Maintaining Sanity in Stressful Times

"When we are no longer able to change a situation,
we are challenged to change ourselves."

- Victor Frankl Man's Search for Meaning


"The self is the isolated ego clinging to its small reality
& the Self is the unbounded spirit that can afford to not cling at all."

- Deepak Chopra


The world around us seems to be getting more and more unstable. Violence, natural disasters, economic crisis, high unemployment confront us on a daily basis. It’s bad enough to hear about it in the news but when it impacts our personal lives our stress level goes way up. This stress impacts marriages and families, physical and mental health. In order to stay sane and healthy we need to be able to maintain an inner balance; a connection to our inner being. This is the true purpose of yoga. As Krishna states “Yoga means perfect evenness of mind.” Or as Swami Satyananda put it, “Yoga helps you to face the ups and downs of life.”

We need to understand that yoga is more than a form of physical exercise. It is a mind-body-spirit discipline. We are multi-dimensional beings and if we limit ourselves to the physical, material level, we miss out on the deeper aspects. If we are completely focused on the external world we lose our connection with inner resources for healing and creating peace, love, harmony and well-being. Yoga helps us to turn inward to engage these resources. I know some people might ask something like, “Isn’t ‘turning inward’ selfish when there are so many problems, so much to do, etc.?” First of all this doesn’t mean retreating into a cave somewhere. It means nurturing yourself daily, which has beneficial effects for everybody around you as well. The daily practice of asana, pranayama and meditation will definitely help you to keep your mental and emotional equilibrium under stress. In addition, your ability to remain calm will help others.

We often fail to realize how much of what we perceive of the external reality is a reflection of our own minds, both on an individual and a collective level. Because we are all interconnected anger, fear, apathy, selfishness and hatred can spread from an individual to infect countless people around him or her. In the same way genuine feelings of peace, kindness, compassion, joy and optimism can spread like a soothing balm. Notice how you react inwardly to an angry expression or a friendly smile. Sometimes you can walk into a room and feel an atmosphere of peace or of hostility. According to yoga our mental and emotional fields extend beyond the limits of our skin.

Yoga is a practical spiritual philosophy. It is applied philosophy rather than scholastic verbal acrobatics. It fosters a genuine spiritual awareness which goes beyond any specific religious orientation. We really are interconnected beings whose essence is divine (although sometimes buried so deeply it’s hard to see.) There are two basic disciplines that underlie the practical application and realization of this philosophy. These are vairagya, or non-attachment and abhyasa, or persistent practice.

Non-attachment doesn’t mean emotional detachment or apathy. Instead it means detaching from our ego-centric position, desires, fears, dislikes, etc. It means being able to detach from our own perspective and appreciate another’s. It might mean stepping back from our overwhelming emotions to gain some peace and clarity. It means accepting “what is” and developing a higher, deeper, broader view moving us into the soul’s perspective.

Persistent practice might mean a regular daily yoga routine. However, it needs to go a lot deeper than perfecting your backward bend to have any real significance. There is no real yoga without meditation. The sitting practices of meditation, furthermore, are ways of training the mind to develop an awareness that we can carry over into daily life. I have had to laugh sometimes at how I could finish a peaceful morning practice and then experience “road rage” within fifteen minutes of leaving home. Persistent practice really means practicing every moment to become more aware, more present and less lost in our personal illusions and delusions.

A Three-step Discipline

The truly wise person understands that all worldly experience
involves suffering because of impermanence, mental conditioning
and inevitable conflicts.

- Patanjali  Yoga Sutras

A big part of maintaining our sanity in this world is to understand that suffering is inevitable. Things don’t always work out perfectly the way we want them to. We face circumstances in life over which we have little or no control. If we are dependent on the outer circumstances of our lives for happiness we are in for trouble. The spiritual path takes us inward to find a core of unshakable inner peace, subtle joy, love and compassion. To truly awaken to our inner being is known as “moksha” or liberation. It is liberation from our dependence on material circumstances for our inner peace and happiness. The liberated person doesn’t withdraw from life into some cocoon however. He or she draws upon this inner strength to face life and to be of service to others.

The Yoga Sutras recommend a three-step discipline for helping us reach this inner core of ourselves. It is referred to as kriya yoga, or active yoga. It is a way of actively engaging in the process of awakening. These three steps are known as “tapas,” or self-discipline, “swadhyaya,” or self-awareness and “Ishwarapranidhana,” or surrender to our Creative Source, or Deeper Self. These three steps are important keys for developing inner peace. I have experienced their benefits in my own life and consciousness (although I am far from perfecting them.)

