Let's do a self-exploration meditation on how vrittis obstruct the journey from viveka to moksha.
In English,
Vritti means modification of the mind.
Viveka means the skill to discern between reality and illusion.
Moksha means liberation.
So we will do a self-exploration meditation on how the path from wise discernment to liberation can get obstructed by the modifications of the mind.
As we use Sanskrit words in this meditation,
The English meaning will follow suit.
This meditation will be done in two parts.
The first part will be a closed-eyed self-inquiry followed by an open-eyed self-exploration.
You will need a mirror and a weighing scale for this meditation.
Let's keep the mirror and the weighing scale in front of us.
Let the waker settle down comfortably with eyes closed.
Become aware of the waker's body.
Notice the sensation wave arise and dissolve.
Notice how annamaya kosha,
The physical sheath,
Appears and disappears.
Inquire deeply as to who is that which is witnessing the sensation wave arise and dissolve.
Turn towards that witness.
Allow the witness to collapse.
Collapse into the nothingness of ananda.
Recognize the oneness of the witness,
The mind,
The body and the world.
This motionless oneness,
This nothingness of ananda,
Is the realization of the highest truth.
The I-thought,
The witness,
The I-sense may appear to spring up from the nothingness and may dissolve back into it.
Allow it to simply relax,
Rest.
If the witness has relaxed and there is a nothingness devoid of duality,
It means that viveka or the skill of discernment has sharpened.
If the witness does not allow the oneness and keeps disturbing it on account of an urge to know,
To comprehend,
To perceive,
Then the viveka is still not sharp enough.
If viveka is strong,
It automatically reflects as vairagya or dispassion.
Ask yourself the following questions.
Has viveka blossomed into vairagya yet?
Has dispassion developed towards perceptions,
Sensations,
Thoughts,
Feelings as well as their absence?
Only when vairagya or dispassion blossoms can shama happen.
Shama is the stillness of the I-sense.
If the witness has quietened,
Then shama has developed.
When shama fully blossoms,
When the stillness of the I fully blossoms,
Then dhamma is its natural product.
Dhamma,
The non-reaction to the senses,
Is the natural product.
Ask yourself the question.
Is the stillness of the I facilitating the non-reaction to sight,
Sound,
Smell,
Taste and touch?
Inquire with the sound of this self-inquiry meditation.
Is there a leaning in that is happening on account of the compulsive urge to listen to every word?
Or is there a sinking back happening with the realization that the knowledge of the sound is the same as the infinite knowledge ocean?
In the absence of leaning in,
Equanimous oneness is fortified.
Ask yourself.
Has shama blossomed into dhamma yet?
Has the stillness of the witness blossomed into the non-reaction to the sense of the sound of these words yet?
Dhamma transforms into titiksha.
Non-reaction to the senses transforms into a natural spiritual toughness.
Inquire if there is an uncontrollable undercurrent of sensitivity.
Or is there an infinite,
Imperturbable oneness like a frozen lake?
An absence of an undercurrent of sensitivity is the proof that titiksha has developed,
Spiritual toughness has developed.
If there is an underlying restlessness which provokes an uncontrollable reaction from you,
Then titiksha has not yet developed,
Spiritual toughness has not yet developed.
Do you recognize the undercurrent?
The absence of reaction to the undercurrent is titiksha,
Spiritual toughness.
Titiksha blossoms into uparati,
Spiritual toughness blossoms into the withdrawal from indulgence.
Is there a realization that the infinite oneness is me only?
Is there a realization that it is futile to indulge in myself?
It is silly to want myself.
Has the natural withdrawal from indulgence happened yet?
Or is there an irresistible yearning to indulge?
If there is an absence of yearning,
Then uparati has naturally unfolded.
This maturity of withdrawal on account of spiritual toughness is uparati,
Born of titiksha.
When uparati matures,
It metamorphoses into shraddha or conviction in pure consciousness.
Is there a realization that the infinite oneness is pure consciousness itself?
Has the conviction developed that you are not the weaker?
You are not even the witness of the weaker,
But you are pure consciousness itself.
Has the conviction in the truth of nobodiness developed yet?
Has the conviction in the truth of nothingness matured yet?
If yes,
That is shraddha.
If shraddha has not matured yet,
You will notice a habitual affinity to the idea of being the weaker.
You will notice a habitual affinity to the idea of being the dreamer.
You will notice a habitual affinity to the idea of being the sleeper.
After coming onto the spiritual path,
A new spiritual affinity develops to the idea of being the lower witness.
If either of these are present,
It means that shraddha has not fully blossomed yet.
Only in the absence of compulsive attachment does shraddha blossom.
When shraddha blossoms,
It evolves into samadhan,
The equanimity born of renunciation.
In samadhan,
There is a realization that there is no thing to be acquired from nothingness.
There is nobody who can benefit from acquiring or achieving anything.
A natural renunciation of somebodyness and somethingness happens.
Has this equanimity of renunciation been tasted by you yet?
Samadhan flourishes into mumukshatva.
The equanimity of renunciation flourishes into an intense longing for liberation.
Is there a recognition that only the liberation from somebodyness and somethingness can bring about the truth that all is knowledge?
If yes,
That is the development of mumukshatva,
The intense longing for liberation.
If this has not developed yet,
You will notice a fear of being liberated from somebodyness and somethingness.
That means samadhan has not flourished into mumukshatva yet.
Only in the absence of the fear of liberation from somebodyness and somethingness can the longing for liberation flourish.
The complete blossoming of mumukshatva leads to moksha.
The complete blossoming of the longing for liberation evolves into liberation.
Moksha or liberation is freedom from the I,
The You,
The world and all the drama between them.
The complete realisation that all is bodhamatra,
Merely knowledge,
That is moksha.
Now let the eyes of the waker open.
Allow the waker to look at its reflection in the mirror.
Allow the waker to step onto the weighing scale.
Observe the vritti that arises in silence and evaluate yourself.
Were you able to move from viveka to moksha with respect to the image in the mirror and the number on the weighing scale?
Or did you get caught up in the vritti?
Evaluate yourself in silence for the next 10 minutes.
May you attain liberation.
May you attain liberation.
May you attain liberation.
