chitta.

Chid is detached from, and thus unaffected by, the power of Repulsion being Maya,

or Cosmic Delusion, and the play of cosmic forces ( gunas) inherent within Nature.

However, the sense of being a separate self arises within chitta, due to Cosmic

Delusion ( Maya), and it is polarized into sensory consciousness (manas) and



discriminative intelligence (buddhi ). The ordinary human being is plagued with

spiritual amnesia, forgetfulness of the indwelling Self as his own true nature.

Chitta can denote the individuation of consciousness; mind as an all-

comprehensive term for the faculties of cognition; the spiritual heart; sentience;

self-awareness and the power of feeling. My favorite rendering for chitta is byYoganandaji – “the intuitive feeling of the heart,” which to me seems to capture the

essence of chitta as an emanation of Cosmic Consciousness, and thus points to the

way back home. When the heart is stilled, it becomes a mirror, silently reflecting the

Spirit all around us, and within every sentient being.

It is interesting to note that the English language lends itself nicely to making

some clear distinctions between the Seer (Self), which can be symbolized by the

subjective case, capital “I”, and that which constitutes what can be seen (sense

impressions, thoughts, and feelings) represented by the small and objective case

“me”, the reflective case “myself”, and the possessive case “mine”. “I” is for

discriminative intelligence, buddhi, the pure subjectivity of the witnessingconsciousness, while “me, myself, and mine” are for Maya, Cosmic Delusion. Aham

Brahmasmi – “I am the Infinite and Eternal Spirit!” I am not the little me and

myself that identifies with objects – the body, its sense impressions, and the mind of

thoughts and feelings – that it considers to be mine.

A fully illuminated master and great adept named Patanjali wrote the renowned

Yoga Sutras, one of the most definitive texts on yoga, or “union” with God. Instead

of ahamkara (literally, “I am doing” or “I am the doer”), he utilizes the term, asmita

(“I-am-ness”). In three places ( Sutras II:4&6, and IV:4), it is used, like ahamkara, to

denote egoism, or identification with the seen (sense impressions, thoughts and

feelings). But in Sutra I:17, it clearly means “I-am-ness” as the pure subjective

awareness of the Seer (Self). Thus, unlike ahamkara, the term asmita has a flexible

range of possible meaning, and therefore can be used as an extremely powerful tool

for not only understanding, but also realizing, the process of transformation that

one’s sadhana, or spiritual practice, is really all about. For that reason I have

frequently chosen to use it in lieu of ahamkara throughout this treatise.

Ahamkara denotes egoism, ego, egoity; the sense of being a separate self;

individuality; the illusion of doership. Asmita can be used in three different ways: a)

as being identical to ahamkara – “ Asmita is the identification of the Seer with the

instrument of seeing (body-mind).” – Yoga Sutra II:6; b) as one’s sense of identity,

or self, that is being purified and transformed throughout increasingly deeper states

of spiritual realization; and c) as a pure sense of being, identification with the Self,

absolute Subjectivity – a complete metamorphosis from “I am the doer, the body-

mind” to “I am one with Spirit.”

Manas literally means “mind” but is limited in definition to the sensory mind or

sense consciousness. It denotes sensory awareness or perception, sense impressions.

Buddhi also denotes “mind” but in the sense of discrimination and discernment. It is



the intellect, power of reason, and intelligence that are transformed, when they have

been spiritualized, into discriminative insight and intuitive wisdom, or soul

awareness.

If I had to choose, on a philosophical level, translations that were as concise as

possible to describe the manifestation of individualized consciousness, they would be“sentience” (chitta), “egoism” (ahamkara), “perception” (manas), and “intelligence”

(buddhi ). However, in terms of actual spiritual practice, I would list them in the

order that they are essential factors in the progressive stages of meditative

absorption. I would also translate them differently as “sensations” (manas),

“discernment” (buddhi ), “feeling” (chitta), and “identity” (asmita).

I have drafted the following charts in order to hopefully clarify all of the

preceding information in this chapter:

************************************************************************

MACROCOSMIC MANIFESTATION

Infinite and Eternal

SPIRIT

Absolute Pure Consciousness

(the fundamental cause and support

for the universe of gross matter)

Through the Divine Will to express, Absolute Pure Consciousness

is transformed into Creative Power

Primordial Nature / Prakriti or Maya

The force of Repulsion away from Spirit

AUM

Cosmic Sound and Cosmic Light

Time and space,

and the subtle essence of cosmic particles

that form the building blocks of the universe

_______


also emanates simultaneously



as Universal Intelligence / Mahat-tattva

All-pervasive Cosmic Consciousness

The force of Attraction back to Spirit

_______

These opposing powers of Attraction and Repulsion

generate an electro-magnetic field

and cosmic forces known as gunas

Causal , or etheric, impressions are created

for an infinite possibility of formsthrough the power of sattva guna

Their expression on the astral plane

manifests as the five tanmatras

or subtle qualities of matter

through the power of rajas guna

Combinations of the five “great elements”

mahabhutas

(earth, water, fire, air, and ether)

take form as gross matter

through the power of tamas guna

************************************************************************

MICROCOSMIC MANIFESTATION

ATMAN

the Self or soul

as the individualized reflection of

SPIRIT




Through the force of desire

incarnates as a human being endowed with

Chitta – sentience, awareness,

the power of feeling;

Inherent to chitta are:

Ahamkara – egoism,

or the sense of being a separate self;

Buddhi – discriminative intelligence;

Manas – sensory consciousness

_______

Buddhi and chitta, when spiritualized, generates Soul Awareness

while ahamkara and manas obscures its realization

_______

These are individualized expressions of Universal Forces –

Cosmic Consciousness and Delusion ( Maya)

or Attraction and Repulsion

_______

THE CAUSAL BODY

As a consequence the aura is created,

an electro-magnetic forcefield,

and “the five auric electricities” – panchatattva

_______

Sattva guna and tamas guna

are the positive and negative poles _______

Rajas guna

of neutral charge is in the middle

_______

Sattva-rajas and rajas-tamas



result from the gaps in between

_______

THE ASTRAL BODY

The positive manifestations of

“the five root-causes” – panchatattvas

are the subtle counterparts of

the five organs of sense perception - jnanendriyas

(smell, taste, sight, touch, and hearing)

_______

The neutral manifestations are

the subtle counterparts of

the five instruments of action - karmendriyas

(excretion, reproduction, locomotion, manual dexterity, and speech)

_______

The negative manifestations are

the subtle counterparts of

the five objects of the senses - tanmatras

(as perceived in the dream state,

or in superconsciousness as astral perceptions)

_______

THE PHYSICAL BODY

The five “great elements” or mahabhutas

(earth, water, fire, air, and ether)

being emanations of the tanmatras

take form as the gross material body

_______

The physical form is enlivened and regulated by

the five differentiations of lifeforce – prana

(materialization, circulation, assimilation, metabolism, and elimination)that are astral by nature

_______

(I have combined elements of both Sankhya and Yoga cosmology above –

specifically the tanmatras, mahabhutas, and pranas – to create a fuller perspective.)

************************************************************************



Now let us proceed to the last two verses in the first section:

SUTRAS 17-18

“Liberation is attained through the realization that the soul is one with the Universal Self,

the Supreme Reality.... What we need is a Guru, or Savior, who can awaken us todevotion and to perceptions of Truth.”

“When all the developments of ignorance are withdrawn, the heart, being

perfectly clear and purified, no longer merely reflects the Spiritual Light but

actively manifests the same, and thus being consecrated and anointed, man becomes

free, or Christ the Savior. That is he becomes one with the Christ, or Cosmic

Consciousness, the sole reflection of Almighty God in creation, immanent in the

Word or Aum, the Holy Vibration. Thus is he liberated or saved from the darkness

of Maya, the delusion of being separate from God, or Spirit.”

“Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is hewhich baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.” – John 1:33

“Through a Savior, or True Spiritual Preceptor, Satgurudeva, the son of man is

baptized or absorbed in the stream of Spiritual Light, and rising above the creation

of Darkness, Maya, enters into the world of Spirit and becomes unified with

Purusha, the Son of God, as was the case of Jesus the Christed One. In this state

man is saved forever from the bondage of Darkness, Maya.”

“But as many as received It (the Christ, or Cosmic Consciousness), to them gave It the power to become the Sons of God.” – John 1:12

“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water (the holy stream of Aum,Amen, “the sound of many waters” mentioned in Revelation) and of the Spirit, he cannot

enter into the kingdom of God.” – John 3:15

”When man thus enters into the Spirit and becomes a Son of God, he

comprehends the universal vibration of Aum, the Holy Ghost, as a perfect unity, and

his Self as nothing but a mere idea resting on a fragment of Aum’s Cosmic Light.

Then he sacrifices himself on the altar of Spirit, to the Holy Ghost, by abandoning

the vain belief in his own separate existence, and becomes one with the integral

whole. He unites with the only real Substance, God. This union of the Self with the

Eternal Spirit is called kaivalya, the state of liberation.”

“To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me, even as I also overcame and am set

down with Almighty God in His throne.” – Revelation 3:2



PHYSIOLOGY OF THE

ASTRAL AND CAUSAL BODIES “The physical world is in reality nothing more than inert matter. The inherent life and

animation in all forms, from atoms to man, come from the subtler forces of the astral

world. These, in turn, have evolved from still finer forces of the causal or ideationalcreation, the creative vibratory thoughts emanating from the consciousness of God. Man,

the microcosm, is in all aspects an epitome of the macrocosm. His physical body is gross

matter; his life and his ability to perceive through the senses and cognize through the

consciousness are dependent on the subtle powers and forces of his astral and causal bodies – instruments of the indwelling soul, or individualized consciousness of God.

The physical body is directly created and sustained by the forces of the astral body.

The astral body and powers are principally life current or prana. Life current is a mixture

of consciousness and electrons. The former is intelligent and the latter is mechanical. Theelectricity shining in a light bulb did not create the bulb. There is only a mechanical

relationship between the bulb and the electricity burning inside it. But life current present

in the united sperm and ovum cell develops that primal cell into an embryo and

ultimately into a full-grown human being. The creative life energy of the astral bodydescends into the physical body through seven subtle centers in the brain and spine, and

remains concentrated in and expresses outwardly through these centers. Within days after

conception, a “neural grove,” the medulla oblongata, may be distinguished in the embryo.From this first developmental phase is formed the spine, brain and nervous system, and

from these developing parts, the rest of the human organism evolves – all the work of the

forces of nature.

As the physical body has a brain, spinal cord with nerve pairs forming plexuses at the

cervical, dorsal, lumbar, sacral and coccygeal regions, and a many-branched peripheral

nervous system, so the astral body has an astral brain of a thousand rays (the thousand- petaled lotus), an astral spine with subtle centers of light and energy, and an astral

nervous system whose myriad luminous channels are called nadis. The physiology of the

astral body animates the physiology of the physical body. The astral body is the source of the powers for the physical senses of perception and instruments of action. The astral

nervous system channels the flow of lifeforce or prana in its five differentiated forms that

in the physical body manifest as materialization, circulation, assimilation, metabolism,and elimination. The main astral spine of light, the sushumna, has within it two other

luminous spines. The sushumna, or outer covering of light, controls the gross activities of

the astral lifeforce (those associated with all of the functions performed by the seven

astral cerebrospinal centers and their five vibratory creative elements – earth, water, fire,



air, and ether) that create and sustain the physical body. The sushumna extends from the

muladhara chakra, or coccygeal center, to the brain. Auxiliary to the sushumna are two

astral nadis on either side of it – on the left, ida; and on the right, pingala. These two, pre-eminent among 72,000 nadis, constitute the primary channels of the astral autonomic

nervous system – which, in turn, controls the corresponding autonomic nervous system of

the physical body.

Within the sushumna is the second astral spine called vajra that regulates the astral

body’s powers of expansion and contraction, and all of its other activities of motion. Thevajra extends upwards from the swadhisthana chakra, or sacral center. Within the vajra

is hidden the chitra astral spine, which controls the spiritual activities, those related to

consciousness. The functions of these three astral spines are controlled primarily by the

astral brain or sahasrara of a thousand rays. Specific rays of life and intelligence fromthe thousand-petaled lotus of light are directly reflected in the different astral spinal

centers, giving each it characteristic activities and consciousness, just as portions of the

physical brain are connected to specific nerves and nerve centers in the physical spinal

plexuses.

As the physical body is made principally of flesh, and the astral body of prana, or lifeforce, so the causal body is made specifically of consciousness. It is the presence of

the forces of the causal body behind the astral and physical bodies that creates and

sustains their very existence and makes man a conscious, sentient being. The causal bodyhas a spiritual brain of wisdom, and a spiritual spine called the brahmanadi. The

brahmanadi has no covering of light, as does the threefold astral spine; it is made of a

strong current of consciousness. The brahmanadi is commonly described as inside, or the

inside of the chitra astral spine. This is at once both a fact and a misnomer. Thebrahmanadi being the “spine” of the causal body, which is thought vibrations or

consciousness, can only be described in relative terms as being “inside” or covered by the

astral spines, which in turn are covered by the spine of the physical body. The “forms” of the three bodies and their “spines” are a matter of degree of grossness superimposed on

one another, with the finer obscured by the grosser, though not obstructed by it. The

physical, astral, and causal instruments of the soul exist and function as an integratedwhole through interaction between the various gross and finer forces.

Within the causal cerebrospinal “channel,” or brahmanadi, are seven centers of

consciousness, corresponding to the subtle centers of light and power in the astral body.The physical, astral, and causal bodies are knitted together at these centers, uniting the

three bodies to work together: a physical vehicle, empowered by astral lifeforce, with

causal consciousness providing the power to cognize, think, feel, and will.”


*******



“The anatomy of the gross physical body, being an externalization of the finer astral

forces, is patterned in a general way after the astral form. The physical spinal cord and

the chains of ganglia of the autonomic nervous system that run alongside the spinecoincide, respectively, with the astral sushumna and the nadis of the ida and pingala on

the left and right of the sushumna. As the sushumna is the outermost sheath of the two

subtler astral spinal channels (vajra and chitra), and of the causal “spine” of consciousness (brahmanadi), likewise, the physical spinal cord consists of four

concentric layers protected by the vertebrae: 1) Outermost is a narrow lymph-filled

capillary space bounded on the outside by a sturdy membrane, the dura mater; 2) a layer of spongy tissue filled with cerebrospinal fluid, covered by the delicate arachnoid; 3) the

white and gray matter, which is surrounded by a vascular membrane called the pia mater ,

containing afferent and efferent nerve tracts connecting the brain to the muscles, vital

organs, and senses via the periphery nerves; and 4) an extremely thin central channel inthe middle of the gray matter.” (The Bhagavad Gita, footnote on page 61)

*******

I have changed “sympathetic nervous system” to “autonomic nervous system” in both thecommentary and footnote above. This is more exact. I feel that Yoganandaji was obviously

implying by his use of “sympathetic” for it to mean both the sympathetic and parasympathetic functions. The former increases the heart and breath rates and, in general,

prepares the body for action; the latter slows the heart and breath rates down, and decreasesother bodily activities, in order to conserve energy. Not only do the physical ganglia of the

autonomic nervous system, and the ida and pingala nadis, run parallel to the cerebrospinal

axis and its corresponding astral channel, the sushumna, but they also intersect with each and

every one of the cerebrospinal plexuses and their astral counterparts, the seven chakras. Inother words, the entire functioning of the periphery nervous system – both physical and astral

– is intimately connected to the autonomic nervous system and the two side channels known

as the ida and pingala nadis.

The ida nadi, flowing to the left of the sushumna, is associated with one of the five

subdivisions of prana, or lifeforce, already mentioned in the commentary above. It is themost important, the “materializing” or “activating” quality of prana’s light (referred to as

“the life-supporting” and the ”subtlest” of the five “winds,” or lifeforce currents, in TibetanBuddhism), and is also call prana. It is linked to the inhalation of the breath, especially

through the left nostril. Ida nadi is associated with the afferent, or sensory, nerve impulsescarried from the periphery of the body to the spinal plexuses and brain; the right cerebral

hemisphere; and the emotions. In yoga meditation it is symbolized by the moon and

visualized as being feminine in nature, white and cool.

The pingala nadi, flowing to the right of the sushumna, is associated with apana, the

”eliminating” or “purifying” aspect of prana, lifeforce; the exhalation of the breath,especially through the right nostril; the efferent, or motor, nerve impulses that are carried

from the brain and spinal plexuses to the periphery of the body; the left cerebral hemisphere;

and the intellect. In yoga meditation it is symbolized by the sun and visualized as being

masculine in nature, red and hot or warm.

*******



“The causal brain is a reservoir of absolute pure consciousness, the ever-existing,

ever-conscious, ever-new bliss of Spirit, and of Its individualized expression, the soul. Asthis consciousness descends through the causal cerebrospinal centers, it manifests as

wisdom in the cerebrum, intuition in the medulla, calmness in the cervical center, the

consciousness behind the power of lifeforce in the dorsal center, the consciousness or power of self-control in the lumbar center, the power of adherence in the sacral center,

and the power of restraint in the coccygeal center. These manifestations of the absolute

pure consciousness of the soul descending through the causal cerebrospinal centers, sendwisdom, through the action of will, to the ”cells” of endless thoughts which constitute the

causal body.

As this consciousness flows outward from the causal body into the astral body, andthen into the physical body, drawn by the magnetism of sense attachment to matter, the

fine expression of original absolute pure consciousness becomes increasingly deluded

and gross, losing its true Spirit nature. Pure blissful intelligence, or wisdom, becomes

discrimination. Discrimination distorted by the limitation of sense impressions becomesthe blind whim-led mind. Expressing ever more grossly, mind becomes life without

cognizing power. Life becomes inert matter.”


*******

The universe is encased in one or more of five sheaths, or koshas as they are referred

to in yoga philosophy. These are screens of delusion, each of which, in descending order,obscures to a greater degree the real Cause and Essence of all creation, God. In regards

especially to man, the koshas are sometimes called “bodies.” The subtlest of these is

anandamaya kosha, “the body of bliss,” and consists of individuated consciousness,chitta, the spiritual heart that possesses the power of feeling and the ability to experience

divine joy. It corresponds with brahmanadi, the causal spine. Ignorance arises

simultaneously with the expression of chitta due to Cosmic Delusion, and results inegoism, ahamkara, or the sense of being a separate self. Next is jnanamaya kosha, “the

wisdom body,” made up of discriminative intelligence, buddhi, whose development

culminates as supramental knowledge born of pure intuition. It corresponds with chitranadi, the highest astral spine. Manomaya kosha, “the mental body,” is comprised of manas, or “mind” as sense perception and consciousness. It corresponds with vajra nadi,

the intermediary astral spine. “The vital body,” pranamaya kosha, constitutes life, prana,

or lifeforce and its five differentiations. It corresponds with sushumna nadi, the lowestastral spine. And last we have “the gross material body,” annamaya kosha, the physical

form and cerebrospinal axis of man constructed from the five great elements.

*******



“In ascending order, from matter to Spirit, the five natural evolutionary stages of life

are results of these five sheaths. When one by one the sheaths are unfolded, there is a

corresponding manifestation of a progressively higher expression of life.

Inert minerals are enlocked in all five sheaths. With the unfolding of the annamaya

kosha or sheath of matter, pranamaya kosha the vital sheath is revealed, and the resultingmanifestation is the life in plants. When pranamaya kosha is unfolded and manomaya

kosha or the mind sheath becomes manifest, the animal kingdom is expressed. (Animals

have perceptions and consciousness, but not the intellect to discriminate between rightand wrong.) When manomaya kosha is unfolded, and jnanamaya kosha or the

discriminative sheath is revealed, we have the manifestation of intellect, or man, with the

ability to think, reason, and guide his actions by discrimination and free choice. When

man rightly uses this discriminative power, jnanamaya kosha is ultimately rolled back and anandamaya kosha or the bliss sheath is revealed. This is the state of the divine man,

with just a thin veil of individuality between himself and God.

Man, being a microcosm of the universe, has within him all five sheaths – matter, life,mind, intellect, and bliss. He, alone, of all known forms of creation, has the capacity to

unfold all of these sheaths and free his soul to become one with God. Yoga, as describedin the Bhagavad Gita, is the method through which this liberation can be attained. By the

correct practice of meditation, the accomplished yogi, through pranayama, or lifeforce

control, unfolds the vital sheath ( pranamaya kosha). He finds that this life energy is thelink between matter and Spirit. With mastery of the lifeforce he realizes the true nature of

matter (annamaya kosha) as a delusive objectification of Spirit. And as the inwardly

flowing life energy disconnects the consciousness from identification with the limited

sense-mind (manomaya kosha), that sheath unfolds so the discriminative qualities of theintellectual sheath or buddhi ( jnanamaya kosha) can predominate in his life and

meditation. The cultivation of the discriminative qualities by right spiritual action and

yoga meditation gives him ultimately the ability to roll back the intellectual sheath toreveal the fine sheath of bliss (anandamaya kosha), which is the causal body encasement

of his soul with its faculty of pure all-knowing intuition and wisdom. Unfolding the bliss

sheath in deepest meditation, the yogi merges his soul in ecstatic oneness with God.”




THE EIGHTFOLD PATH

OF YOGA“India’s great sage Patanjali, whose date is a matter of conjecture by historians (many

of them assign him to the second century B.C.), explained the spiritual science of yoga indefinite metaphysical terms in his renown Yoga Sutras. While the Bhagavad Gita

describes in allegory the process of realizing God, Patanjali speaks of the scientific

method of uniting the soul with the undifferentiated Spirit in such a beautiful, clear, and

concise way that generations of scholars have acknowledged him as the foremostexponent of yoga....

Patanjali begins his Yoga Sutras with the definition of yoga as “the neutralization of

the alternating waves in consciousness” (chitta vritti nirodha). Chitta is a comprehensiveterm for the faculty of cognition, which includes the pranic lifeforce, manas (mind as

sense consciousness), ahamkara (egoity), and buddhi (intelligence). Vritti (literally“whirlpool”) refers to the waves of thought and emotion that ceaselessly arise and

subside in man’s consciousness. Nirodha means neutralization, cessation, control.

Patanjali continues: “Then the Seer abides in his own nature.” This refers to his true

Self, the soul. That is, he attains Self-realization, oneness of his soul with God. “The yogi

who makes keen efforts without being impatient – he who possesses devotion, vital

energy, recollection of his true Self, discrimination, and calm persistence in deepmeditation – achieves emancipation in a short time” (Yoga Sutras I:20-21). Its attainment

is nearest to those possessing tivra-samvega, divine ardor (fervent devotion and striving

for God-realization, and extreme dispassion toward the world of the senses).

The essential limbs of yoga, the yogangas, are listed in Yoga Sutras II:29 – 1) yama –

ethical conduct, the avoidance of immoral actions; 2) niyama – spiritual observances; 3)asana – right posture for bodily and mental control; 4) pranayama – control of prana or

lifeforce; 5) pratyahara – interiorization of the mind; 6) dharana – concentration; 7)

dhyana – meditation; and 8) samadhi – divine union, oneness of the individualized soul

and Spirit....

Yama entails generating the mental power to resist one’s evil inclinations toward

immoral behavior.... This first step of the Eightfold Path is fulfilled by observing the“thou shalt nots” – abstaining from injury to others, falsehood, stealing, incontinence, and

covetousness. Understood in the full sense of their meaning, these prescripts embrace the

whole of moral conduct. By their observance, the yogi avoids the primary or fundamentaldifficulties that could block his progress toward Self-realization. Breaking the rules of

moral conduct not only results in present misery, but long-lasting karmic effects that bind

the devotee to suffering and mortal limitation. The power of mental resistance subdues



the desire to indulge in actions that are contrary to spiritual law, and helps to neutralize

the karmic effects of past mistakes....

Niyama is the power of mental adherence to what is good or auspicious, conducive to

one’s welfare.... the “thou shalts” – purity of body and mind, contentment, discipline,

study and self-analysis, and devotion to God. Yama-niyama are the foundation on whichthe yogi begins to build his spiritual life. They harmonize body and mind with the divine

laws of Nature, or creation, producing an inner and outer well-being, happiness, and

strength that attract the devotee to deeper spiritual practices and make him receptive tothe blessings of his guru-given sadhana....

Asana is the faculty derived from the poise or control of the body, for the correct

posture is essential to the yogi’s practice of lifeforce control. Asana supports the ability toinvoke divine life energy in preparation for the practice of pranayama.

Asana prescribes the necessary correct posture for yoga meditation. Though many

variations have evolved, the essential basics are a steady body with straight, erect spine,chin parallel to the ground, shoulders back, chest out, abdomen in, and eyes focused at

the center of cosmic consciousness between the eyebrows. The body must be still andunmoving, without strain or tension. When mastered, the correct posture or asana

becomes as expressed by Patanjali, “steady and pleasant.” It bestows bodily control, and

mental and physical calmness, enabling the yogi to meditate for hours, if so desired,without fatigue or restlessness.

It is evident, then, why asana is essential to lifeforce control: It supports the inner

dispassion toward the demands of the body and the ardent power necessary to invoke theaid of the life energies in turning the consciousness inward to the world of Spirit. Right

posture creates the physical and mental pacification required for overcoming the body-

bound tendencies toward lethargy, restlessness and fleshly attachment....

The lifeforce ( prana) is the link between matter and Spirit. Flowing outward it reveals

the spuriously alluring world of the senses; reversed inward it pulls the consciousness tothe eternally satisfying bliss of God. The meditating devotee sits between these two

worlds, striving to enter the kingdom of God, but kept engaged in battling the senses.

With the aid of a scientific technique of pranayama, the yogi is at last victorious in

reversing the outward flowing life energy that externalized his consciousness in theaction of the breath, heart, and sense-ensnared life currents. He enters the natural inner

calm realm of the soul and Spirit....

Pratyahara is the withdrawal of consciousness from the senses, the result of

successful practice of pranayama or control of the lifeforce (the astral powers) that

enliven the senses and bears their messages to the brain. When the devotee has attained pratyahara, the lifeforce is switched off from the senses, and the mind and consciousness

are still and interiorized....



Self-mastery, or perfect self-control, is attained through the intense mental state in

which the consciousness is drawn “toward” or “into” union with the object of its

concentration. It is referred to by Patanjali in Yoga Sutras III:1-4 as samyama, acollective term under which the last three steps of the Eightfold Path are grouped

together.

The first five steps are the preliminaries of yoga. Samyama, from sam “together,” and

yama, “holding,” consists of the mystical trio, dharana (concentration), dhyana

(meditation), and samadhi (divine union), and is yoga proper. When the mind has beenwithdrawn from sensory disturbances ( pratyahara), then dharana and dhyana in

conjunction produce the varying stages of samadhi: ecstatic realization and, finally,

divine union. Dhyana, or meditation, is the focusing of the freed attention on Spirit. It

involves the meditator, the process or technique of meditation, and the object of meditation. Dharana is concentration or fixity on that inner conception or object of

meditation. Thus arises from this contemplation the direct perception of the Divine

Presence, first within oneself, and then in the vastness of Spirit, omnipresent throughout

and beyond all of creation. The culmination of samyama self-mastery is when themeditator, the process of meditation, and the object of meditation become one – the full

realization of oneness with Spirit.”


*******

“Some devotees follow the eightfold path of yoga, neutralizing the scintillations of

feeling (chitta) so that in its clear waters they can see the undistorted reflection of themoon of the soul. Such yogis cultivate the restraints and observances of self-discipline

( yama-niyama), but they go further. They practice body control by postures (asana) in

order to make the body amenable to their will, able to sit quietly during long hours of meditation and protracted ecstasy. The yogi then assumes any correct posture and

practices lifeforce control ( pranayama) by a technique such as Kriya Yoga. With this

technique he disconnects his mind from body consciousness by switching off the lifecurrent from the senses, and unites mind and lifeforce with superconsciousness in the

brain and spine. He thus reaches the state of true interiorization, or withdrawal of the

mind and lifeforce from the senses ( pratyahara).

After the yogi becomes strong in body and mind by self-discipline, posture, lifeforce

control, and interiorization of consciousness, he devotes his newly mastered body and

mind to concentration on the Infinite ( samyama: dharana, dhyana and samadhi),conceiving Spirit as the cosmic Aum vibration, he begins to expand with it – feeling the

vibration not only in his own body but in the vast cosmos. The yogi is then able to attain

ecstasy of oneness with God – vibrating in the universe as Cosmic Sound and CosmicLight – the Holy Ghost vibration. Inherent in this Vibration he finds the Universal

( Kutastha) or Cosmic Consciousness, and through that he merges with God in Absolute

Pure Consciousness.



By following the principles of the ethical conduct, and by posture, lifeforce control,

interiorization of the mind, concentration of the attention, meditation on the cosmic

conception of God, and ecstasy, the self of man can be united to the Spirit. Practice of theeightfold yoga dissolves the waves of attachments and aversions that infest the intuitive

feeling of the heart (chitta). When the sensations, thoughts, and emotions have been

stilled, a perfect image of the Spirit-Sun appears as a reflection in the clear deep waters of intuition within the soul. Then the yogi unites his soul reflected in the calm heart with the

actual Source, the Sun of Omnipresent Spirit.”

(The Bhagavad Gita, pages 494-95, Yogananda

PATANJALI’S KRIYA YOGA SUTRAS

Kriya Yoga, as disseminated in the West by Paramhansa Yogananda, refers

specifically to a particular technique of pranayama, or lifeforce control, and to all of itssupplemental meditative practices. However, in a broader sense, Kriya Yoga, can also

mean any action done with awareness of the Self as the witnessing consciousness.