1. Self-discipline:

The first part of self-discipline or tapas is accepting uncomfortable or painful experiences. It also means developing an attitude or sense of allowing these experiences to purify us, reduce our attachment and limited understanding. Suffering can help take us beyond ego-clinging if we are willing to not fight it. The second part of self-discipline is establishing a steady yoga practice. Yoga practice has little value if we just do it once in awhile, attending a class here or there, meditating now and then and then losing ourselves to unconscious activity. Try making a firm commitment to use yoga practice to develop yourself. It will reduce the suffering of the first part of tapas presented above. Attend classes regularly and learn the best practices for you to do on your own. Consult your teacher on how to develop your own practice.

2. Self-awareness:

Swadhyaya means self-study. It means looking into and at ourselves beyond a superficial level. In learning meditation we talk about developing the “inner witness.” This is a deeper part of ourselves which observes our usual thoughts and activities from a non-attached perspective. Through this perspective we can start to become aware of our unconscious habits of thought and behavior. We can also probe more deeply into our true nature; our true being beneath the surface of things. Meditation is key here, but also learning to observe ourselves “in action,” in our habits of work and play, ways of relating to others and to ourselves. Through practice we develop a relaxed inner vigilance; on-guard for anything which threatens our connection to deeper Self.

3. Surrender:

Ishwarapranidhana means letting go of our ego-centered attempts to be in control of things and accepting the will, intelligence and grace of a higher consciousness. It means letting go of our need to judge, criticize, condemn or manipulate. When we are willing to open ourselves to this infinite creative intelligence, wisdom and love it begins to transform our lives. Faith is needed here and we can develop it little by little if necessary. Through self-awareness we become aware of the fear and doubt within us and through practice we can release them. The ego likes to believe that it is control but how can it be? “The universe,” wrote Douglas Adams, “is a big place, perhaps the biggest.” There is a Universal Consciousness, however, working in and through everything, including us. We can attune to that consciousness through our spiritual yoga practice.

Mantra

One of the simplest yet powerful and profound practices is mantra repetition, or japa. With regular practice the mantra becomes your instant connection to that place of inner peace. It is a way of redirecting the mind, remembering our connection to the infinite. There are many mantras to choose from but you should choose carefully because you will need to adopt a mantra and work with it for an extended period of time to really feel its power. Mantras are often given in an initiation rite which deepens the connection between a spiritual teacher and a student. The guru empowers the mantra through his or her connection with spiritual energy. Mantras are not autosuggestions, nor are they affirmations. Instead mantras are verbal sound combinations which resonate within our psychic body to bring about awakening. As Swami Satyananda said, “A mantra is a grouping of sound vibrations which have an effect on the mental and psychic consciousness of man.” Meditations from the Tantras The “meaning” that we attach to the mantra is entirely secondary.

“Om” is a mantra which comes to us through the Upanishads, an ancient mystical yoga tradition. Om chanting, or Omkara, is a wonderful practice with many benefits – it helps memory and concentration, can reduce blood pressure, help one to clear away unwanted thoughts and leads to ego-transcendence and Self-realization. Many other mantras include Om as well. “Om Mani Padme Hum” is a popular Tibetan Buddh ist mantra. “Om Namah Shivayah” is a mantra of the Shiva tradition which helps to awaken kundalini. “Om Namo Narayanaya” is a mantra of the Vishnu tradition. Remember that the important thing is that the sound of the mantra resonates with you – not some intellectual meaning. Because of this, proper pronunciation is important, although many would argue that faith is even more important. Faith comes through practice, though, your connection with your guide and with your own inner being.

There are mantras that are not of Sanskrit origin as well. There are Latin and Greek mantras within the Christian tradition, Hebrew mantras, of course, which are connected with both Christian and Jewish faiths. There are Arabic mantras in the Sufi tradition as well. You want to make sure that you are comfortable using the mantra – remember you need to stick with it to know its value. You can even use an English mantra, however, we are moving more in the direction of “meaning,” or closure, rather than opening. Faith does not depend on intellect, which employs symbols to reflect “realities.” Faith is grounded in a part of ourselves which knows that we are intimately connected with the source of being. Deeper and truer than our thoughts, it is our connection with what is beyond name, form, thought or confusion.

Working With Anger and Fear

He was angry with me, he attacked me, he

defeated me, he robbed me” – those who dwell
on such thoughts will never be free from hatred.

- Buddha,
Dhammapada


In a state of extreme desire, anger, greed, confusion, pride or envy, enter your own heart and discover the underlying peace.

