The Presence Of Space: Radiance Sutras Verse 20

During this session, we discuss Verse 20 of the Yukti Verses from the 'Radiance Sutras, a translation of the Vijanana Bhairava Tantra by Lorin Loche. A meditation follows our discussion. These sessions are recorded on a weekly basis and all are welcome.

Transcript

So today we are reading from the Radiant Sutras, Which is a beautiful translation of the Vijnana by Rava Tantra. And this is a translation by Lauren Roche. And today we are reading Sutra 20 on page 55. For anyone who has the book, You don't have to have the book at all. And even if you have the book, I highly recommend closing our eyes and letting our soul hear instead of our mind. When our eyes are reading, Our brain is engaged and our brain is very much part of this 3D world, The physical world, Which is awesome. But we also want to be able to access our infinite selves, The parts of us that aren't so limited. And so today's class, I will read the Sutra twice, And then we'll have a discussion. And then we're going to do a meditation to explore the Sutra in a very visceral way. And then I'll read it again in Sanskrit and then in English. I'm so sorry to ask, Is this about sexuality and Sutra? Not today. No, The Radiant Sutras is about Tantra. It's really about becoming Tantric. There are Sutras in here that have a very sensual excitement about them, For sure. But this isn't one of them. This one is more about expanding into infinite consciousness. I knew and I thought Tantric was sexual. No, Tantra is, It's more like taking a different perspective on the universe and bringing it into everything, Bringing it into everything, Including our intimacy, Including our sexuality. But it actually starts with changing our perception of the world, Which changes our perception of relationships, Which really changes our intimacy. So finding a comfortable position, You can be sitting, Lying down, Anything you'd like. And let's just close our eyes, Breathing deeply, Relaxing your shoulders, Letting your belly expand as you inhale, Contract as you exhale. The radiance of space permeates the body and all directions simultaneously. Space is always here, Already here before you're noticing of it. What we call space is a presence, Permission to exist, And worlds within which to express. Without thinking about it, Without forming mental images, Rest in this vast expanse, Friends with infinity. What words stay in your mind or what feelings come up when you hear that? Space is the true God, Floating through time, Energy, Permission to exist, Permission to exist, Friends with infinity, Expanse, Openness, Spaciousness, Friends with infinity, Energy is everything. Vast expanse, I can feel it, Expanse with no borders, Equanimity, Space within space, I am space in space, Presence. So what does that feel like? Does it feel comforting? Does it feel too big? Eternal space of love is within me and all around me, Spaciousness outside in this body, Love, Nothingness. Space is a gift in which we express ourselves in expansiveness. It feels good, Grounded and expansive, A sweet, Calm feeling like security and love. It feels comforting, Being held by the gravitational field, Awesome space and freedom. It feels like we can all fit, Like we are welcome. Whatever we need is space. It's not too big because it's plenum. Here, I'll read it one more time. The radiance of space permeates the body and all directions simultaneously. Space is always here, Already here before you're noticing of it. What we call space is a presence, Permission to exist and worlds within which to express. Without thinking about it, Without forming mental images, Rest in this vast expanse, Friends with infinity, Also known as the void. It's interesting, One of the lines that really touched me is the idea that what we call space is a presence. Sometimes when we imagine infinity or oneness or all and everything, It's very overwhelming. It's almost like a part of us feels like, Oh, I want to hold on to something or I want to find some security in that. But what if the void, Shunya, Isn't nothingness? What if it's a presence? What if it's the plenum? The plenum is basically the idea that the air around us is full. It's not empty at all. It's almost like that's where all the potential of life is. It's almost like there's this energetic potential always floating around and all we have to do is sort of bring it into our world. We just need to invite it in and say yes. It's the same thing as breathing. When we breathe, We are breathing in oxygen. We are breathing in life force. So everything around us, We take into us and it nourishes us. It kind of seems like it's nothing around us and yet without it, We can't even be here. So there's got to be something important in there. It's funny, In a world of industrialism, The information age, Artificial intelligence, Computers and everything, There's a lot of talk about chat, GPT and artificial intelligence and things like that, Writing books and articles and things like that. But what's really interesting about all that is it shows us what the limited world is about. It shows us the things that can be written or have been written or said out loud. And what's intriguing to me is that whenever something new comes out and it seems like