“Janaka asked: Master, how does one acquire wisdom? How does liberation

happen? How is nonattachment obtained? Please tell me this.

Ashtavakra replied: My child, if you are seeking liberation renounce the passions as

if they were poison, and seek forgiveness, sincerity, kindness, contentment and truth

as you would nectar. You are neither earth, nor water, nor fire, nor air, nor ether.Know yourself as the witnessing consciousness of all these five elements.

Understanding this is liberation.”

– The Ashtavakra Gita

“Know yourself as the witnessing consciousness!” – The witness is the key. This is the

most important sutra in existence! Be a witness. Wisdom will happen through it.

Nonattachment will happen through it. Liberation will happen through it. The questionswere three but the answer is one.... Whatever is, observe it. Be a witness. Just watch. If

there is ego, then watch the ego. What else can you do? Only watch – and by watching,

the transformation happens.... Just observe, and when you observe, the doer disappears,

only the witness remains.... Master just one thing – the witness. There is nothing else to be done.... What is the relationship between meditation and witnessing? Meditation is the

path, witnessing is the destination. Witnessing is the culmination of meditation. And

meditation is the cultivation of witnessing. Witnessing is meditation.” ( Enlightenment:The Only Revolution, pages 31, 305 &128, Osho)

*******



The opening verse of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras is “Now, an explanation of yoga begins.”

“The word “now” indicates an auspicious or favorable occasion. What is to be taughtis authoritative, of superior value, and based on established means already tested and

verified. After preliminary study of basic philosophical principles the aspiring yogi

should be ready to investigate subjective realms of mind, and to learn about and engagein practices, which can generate the experience of superconscious states that confer

illumination of consciousness and soul liberation. Without preliminary study and

adequate preparation, a truth seeker will not progress to being a genuine disciple on thespiritual path, and will neither be able to meditate deeply nor understand the subtle

processes of mental transformation that occur due to superconscious influences. The ideal

devotee is inspired by the tradition of enlightened teachings, eager to follow the way that

facilitates intensive spiritual growth, and completely dedicated to God-realization.” ( Life

Surrendered In God, page 76, Davis)

*******

The second chapter entitled “Spiritual Practice,” begins by defining Kriya Yoga:

“Intense practice (tapas), self-observation (svadhyaya), and devotion to God ( Isvara

pranidhana) constitute Kriya Yoga.”

“The Yoga Sutras shed light on what qualifies as tapas – “intense practice” and they

indicate that it reflects no particular technique, but a way of practicing. Tapas literally

means “straightening by fire,” and yogic literature is filled with stories of how intensive

yoga practice has lead practitioners beyond their limitations.” (The Kriya Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and the Mahasiddhas, page xxv, by Marshall Govindan)

Svadhyaya, which is usually translated as “self-study” or sometimes “self-analysis,”and interpreted to also include such activities as the study of scriptures and the keeping of

a spiritual journal, I have rendered as simply meaning “self-observation.”

“The essence of the practice is to watch one’s own mind.” – Milarepa, Tibet’s great

yogi and poet, who was one of the forefathers in the lineage I have received profound

teachings through.

Regarding Isvara pranidhana, “devotion to God” must be some rite of going inwards,

not an outer ritual of worship. “The kingdom of heaven is within.” Therefore this could

only really mean that one should be completely devoted to the practice of being awarethat God is the indwelling Spirit, or Self, the witnessing consciousness. We find Patanjali

included in most lists of the eighteen Mahasiddhas (“Great Adepts”), a tradition from

South India. A Mahasiddha is one who has attained soruba samadhi, the state of physicalimmortality. It is reputed that Babaji was the chela, disciple, of two of these exalted

yogis. The teachings of the Mahasiddhas were recorded almost exclusively in the Tamil

language. However, the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali were written in Sanskrit. Patanjali calls

God, the Supreme Being – Isvara. Among the other Mahasiddhas He is known as Isa, a



Tamil name for Shiva. He is always described, without exception, as being formless, and

can only be found if one looks within. Patanjali’s Isvara is a derivative of the Tamil Isa –

Shiva.

“For the Tamil Mahasiddhas, Isa is another name for the Supreme Being, Shiva, who

is not to be confused with the limited deity with the same name in the Vedas, nor the onethird of the trinity referred to by early Western scholars. He defies limitation or

description. Shiva means “own.” Therefore, Isvara means “Shiva, one’s own Being,” the

Supreme Being who is immanent and transcendent in relationship to all manifestation.Self-realization may come when we surrender the perspective of being apart from the

Supreme Being, and recognize Shiva as our own being. This surrender must be complete.

In devotion, we feel “not my will but Thine.” This perspective makes transcendence easy.

When we completely surrender that “I” to “Thou” we rise above nature and are free in the pure Self. This form of surrender involves feeling the existence, in the innermost core of

our being, of the presence of God, and to feel always that our actions are prompted by

Him.

Kailasapathy in The Writings of the Tamil Mahasiddhas has made the relevant point

that “the Mahasiddhas were not devotees in the sense of idol-worshippers. The believedin a supreme Abstraction. The recurrent use by the Mahasiddhas of the word “civam” in

Tamil (Skt. shiva) is an abstract noun meaning “goodness,” “auspiciousness” and the

highest state of God, in which He exists as pure Intelligence, in preference to thecommon term “civan” meaning Shiva, makes this point very clear. They believed in an

abstract idea of Divinity rather that a personal God.”

Babaji has said that winning the grace of God depends upon our devotion, sadhana,and service to God in others. By devotion we learn what pure love is: the lover and the

beloved become one. You surrender the ego perspective. Such love brings us from

duality to nonduality. By sadhana, which includes all forms of yoga practiced toremember our Self, the subconscious is purified and duality is dissolved. We become

aware of the Presence everywhere. Through service we forget our little ego-based self

and our petty problems, and develop the universal vision of love.”

( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pages 28-29, Govindan)

*******

“Intentional regulation of sensory and mental impulses, self-analysis, profound

metaphysical study and meditation, and letting go of egoism in favor of God-consciousness, are the practical means of attaining the perfect state of ecstatic spiritual

realization. This is the path of Kriya Yoga.” ( Life Surrendered In God, page 121, Davis)

*******



“Yoga is the cessation of (identification with) the fluctuations arising within

consciousness. Then the Seer (or Self) abides in his own true form.” – Yoga Sutras

I:2-3

The fluctuations arising within consciousness are classified into five categories.

“Mental images and transformations can be based on valid knowledge or on illusion because of accurate or false perceptions. The remaining three kinds of mental

modifications are purely subjective and occur solely in the mind.” ( Life Surrendered In

God, page 82, Davis)

*******

1) THE MEANS OF ACQUIRING TRUE KNOWLEDGE are sensory data,

discriminative intelligence, the testimony of a spiritual master, and the study of sacred

works.

“As we will find it more difficult to remove false identification with all the types of

fluctuations within consciousness simultaneously, it is better to distinguish them and to

use the means of acquiring true knowledge to help us become aware of the other types of mental modification: illusion, conceptualization, memory, and sleep....

Direct perception via sensory impressions is what we validate by personal experience.

This is why the scientific approach is emphasized with respect to the techniques, whichare viewed as hypotheses to be tested in the laboratory of one’s own consciousness. The

powers of reason such as inference are another source. An example of inference is:

“Where there is smoke, there must be fire.” The cause is inferred from the effect.

Scriptural testimony from sacred works is the recording of sages and prophets who

have perceived the Truth, and which has been handed down since ancient times by otherswho have found it to be effective. While it may appear in different forms of presentation,

its essence is the same. It is important to validate what you believe and conclude against

the teachings of the scriptures. You should not believe something or someone blindly.

Refer to scriptural authority. If you also find the teaching there, you may follow it as atried and true method.”


*******

“Accurate perception is discernment without error. Inference is the process of

determining conclusions from assumed premises based on probabilities. Starting with a

reasonable theory, we can arrive at a probable conclusion. Inference is not always

infallible because it is dependent upon sense testimony and the faculty of intelligence,

both of which are mental functions.



Inductive reasoning is the process of logical thinking, using known data. Deduction is

to arrive at a conclusion by subtracting, or taking away, those aspects of the problem thatcannot be part of the solution. Vedic seers taught their students to look upon the world of

multiplicity and inwardly say, “Reality is not this. Reality is not that.” Through an

indepth examination of the universe, we may infer that there must be a creativeIntelligence behind it all. By induction we might determine that God exists, but if our

data is not accurate or complete, we will not be able to fully comprehend the nature of the

Creator. Deduction, or the elimination of everything that is not of God from our sphere of observation, can enable us to realize what God is.

Whether by induction, deduction, or inference as the beginning mode of inquiry, if the

devotee persists with the intention to know, sooner or later the Truth will be discernedthrough enhanced intellectual capacities and awakened intuition. The use of

discriminative intelligence can empower us to understand almost everything about the

realm of nature, including subtle factors on the inner plane, which are also of material

substance. However, to know that which transcends nature, intuition, the soul’s ability todirectly perceive, must be brought into play.

Another source of valid knowledge is the personal testimony of a sage. If such a one

informs us, we can take his or her word about the matter and proceed. We must then

engage in study and careful examination of the evidence if we are to know the Truth for ourselves. One is initiated on the spiritual path by faith in the teachings of the masters.

And we are indeed fortunate if we have a relationship with someone who can declare the

Truth as well as show us the way to its realization.”

( Life Surrendered In God, pages 82-83, Davis)

*******

2) ILLUSION is false identification, lack of discernment, misinterpretation, and

erroneous conclusions regarding the true nature of things.



“ Illusion results

when the reality of an examined object

is misinterpreted.” –

Yoga Sutra I:8“Because of errors in perception, we may not accurately see what is before us. One

might be walking at dusk, for example, and mistake a bush to be a threatening animal or

person. One might see a mirage hovering over the desert sands or above the hot pavement

on the road ahead.

In one sense, the universe is real because it is a manifestation of cosmic forces. The

assumption that the world of appearances is independent and self-sustaining is based on alack of true knowledge and the inability to discern subtle levels of supportive influences.

It is our misunderstanding of the world that creates illusion. Yet, in another sense, the

world as a sequence of shifting realities is illusory because it is subject to change.”

( Life Surrendered In God, pages 83-84, Davis)

*******

“ Illusion, or misconception, begins with an external objective stimulus. Most of our experiences are colored by attachment and aversion – we see someone or experience anevent and because of our prejudices and attitudes we form conclusions that are illusory.

When we base our judgments upon what is imagined, feared or desired, we suffer from

misconceptions. If we want to see things as they truly are, we need to let go of all our illusions.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pages 9-10, Govindan)

*******



3) CONCEPTUALIZATION: “Conceptualization is the result of knowledge acquired

from verbal communication that has no real abiding substance.” – Yoga Sutra I:9

“Conceptualization includes the thoughts and ideas which flow through the mind as in

daydreaming or abstract thinking. No external object is required. It is “the internaldialogue,” or incessant commentary of the mind talking to itself, and so is said to be an

expression of that which can be put into words. Mentally thinking about our experiences,

because it never stops, prevents us from perceiving reality as it is. Our mind tells ussomething and we believe it even though it has nothing to do with the truth. We get

caught up in thoughts and, consequently, are unable to experience what is actually

happening. One must learn to still the mind and stand back in silence as the witnessing

consciousness.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pages 10-11, Govindan)

*******

“Conceptualization is a psychological projection having no corresponding object. It isdistinguished from an illusion that has an external object as a basis but is misinterpreted.

There can be a variety of causes for conceptualization. If one harbors a desire that has been suppressed, it may manifest itself in mental images as a way of finding expression.

Disordered thinking can produce delusion and false beliefs.” ( Life Surrendered In God,

pages 84-85, Davis)

*******

4) MEMORY: “ Memory is the mental representation of prior perceptions.” – Yoga

Sutra I:11

“Information presented to the mind is stored as an impression, a memory which can beaccessed or recollected. The ordinary function of memory is selective. We recall

impressions by choice or memories surface when they relate to present circumstances.

Memories are as real as the objects they represent, but more subtle. They exist in thesubconscious as images, sometimes holding emotional energy. Memories, along with the

psychic force they retain, can be the cause of compulsions and destructive behavior. Even

to recall an unpleasant memory can trigger an upsurge of painful emotion that causes

fear, anger, resentment, guilt, and a host of similar feelings. Such memories, if repressed,can block the flow of psychic forces, create mental and emotional conflicts, and interfere

with endeavors to function creatively in everyday circumstances. They should be

acknowledged, processed objectively as information, and their forces released anddirected for constructive purposes. By intentional use of creative imagination we can

visualize ideal circumstances and experiences with such vividness that memories of

imaginary creations are retained in the subconscious.” ( Life Surrendered In God, pages87-88, Davis)

*******



“ Memory is a function of desire. We tend to remember our likes and dislikes.

Memories fall into two general categories: those remembered voluntarily, and those that

arise spontaneously. The latter are usually stimulated by associations with presentexperiences and fueled by desire-laden emotions, which are stored in the subconscious.

Memories, and the emotions born of attachment and aversion, constitute the subconscious

tendencies that drive us. Yoga involves cleansing one’s consciousness of subconsciousimpressions ( samskaras) through detachment and living more and more consciously in

the present. As one’s sense of detachment grows these desires and subconscious

impressions lose their force. Memory becomes increasingly of the voluntary type. All phases and techniques of Kriya Yoga contribute to this purification and expanding

awareness.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pages 12-13, Govindan)

*******

“Forget the past. Live in the present with the sacred goal of enlightenment.” – Beru

Khyentse Rimpoche, one of the Tibetan lamas in my lineage

*******

5) SLEEP: “ Sleep is a modification of the cognitive powers of awareness.” – Yoga

Sutra I:10

“According to Patanjali the fluctuation of sleep is based on a belief in non-existence.

During deep sleep there is only the thought of nothingness. If one has other thoughts it is

in the dream state. There are four states of consciousness: ordinary wakefulness, the

dream state, deep dreamless sleep, and superconsciousness (turiya), which is pureawareness unclouded by any thoughts, even the belief that there is “nothing” in deep

sleep. Superconsciousness does not withdraw but instead transcends the subject-object

duality as found in the other three states. During sleep consciousness first turns inwards,away from outer sounds and sensations, then gradually away from even thoughts and

dreams. At its climax, it withdraws from everything except the one experience of

nothingness. Upon awaking from deep sleep, one remembers being only conscious of nothing.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pages 11-12, Govindan)

*******

Dreams are a process of thinking (conceptualization) while one is asleep. They are real inthe sense that you dream them. But, like thinking, which is dreaming while awake, they are

unreal in that they correspond to no reality. Thinking is always about something; it is never adirect perception of reality.

*******

“The fact that we remain somewhat aware when we are sleeping is indicated by our

memory of the experience. During sleep, the influences of darkness and inertia ( tamas

guna) prevail, clouding our field of consciousness. Since superconsciousness is negatedwhen any mental modification is a controlling factor, even sleep should be acknowledged



as a condition to be overcome. Through mastery of a practice known as yoga nidra, or

“superconscious rest,” we can remain fully conscious inwardly and transcend the

influences of mental transformation while the body assumes all the physiological effectsand benefits of deep sleep. Similarly, by cultivating the art of lucid dreaming we may not

only become aware of the fact that we are dreaming but also even able to modify the

dream content.” ( Life Surrendered In God, pages 85-86, Davis)

*******

For the sake of simplicity, I have condensed the above five categories to “sense

impressions, thoughts, and feelings” as being representative of all these modifications in

the process of cognition.

*******

“By constant practice (abhyasa) and with detachment (vairagya) arises cessation of

identification with the fluctuations in consciousness. In this context the effort toabide in the cessation of identification with the fluctuations in consciousness is a

constant practice.” – Yoga Sutras I:12-13

This means it has to be a practice that can be done while doing whatever you might be

at present engaged in, whether seated in meditation, shopping at the marketplace, study of

some scripture, or just washing those funky old dishes.

*******

“By “constant practice” Patanjali refers to concentrating on what one truly is, the

Self.... “Detachment” refers to letting go of or releasing what one is not: passingthoughts, emotions, and sensations coming from the five sense organs. “Constant

practice” and “detachment” can be thought of as the two magnetic poles of any yogic

discipline. The former represents the endeavor to actualize the Self by means of the

techniques of interiorization and experience of unity; the latter represents thecorresponding attitude of “letting go” of the craving for the external world of diversity.”

( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page xxiv, Govindan)

*******

The word “detachment” sometimes has the negative connotation of being cold andindifferent. However, true detachment is a state of equanimity where you are able to stand

back as the witness and simply observe the ups and downs of life without identifying with

and reacting to them. This can free us from all the effects of tumultuous memories,

thoughts and feelings that toss and turn on the surface of our consciousness like a ship ona stormy sea, and anchor us in the peaceful depths of the Self or soul which is the abode

of unconditional divine love and infinite compassion, never that of cold indifference.



*******

“The ordinary person, who does not practice yoga, is involved with desires that he has

little control over and experiences fleeting glimpses of happiness. We are subject to much

illusion. By the practice of yogic sadhana, peace of mind grows. We begin to gain somecontrol over the desires and to cleanse our subconscious tendencies. There is some

detachment from objects of desire, which were former sources of pain and pleasure. But

we are still subject to their memory and consequently we frequently fantasize. At firstdetachment requires effort.

However, when we permanently realize the Self, the joy and peace is so fulfilling that

automatically we gain discrimination between the Self and the ego, and with this we losedesire for involvement even in subconscious motivated desire, memories and fantasies.

They lose their force and wither away. It is desirelessness not based upon control but on

the spontaneous and constant awareness of our greater Self, all pervasive and ever joyful,

in all circumstances. Supreme detachment is effortless. The discriminative knowledge,which this latter stage of detachment brings, allows the yogi to see the limitations of all

objects of desire. The resulting clarity of vision provides a steadiness in detachment, andenables lasting Self-realization.”


*******

“However, this practice only becomes firmly established when properly and

consistently attended to over a long period of time.” – Yoga Sutra I:14

“The natural tendency of the mind is to flow outwards towards sensory experience.Here, Patanjali tells how to establish a counter habit of inward mindfulness. “Firmly

established” means that this yogic practice becomes integrated into all the aspects of our

being, including its foundation, the subconscious, when it has been practiced for a longtime, continually, with devotion and faith in its results. “Practice” means that in all

activities we maintain the perspective of the witness, the pure subject, as distinct from the

objects of awareness.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 16, Govindan)

*******

The following sutra is very inspiring and joyful! We are told that the more fierydevotion we have for our spiritual practice, that the more intense and continuous our

practice becomes, the quicker we will experience states of ecstasy ( samadhi) and, as a

consequence, be well on our way to Self-realization. We do not have to wait “a long period of time” in order to begin feeling divine fulfillment. We can be filled with Spirit

now!



“For those practitioners who are utterly resolute in their practice, the

accomplishment of samadhi is imminent.” – Yoga Sutra I:21

*******

“The fluctuations in consciousness are fivefold, being afflicted and non-afflicted....Ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion, and clinging to life are the five afflictions.”

– Yoga Sutras I:5 & II:3

“Intense practice, self-observation, and devotion to God constitute Kriya Yoga. They

are used for the purpose of weakening any affliction and cultivating samadhi.” –

Yoga Sutras II:1-2

“Ignorance is perceiving the impermanent to be eternal, the tainted to be pure, the painful

to be pleasurable, and the ego to be the Self. Egoism is the identification of the Seer (or

Self) with the instrument of seeing (body-mind).” – Yoga Sutras II:5-6

“Patanjali enumerates “the five afflictions” that prevent Self-realization. The

order in which they are presented is significant. Due to the ignorance of our true

Self, the ego arises; egoism, being the habit of identifying with our thoughts and

sensations, creates attachments and aversions (likes and dislikes) and ultimately the

fear of death (clinging to life).... The primary cause of suffering is ignorance

(avidya), and it brings about the other afflictions. It refers not to ignorance in

general, but specifically to an absence of Self-awareness. It is the cause of the

confusion between the subject “I am,” and all objects of awareness. It conceals our

inner awareness and creates a false identity: “I am the body, mind, senses,

emotions,” and so forth.... Egoism (asmita) is the habit of identifying with what we

are not – the body-mind-personality, the instrument of cognition. We falsely identify

with sensations, thoughts and emotions without recognizing that they are only

objects, mere reflections of our awareness. This leads to the individuation of our

consciousness – “I-am-ness” and its confusion with “I am the body,” “I am this

thought,” “I am that feeling.” This subject-object confusion is resolved by the

practice of detachment and discernment . This error is a product or our basic

ignorance as to who we truly are.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 68-71, Govindan)

*******

“The Self is the pure, absolute subject, and is experienced as “I am.” But in ordinary

human consciousness, the Self has become an object: “myself”, a personality, an ego-

ridden collection of thoughts, feelings and sensations which assure the role of the

subject.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page xxvi, Govindan)

*******

“Attachment is the clinging to pleasure. Aversion is clinging to suffering, or pain.” – Yoga Sutras II:7-8



“Because of the individuation of consciousness, its false identification with a

particular body and set of thoughts and memories, we are attracted to various

pleasant experiences in our environment. Attachment , like fear, springs from the

imagination. It occurs when we confuse the internal experience of bliss with a set of

outer circumstances, or factors, and we call this association – pleasure. Even when

we possess the external factors, we may still experience attachment because of thefear of losing them. However, in reality, bliss is self-existent, unconditional, and

independent of external circumstances or factors. One need only be aware to

experience it .... In the same way we are repulsed by various experiences in our

environment. These are relative terms, and what is painful for one, may be pleasant

for another. There is a third possible response, however, detachment, which

Patanjali proposes as the key practice for going beyond the dualities of pleasure and

pain, attachment and aversion.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 72-73, Govindan)

*******

“Clinging to life, which is self-sustaining, arises even in the wise.” – Yoga Sutra II:9

“This is the basic drive of self-preservation, the fundamental will to live, which

exists in all living beings. It is an instinct, and is based upon the fear of death and

false identification with the body. We have had to go through the painful process of

death and rebirth so many times, that we shrink from having to repeat it. Once we

realize we are the immortal Self, we can free ourselves from all these afflictions.”


*******

“If you detach yourself from identification with the body and rest in consciousness, then

this very moment, you will be happy, at peace, and free from bondage.... You are thewitness.... You are the one pure awareness.... You are that bliss, the ultimate bliss.... The

soul is the witness – all-pervading, perfect and free.... Give up the illusion that you are an

individual self.... You are the unchanging, conscious, nondual soul.... You are neither thedoer nor the enjoyer.... Know that which has form is false, and know the formless as

unchangeable and everlasting!” – The Ashtavakra Gita

Ashtavakra has told us (as already quoted at the beginning of this chapter) that

we are to seek “truth” with all “sincerity” (or by “constant practice” to dispel

ignorance), “contentment” (to overcome attachment or desire), “kindness” and

“forgiveness” (to remedy aversion) “as you would nectar.” We are also to “renounce

the passions” (one’s desires or “likes”) “as if they were poison.” It is most interesting

to note that the Sanskrit word for “nectar” is amrita, which means ambrosia – the

drink of immortality, while the word for “passion,” vishaya, is derived from visha

that means poison, a substance, which if eaten, will cause death. Now, in the quote

immediately above, Ashtavakra tells us to “detach” ourselves from “identification

with the body,” to “know” that we are “neither the doer nor the enjoyer (who is

identified with, and thus attached to, the pleasures of the senses),” and to “give up



the illusion that you are an individual self.” So here egoism is succinctly defined, and

we are also given the means for overcoming it – detachment and wisdom – that which

liberates, the antidote to ignorance, being specifically a lack of Self-awareness, or

egoism. We are to “rest in consciousness” and “be happy, at peace, and free from

bondage.” Ashtavakra again reminds us – “You are the witness,” the witnessing

consciousness, “the one pure awareness.” “You are that bliss, that ultimate bliss,”which simultaneously arises when you abide in a state of pure being, “rest in

consciousness,” as the witness. This is a state of “non-doing” as the Zen masters call

it. We are to realize, or “know” that the soul, or Self, is “the witness – all-pervading,

perfect and free,” and that we are “the unchanging, conscious, nondual soul.”

“Know that which has form is false, and know the formless as unchanging and

everlasting .” Or, in other words, through soul-realization we can rise above any

“identification with the body” and “know” that we are “formless... unchanging” and

“everlasting .” And that by drinking this nectar of wisdom we shall be “free” of our

clinging to life as a body, and liberated from the fear of death forevermore.

So here in the opening lines of the pristine and absolutely profound AshtavakraGita, we are given the means to overcome “the five afflictions” as defined by

Patanjali – ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion, and clinging to life (“the fear of

death”) that must be transcended in order to attain Self-realization. And we are told

once again that the witness, or witnessing consciousness, is the key. We are also

reminded that constant practice and detachment – so emphasized by Patanjali in his

KriyaYoga Sutras – are core elements of this practice.

I find that whenever I am able to stand back as the witness that the bliss is always

there, always, and it is divine, full of nectar! In “this very moment” I truly do feel

liberated, “free from bondage” – all of my false identifications and illusions seem to

simply fall away by themselves, as I abide in the “one pure awareness” of “the

witnessing consciousness.” This is what I call “instantaneous enlightenment” which

takes place “this very moment” or instant . Zen masters use the term “sudden

enlightenment.” That is a permanent state; this is only momentary, a sacred glimpse,

but it is happening now in the timeless presence. And it need not be postponed until

tomorrow! That’s the really great news. These glimpses into the one reality are

flashes of enlightening. As these wholly gifts keep showering down and grow more

frequent and continuous, you begin to really know in the depths of the soul that

some day you will be free, completely liberated , forever!

*******

“Only what stands beyond time as a witness is true.”

“Ashtavakra says “rest in consciousness ,” relax, let yourself unwind. Let go of

this tension. Where are you going? There is nowhere to go – “rest in consciousness .”

Then, right now – “this very moment you will be happy, at peace, and free from

bondage .” This statement is unique. No other scripture is comparable to it....

Ashtavakra says it can happen now. There is no need to delay even a single moment.



There is no reason to leave it until tomorrow, no need to postpone it. This happening

does not occur in the future, it happens now or never. When it happens, it happens

right now.”

“Stay detached, beyond, transcendent, above, far away. Be identified with only

one thing: You are the observer, you are the witness.”

“Bliss is the definition of truth. Bliss is above truth, even above consciousness –

Sat Chid Ananda – truth, consciousness, bliss. Whenever bliss flows, whenever you

find ecstasy, know that truth is nearby.”

“Contentment means: Look at what you have! Open your eyes a little and see

what you’ve already got. Existence has given you enough glory. It gave you life. It

has blessed you with eyes – open them and see these green trees, the flowers, the

birds. It has given you ears – listen to music, to the splashing of a waterfall. It has

given awareness so you can become a buddha: What more do you want? You have

already been honored.”

( Enlightenment: The Only Revolution, pages 30, 34-35, 54, 73 & 84, Osho)

*******

Patanjali says there are nine distractions to Self-realization (Yoga Sutra I:30).

“The obstacles to inner awareness, or witnessing, are the distractions listed here.

However, they are not insurmountable. Through the practice of various yoga

sadhanas, or spiritual disciplines, they may be over come: 1) Disease is both physical

and mental. It results from how we react to the stress of life; 2) Dullness occurs

when there is not adequate energy to keep a continuous awareness. We should not

waste energy and must avoid fatigue; 3) Doubt is the tendency of the mind to

question, and when it is not accompanied by a seeking for answers, it may leave one

cynical and unprepared to continue making efforts; 4) Carelessness is inattention,

dispersion, and an absence of focus; 5) Laziness is a habit, due to discouragement,

lack of enthusiasm or inspiration: 6) Sense indulgence, or addiction, occurs where

desires are not detached from, but rather encouraged; 7) False perception is not

seeing the underlying reality; 8) Failure to reach firm ground occurs when there is

lack of patience and perseverance; and 9) Instability is the failure to maintain

equilibrium during the highs and lows of life due to a lack of consistency in one’s

practice; getting lost in the transitory show.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pages 39-40,

Govindan)

*******

“Some of the accompaniments of these distractions are trembling in the body, unsteady

inhalation of the breath, depression and anxiety.” – Yoga Sutra I:31



“The nine mental distractions are those movements, which cause us to forget, or

lose, inner awareness. When we become unduly absorbed by our thoughts, and lose

our equilibrium, there may be side effects in our emotions, such as anxiety and

depression, and physiological reactions like shaking and agitated breathing.” ( Kriya

Yoga Sutras, page 41, Govindan)

*******

What is commonly known as “emotions” are dualistic; they always have an

opposite: love and hatred, joy and sorrow, and so forth. These are the feelings

referred to in my phrase, “sense impressions, thoughts, and feelings,” that I use to

represent all of the fluctuations in consciousness. Emotion is from a Latin word that

means, “to stir up, or disturb.” In the Buddhist teachings, these feelings are actually

called “disturbing emotions.” In contrast, we have the spiritual qualities of soul

peace, bliss, and unconditional divine love. These are nondual by nature, having no

real counterparts. They are not disturbed, or stirred up, but are revealed or

reflected in deep states of stillness and silence.

*******

“The practice of concentration on a single object is the best way to prevent the obstacles

and their accompaniments.” – Yoga Sutra I:32

“This practice keeps the mind from getting dispersed, or lost in its own thoughts.