- Vijnanabhairava Tantra
Anger and fear seem to be the most primitive emotional drives we know. They are directly related to the “fight or flight” response in the literature of psychosomatic medicine. As functions of the r-system they have stayed with us on our evolutionary journey presumably to ensure our survival. Our reptilian ancestors (the “r” is r-system) used these basic functions without any nagging conceptual overlays to negotiate the terrain where all was “eat or be eaten.” Actually, there are four primary functions of this ancient brain within us sometimes referred to as the “four fs:” feeding, fighting, fleeing and . . . well, you can guess the next. (Call me, baby.) In other words, anger and fear are related to deep, primal instinctual energy within us.

There is no question of their value in terms of individual and species survival and propagation. I remember a time in fifth or sixth grade when I was attacked by four boys. They were out to drag me onto the middle of the playground and “pants” me. This was a popular custom of our time in which a group would drag some poor kid out into the crowd and expose him or her in front of everyone. Although, it was not truly life threatening, I felt it to be pretty humiliating and immediately the r-system kicked in, adrenaline got pumped and I was able to fight off all four of them – an amazing feat considering I was a skinny little guy. I was certainly surprised with myself.

The fight or flight response however doesn’t give us any room to think or to feel on a deeper level. Stress, as is commonly understood, is the accumulation of bio-chemical response to constant, unresolved fight or flight crises on a day to day basis. When the boss calls us into the office, we can neither beat her up nor run away. When we are late and stuck in traffic the energy kick from adrenaline doesn’t help. Anger, fear and desire are at the basis of duality; our “me (or us) versus them” mentality. When this mechanism enters into our intimate relationships, it portends disaster. When it becomes chronic it destroys our emotional and physical health.

Anger is more than just an instinctive reaction, though. It is an emotion that involves the limbic system, which is generally considered to be our “old mammalian,” or emotional brain and uses aspects of more recently evolved neo-cortex. The neo-cortex is where we are able to employ intellect, make plans and value decisions, etc. When we become vindictive, plot revenge or strategize for war with our enemies we are using the higher parts of brain/minds in service of the instinctual impulses of our r-system. We use our conceptual constructs to help maintain and foster feelings of anger, resentment, etc. within us. Joseph Chilton Pearce writes, “Using intellect defensively we function in an anti-evolutionary mode: Our neocortical system serves our lowest and most primitive structures.” Evolution's End: Claiming the Potential of Our Intelligence

In How God Changes Your Brain authors Andrew Newberry, MD and Mark Robert Waldman write, “. . . of all the emotions we are born with, anger is the most primal and difficult to control.” Beyond the necessary fight or flight response which might be necessary to fend off or run from an attacker, anger can become more of a chronic and habitual stance towards others and the world. We become primed for anger, not just in response to a physical threat, but to a threat to our egos, self-esteem, belief system or addictive defenses. Anger disrupts the functioning of our frontal lobes decreasing our capacity for reason, empathy or compassion. Instead of being rational, we rationalize. Instead of connecting with others we hide within our defensive fortress. We become, in the words of William Blake, “armed crustaceans eternally on the alert.”

Following the breakup of a relationship I remember turning to a tape of a talk by Tich Naht Hahn hoping for solace. Instead, of course, he talked about the need to give up our self-centered position in relationships, to extend empathy and compassion. I turned the tape off because now I was angry with Tich Nhat Hahn! Such is the nature of our ego-defensive positions. Anger defends us against realizing our inherent Buddha-nature. Neuroscience shows that anger undermines the higher functions of our brains. According to Newberry and Waldman, anger “. . . releases a cascade of neurochemicals that actually destroy those parts of the brain that control emotional reactivity.” The more that we react negatively the more we reinforce that negativity.

So, how do we start to disrupt cycles of anger within us? Meditation can be very helpful here. As we are able to develop or awaken to an inner witnessing awareness we gain the necessary perspective to see through our own mind traps. It is not enough to enter into a state of peaceful relaxation in meditation practice, however. The whole point is to develop a deeper perspective that we take into daily activities, interactions, thoughts and feelings. Self-aware presence is the key. We have to watch our habitual, automatic thoughts and we have to know how to relax and let them go on a physical level as well. Our bodies tell us first when we are starting to move into anger. Tightness, tension, restlessness are all signals of unacknowledged anger within us.

Physical yoga practices, asanas, help to release tension from muscles which have become tight due to stress. They also help to promote balance between sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems which regulate states of arousal or relaxation in the body. Meditation promotes the activity of the parasympathetic system leading to the “relaxation response.” The practices of hatha yoga and relaxation/meditation help to break the feedback cycle of mental and physical stress. However, we can’t necessarily take time to practice yoga like this at moments of stress in our lives. Regular practice can help us attune better to our bodies though so that we can recognize the stress response. Regular practice of yogic breathing can come in very handy in helping to become calm.

