Streamed dwell on Sep 21, 2023
Nondual Meditation
Let’s start, as common, by simply settling in and asking your self the query, what’s it wish to be me proper now? After which wanting. Checking in with your self, What’s it wish to be me proper now? Principally, simply take your personal climate report, how are your ideas, how are your feelings, how’s your physique really feel, how’s stuff going, after which crucial half right here, in addition to simply checking, is to utterly settle for nonetheless it feels to be you proper now. No matter’s happening, whether or not it’s constructive or adverse, or some jumbled chaos in between these two issues, or actually enjoyable, or actually not enjoyable, or tremendous complicated, or possibly somebody’s having a minimize diamond readability second, who is aware of. No matter it’s like in there, simply let it’s that approach, and surrender, for now not less than, not less than for the time of this meditation, simply surrender the type of elementary self-aggression that you have to change it. As an alternative, let’s take the other stance: self-compassion. Nevertheless it’s, it’s precisely high quality, precisely excellent, for now. Okay so, let’s simply sit with that for a couple of minutes.
Superb. Now, simply entry no matter already present openness you’ll find. We would name it openness of the sky, however a way of spaciousness, readability, freedom, openness. Simply no matter is already there, you don’t should make openness occur, simply no matter feels open, simply come from that place. Come from the place of openness. Actually tune into that, and from the very starting, let’s simply drop into no matter openness we might be with.
From there, let’s do some gentle pranayama. We’ll do some alternate nostril respiration. If you understand how to try this, simply start. should you don’t know learn how to do it, then I’ll present you. You’re going to start by closing your proper nostril along with your proper thumb, breathe in by way of your left nostril, and breathe out by way of the suitable nostril whereas closing the left. Then, breathe in by way of that proper nostril, shut it off, breathe out by way of the left. So that you’re simply switching sides–breathe in a single, aspect breathe out the opposite. Shouldn’t be that audible. We’re not attempting to breathe laborious, we’re simply respiration usually, however switching sides every time.
If you wish to, you are able to do a mantra with this: On the in-breath you’d say “soham.”
You may repeat it, soham, soham, soham , or simply soham, after which on the out-breath, hansa. So simply to make it clear, soham, there’s no third individual definition in Sanskrit, in order that may very well be: I’m she, I’m he, or I’m it, that means on this case that means the last word consciousness. Then hansa is the reverse: he, she, it, is me. So we’re simply figuring out with the last word consciousness precept, with this mantra, a really very historical mantra. So on the in-breath soham soham, silently, in fact.
Let’s simply meditate on that for like 5 minutes, doing the alternate nostril respiration, simply if it’s okay. Your arm would possibly get drained. We’re not going to do it perpetually, so simply preserve going and see how the alternate nostril respiration, as a result of it’s bilateral by hemispheric stimulation, it actually begins to manage the system. That is actually, actually good, supposedly anyway, for vagus nerve stuff. It’s a vagal regulator, and also will begin that will help you to calm down way more deeply, whereas on the similar time remaining fairly alert.
We all the time wish to combine our leisure with alertness. More often than not individuals both get too alert, after which–there’s no such factor as too alert–however they get alert by way of pressure, so that they’re alert however actually anxious. Otherwise you get so relaxed that you simply type of begin falling asleep, you lose all of the alertness. So, what we wish, is that this difficult combination of actually, actually deeply relaxed, whereas on the similar time, fairly alert, fairly awake, and so this alternate nostril respiration is designed that will help you get into that place, and doing it with the mantra makes it even stronger.
When you’re used to a few of the extra superior yogic bells and whistles that may go together with this, and you’re feeling like doing these high quality. Classically, the way in which I used to be educated, you closed the suitable nostril along with your proper thumb and the left nostril with the 2 center fingers. Different traditions do it in several methods, however that’s how I discovered it. Attempt to sit up fairly straight when you do that. It’s crucial for the respiration that you simply’re not slumped over, thanks.
Good. So, finish on a left nostril exhale, since we started on the left nostril inhale, after which merely tune in once more to how that feels. Tune into that sense of grounding stabilization, but in addition, the brightness, how the thoughts will get fairly a bit brighter once we try this. Moreover, there’s usually a way of actual pleasantness within the physique, or not less than the size has moved, the balances have tipped, extra in favor of pleasantness.
