Atma Vichara - The Essence Of Meditation

Our human experience consists of perceptions of the world, body and mind. Outside of these, there is no other element to the human experience. Analysing in turn, we find that they are often fragmented and always changing, contrary to our experience. There is a continuous element to human experience, one that doesn't come and go and one that is so familiar it is thoroughly veiled through experience.

This meditation is about finding that space and resting there.

Transcript

Atma-vichara,

The essence of meditation.

Welcome to this guided meditation.

My name is Vikas Pandey.

I'm a surgeon and I also teach meditation.

This meditation,

Or rather contemplation,

Is on the nature of our experience as a human being.

This meditation is entitled Atma-vichara,

The essence of meditation.

Atma-vichara is the Sanskrit for self-abidance.

This meditation is to help you find the place where you can rest your attention at all times,

That place of peace that doesn't change with external circumstances.

The constant and most stable element of your experience,

That which doesn't come and go,

Accepts all experience and is yet untainted by them.

Our experience as a human being consists of our experience of the world,

The body and the mind.

We'll explore each of these in turn.

This is an honest exploration of your experience.

You do not need to try to do anything.

You do not need to try to change anything.

This contemplation is unlike others.

It will ask you to question your concepts.

It will ask you to challenge your concepts.

This contemplation may continue even after the meditation.

Try not to give any attention to any thoughts that may arise.

Instead give your attention to the words and the silence between them.

At points of silence during this contemplation,

If you find that you become lost in thought,

You can always return to conscious breathing as an anchor until the dialogue starts again.

I'll ask you to begin this contemplation with your eyes open.

We take five or so deep breaths.

We'll start with our experience of the world.

Our experience of the world is an amalgam.

A mixture of our perceptions from our five senses.

There's nothing else that contributes to our personal experience of the world.

Look around you at your environment.

See how the mind has a tendency to label things.

Just try to soften your focus and get a wider view.

Try to capture the totality of your visual field,

But do not give your attention to any particular object.

See clearly how everything in your visual field constantly changes.

Nothing stays the same.

Any semblance of continuity can even be broken down by blinking.

You must sense how your vision can be affected by moods or states of mind.

Your two perceptions can also be altered by alcohol and other substances.

No two people's perceptions of the world can be the same because of the colouring of their individual conditioning.

Just try to appreciate everything you see without judging or labelling.

Notice how you never actually see any objects.

What you see is light bouncing off objects.

The retina picks up this light and the brain infers an image based on what it perceives as well as previous conditioning and experience.

Notice that what you see always changes,

But the awareness of your seeing never changes.

Just observe your environment for the next couple of minutes with a soft focus.

Try to observe the entirety of your visual field.

Don't give your attention to any particular object.

Under theknown autumn sun,

You can see a Ukraine's Now gently close your eyes.

Take a moment to hear the sounds around you.

They may be plentiful,

They may be sparse.

See how all sounds arise out of silence and then subside back into silence,

Just like my voice.

The silence between the sounds puts the sound into context.

Just as you wouldn't appreciate a musical composition without the silence between the notes.

Irrespective of how near or far an object is or how loud or quiet,

All external sounds are heard in the same space of consciousness.

This space that one perceives to be in the head.

See how internal sounds,

Words and dialogue appear in the same space of consciousness as the external sounds.

Move between my words and any internal dialogue,

Since clearly the sounds appear in the same space of consciousness.

Over the next few minutes,

Give all your attention to hearing.

Observe sounds arising from and sinking back into silence.

Observe their transience.

Notice how all those sounds come and go and are always changing.

The awareness that is aware of the sounds doesn't come and go and is changeless.

The awareness that is aware of the sounds doesn't come and go and is changing.

The awareness that is aware of the sounds doesn't come and go and is changing.

The awareness that is aware of the sounds doesn't come and go and is changing.

The awareness that is aware of the sounds doesn't come and go and is changing.

The awareness that is aware of the sounds doesn't come and go and is changing.

The awareness that is aware of the sounds doesn't come and go and is changing.

Now let's observe the sense of touch.

Right now you'll be aware of points of contact of the body with external surfaces.

Your bottom and legs against the floor or chair or bed.

Your arms against your trunks.

Your hands on your legs.

Conventional science tells us that two objects never actually touch one another.

If there was ever contact at atomic level between two objects,

There'd be nuclear fusion.

Nowhere in nature do two objects ever come in contact with one another.

You have never touched anything.

The sense of touch is generated by haptic feedback resultant from electrostatic forces.

You only ever come into contact with energy.

This is what gives you the perception of touch.

Finally,

Let's examine the sense perceptions of smell and taste.

With the exception of noxious or particularly pungent aromas,

Recognize that when your attention isn't given to your sense of smell or taste,

You don't have any awareness of them.

Aromas and smells are always present as are tastes in our mouth.

It's not until we give them our attention that we do become aware of them.

Ask yourself if any experience you've had of the world lies inside these five senses.

See also how perceptions from these senses are always changing,

Appear fragmented when examined in isolation.

But that's not our experience.

That we live a fragmented life,

We have a continuous seamless experience.

