Lifelong two-step dance - Natural Path

1. Chaos to Calm
2. Frozen to Flowing

1. Inner instruments
2. Inner being

1. Interfacing
2. Inspiring

1. self

2.. Self

NOTES

1. Eternal changed to Lifelong

2. self/Self added

3. Dedication to Daaji removed as too personal

Notes on two egos

Two types of egos - man-made ego vs natural ego

Human process of ego

1. reactive and recursive,

- feeding into or storing +
- recovering or processing residues.

Like "object" in computer science - both data and behaviour (saṁskāras and vāsanās) are stored

Natural process of ego

2. forward, real-time only sans local storage

CPU without memory,
without emotional memory

Undammed flow. Laminar.

Instant empathy and compassion. Synchronising and acting in shorter and shorter time.

Human ego overlies natural ego

Man-made process over natural process.

Man-made flow over natural flow.

Notes on pratyāhāra

 pratyāhāra as turning inward

Examples

- from outer Master to inner Master

- from a mūrti   

      to its energy entity/being

      (both outside me), 

      to its inner presence 

      in my heart

- from outer sensations 

     to inner thought layers 

     to inner ideas

     to mental quiescence

- From sensations 

     to body sensors 

     to nerve signals 

     to brain processes 

     to non-physical processes 

     to silent vibrations

- from ākāra to nirākāra

- from ākāra to nirguṇa

- from nirguṇa 

     to na-sat+na-asat

     (nasadīya sūkta)

 pratyāhāra as intake/eating of only one thing

Subtler meaning of concentration, but effort-less-ly, 

without anxiety or force:

- resting attention on something lightly and clearly

pratyāhāra also means 

mental training of attention 

on only one thing at a time 

in a subtle yet natural way:

- moving attention without stickiness from something

- attention both 

     resting lightly and 

     lifting lightly

- surround sounds/sensations technique 

- - first encountered in Bihar School of Yoga yoga nidrā book

- - applies tantra principle:

- -- "accept, then transcend or relinquish"

Also related, 

  across a larger timescale, 

  to saṁskāras

- emotional residues

     or stickiness to past events

So non-stickiness here as well.

Surrender, remembrance, nimitta mātram, resumption

Surrender

Real continuous surrender, 

constant ongoing

attitude and state of surrender,

is subconscious.

Surrender may start consciously,

with the awareness of I -

I surrender.

But it cannot continue consciously.

If it did, you would not be able to think of anything else 

other than of surrendering repeatedly. 

Like conscious continuous japa of a mantra.

This makes leading a normal life, a natural life, impossible.

Remembrance

Similarly, constant remembrance.

Remembering is initiated consciously.

It evolves from never to seldom to often to always, constant.

It becomes constant only when it continues subconsciously.

In superconscious states, 

there is no remembrance, 

there is no I activity, no egoic activity.

So who remembers?

And why remember at all if

only He acts through you,

through your mind,

through your intellect,

through your ego.

nimitta mātram

Pure, simple, direct, transparent, non-blocking instruments.

He wills or desires or inspires.

Your indriyas (inner and outer) 

act accordingly, immediately.

Both surrendering and remembering 

subconsciously, constantly,

lead to nimitta mātram.

Resuming naturalness

Yet, this does not mean all instruments, 

all of the subconscious and 

all of the superconscious,

disappear or dissolve.

They only resume working naturally.

They only resume naturalness in their activities.

Moderation. Naturalness.

Not overactive.

Not missing, destroyed.

Eternal sequence

Consider Babuji's:

Forget to remember.

Remember to remember.

Remember to forget.

The first two are easy to understand, 

shifting 

from conscious to subconscious, 

from never to always.

Letting go of wilful activity is remembering to forget.

Staying with physical sensations without words is 

remembering to let go - moment by moment.

Consciously witnessing;

letting everything pass;

deliberately yet choicelessly aware;

not letting attention follow 

thought streams, 

thought chains, 

thought webs of association;

conserving energy - no involvement,

staying at the surface, 

staying, observing an emotional trigger and 

then moving on to the next trigger

without going into, 

without following 

what gets triggered -

that is remembering to let go,

remembering to forget.

Letting go of 

meta activity, 

meta thinking -

remembering to forget.

Eternal evolution

Conscious - subconscious - superconscious is not a one-time epiphany.