So now, from the place of being this vast open sky of consciousness, this sense of actual openness that we’ve now type of enlivened with our pranayama, simply sit, and permit the wave of the breath to rise and fall. The wind of the breath, to rise and fall within the sky, the vast open sky of the minds. That is very, very, relaxed, very open, very mild. Not drilling down with our focus, and we’re not attempting to hammer our consideration onto a degree, we’re simply staying vast open, actually relaxed, actually comfy, feeling that regulated, relaxed alertness. Merely conscious of the breath wave rising and falling, rising and falling within the sky of the thoughts.
Let’s try this collectively now, and if you wish to work with it a bit of bit extra on the in-breath you may discover consciousness simply getting clearer and brighter, and on the out-breath, actually letting go of pressure, letting go of tightness. Coming into extra openness on the in-breath, brightening, clarifying; on the out-breath, openness and leisure. So once more we’re type of balancing, we’re discovering the Goldilocks zone, we’re threading the needle between deep leisure and brilliant clear vast awakeness. Merely sitting with vast awakeness, we’re not getting sleepy, we’re not getting drowsy. If you’re, be sure to sit up, open your eyes, come again to awakeness, it’s vital to not drift off into dullness. Sitting with this wakeful, vast openness, simply staying with consciousness of the breath rising and falling, with out significantly concentrating on it, however simply consciousness of it. Permitting that in-breath to brighten the sense of readability and wakefulness, and the out-breath to let you let go much more, drop much more weight, much more armoring, much more tightness, and discover pleasantness, openness, launch.
You could possibly now really feel into that breath extra with much more subtlety and sensitivity. Really feel, what we’d name, contained in the breath, deep inside the breath, and see that the breath is powered by a type of wave of vitality. Somewhat than the breath itself, see should you can really feel, and also you may not be capable of, however see should you can start to note the vitality behind the breath. It’s very delicate, however very highly effective, clean, wave of vitality that rises up and down within the physique and causes the lungs and muscle groups and rib cage and blood vessels and so forth to maneuver with the in- and out- breath.
See if you’ll find that delicate vitality behind the respiration, that delicate vitality behind the respiration might be shifting up and down within the core of the physique, however it’s possible you’ll discover you’re feeling it additionally within the extremities, or on the pores and skin, or no matter, however type of the core of it’s within the core. It’s proper within the middle shifting up and down the central channel. As you’re feeling that delicate vitality shifting the breath, discover you would possibly begin feeling it and also you would possibly begin feeling type of emanations from that vitality, feeling your extremities lighting up with some tingling, some vitality. Your arms and toes lighting up, possibly even your forearms and sometimes additionally lips and face. It’s no large deal, simply really feel all that vitality within the physique and see that it is rather nice, very very, maybe delicate, and sometimes fairly nice vitality sensation. As we proceed to only permit the breath to rise and fall within the sky of consciousness, the vast open, straightforward, relaxed, easy sky of clear wakefulness that’s all the time current, that has all the time been current.
When you’re pretty delicate, it’s possible you’ll really feel vitality sensations all all through the physique because the breath rises and falls, very nice buzzy tingliness all all through the complete physique. Trip these waves, simply let the attention experience on these waves. It feels good, it’s very relaxed, you’re not doing something. It’s doing itself, however you may start to actually tune into a way, a a lot deeper sense, a bone-deep sense of ease beginning to come into the physique. A bone-deep sense of actual openness, actual letting go, feeling free, and on the similar time, no muddiness, no slipping away into unconsciousness. That is brilliant, that is clear, that is nice, pleasantly awake, wakeful.
Now, discover as you’re feeling the physique like this, the physique shouldn’t be a static object. It’s not a pile of bones and meat and blood that’s simply sitting there. Each a part of it’s vibrating, each a part of it’s wave-like, each a part of it’s energetic. Each a part of it’s shifting and altering, each cubic millimeter of the physique is liquid, is alive, is wakeful, and is supple with vitality. It’s alive.
When you’re feeling drowsy, sit up, sit up, with the highest of your head going in the direction of the ceiling, possibly eyes vast open, get some vitality again into the system so that you’re not simply spilling over the sting into darkness. Time and again, staying wakeful, within the brilliant clear sunshine.