it's this really big deal, If it doesn't sit in my heart well, I often think, I wonder if it's appearing as contrast so that we look for what's real. And this is what's really interesting about this space is because of course, I don't think space is nothingness. I don't think silence is empty. I think it's a portal. I think when we can experience the space, Then we can experience the presence, Like the real presence of life. So there's something really powerful about enjoying it. So sometimes when we're meditating, Especially if we're just doing silent meditation, There's nothing to entertain our brain. Our brain wants the talking, It wants to be led. And don't get me wrong, I like teaching guided meditations and things like that. There's a time and a place for those. But there's really something about sitting in silence and enjoying the silence, Like swimming in the silence. It's almost like you just dove into the pool and you're enjoying this beautiful expanse of water, As opposed to diving into the pool and looking for a toy or a ball or something to play with. It's like, I've got to have something to play with. And that's what our brains are like. It's got to be something I can think about. But what if we enjoyed the space? What if we imagined it like a clear lake or a beautiful pool or whatever? And we went, Oh, Nothingness. It feels so good. Space is where I go to visit loved ones on the other side. We float together and we can see each other completely, Even though that's not possible here. It's infinite and forever. Use time to appreciate space. Slow down to let your senses experience space. Your body is in the space. Your mind is of the space. Your mind is of the space. So one of the things that they talk about in the Sutra is they talk about directions. If you imagine, You know, You want to go on a journey or you want to go on a vacation or go to the grocery store, We start to actually use direction in space, Because we're in this space and somehow I have to get over there to the grocery store. So this is where the idea of direction is created, That I have to go in this direction and then this direction and then that direction, And then I'll end up where I want to go. Well, What's interesting about this Sutra is if you sat quietly, They ask you to imagine the directions, In all directions, And you kind of close your eyes and then you allow all those directions to disappear. Like all the directions are filled with nothingness and then all of a sudden time and space are just one. But what's really interesting about this meditation is that the directions are inside the body, Because the meditation journey is within. So we do the same exercise, Only we do it within our bodies. We imagine the directions inside our body. So even like right now, If you're sitting here, If I say that, What are some of the directions in your body? What comes to your mind? For me, I think of things like, You know, That my brain thinks something about my body, So there's a direction going down. Or my body has an experience and it sends a message up to my brain, Inside my heart, The chakras. And so it's so interesting because they say, You know, Imagine all these directions, Imagine how energy flows in the body, But then imagine that all those directions are just filled with void, Nothingness, And then all of a sudden you're just one with everything. Continuously changing and recreating my energy, The eight star, Eight directions, Infinity, Expanding love, All directions forever and after. It's really interesting when you think of, So if I'm sitting right here, And you say, Like point in a direction, And I point over there, Over there, Over there, Over there, Over there, There's actually an infinite number of directions I can point. So you're kind of like, If I can point in infinite ways, It's almost like the more different ways I can direct, You realize they're not even real. It's all just a construct. We'll read you one more thing. This is from this book called Vijnana Bhairava or Divine Consciousness by Jaideva Singh. One thing he talks about, It's sort of wordy, But he said, Two conditions are laid down for this contemplation. The contemplation of the void in all directions has to be done simultaneously, And the mind has to be stilled completely. So stilling the mind is absolutely required for us to be able to do this. So you can imagine that, Right? If our mind is busy thinking about a million things, And it's kind of all over the place, Where our brain is literally going in all these directions, And our brain is taking all these directions very seriously. You know, This thing I'm thinking about is really important. If I'm obsessed with finishing my manuscript in this moment, I'm not going to be able to contemplate the void. I have to be able to still my mind completely. And so we're going to do a meditation. One of the techniques we're going to use is called Kyastherium. On Insight Timer, I have this in a meditation, And it's called Kyastherium. And it helps to still the body. It means to create steadfastness in the body. Because very often, Our bodies get very twitchy, Our nervous system and our brain wants to So if you ever want to go deeper into this, Definitely just check out that meditation. But we will do a version of it