It's not the sense perceptions that give us the seeming continuity to our life,

But the awareness of our changing senses.

Be aware that in cutthroat areas or wildlands the senses are always fragmented.

Let's contemplate the human body.

Firstly,

There's no independent entity called the human body.

The average human body is comprised of an average of 37 trillion cells.

That means there are more cells in the body than there are stars in the universe.

How many of these cells do you have control over?

Cells are grouped into similar tissues,

And these go on to form the organ systems of the body.

Take a moment to contemplate the wonder of the intelligence behind the design of the body.

The perfect interlinked processes.

How many of these processes do you have conscious control over?

How many of these processes do you have conscious control over?

How many of these processes do you have conscious control over?

How many of these processes do you have conscious control over?

How many of these processes do you have conscious control over?

How many of these processes do you have conscious control over?

How many of these processes do you have conscious control over?

How many of these processes do you have conscious control over?

For something to be real,

It needs to be changeless and permanent.

We know that the body is not changeless and is subject to death.

Your body may have changed from the time you were 5,

Or 15,

Or 25,

But what hasn't changed is the awareness of the body.

You may have changed from the time you were 5,

Or 15,

Or 25,

But what hasn't changed is the awareness of the body.

You may have changed from the time you were 5,

Or 15,

Or 25,

But what hasn't changed is the awareness of the body.

You may have changed from the time you were 5,

Or 15,

Or 25,

But what hasn't changed is the awareness of the body.

You may have changed from the time you were 5,

Or 15,

Or 25,

But what hasn't changed is the awareness of the body.

Do we ever experience a complete solid body?

With your eyes closed,

Ask yourself honestly,

Can I feel a solid body?

Our experience of the body comprises the sense perception of touch from the external world and the internal sensations of the body.

I want you to disregard the external sense perceptions that we examined earlier.

Just focus on the internal sensations of the body.

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

Do you feel a solid body?

No one has ever experienced a solid body.

The best that we experience is an amorphous mass.

Now,

After stripping away the external sense perceptions,

Observe the sensations of the body.

This time,

Observe the sensations without any reference to the memory of your body.

I'll repeat that.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Notice,

Without reference to the memory of a body,

All we experience are internal vibrations in our body.

Emotions are thoughts that recruit the sensations of the body to strengthen their effect.

These sensations are often felt in the chest or the abdomen.

If you experience a strong emotion,

Try to analyse the sensation in your body without reference to their accompanying thoughts.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Observe the sensations of your body without any reference to the memory of your body.

Now let's perform a body scan.

This allows for progressive relaxation of the body as well as giving our attention to specific regions of the body.

It's used with good effect of pain relief.

We're using it in this instance to simply observe our body in an honest manner.

In particular,

We'll give our attention to the internal sensations of the body.

So imagine a warm beam of white light hovering above your head.

As it moves down,

You feel the warmth of the light as it passes over the top of your head and forehead.

As it passes over this area,

Give your attention to the sensations that you feel in that region.

Without enabling the sensation,

Simply observe.

You feel the light passing your eyes and nose and mouth.

You may experience pleasant or unpleasant sensations.

Don't judge them,

Simply observe.

You feel the warmth of the light against your chest,

Giving an apparent solidity to your chest,

Back and arms that seemingly wasn't evident before.

You feel the solidity of your abdomen and your lower back as the warm white light passes over that area.

Remember not to label or judge your sensations,

But simply observe them.

You now feel the warmth against your bottom and thigh.

Moving down,

You feel against your lower legs,

Relaxing the leg muscles as it passes.

Finally,

You feel the warm light against your feet as the warmth gently fades away.

You feel the warm light against your lower back as it passes.

You feel the warm light against your lower back as it passes.

Now,

At this moment,

How aware are you of having a solid body?

You feel the warm light against your lower back as it passes.

Did you observe that the solidity that is felt is only felt when a region is given attention,

Or something is done externally to provoke a sensation,

Or when sensations arise spontaneously such as an itch?

Observe that whilst the body changes moment to moment,

As well as during your life,

The awareness that you have observed the body with has never changed.

Now,

At this moment,

How aware are you of having a solid body?

You feel the warm light against your lower back as it passes.

See this clearly,

That what it is that you essentially are never changes.

Now,

At this moment,

How aware are you of having a solid body?

Although your body has evolved over the years,

See clearly,

Going back to memorable moments in your life,

Maybe as a child,

As a teenager,

A student,

See the awareness that you had of the ever-changing body never changed.

Now,

For the next few minutes,

Rest in this relaxed state.

If you get lost in thought,

You can always return to your breathing.

Now,

At this moment,

How aware are you of having a solid body?

You feel the warm light against your lower back as it passes.

See this clearly,

That what it is that you essentially are never changes.

Now,

At this moment,

How aware are you of having a solid body?

Now,

Let's observe the mind.

In the Buddhist tradition,

It's said that the thinking mind has been elevated to an undeserved status and should be considered as one of the senses like smelling and tasting.

The problem,

The human condition is,

Thoughts arise,

They arise continuously.

They arise in the same manner as smells,

Tastes and sounds.