Good, now, simply as we had been permitting the sky-like thoughts of consciousness to easily pay attention to the rising and falling of the breath wave, now let this wakeful openness pay attention to the guts. You would possibly, should you’re good at mindfulness, you would possibly really feel it ping however you may not simply pay attention to your coronary heart space. Discover, does it really feel tight and constricted and unhappy, or vast open and joyous and light-weight, or fearful or indignant, what’s taking place there within the coronary heart area? Simply tune into that proper now, as a result of the physique is so alive and energized and awake from these breath waves. Now tune into the guts area. Is it awake? Is it alive? Is it supple? Is it open? is it locked down, armored? Is it unfindable? What’s happening within the coronary heart area, and no matter is happening, that’s okay. Simply begin to really feel it, permit the attention of the guts space to come up within the limitless wakeful openness of the thoughts.
We actually really feel the guts area, really feel the feelings there, and no matter it looks like there, start to really feel as should you’re respiration into the guts by way of a gap within the entrance of your chest, and respiration out of the guts by way of that very same aperture. Because the breath enters the guts house it brightens it up, clearer, brighter, extra mild, extra vitality in a really nice approach, and as you breathe out, all of the difficulties and sorrows and weights of the guts begin to soften away into that out-breath. The center turns into lighter, and extra open, lighter and extra comfy. Really feel how the breath is remodeling the guts, the breath is remodeling the middle, opening it up, bringing a way of ease and suppleness to this area.
Give it time. It is going to take a short time to get this. Simply discover some house, discover some spaciousness, discover some gentleness there. The center might be virtually infinitely mild, so let’s method our coronary heart with super subtlety, super sensitivity, achingly delicate gentleness. Inhaling by way of the chest, respiration out by way of the chest, into the guts middle. Letting the guts middle soften like wax, soften like butter, grow to be tremendously extra liquid, and launched, and comfy, and open.
Starting to note, simply as we did with the breath itself, the vitality behind this opening of the guts middle. The center middle itself, with all its emotions, is just like the outer expression, however there’s an inside expression. There’s an vitality there which you’ll be able to start to note because the breath goes out and in of the guts middle. We’re not attempting to pressure something right here. We’re not attempting to pry it open or push. That is pure gentleness, simply permitting and permitting and permitting with openness and readability and ease and kindness.
Good. Now, feeling the vitality within the physique, feeling that nice, vast open gentleness of the guts middle. With super talent and sensitivity and kindness, permit consciousness to note the forehead middle, the third eye middle. Breathe in by way of the third eye middle and breathe out by way of the third eye middle. Really feel the breath coming and going from simply barely above, in between your eyebrows. Instantly bringing a way of way more wakefulness and readability to expertise. Feeling the vitality going out and in of the third eye. You may even really feel it arising on the out-breath that strikes up from the stomach, by way of the guts middle, out the third eye. The in-breath is available in by way of the third eye, into the guts middle down into the stomach. Discover the vitality within the physique is sort of a bit bigger now. The center is relaxed and sort and simple and open.
The thoughts is getting even brighter, much more awake, and the flexibility to be delicate, delicate, mild, grows bigger and bigger. In-breath coming in by way of the third eye, lighting up the guts middle, going into the stomach, filling with vitality. The out-breath arising from the stomach, by way of the guts, stress-free, opening the guts, and out by way of the third eye. The thoughts simply blows out by way of the third eye and dissolves into the house in entrance of you. All ideas, all ideas, all confabulations of the thoughts blow out the opening, and the third eye into the house in entrance, and easily dissolve into the sky of consciousness, leaving no the rest. The thoughts, merely dissolving into house on every out-breath, leaving nothing however wakeful house, wakeful openness.
Superb. Now we will stick with this. You may preserve doing it, or simply let your self now
let go of all of the visualization stuff, and easily sit as wakeful, vast openness, with nothing to do in any respect, however simply be wakeful house. You may’t make wakeful house occur, it’s all the time been there. However, we will simply sit with it, be it.
The way in which to lose it, the way in which out of it, is to attempt to do one thing. You then’ll simply collapse again into some type of non-space. So, should you collapse again, then merely let go of any doing of any variety, and are available again to the wakeful, vast openness, which is all the time already.
All our meditation train till now’s to assist the thoughts launch its grip in order that we will simply relaxation now as wakeful quiet openness with out gripping onto something or placing ourselves in a field or attempting to determine one thing out or attempting to do one thing, we’re simply letting go of all that and sitting as vast awakeness itself. Broad openness itself, which has nothing to do. It already is what it’s.