here today. So through Kyastherium, Through breathing, We will still our minds. And then we'll explore what we're talking about in terms of dissolving the directions inside the body. So the first thing you want to do is let's just stretch out your body, Stretch out your arms and your shoulders and your head, Stretch out anything you need to kind of get anything out of your body before we sit still and contemplate this sutra. So let's close our eyes. Make sure you're in a comfortable seat, Maybe sitting on the floor, Cross legged or on your heels. Or sitting in a chair with your back straight, Your feet flat on the floor, Or on books or something if your legs are short. And let's just begin focusing on our breath, Expanding the belly as we inhale, Contracting as we exhale. And just make sure that you're comfortable. Adjust your posture. Add pillows if you need or blankets. And now focus on your alignment, The alignment of your body. Feel your sit bones pressing into the earth. Let your spine be straight, Chin tucked in, Crown of the head to the ceiling. Your hands could be resting in your lap, Maybe palms facing up. And imagine that you're observing yourself from the outside, Looking at your posture from different angles, From the front, From the side, From the back, Breathing deeply, Expanding the belly as we inhale, Contracting as we exhale. Now let's visualize yourself as a tree. Feel your body as the big trunk. Feel roots going down into the earth, Out to the side, Under the earth beside you, You reaching down for water, Nutrients, Feeling all the little tendrils of the roots playing in the soil with the critters in the soil, The worms, The moisture, Feeling this energy flowing up into the trunk of the tree, Out into the branches, Into the leaves. Feel your body becoming very strong and still. And now start to notice sensations in your body. Is there anywhere that's uncomfortable? Focus there. Really dive into what's happening in that part of your body, Breathing deeply, And then move to another part of your body where maybe you feel discomfort, Or pain, Or warmth, Or coolness, Tingling. Then let's move to one more spot, Or maybe back to your original spot. Put all your attention in that area. What does it feel like? What's it doing? And then let's focus on your right foot. What does it look like? How is it feeling right now? And then your right ankle, Your right calf, And shin. What's it touching right now? How's your right knee feeling? And then the upper part of your right leg, Your quadricep, Your hamstring. And how's your left foot feeling? Is there any discomfort, Tingling? What about your left ankle, Your left calf, And shin? How does it feel? How is your left knee and your left upper leg? How are your hips feeling? Where your hips connect into your legs and your buttocks, Your right cheek, Left cheek. How's your lower back feeling? Rolling up your spine, Noticing each vertebrae, The ones that feel easy, The ones that feel challenged. What about the organs in your belly? Are there any curious sensations there? Your diaphragm and your lungs. How does your heart feel? Can you feel it pumping and moving up into the shoulders? How does your right arm feel? Your upper arm, Elbow, Forearm, Wrist, Fingers, Thumb. Where your left arm, Upper arm, Elbow, Forearm, Wrist, Fingers, Thumb. And then let's look at our head, Our neck, The base of our skull, Our chin, Our eyes, Our cheeks, Our scalp, And feel the stillness in your body. Allow yourself to become completely immobile for a while, And even slow the breath down. Allow it to be very subtle, As if there was a feather under your nose, And as you breathed, It never even moved. Very gentle inhales and exhales. Now let's imagine the directions in our body. Visualize arrows pointing up, Pointing down, Pointing around. There's no right way to do this. Whatever comes to you is perfect. Feel your attention on those arrows, The things we pay attention to in the body, The things we connect. Now imagine all those arrows to be just the void, Emptiness, Stillness, Everythingness. The radiance of space permeates the body and all directions simultaneously. Space is always here, Already here before you're noticing of it. What we call space is a presence, Permission to exist, And worlds within which to express. Without thinking about it, Without forming mental images, Rest in this vast expanse, Friends with infinity. Let's take a deep breath together, And exhale. Start to feel back into your body. As you breathe, Become aware of your belly expanding. Slowly start to move your shoulders, Stretch your body in any way that feels good. Without losing this beautiful quietness, Sigh, Stretch out your legs, Wiggle your toes. Take a few more deep breaths, Really bringing oxygen into the brain, Into the body, And slowly open your eyes and gaze around your room or outside, Wherever you are, And then stretch a little bit more, And let's come back together. Thanks, Everybody. I hope you have a wonderful day or a wonderful sleep.

Reviews

All directions from within for me resemble Mother Earth, a sphere. I become one with the Earth and then I can extend into the void, into infinity. My entire body receives then tantric jolts of pure connection with the universe, a sense of freedom. Space.