The meditative ability to watch thoughts, when carried over into the daily activities of life, gives us leverage for managing states of fear and anger. Our willingness to step outside of our egoic need to be right, unwarranted suspicions, etc. is important. Sometimes our thoughts and perceptions of given situations can be quite comical when we are able to view them more objectively. It is important to remember that our view of ourselves, others and the world is not really “out there” but much more of an inner construct. Psychotherapy, especially when it utilizes mindfulness training, is like a form of meditation as it helps to deconstruct world-views which lead to unnecessary suffering. If one is prone to depression, angry outbursts, panic attacks, etc. a therapist may be necessary to help in this process.

Psychotherapy and meditative yoga work very effectively hand-in-hand for many people. Meditation can take us, however, beyond the scope of therapy to find an inner peace, calm and joy – an experience of well being, wisdom and self-transcendence. Sometimes it is not explained to us when we enter a spiritual path or practice that we need to confront our psychological issues along the way. A spiritual orientation based on experiential insight, however, helps to provide inner strength and positive motivation.

(Please make comments if you are so inclined.  Let me know what else might be helpful in terms of future posts.  Thanks.)

Overcoming Depression and Anxiety through Yoga

The discipline of Yoga: Discipline means the capacity 'to be'. All of the Yoga postures are not really concerned with the body- they are concerned with the "capacity to be". To be a Yogi is to become what you can become. Yoga is the science of 'stilling' what has to be stilled... and 'alerting' what can be alerted. Yoga is a science to divide that which is not you and what is you.

- Osho

Feelings of depression and anxiety are something we all go through from time to time in life. Sometimes, however, they become so chronic and so severe that they impair one’s ability to function productively, maintain satisfying relationships or enjoy life at all. Although they are different and span a number of diagnostic categories, depression and anxiety are often interrelated. Feelings of sadness, irritability, anxiety or apathy can overlap or change places with each other. Along with these are negative thoughts of excessive worry and guilt, shame, low self-worth, etc. Anxiety can keep us from getting adequate sleep, interfere with mental focus and cause a sense of inner paralysis. We might even catch ourselves saying things like “I’m so stupid,” or “lame,” or “worthless.” On the other hand, we might project our feelings of frustration and anger onto others and the world around us. Depression can cause us to feel hopeless and helpless and to unwittingly create or find situations in life to confirm these feelings.

In my last post, I talked about the chronic sense of unworthiness that is common among many of us in this culture. This inner sense can predispose us to debilitating depression and anxiety. If we go beyond the symptoms, which are often treated pharmacologically, we might find this inner core of vulnerability. There may, of course, be a genetic and bio-chemical predisposition as well. Our habitual thoughts and deeply held unconscious beliefs, though, affect our bodies through the interrelated workings of psyche and our neuro-endocrine systems. In this way our thoughts and feelings can affect our immune response as well, linking stress and illness. This is the basis of the discipline which began in the sixties and seventies combining psychology and biology called psychoneuroimmunology or PNI.

Yoga is an integral discipline which works with body, mind, prana (bio-energy) and includes the spiritual dimension as well. The common interventions offered by medical science or psychology tend to leave out one or more of the dimensions of our beings. Psychiatrists tend to prescribe medications to correct an assumed “bio-chemical imbalance.” Therapists may look into our thoughts, dreams, relationships, etc. The recent development of “energy psychology” has introduced the controversial subject of bio-energy which is integral to the yogic approach. Underlying all of these however is the spiritual dimension of our beings. When we are able to step outside of our ego-identities, we discover the deeper more spacious reality of the Self. The witnessing Self does not judge or condemn and has no attachments. It is compassionate and aware, joyous and at peace.

Hatha yoga works with the body and prana to help bring about harmony and balance within the body-mind as a system. The main practices are asanas, or “postures,” and pranayama, or “breathing practices.” This physical approach of yoga is different than most forms of exercise in that it is performed with a present-centered awareness of mind and body. Asanas are performed slowly and with awareness. A recent study published in the Journal of Complementary and Alternative Medicine found that hatha yoga was more effective than walking as an exercise to promote higher levels of GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) in the blood. GABA is a brain chemical associated with mood, and receptors for GABA are a target of anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medications.