Discover that this vast open vast awakeness doesn’t want to alter something, doesn’t must do something, doesn’t should be totally different by some means. It doesn’t should be higher, doesn’t must wrestle, doesn’t must try. It already is wakeful and vast open, and it simply rests as that. There’s no want for any pressure in any respect, very relaxed, comfy, not striving or attempting, completely launched. The stomach is absolutely smooth, open and unguarded. By work and striving and defensiveness, and attempting to remain protected, and armoring up, our stomach can get actually stiff and tight. However right here, the stomach is completely smooth, completely open, completely undefended, unguarded. Supple, comfy. Really feel that undefended softness of the open stomach.
Identical factor within the coronary heart. The center is vast open, undefended, disarmored, tremendously delicate, open to everybody and every little thing. It’s not simply the entrance of the guts, it’s the again, the higher again, behind is vast open, is relaxed, is launched, is undefended, is letting go, is comfy, at peace, at relaxation.
Any time our thoughts begins to place ourselves in some type of field, we simply let go. Come again to wakeful vast openness. It’s not an thought. As quickly because it’s an thought, that’s a field, so we simply let go of the field. When you’re attempting to do it proper, that’s only a field, and we simply calm down and launch and let go of the field. Attempting to make something occur, attempting to be totally different, attempting to do it proper, attempting to determine it out, attempting to be good at it, attempting to evaluate your self as being dangerous at it. All of those are simply issues to drop, as we return to pure ease, pure openness, pure vast awakeness.
As quickly as you’re doing something, simply drop it. As quickly as you’re attempting to alter something, simply drop it. As quickly as you’re attempting to be anyone totally different, simply drop that. As quickly as you need expertise, no matter you’re experiencing, to be totally different than what it’s, simply drop that. Each time you attempt to determine it out, simply drop it. Attempting to do it proper, simply drop it. Judging what’s happening, simply drop it.
Wishing you had been a distinct individual, a greater individual, a extra stunning individual, this individual or that individual, simply drop it. All the pieces can be so significantly better if life had carried out this different factor otherwise or should you had carried out one thing this or that approach, simply drop it. Come again to the vast open, vast awakeness that isn’t even situated wherever, that doesn’t have a floor, you may’t discover the underside of it, you may’t discover the boundary of it, you may by no means decide the start of it. The vast awakeness that’s already utterly conscious of itself in and of itself. It was already completely and perpetually full.
Really feel the vitality of that wakeful, vast openness. How the vitality provides beginning to your thoughts and your physique and your emotions and your ideas, and provides beginning to the world round you in each second. Really feel the reference to all of the individuals in right here and really feel they’re connecting again with you. Let everybody in right here really feel your kindness and openness and vast awakeness, and really feel they’re beaming again at you. Then unfold that even additional out to everybody in every single place, and really feel everybody in every single place beaming again their wakeful, vast open, vast sensitivity, and readability, and wonder, and the Aristocracy and enoughness, spontaneity, and playfulness.
Superb. Simply tuning in with wakeful, vast openness, to precisely how that feels.
That’s the tip of the meditation there, for now, wakeful, vast conscious, that nothing as
really ending, nothing is definitely altering.
Q&A
Michael: Any experiences or questions, increase your hand. Something you wish to say about something, something arising, or precise questions. In any other case, simply relaxation in wakeful, vast openness.
Questionner 1: Hello Michael. I’ve a query. Is that this meditation the identical as dropping the ball? Also called do nothing? A.okay.a. Shikantaza, as a result of it feels barely totally different.
Michael: The very finish of it was, the final quarter of it. We did some breath work and visualization to type of put together us, to have that be a bit of extra steady, a bit of extra awake, a bit of simpler, however the final bit was, particularly after I was saying, drop that drop that drop.
Questioner 1: One other terminology query. The way in which you describe going to wakeful house, is that the identical factor as prajna knowledge?
Michael: Wakeful house, or wakeful, vast openness, is how I’m selecting to speak about vacancy, however vacancy is type of a tough Buddhist idea. Whereas wakeful, vast openness is very easy to hook up with. In normal concept, we might say that the definition of prajna knowledge is vacancy, so right here prajna knowledge is being expressed as wakeful, vast openness.
Questioner 1: So, is it additionally the identical factor as inconsiderate house?
Michael: Not essentially. Ideas might be wakeful, vast open.
Questioner 1: Thanks.
Michael: Only for the file, I don’t usually put laborious equal indicators between any of the belongings you simply mentioned, so we’ll put a wavy equal signal, or not. It’s not simply the identical as, we will discuss delicate variations, okay? Thanks, what else?
What occurred, how are you? What do you wish to discuss?