Inner awareness grows. The mental obstacles and their emotional accompaniments

gradually retreat. All yogas involve concentration on an object: the body, breathing,

a mantra, meditation, or upon the subject itself, being the Self, the witnessing

consciousness.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pages 41-42, Govindan)

*******

Absolutely fundamental to the practice of yoga meditation is the purification of

subconscious tendencies (samskaras). The most superficial ones can be effectively

addressed with affirmations and mantras. However, only the deeper dualistic states

of spiritual ecstasy (savikalpa samadhi ) will roast the seeds of the more deeply rooted

impressions. And ultimately any last remaining and deepest samskaras, or

subconscious tendencies, can only be offered up in the sacred fire of the highest

nondual states of ecstatic bliss (nirvikalpa samadhi).

My guru, Yogacharya Mother Hamilton (who was a direct and intimate disciple

of Paramhansa Yogananda) used to say: “You have to pass through the hell of your

subconscious mind in order to reach the heaven of your own being.” This can be along drawn-out, and sometimes very painful, experience of purging oneself of the effects

created by all of one’s previous thoughts, words and deeds. “Full price has to be paid

for God-realization” – Papa Ramdas.

*******



“In the active state, these fluctuations arising within consciousness are destroyed by

meditation.” – Yoga Sutra II:11

“The elimination of the fluctuations arising within consciousness is a pre-requisite

for samadhi. They can be stilled by the practice of meditation (dhyana) that is defined in Sutra III:2 as “the experience of having the mind fixed on one object only .” Meditation

is the easiest process, but narrow in results. Continuous awareness is more difficult, but

greater in results. Self-observation and liberation from the chains of thought is the most

difficult of all, but greatest in its results. One can choose one or all of these methods.”

( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 75, Govindan)

Here Govindan seems to divide and separate the process of spiritual practice to

clarify essential components. I view my own practice as a space-time continuum.

Whatever you do with Self-awareness is “meditation.” The time is always now as in

“constant practice.” The space is defined by what you are actually doing at this

moment – seated with eyes closed and focusing on Spirit within you; or meditating

one-pointedly on the Self, as the witnessing consciousness, in the middle of some duty

that requires action; and whenever appropriate, observing an aspect of your ego

with detachment and, thus, transcending its limiting hold on your being, pure

awareness. Devotion to the witness inside of you is the key. It’s really all quite

simple. Abiding in divine bliss generates the ultimate motivation to keep on

practicing with all your heart and soul. Everything becomes nectar. Just go with

flow and when the inspiration arises to do a specific technique – a certain

affirmation or mantra, or some yoga poses, whatever – do it, but do it with

awareness. It’s that easy. “The Great Way is not difficult!” as Sosan, the Third

Chinese Patriarch of Zen, so rightly enlightens us.

*******

“These afflictions in their subtle form are destroyed by tracing their causes back to their

origin.” – Yoga Sutra II:10

“The five afflictions (ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion, and clinging to life)

maintain our false identity and separation from the Self. On the subtle level, they exist

as subconscious tendencies (samskaras) that can be eliminated only by repeated going to

their source through the various stages of samadhi. Because these subconscious

impressions are not accessible to us in ordinary consciousness, or even meditation, one

must eliminate their root, egoism, by repeatedly identifying with our true Self. The little

“me” becomes gradually subsumed in the greater “I” and as it does, the subconsciousimpressions dissolve.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pg. 74, Govindan)

*******

Govindan translates samadhi as the rather flat and dull sounding, “cognitive

absorption.” I prefer the much more inspirational rendering by Paramhansa

Yogananda of samadhi as being the spiritual realization of ecstasy! Or, as the



experience of oneness, yoga, with God as Bliss! Therefore, I have made a few

changes here and there in translation. Oops! Our author does slip up in one place,

while recounting a story in one of his commentaries, and uses the phrase – “a divine

state of ecstasy, or samadhi.” The word “ecstasy” comes from the Greek – “standing

outside of oneself.” This is not only a concise, but very precise, description of ego

transcendence! Roy Eugene Davis, the author of Life Surrendered In God – The Kriya Yoga Way of Soul Liberation, defines both yoga and samadhi as simply being

the state of superconsciousness.

Bliss sometimes expresses itself as laughter. Cosmic humor is divine, and it really

is so much fun just to laugh or simply smile. “Where’s the fun?” as our ever-lovable

and fully enlightened Papa Ramdas was so fond of asking. And as Wavy Gravy says,

“If you’ve lost your sense of humor, it just isn’t funny anymore.”

HA! HA! HEE! HEE! HO! HO! HU! HU!

is one of my very own personal mantras. I dare you right now, and I mean now, torepeat it until you are feeling really good, or perhaps even too good! And, by the

way, the bija or seed-sound of HU is used by Sufi s, who are the Islamic mystics, to

awaken the heart. In Tibetan mysticism, the seed-sound HUNG is utilized for the

same purpose. Do it now:

Just keep repeating it over and over again, out loud if you like...

*******

“Because of the conflict between the fluctuations of consciousness and the constituent

forces of nature, and with suffering that arises from the subconscious impressions,

anxiety and change, for the discriminating person, indeed all is sorrowful.” – Yoga SutraII:15

“Even getting what we want creates suffering (dukkha) when we begin to fear losing

it, or when the habit of craving leads to more craving, fear and anxiety. While we may

have moments of pleasure, they are bound to end, and the knowledge of this creates

anxiety, fear and suffering. No experience gives everlasting happiness. When we realize

this, we begin to discern the source of lasting happiness as lying beyond attachment to

things or persons. It is not the experience of pleasurable things which creates suffering,

but the attachment to them. So the wise allow things to come, or to go, without

becoming lost in thoughts of fear, desire, and sorrow. The wise cultivate detachment

(vairagya) in order to end the habit of attachment and the confusion between well-beingand external objects and circumstances.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 80, Govindan)

*******

“The cause of suffering to be eliminated is the union of the Seer (Self) and the Seen

(Nature).” – Yoga Sutra II:17



“When our body feels some pain or we have experienced a loss, we say, “I am

suffering.” We confuse the Self who “sees” with the constituent forces of Nature,

everything else – that which is objective. Ask yourself: “Who suffers?” You will

immediately realize it is not you. You are only the observer . Misplaced identity is the

root cause of suffering. The Seer and the Seen are apparent only.” ( Kriya Yoga

Sutras, page 81, Govindan)

*******

“The Seen is of the quality of brightness, activity, and inertia, and consists of the

elements and sense organs whose purpose is to provide both experience and liberation to

the Self.” – Yoga Sutra II:18

“This aphorism defines the constituent forces of Nature, the Seen. It includes

everything capable of becoming the object of the transcendental subject or Self.

Nature’s three principle modes of manifestation correspond to the three primary

constituents of Nature (tri- gunas). Brightness or equilibrium accompanies the gunaknow as sattva. Activity or movement accompanies the guna of rajas; and inertia or

denseness accompanies tamas. These three modes occur at both the material and

psychological levels. Nature provides us with experience that ultimately liberates

our consciousness from its bondage of false identification. Eventually we feel that we

have had enough suffering in the hands of Nature and seek a way out of egoistic

confusion (“I am the body-mind,” etc.). Nature includes the elements and our own

bodies, minds, and emotions. It is constantly changing. With detachment and

discernment we learn to go beyond it. Liberation of the Self from the bonds of

ignorance occurs as we learn from the experiences given to us by Nature.” ( Kriya

Yoga Sutras, page 83, Govindan)

*******

“The Seen exists only for the sake of the Self.” – Yoga Sutra II:21

“With reference to Sutra II:18, the Seen exists only to serve the Self’s liberation.

Once the Seer is liberated from its confusion with the Seen, the Seen serves no

further purpose. The Seer is just a witness, not a doer nor an enjoyer. Until then the

Seen gives experience and by such experience we gradually wake up from the dream

that we are the Seen. Those Mahasiddhas who remain on the physical plane

indefinitely do so to assist in the liberation of other.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 85-86,

Govindan)

*******

“For one who has attained the goal of liberation the Seen disappears, yet the Seen is not

destroyed because of its common universality.” – Yoga Sutra II:22



“This aphorism rejects the notion that the world exists only in our minds, but in

reality does not exist. Patanjali herein asserts that external objects do have their

independent existence and they are not affected by our Self-realization. Self-

realization is an individual event that does not annihilate the external world. This is

in contrast to the teachings of many schools of Vedanta which hold that Nature is

illusion ( Maya), with no objective reality.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 86, Govindan)

*******

“This union of the Seer and the Seen is the result of ignorance.” – Yoga Sutra II:24

“The false identification of our Self with the objects of experience is not illusory,

but based on ignorance.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 88, Govindan)

Or, in other words, Nature as the Seen is not illusory; but it is delusive ( Maya) – the

cosmic source of ignorance, the force of Repulsion away from Spirit. In one sense the

world is most obviously real; just stub your toe and you will know from your own direct

experience! “How can a real God create an unreal world?” – asks Osho, a mystic in his

own right, who fully understands that the world is, in fact, illusory – because it is not

seen for what it truly is by those who are unenlightened, each perceiving the world in a

different way due to his own individual conditioning, or unique fluctuations arising

within consciousness – and that when the inner revolution does takes place, subject and

object – the soul, Self and God, Spirit – turn into one, and the “world” as a totality of

seemingly separate objects, the mere appearance of forms, is transformed by an

enlightened shift in perception – an infinite universe arises in its stead. This inner Self-

realization is nondual in that subject and object have merged as one; and this is

reflected in the perception of the outer “world” where the one formless underlying

reality is revealed – all boundaries melt away, and everything flows together as a

“universe,” interpenetrative and connected. That does not mean the rocks and trees,mountains and rivers, suddenly just vanish. They still are but not in the same way as

before. Everything has been transfixed in a new light; the sun of enlightened

consciousness has risen.

*******

“Philosophers with clouded understanding may vainly try to explain away the field

of nature by simply stating that it does not exist! While expressing through a body and

mind formed of the substance of nature they dismiss it as not “real.” When seers say

that the universe is not real they mean that it does not have independent existence and is

not permanent as it presently expresses. They teach that the only thing that is Real isConsciousness, which makes possible the realms of manifestation. They do not deny the

existence of the universe: they merely point to That which is its cause and support.”

( Life Surrendered In God , page 33, Davis)

*******

There is a “world” of difference between philosophers and genuine mystics. The

former are great thinkers who play with ideas. (“I think therefore I am” pretty



much sums up most of Western philosophy for me, which is usually devoid of any

real spirituality. But at the heart and core of Eastern philosophy is the basic

question – “How can I myself realize the one universal spiritual reality?” That is

why it has always appealed to me so greatly and has become my passion in life.)

Philosophers waste their time in foolish arguments over whether the world is real or

illusory, full or empty, and whatever. Existence simply is. It does not need to beproven. Philosophers would rather keep on thinking about absolutely nothing of any

real value (“just fool ing around” as Osho so humorously put it!) than getting down

to the real work to be done – stilling the mind and entering the silence, so as to

become enlightened themselves.

*******

When Adi Shankaracharya (one of the greatest mystics of all time, expounder of

Advaita “Nondual” Vedanta, founder of the ancient Swami Order, and a disciple of

Babaji as ParamhansaYogananda claims) says the world is “unreal,” it is in the

sense that only the Real – God and the Self – is permanent, unchanging, has beenand always will exist or be, and that the world is “unreal” because it is relative,

always changing, is never the same, comes and goes, and thus ceases to be.

“You go on saying to yourself the world is illusory, Maya, that it is not there. You

keep denying the reality of the world and convincing yourself that it is but a dream.

So now you believe this to be so but this feeling is not true. It is only a deception.

The Advaitin philosophers always do this, go on saying the world is unreal. But it

happened differently to Shankaracharya, he realized his being, he became the

infinite, and then the world disappeared.” ( Hsin Hsin Ming: The Book of Nothing –

Discourses on Sosan’s Verses on the Faith-Mind , page 60, by Osho)

*******

OCEAN OF BRAHMAN

“My mind fell like a hailstone into the vast expanse, the ocean of Brahman, the

Infinite and Eternal Spirit. Touching one drop of it, I melted away and became one

with Brahman. This is wonderful indeed! Here is the ocean of Brahman, full of

endless Bliss!”

- Adi Shankaracharya

“Everything belongs to one essence. When you see the formless then the whole

world is just like an ocean, and all forms are simply waves. In all the waves, the

ocean is waving, pulsating, as one.” ( Hsin Hsin Ming: The Book of Nothing, page

181, Osho)

The “world” is objective, a totality of all separate forms; while the “universe” is a

oneness; universe literally means, “turned into one.” To quote Aldous Huxley: “If



the doors of perception were cleansed, we would see the world as it is – infinite!”

This is subjective – “a turning about in the deepest seat of consciousness” as it states

in one of the Buddhist Sutras. “Emptiness here, emptiness there (egolessness within,

vast open limitless space without ), but the infinite universe stands always before your

eyes” (Sosan, the Third Chinese Patriarch of Zen).

*******

“You must first become Brahman, then the world becomes an illusion, not the

other way around. How can you become one with Brahman by simply realizing the

world is unreal? And it can never really become an illusion this way because it is

only a concept, something that you think. Advaitins go on saying the world is unreal,

but just look: Throw a stone at them and they will get angry and start fighting with

you! The world is not an illusion for them, only a conception, a philosophy. And

philosophers can be very cunning.” ( Hsin Hsin Ming: The Book of Nothing, page 61,

Osho)

“Stop talking and thinking, and there is nothing you will not be able to know” –

Sosan.

*******

Ashtavakra says that the soul is “nondual .” It is one with God. And as God is

one with everything, then the soul has to be, too. God and Self, or soul, merge

within, and Spirit and Nature become a unity without. Even the boundary between

inside and outside dissolves with the enlightened view. Everything comes together as

part of an integral whole. I am still pondering the doctrine of “a multiplicity of

souls” that Govindan in his introduction claims that the Mahasiddhas hold.

Ashtavakra also says that the soul is “all-pervading.” If that is so, a multiplicity of

souls means it’s going to get awfully crowded out there! I would take this to its

nondualistic , as well as quite logical, conclusion. All souls are the individualized

reflections of the same Chid , the immanent Cosmic Consciousness, springing forth

from the one transcendental Spirit of God, and therefore all souls are one in their

essential nature. How could it be otherwise? Adi Shankaracharya would certainly

agree and he knows from his own mystical realization. “Everyone is my Self” – from

this full realization, the universal vision of love becomes a reality, infinite

compasssion arises, and I thus “do unto others as I would have them do unto me”

because we are one and the same. Whatever you give with this consciousness, you

immediately receive – everything moves full-circle; space is curved. And love is

everywhere! One heart, all hearts – the shining jewel in the lotus.

As I see it, all of this confusion, as to whether the world is real or illusory, stems

to a great extent from the dualistic limitations of language itself, which is based on

opposites, while existence is advaita, or nondual. Existence is one. These are all

merely various descriptions, utilizing word symbols, to depict the same underlying

reality. Concepts are very useful as points of departure, or “launching pads” into



the states of superconsciousness, and once you are soaring through the luminous

realms of inner space, they may then be discarded.

“The mystery is solved when you have become the mystery itself, you will then

know. But that knowledge is so delicate it cannot be put into words. That knowledge

is so paradoxical it defies all language. That knowledge is so contradictory – becauseopposites lose their boundaries, they become one – no word can say it.” ( Hsin Hsin

Ming: The Book of Nothing , page 120, by Osho)

*******

“Ignorance is destroyed by the means of uninterrupted discriminative discernment

(wisdom).” – Yoga Sutra II:26

“How are we to remove this ignorance (avidya) and reach Self-realization?

Patanjali advises us to distinguish what is permanent from what is transitory: the

Real from the relatively unreal, the Self as distinct from the world. We take theperspective of a witness and train the inner consciousness to gradually withdraw, to

stand back even from our own mental processes. In the final stage of this

discernment, we identify with the Self in ecstatic nondual spiritual realization

(nirvikalpa samadhi ) – “an unceasing vision of discernment.” In order to grasp the

Truth, moment-to-moment observation is necessary. Each of us must decide for

ourselves what needs to be let go of, and what may stay.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page

89, Govindan)

*******

There are two levels of discernment : the first is sporadic, waxes and wanes, as one

is consciously striving to cultivate its quality, while the second becomes such a deep-

rooted habit that “discriminative discernment” flows as an unbroken stream of

insightful awareness, continuous and “uninterrupted.” It is this latter, and higher,

level that is instrumental to the process of burning off any last remaining karma –

the effects of one’s past thoughts, words and deeds – in the form of “seeds,”

subconscious impressions or samskaras, that finally culminates in supreme

enlightenment and liberation. This transpires while one is abiding in nirvikalpa

“nondual” samadhi, the highest state of spiritual ecstasy.

*******

Patanjali, as I do, likes to use his own terminology! Although the Yoga Sutras are

very deeply rooted in, and perfectly aligned with, Sankhya-Yoga philosophy, he only

uses its terms ahamkara, egoism, once, and buddhi, discriminative intelligence,

twice. He prefers asmita and viveka, respectively. Asmita can also denote “pure

Subjectivity, awareness of the Self.” I have a strong preference myself for the use of

this term, as you will see in later chapters of this treatise. Patanjali, however, is very

fond of the word chitta and uses it often to denote “consciousness.” The fourth key



term – manas, sensory perception, does not appear at all; here he substitutes

pratyaka, which is identical in meaning.

Buddhi , our basic intelligence, when spiritualized, is transformed into knowing,

true understanding, discriminative insight, direct perception of reality, discernment,

or intuitive wisdom – soul awareness. This is exactly what Patanjali means when heuses viveka (I believe the Sanskrit root translates as “to know”) as he does in the

above sutra. Buddhi also denotes intellect, to include the process of discursive

thought, which viveka most certainly does not. Buddhists use a similar term, prajna,

which is usually rendered as “penetrative insight” or “transcendental wisdom” that

is used to discern the true nature of one’s self and all “appearances” or the objects

of perception. As you may remember, I chose “discernment” as my concise

definition for buddhi in relationship to the actual practice of yoga meditation.

Govindan’s rendering as “discriminative discernment” definitely sets it apart and

gives it extra power.

I also really like his use of “relatively unreal.” Wisdom is discriminativediscernment between the Real and the relatively unreal. The universe of form is

transitory, relative to time and space, being the emanations of Aum, Cosmic Sound

and Light, which is the “Nature” of God as an omnipotent and omniscient creative

Being. Everything is a play (lila) of Absolute Pure Consciousness .

*******

Based on scientific data gathered by the physical sense of sight, magnified

through the most highly advanced telescopes, and through the power of reason,

aided by extremely complex computer analysis, modern astronomers conclude that

an average-sized galaxy contains over 100,000,000,000 stars, and that there are at

least 100,000,000,000 galaxies in our universe.

THAT’S ONE HUNDRED BILLION GALAXIES,

AND TEN BILLION TRILLION STARS!

(OR MORE STARS THAN ALL THE GRAINS OF SAND

ON ALL THE BEACHES OF PLANET EARTH)

And, as technology evolves, these astronomical numbers keep on expanding – just

like the universe in their Big Bang Theory.... “Radio telescopes can detect very faint,very distant objects. As we look deep into space, we also look far back into time. The

nearest quasar (a highly intense luminous star-like source of light) is perhaps half a

billion light-years away (and light travels one million kilometers every 3 1/3

seconds). The farthest quasar may be ten or twelve or more billion. But if we see an

object twelve billion light-years away (roughly the observable universe at this time),

we are seeing it as it was twelve billion years ago in time. By looking far back into



space, we are also looking far back in time, back toward the horizon of the universe,

back toward the epoch of the Big Bang.” (Cosmos, page 216, Sagan)

The Hindu scriptures speak of a universe that is literally infinite; and the

Buddhist Sutras describe it as vast open limitless space . This cosmos interpenetrates

the infinitesimally small world of our experience in bodies where electrons spin intheir microscopic orbits at velocities of thousands of miles per second , on the

threshold of the speed of light itself.

So here we are on “an unknown planet on the edge of some obscure galaxy.” And

all one can do is stand back in awe “outside oneself,” perhaps high on some

Himalayan peak, well above tree-line, where the only signs of life are scattered tufts

of grass and the most delicate shapes of tiny mountain flowers in shades of sunburst

yellow and mystical violet that blossom from the otherwise barren rocky earth. Just

to be, without boundaries created by thought, in the presence of such radiant form,

and attuned to the infinity at the very heart of all things!

*******

“One’s wisdom in the final stage is seven-fold.” – Yoga Sutra II:27

“These occur as we begin to abide in “our own true form, or nature” ( svarupa) as

it is called in Sutra I:3 –

1) We realize that the source of all wisdom is within us. Our seeking for expressions

of the truth outside of ourselves comes to an end.

2) The cessation of pain occurs as our attachments and aversions fall away.

3) In the state of spiritual ecstasy (samadhi ) all sense of individual separation or lack

is gone. There is a sense of oneness with all.

4) We feel that we are no longer the doer; there is no attachment or individual

selfish desire.

5) The ego subsides and the subconscious impressions (samskaras) can no longer

disturb the mind.

6) The subconscious impressions drop away “like rocks fallen from a mountain

peak, never to return” (Mahasiddha Tirumular).

7) Only the Self remains, resting in its own true form, or nature, completely

peaceful, pure and alone. The illusion of identification with the mind is gone, and we

abide permanently in the ultimate blissful ecstasy, nirvikalpa samadhi, of supreme

enlightenment and liberation.”




*******

So far I have only quoted a few select passages from Patanjali’s extremely lucid

exposition on yoga, the science of Self-realization. By the time “the eightfold path” isshared in Sutras II:28 through III:8, he has already given us seventy-eight rare and

precious gems that cover various multi-dimensional aspects of consciousness, spiritual

practice, samadhi , enlightenment and liberation. Patanjali has also clearly defined Kriya

Yoga as being “intense practice, self-observation, and devotion to God,” which is to

done as a “constant practice” with “detachment.”

“Patanjali prescribes “constant practice” and “detachment” as the means of yoga. As

few persons are naturally endowed with much inclination towards these, he also

prescribes preliminary practices – ashtanga, or “eight-limbed” yoga. However, this was

not Patanjali’s yoga as has been commonly thought by most translators. Textual

analysis reveals that these verses were merely quoted from another unknown source.

There are frequent references to ashtanga yoga in the Shaivagamas, and some of theseworks are older than Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, pages xxiii & 65,

Govindan)

“In conclusion, while Patanjali cites various specific practices of yoga such as asanas,

pranayama, and meditation, he does not emphasize any particular techniques. This is

consistent with the culture of the Mahasiddhas, wherein the highest teachings were

shared in person. These supreme teachings were crystallized in the form of “kriyas”

(from the Sanskrit root kri, to do). These “techniques to be practiced rigorously” were

only imparted during initiation sessions. During such sessions the kriyas are both

revealed and practiced under the supervision of the teacher. The kriyas were never

written down so that only those who practiced them regularly could remember them.

Thus the tradition of the Mahasiddhas has been handed down orally to this very day by

an unbroken line of sincere practitioners. All have their place in an integral process.

Patanjali tells us of the obstacles, the mental distractions and emotional

accompaniments, but lays emphasis above all else on the means for overcoming them –

constancy of practice and detachment, abhyasa and vairagya.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page

xxxi, Govindan)

*******

In the end, we might conclude that the essence of Kriya Yoga is

the intense and constant practice of devotion to God as theindwelling Spirit, or Self, the witnessing consciousness that

observes all of our sense impressions, thoughts and feelings with

detachment by simply letting them come and go...



RAJA YOGA Kriya Yoga is a direct transmission through a timeless tradition known as

Sanatana Dharma or “Eternal Religion,” which is also called Raja Yoga. It is the“royal” path of meditation, but also integrates the quintessence of all the other

primary yogas – those of action, wisdom, and devotion – to create a truly wholistic

practice.

*******

“The exalted Lord said to Arjuna: I gave this imperishable Yoga to Vivasvat (the

sun-god); Vivasvat passed on the knowledge to Manu (the Hindu lawgiver); Manu

told it to Ikshvaku (founder of the solar dynasty of the Kshatriyas). Handed down in

this way in orderly succession, the Rajarishi s (royal sages) knew it. But, O Scorcher

of Foes (Arjuna)! By the long passage of time, this Yoga was lost sight of on earth.” – Bhagavad Gita IV:1-2

“Spirit (Absolute Pure Consciousness, here symbolized as Krishna) gave the

indestructible Raja Yoga science – the technique of uniting soul and Spirit – to the

ancient illuminato, Vivasvat , the “Deity of the Sun” (symbolic of God’s omnipresentLight or creative Cosmic Energy, which is manifested also in man as the microcosmic

sun or light of the spiritual eye, epitome of all life and consciousness in the incarnate

being). Vivasvat imparted this sacred yoga to the great exponent of dharma, Manu

(symbolizing manas, the mind, the instrument from which sentient human consciousnessderives). Manu bestowed it on the founder of the solar dynasty of Kshatriyas, Ikshvaku

(symbolic of the intuitive astral eye of life and consciousness in man). In that orderly

succession, this Yoga was then bequeathed to the royal sages (symbolizing the descent of the life and consciousness into the senses, giving man sensory perception of and

interaction with the material world). Thereafter, when the cycles of the world entered the

Dark Ages, knowledge of this divine science deteriorated and was lost (symbolically,throughout many incarnations the senses are engrossed in and identified with matter, and

man thus loses the knowledge and ability of reuniting his soul with Spirit)....

In the beginning of creation and the advent of man, the Infinite impregnated Hisintelligent creative Cosmic Energy ( Maha-Prakriti or Holy Ghost) with not only the

power of repulsion – the individualizing of Absolute Pure Consciousness into souls and a

universe of matter – but also with the power of recalling souls from their prodigalwanderings in matter back to unity with Spirit. All things come from, are made of and

sustained by, and ultimately resolve into this intelligent Cosmic Energy, and thence into

Spirit. Ascension follows in reverse order to the exact course of descension. In man, thatcourse is the inner highway to the Infinite, the only route to divine union for followers of

every religion in all ages. By whatever bypath of beliefs or practices a being reaches that

singular highway, the final ascension from body consciousness to Spirit is the same for

everyone: the withdrawal of life and consciousness from the senses upward through the



gates of light in the subtle cerebrospinal centers, dissolving the consciousness of matter

into lifeforce, lifeforce into mind, mind into soul, and soul into Spirit. The method of

ascension is Raja Yoga, the eternal science that has been integral in creation from itsinception....

My guru Sri Yukteswar discovered the mathematical application of a 24,000-year equinoctial cycle to the solar system of which earth is a part. As planets revolve around

their sun, so the sun has for its dual a distant star around which it rotates in approximately

24,000 earth-years. According to Hindu cosmology, the rotating sun, additionally, movesin a far vaster cycle around a magnetic nucleus of Spirit ( Vishnunabhi), “The Grand

Center,” seat of the creative power of Brahma. The 24,000-year cycle is divided into an

Ascending Arc and a Descending Arc, each of 12,000 years. Within each Arc fall four yugas or Ages called Kali, Dwapara, Treta, and Satya, corresponding to the Greek ideaof Iron, Bronze, Silver, and Golden Ages. To identify the predominate characteristic of

each Age, I have referred to them, respectively, as the Material Age, the Electric or

Atomic Age, the Mental Age, and the Spiritual Age. During the Ascending Arc of each

cycle, when the solar system in an inward evolution begins to move closer to the “GrandCenter” of Spirit, there is a gradual unfoldment of intellectual and spiritual qualities,

reaching a zenith of enlightenment in Satya Yuga, or the Spiritual Age. The shadow of delusion then slowly begins to eclipse the light of knowledge during the Descending Arc

to the Kali Yuga or Material Age farthest from Spirit.

Western astronomers have postulated an equinoctial cycle of our solar system as

consisting of 25,900 years, based on a cosmic phenomenon known to astronomers as

“Precession of the Equinox,” determined by its present rate of motion. According to the

Hindus, however, that rate varies at different stage of the cycle.

(“Numerous other stars in our galaxy have been found to exist in pairs. The possibility

that our sun has a dual is not dismissed in modern astronomy, and has actually comeunder discussion by serious scientists in recent years.” – Swami Kriyananda in

Conversations with Yogananda, page 58)

Even though almost completely buried during the Material Age, the science of Yoga

can never be annihilated, for it is linked to the Reality within man. Whenever he

questions the phenomena of life and awakens spiritually, through God’s grace he

encounters a true guru who acquaints him with the art of divine union – no matter in whatcycle the devotee has incarnated.... In this once-more-ascending Atomic Age, the

indestructible science of Raja Yoga is being revived as Kriya Yoga through the grace of

Mahavatar Babaji, Shyama Charan Lahiri Mahasaya, Swami Sri Yukteswar, and their disciples.... Foremost among Lahiri Mahasaya’s Kriya Yoga disciples was my guru, Sri

Yukteswarji, for he was chosen by Babaji to continue the lineage through which the

sacred science would be disseminated in all lands. As a matter of special divinedispensation, I was selected to spread the Kriya Yoga science worldwide through the

unity of the same underlying Truth to be found in the original teachings of both Sri

Krishna and Jesus the Christ.



That Jesus knew and taught to his disciples the Raja Yoga technique of uniting soul

with Spirit is evidence in the deeply symbolic Biblical chapter “The Revelation of Jesus

Christ to Saint John.” John speaks of the “mystery of the seven stars” and the “sevenchurches” (1:20); these symbols refer to the seven astral centers of light in the spine. The

recondite imagery throughout this vastly misunderstood chapter of the Bible is an

allegorical representation of the revelations that come with the opening of these centersof life and consciousness, the “book sealed with seven seals” (5:1).

In Autobiography of a Yogi I have written: “Babaji is ever in communion with Christ;together they send out vibrations of redemption and have planned the spiritual technique

of salvation for this age.”

