Your Bedtime Story And Relaxation : 3. The Donkey

Welcome to Your Bedtime Story and Relaxation session! Immerse yourself in a tranquil experience designed to calm the mind and cultivate a peaceful outlook on life. Our session begins with a captivating bedtime story based on Vedanta philosophy, promoting a positive mindset. Following the story, a guided lying-down meditation will help you achieve restful sleep. Prepare to be transported to a serene mental space as the stories relax your mind and the meditation guides you into a peaceful night's sleep. Wake up refreshed and ready to embrace the day with tranquility and positivity.

Transcript

Namaste.

My name is Sandeep.

Today we have a very special story from ancient India.

In olden days in India,

There were washermen who used to go around collecting all the dirty laundry from people.

Each washerman had a donkey with him on which he loads the laundry and then he takes it to the river side,

Washes it thoroughly,

Spreads it out on the rocks to dry the cloths and then finally he will fold them nicely and next day on the same donkey he will go around and deliver the clean cloths back to the people.

Even today in some part of India they still do it.

Just few years back I was in Banaras,

A city in India and there I saw cloths were put to dry on the rocks by the river side.

Today's story is about a washerman and his donkey.

So this washerman he goes from his house with the load of laundry to be cleaned to the river.

He loads up the donkey and takes it along there.

When he reaches the river to his dismay he finds that he had forgotten to bring the rope with which to tie the donkey to the tree.

Now this is a disaster for the poor man because if he has to go all the way back home the day is wasted and he cannot leave the donkey untied because if the donkey wanders off then that is it.

It's like the washerman's SUV.

He will be ruined.

He is a poor man and now he is wondering what to do.

He cannot leave the donkey untied or go back home.

Then a person a gentleman of the village walks past and says what is wrong?

And the washerman says Oh sir!

I am in so much trouble.

This is the problem.

I forgot to get the rope.

How do I leave the donkey?

I have to work hard near the river all day and I cannot keep an eye on the donkey.

The man said This is no problem at all.

Just pretend to tie the donkey.

You know,

Go through the motions.

That's all.

Just make sure that donkey sees you.

So the washerman does that.

He pretends to take out the rope tie it around the neck of the donkey and tie it to the tree.

The donkey is watching him while he is doing all this.

Then the washerman takes the load of cloths and tentatively goes back to the river.

He looks back at the donkey and the donkey is also looking back at him but not moving staying there near the tree.

The washerman washes the cloths.

Once in a while he looks back in the distance and sees the donkey there.

The donkey is just eating grass and staying near the tree as if tied.

In the evening when he is all done,

The cloths are washed,

Dried and folded.

He brings them back loads the donkey and says Hut!

Let's go home.

The donkey doesn't move.

Obviously,

The donkey thinks it is tied.

The washerman doesn't know what to do.

I mean if it was really tied he could have untied it but it is not really tied.

What does he do?

So he runs to the gentleman's house and says Sir,

What trouble you have put me in now the donkey won't move.

The gentleman said calmly The solution is very simple.

Just pretend to untie it.

Go through the motions again and make sure the donkey sees you.

The washerman comes back and goes through the silly actions of untying this non-existent rope.

The donkey watches him and then the washerman says Hut!

Let's go.

And the donkey moves.

So this is the story.

It illustrates the philosophical methodology in Vedanta.

In technical terms,

This is called Adhyaropapavada.

The method of superimposition and desuperimposition.

By this method,

Wise teach that which is transcendental.

That which is beyond all we know.

Names,

Forms,

Language and conventions.

Which cannot be expressed.

Which cannot be even thought about.

How do you express the inexplicable?

The absolute?

The being consciousness?

Which is beyond words?

How do you teach that?

This is the method.

We have seen this method used in previous stories also.

Or we have seen in these stories also.

All the core of it is superimposition and desuperimposition.

Somehow the donkey which is free all the time comes to think that it is tied.

Similarly,

We the ever free consciousness,

Awareness unlimited,

Being immortal,

We come to feel that we are in samsara,

The universe.

We feel we are tied to these bodies.

We are born with the birth of the body.

We age with the aging of the body.

We die with the death of the body.

This seems to us to be concrete truth.

It is far from the truth.

We are tied in samsara,

Tied to the people,

Bad relationships,

Financial problems and all sorts of unhappiness in this world,

Our own internal desires,

Frustrations and fears.

We feel we are tied.

It is concrete truth.

How can anyone say it is not true?

And yet,

Vedanta has this radical devastating bombshell.

It teaches us that you are not really bound.

And yet,

We feel we are.

Then what is the way out?

The only way out is what was done with the donkey.

That is to de-hypnotize,

To show that you are not really bound.

And that is all Vedanta does.

This feeling that we are bound,

I am a body,

I am a mind,

This is called superimposition.

And the whole technique of showing us that we are not bound,

We never were and we will never be.

It is impossible that we are always the unlimited.

We are never limited as bodies.

And that is de-superimposition.

With this,

Let's prepare to sleep.

Find a comfortable lying down position,

Lying flat on the bed with your head on the pillow,

Body relaxed.

Knees may be slightly bent.

You can keep a small pillow under the back of your knees.

This will reduce stress on your spine and support the natural curve in your lower back.

