Meditation ( Sadhana)

(1) Preceptor : In every walk of life , one stands in need of a guide , who by virtue of his knowledge and expertise , guides the disciple. The necessity of a guide is felt as all the more indispensable on the esoteric path of spirituality. Spiritual truths are beyond the ambit of sensory perception and reason. So to move on this unchartered path one needs a guide , a preceptor (Guru) . Only one who has seen established in the state of perfection and oneness. If one who knows the cosmic one , becomes the cosmic. Hence Guru who is the knower of Brahma and is none other than Brahman. In tantra he is Mahakaula. When fervent yearing for spiritual arises in the mind of the spiritual aspirant, Guru appears before him. In fact , it is Brahma who in the form of the Guru, is seeking the right disciple. Finding one's Guru is the most auspicious and extraordinary event in the life of an individual because from that moment Parama Purusa , assuming the form of Guru assumes the responsibility of leading the disciple to the ultimate goal. He remains eternally vigilant to ensure that the initiate continues to be on the path and does not go astray. In return , the disciple has to surrender with the utmost devotion and sincerity. As Guru is indeed Brahman he is beyond the domain of mind. Of course , the disciple has to use his discrimination to make sure that he does not fall into the hands of the incompetent or fakes, who very often , put on the semblance of perfection. But having found the Master ,one has to completely surrender oneself at His feet. It is only unconditional adherence to His wishes, words and actions, that one is sure to attain the highest state. 

    

(ii) Initiation : Initiation ( diksa) can be likened to the sowing of a seed. Diksa is derived from the root Dah which means to burn. Here , it means , burning the reactive momenta (samskaras) or the unexpressed reaction of past actions. Initiation provides both speed and rhythm in the journey to the ultimate goal. This leads to the speedy exhaustion of samskaras. By performing an action a person remains bound to the reaction of that action. There can be no doing away with the reactions of one's action. Only the mode of experiencing them may change. The Sadguru alone can absorb the samskaras. The life of the initiate can be compared to a journey from one place to another. Whether one moves fast or slow , one has to cover the same distance and pass the same places and sights on the way. The only differences is that faster the vehicle, the sooner one crosses them in succession. It is normally noticed that soon after initiation the quantum of suffering or pleasure in the life of the seeker , increase greatly. This is because the Samskaras, good or bad are getting exhausted quickly. By the first lesson of Rajadhiraj Yoga , Samskaras are exhausted very fast. But there are two kinds of past actions and those that create further bondage. Madhu vidya, the second lesson of Rajadhiraj Yoga. If properly practised , prevents the formation of samskaras. The vedic forms of initiation consist of purificatory rites but tantrik initiation involves imparting a mantra to the initiate, along with details of the process of contemplation. In vedic system competence of the aspirant is ascertained in terms of one's nature, vocation and lineage, before the real instruction is given Certain systems also consider the Sudras and Women to be unworthy for spiritual pursuits. But according to tantra , everyone is essentially divine and has therefore , the birthright and competence to attain the supreme stance. As mentioned earlier having a human body and an earnest desire for divine knowledge are the prerequisites for attaining Brahmahood. However in the hierarchy of evolution, each person has his own point of beginning in the spiritual journey. Hence the same mantra is not prescribed for everyone . Only those who have expertise in the science of tantra can select the proper mantra.

 

(iii) Mantra: Incantation of a mantra is one of the essential features of tantra sadhana. Any word cannot be a mantra. In order to quality as a mantra. the acoustic unit must have been Pulsative, Incantative and Ideative. It should bi-syllabic. It is to be incorporated into the Biorhythm, so that it can pulsate with inhalation and exhalation of the breath. It must also be a meaningful unit of sound. The incantation of a mantra does not involve the mechanical repetation of a sound as in japa. but ideation on the meaning. In the process of incantation the entitative rhythem or psychic flow (svarana) gets transmuted into the cosmic thythm (paramarasa) . Mind takes the form of the object it ideates upon. So by ideation on the cosmic, embedded in the mantra the unit mind losses its finiteness and becomes cosmic. Meditation on the cosmic consists of these distinct phases, Bhuta suddhi, Asana sudhhi, and Chitta suddhi. In Bhuta suddhi one has to withdraw the mind from external physicalities as per the instruction of the Acharya. Then in Asan suddhi , the mind is to be withdrawn from different parts of the body and concentrated on the Ista chakra. These two suddhis constitue the essence of Pratyahara sadhana. The mind having been withdrawn from all objectivities does not have any physical objec as its preoccupation. But an essential feature of the mind is that it always needs an object ( idea) to be preoccupied with. Mind needs base in order to maintain its existence. So it is necessary to provide mind with an idea to play with. Mind is subtler than five fundamental elements. All the finite objects are made up of them. If mind contemplates on the finite, it is sure to degenerate. Therefore the only suitable object of ideation(abhoga) for the mind is the cosmic idea(Brahma Bhava)That is way idolatry is taken to be the lowest from of spiritual practice. Constant ideation on an idol which has a finite shape and is made up of the five fundamental factors, arrests the progressive expansion of the psyche. Ideation on the Cosmic is termed as Ishvara Pranidhan. Pranidhana refers to the process of directing the attention of the unit mind to the cosmic self. Pranidhana is different from japa. In japa , there is only acoustic rhythm involving the repeated chanting of mantra. But in pranidhana, the acoustic rhythm goes along with a parallel mental rhythm. The aspirant not only ahants mantra, but also ideates on its meaning. Despite distructions and hindrances one should do one's utmost to maintain the parallelism between the acoustic rhythm and mental rhythm. This state of sustained flow is called Anudhyana. Pranidhana together with Anudhyana constitute Abhidhyana( meditation). It is to be remembered that a word carrying the cosmic idea does not qualify to be a mantra unless it has been infused with the power by the Sadguru. The power infused in a mantra is called Mantra chaitanya. It refers to the inner potency of the mantra. Mantra siddhi refers to state where the inner potency of the mantra is fully actualised in the form of Ista (Guru) whom the sadhaka realises as none other than Brahma. Just as a seed needs congenial conditions to manifest its latent potentialities, Mantra sadhana must have Mantra dipinii in order to be effective. Mantra dipinii means a congenial psychic atmosphere for ideating on the mantra. This is provided by Yama and Niyama. It is quite significant to note that unlike an ordinary seed, the mantric seed, once sown does not go waste. if after receiving the mantra from the Guru either directly or through any achaya, one does not follow the prescribed system or acts to the contrary, the process of god-realization may be delayed. But because of the fact that Brahman in the form of Guru has chosen to take the individual to the ultimate goal. Nature creates circumstances to force the individual to realise the significance and necessity of intuitional practice and the sadhaka is made to walk on the path.