Esoterically interpreted, these two stanzas of the Gita explain the genesis of Yoga. Thefirst manifestation of Spirit is Cosmic Light. God vibrated His Cosmic Energy, or Cosmic

Light, referred to in these verses as Vivasvat, “one who shines forth.”

....All the intelligent creative power of omnipresent Cosmic Energy is present

microcosmically in the spiritual eye. It is through the spiritual eye – the various states

experienced therein, correlating to the activities of the cerebrospinal centers of life and

consciousness in the physical, astral, and causal bodies – that the soul descends into

embodiment and ultimately re-ascends to Spirit....

Omnipresent Cosmic Energy (Vivasvat ) is the source of the lifeforce that becomesmanifest in the astral body of man through the instrumentality of the mind ( Manu). Manu

means man, the possessor of the thinking principle, from the Sanskrit manas, mind. Thuslifeforce and mind are intimately associated, for in the body of man one cannot exist

without the other. When they descend from Absolute Pure Consciousness and Cosmic

Energy, their pristine manifestation is through the eye of intuition (causal phase of thespiritual eye relating to the causal spinal channel of consciousness) and thence into the

astral eye (astral phase of the spiritual eye, corresponding to the three spinal channels of

the astral body). The astral eye, through which life and consciousness come into astralembodiment, is symbolically referred to in these verses as Ikshvaku....

The soul is identified with the intuitive state of ego perception; that is, it experiencesits individualized existence as limited by confinement in the astral body in which theastral ego’s power of knowing and perception comes not from sensory experience but

through the sixth sense, intuition. The astral ego perceives the forces at work in the astral

body as the true components of matter.

From the intuitive astral Ikshvaku state, the soul then further descends to the various

powerful sense-perception states, manifesting first as the more subtle astral sensory



powers ( jnanendriyas) and then flowing into the gross physical manifestation of the

senses. This is spoken of as the Rajarishi, or sense-identified, state....

The five instruments of knowledge are described as “royal sages” because all wisdom

from outside sources (sacred scriptures and the oral discourses of spiritual masters) must

reach the mind and intelligence through the sense channels. These are “royal” or gloriousinstruments for perceiving and enjoying God’s entertaining phenomenal universe when

they are guided by the discriminative intelligence of the soul’s wisdom. But when soul

meditation is forgotten, the senses of knowledge become dulled and unreceptive tospiritual teachings because of constant identification with material desires and sense

objects. Man’s consciousness, having thereby descended to the plane of materialistic

attachments, loses the memory of its union with Spirit during the long dark period of

material consciousness, man’s knowledge of yoga or divine union thus declines and isforgotten.”


*******

“Spiritual results begin as subtle transformations in the consciousness of the inner

being. They are to be measured according to their peace-giving qualities. When a devotee

meditates deeply, he is bound to feel an ever-increasing peace, which, after all, is more precious that any worldly possession!” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 271, Yogananda)

“Happiness is positive and tangible. In order to be really happy, however, one must

first win the state of unbroken peace.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 314, Yogananda)

“The joy in man’s immortal all-blissful soul is not dependent on sense experiences. In

its natural state, the soul remains ever conscious of its innate ecstatic joy.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 1078, Yogananda)

“Shun attachment to the objects of the senses, like poison. The more a man satisfieshis cravings in the objective world, the more his cravings will increase. But if he controls

his cravings and ceases to gratify them, the seeds of desire will be destroyed. Therefore,

let him gain self-control.” (The Crest-Jewel of Discrimination, Adi Shankaracharya)

“Blind renunciation of material objects does not insure freedom: it is by enjoying the

bliss of Spirit in meditation and by comparing it with the lesser joys of the senses that the

devotee becomes eager to follow the spiritual path.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 270,Yogananda)

“The yogi who strives scientifically to unite his soul with Spirit through guru-giventechniques of meditation realizes that the greatest dharma or protective virtue of the soul

is ever-new joy. The religion of the soul consists in the manifestation of this true spiritual

happiness, gained by constant efforts of deep meditation.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page

256, Yogananda)



“Unattached to the sensory world, the yogi experiences the ever new joy inherent in

the Self. Engaged in divine union of the soul with Spirit, he attains bliss

indestructible.” – Bhagavad Gita V:21

“One who is in tune with the soul possesses all of its qualities, including peace, divine bliss, and unerring wisdom.... Discrimination born of intuition through soul contact

insures right judgment in any given situation. The soul, through the agency of intuition,

bestows divine guidance to the consciousness of the devotee; the intuitive guidancemanifests as wisdom through the discriminative faculty to guide the intellect or reason to

the right determination.” (The Bhagavad Gita, pages 314-15, Yogananda)

“In the perception of pure wisdom, there is an absence of all inner tumult, a stilling of all oscillating waves of the mind. Perception is solely through the all-knowing intuition of

the soul.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 85, Yogananda)

“An advanced Kriya Yogi, who in samadhi meditation has withdrawn hisconsciousness and lifeforce from the realm of the gross body and senses, enters the inner

world of wisdom revelations. He becomes aware of the seven sacred altars of Spirit in thespine and brain, and receives all knowledge emanating from them. Thus in tune with truth

through intuitive soul-perception, he knows invariably the correct guidance for all aspects

of his spiritual and materially dutiful conduct.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 982,Yogananda)

“When the devotee’s consciousness soars to the transcendental Kutastha state, he is

attuned to Cosmic Consciousness, the presence of Spirit immanent in all creation andindividually manifested in each being as the soul whose voice is intuition...Any sincere,

persistent, devotee can feel in meditation the urgings of Spirit within. But it is evident

that the devotee must be far advanced on the path of meditation before he can prevail onthe Infinite to vibrate Its presence through an actual intelligible voice of counsel.” (The

Bhagavad Gita, page 173, Yogananda)

*******

“Other devotees offer as sacrifice the incoming breath of prana in the outgoing

breath of apana, and the outgoing breath of apana in the incoming breath of prana,

thus arresting the cause of inhalation and exhalation (rendering the breath

unnecessary) by intense practice of pranayama (the life-control technique of Kriya

Yoga).” – Bhagavad Gita IV:29

“By the concentrated practice of Kriya Yoga pranayama – offering the inhaling breath

into the exhaling breath ( prana into apana) and offering the exhaling breath into theinhaling breath (apana into prana) – the yogi neutralizes these two life currents and their

resulting mutations of decay and growth, the causative agents of breath and heart action

and concomitant body consciousness. By recharging the blood and cells with life energy

that has been distilled from breath and reinforced with the pure spiritualized lifeforce in



the spine and brain, the Kriya Yogi stops bodily decay, thereby quieting the breath and

heart by rendering their purifying actions unnecessary. The yogi thus attains conscious

lifeforce control.

The Bhagavad Gita clearly mentions in this stanza the theory of Kriya Yoga. Kriya

Yoga pranayama or life control teaches man to untie the cord of breath that binds the soulto the body, thus scientifically empowering the soul to fly from the bodily cage into the

skies of omnipresent Spirit, and come back, at will, into its little cage. No flight of fancy,

this is rather the singular experience of Reality: the knowing of one’s true nature and therecognition of its source in the bliss of Spirit. By Kriya Yoga pranayama as described in

this stanza, the soul can be released from identification with body and united to Spirit.

Pranayama is derived from two Sanskrit words – prana (life) and ayama (control). Pranayama is therefore life control and not “breath control.” The broadest meaning of the

word prana is force or energy. In this sense, the universe is filled with prana; all creation

is a manifestation of force, a play of force. Everything that is, was, or shall be, is nothing

but the different modes of expression of that universal force. The universal prana is thusthe Para-Prakriti (pure Nature), the immanent energy or force which is derived from the

Infinite Spirit, and which preserves and sustains the universe.

In the strictest sense, on the other hand, prana means what is ordinarily called life or

vitality of an organism on earth – the prana of a plant, an animal, or a man means thelifeforce or vital force enlivening that form....

Prana is an intelligent force, but it has no consciousness in the empirical, nor

transcendental, sense. It is the basis of the empirical consciousness, but soul is theconscious unit. Soul through ego dictates, and prana, its servant, obeys. Prana, neither

grossly material nor purely spiritual, borrows from the soul its power of activating the

body. It is the power lodged between soul and matter for the purpose of expressing theformer and moving the latter. The soul can exist without prana, but the prana in the body

cannot exist without a soul as its substratum.

Universal prana comes into being in the following way: At the beginning, One Great

Spirit wished to create. Being One, He wished to be many. This desire of His, being

omnipotent, had a creative force to go outward, to project the universe. It split the One

into the many, Unity into diversity. But the One did not want to lose His wholeness intomany. So simultaneously He wished to draw the many back into Singularity. A kind of

tug-of-war thus broke out between the wish to be many from One, and the wish to draw

many into One – between projective force and indrawing force, between attraction andrepulsion, between centripetal and centrifugal force. The result of the pull between the

two almighty opposing forces is universal vibration, the evident sign of the first

disturbance of spiritual equilibrium before creation. In this vibration is blended thecreative wish of the Spirit to be many, and the attracting wish of the Spirit to be One from

many. Spirit, instead of becoming absolutely Many, or absolutely One, became One in

many.



The universal prana underlying all combinations in creation is the basis of unity that

has prevented the One Spirit from being irrevocably split into many. It permeates every

atom in the universe and all of space. It is the primal, direct, subtle link between matter and Spirit – less spiritual that the Great Spirit, but more spiritual that the material atoms.

This universal prana is the father of all so-called forces, which Spirit (in Its immanent

form) utilizes to create and sustain the universe.

When different atoms coordinate into an organism – a plant, animal, a human being –

then the universal prana embedded in each atom becomes coordinate in a particular way,and we call it specific prana, vital force or life. Though each cell – nay, each atom of a

man’s body has a unit of prana in it, still, all the units of prana of all the atoms and cells

are ruled over by one coordinating prana, which is called specific prana, or lifeforce.

Specific prana enters the body with the soul (in the soul’s astral encasement) at the

time of conception. At the soul’s command, the specific prana gradually builds from a

primal single cell the body of the infant – according to that individual’s astral karmic

pattern – and continues to sustain that form throughout its lifetime. This bodily prana iscontinuously reinforced not only by gross sources such as food and oxygen, but primarily

by the universal prana, the cosmic energy, which enters the body through the medullaand is stored in the reservoir of life in the cerebrum, and in the centers of the spine,

whence it is distributed by the functions of the specific prana.

Specific prana pervades the whole body and differs in its functions in different parts.

It can be classified into five different pranas according to these functions: 1) prana (by

pre-eminence), or the crystallizing power that brings all other functions into

manifestation; 2) apana, or the power of excretion, the scavenger energy of the body bywhich bodily waste products are thrown out; 3) vyana, or the power of circulation; 4)

samana, or assimilation, digestion, by which various foods are processed and assimilated

for the nourishment of the body and for building new cells; and 5) udana, or the power bywhich cells are differentiated in their functions (some growing hair, or skin, or muscle,

and so on) by infinite disintegrations and integrations among themselves.

These five pranas, though separate, are interrelated and act in harmony and

interdependence. In truth, they are but the one prana acting in five different yet

indissolubly connected ways.

The basis, or primary seat, of bodily prana is the nervous system and cells of the

cerebrospinal axis and the autonomic nervous system; but it is also in their infinite

ramifications in the form of cells, fibers, nerves, ganglia in even the remotest corners of the body. Thus prana works primarily in the autonomic, or involuntary, nervous system;

but in addition, voluntary activities are possible only because prana, in its five

constituent forces, pervades and works throughout the body.

This Gita verse deals with two specific functions of lifeforce in its differentiations as

prana and apana. As there is a “tug-of-war” on the macrocosmic scale reflecting Spirit’s

projecting wish to create and Its opposing attracting wish to bring the many back into the



One, so does this same contest in duality take place on a microcosmic scale in man’s

body. One expression of this positive-negative duality involves the interaction between

prana and apana.

There are two main currents in the body. One, the apana current, flows from the point

between the eyebrows to the coccyx. This downwardly flowing current distributes itself though the coccygeal center to the sensory and motor nerves and keeps the consciousness

of man delusively tied to the body. The apana current is restless and engrosses man in

sensory experiences.

The other main current is that of prana, which flows from the coccyx to the point

between the eyebrows. The nature of this life current is calm; it withdraws inwardly the

devotee’s attention during sleep and in the wakeful state, and in meditation unites thesoul with Spirit in the Kutastha (Cosmic Consciousness) center in the brain.

There is thus an opposing pull exercised by the downwardly flowing current ( apana)

and the upwardly flowing current ( prana). Human consciousness is pulled downward or upward by the tug-of-war between these two currents to bind or release the soul.

The vital current flowing outward from the brain and spine to the cells, tissues, and

nerves becomes attached to and caught up in matter. It is expended, like electricity,

through bodily motor movements (voluntary and involuntary) and mental activity. As thelife in the cells, tissues, and nerves begins to be exhausted by this motor and sense-

perceptive activity – especially through excessive, inharmonious, non-equalized actions –

prana works to recharge them and keep them vitalized. In the process of consuming life

energy, however, they give off waste products, “decay.” One such product is carbondioxide excreted by the cells into the blood stream; the immediate purifying action of

prana becomes necessary to remove the accumulation of this “decay” or death will occur.

The physiology of this exchange is breath.

From the opposite pulls of the prana and apana currents in the spine, the inhalations

and exhalations of breath are born. When the prana current goes upward, it pulls the vital breath laden with oxygen into the lungs. There prana quickly distills a quantity of

necessary lifeforce from the oxygen atoms. That refined energy is sent by the prana

current to all bodily cells. Without such replenishment of pure lifeforce, the cells would

be powerless to carry on their many physiological functions; they would die. The lifeenergy distilled from the oxygen also helps to reinforce the lifeforce centers in the spine

and at the point between the eyebrows, and the main reservoir of life energy in the

cerebrum. The surplus oxygen from the inhaled breath is carried by the blood throughoutthe body, where it is distributed by the five vital pranas in various physiological

processes.

As noted, bodily activity produces decay and the consequent waste product of carbon

dioxide. This waste is excreted from the cells by the apana, or eliminating, current, and is

carried by the blood to the lungs. Then the downwardly flowing apana current in the



spine causes exhalation and pushes out the impurities in the lungs through the exhaling

breath.

Respiration, activated by the dual currents of prana and apana, is accomplished

physiologically through a series of complex nervous reflexes – chemical and mechanical

– involving primarily the medulla oblongata and the autonomic, or involuntary, nervoussystem. The intricate autonomic nervous system, in turn, is empowered by the prana and

apana currents working through the vital branches of astral life currents that correspond

to the physical autonomic nervous system – the main branches of which are called idaand pingala nadi....

Inspiration and expiration go on largely involuntarily throughout one’s life. So long as

the life current ( prana) pulls the inhaling breath into the lungs, man lives; whenever thedownwardly flowing current (apana) in the exhalation becomes more powerful, man

dies. The apana current then pulls the astral body out of the physical body. When the

final breath leaves the body through the action of the outgoing current, apana, the astral

body follows it to an astral world.

It is thus said that the human breath knots the soul to the body. It is the process of inhalation and exhalation resulting from the two opposite spinal currents that gives man

perception of the external world. The dual breath is the storm that creates form-waves

(sensations) in the lake of the mind. These sensations also produce body consciousnessand duality and thus obliterate the unified soul consciousness.

God dreamed the soul and encased it in a dream body heaving with dream breath. The

mystery of the breath holds the solution to the secret of life. When through disease, oldage, or any other physical cause the breath vanishes, the death of the body follows. Yogis

therefore reasoned that if the body did not decay and toxins did not collect in the cells,

breathing would not be required, that scientific mastery of breath by preventing decay inthe body would make the flow of breath unnecessary and provide control over life and

death. From this intuitive perception of the ancient rishis came the science and art of

pranayama, life-control....

The ancient sage, Patanjali, foremost exponent of yoga, also extols Kriya Yoga

pranayama: “Liberation can be attained by that pranayama which is accompanied by

disjoining the course of inspiration and expiration.” (Yoga Sutra II:49)

Breath, lungs, and heart slow down in sleep but do not completely stop. But by Kriya

Yoga the breath is gradually quieted and the movements in the lungs and the body stilled.When motion leaves the entire body, owing to lack of agitation and to complete physical

and mental stillness, venous blood ceases to accumulate. Venous blood is ordinarily

pumped by the heart into the lungs for purification. Freed from this constant work of blood purification, the heart and lungs are quieted. Breath ceases to go in and out of the

lungs by the mechanical action of the diaphragm....



The body of the Kriya Yogi is recharged with extra energy distilled from breath and

reinforced by the tremendous dynamo of energy generated in the spine; the decay of

bodily tissue decreases. This lessens and ultimately makes unnecessary the blood-cleansing function of the heart. When the pulsating life of the heart muscle becomes

quiet, owing to non-pumping of venous blood, exhalation and inhalation are no longer

needed. The lifeforce, which was dissipated in cellular, nervous, respiratory, and heartaction, withdraws from the external senses and organs and unites with the current in the

spine. The Kriya Yogi then learns how to commingle the upwardly flowing life current

( prana) into the downwardly flowing current (apana) and commingle the downwardlyflowing current (apana) into the upwardly flowing current ( prana). He thus neutralizes

the dual movement, and by will power withdraws both currents into one revealing sphere

of spiritual light at the point between the eyebrows. This light of pure life energy

scintillates from the cerebrospinal centers directly to all the bodily cells, magnetizingthem, arresting decay and growth, and making them vitally self-sustained, independent of

breath or any external source of life.

So long as this light is flowing up and down as the two battling currents of prana andapana – the breaths of inhalation and exhalation – they lend their life and light to the

sensory perceptions, and to the mortal processes of growth and decay. But when the yogican neutralize the downward and upward pull of the spinal currents, and can withdraw all

lifeforce from the senses and sensory motor nerves, and keep the lifeforce still at the

point between the eyebrows, the cerebral light gives the yogi control or power over prana. Lifeforce withdrawn from the senses becomes concentrated into a steady inner

light in which Spirit and Its Cosmic Light are revealed....

True kumbhaka, or the retention of the breath mentioned in enlightened yoga treatises,refers not to the forcible holding of the breath in the lungs (an unpleasant and harmful

practice), but to the natural breathlessness brought about by scientific pranayama, which

renders breathing unnecessary....

When by Kriya Yoga the mortal breath disappears from the lungs, the yogi

consciously experiences, without dying, the death process by which energy is switchedoff from the senses (causing the disappearance of the body consciousness and

simultaneous appearance of the soul consciousness). Unlike the ordinary man, the yogi

realizes that his life is not conditioned by exhalation and inhalation, but that the steady

lifeforce in the brain is continuously reinforced through the medulla from theomnipresent cosmic current. Even mortal man during the nightly state of sleep rises

psychologically above the consciousness of breath; his lifeforce then partially becomes

still and reveals a glimpse of the soul as the deep joy of sleep. The breathless yogi,however, realizes the state of conscious “death” as a far deeper and more blessed state

than bestowed by the deepest blissful semi-superconscious sleep. When the breath ceases

in the Kriya Yogi, he is suffused with an incomparable bliss. He realizes then that it is thestorm of human breath that is responsible for the creation of the dream wave of the

human body and its sensations; it is breath that causes body consciousness.



St. Paul said, “I protest by our rejoicing which I have in Jesus Christ our Lord, I die

daily” (Corinthians 15:31). St. Paul was able by lifeforce control – through Kriya Yoga or

a similar technique – to dissolve the consciousness of his dream body into the everlastingrejoicing of the Christ, or Cosmic Consciousness.

When with the cessation of breath and the quieting of the heart the lifeforce is switchedoff from the senses, the mind becomes detached and interiorized, able at last to perceive

consciously the inner astral worlds and supernal spheres of divine consciousness. In the firststages of ecstasy by Kriya Yoga, the yogi perceives the soul blessedness. By higher ecstasies

that come as a result of complete mastery of the breathless state, he realizes the physical bodyto be made of lifeforce that is surrounded by a halo of grosser electro-atomic cells. The yogi

perceives the illusion of the body dream materialize into the reality of God. By experiencingthe reality of the body as prana controlled by the thought of God, the yogi becomes one with

Him. With that divine consciousness the yogi is able to create, preserve, or dematerialize the

dream atoms of his body or of any other object in creation. Attaining this power, the yogi has

the option of leaving his physical dream body on earth to gradually disintegrate into cosmicatoms; or he can keep his dream body on earth indefinitely like Babaji; or, like Elijah, he can

dematerialize its dream atoms into the Divine Force. Elisha witnessed the body of Elijah become etheric, ascending in a chariot of fiery atoms and lifeforce commingled with the

cosmic light of God. His luminous physical and astral dream bodies and his causal body and

soul merged into Absolute Pure Consciousness.

A man sees himself in a dream; the power of his mind creates the consciousness of areal physical body. Similarly, by materializing His thought, God had made dream men

walking about a dream creation in dream bodies of flesh. The body is nothing more that a

materialized dream of God.... The reason that the Gita advises devotees to practice the pranayama life-control technique is to enable them to realize that the body is made not of

flesh, but of lifeforce condensed from the thought of God.

When by the proper pranayama technique of meditation the concentrated Kriya Yogi

distills lifeforce from breath and reinforces the prana already present in the bodily cells

and cerebrospinal centers, then even the novice yogi occasionally sees his spiritual eye of

light. By deeper practice of Kriya Yoga or breathlessness, he perceives his astral body.Finally he is able to see his physical body as an electro-atomic structure, and emanation

in grosser form of the fine rays of the astral body.

By further advancement the yogi realizes the astral body with its texture of light to be

an “idea” or materialized thought of God. When he has fully understood the ideational

body, he is able to withdraw his consciousness from the three bodily prisons and unite

himself as soul with the absolute freedom of Spirit.”


*******

“A muni – he who holds liberation as the sole objective of life and therefore frees

himself from longings, fears, and wrath – controls his senses, mind, and intelligence



and removes their external contacts by (a technique of) making even, or

neutralizing, the currents of prana and apana that manifest as inhalation and

exhalation in the nostrils. He fixes his gaze at the middle of the two eyebrows (thus

converting the dual current of the physical vision into the single current of the

omniscient astral eye). Such a yogi wins complete emancipation.” – Bhagavad Gita

V:27-28

A muni (literally, “united with the One”) is a yogi who can withdraw his

consciousness at will from external sense objects and from mental attractions towardthem. The epithet muni is here applied to an accomplished yogi who by the technique of

Kriya Yoga has succeeded in dissolving his mind in the Infinite Bliss. A muni’s only goal

is to ascend to the Absolute Spirit from which the soul has descended. By discrimination

the muni watches the soul (identified with the human ego by sense slavery) undergoinginnumerable physical and mental miseries. His goal is to convert the ego into the pure

soul by scientifically disengaging the mind and intellect from the senses.

By the special technique of Kriya Yoga, the ingoing breath of prana and the outgoing breath of apana are converted into cool and warm currents. In the beginning of the

practice of Kriya Yoga, the devotee feels the cool prana current going up the spine andthe warm apana current going down the spine, in accompaniment with the ingoing and

outgoing breath. The advanced Kriya Yogi finds that the inhaling breath of prana and the

exhaling breath of apana have been made “even” – neutralized or extinguished; he feelsonly the cool current of prana going up through the spine and the warm current of apana

going down through the spine.

These subtle specialized currents of prana and apana are born of the ubiquitous pranaor intelligent lifeforce that creates and sustains the body....

_______

“In the beginning was the Word (cosmic vibration, the creative life energy or

vibratory thoughts of God), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.... All

things were made by him (the Word); and without him was not any thing made.” (John1:1,3) “And God said, Let there be light; and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3) That is,

God’s thought vibrated into the light of cosmic life or cosmic prana; and cosmic prana

was further materialized into electrons, protons, atoms, molecules, cells, and matter....

The cosmic thought of God thus first materialized as the cosmic prana or lifeforce of light, and finally as all matter of the macrocosm....

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was withoutform, and void (being of the finest expression of vibration, or God’s thought); and

darkness ( Maya, that divides the One into the many) was upon the face of the deep. And

the Spirit of God moved (vibrated His active will) upon the face of the waters (creativeelements). And God said, Let there be light.” Light is Cosmic Vibration’s first expression

of creation (concurrent with the sound of Aum). It is the essence or building block of the

threefold universe and man – ideational, the subtlest form of light as thought or ideas;



astral, the light of pranic energy; and material, the light of atoms, electrons, protons, that

structure all matter.”


_______

“The liberated yogi is conscious of the Spirit not only as Cosmic Bliss but also as the

Cosmic Light that is the true structure of all beings. Beholding everything as Cosmic

Light, the yogi sees his Spirit-united omnipresent Self and all beings as emanations of that Light.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 634, Yogananda)

_______

When the Kriya Yogi learns to dissolve the ingoing and outgoing breath into a perception of the cool and warm currents going up and down the spine, he then feels his

body as sustained by these inner currents of lifeforce and not by their by-product of

breath. He also realizes that the currents are sustained by the Word, the divine vibratory

cosmic light of prana, which enters the body through the medulla....

Jesus testified that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4). This memorable passage signifies

that man’s body does not depend only on external sources of lifeforce – distillations from

breath, oxygen, sunshine, solids, and liquids – but also on a direct inner source of cosmiclife that enters the body through the medulla, flowing then to the subtle centers in the

brain and spine. In man, the medulla is spoken of as “the mouth of God” because it is the

chief opening for the divine influx of cosmic vibratory lifeforce, the “word” then flows

“out of the mouth of God” (the medulla) to the reservoir of life energy in the brain andthe distributing centers in the spine....

The yogi perceives the cool and warm currents in the spine to be constantly andmagnetically pulling an extra voltage of current from the omnipresent cosmic lifeforce

ever flowing through the medulla. He gradually finds that these two spinal currents

become converted into one lifeforce, magnetically drawing reinforcements of prana fromall the bodily cells and nerves. This strengthened life current flows upward to the point

between the eyebrows and is seen as the tri-colored spiritual eye: a luminous sun, in the

center of which is a blue sphere encircling a bright scintillating white star. Jesus referred

to this “single” eye in the center of the forehead, and to the truth that the body isessentially formed of light, in the following words: “If therefore thine eye be single, thy

whole body shall be full of light.” (Matthew 6:22)

Through his spherical eye the Kriya Yoga sees his astral body as made of pranic astral

cells. He perceives that the Cosmic Sunshine of Life reflects its rays through the astral

spiritual eye into the astral brain and astral plexuses and astral nerve-channels (nadis) tosustain the astral cells. He sees also that his physical body is nothing but a coarser light of

electrons, protons, and atoms emanating from his finer astral body. By further

advancement the yogi perceives both his physical and astral bodies to be emanating from

his causal or ideational body, which is composed of the coordinated thoughts of God....



By the special technique of Kriya Yoga, the devotee – through perfect calmness, a

greater supply of energy distilled from oxygen in the Kriya breath, and an enhanced flowof cosmic energy coming into the body via the medulla – is less and less subject to the

necessity of breathing. By deeper Kriya Yoga the bodily life, ordinarily dependent on

reinforcement by lifeforce distilled from gross outer sources, begins to be sustained bythe cosmic life only; then breathing (inhalation and exhalation) ceases....

As the meditation deepens, the downward-flowing apana current and the upward-flowing prana current become neutralized into one ascending current, seeking its source

in the cerebrum (the highest center, that of omniscience). Breath is still; life is still;

sensations and thoughts are dissolved. The divine light of life and consciousness

perceived by the devotee in the cerebrospinal centers becomes one with the Cosmic Lightand Absolute Pure Consciousness.

Acquisition of the power of this realization enables the yogi to consciously detach his

soul from identification with the body. He becomes free from the distressing bondage of desires (the body’s attachment and longing for sensory gratification), fears (the thought

of possible nonfulfillment of desires), and anger (the emotional response to obstacles thatthwart fulfillment of desires). These three impelling forces in man are the greatest

enemies of soul bliss; they must be destroyed by that devotee who aspires to reach God.”


*******

“The yogi is deemed greater than body-disciplining ascetics, greater even than the

followers of the path of wisdom or of the path of action. Be thou, O Arjuna, a yogi !”

– Bhagavad Gita VI:46

“The Lord Himself here extols the royal path of yoga as the highest of all spiritual

paths, and the scientific yogi as greater than a follower of any other path. The real KriyaYoga way (lifeforce control) is not a bypath. It is the direct highway, the shortest route, to

divine realization. It teaches man to ascend heavenward by leading the ego, mind, and

lifeforce through the same spinal channel that was used when the soul originally

descended into the body.... The man who performs good actions is the external karma

yogi. He who practices yoga meditation is the esoteric karma yogi. But he who performs

or practices Kriya Yoga, the highest technique of contacting God, is the raja yogi or the

royal Kriya Yogi. He attains ascension and is among the highest yogis.” (The Bhagavad Gita, pages 652-57, Yogananda)

*******

“Air is the breath of life through which God sustains vegetation, animals, and man.