It is a recurring sequence.

It is an eternal, never-ending sequence of evolution.

For each human, individually.

For humans, in groups.

For humanity as a species.

For Nature.

And why should evolution, eternal infinite continuous never-ending evolution, occur?

Why not? :-)

It elegantly dovetails atheism and deism, Principle and Being, flow and stillness.

Flows

Life is moment by moment.

Life is a moment by moment flow.

Life is many, many 

moment by moment 

flows.

Flows are:

fast, slow, 

turbulent, chaotic, 

calm, orderly,

seemingly random, 

seemingly morally vicious,

seemingly negative,

repetitive,

comforting,

pacifying,

seemingly morally just,

seemingly rational,

seemingly positive.

Adjectives and judgements are simply of events, 

samples taken out of flows.

As they are, at first.

Analysed, judged, compared, with other events -

as they are,

at first.

Then as my events, events occurring to me.

Then as not mine.

Then as I-me-my versus thou-thee-thy (you-you-yours).

Then only I versus thou.

How do you learn?

How do you ride the waves?

How do you flow with the waves? 

How do you avoid getting hurt?

How do you avoid getting attached, stuck, torpid?

How do you thrive?

How do you evolve - 

year by year,

month by month,

day by day, 

hour by hour, 

second by second, 

nanosecond by nanosecond?

How do you evolve beyond time-bound flows?

How do you evolve beyond space-bound flows?

Is there a you without time and space?

Chastity in marriage, bhogam, apnaapan

Chastity in marriage includes 

solving all marital issues 

with the spouse as 
the first and primary resource.

And if at all possible, 
with the attitude that 
there should be or 
there is 
no other resource.

Just like Indian solutions to 
Indian problems/challenges or 
SRCM solutions to 
SRCM problems/challenges.

First, solve or resolve with 
local resources and local processes.

Then optimise or fine-tune 
using other optimal global solutions, 
but only if necessary, 
only if there are still unmet requirements.

And only accept those solutions 
that fit into or can be integrated into 
local idioms.

(This is, I think, one commonsensical reason 
for the NIH -not invented here- syndrome. 
But also see below regarding failure, learnings, etc.)

Once everything in life is understood as 
undergoing bhogam, 
every present situation as 
an unwinding of past residues, 
every challenge presented to you as 
having its own learnings and 
its own resources for resolving it, 
you will stop fighting or resisting 
your present situations.

Your "failure" to meet a challenge,
according to someone else's criteria, 
is not as important as 
understanding that 
you presently lack 
certain skills or 
even some understandings or 
just a certain unwillingness to change.

All this comes from Babuji's simple instruction - 
apnaapan hona chaahiye, or 
apna banaiye,
making not just your newly-wedded spouse your own, 
but also the spouse's family.

And, if necessary, even before marriage, 
accept the family you were born into 
as your own!

Solve your issues together.
Such training is essential for life after marriage.

Do note that there is one huge assumption - 
you have chosen your family to be born into, 
to unwind some significant saṁskāras.

And even your life events in some broad ways, 
to develop some needed skills, 
some emotional attitudes or strengths.

And how does this fit into spiritual detachment, 
vairāgya, regarding family only as duty, or 
even as an unpleasant chore?

If you can learn to love and be affectionate 
even towards those who trigger you 
instantly and intensely, and 
yet be able to do so 
without expectations, 
without transactional paybacks, 
isn't that the best, the most arduous training 
to let love and affection flow towards all?

And to let that flow become 
unconditional and always?

To master being able to 
"love all whom he loves" just like 
"he who loves all" does?

Yet, even logically, 
there is no discrepancy 
in Master being clearly 
more affectionate towards 
some abhyasis than others.

First, they have to be in his proximity. 
If they are not around, 
how can he offer 
that physical affection?

Even if he wanted to, could he visit 
every abhyasi in the world?!

Next, they have to be open to change.

Love and affection are 
for the purpose of spiritual evolution, 
opening up the heart chakra, 
to put it differently.

And even if the living Master 
forgets that occasionally, 
the Hierarchy will not!

Those who aren't willing to change, and 
cling tightly to their self-created personas, 
will not hang around Master affectionately 
for very long. 

Again, can he chase every such reluctant abhyasi?

Should he?

Change must be accepted, even if not understood.

Inner resistance means no acceptance.