Pranayama uses the breath as a means to balance and remove blocks in the pranic energy system which underlies our vitality and emotions. Yoga conceptualizes prana as circulating through channels in the body very similar to Chinese acupuncture meridians but uses systematic deep respiration and breath regulation to enhance the flow of energy. Pranayama can also focus on the chakras, or psychic energy centers, which are situated along the spinal column. The chakras are related to different levels of psychological functioning: survival and security, pleasure and creativity, power and autonomy, love and compassion, intelligent self-expression, intuitive wisdom, and spiritual enlightenment. Severe depression and/or anxiety can mean the shutting down of the energy of some or all of the chakras.

Meditation practices work primarily with the mind. They begin with deep relaxation and inner awareness. In this sense they are also working with the physical and energetic dimension because, well, the multiple facets of our beings are all interrelated. Systematic deep relaxation can be brought about by the practice of yoga nidra. Through this practice the physical body becomes deeply relaxed while one remains conscious on an inner level. It takes some practice and many people fall asleep early on their training. Once this is achieved we can go to the practices of antar mouna, or “inner silence,” where we become a silent witness to the thoughts within us. We can also practice chidakash dharana, or “focusing on the inner space of the mind.” In this practice we become aware of the subconscious play of images within our minds. (These practices can be found in Meditations from the Tantras)  Meditation helps us to step outside of our thought processes, realizing that they are simply creations of our minds. “We are always explaining the world to ourselves, and we react emotionally to these explanations rather than the facts.” write the authors of The Mindful Way through Depression.

Meditation is a wonderful undertaking. It is a practice and process of discovering our true Self. It enables us to better see through and relinquish worn out “explanations.” It is a means of being present with “what is” without explanation, judgment or condemnation, desire, attachment or aversion. Michael Bernard Beckwith describes meditation as “an undistractible attention to that which is real, that which is forever, that which is alive.” The ego is really nothing other than our emotional attachment to and identification with our interpretations, our explanations. The ego will hold onto its worldview even if it is torturous as in the case of depression and anxiety. When ready, though, the ego dissolves and becomes more and more transparent to the Self.

This may or may not be helpful for everyone. The process described above is not often simple, straightforward or immediate. Awakening generally requires a persistent inner struggle. Relieving the symptoms of depression or anxiety does not require spiritual awakening. Awakening overcomes the root causes of suffering altogether: ignorance, ego, craving, aversion and fear of death. Like medication, the physical practices of yoga will give relief. Meditation practice takes us deeper to the roots of our suffering. Suffering can be an impetus towards awakening however; a call that if ignored, simply returns in another form.

A last note:

If you are suffering from a severe depression with anxiety which is debilitating and/or causing you to feel genuinely suicidal: don’t look up your nearest yoga class. Instead get help from a qualified mental health practitioner. Use yoga to help with your treatment and to augment recovery. As you get further along in your recovery you can dive into yoga and meditation as a means beyond relapse. You can always, in every moment, attune to your spiritual source of being.

References and Resources:
 
The Mindful Way through Depression: Freeing Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness
The Promise of Energy Psychology: Revolutionary Tools for Dramatic Personal Change
Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha/2008 Fourth Revised Edition
Practical Yoga Psychology
Meditations from the Tantras
Spiritual Liberation: Fulfilling Your Soul's Potential

If you are ready to begin meditation then I have posted a guided Yoga Nidra practice at http://soundcloud.com/turiyaom/yoga-nidra   More guided practices will follow.

The Tantra of Self Love

Sexuality is possible without any understanding, without any meditation. Love is possible only with understanding. Compassion is possible only with understanding and meditation, understanding and awareness.


- Osho
Love, Freedom, Aloneness: The Koan of Relationships

Love is one of those extremely fuzzy concepts hard for the mind to grasp. Today is Valentine’s Day and we are inundated with quotes on love, pretty red hearts and chocolates (which paradoxically are a general substitute for love.) But I think we all know that love is not all about red roses and such. Neither is it all about sex (which, again, is a common substitute.) Love requires understanding. In fact, Swami Niranjan states that “Understanding is more important than love.” To be real, love has to be something more than a sentimental feeling, a momentary lapse of reason or hormonally driven desire. It demands patience, tolerance, openness, a suspension of self-striving. It is a tricky and dangerous affair fraught with perils and possibilities.

Eros, from which we have derived the word erotic, is a force which dissolves boundaries. It is ultimately a doorway through which we can enter the kingdom of non-duality. Instead, of course, we have degraded it to the status of cheap pornography. Pornography, more than anything, represents the ego-bounded self locked in its cage of self-loathing. Or is that just me? Sexual encounters without love are pretty much the same – a desperate attempt to reach beyond our loneliness and alienation. We engage in the outer performance of a deeply spiritual act without any connection to our inner being. When we have that connection Mother Kundalini awakens, otherwise she might hear some muffled sounds in her deep sleep.