His purifying, cleansing, and purging power is manifested in all wind currents active

throughout the universe, but is pre-eminent in the subtle vital air (the ”breeze” or gentle



wind) that is life-giving – prana. When by Kriya Yoga pranayama the accomplished yogi

distills the life current out of the oxygen in the human breath and uses this pure prana to

recharge his body, he unites his life with cosmic life. Breath mastery through pranayama,or lifeforce control, is not only the best means of drawing on cosmic energy to sustain life

in the physical body, but also the highest method for attaining liberation. Life control

produces control of the breath, the cord that ties the soul to the body; and breathlessnessin the samadhi state produces God-realization.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 798,

Yogananda)



THE FIVE PROGRESSIVE

LEVELS OF PRELIMINARY MEDITATIVE ABSORPTION

“Patanjali classified the various stages of interiorized meditation in his Yoga Sutras.He refers to two basic categories of meditation – samprajnata and asamprajnata. When

used to define the preliminary stages of realization rather than its advanced stages of

fulfillment, then samprajnata and asamprajnata are relative terms used to distinguishinitial superconscious experiences in meditation ( samprajnata) from true samadhi or

union with the object of meditation (asamprajnata). In this context samprajnata refers to

those states of preliminary meditative absorption wherein the object is “know accurately

and thoroughly” through intuition that is still somewhat mixed with, or interpreted by,

Nature’s subtle instruments of perception – an interaction of the knower, the knowing,and the known. It is therefore called “conscious” absorption because those faculties of

Nature that operate outwardly in ordinary consciousness – such as mind (manas),intellect (buddhi), feeling (chitta), and ego (ahamkara) – are active outwardly in their

pure or subtle aspect...

By contrast, asamprajnata then means those superconscious experiences that are

perceived through pure intuition or realization – the direct perception of the soul by being

one with the object of meditation – transcendent of any intervening instruments or principles of Nature. Intuition is “face-to-face” knowledge of reality without any

intermediary.

Patanjali says that asamprajnata is the result of the samskara (impression) left by

samprajnata absorption. In other words, by repeated efforts at deeper and deeper

samprajnata meditation, the end result is the transcendental state of asamprajnata

samadhi. But it is a misnomer to refer to this latter state as “unconscious” samadhi, inkeeping with the previous state being called “conscious.” Rather, as samprajnata means,

“known accurately or thoroughly,” that idea does not arise in the opposite, asamprajnata,

because in the unity of the knower and the known, the devotee becomes the object of hismeditation. Far from unconsciousness, it is a state of supreme heightened awareness and

enlightenment....

The four states of preliminary meditative absorption, which come after interiorization( pratyahara), are the result of deep concentration (dharana), or superconscious

perception as limited to the body. When these four stages of absorption have been

resolved one by one into the next higher state, the yogi goes beyond them and attainsasamprajnata samadhi. This comes in deep meditation (dhyana) in which concentration

(dharana) is continuous, with no flicker or interruption; then the object of meditation is

experienced as being not only in the body but also in omnipresence. Beyond these states,



in the advanced stages of realization, samprajnata and asamprajnata are understood to

mean, respectively, savikalpa and nirvikalpa samadhi....

As applied to advance stages of realization, samprajnata refers to savikalpa (“with

difference”) samadhi, or divine union in which there remains some distinction between

the knower and the known, as in the realization “Thou and I are One.” In greater or lesser degrees, some modifications of Nature remain. But in asamprajnata samadhi all

differentiations of Nature are resolved into the One Spirit. The consciousness of “Thou

and I are one” becomes “I am He” (who is present in this little form of “I” and in allforms). This is not the egotist’s proclamation, “I am God!” – the brass crown of

megalomania – but rather the full realization of the absolute truth: God is the only

Reality. Thus asamprajnata, in its absolute sense, is nirvikalpa (“without difference”) samadhi, the highest yoga or union manifested by fully liberated masters or those on thethreshold of soul freedom.”

(The Bhagavad Gita, page 117-19, Yogananda)

*******

Samprajnata and asamprajnata can be defined as deep penetrative insight (either,

with or without an object, respectively) into the true nature of reality: the world of

appearances without, and the Self as Spirit within. They are basically synonymous withthe terms viveka, “discriminating discernment,” and samadhi, or the state of divine

ecstasy. Samadhi can also be rendered as a profound meditative state of spiritual

absorption.

*******

“Ecstatic spiritual absorption (samadhi) is that meditation in which the whole object

shines forth, as if devoid of its own form.” – Yoga Sutra III:3

“In divine ecstasy ( samadhi), the distinction between the subject, object and their relationship disappears. There is no feeling or awareness of being apart from anything.

Effort or practice is involved only up until meditation. The doer disappears in samadhi.

One simply abides in this exalted state.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 128, Govindan)

Yoganandaji translates savikalpa and nirvikalpa, quite literally as “with” (Skt. sa-)

and “without” (Skt. nir-) “differences” in regards to samadhi. Govindan uses the terms,

“distinguished” and “non-distinguished,” the latter makes the highest state of divineecstasy sound quite common, when, in fact, it is most extraordinary indeed! I like using

my own terms for these: “dualistic” samadhi for savikalpa where the polarity of subject

and object still remains no matter how subtle it may become; and “nondual” samadhi for nirvikalpa where the subject and object merge as one, into a state of being, one pure

awareness.

*******



“These very levels of

savikalpa samadhi possess seeds.” –

Yoga Sutra II:46 “The four types of savikalpa samadhi are all threatened by the existence of seed-like

latent cognitive afflictions. They lie in the subconscious mind awaiting the rightcircumstances to sprout. Until they have been burnt by the fire of sadhana and in the

highest form of samadhi, there is always the risk that the yogi’s consciousness will again

assume the forms arising from the subconscious and that Self-awareness will be replaced by ego-identification.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 56, Govindan)

*******

Samprajnata and asamprajnata are relative terms. They can be loosely translated as

simply, “lower” and “higher.” I have chosen to use them in this context as it really

simplifies matters. So now we have four “categories” of samadhi: 1) “Lowest” – the five preliminary meditative absorptions; 2) “Lower” – the four levels of savikalpa samadhi; 3)

“Higher” – the transcendence phase of nirvikalpa samadhi; and ultimately, 4) “Highest”

– the integration phase and completion stage of nirvikalpa samadhi.

We now also have two “types” of samadhi: 1) “Dualistic”– the five preliminary

meditative absorptions, and the four levels of savikalpa samadhi; and 2) “Nondual” – the

transcendence and integration phases, and the completion stage of nirvikalpa samadhi.

*******

Both categories of samprajnata “dualistic” samadhi share the same characteristics of

“observation” (vitarka), “reflection” (vichara), “rejoicing” (ananda), and “awareness of

the Self” (asmita).

“In Yoga Sutra II:17, Pantanjali begins a section, which discusses the various types of

samadhi. These occur when we cease to identify with the five fluctuations in

consciousness. In samadhi one realizes pure subjective awareness; the object and subject



become unified. “Observation, reflection, rejoicing, and awareness of the Self” are the

four accompaniments of this type of samadhi – samprajnata (“dualistic”), which is

object-oriented. These are the inspired products of this fusion between subject and object.Unlike asamprajnata (“nondual”) samadhi described in the next verse, here there are

either physical, or subtle mental or emotional, objects as supports or departure points.”


Yoganandaji has named the four basic levels of samprajnata (“dualistic”) samadhi

after these four accompaniments. Here he deviates from the names Patanjali actually usesfor these levels. This is a brilliant inspiration on Yoganandaji’s part. In addition, he

integrates sacred knowledge from the Bhagavad Gita to give us a crystal clear description

of the actual spiritual transformations that we are striving to effect. Each level

corresponds to a chakra in the spine and to one of the four key terms found in Sankhya-

Yoga philosophy – manas, buddhi, chitta, and ahamkara (or asmita).

*******

Each of the levels below represents one of the five stages, respectively, of “preliminary meditative absorption.” The first four (described by Patanjali in Yoga Sutras

I:17) are the initial foundation practices that serve as solid stepping-stones for thequantum leaps in realization called savikalpa samadhi and nirvikalpa samadhi that are

yet to follow. The first four stages are called 1) savitarka – “doubtful” or “doubt-ridden;”

2) savichara – “discriminative;” 3) sananda – “bliss-permeated;” and 4) sasmita – “witha pure sense of self.” Patanjali classifies each of these as samprajnata (“lower”) samadhi

(union, or oneness, with God). At best they are only partial, and are much more

accurately defined as being states of meditative absorption, “dhyana samadhi.” This will

also clearly set them apart from the deeper, and more advanced, states of superconsciousness that are true experiences of samadhi.

Once again let us return to “The Evolutionary Stages of Consciousness,” havingalready covered Levels #1-9 (“body-mind”). During the first four progressive stages of

meditative absorption, the modifications in consciousness that oppose going deep within

are first encountered, and then purified to a more subtle form. The four stages of samprajnata “dualistic” dhyana samadhi, and their specific obstacles to be overcome, are

as follows:

*******

LEVEL #10: “SAVITARKA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the first level of

preliminary meditative absorption “with doubt” at the muladhara, coccygeal, chakra.

Patanjali also calls this level, savitarka, and describes it as the “observation” of material objects. I would interpret this as meaning that one is mindful , or aware, of the

resistance, or deep-rooted habit of looking outwards to the objective world through the

physical senses, that occurs as one is attempting to meditate by going within. This is what

Yoganandaji translates (as many Sanskrit words have multiple connotations) as the



“doubtful” level of practice, where disbelief, or doubt, is overcome by true faith. The

latter can only come into being through direct perception of reality. Only when you

actually experience Spirit in deep meditation, do you really know, and then “true faith”spontaneously arises. Mind (manas) – as sense impressions and the attachment to

material pleasures – is “doubt-ridden” and resists one’s intention of turning inward, away

from the physical senses, to meditative with one-pointed concentration on Spirit. Masteryat this level is the transcendence of identification with the body as sensory consciousness

(manas). This is the initial stage of cultivating the pure awareness of the Self, or witness.

*******

LEVEL #11: “SAVICHARA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the second level of

preliminary meditative absorption “with discrimination” at the swadhisthana, sacral,chakra.

Patanjali calls this level, nirvitarka (“without observation” of physical objects), and

describes it as “reflection” on subtle, or non-material, objects. Here one utilizes concepts,or mental forms, in order to contemplate on truth, to discern between the relative, or

“unreal,” and the Absolute, as departure points to genuine spiritual insight and intuitivewisdom. This is what Yoganandaji calls the “discriminative” level of practice. Intellect

(buddhi) – as a restless stream of discursive thoughts – is increasingly transformed into

calm introspection and “discriminative discernment” (viveka). Mastery at this level is thetranscendence of identification with the conceptualization of the mind. “I have lost the

habit of thinking,” says Sri Aurobindo! The state of witnessing deepens, and continues to

do so throughout all of the other levels of spiritual consciousness.

*******

LEVEL #12: “SANANDA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the third level of preliminary meditative absorption “with bliss” at the manipura, lumbar, chakra.

Patanjali calls this level, savichara (“with reflection” on a subtle, non-physical,object), and describes it as “rejoicing” in the feeling that arises with a state of deep

concentration on Spirit. Yoganandaji calls this the “bliss-permeated” level of practice.

Feeling (chitta) – in the guise of disturbing emotions – slowly dissolves in the “joyful”

nature of ever-deepening meditative absorption. Mastery at this level is the transcendenceof identification with all disruptive emotional reactions. “The intuitive feeling of the

heart” is revealed as the divine quality of ananda, pure ecstatic bliss.

*******

LEVEL #13: “SASMITA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the fourth level of preliminary meditative absorption “with a pure sense of being” at the anahata, dorsal,

chakra.



Pantanjali calls this level, nirvichara (“without reflection” on a subtle object ), and

describes it as “awareness of the Self .” The three previous levels utilized either physical

objects of the senses, subtle mental forms, or feelings of bliss, respectively, as supportsand then departure points. However, at this level there is no “object,” only the “subject,”

which is the Self, pure awareness, the witness. It’s a state of “non-doing,” just resting in

consciousness. The object of meditation has become the subject, which is the indwellingSpirit. This is what Yoganandaji calls “a pure sense of being.” One’s “sense of identity”

(asmita) – bound to the ego (ahamkara) and its dark realm of ignorance where blind

attachment to the body and mind creates endless suffering – is gradually transcended andintegrated on the level of Soul Awareness.

“In that sasmita samadhi state of absorption without reflection (sense impressions,

thoughts, and feelings), awareness is truth-bearing. This special truth has a distinct

purpose apart from knowledge, inference, or scriptural study.” – Yoga Sutras I:48-

49

“In ordinary physical consciousness, knowledge ( prajna) is acquired through thesenses, or by reasoning. But in samadhi it comes by direct cognition or insight and is

“truth-bearing,” meaning without error. One knows by intuitive perception the truth of things directly by becoming one with them.... When we acquire this “truth-bearing”

insight we transcend the mind and can therefore realize the Supreme Being and the Self.

No orally transmitted teachings or logical inference can reveal the truth of God and soul, because the mind cannot grasp anything more subtle that itself. Self-realization occurs

when the mind becomes silent. As it says in one of the Psalms: “Be still and know that I

am God.” ( Kriya Yoga Sutras, page 58-59, Govindan)

*******

These four progressive levels above can be referred to collectively as “the generationstage” of preliminary meditative absorption. When they have been mastered, a higher

state of superconscious experience unfolds. This fifth, and final, stage is perhaps best

described as being of the initial, lowest, and most limited, form of samadhi that acts as a bridge to its deeper and fuller expression in savikalpa samadhi. There are some

significant differences between them that we will examine later on. In order to avoid any

unnecessary confusion, this introductory state of samadhi will simply be termedasamprajnata “higher” dhyana samadhi “meditative absorption.”

LEVEL #14: “ASAMPRAJNATA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the completion,

or “higher,” stage of preliminary meditative absorption at the visuddha, cervical, chakra,with its corresponding element of “ether” or “space.” It is the experience of

omnipresence within the sanctuary of one’s soul as an individualized reflection of Spirit.

*******

As long as the lifeforce, or prana, still descends through the main central channel, sushumna, and flows outward through the two side channels, the pingala (“sun”) and ida



(“moon”) nadis, it will support body consciousness and dualistic perceptions. Through

the magnetic effects generated by interiorization ( pratyahara), concentration (dharana),

and meditative absorption (dhyana), the yogi begins to reverse the direction that thecurrents of lifeforce usually flow (during the ordinary states of wakefulness, dreaming,

and deep sleep) and to withdraw some of the prana from the pingala and ida nadis into

the sushumna at the base of the spine. The lifeforce then begins to ascend through thisluminous astral channel and its radiant cerebrospinal centers. The late generation stage of

this long and gradual process, ending ultimately in supreme enlightenment, is very

poetically depicted in one of the Vajrayana (“Diamond Way”) Buddhist yoga texts:“Shortly before the dawning of the Clear Light, there is an eclipse of both the sun and

moon.” As more and more prana moves upwards over time, as one progresses in his

sadhana, its activating quality starts to awaken the higher states of awareness and the

inherent powers associated with each of the chakras.



THE BHAGAVAD GITA

AND ITS SYMBOLISM “The Bhagavad Gita is the most beloved scripture of India, a scripture of scriptures. It

is the Hindu’s Holy Testament, or Bible, the one book that all masters depend upon as asupreme source of scriptural authority. Bhagavad Gita means “Song of the Spirit,” the

divine communion of truth-realization between man and his Creator, the teachings of

Spirit through the soul, that should be sung unceasingly. The pantheistic doctrine of theGita is that God is everything. Its verses celebrate the discovery of the Absolute, Spirit beyond creation, as being also the hidden Essence of all manifestation....

So comprehensive as a spiritual guide is the Gita that it is declared to be the essence of

the ponderous four Vedas, 108 Upanishad s, and the six systems of Hindu philosophy.Only by intuitive study and understanding, or else by contacting Absolute Pure

Consciousness, can one fully comprehend the Bhagavad Gita. Indeed, the underlyingessential truths of all great world scriptures can be found in the infinite wisdom of the

Gita’s mere 700 verses....

India has preserved in her literature a highly evolved civilization dating back to a

glorious Golden Age (the peak of which was around 11,500 B.C.). From the undated

antiquity in which the Vedas first emerged, through a grand unfoldment of subsequent

exalted verse and prose, the Hindus have left their civilization not in stone monoliths or crumbling edifices, but in architecture of ornamental writing scripted in the euphonious

language of Sanskrit. The very composition of the Bhagavad Gita – its rhetoric,

alliteration, diction, style, and harmony – shows that India had arrived at a lofty height of spirituality.

The testament of the Hindu scriptures is that India’s civilization goes back far earlier than contemporary Western historians acknowledge. Swami Sri Yukteswar, in The Holy

Science, calculates that the Golden Age, in which India’s spiritual and material

civilization reached its pinnacle, ended about 6,700 B.C. – having flowered for several

thousands of years before that. India’s scriptural literature lists many generations of kingsand sages who lived prior to the events that are the main subject of the Mahabharata. In

100,000 couplets this hoary epic – perhaps the longest poem in world literature –

recounts the history of King Bharata, the Pandavas and Kauravas, cousins whose disputeover a kingdom was the cause of the cataclysmic war of Kurukshetra. The Bhagavad

Gita, a sacred dialogue on yoga between Bhagavan Krishna – who was at once an earthly

king and a divine incarnation – and his chief disciple, the Pandava prince Arjuna, purportedly takes place on the eve of this fearsome battle.

The authorship of the Mahabharata, including the Gita portion, is traditionally

assigned to the illuminated sage, Vyasa, whose date is not definitely known. It is said that



the Vedic rishis manifested their immortality by appearing before mankind in different

ages to play some role for man’s spiritual upliftment. Thus they appeared and reappeared

at various times throughout the extensive period of time encompassed by the revelationof the scriptures of India....

So long as divine beings are in a state of absolute oneness with Spirit, as was SageVyasa, they cannot record in writing their enlightened spiritual perceptions. Such Self-

realized souls have to come down from the state of Spirit-oneness, which is unalloyed by

duality, to the state of human consciousness, which is governed by the law of relativity,in order to bring truth to mankind....

The Bhagavad Gita is generally conceded to predate the Christian era. The testimony

of the Mahabharata itself is that the Kurukshetra war took place toward the end of the Dwapara Yuga, when the world was on the verge of descending into the Dark Age or

Kali Yuga. Traditionally, many Hindus have fixed the beginning of the last descending

Kali Yuga at 3,102 B.C., thus placing the Kurukshetra war described in the Mahabharata

a few decades prior to this.

(FOOTNOTE: “Paramhansa Yogananda’s guru, Swami Sri Yukteswar, who was agreat authority on Vedic astrology as well as being a God-realized master, pointed out an

error in the commonly accepted calculation of the dates for the Yugas.... Sri Yukteswar

said that circa 3,100 B.C. was actually the beginning of the descending Dwapara Yuga,not Kali Yuga: the latter, he stated, began in approximately 700 B.C. Since there is a 200-

year transition period between the end of Dwapara Yuga proper and Kali Yuga, the

departure of King Yudhisthira and the other Pandavas to the Himalayas, described in the

Mahabharata, as occurring at the end of Dwapara Yuga and thirty-six years after theKurukshetra war, may have been around 900 B.C. according to Sri Yukteswar’s

calculations – or earlier if one takes the Mahabharata’s account to mean merely that the

Pandavas departed sometime near the end of the Dwapara Yuga, not literally in the verylast year of the age.”)

Scholars of East and West have advanced various dates for the Mahabharata events – some based their estimates on archaeological evidence and others on references in the

poem to specific astronomical phenomena such as eclipses, solstices, positions of the

stars, and planetary conjunctions. By these means, the dates proposed for the Kurukshetra

war range from as early as 6,000 B.C. to as recently as 500 B.C. – hardly a definiteconsensus!

....In a language of simile, metaphors, and allegory, the Bhagavad Gita was verycleverly written by Sage Vyasa by interweaving historical facts with psychological and

spiritual truths, presenting a word-painting of the tumultuous inner battles that must be

waged by both the material and the spiritual man.... Historically, on the brink of such ahorrendous war as that related in the Mahabharata, it is most unlikely that, as the Gita

depicts, Krishna and Arjuna would draw their chariot into the open field between the two

opposing armies at Kurukshetra and there engage in an extensive discourse on yoga.

While many of the chief events and persons in the compendious Mahabharata indeed



have their basis in historical fact, their poetic presentation in the epic has been arranged

conveniently and meaningfully (and wonderfully condensed in the Bhagavad Gita

portion) for the primary purpose of setting forth the essence of India’s Sanatana Dharma,Eternal Religion....

All events and all wisdom are permanently recorded in the super-ether of omniscience,the akashic (etheric) records. An advanced sage in any clime or age can directly contact

them. Thus the whole span of history for the King Bharata dynasty could be perceived

fully by Vyasa when later he conceived the Mahabharata and decided to write the epic asspiritual metaphor based on historical facts and persons.

That the instruction and revelations of the Bhagavad Gita are ascribed to Bhagavan

Krishna, though probably not delivered by him as one discourse in the midst of a battlefield, is quite in keeping with the incarnate earth-mission of Krishna as Yogeshvara,

“Lord of Yoga.” In chapter IV, Krishna proclaims his role in the dissemination of the

eternal science of yoga. Vyasa’s attunement to Krishna qualified him to compile from his

own inner realization the holy revelations of Sri Krishna as a divine discourse, and to present it symbolically as a dialogue between God and an ideal devotee who enters the

deep ecstatic state of inner communion....

Vyasa, being a liberated soul, knew how the consummate devotee, Arjuna, found

liberation through Krishna; how, by following the yoga science imparted to him by hissublime guru, Arjuna was liberated by God. As such, Vyasa could write this as a dialogue

transpiring between the soul and Spirit in the form of the Bhagavad Gita....

It will become evident to the reader after thoughtful perusal of the key to a few stanzasin the first chapter that the historical background of a battle and the contestants therein

have been used for the purpose of illustrating the spiritual and psychological battle going

on between the attributes of the pure discriminative intellect in attunement with the souland the blind sense-infatuated mind under the delusive influence of the ego. In support of

this analogy, there is shown an exact correspondence between the material and spiritual

attributes of man as described by Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras and the warring contestantscited in the Gita: the clan of Pandu, representing Pure Intelligence, and that of the blind

King Dhritarashtra, representing the blind mind with its offspring of wicked sense

tendencies....

The key figure of the Bhagavad Gita is, of course, Bhagavan Krishna. The historical

Krishna is enshrouded in the mystery of scriptural metaphor and mythology.... “Christ”

and “Krishna” are titles having the same spiritual connotation.... Krishna meansUniversal Omniscient Spirit. In this we find a parallel to the Christ, or Cosmic

Consciousness, as the Intelligence of God omnipresent in creation.... The Universal

Christ Consciousness or Kutastha Chaitanya, Universal Krishna Consciousness, is “theonly begotten son” or sole undistorted reflection of God permeating every atom and point

of space in the manifested cosmos....



A Siddha is a perfected being who has attained complete liberation in Spirit; he

becomes a Paramukta, “supremely free,” and can return to earth as an Avatar – as did

Krishna, Jesus the Christ, and many other saviors of mankind throughout the ages. Asoften as virtue declines, a God-illumined soul comes on earth to draw virtue again to the

fore. An Avatar , or divine incarnation, has two purposes on earth; quantitative and

qualitative. Quantitatively, he uplifts the general populace with his noble teachings of good against evil. But the main purpose of an Avatar is qualitative – to create other God-

realized souls, helping as many as possible to attain liberation....

We hear of saintly ascetics or prophets in the forest or secluded haunts, but Sri

Krishna was one of the greatest exemplars of divinity, because he lived and manifested

himself as a Christ and at the same time performed the duties of a noble king. His life

demonstrates the ideal not of renunciation of action – which is a conflicting doctrine for man circumscribed by a world whose life breath is activity – but rather the renunciation

of earth-binding desires for the fruits of action.... To avoid the pitfalls of the two

extremes, renunciation of the world, and drowning in material life, man should so train

his mind by constant meditation that he can perform the necessary dutiful actions of hisdaily life and still maintain the consciousness of God within. That is the example set by

Krishna’s life.... The path advocated by Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita is for both the busy man of the world and the highest spiritual aspirant. To follow this golden path

would be their salvation. The Bhagavad Gita is a revelation of universal Self-realization,

introducing man to his true Self, the soul – showing him how he has evolved from Spirit,how he may fulfill on earth his righteous duties, and how he may return to God.”

(The Bhagavad Gita, pages xvii-xxxi, Yogananda)

*******

“The battle of life between the contending armies of good and bad tendencies – self-control versus sense indulgence, discriminative intelligence opposed by mental sense

inclinations, spiritual resolve in meditation contested by mental resistance and physical

restlessness, and divine soul-consciousness against the ignorance and magnetic attractionof the lower ego-nature – take place on the battlefield of Kurukshetra (kuru, from the

Sanskrit root kri, “work, material action,” and kshetra, “field”). This “field of action” is

the human body with its physical, mental, and soul faculties, the field on which all

activities of one’s life take place.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 4, Yogananda)

“The Pandavas’ chief advisor and support during the battle of Kurukshetra is God

Himself who, in the form of Lord Krishna, represents variously the Spirit, the soul, or intuition as manifested in the states of soul awareness, cosmic consciousness, and

absolute pure consciousness, in the medulla, spiritual eye, and thousand-petaled lotus,

respectively; or as the guru instructing his disciple, the devotee Arjuna. Within thedevotee, Krishna is thus the guiding Divine Intelligence speaking to the lower self that

has gone astray in the entanglements of sensory consciousness. This Higher Intelligence

is the master and teacher, and the lower mental intellect is the disciple; the Higher

Intelligence advises the lower vitiated self on how to uplift itself in accord with the



eternal verities, and in fulfillment of its inherent God-given duties.” (The Bhagavad Gita,

page 68, Yogananda)

“Arjuna symbolizes self-control and the vibratory fire element in the lumbar center,

the manipura chakra. This center bestows fiery strength and resolve. It is the reinforcer

of good habits and actions, purifies the body and mind, and makes deep meditation possible.

We see further why this center allegorically represents Arjuna, the most skilled of allthe Pandava army, when we consider its dual function. It is the pivotal or turning point of

the devotee’s life from gross materialism to finer spiritual qualities. From the lumbar to

the sacral and coccygeal centers life and consciousness flow downward and outward to

materialistic, sense-bound body consciousness. But in meditation, when the devoteeassists the life and consciousness to be attracted to the magnetic pull in the higher or

dorsal center, the power of this fiery lumbar center disassociates itself from material

concerns and upholds the spiritual work of the devotee through the powers in the higher

centers.

When the devotee’s consciousness has gone very deep in meditation, traversing the physical consciousness and the primary states of the astral soul-encasement, he finds in

the inmost astral spine (the chitra) at the lumbar center or manipura chakra, the opening

from the astral body to the finer soul-covering of the causal body. This is the commonopening of the brahmanadi, or causal spine with its centers of divine consciousness,

leading through the chitra, vajra, and sushumna. When the life and consciousness have

been reversed inward during deep meditation, here is where the devotee merges in the

stream of brahmanadi and enters the finer causal realm of the soul, the last encasementthrough which the yogi must pass before he can, by still deeper meditation, ultimately

ascend through brahmanadi to Spirit.

When Arjuna, the power of self-control in the lumbar center, rouses the fire of

meditation and spiritual patience and determination, he draws the life and consciousness

upward, that was flowing downward and outward through the lumbar, sacral, andcoccygeal centers, and thereby gives the meditating yogi the necessary mental and bodily

strength to pursue the course of deep meditation leading to Self-realization. Without this

fire and self-control, no spiritual progress is possible. Thus, Arjuna, more literally, also

represents the devotee of self-control, patience, and determination within whom the battleof Kurukshetra is taking place. He is the chief devotee and disciple of the Lord,

Bhagavan Krishna, who in the Gita dialogue is being shown by Krishna the way to

victory.”

(The Bhagavad Gita, page 66-67, Yogananda)

*******

“ Pranava, the sound of the creative Aum vibration, is the mother of all sounds. The

intelligent cosmic energy of Aum that issues forth from God, as the manifestation of God,



is the creator and substance of all matter. This holy vibration is the link between matter

and Spirit. Meditation on Aum is the way to realize the true Spirit-essence of all creation.

By inwardly following the Pranava to its source, the yogi’s consciousness is carried aloftto God.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 116, Yogananda)

Patanjali says in his Yoga Sutras that the highest samadhi can be attained by profoundand devoted meditation on Isvara whose symbol is Aum. Patanjali uses the name of

Isvara to signify the highest aspect of God, Shiva, the formless Supreme Being.

However, in Advaita (Nondual) Vedanta and the Bhagavad Gita, Ishwara denotes theimmanent aspect of God, the Lord of creation, preservation, and destruction; Brahman,

the transcendental aspect of God, is the Source – Absolute Spirit beyond time, space, and

causation. Sometimes Aum is also called Shabda-Brahman, the primordial manifestation

of Spirit as cosmic creative vibration.

“The Hindu scriptures contain a thousand names for God, each one conveying a

different shade of philosophical meaning. Purushottama or “Supreme Spirit” is an

appellation for Deity in His highest aspect – the Unmanifested Lord beyond creation. Ishwara is He by whose will all universes, in orderly cycles, are created, maintained, and

dissolved.” (The Bhagavad Gita, pages 815-16, Yogananda)

“ Aum is the vibratory embodiment of Spirit, replete with Omniscience and

Omnipotence.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 1095, Yogananda)

“God manifests in creation as the Cosmic Vibration, which expresses itself as Cosmic

Sound and Cosmic Light. The Cosmic Sound or Aum is the synthesis of all the sounds of

the highly vibrating lifeforces, electrons, protons, and atoms.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page614, Yogananda)

“Cosmic Light is the building block of all objects and beings in God’s dream cosmos.”(The Bhagavad Gita, page 679, Yogananda)

“ Aum is the divinely empowered creator of all things; it manifests itself as CosmicLight and Cosmic Sound. As the ocean roar is a conglomerated sound of all waves and is

manifested in each wave, so the Cosmic Sound and Cosmic Light are the aggregate of all

animate and inanimate creation, and are manifested in each man as the light of life and

may be heard by him as the astral sound of Aum.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 1008,Yogananda)

“In the beginning.... God said: Let there be light.” God vibrated His wish to create,and light became manifest; He brought forth the intelligent Holy Ghost Aum vibration,

which became manifest as objective light and sound. These two properties of Aum, in

various combinations, constitute all objective creation.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 782,Yogananda)

*******



In the Bhagavad Gita, our five heroes, the Pandava brothers, each symbolize one of

the five chakras within the spine:

“Sahadeva represents the earth element in the coccygeal center (muladhara chakra).

