Namaste and welcome back.
In a distant kingdom,
A group of intrepid explorers embarked on a quest to uncover the mysteries of an unknown land.
The land was said to be filled with extraordinary treasures and the explorers were eager to find them.
Each explorer was blindfolded and placed at various points in the uncharted territory.
They were told that their mission was to describe the nature of the objects they encountered even though they could not see them.
The kingdom's wise sage had given them this challenge to test their ability to perceive the world without relying on their physical senses.
As the explorers ventured into the land,
They stumbled upon a variety of objects.
They discovered these objects to the best of their ability using only their sense of touch,
Smell,
And sound.
One explorer who encountered a soft,
Furry object proclaimed,
I have found a living creature.
It is warm and gentle.
Another explorer who came across a hard,
Soft surface said,
I have discovered a solid,
Inanimate object.
It feels rigid and unyielding.
The blindfolded explorers continued their journey,
Each describing the objects they encountered based on their limited sensory perceptions.
They disagreed on many points as they could only rely on their individual experiences.
After days of exploration,
The explorers returned to the kingdom and met with the wise sage to share their findings.
The sage listened to their descriptions with a knowing smile.
When all explorers had spoken,
The sage addressed them,
Saying,
My dear explorers,
Your experiences in the unknown land were like the various facets of life.
You encountered different objects and each of you described them from your unique perspective.
However,
What you encountered was just a fraction of the whole truth,
A limited perception of reality.
The explorers were puzzled and one of them asked,
Are our descriptions wrong?
The sage replied,
Your descriptions are not wrong but they are incomplete,
Just as in life.
Our perceptions of reality are limited by our individual senses and experiences.
In Vedanta,
We learn the concepts of neti neti,
Which means not this,
Not this.
It reminds us that we cannot fully describe the ultimate reality with our limited senses.
We must go beyond our perception to realize the greater truth.
The explorers nodded in understanding.
They realized their experiences,
Like the blindfolded explorations,
Were partial and subjective.
They had described objects based on their own limited viewpoints but they had not comprehended the entirety of the unknown land.
The sage concluded,
To understand the ultimate reality,
We must transcend the limitations of our individual experiences and senses.
By negating what is not the truth and looking within,
We can discover the unchanging reality that underlies all diversity.
The explorers left the sage's presence with a profound lesson in their hearts.
They understood that the path to realizing the ultimate truth required going beyond their limited perceptions and recognizing the deeper reality that connected all beings and objects.
Each explorer,
Inspired by their journey,
Sought to practice Neti Neti in their daily lives,
Seeking to discern the unchanging reality that transcends their individual experiences and senses.
This story illustrates the concept of Neti Neti.
In Vedanta,
Emphasizing the idea that individuals must go beyond their limited perceptions and experiences to realize the greater truth,
An unchanging reality that underlies all diversity.
With this,
Let's prepare to sleep.
Now before we get started,
Just take a moment or two to get comfortable lying in your bed.
Make sure you are under the covers.
If you do fall asleep during this practice,
And even if you don't usually go to sleep on your back,
I would like you to begin the practice by lying flat.
Maybe your knees slightly bent.
You can keep a small pillow under the back of your knees if you like.
Just lie flat on the bed in supine position.
Now gently close your eyes and start taking a few nice big deep breaths,
Breathing in and out through the nostrils only.
As you inhale,
Feel that whole body is getting healed,
And with exhalation,
Feel that all the cares,
Tensions,
And worries from the day are flowing out.
Let go of the deep breaths now,
Releasing any tension from your entire body.
It is not necessary to deliberately release tension in each part of the body.
Just develop the feeling of total relaxation.
Just enjoy that feeling of letting go.
Body is relaxed,
Sinking into the bed beneath you.
We are going to have a simple practice to wind down.
Just follow along with the voice and the instructions.
Try not to over-analyze or intellectualize the instructions.
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.
Observe one sound,
Notice it,
And then move to the next sound.
Observe this sound,
And then move to other sound.
Like this,
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 of 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,
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.
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,
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,
Thigh,
Kneecap,
Calf muscle,
Ankle,
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,
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 collarbone,
Left collarbone,
Chest,
Right part of the chest,
Middle part of the chest,
Right 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,
The breathing is natural,
Automatic,
We are not trying to change the rhythm of the breath,
We are not doing it,
Just witnessing the breath,
Maintain the awareness of breath,
Total awareness of 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 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.