However,

Unlike the senses,

We give our thoughts too much attention.

We identify with them.

Some will act on the basis of these raw thoughts alone without creating the space for intellect to interpret and formulate an appropriate response to these thoughts.

So,

For the next few moments,

Allow a thought or series of thoughts to arise.

We're now open to everything,

All thoughts.

But whatever you do,

Don't get carried away with any pleasant or unpleasant thought.

Simply observe them.

Thank you The thoughts,

As they arise,

Are they coherent?

Are they relevant?

See how thoughts arise out of silence,

And if you don't touch them,

They subside back into silence.

It's probably accurate to say that 99% of thoughts,

Maybe more,

Are not useful to us,

But we give them so much of our precious attention.

We become identified with them.

We act out of them without engaging our intellect.

Mindfulness teaches us to give our attention to the perceptions of the world.

Body scan meditation teaches us to give our attention to the sensations of the body.

There are many meditations that require us to give attention to our thoughts.

Passage meditation,

Which is meditation on scripture.

Forms of visualisation meditation.

All these forms of visualisation meditation,

The attention is focused on thought,

But all these forms ultimately require mental effort.

There is a place,

A place of peace,

Where you can rest your attention in the midst of all activity and in all circumstances.

This place is the source of attention itself.

Pure awareness.

This place of peace has been so mixed with everyday experience,

And the fact that it is that the heart will experience means that it is thoroughly veiled and so often missed.

But it can be found in the space between two thoughts.

The fact that it's between two thoughts means that the mind doesn't register it as a thought.

It's a non-event as far as the thinking mind's concerned.

But something does happen there,

In that space between the thoughts.

Something that the thinking mind cannot grasp.

Attention sinks to its source and touches the peace.

The peace that is present at the core of our being.

The peace that can be found in the midst of all experience.

How do we find this space and how do we stay there?

This space is so familiar to you,

More familiar to you than breathing.

So close,

Closer than close that you can miss it.

So thoroughly veiled,

But you can easily reach it by asking yourself the question,

Am I aware?

When this question is asked,

The mind may respond with,

Aware of what?

This is not about giving your attention to any particular object,

But to give your attention to that which is aware of the object.

So forget the mind's response and ask yourself the question,

Am I aware?

Anyone who understands this question in any language will answer yes.

However the question,

Am I aware?

Is a thought.

The answer yes is also a thought.

But something happens in between these two thoughts.

Attention sinks directly into its source,

Pure awareness.

The place of peace.

This is the space where your attention should reside.

Now ask yourself the question again,

Am I aware?

With this time,

Instead of answering,

Just stay there.

This question will always take you back to this space,

Even if you think it doesn't.

The more often you return to this space and the more time you spend there,

The more peaceful your life will become.

Rest here for the next few minutes.

If you get lost in thought,

You can return to this space any time by asking yourself the question,

Am I aware?

If you find that thoughts are coming in thick and fast,

You can stun the mind again with another question,

To whom do these thoughts arise?

Then just bask in the peace,

Available to you at all times.

It'll become more evident the more often and the more time you spend there.

Am I aware?

You can ask yourself that question at any time and in any circumstance.

Now I want you to slowly bring your attention back to the environment around you.

Bring your attention back to the body,

Becoming more alert to things going on around you.

The sounds,

Smells,

Tastes,

All returning to your consciousness.

When you're ready,

You can gently open your eyes.

Remember that you don't need to be sitting or in formal meditation to return to this space.

It's available to you any time.

Remember these two short questions,

Am I aware?

And when thoughts get too much,

Ask yourself,

To whom do these thoughts arise?

This will always stun the mind and return the mind to this space.

This space is known by many names.

Now,

The ground of being,

Present moment awareness.

This is Adna Vichara.

This is the essence of meditation.

Thank you for listening.

Goodbye.

Reviews

At was great 🙏 I have been skirting around the edges….. moment to moment decision….

I was walking while listening to this meditation. I was able to listen to the sounds better and visualize better. I still don’t have the endurance to sit and meditate… I am aware. But I go to Ramana and ask who is aware? Thank you

Thorough and well-composed inquiry practice. “Are you aware?” 🫵 🙏

Excellent.
Thank you

Magnificent. Thank you

Deep and powerful

Contemplative and deep, a serious meditation. Thank you.

Wonderful

Your guidance continues to cultivate the practice of present moment awareness in my life.
Thank you!

Thank you Vikas for that beautiful meditation. I feel inspired.

Although some trouble with a few statements appeared here (which is true of pretty much all the meditations I have heard on this app), this touched many points that seem essential to getting beyond stress relief and dependence on outer conditions. The major issue I have is with the statement I have heard countless times that everything is always changing. The particular issue is with the visual field. I know intellectually it is true but it is not my experience of, say, seeing the wall here. Yes, the wall does disappear for a split second when I blink, but when I open my eyes again, it looks incredibly stable. Certainly very different from the sensations of the body. How can I get to the point where I can perceive that same changing energy in visual objects? That seems like it would help break the spell a lot. Thank you.

So great!

Great journey

Powerful meditation, thank you 🙏🏼

Thank you 🌞🙏