The devotee concentrating on this center hears the Aum or cosmic vibration in a peculiar

sound like the drone of a honey-mad bee. The devotee then wonders doubtfully whether this sound is a bodily vibration or an astral sound....” This is the abode of the first, or

savitarka – “doubtful,” level of preliminary meditative absorption.

“ Nakula represents the water element manifested in the sacral center ( swadhisthana

chakra). The devotee concentrating on this center is lifted beyond the doubting state of

mind to a surer, more discriminating state; he listens to a higher astral sound, which is

similar to the beautiful tones of a flute. The doubting ceases, and his intellect begins tofathom the nature of this sound....” This is the abode of the second, or savichara –

“discriminative,” level of preliminary meditative absorption.

“ Arjuna represents the fire element in the lumbar center (manipura chakra). Thedevotee concentrating on this center hears an astral sound that is like a harp or vina.

Owing to the dissolution of the doubting mental state and of the discriminatingintellectual state, he now attains the state in which the clear perception of the sound and

its true nature produces a joy-permeated feeling of inner absorption....” This is the abode

of the third, or sananda – “blissful,” level of preliminary meditative absorption.

“ Bhima represents the air or lifeforce ( prana) element in the dorsal center (anahata

chakra). The devotee concentrating on this center hears the Aum “symbol of God” as a

deep, long-drawn-out astral bell. The mental, intellectual, and perceptive states having all been dissolved, the devotee arrives at an intuitive inner-bliss absorption that is mixed

with ego, not as body consciousness but as a pure sense of individualized being ....” This

is the abode of the fourth, or sasmita – “with awareness of the Self,” level of preliminarymeditative absorption.

“Yudhisthana represents the ether element in the cervical center of the spine (visuddhachakra). The devotee concentrating on this center hears the eternity-controlling, infinity-

spreading cosmic sound of the all-pervasive etheric vibration of Aum whose sound is like

thunder, or the roar of a distant mighty ocean. In this state, the four preceding phases of

interiorization – mental (manas), intellectual (buddhi), perceptive (chitta), and egoistic(ahamkara) – have been dissolved, giving rise to a deeper state of pure intuitive

perception of limitless bliss....” This is the abode of the final, and higher ( asamprajnata)

stage of preliminary meditative absorption (dhyana samadhi). “Although the devotee’s“I-ness” or sense of individual existence has been transcended, his consciousness

identifies with the etheric vibrations of Aum in all space: expanding from the little body

to infinity, his blissful consciousness embraces omnipresence.”


*******



At the spiritual eye Sri Krishna symbolizes the immanent aspect of Spirit. He is an

incarnation of God, an Avatar , the descent of Divinity into flesh. He is also referred to as Hrishikesha, “Lord of the Senses,” in the Bhagavad Gita. (The subtle astral powers that

animate the physical senses of smell, taste, sight, touch, and hearing manifest,

respectively, in ascending order through the five chakras in the spine.) The conch thatKrishna blows is called Panchajanya, “that which generates the five tattvas or elements

(earth, water, fire, air, and ether). “The sound is a commingling of the various sounds of

the five lower centers. This is the true or undifferentiated cosmic Aum vibration. This“symphony” of the five sounds of Pranava is heard in the united medullary and spiritual

eye centers (ajna chakra). Here the devotee enjoys a greater savikalpa samadhi.” (The


*******

The muladhara chakra at the coccyx, associated with the earth element and body

consciousness, is the seat of creation for the physical body and its activities and sensory perceptions. This forms the negative pole of what I call “the egoic axis” that extends

upward through the spine and medulla to the pons Varolii at the top of the brain stem,which lies below the junction of the cerebral hemispheres. The pons Varolii is the

positive pole of the egoic axis where the sensory mind (manas) first turns outward

towards the material world. This is the seat, evidently, of the autonomic nervous systemas it contains ascending sensory, or afferent nerve, and descending motor, or efferent

nerve, pathways that connect the brain to the rest of the body.

The rudimentary form of “ samadhi” (which I designed as being asamprajnata dhyana samadhi – the higher, or completion, stage of preliminary meditative absorption) unfolds

at the cervical, or fifth, center that coincides quite nicely with the experience of

omnipresence due to its corresponding element of ether, or space. Although the grosser limitations of the first four chakras below – including the negative pole of the egoic axis

– have already been transcended, the fifth or “space” chakra is still very much within the

spine and, thus, under the influence of the sensory mind (manas) from its positive poleabove in the brain. In contrast, the ajna chakra, where the experience of savikalpa

samadhi transpires, is a higher cerebral center. Its positive pole is the spiritual eye, the

seat of intuitive wisdom, and its negative pole is the medulla. The latter is the only place

of contact with the egoic axis and, consequently, the modifications in consciousnessexerted by manas (the sensory mind) are more subtle and in a purer form. At the

sahasrara, or crown, chakra all such influences are finally resolved.

After further reflection on the wisdoms of the visuddha (cervical) and ajna (medullary

/ spiritual eye) chakras I would describe the former as being calm discriminative wisdom.

I still contend that the so-called samadhi experienced at this center has more of the flavor of a profoundly deep meditative absorption instead. It would be permeated with an

unshakeable peaceful quality, and firmly grounded in highly developed powers of

discernment and discrimination. However, its perception of space would be limited to theether in which the four primal elements of gross matter abide. The wisdom of the ajna



chakra, on the other hand, is purely intuitive. The experience of savikalpa samadhi,

anchored in the same peace, would be saturated with a greater sense of bliss. Its

perception of space would be of a higher order, as a transcendence of all five primalelements (which Yoganandaji calls “super-ether” and assigns to the spiritual eye – a

deeper dimension of space that encompasses its true spiritual essence).

_______

FOOTNOTE: “The Sanskrit word akasha, translated as both “ether” and “space,”refers specifically to the vibratory element that is the subtlest in the material world, “the

screen on which the image of the body and all nature is projected.”

“Ether-permeated space is the boundary line between heaven, or the astral world, andearth,” Paramhansaji said. “All the finer forces God has created are composed of light, or

thought-forms, and are merely hidden behind a particular vibration that manifests as

ether. Were this etheric vibration removed, you would see the astral cosmos behind this

physical universe.... Space is another dimension: the “gates” of heaven. Through thespiritual eye, which exists within at the point between the eyebrows, you can enter these

gates. Your consciousness must pass through the astral star in the spiritual eye to beholdthat higher realm, the astral world.”

“Sensory consciousness perceives the world as existing in four physical dimensions.Yoga science describes ether-permeated space as the barrier between these and higher

dimensions of existence. Beyond the subtlest physical vibration (akasha, ether),”

Paramhansa Yogananda explained, “is the super-ether, a finer manifestation and therefore

not classified as one of the physical vibratory elements ( tattvas), of which there are onlyfive – earth, water, fire, air, and ether. Some yoga treatises define the tattva as mind, or

“non-matter,” as opposed to matter or gross vibration.”

_______

Elsewhere in his writings, Yoganandaji also mentions another even higher elementcalled “bliss-ether,” which he assigns to the sahasrara (crown) chakra.

*******

“In the Mahabharata epic, which includes the Bhagavad Gita, it states that Bhishma,

who represents the ego, cannot be slain “until the sun moves north in the heavens.”

Literally, this is taken to refer to an astronomical calculation of the seasonal placement of the sun. But symbolically, it means that even though the ego is rendered powerless and

benign by the samadhi meditation of the devotee, it will not fully die (the pure sense of

“I-ness” or individuality remains) until the sun of divine consciousness in the spiritualeye during savikalpa samadhi moves to the north – upward to the place of the finer forces

in the brain; that is, in the innermost divine region of the sahasrara (the highest spiritual

center in the body), in union with Spirit in nirvikalpa samadhi.” (The Bhagavad Gita,

page 110, Yogananda)



“The pure ego is nothing but the soul, the jivatman or incarnate individualized Self....

The fault-infested ego of the ordinary man is the mind-ego, the ego that has the potentialof being perverted by intellectual waves, mental vibrations, and sense impressions. When

the possibility of the ego being influenced by these has been removed, then and only then

is man safe from the disturbances and sufferings inevitable in forgetfulness of the soul.”(The Bhagavad Gita, page 109, Yogananda)

“Ego is when the soul, or seer, the image of God in man, forgets its true divine Self and becomes identified with the powers of perception and action in the instruments of the

body and mind.... The degree of ignorance or enlightenment inherent in this identification

depends on the nature of the respective instruments through which the “I-ness” or

individuality is manifesting. When identified with the gross senses and their objects (the physical body and material world), the “I-ness” becomes the wisdom-destroying physical

ego. When identified with the subtle instruments of perception and knowledge in the

astral body, the “I-ness” becomes a clearer sense of being, the astral ego, whose true

nature may be adversely affected by the delusive influence of the physical nature; or,conversely, be in tune with the instrumentality of the wisdom consciousness of the causal

body and thus become the discriminative ego.

When the “I-ness” expresses solely through pure intuitive wisdom, the instrument of

the causal body, it becomes the pure discriminating ego (the divine ego), or its highestexpression, the soul, the individualized reflection of Spirit. The soul, the purest

individualized sense of being, knows its Spirit-identity of omniscience and omnipresence,

and merely uses the instruments of the body and mind as a means of communication and

interaction with objectified creation.”


*******

This would be an appropriate time to mention that I have combined elements from thedescriptions used by Paramhansa Yogananda and Ken Wilber – the cogent author of

integral works on psychology, consciousness, and spirituality – as well as added some

modifications of my own, in order to create a model for the stages of spiritual

consciousness. I have found it to be extremely invaluable to use the terminology that onecan best resonate with and relate to. Words have such different connotations for

everyone. This procedure really helps me to understand these sacred teachings on a much

deeper level.

“When the yogi’s union with God is experienced in these elevated states wherein the

consciousness has been lifted to the centers in the medulla (the superconsciousness of thesoul), the point between the eyebrows ( Kutastha or Christ Consciousness), and the

cerebrum (Cosmic Consciousness), he realizes the higher significance of samprajnata

and asamprajnata as, respectively, savikalpa and nirvikalpa samadhi.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 121, Yogananda)



The above quote of Yoganandaji is without any editing on my part. And in regards to

Ken Wilber, all I need add is that he uses these terms – Psychic, Subtle, Causal and Nondual.

In my model there are four “stages” of spiritual consciousness, that are sub-dividedinto twelve “levels,” and each stage has a “state” of spiritual realization –

1) METAPHYSICAL STAGE : Levels #10-14 – “The Five Preliminary MeditativeAbsorptions” (the “lowest” category of divine ecstasy); the state of Soul Awareness

2) ASTRAL STAGE: Levels #15-18 – “The Four Levels of Savikalpa Samadhi” (the

“lower” category of divine ecstasy); the state of Cosmic Consciousness

3) CAUSAL STAGE : Level #19 – “The Transcendence Phase of Nirvikalpa Samadhi”

(the “higher” category of divine ecstasy); the state of Absolute Pure Consciousness

4) NONDUAL STAGE: Levels #20-21 – “The Integration Phase and the Completion

Stage of Nirvikalpa Samadhi” (the “highest” category of divine ecstasy); the state of Ultimate Nondual Awareness

*******

METAPHYSICAL: This stage entails the realm of experience generated by the five

preliminary meditative absorptions as already examined. Here “metaphysical” denotes

the initial sphere of awareness that lies “beyond” (meta) one’s body, and mind with itsever-changing stream of thoughts and feelings. The lifeforce and consciousness are lifted

up successively through the first five cerebrospinal centers to eventually reach the

medulla, the negative pole of the ajna chakra at the base of the brain. These preliminaryexperiences are of “the superconsciousness of the soul” as an individualized reflection of

Spirit. Soul Awareness is the realization that the pure, discriminative, or divine, ego is

one with the soul. The first four levels of preliminary meditative absorption transpirewithin the boundaries of one’s physical body, while the fifth level is the experience of

omnipresence within the soul.

ASTRAL: This is the realm of the omnipresent immanent aspect of Spirit as experiencedin savikalpa samadhi that is associated with the positive pole of the ajna chakra at the

spiritual eye in the forehead, and the true “archetypes” of Cosmic Sound and Cosmic

Light, from which all other forms evolve. Emphasis is on the astral body. Yoganandajiuses the terms Kutastha Chaitanya and Christ, or Krishna, Consciousness. In various

places throughout his commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, he defines them as meaning

“universal, omniscient, immanent, omnipresent in creation,” and so forth. I can fullyappreciate why he chose to use “Christ Consciousness” as he was appealing to a Western

audience but, personally, I find Cosmic Consciousness to be much more powerful and

inspiring, as well as precise, here. To me “universal” and “cosmic” are synonymous. My

dictionary has these entries: “cosmic – relating to the Universe” and “the Universe – all



existing space, energy and matter.” Therefore I will use Cosmic Consciousness to signify

the realization that the soul, as the all-pervading Self, is one with Spirit as the universal

Intelligence that is immanent throughout creation. This is an expanded state of awarenessto include the entire universe of manifested forms.

“ Kutastha Chaitanya is the Intelligence – the reflection of Spirit – within every atomof creation and circumambient space.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 178, Yogananda)

CAUSAL: This is the realm of the transcendental aspect of Spirit that lies beyond all of creation, the Primal Cause, the Source as Pure Consciousness and Absolute Bliss. It is the

transcendence phase of nirvikalpa samadhi. The lifeforce and awareness have now

ascended to the sahasrara (crown) chakra. Absolute Pure Consciousness is the

realization that the all-pervading Self is one with the Transcendental Spirit, Brahman, theCosmic Source beyond all manifestation. This is Consciousness in its pristine

undifferentiated state prior to the schism of duality – most specifically that of Spirit and

Nature on the macrocosmic level, and its microcosmic reflection as subject and object.

NONDUAL: This is the realm of both the transcendental and immanent aspects of Spirit

as experienced simultaneously in nirvikalpa samadhi. The “transcendence” realization of the previous Causal Stage occurs during formal seated meditation where one is oblivious

of the outer world. It is one’s ability to hold on to is the aftereffects of that meditation,

which constitutes the “integration” phase of nirvikalpa samadhi. The “completion stage”of nirvikalpa samadhi is supreme enlightenment and liberation. Here the emphasis is on

the causal , or ideational, body. As sadhana matures, one begins to fully cognize the

dream nature of not only one’s own physical form, but also the entire cosmos at large.

Ultimate Nondual Awareness is the full and complete realization that the Infinite andEternal Sun of Absolute Pure Consciousness – being the transcendental aspect of Spirit –

shines forth, projecting Its rays of immanence, as all of creation.

*******

“The Great Way is not difficult for those who have no preferences.... Make thesmallest distinction, however, and heaven and earth are set infinitely apart. If you wish to

see the Truth then hold no opinion for or against. The struggle between what one likes

and dislikes is the disease of the mind.... All dualities come from ignorant inherence... .If

the mind makes no discriminations, the ten thousand things are of single essence. Tounderstand this one-essence is to be released from all entanglements. When all things are

seen equally, the timeless self-essence is reached.... For the unified Mind in accord with

the Way all self-centered striving ceases. Doubts and resolutions vanish and life in trueFaith becomes possible.... Emptiness here, emptiness there, but the infinite universe

stands always before your eyes.... One thing, all things, move among and intermingle,

without distinction. To live in this Faith is the road to nonduality, because the nondual isone with the trusting Mind.” – Verses On The Faith-Mind, by Sosan

“How to be aware, that’s the only question – how to be so aware that you can see

through all of your illusions to where opposites and dualities cease to be.... Then one



lives, simply lives. One breathes, simply breathes. No imagination, no thought, no mind –

they are without value. You simply trust existence and this meeting with trust is the

ultimate bliss, the ecstasy, samadhi.... Once enlightenment happens, everything is insideof you. All stars move within you, the worlds arise out of, and dissolve back into, you

because you have become the whole.” ( Hsin Hsin Ming: The Book of Nothing, page 205-

6 & 234, Osho)

*******

In the words of Ken Wilber: “The amazing, secret, ultimate Truth slowly begins to

dawn – the enlightened Mind, pure Spirit itself, is not hard to attain but impossible to

avoid. The very witness is Spirit within, looking out at a world that it created. And then

the strangest thing happens. Resting in the pure Self, abiding as the timeless witness, thewitness itself cannot be found. Subject and object vanish into One Taste, the Nondual

announces itself as a presence that has no within or without.”

*******

“The nature of Mind is Emptiness and Luminosity inseparably conjoined....Spontaneously merging with the original state, I am indifferent to good and bad. Without

effort, I rest in ecstasy and joy. Where subject and object are realized as a single sphere,

happiness and sorrow mingle as one.... Whatever circumstances may be encountered, Iam free in the blissful realm of self-awakening Wisdom.” – Milarepa

*******

There are religions of emptiness like that of the Buddha; and there are religions of

fullness such as Hinduism and Christianity. The Buddhist teachings of emptiness,

sunyata, or egolessness, are the way of anatma, “no-self,” letting go of the sense of beinga separate entity. The way of fullness is to fill oneself with Spirit through the practice of

devotion and surrender to God. The religions of egolessness and those of fulfillment are

flip sides of the same coin, or opposite means to the same end. On the path to emptiness,the less ego, the more one is filled with spontaneously arising bliss and natural devotion

and surrender to the state of superconsciousness. On the path to fullness, the more one is

fulfilled by the bliss of Spirit through devotion and surrender to God, the less ego one is

experiencing.

*******

“All meditative perceptions and visions are secondary. Whatever appears must

disappear. Therefore, it cannot be eternal realization. To eradicate ignorance by

dissolving the ego is the only way to absolute knowledge. When the yogi returns the mindto its source and attains the state wherein everything is known to be one, he is then

attuned to eternal realization.



Once the yogi is established in samadhi, his practice becomes natural and

spontaneous. In that state he does not have to practice with effort. And without even

meditating he enjoys its benefits. When the yogi transcends the awareness of meditationand is stable in this inner realization, which is similar to the void but full of bliss, he has

reached the true state of samadhi. There is only one absolute Self that is the ultimate

existence. The seen is nothing but the reflection of the Seer. This Supreme Self is thesource of all.” – Lahiri Mahasaya, beloved disciple of Mahavatar Babaji, and the guru of

Sri Yukteswar Giri

*******

Consciousness evolves progressively through the spiritual qualities of soul peace,

bliss, and unconditional divine love or, in Buddhist terminology, infinite compassion.Yoganandaji says that love is bliss channeled through the seat of feeling at the heart

chakra. It is said in the Vajrayana (Tibetan) Buddhist tradition that once the lifeforce

(“inner fire”) has totally ascended to “the wheel of bliss” at the crown chakra, it then

drops back down into the heart where supreme enlightenment is attained. Throughout thegrowing realization of peace, bliss and love, the divine quality of intuitive, or

transcendental, wisdom keeps on deepening and expanding.

*******

For the practice of yoga meditation in general, and particularly Kriya Yoga, the

spiritual eye is the primary and most important point of concentration. This uplifts one’s

awareness to superconsciousness throughout the five preliminary meditative absorptions

and the four levels of savikalpa samadhi.

“Firmly holding the spine, neck, and head erect and motionless, let the yogi focus his

eyes at the starting point of the nose (the spot between the two eyebrows): let him

not gaze around in various directions.” – Bhagavad Gita VI:13

“The seat of man’s soul consciousness extends from the point between the eyebrowsto the central top of the head, in the subtle spiritual centers of the Kutastha and thousand-

petaled lotus.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 672, Yogananda)

Here Yoganandaji states that the location of the soul, or at least the perception thereof,lies within the brain. However, in numerous passages from the Hindu scriptures, the Self

(soul) is described as being centered in the heart.

“That being dwells deep within the heart. He is the lord of time, past and future.

Having attained him, one fears no more. He, verily, is the immortal Self.” – Katha

Upanishad II.iv.12

“The Self, who understands all, who knows all, and whose glory is manifest in the

universe, lies within the shrine of the heart, the abode of Brahman.” – Mundaka

Upanishad II.ii.7



“ Brahman is supreme; he is self-luminous, he is beyond all thought. Subtler than the

subtlest is he, farther than the farthest, nearer than the nearest. He resides in the

heart of every being.” – Mundaka Upanishad III.i.7

The following passage describes the Self / heart connection during the death process.In the Kriya Yoga tradition, the yogi makes his final exit via the spiritual eye. I have

received extensive training in Phowa, the Tibetan art of conscious dying, where the

lifeforce is projected from the heart center out through the top of the head. Both arevalidated below –

“The dying man gathers his senses about him and completely withdrawing their powers

descends into his heart.... The point of his heart, where the nerves join, is lit by the light

of the Self, and by that light he departs either through the eye, or through the gate of the

skull, or through some other aperture of the body.” – Brihadaranyaka Upanishad IV.1-2

*******

However, ultimately in terms of the highest states of actual realization, Yoganandaji

give us this account of Ultimate Nondual Awareness in The Autobiography of a Yogi.

“All objects within my panoramic gaze trembled and vibrated like flickering motion pictures until everything melted into a luminescent sea.... The unifying light alternated

with materializations of form, the metamorphoses revealing the law of cause and effect in

creation. An oceanic joy broke upon the calm endless shores of my soul. The Spirit of God, I realized, is inexhaustible Bliss; His body is countless tissues of light.... The entire

cosmos glimmered within the infinitude of my being.... It was indescribably subtle; the

planetary images were formed of a grosser light. The divine dispersion of rays pouredfrom an Eternal Source, blazing into galaxies, transfigured with ineffable auras. Again

and again I saw the creative beams condense into constellations, then resolve into sheets

of transparent flame.... I cognized the center of the heavens as a point of intuitive perception in my heart. Irradiating splendor issued from my nucleus to every part of the

universal structure.”

*******



According to the great sage, Ramana Maharshi, final illumination takes place in

the spiritual heart situated approximately two inches to the right of the anahata

(heart) chakra. I have personally experienced this vortex, and it is extremely

powerful. And my own guru, Yogacharya Mother Hamilton, spoke of “the transfer

of the heart from the left to the right” so that she might have wisdom, when she was

undergoing “the mystical crucifixion” at Anandashram in South India. This is the

way of the cross (formed by standing upright with your arms stretched out to the

sides) upon which the death of the human ego, or the son of man, takes place so that

one may become the Divine in esoteric nondual Christianity.

To paraphrase Jesus the Christed One: “ Be ye perfect as the Infinite and Eternal

Spirit of God abiding in the highest heaven – beyond all the worlds!”

Or perhaps as Jesus the Buddha, in his transcendental form as Vajradhara,

“Holder of the Thunderbolt” or “Diamond Wielder” – “All those who attain

Supreme Enlightenment and Liberation, even as I have awakened from this Cosmic

Dream – Come join me in Pure Nondual Awareness, the Ultimate and Highest Bliss

of the Clear Light!”

*******



On the spiritual path there are three quantum leaps in consciousness:

1) ASTRAL STAGE: The first is from the “lowest” to the “lower” of the four

categories of divine ecstasy ( samadhi), and from the “lower” to the “higher” of the

two “dualistic” types of samadhi. This is a quantum leap from the five chakras in the

spine to the spiritual eye .

2) CAUSAL STAGE: The second is from the “lower” to the “higher” category of

divine ecstasy, and from the “higher” type of “dualistic” samadhi to the “lower” type

of “nondual” samadhi . This is a quantum leap from the spiritual eye to the crown

chakra.

.

3) NONDUAL STAGE: The third is from the “higher” to the “highest” category of

divine ecstasy ( samadhi), and from the “lower” to the “higher” type of “nondual”

samadhi. This is a quantum leap from the crown chakra to the spiritual heart. At this

point one is at the “heart” of yoga practice. At first one abides intermittently in the

Nondual Stage of consciousness, the integration phase of nirvikalpa samadhi , thehighest state of divine ecstasy, and then finally in an unbroken stream of Ultimate

Nondual Awareness. Supreme enlightenment arises when the purification of all past

karma has transpired. “The intuitive feeling of the heart” has been liberated from all

subconscious impressions ( samskaras) and shines forth mirror-like as a perfect

reflection of God as the Infinite and Eternal Spirit. Aham Brahmasmi – “I am

Brahman .”

*******

OM MANI PADME HUNG

“THE SHINING JEWEL OF DIVINE LOVE IN THE LOTUS OF EVERY HEART”



THE FOUR LEVELS OF

SAVIKALPA SAMADHI “In the state of savikalpa samadhi, the attention and the lifeforce are switched off

from the senses and are consciously kept identified with the ever joyous Spirit. In thisstate the soul is released from the ego consciousness and becomes aware of Spirit beyond

creation.... In savikalpa samadhi the mind is conscious only of the Spirit within; it is not

conscious of creation without (the exterior world). The body is in a trance-like state, but

the consciousness is perceptive of its blissful experience within.” ( The Bhagavad Gita, page 101, Yogananda)

“The advanced yogi may rejoice in the blissful achievement of samadhi many times,

yet find that he cannot maintain this union permanently. He is drawn down again into egoand body consciousness by his karma – effects of past actions – and by remnants of

desires and attachments. But through each triumphant contact with Spirit, the soulconsciousness becomes strengthened and more firmly in control of the bodily kingdom.”


*******

THE FOUR

PROGRESSIVE LEVELS OF

SAVIKALPA

SAMADHI



LEVEL #15: “SAVITARKA” SAVIKALPA SAMADHI – The first level of dualistic

samadhi is based on genuine faith that arises spontaneously with the direct perception of

the indwelling Spirit as the Divine Presence at the ajna (spiritual eye) chakra.

“The savitarka experience of God is not doubtful in a negative sense, but a

questioning with reverence and wonderment: ‘Is this really God? Is it true that He hascome at last to me?’....”

“As long as one has not seen there is disbelief: How can God exist? Impossible! Howcan there be faith without experience? And when the experience of God happens then one

cannot believe that so much bliss is possible. So much light, so much nectar – it still

seems impossible!” – Tertullian

*******

LEVEL #16: “SAVICHARA” SAVIKALPA SAMADHI – The second level of

dualistic samadhi is based on discrimination between the relative and the Absolute at thespiritual eye.

“The savichara experience is a keen discernment of the nature of God in one of His

many aspects or divine qualities....”

“Discriminate between the Absolute and the unreal.

Meditate on the Atman whose nature is bliss.

This is the way to liberation.”

- Adi Shankaracharya

*******

LEVEL #17: “SANANDA” SAVIKALPA SAMADHI – The third level of dualistic

samadhi is based on abidance in bliss at the spiritual eye.

“The sananda experience is the indescribable ecstasy that accompanies communion

with God in His eternal nature as ever-existing, ever-conscious, ever-new Bliss....”

This is what I call – the simple joy of being .

*******

LEVEL #18: “SASMITA” SAVIKALPA SAMADHI – The fourth level of dualistic

samadhi is based on the ecstatic realization of one’s own true nature, or pure sense of being, as Cosmic Consciousness at the spiritual eye.



“In the state of sasmita, the devotee feels his expanded self in every atom of space as

though all creation were his own body – it is a state of perfect calmness in which the

devotee is like a mirror reflecting all things.”


“Events happen, but there is no doer of deeds to be found” – the Buddha. It’s a matter

of “being” verses “doing,” a choice between a) identification with all the actions, or

activities, “the fluctuations in consciousness,” performed by the body-mind, the ego, or doer; and b) the simple state of “being,” asmita in its ultimate sense of “I-am-ness” as

pure Subjectivity, “non-doing,” resting in consciousness as the witness, “effortless

awareness” that just observes.

*******

“In the primary ecstasy, savikalpa samadhi, the body-identified ego meets its true

Self, the soul, and becomes fixed in the Bliss of its nature. As the result of that one- pointed concentration the yogi attains complete tranquility of feeling (chitta). His

attention, intellect and emotions (operative in savitarka, savichara, and sananda savikalpa samadhi) have become entirely divorced from their sense-identified gross

functions, and in their subtle nature are anchored in the Bliss of the soul (in the sasmita

state of pure individualized being). When the external faculties of knowing are arrested,and the cognitive instruments turned within, the intelligence then draws its knowing

power from the intuition of the soul. In this sense-transcendent state, the inner Bliss is

thus known to the awakened intuitive wisdom. Discovering the soul, the yogi also begins

to perceive within his being the Bliss of the Omnipresent Spirit. After the physical egometamorphoses into its true Self, the soul, then the Bliss of the soul expands and merges

into the greater Bliss of the Spirit.

The advanced yogi experiences not only intermittent ecstasy but finds his cosmic

contact existing permanently beneath his consciousness, to be enjoyed anytime he enters

the savikalpa samadhi state. He becomes absorbed in the Cosmic Bliss not only in themeditative state of samadhi, but also when he is able to bring his divine perceptions with

him when he returns to the conscious state of bodily activity. He is gradually able to hold

on to these aftereffects of samadhi for longer and longer periods, during which he is

undisturbed by Nature’s alternating conditions of duality.”