What is understanding, though, and where does it begin? Can we truly love and understand another when we are unhappy with ourselves? In her book Radical Acceptance, author Tara Brach refers to “the trance of unworthiness” that so many of us have fallen into. Instead of loving ourselves, we strive for impossible perfection based on unreasonable ideals. We have introjected the message that we are unlovable, even for ourselves – or especially for ourselves. Perhaps we even subject ourselves to an unending stream of verbal emotional abuse. The flip side of this, of course, is projecting our self-hatred out onto the world and others. We may turn to spiritual practice as a way to fix ourselves rather than to truly know ourselves. More commonly, we may use spiritual ideals to beat up on ourselves.

Our egoic state of self-reference is maintained by negative self-talk as much as any other reinforcement. We get to feel comfortable in our cocoons of misery. Sex, drugs and alcohol, food, gambling, etc. become our comforts and distractions while leaving us even more alienated from ourselves and others. We build relationships based on our mutual woundedness and need for self-torture. Of course, we also recognize some positive qualities in ourselves. We may try to push these into the forefront, using them to hide our secret shame and unworthiness. We can’t escape from our private self-maintained prisons, though, until we accept every aspect of ourselves with openness and compassion. We must learn to love our egos before we can surrender them. They are, after all, aspects of our deeper Self.

A mindful yoga practice can help us connect with our bodies in a healing manner. It has been found helpful in overcoming trauma, as well as anxiety and depression. Meditation takes this healing deeper – as long as we are not using it with some idea of transcending (i.e. escaping) ourselves. True spiritual transcendence is inclusive and integrative. It is not about getting rid of the “bad” parts. Mindful awareness is at the heart of the Tantric approach.

Tantra offers an alternative to those spiritual approaches which enjoin us, require us, to live up to ideals that we are not up to. It doesn’t demand that we immediately stop having sex, using intoxicants, or eating meat, etc.* Instead it is a way of bringing awareness into our lives and behaviors. It suggests that we can awaken to our true Self-nature in the midst of ordinary behaviors. However, yoga is included as a means of harmonizing and balancing our energies and developing the capacity to be aware, witness ourselves. Self-acceptance and self-transformation go hand in hand. We can start by truly loving and accepting ourselves as we learn to love and accept others. We are all ultimately expressions of the One Divine Being. We are expressions of universal Love.

*Of course there are limits.  When behaviors become life threatening, or when they threaten the welfare of children, etc. there must be intervention.  Love yourself enough to call for help.

The Tantric Solution

The yogin and the yogini seek neither to attain illusory fixedness
nor to cut themselves off from the world of thought, emotion, or corporeal experience. There is only one motion, one flow, which at every instant attests to our absolute essence.

- Daniel Odier
Yoga Spandakarika: The Sacred Texts at the Origins of Tantra


Tantra, according to our Guru, Paramhamsa Satyananda Saraswati, means “the liberation of energy and the expansion of consciousness.” Energy and Consciousness are the primary constituents of any and all realities that we might possibly experience. They are also the primary constituents of our own beings. On the macrocosmic level Energy is known as Shakti, the Goddess. Consciousness is known as Shiva, or God. On the individual level energy is called prakriti and consciousness is purusha. Prakriti is the field of experience, while purusha is the “knower” of the field. These are the two poles of our experience and they are fundamentally inseparable. They are ultimately relative aspects of non-duality.

As we know from modern physics matter is a form of energy. According to Samkhya, the philosophical basis of Tantra, mind is also a form of energy related to matter. Beyond mind and matter is pure consciousness, or “naked awareness.” Energy underlies all phenomena: thoughts, emotions, sensations and the apparent physical world, which is composed of the five elements, earth, water, fire, air and space (ether.) Consciousness, in this sense, is the subjective aspect at the heart of all experience. It is that mysterious essence which both reflects and witnesses the display of energetic phenomena. It is deeper than the ego, which is really just another form of energy, a thought construct. Ego is the means by which pure consciousness projects itself onto the phenomenal world.

The central iconography of Tantra is indefensibly sexual in nature. Does this mean that Tantra is all about sex? We might say, “No! Well, not entirely.” The symbolism represents the essential amorous connection and unity of consciousness and energy, Shiva and Shakti. Tantra by virtue of its symbolism is a very rare spiritual system which is entirely positive towards sexuality in all of its forms of expression. However, Tantric sadhana, or spiritual practices, are not exclusively sexual, nor is any form of outward sexual activity in any way required. The Tantric approach is also based in an awareness of the consequences of our actions, i.e. karma, which means that we need to refrain from causing harm to others. Rape is not countenanced by Tantra, nor is child molestation. Whatever we inflict upon another we do to ourselves as well.

