Om This meditation practice will assist us in moving beyond the limitations of the physical body.
It can widen the perspective and awareness in all directions,
And promotes an all-encompassing connection with the earth,
Assisting transcendence of mental activity by using one of the senses,
The sense door of hearing.
During the meditation,
We will refine our awareness of external sounds,
And then move to the internal sounds.
Sound is one of the most efficient mediums to cut the mind,
Which can facilitate direct perception of stillness in the mind.
Thus,
Is a very effective tool for deepening awareness,
Transformation of consciousness,
And developing meditation to a very subtle level.
The aim of this meditation is to focus upon the sense of hearing,
Of taking the mind inside and going inwards into subtle sensations and perceptions,
Rather than the mind being projected outwardly.
We practice until we can go through the sounds and beyond,
To move from the gross body to the subtle body.
We are gradually going to refine the mind and its ability to perceive the subtlest sounds,
Until we can hear the inner sound,
Nadam.
Thoughts are a very subtle form of internalized sound,
And thinking is the primary activity of the mind.
This practice will assist and teach us to move into experiencing different levels of consciousness.
Let us begin our meditation.
Find a comfortable seated position,
Either in Sukhasana,
Siddhasana,
Ardha Padmasana,
Or Padmasana.
Settle yourself into your seat,
With the spine and neck long,
The shoulders drop to their lowest point.
Turn your attention to your abdominal breath,
Allowing it to become natural and spontaneous.
Let us begin by becoming aware that we can hear.
We are aware that we can choose to hear or not to hear.
We are aware that we can choose to listen or not to listen.
Connect now to your sense of hearing.
Begin by externalizing your awareness of hearing to the farthest point possible,
Away from where you are sitting.
Use your hearing as a radar to pick up any sounds you can hear.
You can identify them if you wish by simply labeling them,
Without resting upon them or developing them further.
Then move on to the next sound.
Now bring the radius closer in to just outside the building in which you are sitting.
Again,
Listen out for any sounds you can hear just outside.
Bring your awareness and sense of hearing now back into the room.
Hear all the different sounds you can.
Then find one sound inside and concentrate your awareness upon it for some time.
Hold your attention on it without the mind wavering or becoming distracted.
If you become distracted,
Know that you have strayed from the object of your concentration and gently and patiently bring it back.
Now bring your mind inside and try to refine your listening to hear any sounds inside of you.
Your head,
Your body,
Your brain,
Your heart and so on.
Concentrate your attention on one sound inside only.
Let your attention ride the sound as you breathe gently in and out.
Be aware of your breath and the internal sound,
Nadam.
Now bring your attention back into the body and to the natural organic and spontaneous movement of your abdominal breath.
Rest your attention a while here.
Feel the movement of your breath now moving from the navel to the throat on the inhale.
Feel the movement of your breath moving from the throat to the navel on the exhale.
Allow the mind to settle on this breathing visualization.
Now as you breathe in and visualize the movement of your breath from the navel to the throat,
Internally repeat the mantra,
So,
The sound of the incoming breath.
So.
So.
Then as you breathe out and visualize the movement of your breath from your throat to your navel,
Internally repeat the mantra hum,
The sound of the outgoing breath.
Hum.
Hum.
Continue for some time with this practice.
Hum.
Hum.
Hum.
Hum.
Hum.
Keep your attention concentrated on the movement of your breath and the mantra,
So hum,
To the exclusion of all other thoughts,
Sensations or sounds.
So hum.
So hum.
Simply feel the movement of your breath and listen to the inner sound of the mantra,
So hum.
Your mental activity becomes.
Witness the process of this practice.
Notice if your mind becomes merged for moments with the sound to the exclusion of all other phenomena.
Now let go of the visualization and the mantra and bring your awareness back to your gentle natural abdominal breath.
Rest a while here.
Witness your thoughts,
Sounds,
Sensations,
Touch as they arise randomly.
Now externalize your mind outside.
Become aware of all sounds in the room,
Outside the building,
And those farthest from you.
Come back to the room and see your body seated on the ground and the place in which you are sitting.
Feel the contact of your clothes upon the body.
Feel where different body parts make contact with each other and the ground.
Notice the difference.
Feel the temperature on your skin and in the room.
Begin to deepen your breath,
Making it more active.
Feel the energizing prana on the inhalation expanding the lungs.
Feel the releasing,
Relaxing in the body and mind on the exhalation.
When you feel ready,
Open your eyes.
Notice how you feel,
What your sense of hearing is now like,
What you see and how you see it.
Notice the quality of your mind.
Notice the quality of your awareness.
Try to stay in this place for as long as possible.
This meditation practice is now complete.
This meditation practice is now complete.
This meditation practice is now complete.