*******

The experience of the four progressive levels of savikalpa samadhi might be describedas unfolding something like this. The yogi, seated in the full-lotus posture, his spine held

erect and shoulders back, turns his gaze inwards and upwards to the spiritual eye in the

forehead, and sinks quickly into a one-pointed state of deep meditative absorption. All

sense of being in a physical body starts to fade away - growing lighter and lighter until



the yogi feels as if he is literally floating in space – and then suddenly disappears! His

thoughts become fewer and fewer, transparent ephemeral bubbles superimposed upon his

consciousness, which keeps on expanding, and without effort his attention is drawndeeper and deeper within. Then the mind simply stops! He is now abiding in a stream of

pure awareness. His consciousness soars beyond time far above his crown and, then,

finally drops into a shining jewel of clear light within the lotus of his heart. Any shadowsof dualistic emotion have long since died away, and there is an awesome feeling of

tremendous power manifest all around him. A flood of ineffable joy upwells from the

very core of his being. He is transfigured, consumed by a blaze of sheer ecstasy riding onwaves of high-pitched cosmic vibration, and radiates as luminous rays of bliss into

limitless space, the sacred abode of the all-pervading Self! The yogi’s soul has been

released in the infinite freedom of the immanent and omnipresent Spirit.



THE GENERATION STAGE

OF NIRVIKALPASAMADHI:

ITS TRANSCENDENCE

AND INTEGRATION

PHASES LEVEL #19: NIRVIKALPA SAMADHI: THE TRANSCENDENCE PHASE OF

THE GENERATION STAGE is based on the ecstatic nondual realization of Absolute

Pure Consciousness at the sahasrara (cerebral) chakra.

The advanced yogi, seated in meditation, first enters savikalpa samadhi and, through

the immanent Cosmic Consciousness, ascends to the sahasrara (crown) chakra where he

experiences unity with the Source in the state of Absolute Pure Consciousness. The all- pervading Self empties into the ultimate silence of the Void – beyond time, space, and all

of creation – to merge as One with the Boundless Bliss and Consciousness of Brahman,

the Transcendental Spirit of Almighty God!

********

“Attunement with God as Aum lifts the consciousness to the immanent CosmicConsciousness. Through Cosmic Consciousness the advanced yogi ascends to Absolute Pure

Consciousness in the highest cerebral center. “No man cometh unto the Father (Absolute

Pure Consciousness), but by me (through the Son, Cosmic Consciousness, the sole reflection

of Spirit in creation)” – John 14:6. These states of the “Holy Trinity” are symbolized in theHindu scriptures as Aum, Tat, Sat – Holy Ghost vibration, Kutastha or Cosmic

Consciousness, and God or Absolute Pure Consciousness.

When the devotee attains Absolute Pure Consciousness in the highest cerebral center (the sahasrara) and can enter that state at will and remain in it as long as he wishes, he will in

time be blessed to experience that ecstasy in the supreme or undifferentiated state –

nirvikalpa samadhi.”

(The Bhagavad Gita, page 121, Yogananda)

_______



As already discussed, my model for the stages of spiritual consciousness differs

somewhat from that used by Yoganandaji. Therefore, his statement above needs to bereinterpreted. This is what I call the Causal Stage, which is classified as the

“transcendence phase” of nirvikalpa samadhi. It is the pivotal point, or transition,

between – a) the Astral Stage’s “world” as made up of subtle, yet still seeminglyseparate, objects of astral perception, and b) the infinite “universe” as perceived in the

highest Nondual Stage realization of divine ecstasy, while engaged in everyday activities.

*******

This verse below by the illustrious sage, Ramana Maharshi, succinctly describes all

of the evolutionary stages of consciousness, as well as the three major quantum leaps:

“The world is illusory;

Brahman alone is real; Brahman is the world.”

The first line above includes the ordinary states of deep sleep, dreams and waking

(Levels #1-9); the five “dualistic” preliminary meditative absorptions (Levels #10-14);

and the four “dualistic” levels of savikalpa samadhi (Levels #15-18).

The second line describes the “nondual” transcendence phase of nirvikalpa samadhi

(Level #19). That’s this level, at the Causal Stage.

And, finally, the third line is the ultimate spiritual realization of the integration phase

of nirvikalpa samadhi (Level #20), and its completion stage (Level #21) as supreme

enlightenment and liberation.

*********************

LEVEL #20: NIRVIKALPA SAMADHI: THE INTEGRATION PHASE OF THE

GENERATION STAGE is based on the ecstatic realization of Ultimate Nondual

Awareness within the spiritual heart.

“Through the divine science of yoga , or union with God, the yogi unites himself

with the transcendental Spirit, beyond the dreams of manifestation, while also

remaining immanent and active, with Spirit, in the cosmic dream drama.” ( The

Bhagavad Gita , page 766, Yogananda)

“In the most advanced state, nirvikalpa samadhi , the soul realizes itself and Spirit

as one. The ego consciousness, the soul consciousness, and the ocean of Spirit are

seen all existing together.... In nirvikalpa samadhi the soul is simultaneously

conscious of Spirit within and creation without. The divine man in the nirvikalpa state



may even engage in performance of his material duties with no loss of inner God-

union.” ( The Bhagavad Gita , page 101, Yogananda)

“In the highest state of ecstasy the yogi can remain united to Spirit even while

working with body and mind.” ( The Bhagavad Gita , page 396, Yogananda)

“The true state of meditation is oneness of the meditator with the object of

meditation – God.... Greater than the initial experience of oneness with God is constant

establishment in that state, which leads to freedom from all bondage to karmic fruits of

action.” ( The Bhagavad Gita , page 850, Yogananda)

“The highly advanced yogi may experience brief periods of nirvikalpa

consciousness ( asamprajnata ) even before becoming permanently established in that

state.” ( The Bhagavad Gita , page 627, Yogananda)

“Continuous ecstasy ( nirvikalpa samadhi ) bestows detachment from the

circumscriptive laws of the realm of material vibrations and leads to freedom from all past and present karma – ‘relinquishment of the fruits of action.’” ( The Bhagavad

Gita , pages 850-51, Yogananda)

*******

“Like unto the lotus leaf that remains unsullied by water, the yogi who performs actions,

forswearing attachment and surrendering his actions to the Infinite, remains unbound by

entanglements in the senses.” – Bhagavad Gita V:10

“Though floating in muddy water, the lotus leaf remains impermeable, unsoiled by

its environment. So also lives the emancipated yogi in the muddled sensory world of

Maya .... There is a deeper meaning to this stanza that will be understood by advanced

yogis. I will explain it as simply as possible. When perused with insight, the Gita

discourse becomes a wonderful exposition of the science of yoga .

When the yogi in ecstatic meditation withdraws his lifeforce from the body’s

trillions of cells and from the nerves, he beholds the lifeforce currents like little

streams trickling back from the shores of the flesh through innumerable small

channels into the large channel of the spinal cord. All the currents of the body thus

withdrawn into the spine then pass, successively, into and through the three luminous

nadis (subtle tubes or channels of lifeforce) of the astral spine (the sushumna , the

vajra , and the chitra ) and become one current as it passes through the innermost

channel, the brahmanadi , the “spine” of the causal body. The brahmanadi is so

called because it is the primary channel through which Brahma – the Spirit as soul,

life, and consciousness – descends into the body and through which the yogi attains

ascension into Spirit.

In descension, the Spirit or Brahma present in the soul of man came down through

the brahmanadi and later entered the three astral tubes, passing finally through their



openings in the grosser channels of nerves and cells of the entire physical body. An

advanced yogi who experiences the retirement, or ascension, into the brahmanadi of

all the activities of the lifeforce and of the processes of consciousness is spoken of as

one who has “surrendered his actions to the Infinite,” the Spirit or Absolute Pure

Consciousness present in the brahmanadi .

When the yogi retires his lifeforce and processes of consciousness through the

brahmanadi , he sees, from the point of divine origin, wondrous astral phenomena. He

is warned not to become attached and to bypass them so as to reach the Universal

Essence.

The advanced yogi takes his ego, lifeforce, and processes of consciousness up

through the brahmanadi causal “spine” to its opening ( Brahmarandhra , “gateway to

Spirit”) at the top of his head, in order to enable his transformed ego (the soul),

lifeforce, and mind to pass beyond bodily confinement and attachment and be united

with the Omnipresent Blessedness.

When the yogi is thus able to unite his soul with the Infinite, he is known as one

who has ascended from the flesh. In the primary ecstasy, savikalpa samadhi , he

perceives God without creation. He then learns by the highest ecstasy, nirvikalpa

samadhi , to manifest his God-consciousness in the flesh and to perform all actions

without being entangled by their good and evil effects. In this highest state the yogi

perceives God, creation, and his bodily perceptions to be existing and working together

in harmony. The yogi then performs all activities of body and mind without

attachments, beholding them equally as waves of Absolute Pure Consciousness.”

( The Bhagavad Gita , pages 540-42, Yogananda)

*******

“That devotee is qualified to attain Brahman , the transcendental and absolute

Spirit whose discriminative intelligence ( buddhi ) is wholly free from the adulteration

of sense entanglements, cognizant only of the purity of soul bliss; who with resolute

patience ( dhriti ) keeps his perception centered on the Self, remaining established in

soul consciousness without ever being identified with the physical ego and its bodily

instrumentalities; who abandons all luxuries of the five senses; and who, free from

likes and dislikes, is satisfied by only the bare necessities for sustaining life.

Such a yogi, possessing the divine dispassion (vairagya) of detachment from worldlyobjects and desires, observes the sattvic discipline of austerity in body, speech, and mind.

In the conduct of his holy life, he not only remains in an outwardly quiet place conducive

to meditation and spiritual calm, but also, perceiving in yoga meditation the soul, mind,and lifeforce in their innermost subtle spinal channel of escape from the body

(brahmanadi), remains there, experiencing the real sense-tumult-free seclusion leading

into the omnipresence of Spirit.



The soul, mind and lifeforce of the yogi in samadhi meditation have had to pass

through three outer tunnels ( sushumna, vajra, and chitra) to reach the innermost channel

of brahmanadi – the final exit out of the bodily prison into the freedom of Brahman.”




THE PROCESS OF

LIBERATION “All karma, or effects of actions, completely melts away from the liberated being

who, free from attachments, with his mind enveloped in wisdom, performs the true

spiritual fire rite ( yajna).” – Bhagavad Gita IV:23

“When the yogi’s mind is negatively free from attachments (sensory entanglements

and distractions), it becomes positively concentrated on cosmic wisdom. At this stage hewithdraws his mind and lifeforce from the physical sensory and motor nerves, and thence

from the astral sensory powers, and gives them as oblations unto the seven fires of the

spine (the seven principal vayus, life currents). Through this yajna of purification, the

yogi ultimately attains the final state of union with Divinity, the omnipresent CosmicFire. When the lifeforce that is withdrawn from the senses is concentrated in the

thousand-petaled lotus in the brain, that powerful effulgence burns out all samskaras(habits, impulses, and all other effects of past actions) lodged in the subconsciousness

and superconsciousness of the brain, bestowing on the devotee freedom from all past

karmic fetters.

The yogi who withdraws his mind and desires from sense lures offers them as fuel in

the fire of Absolute Pure Consciousness; the Sacred Flame consumes his mortal desires.

When the yogi is able to commingle his lifeforce and consciousness with Eternal Life andAbsolute Pure Consciousness, his status is no longer that of a mortal. His limited egoistic

consciousness and body identification are gone; the dissolution of the ego permits the full

view of soul consciousness. Knowing the soul as a perfect image of Spirit, andunentangled by ego, the yogi becomes free from all good and bad karma, which belong

only to the realm of duality and relativity. That yogi finds liberation.”


*******

“O Arjuna, the Lord is lodged in the hearts of all creatures, and by His cosmic

delusion (maya) compels all beings to rotate as if attached to a spinning wheel.” –

Bhagavad Gita XVIII:61

“God’s life and intelligence are omnipresent in all creation and determine, through

Nature’s law, the orderly progression of events in the cosmic drama. That same Power,innate in all human beings, subjects each person to the influence of the law, and also

enables him to transcend it.

Compelled by the law of maya, creation continuously moves up and down the path of linear evolution: ascending from the Material Age ( Kali Yuga) through the Atomic Age



( Dwapara Yuga), Mental Age (Treta Yuga), and Spiritual Age (Satya Yuga) during the spaceof 12,000 years; and descending from the Spiritual Age to the Material Age during the

following 12,000-year period.

Bound to creation by maya, all beings are inexorably constrained by their individual

karmic patterns to reincarnate again and again during these upward and downward cycles, astheir spiritual evolution progresses under the influence of cosmic Nature. According to the

scriptures, man requires a million years of normal, diseaseless, natural evolution to perfect

his human brain and attain Ultimate Nondual Awareness. One may accelerate or delay his

evolution by his right or wrong actions (karma). Until right actions prevail, he mechanicallymoves along with the cycles, as if fixed on the rotating wheel of a machine. But as he

gradually develops spiritually, he awakens to his true nature and seeks escape. Only thosewho discover God within themselves, and who demand freedom – for having been created

against their will – does God liberate, after they have worked out the karma caused by misuseof their divine free choice.

Human beings under maya are thus fated to be subject to the compulsion of Nature and

influenced by the prevailing dualities of good and evil during their experience of numerouslives and deaths, so long as they mechanically move up and down with creation on the

cosmic machine of evolution. But as soon as they turn to God, using rightly the divine gift of

free will – their key to escape from maya – and demand liberation, they are freed from birthand death. They suffer no longer from bondage to creation’s evolutionary cycles.”


*******

“Again I shall speak about that highest wisdom that transcends all knowledge. With this

wisdom all sages at the end of life have attained the final Perfection. Embracing thiswisdom, established in my Being, sages are not reborn even at the start of a new cycle of

creation, nor are they troubled at the time of dissolution.” – Bhagavad Gita XIV:1-2

“The fire of Absolute Pure Consciousness consumes all binding, stored-up karma.

Therefore, unlike ordinary persons, a Self-realized sage – a muni who has dissolved from

his mind all restless agitations of delusion – does not have to reincarnate. He hasdestroyed desires and their outcome of good and evil actions performed with attachment.

Perfected beings who have attained salvation are one with Spirit in the vibrationless

realm beyond creation. Such emancipated ones are freed not only from an individual

cycle of births and deaths, but are also no longer involved in the macrocosmic cycles of

the phenomenal, vibratory worlds.”


*******



A day of Brahma, the lifespan for an entire universe, is 314,159 billion years,

according to the ancient Hindu rishis, or “seers.” This is followed by a night of Brahma,

cosmic dissolution, of an equal duration. The big wheel just keeps on spinning! Scientistsestimate the age of the Earth to be around two billion years old, which is a little bit less

that half of the life-expectancy for our planetary system as proclaimed in the Indian

scriptures. Astronomer Carl Sagan of Cornell University has written in his book Cosmos:“The Hindu religion is the only one of the world’s great faiths dedicated to the idea that

the cosmos itself undergoes an immense, indeed an infinite, number of births and deaths.

It is the only religion in which the time scales correspond to those of moderncosmology.”

*******

“Man has three bodies from which he must free his consciousness before he can achieveemancipation. These soul confinements are the physical body of sixteen elements; the astral

body of nineteen elements; and the causal body of thirty-five elemental ideas. The physical body is made of flesh and blood; the astral body is composed of lifeforce and mind; and the

causal or ideational body is woven together of wisdom and ever-new bliss.

God originated, in the form of the causal body, thirty-five ideas as the matrix of human creation. These ideas are the basic thought forces required to create the astral and

physical bodies. Nineteen of these ideas were manifested as the subtle astral body, which

contains the five instruments of knowledge (the subtle counterparts of the physical sensesof smell, taste, sight, touch, and hearing) and the five instruments of execution (the astral

correspondence for the abilities to excrete, procreate, walk, exercise manual skill, and

speak); the five differentiations of lifeforce (empowering the performance of thematerializating, circulating, assimilating, metabolizing, and eliminating functions of the

body); and sentience, ego, mind, and intelligence. The remaining sixteen ideas were

converted into the gross physical body of sixteen fundamental elements. In other words, before God created the physical body consisting of material components, and the subtle

astral body of lifeforce composition, He had to project them as ideas, the constituents of

the causal body. The dense physical body is the result of solidified vibrations, the astral

body of energy and mind vibrations, and the causal body of almost pristine vibrations of Absolute Pure Consciousness.

The physical body may be said to be dependent on food; the astral body is dependent on

energy, will, and evolution of thought; the causal body is dependent on the ambrosia of wisdom and bliss. The soul is encased in these three bodies. At death the physical body is

destroyed. The other two bodies, astral and causal, are still held together by desires and by

unworked-out karma. The soul, wearing these two bodies, repeatedly reincarnates in new physical forms. When all desires are conquered by meditation, the three body-prisons aredissolved; the soul becomes Spirit.”


*******



“Only that yogi who possesses the inner Bliss, who rests on the inner Foundation,

who is one with the inner Light, becomes one with Spirit (after gaining freedom

from karma connected with the physical, astral, and causal bodies). He attains

complete liberation in Spirit (even while living in the body).” – Bhagavad Gita V:24

“To become free forever the devotee must destroy all karma connected with each of his three bodies. Ordinarily this is accomplished during the slow evolutionary process of

countless incarnations (alternations of births and deaths between the physical and astral

worlds, and then between the astral and causal realms). However, one who has attainedsignificant spiritual progress in previous lives and who is adept in Kriya Yoga can hasten

his evolution by the inner method and attain liberation while still incarnate in the physical

form, as cited in this Gita verse.

It is not enough to persist in fighting the sense impulses and thus strengthening the

mind; to become one with Spirit the yogi must enter the deeper states of blissful samadhi,

and keep his consciousness ever identified with the soul. Not only must he withdraw his

attention from the sensory world, but by becoming immersed in the inner astral andwisdom, or causal, light emanating from the soul, he must betake himself through the

interpenetrating physical, astral, and ideational bodies into the infinite ocean of Spirit.

So long as a man has any material desires, he has to work out his karma in a physical

body. When he is able to extricate himself, by nonattachment and the practice of KriyaYoga, from all fleshly delusions and bondage, he then finds himself confined in the astral

body and entangled in his astral karma. By deeper immersion in ecstasy, the devotee

escapes from the astral body and becomes lodged in the causal or ideational body,

vibrating with the original subtle seeds of all past karmic impulses.

Jesus said that after the destruction of his body (“this temple”), he would rebuild it in

three days (John 2:19). By this statement he was implying that he would rise above all past impulses (connected with the experiences of the physical, astral, and causal bodies)

in three periods (days) of ecstatic upliftment or emergence. A yogi experiences

attachment to different effects of past actions as he consciously ascends through his three bodies. Conquering all karma (physical, astral, and ideational) he is indeed free in Spirit.”


*******

“During the first state of liberation the soul of man emerges successively from histhree microcosmic bodies – physical, astral, and causal. He experiences the triune

physical, astral, and causal macrocosms as his own Self. During supreme liberation the

soul and Spirit become one. In that state the soul finds itself as Spirit, transcending eventhe three macrocosmic embodiments.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 875, Yogananda)

*******



“When by the right method of yoga, divine union, the devotee’s all-seeing spiritual

eye of wisdom is opened in samadhi meditation, the cumulative knowledge of truth

becomes realization – intuitive perception or oneness with Reality. Through the eye of omniscience, the yogi beholds the comings and goings of beings and universes as the

workings of the relativities of Nature’s illusory maya superimposed on the singular

Absolute Pure Consciousness of Spirit. By dissolving successively in the light of the Sunof Absolute Pure Consciousness the evolutes of Nature ( Prakriti) from matter to Spirit,

the yogi is liberated from all trammels and misconceptions of Cosmic Delusion.” (The


*******

“In the initial state of ecstasy the yogi is flooded with a superconscious joy. He beginsto perceive lights and glimpses of the astral world. As his samadhi waxes deeper, his

vision embraces the entire astral world that contains the astral counterparts to all the

island universes roaming in space. The yogi then dissolves his vision of the astral cosmos

into sheer thought forms; he rests in the ever-existing, ever-conscious, ever-new Bliss,feeling It as all pervading and infinite.

The yogi later comes down to the astral sphere again and then back to body

consciousness. He opens his eyes and looks steadfastly at the world before him; he sees

himself surrounded by his spiritual eye of astral light. When at will he can vastly expandthe sphere of his astral eye, he at once sees within it all the floating island universes.

Many suns and moons are there! Vapors of nebulae, endless realms, tier upon tier,

zone after zone, all revolving within him and finally resting in the center of that infinitelyexpanded astral eye.

It is in this state that the yogi is able to perceive the physical and astral cosmos to beno more than differently vibrated thoughts of God. Unless and until the yogi with closed

or open eyes can feel everywhere the bliss of Absolute Pure Consciousness and can

behold at will the entire astral cosmos within his astral eye, and can see the astral islanduniverses within him, he should not say that he has realized creation to be a dream.”


*******

“He who intuits, in their reality of orderly principles, My divine manifestations andvibratory actions, is not reborn after death; he obtains Me, O Arjuna!” – Bhagavad Gita

IV:9

“Whenever Spirit descends into vibratory matter, taking rebirth therein by the action

of maya, delusion, It passes through several stages, the effects of the orderly creative

principles (tattvas) of Nature: Cosmic Consciousness, energy, gases, liquids, solids,



macrocosmic matter (the Universe), microcosmic matter (man, with soul, consciousness,

lifeforce, and body). The soul thus descends with Spirit and becomes body-locked.

The Spirit remains free even though reborn or manifested as matter; but man, as

individualized Spirit or a soul, becomes identified with his little universe – body, senses,

and possessions. By renunciation of outer and inner attachment, a yogi begins to ascendfrom the senses, sensory and motor mechanism, influences of his subconscious mind and

of his karma of many lives, and begins to climb to the superconscious state. He ceases his

wanderings in matter and realizes himself as a perfect image of Spirit, dwelling in the body but unattached to it.

When the yogi has united his soul with Spirit by higher ecstasies, he sees how the

Cosmic Light of Spirit has transformed Itself through the principles of Nature intovarious forms of matter on the canvas of ether, just as a clear beam of light proceeding

from a booth in a motion picture house and passing through a film changes into pictures

of mountain scenery, trees, lakes, oceans, human beings, and so on, thus producing the

illusion of solids, liquids, gases, organic and inorganic matter, interacting on the screen.

Krishna says that he who can actually perceive the true nature of the rebirth of Spiritas matter becomes liberated. An enlightened yogi realizes by intuitive experience how

omnipresent Spirit is born in the body of cosmic matter and resides therein without

entanglement. Such a yogi is liberated even though he wears a fleshly garment.”


*******

“Where no sun or moon or fire shines, that is My Supreme Abode. Having reached there,

men are never reborn.” – Bhagavad Gita XV:6

“The taintless yogi becomes permanently established in God-union, whether he

remains incarnate or leaves the gross realms to abide forever in the transcendental Spirit.While in the body, he attains samadhi union with Spirit by lifting his consciousness

beyond the “fire” of bodily life energy, the “moon” or reflected creative light in the spinal

centers, and the “sun” of the astral thousand-petaled lotus. Thence he enters the realm of

Absolute Pure Consciousness that is Spirit’s “Supreme Abode,” in which even theslightest vibrating tremors of the suns and moons and fires of creation are absent....

When God withdraws His secret light at the time of the end of a cycle, all lamps of Nature lose their luminescence. Similarly, when the liberated yogi finally merges in Spirit

to “go out no more,” the light of God issuing from the soul no longer illumines the three

bodily lamps – those forms return to their Spirit-essence, vanished like mirages on adesert.



The unmanifested realm of the omnipresent Spirit is eternally free from all vibrations.

Sun, moon, and fire – in their cosmic and microcosmic manifestations – all belong to

Nature’s agitated seas of cosmic vibration. Just as eddies below a waterfall cannot disturb

the reservoir of water at its source, so the eddies of vibration issuing out of Absolute Pure

Consciousness cannot create commotion within It. Even the finest vibrations of light or

movement are not present in the indescribably subtle limitless sphere of God’s

vibrationless omnipresent Bliss.”


*******

“My noble devotees, having obtained Me (Absolute Spirit), have reached supreme

success; they incur no further rebirths in this abode of grief and transitoriness.

Yogi s not yet free from the world reincarnate again even from the high sphere of

Brahma. But through union with Me (as the transcendental aspect of God) there is

no rebirth, O Arjuna!” – Bhagavad Gita VIII:15-16

“Supremely successful yogis are the high-souled perfected beings who in ecstasy or the after-death state have achieved the ultimate union with the transcendental Spirit.

Their souls escape the karmic bonds of all three bodies and no longer dream the dreamsof desires and attachments of mortal existence. Rebirths in the temporal, sorrow-fraught

realms are no longer imposed upon them. They are awake in the cosmic dream of Godand in the dreamless blessedness of Spirit...

Brahma the Creator is that aspect of Divinity, which is active in creation, the Lord of Time. Brahman or Para-Brahman signifies God as the Absolute, the Transcendental....

Krishna points out that merely reaching the abode of Brahman, Spirit, may not in itself

assure complete liberation. Even though the yogi may attain in ecstatic meditation highstates of God-union – merging the consciousness with Aum in the vibratory dominion of

Brahma, experiencing His omniscience in omnipresent Cosmic Consciousness, and even

reaching the highest Brahman sphere of Absolute Pure Consciousness – he cannot remainin those states but must revolve again to body consciousness if there persists within himany mortal desires or karmic bonds. If death occurs in this imperfect state, he will be

reborn on earth or in some high astral realm with a new opportunity and the spiritual

potential to free himself.

In meditation, the yogi gradually ascends his consciousness and lifeforce upward

through the spinal centers of divine awakening, experiencing expanded Self-realization at



each higher step. He who attains union with the triune manifestation of Brahma as the

Cosmic Aum vibration or Holy Ghost in the medulla, as Cosmic Consciousness in the

Kutastha center, and as Absolute Pure Consciousness in the thousand-petaled lotus in thecerebrum, will have to still return to limited mortal consciousness if he has not broken all

karmic bonds, desires, and attachments and consciously ascended from all three bodily

encasements – physical, astral, and causal. The more the yogi is able at will to gain theelevated states of consciousness, and the longer he is able to hold on to them in

meditation and afterwards, the more he diminishes his binding karmic reflexes and dream

delusions. When these are vanquished, the yogi dissolves the body-conscious ego into thesoul and takes his soul and causal body out of the astral body; and, finally, his soul

ascends from the causal body and merges into the transcendental Spirit, from which there

is no compulsory return to the vale of distressing dualities.”


*******

“Those who have mastered their minds become engrossed in infinite wisdom; they have

no further interest in any fruits of action. Freed thus from the chain of rebirth, they attainthe state beyond sorrow.” – Bhagavad Gita II:51

“The purpose of God’s plan for man is not an endless series of rebirths. The divinescheme is to afford man countless opportunities to use his free choice and discrimination

to distinguish between body and soul, to forsake the miserable life of the senses by

reclaiming his true identity with Spirit. As soon as man discovers the true purpose of

existence, he has made the first step toward salvation. He understands that he is notcompelled to reincarnate again and again. By performing, in this one lifetime, all actions

with the consciousness of God, he can win the final liberation.” (The Bhagavad Gita,




THE MATERIALIZATION

OF KARMA-DESTROYING

VISIONS “The word jivanmukta (literally, “freed while living”) in a strict sense applies to a

yogi who, by refraining from new desires, has destroyed the very root cause of

reincarnation. A jivanmukta, however, may still possess subtle hidden seeds of past

actions that have not been totally roasted by the fires of wisdom. Some jivanmuktasdestroy these remnants of past material karma after death by certain work in the astral

cosmos. Completing their lessons in the astral spheres, they remove any cause for havingto return to this world. Other jivanmuktas are able, while still on earth, to materialize past

karmic actions in visions and thus exhaust their reincarnation-making power.

A concrete illustration of destroying past karmic tendencies by materialization may be

given here. A yogi might free himself from greed in eating, yet still retain the samskaras

(impressions of past desires) for indulging in his favorite foods; or he might have

completely detached himself from worldly possessions, yet harbor seeds of a pastunfulfilled longing for some particular material object or experience. He is thus not fully

free; under tempting circumstances, those hidden seed-tendencies might again sprout into

activity. By entering the superconscious state of conscious visions, or by interjectingsuperconscious dreams into the passive subconscious state of sleep, the yogi can

materialize the substance of his past desires. With inner aloofness and complete

detachment, he then renders powerless those desire-seeds by roasting them in the fires of awakened wisdom.”


*******

“After many incarnations, the sage attains Me, realizing - “The Lord is all-pervading!” Aman so illuminated is hard to find.” – Bhagavad Gita VII:19

“A rare devotee is he who discerns only the Omnipresent Beam of Spirit that createsthe many dreams of births and deaths, including his own. Such a man, concentrating on

the Cosmic Beam alone, becomes liberated from the witnessing of the many dreams of

births and deaths, forced upon mortals who are infested with lusts and pursued by karma.

He can quicken his evolution by living many lives materialized in daily visions....



Lahiri Mahasaya, Sri Yukteswar, and their advanced disciples have testified from their

own realization that people with past good karma can quicken their evolution by Kriya

Yoga practice and find liberation in one lifetime – a liberation that ordinarily comes to arighteous person, without conscious effort, only in a million years of births and deaths, by

natural evolution. A “righteous” person in this sense is one who lives in harmony with his

soul and offends not the laws of Nature....

A wisdom expert, an accomplished Kriya Yogi, may banish the karma of his past

unfinished actions by living many births and deaths enacted in daily visions during samadhi. A sage understands that a human incarnation is a motion picture of countless

dreams. Such an illuminated devotee does not have to go through numerous mortal births

and deaths; on the superconscious level he can condense the requisite karmic experiences

of many lives into the dreams of the present.