Next, the Masters have other work than 
just hanging out 
being loving and affectionate!

Those who support and 
take forward such work 
will naturally be the ones 
proximate to him.

Lastly, Daaji's huge evolutionary change.

There is no need for physical proximity 
to feel Master's love and affection.

Indeed, such physical displays 
can only be temporary, 
no matter how many times 
they're repeated.

Instead, become aware of 
the inner connection - 
make it palpable, 
develop your sensitivity. 
And once you feel that, 
as Babuji puts it so pithily - 
Master is mine and I am his!

Such a simple, beautiful, 
all-encompassing definition of 
apnaapan!

Total pratyāhāra

 Outward w.r.t. body, [1]

 has 3+ levels:

- mānasik

- vācik

- kārmaṇik 

in traditional terms, or, 

using Babuji's sequence [2]:

- ideas

- thoughts

- words

or, combined:

- śruti

- manasa

- vāca

- karmaṇa

or, in English:

- vibrational

- mental or by inner instruments

- verbal

- physical

Physical may be 

further subdivided into 

prāṇik and kārmaṇik.

Also, "inner instruments" 

may be expanded as

the kośās of 

the subtle and causal bodies.

This expansion seems unnecessary 

beyond manas and buddhi [3]

because the discussion here

is only about 

what can be 

wilfully turned 

inward or outward.

pratyāhāra means 

reversing that which eats 

(āhāra - ingests or takes in,

 prati - reverse or oppose) -

from the outside to the inside.

That is, 

turning all our 

physical, 

energetic, and 

inner sensors 

from 

outer sensations, 

outside energies, and 

crucially, also from

inner representations of 

the outside world.

Normally, one cannot turn 

one's physical sensors 

inward completely.

An obvious example is 

the eyes, 

which cannot look inward.

But closing the eyes 

more or less pauses 

visual sensations. 

Inner sounds can be heard, 

but the ears cannot be closed 

physically at will. 

Ditto the nostrils - 

needed anyway to breathe. 

khecari mudra 

with the tongue

explicitly aims at 

an inner taste, 

but that is still physical, 

while we want to reach 

levels beyond even śruti!

pratyāhāra of prāṇik sensors 

refers to inward flow of prāṇa. 

This cannot be 

directly controlled 

by the body, 

but physically 

āsanās, mudrās, and bandhās,

like checkdams and canals,

can recirculate prāṇa and

reduce or prevent 

its outward flow. 

With this background, 

it is obvious that 

total pratyāhāra, 

or better 

total prati sañcaraḥ, or 

returning to 

the state of 

total unmanifestedness or 

ultimate potentiality 

requires much more than

simply closing one's eyes and 

performing assorted mudrās and 

bandhās (clenching inner muscles).

Thus, by sitting in 

a nice closed-loop āsana, 

one may not be 

outwardly oriented 

physically or even prāṇik-ally. 

But one's mental and 

ideational 

orientation 

is still outward. 

(śruti is always manifestative or 

outward and 

anyway beyond 

individual control. 

It may be safely ignored in 

pratyāhāra or prati sañcaraḥ.)

Sahaj Marg meditation is therefore 

a complete pratyāhāra 

because the attention is placed 

on an idea 

(and so at the ideational or abstract level) -

of light without luminosity, 

of the idea of light.

But, Heartfulness meditation 

extends that even further 

by thinking that 

the Ultimate Source 

(from which that abstract idea manifested)

itself pulls the attention inwards.

So we turn 

whatever levels of attention 

we do control 

inward, or 

at least pause 

their outward orientation, and 

let attention 

beyond our subtlest level of volition 

be drawn inward.

Drawn inward by?

By a presence 

subtler than 

our individual selves, 

but yet a presence that 

manifested us, 

sustains us, and 

unmanifests us.

prati sañcaraḥ _/|\_

NOTES

[1] manifestative,

      engrossening,

      sañcaraḥ (from tattva samāsa sūtra)

      away from oneness, centre (centrifugal?)

[2] Per Br V. Ramabhadram, 

      abhyasi since Babuji's time,

      Babuji has mentioned śruti - 

      the timeless or eternal flow of vibrations - 

      in this sequence 

[3] ahaṁkāra or I-me-my activity 

      also cannot be wilfully controlled,

      it can only be paused or

      ultimately, relinquished