Vijnana Bhairava Dharana 11

Welcome! This meditation comes from the Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra, an ancient and highly respected Tantra from around the 8th century. The Vijñāna Bhairava comes from the Indian Tantric tradition of Kashmir Shaivism and offers 112 ways to experience the energy of meditation, the Kuṇḍalinī Śakti.

In this simple meditation, we will practice a dhāraṇā (centering technique) from the Vijñāna Bhairava. We engage with a dhāraṇā to experience the energy of meditation. Here we will practice dhāraṇā 11. In dhāraṇā 11, we turn our awareness to the subtle light shining in our skull, which takes us to pure Cit or Consciousness, an experience that Kashmir Shaivism calls Bhairava.

Transcript

Hello,

Welcome.

Welcome to our further exploration of the Vijnana Bhairava Tantra.

Vijnana,

The experiential knowledge of Bhairava,

Absolute Consciousness.

So,

The experiential knowledge of Absolute Consciousness.

Wow,

Okay,

That might sound a little bit daunting.

But the fantastic thing about Kashmir Shaivism is that it makes the state accessible to us wherever we are.

It's not somewhere different from us.

It's right where we are.

And these Dharanas,

These Centering Techniques,

Help us to experience Vijnana Bhairava,

The experiential knowledge of Absolute Consciousness,

Our own true nature.

So,

We're going to look at Dharana number 11.

Dharana 11.

Take a comfortable posture.

What I'm going to do is sing the Dharana for you.

Just let the vibrations enter your being.

And then,

After the Dharana has been sung,

We're going to unpack.

KAPALANTA MANO NYASYA TESHTAN MILITA LUCANA KRAMENA MANASO DYADYAD LAKSHAYE LAKSHAMUTTAMAM Fix your attention on the inside of your skull,

With eyes closed,

With the mind stable,

And gradually perceive that which is eminently perceivable.

KAPALA MEANS SKULL Focus your awareness on the inside of your skull.

See what you can discern there.

Focus on the interior of your skull.

What do you experience there?

What do you discern there?

Have your mind stable.

If it wanders,

That's fine.

Just bring it back to perceiving the inside of your skull.

See if you can perceive a shining inside your skull,

A light inside your skull.

Have your attention directed inward to the inside of your skull.

See if you can perceive light shining on the inside of your skull.

In Kashmir Shaivism,

This light is Prakasha.

It's a light of awareness.

See if you can perceive that light on the inside of your skull.

The light of awareness,

Prakasha,

The light of consciousness.

See if you can see the light shining inside your skull.

You may not see it at first.

You may feel it.

You may even hear it.

You may experience it as a vibration.

See if you can approach the light shining inside your skull.

We are coming to the end of the Dharana now.

But if you wish,

You can stay with your eyes closed and continue to practice the Dharana.

Or if you wish,

At your own pace,

When you are ready,

You can gently open your eyes.

So there you have it.

Dharana number 11 of the Vijnana Bhairava Tantra.

The experiential knowledge of absolute consciousness.

See you next time.