Kali

Posted by David on October 9, 2010

To celebrate the first year of my blog, I have been searching for something appropriate. What I’ve found for you is way, way in excess!

It is a quote from the passionate and intimate expressions of the yogini Shambhavi:

“Kali is the sensational in the deeper sense of the term because her powers of manifestation are incomparable.

“She is the time that consumes our lives, and the eternity that consumes time.

“She is the death ceasing to die, the being in us that is never born, and the life in us that never dies.

“To the ordinary mind she is paradoxical, yet hidden in her paradox is the key to nirvana, the peaceful respite of all eternity.”

From the book “Yogic Secrets of the Dark Goddess” (p. 238), by Shambhavi L. Chopra. (Quoted with permission)

WebLink: Shambhavi’s Website.

With Love.

© David R. Durham

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Just Sitting

Posted by David on September 29, 2010

Just sitting in meditation is a liberating experience.

Its being naked, honest, stripped of any pretension of being anyone special.

Liberated from the false perfections of yoga, or the mind-numbing repetition of mantra, or the hopes and fears of prayer.

Just sitting, observing, feeling, being our breath as it rolls in and out, like the waves on a sea’s shore. Diving joyously into the infinite pause between breaths.

Very unhuman, if you’re caught doing this in the park the authorities will probably cart you away and put you on medication. You must be somebody, you must be doing something and for God sake keep on talking (if not out loud, then in your head).

Just sitting, just sitting, just being.

© David R. Durham

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Gateways

Posted by David on September 18, 2010

In the core nature of our being, as living consciousness, there is no space and time as we understand it. For time and space are attributes of this world, and as such, they only exist for us while we are in this physical universe.

This is why, when people talk about experiencing some future heaven or enlightenment or nirvana or whatever label their culture attaches to this state of bliss, it is only true in the limited context of the human experience. And then only during the energy release, when the illusion of separateness is penetrated.

It is also as incorrect to suggest that there is some other place where we are whole, or happy, or one. For ‘where’ is a concept of space, which again, is limited to this world.

And, perhaps more importantly, imagined future ideal states or another place where we are happy are avoiding who, what and where we are right now. An acceptance of our current conditions is the first pause, the first gateway.

When we try to use our minds to understand this, or to work it out, we end up getting confused. This is simply because our mind is another one of our creations as we project into this physical existence. And as such, it is designed to help us to function in this world. It is not designed to comprehend the whole potential of our vast eternal being.

And whilst we can play endlessly in this universe, making brilliant discoveries, inventing cool toys and enjoying all the pleasures and drama of being human. When it comes to our eternal consciousness, stop trying to work it out, there’s nothing for our human mind to work out. We may get glimpses of other dimensions of consciousness and our human minds can be informed by insights from our wider consciousness; not the other way round.

Since these words are creations of this mind, in this culture and location in space and time, they are perfect for describing this world, but hopelessly inadequate in describing the fuller nature of our being. These words only serve to create a pause in your thinking process. And, in that pause, the potential for awakening to other dimensions of your vast being exists. This is the same pause which repeated meditation aims to bring you to.

The gateway to wider consciousness is in the pause.

© David R. Durham

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Meditation Tips No. 7

Posted by David on September 10, 2010

Meditation Tips No. 7: Paradox

A paradox can be defined as any person, thing, or situation exhibiting an apparently contradictory nature.

Paradox runs through meditation, like the name through a stick of rock (candy).

We learn the skills and diligently practice meditation, in order to ultimately let go of all practice.
We’re trying to discover or attain some state of being we’re are already in.
And whatever we do ‘attain’ or ‘realise’ along the way, becomes just something else that have to let go of.
We’re trying to experience ‘an altered state of consciousness’, when all along the one we’re in is perfect.
We think its all in our mind, when it turns out to be down to our heart.
And in the end, the only true, pure meditation practice, is when you know you no longer need it.
We search out our dearest love in the rarest of places, only to find it was right here all along under our noses, in the most ordinary of things.

Does this mean meditation is a waste of time? Hardly. For it is only by going through the transformational process of meditation, that we arrive at the simplicity of our being, which is closer to us than our breath.

© David R. Durham

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Meditation Tip No. 6

Posted by David on September 8, 2010

Meditation Tips No. 6: Being Present.

Whilst our minds and attention may wander, the body has a wonderful quality of always being in present time. And, as such, it can provide an important grounding quality to our being.

So while we (as conscious awareness) may still be indulging ourselves in an argument which finished 2 hours ago, fortunately our heart is beating, our lungs are pumping and all our other myriad of bodily functions are all still happening in real time.

This is one of the reasons why it is a good idea to include our breath in our meditation practice. There’s no actual need to try and alter it, simply observing it whilst it rolls in and out, or matching a mantra with the breath cycle works fine.

And if our mental attention wanders off, mesmerised by some new thought, we can simply and effortlessly bring it back to now, by re-focusing on our breath.

So, by using our breath in this way, our body gradually grounds our mind in the present (without having to tie itself in mental knots trying to be ‘here and now’).

© David R. Durham

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Meditation Tip No. 5

Posted by David on September 6, 2010

Meditation Tips No. 5: Instant Enlightenment

Good teachers are incredibly useful to us, especially when starting out with our meditation. Thereafter, they become guides who help to keep you on track, and help to point out options we may not have thought of on our own.

The ‘gurus’ to avoid are the instant or guaranteed enlightenment characters. In our age of instant food, love, entertainment, communication etc., we have become conditioned to expect and even to demand, instant service and gratification. So why not ‘instant enlightenment’?