Now gently close your eyes and start taking a few nice big deep breaths,

Breathing in and out through the nostrils only.

If you find it comforting,

You can just gently place your hand on your stomach as you breathe in and out.

Just to feel that movement along with the breath.

In the body.

Let go of the deep breaths now and as you lie there,

Just notice how the body feels.

Does it feel heavy or light?

Restless or still?

Does it feel as though body is ready to sleep?

Or there is still a little bit of winding down for it to do?

Either way,

We are just going to go through this practice,

Just slowly pointing the body and the mind in the direction of deep relaxation.

Now gently shift your awareness to your surroundings.

Start to notice all the different sounds present here.

Without getting struck with any one particular sound,

Try to keep your awareness moving from sound to sound.

Keep the awareness moving from sound to sound and try to find the most distant sound which you can hear.

Let go the sound awareness and feel your body from within.

Now,

We begin body scan.

I will name a body part.

You just become aware of that body part.

Feel it and then just move to the next body part which is named.

Become aware of the right hand.

Right hand thumb.

Fingers of right hand.

Whole right hand.

Whole right arm.

Right shoulder.

Right side of the chest.

Waist.

Hip.

Whole right leg.

Right foot.

The toes.

Now left hand.

Left hand thumb.

Fingers of the left hand.

Whole left hand.

Whole left arm.

Left shoulder.

Left side of the chest.

Waist.

Hip.

Whole left leg.

The left foot.

The toes.

Feel the both legs together.

The buttocks.

Stomach.

Chest.

Back.

Shoulder blades.

Arms.

The neck.

The head.

Forehead.

Eyes.

Nose.

Right cheek.

Left cheek.

Mouth.

Lips.

Chin.

The whole face.

The whole head.

The whole neck.

The whole back.

The whole body.

The whole body.

The whole body.

The whole body.

Again we will go through the whole body.

This time a little more slower and in detail.

Starting with the right hand thumb.

First finger.

Second finger.

Third finger.

Little finger.

Fingers and thumb together.

Palm of the hand.

Palm of the hand.

Back of the hand.

Wrist.

Forearm.

Elbow.

Upper part of the right arm.

Right shoulder.

Right armpit.

Right side of the torso.

Right side waist.

Hip.

Right thigh.

Kneecap.

Calf muscle.

Ankle.

Heel.

Sole of the foot.

Big toe.

Second toe.

Third.

Fourth.

Fifth.

The whole right side of the body.

From toes to the fingers.

Fingers to the toes.

The whole right side of the body.

Now go to the left hand.

Become aware of the left hand thumb.

First finger of left hand.

Second finger.

Third finger.

Little finger.

Fingers and thumb together.

Palm of the hand.

Back side of the hand.

Wrist.

Forearm.

Elbow.

Upper part of the arm.

Left shoulder.

Left armpit.

Left side of the torso.

Left side waist.

Hip.

Thigh.

Kneecap.

Calf muscle.

Ankle.

Heel.

Left foot heel.

Sole of the foot.

Big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

Fifth.

Whole left foot.

The whole left side of the body.

From toes to the fingers.

Fingers to the toes.

The whole left side of the body.

Now to the back.

Become aware of the lower back.

The right buttock.

And the left buttock.

Middle back.

Upper back.

Right shoulder blade.

Left shoulder blade.

Back of the neck.

Back of the head.

The whole back side together.

Now go to the top of the head.

The crown of the head.

Forehead.

Both sides of the head.

Right eyebrow.

Left eyebrow.

The space between two eyebrows.

Right eyelid.

Left eyelid.

Right eye.

Left eye.

Right ear.

Left ear.

Right side cheek.

Left side cheek.

Bridge of the nostrils.

Right nostril.

Left nostril.

Upper lip.

Upper jaw.

Tongue.

Lower jaw.

Lower lip.

Chin.

Throat.

Right collar bone.

Left collar bone.

Chest.

Right part of the chest.

Middle part of the chest.

Left part of the chest.

Upper part of the belly.

Middle part of the belly.

The navel area.

Lower part of the belly.

The whole of the right leg.

The whole of the left leg.

Both legs together.

The whole of the right arm.

The whole of the left arm.

Both arms together.

The whole of the back.

Buttocks.

Spine.

Shoulder blades.

The whole of the front.

Abdomen.

Chest.

The whole of the back and front together.

The whole of the head.

The whole body.

The whole body.

The whole body.

Become aware of your breath now.

Just feel the flow of your breath.

In and out through the body.

Gently become aware of the belly and its movement along with the breath.

Notice as the breath comes in,

Belly expands slightly and as the breath goes out,

It contracts slightly.

Continue to observe the movement of your belly along with your breath.

Now,

Keeping the awareness on the breath,

Start mentally counting down your breath from 54.

As the breath comes in,

Count 54.

As it flows out,

54.

Breathe in 53.

Breathe in 53.

Breathe out 53.

Like this,

Continue.

Not trying to fall asleep.

Just counting down the breath.

And knowing that it really doesn't matter too much when the sleep comes.

As you lie there in this way,

Both the body and the mind are getting all the rest that they need.

If you lose track of the countdown,

Come back to 54 and start over.