     

(iv) Kundalini : Kundalini is the surpentine power of the muladhara chakra. The incantation of mantra generates an acoustic vibration in the psychic body which has a whipping effect of the kundalini the slumbering consciousness. As a result of mantraghata the kundalini rises ipwards through the Susumna which touches the idea and pingala, intertwining at different points, called chakra ( plexi). These three nadiis are the mystic channels and the chakras are the mystic knots. Chakras have been conceived of as the psychic centres. Each plexus is said to control certain propensities. Fifty propensities , may be expressed both internally and externally, in ten possible ways Purva,Paschima, uttar, Dakshina , Isana Agni , Nairuta , Vayu, Ardha and Urdha. The upward movement of the kundalinii leads to psychic dilation and the progressive control of the propensities by the unit-subjectivity(jiva). Each chakra is depicted as a lotus with petals representing the different vrittis. When the kundalinii passes through a chakra, the vrittis associated with it are swallowed up. So the rise of the kundalinii results in the gradual liberation of mind from limiting influence of the propensities. When it reaches the highest point multi-propensive plexus ( sahasrara Chakra) one attains the state of indeterminate absorption. The first five chakra are the controlling nuclei of the five fundamental factors ( pancha Mahabhutas). The basis plexus ( muladhara chakra) the liquidal plexus ( svadhisthan chakra) the Igneous plexus ( manipur chakra) , the Aerial plexus ( anahata chakra) and the physico-psychic plexus ( visudhha chakra), control the solid, liquid, luminous, aerial and ethereal factors respectively. When kundalinii, rises to a particular chakra one gains absolute control over the element associated with it. Each chakra is conceived as having a shape and colour and is associated with certain cosmic sound. One hears the sound of the cricket ( vringura) ankle bells ( nupura) the bell (ghanta) flute( vanshi) and Omkara as the kundalinii passes respectively through the Muladhara, Svadhisthana,Manipura, Anahata and Visudha. Beyond the Agya chakra ( occult plexus) there is silence. Mind is conceived as having different layers according to their varying psychic functions. When kundalinii reaches a particular chakra. mind functions from that layer. The rise of kundalinii results in the conversion of the lower kosas into the higher kosas. The cruder layers of the mind becomes progressively subtler until eventually, the unit mind merges in the Cosmic- mind and the cosmic mind in the self. In other words as the kundalinii rises higher , the kamamaya kosa is converted into the Manomaya kosa, the Atimanasa kosa into the Vigyanmaya kosa and Vigyanmaya kosa into Hiranmaya kosa. To put in differently in the processof metamorphosis of the crude into the subtle, Chitta ( the done-I) is converted into Aham, (the doer I ) the Aham into Mahat (the existential I ) and Mahat into the Self. The higher it rises , the higher is the layer, in which the mind functions. In certain ( sanchara) is the result of the objectivisation of subjectivity. then evolution to the higher plains of existence involves the increasing subjectivisation of objectivity. The purpose of sadhana is to elevate the mind to the subtler layers and finally to bring it to a point from where it will merge in the individual self and the individual self in the cosmic self. As kundalinii rises higher , mind becomes increasingly introverted. The secretion of the Pineal hormone ( melatonin ) from the sahasrara , stimulates the movement of the kundalinii which rushes upward to taste this Lunar ambrosia ( somarasa) divine nectar ( amrita). One experiences spiritual ecstasy and mystic trance. One acquires occult powers. At this stage, the aspirant has to be extremly careful so that the occult powers do not divert one's attention from the supreme goal.