There are at least 3 serious flaws with this type of thinking:

1. Demanding Ego
Instant enlightenment smacks of the ego’s endless ‘I want’ dramatisation, which the marketing boys and girls are only to happy to gratify, but which isn’t going to be given the time of day by a genuine meditation guide.

Through meditation, we are looking to broaden, deepen and develop our ego, so it becomes strong enough and mature enough, to be transcended.

2. Maturation Process
Enlightenment is more of an expression of being, rather than an event. Sure, we can have awakenings, big and small, but these events themselves are left behind sooner or later, as the stream of consciousness which we are expressions of, moves on and evolves more.

3. Already Enlightened
The fundamental flaw in any approach to meditation and the spiritual life where a ‘guru’ or a teaching promises some future enlightenment, is that we are already enlightened beings. So all striving, all searching and all effort towards enlightenment are in plain denial of the truth of our being.

As one of the great Zen teachers, Shunryu Suzuki, kindly pointed out: “Strictly speaking, there are no enlightened people, there is only enlightened activity.”

© David R. Durham

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Meditation Tip No. 4

Posted by David on September 3, 2010

Meditation Tips No. 4: Conscious Experience

Meditation is a very natural activity for consciously aware beings such as ourselves. And meditation techniques are very straightforward for us to learn and apply.

However, there are a few common difficulties we can encounter in our practice of meditation.

The first of these is fear, of what might happen, or could happen. Or, perhaps, the meditation process does begin to transform us and we’re afraid of losing friends because we’ve changed.

Another one are our expectations of what we should be experiencing. Maybe we’ve read stories of yogis, or other accounts of altered states of consciousness etc. And we expect to achieve them easily.

Or it could be that we over analyse our experiences and become over critical of how we are doing, compared to some imagined ideal.

All of these are false-hoods we are laying on ourselves, and in the process making meditation way more difficult and challenging than it should be.

The ‘knack’ to meditation, if there is such a thing, is to lay to oneside one’s fears, expectations and analysis, and to simply enjoy the experience.

Since ultimately that is what mediation is all about, conscious experience of being. And within that simplicity, is the elegant beauty of our unfolding nature.

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Meditation Tip No. 3

Posted by David on August 31, 2010

Meditation Tips No. 3: Thoughts

Some meditation books give the impression that one of the purposes of meditation is to stop thinking. And this can lead some people who try meditation to feel as if they have failed, because there is always one (or several dozen) more thoughts appearing in their mind, when they meditate.

The thing to bear in mind is that your mind is where your thoughts manifest, and its perfectly normal to find them there.

The real aim of meditation, as far as thoughts are concerned, is to observe their arising and passing away without getting caught up in them. And through this process, you can come to be aware that ‘you’, the observer, are not your thoughts.

If you were to take the trouble to count the number of thoughts you have in a week, and I’m not suggesting you do, it would come to several thousand.

So here I am, sitting in meditation, and thought 7,209 of this week appears. What do I do? Run after it like a puppy, like its the most important, amazing thought that I’ve had this year? Like these thoughts control me?

No. I observe it arise and pass away, like I would a cloud in the sky, or the sound of a passing car. I don’t run after the cloud or the car, like some idiot.

And, in time, in dawns on me. Thoughts are just an endless stream transient inner impressions, largely based on what happened at work today, or what I saw on the TV, or what a friend said, etc., etc.

And when in time my thoughts die down, from a lack of attention, the question then arises: Who am I?

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Meditation Tip No. 2

Posted by David on August 30, 2010

Meditation Tip No. 2: Time & Habits

When meditation was imported to the West, the myth of the 20 minute meditation was borne. It made meditation an easier sell and formed a part of the packaging which encouraged people to try it.

In fact, there is no prescribed ‘time’ for meditation, just the simple common sense view that like anything else, the more you practice the greater the benefits. As a rule of thumb, anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour will be very beneficial. Much beyond an hour and you probably belong on a retreat.

A key objective, is to form the habit of meditating on a daily basis. That way the benefits can accrue regularly through time, and you carry on meditating through thick and thin.

The best time of day for meditation is very much up to you and your life-style and other commitments. Some people find early in a morning ideal while the day is fresh and their mind’s are relatively quiet. For others, the end of the day suits them most and relaxes them for a good nights sleep.

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Meditation Tip No. 1

Posted by David on August 29, 2010

Meditation Tips: No. 1 Sort That Seating Out

The majority of people meditate while seated, so its important to get it right.

Why? Well not only will you be able to relax into a deeper and more rewarding meditation practice, you will also avoid injuring your body, through repetitively sitting in an unhealthy posture.

Whether you chose to sit cross legged, use a meditation bench or sit in a chair, doesn’t matter. The principles are the same.

Your hips are raised slightly above the level of the knees. When sitting in a chair, or cross legged on the floor, this may mean using one of more cushions to support you.
The back is upright, and it follows the natural curvature of your spine.
Your head ‘floats’ naturally on the top of your neck, eyes in a level position
The arms hang vertically down from the shoulder, bending softly at the elbows to allow your hands to rest comfortably on your lap.

If you are sitting cross legged on the floor, your knees should touch the floor to avoid straining the joints. If they don’t then put a support (such as a blanket) under them, or raise the height of your sitting cushion.

Unfortunately, some of the photographs of people in meditative posture you see in yoga magazines and books overlook these key points. I.e. people have their knees stuck up in the air, and their elbows held at an angle, which both strain the joints.

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