Questioner 2: Thanks Michael. As common, it’s superior. Thanks everybody for being right here, too. The vitality was superior within the room. Hopefully, for the YouTube individuals, the vitality got here by way of the video, so, all the time looking for you YouTube individuals! I had a report which was, the visualization of my coronary heart house, which was shocking as a result of I usually idiot myself. One of many methods I fooled myself is by pondering I’m very linked with my coronary heart middle and my feelings as a result of I’m feeling issues which can be very intense.
And so they’re possibly exterior, no matter, I received’t speculate about that. On this case, after I checked in, I had this very distinct visualization of a bit of cage round my coronary heart, and I didn’t comprehend it was there. No query, simply my report was that it was cool whenever you mentioned it melted. It was virtually like my thoughts was probing, how do I get on this cage, how do I break this cage open, how do I smash this cage open, as a result of I wish to free my coronary heart so I might be open and soften. Then it simply melted like wax, the entire thing melted so it’s actually actually cool.
Michael: Superb. What else is occurring on the market on this huge sea of meditators?
Questioner 3: I used to be simply questioning whenever you’re attempting to drop the ball.
Michael: It’s already improper should you’re attempting to do it.
Questioner 3: Sorry, throughout that final quarter, I tended to note as a result of I stored my eyes open, so as to not fall asleep. I have a tendency to note a variety of bizarre visible patterns. Is that an energetic factor, so I ought to drop it, or is it only a passive factor?
Michael: Solely you may know, however should you preserve going oh, oh, oh!–Simply let it’s there, don’t go after it like that. Particularly in case your eyes are open, don’t fixate. As a result of in case your eyes are fixated, then your retinal cells are gonna simply cease having the ability to work proper, and your imaginative and prescient will get bizarre. So it’s like saying a abdomen ache is a few type of a religious expertise or one thing. It’s only a bizarre factor that occurs to your eyes in the event that they get too nonetheless, so let your so be sure to’re permitting your self to blink. Your eyes can transfer round–you’re not rigidly fixating.
Questioner 3: Thanks.
Michael: That’s to not say different bizarre shit can’t occur for different causes, however it doesn’t matter what, we’re not likely climbing onto that both. Something that’s glommed onto is de-glommed. Superb. That’s the following spherical of the podcast.
Questioner 4: Thanks. My query is, I used to be with you with the awake house, after which once we moved into the dropping the ball part there was this sense that one of many issues I might drop was just like the creation of any house. I might by some means grow to be like 2D or like zero D as a substitute of getting like a 3D realm in my thoughts after which that was very nice, however then you definitely stored on speaking concerning the awake house, and I wished to not make it 3D. Does it imply 3D whenever you say house?
Michael: It means the awake house that’s already there. You’re not making it something. You’re not attempting to make it greater or make it 3D. If it’s zero D then that’s what’s there, if it’s 3D, if it’s 7D, if it’s 11D, that’s what’s there. We’re not making something occur. There could be a sense that we really feel like we have to increase house on objective, or increase consciousness. Don’t do any of that, simply let it’s what it’s like. No matter it means after I say vast openness, no matter’s there, that’s what we do. We don’t should make it into one thing. Over time, the dimensionality of it–is imaginary anyway–so the vast openness doesn’t essentially imply it’s already all the way in which vast open. Any seeming non-wide openness in that could be a field we’re placing ourselves in; so simply drop it, okay?
Questioner 4: I stored noticing contractions in my physique that I acknowledge as recurring, they’re acquainted to me, and I used to be torn between permitting my consideration to go to these locations, to softly see what desires to occur there, see if one thing desires to launch. It’s focusing and feeling round, versus not letting my consideration be pulled there.
Micheal: It simply depends upon which meditation you’re doing, or which a part of the meditation we’re in. There’s not one proper reply. Each of these issues are nice to do. Within the final quarter of this meditation we might be doing extra the B choice there, simply don’t actually become involved with it, simply let it’s how it’s. However in earlier elements, and even in different meditations at different instances, go in. Getting into there and checking it out, feeling it, seeing what it desires to do, what it wants, and many others., and many others., is a superb apply. So it’s only a matter of what we’re as much as at any given second.
Questioner 4: Okay, cool thanks.
Michael: I feel what can occur actually usually is that there’s a way that there’s one proper method to meditate, whereas, actually, there are tons of of fascinating, cool methods to meditate. Every one in all them might be applicable or inappropriate, relying on what we’re as much as. Thanks.
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