Yoga is a central and necessary discipline for the Tantric path. As Paramhamsaji said to us, “It is the path of yogis, not of bhogis.” Yoga is the path of disciplined awareness while bhoga is the path of undisciplined indulgence. Yoga leads to liberation, bhoga leads to deeper bondage, or what we might call “addiction.” However, the Tantric understanding is different from our addiction cure programs. Bondage refers to the absence of awareness in our thoughts, emotions and actions. Liberation means accepting and releasing everything within the open space of awareness. This does require practice. The Yoga Spandakarika tells us:

In the absolute sense, pleasure and suffering, subject
and object, are nothing other than the space of
profound consciousness.

The primary elements or “tools” of Tantra yoga are mantra, yantra and mandala. Mantras are sounds more than “words,” vibrations more than meanings. Some people us the term mantra for a positive reminder phrase that they like. This is autosuggestion not mantra. Mantras set up a vibrational field within the body-mind which links us to the vibrational field of the universe. “Man's 'inner being' is constantly in contact with something much greater than the limitations of individuality,” states Paramhamsa Satyananda, “but the average person is not aware of this. Mantra brings about a state of 'resonance' between an individual and the depths of his being.” Yantras are geometrical symbols directly related to mantras. They are considered to be the visual form of the mantra. The Sri Yantra is a well known example:

Mandalas are more elaborate expressions of the yantras in which the Devatas or residing deities appear. These represent the archetypal forms of consciousness/energy which are expressed from within our collective unconscious as Jung called it. The mandala represents the totality of consciousness and energy. Paramhamsaji states, “Each one of us and our every thought forms a mandala. A man and woman in union form a closed unit or circle which can also be a perfect mandala for attaining higher states of consciousness. The guru is a most powerful mandala as he acts as a magnet to draw down cosmic consciousness. He radiates and glows with the light of this great force. It is through the guru that cosmic powers are unleashed and transmitted to the disciple. This is the grace of the guru mandala.”

Tantra yoga includes the hatha yoga practices of asana and pranayama, raja yoga practices to discipline the mind, bhakti yoga attitude of devotion and Jnana yoga self-inquiry. All of these combine to help bring about an awakening of kundalini, the latent power or shakti within us. Kundalini flows upward along the spinal column purifying each of the chakras, or psychic centers, until she reaches the crown chakra and merges with Shiva, pure consciousness. When this happens the practitioner enters the state of Samadhi and achieves Self-realization, liberation and enlightenment. This process unfolds naturally through the practices of Tantra yoga under the guidance of a qualified guru.

Recommended Resources:
 
Kundalini Tantra/2009 Re-print
Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha/2008 Fourth Revised Edition
Meditations from the Tantras
Tantra: Path of Ecstasy
Tools for Tantra
Yoga Spandakarika: The Sacred Texts at the Origins of Tantra
Tripura Rahasya: The Mystery beyond the Trinity

From Ego to Self

The ego and the Self stand at two opposite ends of our spiritual journey. Our inquiry begins with the ego and culminates in the realization of the Self.
- Swami Shraddhananda

Eastern philosophies whether Yoga Vedanta or Buddhism, tend to regard the reality of our everyday experience as a kind of illusion. In Vedantic terms this is called maya, which is the dualistic world of appearances, name and form. In terms of a modern metaphor; we live in a virtual reality. This reality is constructed by our brain/minds from the frequency fields received through our five senses. It is an interactive and creative process. As physicist John Wheeler put it, we live in “a participatory universe.” Joseph Chilton Pearce writes, “Our perceived environment or lived experience is an end product to which we ipso facto attribute the source of that experience. This common sense, rather inevitable observation is as fundamental an error as attributing the source of the television play being viewed to the machine itself.”

The ego is a character in that play. It is the identity that we assume vis-à-vis the world projected by our psyches. As ego-identified beings we have forgotten the creative source of our experience. This is what Patanjali refers to as avidya, or “ignorance” in the Yoga Sutras. “Avidya,” states the Sutras, “means regarding the impermanent as permanent, the impure as pure, pain as pleasure and the false for the true Self (Atman.)” Everything within our world of experience is impermanent. It is a world in which energy flows into and out of various forms of expression. When we experience a loss in our lives we grieve but somehow the ego still thinks, “It won’t happen to me.” We erect a barrier of psychological denial against the inevitability of death and transformation.