An advanced yogi living in the bleak Himalayas need not go to a city nor be reborn in

a new body in order to work out some lingering desire. If he has a hankering for curries,

as an example, he can create a “technicolored,” true-to-all-the-senses motion picture of tasty curries and enjoy them in this novel way, until by wisdom his karmic desires for

food are dissipated forever....

On a grand scale, Mahavatar Babaji created a golden palace to fulfill a long-forgotten

desire of Lahiri Mahasaya – an event I have recorded in Autobiography of a Yogi. The“miracle” was explained thus: “There is nothing inexplicable about this materialization.

The whole cosmos is a projected thought of the Creator. The heavy clod of the earth,

floating in space, is a dream of God’s. He made all things out of His mind, even as man

in his dream consciousness reproduces and vivifies a creation and its creatures.... In tunewith the infinite and all-accomplishing Will, Babaji is able to command the elemental

atoms to combine and manifest themselves in any form. This golden palace,

instantaneously brought into being, is real – in the same sense that the earth is real. Babajicreated this beautiful mansion out of his mind and is holding its atoms together by the

power of his will, even as God’s thoughts created the Earth and his Will maintains it.”

The average person, in fact, cannot produce true visions – only hallucinatory

imaginings, at best, so he is unable thereby to free himself from dualities through this

method. But the liberated or nearly liberated yogi who can create visions at will may in

this manner destroy all karmic effects of his actions and prevent new desire-seeds fromtaking root. Visions can include the detailed happenings of many years, yet since they are

seen through the spiritual eye on the superconscious plane, not on the material plane of

relativity, they occupy an incredibly short span of time. Many incarnations are therebyaccelerated by condensation into one or a few lifetimes.

The yogi thus rejects the slow-paced formula of “many incarnations” as a necessary prelude to his final entry into the kingdom of God. By Kriya Yoga he hastens his

evolution multifold; and by employing visions he dismisses reincarnation-making

lingering desires. Above all, by divine communion in samadhi meditation he realizes the

Supreme Being as the All-in-All, the singular all-pervading Reality.”




*******

“To dismiss in fact the body as a dream of God is possible only to men of divinerealization – those who have learned the power of visualization and of materialization

and dematerialization of thought forms. When the mind becomes powerful like the

Creator’s, one can materialize and dematerialize his body or a universe, knowing them to be dream images of thought. One must therefore practice yoga, the science of divine

union; for it is by realizing his oneness with God that the devotee frees himself from the

cosmic dream, and knows that dream as made solely of God’s consciousness.” ( The Bhagavad Gita, page 876, Yogananda)



SUPREME

ENLIGHTENMENT AND LIBERATION LEVEL #21: THE COMPLETION STAGE OF NIRVIKALPA SAMADHI: The

attainment of supreme enlightenment arises simultaneously with the state of liberation;and wielding the siddhis, miraculous yogic powers, in perfect accordance with Divine

Will.

“The term yoga or divine union is applicable to various stages of realization, but its

ultimate meaning is absolute union with Spirit; absolute union is the permanent establishment of the consciousness in nirvikalpa, or asamprajnata, samadhi. The true or

ultimate nirvikalpa (“without difference”) state is when the yogi is permanently andirrevocably united to God in both the meditative, and the physically active, spheres of

consciousness, as contrasted with intermittent experiences of this state.

When the soul of the yogi is forever united in nirvikalpa samadhi to Spirit, it cannot

again experience any physical or mental suffering. This state is spoken of in Sankhya

philosophy as the “permanent extinguishment” or “uprooting” of all physical, mental, andspiritual causes of suffering.”


*******

In Vajrayana Buddhism, this is known as “indestructible” and “irreversible” supremeenlightenment, the ultimate state of mystical realization where the dualities of subject and

object, immanence and transcendence, the relative and the Absolute are resolved on the

level of the highest wisdom and bliss – Pure Nondual Awareness.

*******

“Renunciants who are desireless and wrathless, mind-controlled, and Self-realized, arecompletely free both in this world and in the beyond.” – Bhagavad Gita V:26

“The spiritually ardent who have found their soul and its connection with Spiritachieve complete emancipation in this life, carrying with them the same realization into

eternity... One who on earth has destroyed all desires and all karma – past as well as

present – is truly “freed while living.” That jivanmukta is then known as a Siddha, “a perfected being.” Such souls are the “renunciants” referred to in this verse – those who



have abandoned forever all inner and outer causes of bondage.” (The Bhagavad Gita,

pages 568-69, Yogananda)

*******

In The Crest-Jewel of Discrimination Adi Shankaracharya gives the followingdescription of nirvikalpa samadhi:

“This is a continuous consciousness of the unity of Atman (the Self) and Brahman(Infinite and Eternal Spirit). There is no longer any identification of the Atman with its

coverings. All sense of duality is obliterated. There is pure, unified consciousness. The

man who is well established in this consciousness is said to be illuminated. A man is said

to be free even in this life when he is established in illumination. His bliss is unending.He almost forgets the world of appearances. Even though his mind is dissolved in

Brahman, he is fully awake, but free from the ignorance of waking life. He is fully

conscious, but free from any cravings. Such a man is said to be free even in this life. For

him, the sorrows of this world are over. Though he possesses a finite body, he remainsunited with the Infinite. His heart knows no anxiety. Such a man is said to be free even in

this life.”

*******

“Finding oneness with Spirit and Its eternal bliss, the yogi rises above all bondage

to karma, which, with its ceaseless alternates of good and evil, operates as in inexorable

law only in the phenomenal world.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 518, Yogananda)

“The yogi of Self-realization finds that he can possess a physical body and work

through it without bondage to material desires and their karmic effects, just as God

remains unattached and free from karma even while His intelligence silently actsthroughout the cosmic vibratory body of creation, ruled by His delusory law of relativity.

During the highest (wakeful) state of ecstasy, the liberated yogi feels: “The realm of my

consciousness extends beyond the limits of my mortal frame to the boundaries of eternity – whence I, the Cosmic Sea, watch the little ego floating in me.” He simultaneously

perceives the Spirit as a waveless ocean of Eternal Calm, and the Spirit manifesting Itself

in the restless waves of creation that dance on Its infinite bosom.” (The Bhagavad Gita,


“Realizing his own oneness with God, the yogi knows that he himself is a microcosm

of immanence and transcendence.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 750, Yogananda)

“When the darkness of delusive ignorance has been driven away from the yogi’s

consciousness by the light of Self-realization, then in that inner illumination the SupremeSelf, the Eternal Being, stands revealed as the ultimate and sole Reality. The devotee

feels his little Self, the soul, merge as one with the Supreme Self, Spirit.... When the

deeply meditating yogi withdraws his consciousness from all eternals and concentrates

within, he beholds the inner light of Spirit that is the creative substance of all



manifestations.... In the primary or savikalpa ecstasy the devotee perceives only the

Cosmic Beam, without any panorama of creation.... It requires the higher state of

nirvikalpa ecstasy to see both the Cosmic Light and the shadows of creation dancingtogether.” (The Bhagavad Gita, pages 553-54, Yogananda)

“The yogi awakened in God can perceive all the earthly dream-objects in the so-calledmaterial world to be woven of the consciousness of God. It is in this state that the yogi

realizes Unity everywhere; he perceives not only that God dwells in all beings, but also

that all beings are His manifestations. The yogi dissolves all dual perceptions of matter and mind into the sole perception of Ultimate Nondual Awareness.” (The Bhagavad Gita,


“To the man of Self-realization, Spirit is perceived as Reality and creation as theshadow of the Infinite. When the universe is called an illusion or unreal (“ Brahman – the

absolute existence, knowledge, and bliss – is real. The universe is an illusion. Brahman

and Atman are one.” – Adi Shankaracharya), it does not mean that the universe is

nonexistent, but that God is the only Reality and that the shadow of His manifestation increation is not like Him, and is only relative. The shadow appears to be the object from

which it is produced, yet it is not the same.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 558, Yogananda)

*******

“When a man beholds all separate beings as existent in the One that has expanded

Itself into the many, he then merges with Brahman.” – Bhagavad Gita XIII:30

“No real difference is present among creatures: all are products of Prakriti (Nature)and all are sustained by the same Underlying Divinity. Their seeming diversity is rooted

in the unity of One Mind. To realize this truth is emancipation, oneness with God.” ( The


*******

“He is full with contentment who absorbs all desires within, as the brimful ocean

remains unmoved by waters entering into it – not he who lusts after desires. That

person realizes peace who, relinquishing all desires, exists without craving and is

unidentified with the mortal ego and it sense of “mineness.” O Arjuna, this is the

“established in Brahman” state! Anyone entering this state is never again deluded....

If one becomes anchored therein, he attains the final, irrevocable, state of Spirit-

communion.” – Bhagavad Gita II:70-72

“The Spirit-reigning yogi, freed while living, is never again deluded, nor does he come

down to a lesser state. He lives in the consciousness of God. His soul expands into theSpirit, yet he retains his individuality, immersed everlastingly in Sprit-communion....

That soul enters Brahmanirvana, expansion in Spirit through the extinguishment of ego

and all desires that compel a soul to reincarnate. An omnipresent being cannot be caged



behind the bars of finite incarnations. He can of his own free will retain a physical or an

astral body, but it cannot imprison his overarching spirit.

Thus Krishna tells his disciple Arjuna: “He who forsakes desires for sense

enjoyments, is unattached to sense objects, and is devoid of the consciousness of the

limited ego, relinquishing its afflictions of “me” and “mine”, receives the lasting joy of God-peace – that permanent blessedness of Spirit-communion spoken of as Brahmasthita

or “anchored-in-the-Infinite” state.”


*******

“The Self is never born nor does it ever perish; nor having come into existence will

it again cease to be. It is birthless, eternal, changeless, ever the same (unaffected by

the usual processes associated with time). It is not slain when the body is killed.” –

Bhagavad Gita II:20

“The wise man learns by meditation to differentiate between the indwelling immortalsoul and its perishable bodily encasement. People, who believe that the Absolute Spirit

(ever-existing, ever-conscious, ever-new Bliss) is immortal, must also accept the truth

that its reflection, the soul, even though encased in a mortal body, is immortal, too.Bhagavan Krishna’s words in these lines particularly emphasize this truth. As God is

immortal, every man’s soul, made in the image of God, must also be immortal.

The difference between soul and Spirit is this: The Spirit is omnipresent Joy; the soulis the reflection of this Joy, confined within the body of each and every being. Souls are

radiating rays of Spirit, individualized as formless, vibrationless expressions of Spirit.

Hence, they are coexistent with Spirit and of the same essence, as the sun and its rays areone....

The Bhagavad Gita emphasizes the following qualities of the Self; It is unborn,though born in a body; it is eternal, though its bodily dwelling is impermanent; it is

changeless, though it may experience change; it is ever the same, though in the long

pathway of reincarnation which ultimately leads to God, the soul appears in countless

forms; the soul is not slain when the body dies; and even when the soul returns to Spirit,it does not lose its identity, but will exist until everlastingness.”


*******

“When, at last, karma is overcome, the lower nature of desires and attachments is

subdued, and the ego is slain – the yogi attains kaivalya , liberation: permanent union

in God. The liberated yogi may then discard his three bodily encasements (physical,

astral, and causal) and remain a free soul in the ever-existing, ever-conscious, ever-



new bliss of Omnipresent Spirit. Or if he chooses to descend again from his samadhi

into the consciousness and activities of a body, he does so in the sublime state of

nirvikalpa samadhi . In this highest state of externalized soul consciousness, he

remains in his pure soul nature, untouched and unchanged, with no loss of God-

perception, while he performs whatever exacting duties may be his portion in the

fulfillment of God’s cosmic plan.” ( The Bhagavad Gita , page 16, Yogananda)

All karma – the effects of past actions – is transcended and integrated on the level of

the Siddha. One becomes a true master, a pure reflection and instrument of Spirit, fullyempowered to guide others on the path to supreme enlightenment and liberation.

*******

“Whosoever shall impart to My devotees the ultimate secret knowledge with utmost

devotion to Me, shall without doubt come unto Me. Not any among men perform

more priceless service to Me than he. In the world there shall be none dearer to

Me.” – Bhagavad Gita XVIII:68-69

“A yogi who has risen above delusion and attained Self-realization, and who havingtasted divine bliss is eager to share it with true seekers, finds supreme joy in selflessly

helping others to liberation. He fulfills that service which is most pleasing to God. To

perceive God and – in pure devotion to Him alone – to share His love with others should be man’s highest goal on earth.” (The Bhagavad Gita, page 1094, Yogananda)

We cannot free another until we, ourselves, are free. Only by becoming an absolutely

pure instrument is one able to transmit supreme enlightenment and liberation to thosewho are receptive and finally ready. In the words of Milarepa: “Seek first your own

enlightenment, for as long as there are stars in the sky, there will be sentient beings in

need of liberation.” A Siddha, or True Spiritual Master, is a perfect reflection, and thusfully empowered to guide others on the sacred path. We, ourselves, in the meantime,

should always cultivate an altruistic attitude, by selflessly serving and inspiring others in

any humble way that we can. This also helps us to cut through the sense of being aseparate self, our own egoism. As you can see there are twelve progressive levels of

spiritual consciousness. Indeed it is a long road to freedom, a steep and hard ascent up the

mountain of one’s own being. Milarepa advise us to, “Be humble and practice diligently;

never hope to quickly gain enlightenment, but meditate until you die!”

*******

“I shall now declare unto you, O Arjuna, the path, traversing which at the time of

death, yogi s attain freedom.... Fire, light, daytime, the bright half of the lunar

month, the six months of the northern course of the sun – pursuing this path at the

time of departure, the knowers of God are liberated in Spirit.” – Bhagavad Gita

VIII:23-24



“These mysterious stanzas, woefully misinterpreted by nearly all commentators, in

reality contain symbolic references to the science of yoga. They describe the opening of

the spiritual eye, the awakening of the cerebrospinal centers, and the ascension of lifeforce and consciousness through them to Absolute Pure Consciousness and liberation

in Spirit for the yogi who follows “the way of light”....

In these stanzas, it states that the yogi must follow the path of “fire.” Here “fire”

means the life energy, the kundalini power. The devotee’s first scientific step toward

emancipation is to gain control of his lifeforce. In ordinary men the course of prana isdownward, “the way of darkness,” flowing from the brain to the sensory nerves and the

countless cells of the body. This dispersion and diffusion of life energy reveal the

material world to the human consciousness.

In the successful yogi, on the other hand, the course of prana is upward, “the way of

light.” By yoga he reverses the direction of the flow and is able to concentrate the whole

of his lifeforce within the brain, in the “sun” of Absolute Pure Consciousness. In this way

God is revealed.

The “sun” of Absolute Pure Consciousness is the Supreme Source of life and

intelligence in the body, with Its abode in the seventh or highest spiritual center, in the

cerebrum, the thousand-petaled lotus – a sunburst as of a thousand suns. All life and

faculties in the body evolve from this powerhouse of luminosity through its projected

rays of the spiritual eye.

“Light” refers to the divine eye in the forehead.... The light of the spiritual eye is a projection of the “sun” of Absolute Pure Consciousness, Through the light of the spiritual

eye, the yogi moves along the path to Spirit. “Daytime” is the manifestation of the

spiritual eye during the samadhi state of meditation. This is the yogi’s “daytime” for hehas awakened from the sleep of delusion.

“The bright half of the lunar month” is that half of the advanced yogi’s consciousnessthat remains “awake” and attuned to Absolute Pure Consciousness even when the other

half is “asleep,” or active in the material world of delusion. The moon, whose light is a

reflection of the sun, has a bright fortnight (waxing period) and a dark fortnight (waning period) in its monthly cycle. The sun of Absolute Pure Consciousness shining on matter (the light of the astral world and body that upholds and enlivens the material world and

body) is here referred to as reflected or lunar light. In man, a miniature universe, its

bright side is when it is spiritualized and turned toward Absolute Pure Consciousness;and its dark side is when it is turned toward delusion. In the advanced yogi, the

cerebrospinal centers, though performing their activities that externally enliven the body

(necessitating their working through the instruments of Nature, or delusion, the outward-



flowing or “dark side”), remain nevertheless inwardly in a spiritualized or illuminated

state. When the yogi withdraws from external activities and enters samadhi through the

light of the spiritual eye, this the true “bright fortnight,” that period of the day when hiswhole being is inwardly ablaze, turned toward Spirit, basking in the “sun” of Absolute

Pure Consciousness.

The “six months” are the six spinal centers, the coccygeal to the spiritual eye. Thus,

“the six months of the northern course of the sun” refers to the six periods of spiritual

perceptions in these centers when consciousness and life (descended from the “sun” of

Absolute Pure Consciousness into the body) are reversed to flow upward, “north,” to

their Supreme Source in the cerebrum.

What transpires as the yogi moves along this “way of light” is a veritably intricate

transition of his life and consciousness through the spiritual eye: First, life and

consciousness move upward through the physical spine and brain, freeing the yogi fromthe physical body; then transition through the three astral spines of light ( sushumna,

vajra, and chitra), freeing the yogi from the astral body; and, lastly, ascension through the

causal “spine” of consciousness (brahmanadi), whereby the soul is liberated in Spirit. Atdeath, the soul of the successful yogi, following this path, rises majestically,

unencumbered, from the revolving cycles of obligatory rebirths.”


*******



Paramhansa Yogananda’s mahasamadhi – a yogi’s final conscious exit from the body

– was on March 7th, 1952. “Weeks after his death, his unchanged face shone with the

divine luster of incorrigibility... ____________

Forest Lawn Memorial Park Glendale 5, California

May 16, 1952

Self-Realization Fellowship3880 San Rafael Avenue

Los Angeles 65California

Gentlemen:

The absence of any visual sign of decay in the dead body of Paramhansa Yogananda

offers the most extraordinary case in our experience.... The body was under daily

observation at the Mortuary of the Forest Lawn Memorial Park from March 11, 1952, the

day of the last public rites, until March 27, 1952, when the bronze casket was sealed by

fire. During this time no indication of mold was visible on Paramhansa Yogananda’s

skin, and no visible desiccation took place in the bodily tissues. This state of perfect

preservation of a body is, as far as we know from mortuary annals, an unparalleled one....

At the time of receiving Paramhansa Yogananda’s body the Mortuary personnel at ForestLawn expected to observe, through the glass lid of the casket, the usual progressive signs

of bodily decay. Our astonishment increased as day followed day without bringing any

visible change in the body under observation. Paramhansa Yogananda body was

apparently in a phenomenal state of immutability....

The officers of Self-Realization Fellowship agreed, on March 27 th, 1952, that entombmentof the casket should now take place.... The physical appearance of Paramhansa Yogananda

on March 27th, just before the bronze cover of the casket was put into position, was the same

as it had been on March 7 th. He looked on March 27th as fresh and as unravaged by decay as

he had looked on the night of his death. There was no reason to say that his body had sufferedany visible disintegration at all. For these reasons we state again that the case of Paramhansa

Yogananda is unique in our experience.

Yours sincerely,

FOREST LAWN MEMORIAL PARK ASSOCIATIONHarry T. Rowe, Mortuary Director

____________



....Other devotees of God, Christian saints who manifested bodily immutability not by

yoga but through extraordinary powers of single-hearted aspiration toward the Divine,were St. John of the Cross and St. Theresa of Avila. The body of St. John, who died in

1591, was exhumed in 1859 and found to be in a state of incorruptibility. The body of St.

Theresa, which lies in a church at Alba in Spain, has for centuries remainedintransmutable. The site has witnessed innumerable miracles.”

( Paramhansa Yogananda in Memoriam, pages 105-123, Self-Realization Fellowship)

The incorrigibility of Yoganandaji’s physical form after death was his last public

testimony to the Truth that he had lived and shared.

*******

WIELDING THE SIDDHI S, MIRACULOUS YOGIC POWERS,

IN PERFECT ACCORDANCE WITH DIVINE WILL

These among others include clairvoyance, levitation, astral travel, materialization of physical objects, and ultimately even omniscience and omnipotence. The manifestation of

a siddhic power is an expression of Divine Grace for a definite higher purpose, never for

the sake of aggrandizing the ego. Until one has completely transcended the sense of beinga separate self (ahamkara) by attaining supreme enlightenment and liberation, there is

always the danger of not only becoming attached to, and distracted by, the siddhic powers

but also misusing and abusing them as a means to fulfill some egoistic desire. ThereforePatanjali informs us:

“There must not be any pride in the use of these powers, or any attachment to them, asthis can be the cause of reverting to lower or clouded states of awareness.” – Yoga Sutra

III:52

“Most souls who depart from clear levels of realization, do so because of

carelessness. By not remaining centered and focused, they become complacent or

distracted. Many people drift through sequences of circumstances without any sense

of direction or purpose. Even well intended souls can become distracted from their

spiritual goal because of pride and attachment. One may think, “Oh, it is wonderful

that I can know these things, and do marvelous works!” A partially awakened soul

may have a degree of higher understanding, yet be influenced by the cosmic forces .

If tamas and rajas gunas predominate, the spiritually advanced soul may become aminor worker of wonders, a magician. If ego is pronounced and a drive for personal

power is present, one may use the yogic powers for selfish or destructive purposes.”

( Life Surrendered In God, page195, Davis)

*******



“By renouncing these powers of omniscience and omnipotence, one removes the causes

of bondage, transcends the relative planes and absolute freedom arises.” – Yoga Sutra

III:51

“So long as we are conscious of experiencing omniscience and omnipotence, some

sense of independent selfhood remains. By renouncing the awe and enjoyment of omniscience and omnipotence, “the seed of bondage” – egoism because of delusion –

is removed. The devotee intent upon liberation of consciousness is advised to avoid

attachments to any perception or experience; to observe and release them in order

to experience higher states. When nothing remains except a permanent awareness of

being, consciousness may again become involved with material manifestation

without being deluded. With dissolving of the illusion of independent selfhood, the

soul, having transcended all possibilities of blind involvement with nature, is ever

free.” ( Life Surrendered In God, pages 194-5, Davis)

*******

“By communion with the objects of nature at their course and subtle levels and on their

essence, correlations and purpose, mastery over the five elements is attained. Then comethe manifestation of powers such as bodily perfection and invulnerability of its functions.

Beauty, grace, strength and miraculous endurability constitute the perfection of the

body.” – Yoga Sutras III:44-46

Along with the incorrigibility of the body after death, as in the case of

Paramhansa Yogananda, another rare and most extraordinary yogic power is

soruba samadhi , the state of physical immortality. Although the Yoga Sutras mention

“the perfection of the body” and “miraculous endurability,” it is among the other

Mahasiddhas of South India, who like Patanjali had actually attained soruba

samadhi , that we find a wealth of knowledge regarding this siddhi , or power.

As mentioned earlier, two of the “Eighteen Mahasiddhas” are reputed to have

been the spiritual preceptors of Babaji. It is said that he became enlightened while

practicing sadhana under the guidance of Boganathar. And then, through the

instructions he later received from Agastya, Boganathar’s own guru, he attained

soruba samadhi , the state of physical immortality, while in solitary meditation

retreat at Satopanth above Badrinath in the Himalaya. The great Avatar Babaji has

been given an exalted assignment, a mission whose magnitude demands the utmost

in devotion and surrender. He is to remain indefinitely on the material plane to

assist in the evolution of mankind.

*******

“When our dharma, or essential nature, is in harmony with the fundamental laws of

divine purposes we are said to be in harmony with God’s will. This is why there is such a

strong emphasis upon the necessity of doing one’s duty in accord with universal laws. In

this way we become harmonized with evolutionary purposes and experience the full



support of God in and as nature in our righteous endeavors. This is what it means to be

fully surrendered in God.” ( Life Surrendered In God , page 19, Davis)

Absolute Self-mastery is the ability to wield the enlightened soul powers ( siddhi s)

all the way back down through even the world of dense matter in accordance with

Divine Will. This is the result of complete surrender to God in all humility. “Fewpeople in conditioned mortal consciousness know that the reality of fulfillment

includes this earth realm.” – Babaji

*******

ANCIENT VEDIC HYMN

I bow down to God, the Supreme Teacher, Truth, whose nature is bliss, who is the

bestower of the highest happiness, who is beyond all qualities and infinite like the sky,

one and eternal, pure and still, transcendent to all phenomena and change, and the silent

witness of all our thoughts and feelings. I bow down to Truth, the Supreme Teacher, God.

OM NAMAH SHIVAYA

JAI SATGURUDEVA MAHAVATAR BABAJI



APPENDIX



THE EVOLUTIONARY STAGES OF CONSCIOUSNESS

LEVEL #1: UNCONSCIOUSNESS – This stage represents: a) the state of deep sleep

that, according to various texts on yoga, is actually the awareness of nothingness; and b)

the passive inertia of gross matter.

LEVEL #2: SUBCONSCIOUSNESS – This stage represents: a) the state of dreaming;

b) the depository of memories; c) instinctive drives; and d) the active response to stimulias found in plants, animals and man.

LEVEL #3: PHYSICAL CONSCIOUSNESS – This stage represents the most basic

state of ordinary wakefulness, perception of one’s body and the material world throughthe physical senses. It is the worldview as held by the consciousness of an animal, or a

human baby. At this stage one’s ego, or sense of being a separate self, is based on a

primary identification with the body and its sensory impressions, which, throughout the

next six levels below, expands to also include the mind with all of its thoughts andfeelings.

LEVEL #4: MAGICAL – This stage represents the primitive belief that the forces of

nature can be harnessed in order to control one’s environment through intention and

specific rites. It is exemplified by shamanism, or the process of “wish fulfillment” in thedevelopment of a small child as described in modern psychology.

LEVEL #5: MYTHOLOGICAL – This stage represents the dogmatic belief that a

particular god or goddess of any given culture may be invoked to manipulate the worldon one’s behalf through the power of ritualized worship and egocentric prayer. It is

epitomized by religious fundamentalism , a form of cultural conditioning in which one

simply accepts blindly, on an emotional level, what he has heard or read without anycritical discernment, nor real effort to verify its actual validity.

LEVEL #6-8: RATIONAL – These stages represent discrimination based on the mental powers of logic and reason. They are subdivided into a) the early phase; b) the middle, or

developmental, phase; and c) the late, or mature, phase where one has become adept at

playing the various roles his life has created.

LEVEL #9: EXISTENTIAL – This stage represents the rite of passage to super-

consciousness, or transcendental awareness. Here, a profound and intense dissatisfaction

with the limitations of body and mind, and deep contemplation on the true meaning of one’s own existence, finally culminate in a yearning for the bliss of freedom in Spirit.

********



LEVEL #10: “SAVITARKA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the first level of preliminary meditative absorption “with doubt” at the muladhara, coccygeal,

chakra.

LEVEL #11: “SAVICHARA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the second level of

preliminary meditative absorption “with discrimination” at the swadhisthana, sacral,chakra.

LEVEL #12: “SANANDA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the third level of preliminary meditative absorption “with bliss” at the manipura, lumbar, chakra.

LEVEL #13: “SASMITA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the fourth level of

preliminary meditative absorption “with a pure sense of being” at the anahata, dorsal,chakra.

LEVEL #14: “ASAMPRAJNATA” DHYANA SAMADHI – This is the completion,

or “higher,” stage of preliminary meditative absorption at the visuddha, cervical, chakra,with its corresponding element of “ether” or “space.” It is the experience of

omnipresence within the sanctuary of one’s soul as an individualized reflection of Spirit.

LEVEL #15: “SAVITARKA” SAVIKALPA SAMADHI – The first level of dualistic

samadhi is based on genuine faith that arises spontaneously with the direct perception of the indwelling Spirit as the Divine Presence at the ajna (spiritual eye) chakra.

LEVEL #16: “SAVICHARA” SAVIKALPA SAMADHI – The second level of

dualistic samadhi is based on discrimination between the relative and the Absolute at the

LEVEL #17: “SANANDA” SAVIKALPA SAMADHI – The third level of dualistic

samadhi is based on abidance in bliss at the spiritual eye.

LEVEL #18: “SASMITA” SAVIKALPA SAMADHI – The fourth level of dualistic

samadhi is based on the ecstatic realization of one’s own true nature, or pure sense of being, as Cosmic Consciousness at the spiritual eye.

LEVEL #19: NIRVIKALPA SAMADHI: THE TRANSCENDENCE PHASE OF

THE GENERATION STAGE is based on the ecstatic nondual realization of AbsolutePure Consciousness at the sahasrara (cerebral) chakra.

LEVEL #20: NIRVIKALPA SAMADHI: THE INTEGRATION PHASE OF THE

GENERATION STAGE is based on the ecstatic realization of Ultimate Nondual

Awareness within the spiritual heart.

LEVEL #21: THE COMPLETION STAGE OF NIRVIKALPA SAMADHI: The

attainment of supreme enlightenment arises simultaneously with the state of liberation;

and wielding the siddhis, miraculous yogic powers, in perfect accordance with Divine

Will.



December 2, 2009

Hi,

I created this document from the original 15 Word documents dated June 8, 2007. I

changed only format spacing to get some page breaks and one line layout 'right' – andfixed six spelling errors.

Wisdom was written by an American friend of mine, Rob Ivey ( Swami Avidiyananda ),while living in the Himalayas. He introduced me to our Guru in January of 1972.

The following is the message he sent with his treatise:

NAMASTE EVERYONE!

It was absolutely delightful to receive your emails and to learn how the great adventure known as

life is unfolding on the paths that each of you aretreading...

I am sending you my final polished version of thetreatise as some of you might really appreciate having

a copy, especially in the event you are inspired to

pass it on to other devotees.

I have, hopefully, corrected all of the remaining

typing errors, upgraded the format, rearranged a few

of the quotes in more relevant places, and made some

Documents

The Evolutionary Stages of Consciousness