Ego, in this sense, which is different from the psychoanalytic sense, is the product of avidya, or basic ignorance. To reference Patanjali again, “Ego arises out of the false identification of consciousness with the instrument of knowing (i.e. the body-mind.)” The primary field of consciousness from which we originate is infinite and eternal by virtue of not being involved in spacetime. Space and time themselves are constructs of the Self. As Robert Lanza, M.D. writes, “. . . space and time aren't objects -- they're the mind's tools for putting everything together.” Four dimensional spacetime can be seen as the basic parameters of our virtual construct.

In the practice of meditation we are learning to withdraw awareness from its habitual fixation on the senses. This is referred to in Yoga terminology as pratyahara. We are turning away from the projection to explore the process of projecting, the inner workings of the mind. The first step is relaxation. Relaxation means temporarily letting go of the primary drives that keep us engaged in samsara, or maya. These are attachment and aversion. For the duration of practice at least, we stop worrying about how to get what we desire and avoid what we don’t. To truly relax means to let go of seeking or avoiding anything. Of course, this is not so easy. Even when we are sitting with closed eyes in a safe space, our minds are busy recalling past successes and failures, and projecting them onto some imagined future. Meditation does not mean making plans for shopping after your session. Nor does it mean replaying scenes from the past and altering them in an attempt to find some impossible resolution.

Along with relaxation, instead of falling into an unconscious sleep state, we develop the ability to remain present and observe these habitual processes of the mind. Because these processes can be so strong and so frenetic however, we must develop the ability to concentrate. Concentration, or dharana, helps to quiet the mind’s activity. Dharana requires an “object.” The object can be the breath, a mantra, visual image, even a subtle thought that we return to repeatedly. It is a way of centering awareness so that we don’t just get swept away in the next wave of thought. This can be very helpful in breaking the negative cognitive patterns associated with depression and anxiety. Its true purpose is to break the habitual cognitive patterns of the ego, to allow us to see through and beyond them.

This inner practice helps us to develop meta-consciousness, an inner observer or witness. This witnessing awareness allows us to step outside of our usual patterns of mind. It allows us to make changes, to grow and expand consciousness. This witnessing awareness is the presence of the Self. It is the real you, the real me. When we are able to rest and abide for a while in this awareness we have entered into true meditation, or dhyana. Dhyana is the original Sanskrit word which became Ch’an is Chinese and Zen in Japanese. Dhyana means to abide in the Self.

This can be surprising when we first enter into this state of awareness. One finds oneself (Self) somehow outside of the body-mind, not necessarily in the sense of an out-of-body experience (OOBE) as described sometimes, but as a deeper and more expansive awareness which encompasses and transcends the usual ego self-system. It is a deeply relaxed, open and pleasant experience. It can arise very slowly and gradually over a period of practice as we think that there is nothing happening in our meditation. Actually, nothing really “happens.” It is simply a process of going deeper into what is ever-present.

In his most recent book, Be Love Now, Ram Das describes this witnessing awareness:

“One of the first steps in getting free of the attachment to this ego idea is to develop a witness. We have thousands and thousands of me's, but there is one me that is separate and watches all the other me's. It's on a different level of consciousness. It's not just another role; it's part of the heart-mind.

This witness is your leverage in the game. The witness me isn't trying to change any of the other me's. It's not an evaluator or a judge; it's not the superego. It doesn't care about anything. It just observes. "Hmmm, there she or he is doing that again." That witness place inside you is your centering device, your rudder.

The witness is part of your soul. It's witnessing your incarnation, this lifetime, from the heart-mind. It's the beginning of discrimination between your soul and your ego, your real Self and your self in the incarnation. Once you begin to live in this witness place, you begin to shift your identification from the roles and thought forms. As you witness yourself, the process becomes more like watching a movie than being the central character in one.”

The ego tends to be disparaged by many spiritual teachers and aspirants. Although it is an obstacle in a sense, it is also necessary for us to function in the world. The problem is that we become fixated and can’t see beyond our self-definitions. As Ram Das has put it, "The Ego is an exquisite instrument. Enjoy it, use it--just don't get lost in it." The Self is who we really are. It is beyond our self-definitions, imagined limitations, personal likes and dislikes. Although we tend to get very comfortable with these they are like a cage that keeps us confined in a narrow identity and limited experience. The Self has to be experienced to be known. It is not a philosophical concept, nor, of course, is it any kind of objective experience. We find it not in words and discourse but in silence.

References:

Evolution's End: Claiming the Potential of Our Intelligence
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: Commentary on the Raja Yoga Sutras by Sri Swami Satchidananda
Biocentrism: How Life and Consciousness are the Keys to Understanding the True Nature of the Universe
Be Love Now: The Path of the Heart