More regarding the Hrdayam and One Star Spirituality

[Guest guest]

In other postings the subject of the Hrdayam, located 2 digits to the right of

sternum - the pacemaker or synod of the physical heart, not the anahata chakra,

from which rises the amrita (atma / para) nadi to the crown (right major vagus

nerve) - was covered, as the basis for One Star Spirituality.

 

In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is mentioned that the 2 approved areas in the

body to meditate are the crown (sahasrara) and self-effulgent light (samvit) in

the heart (the Hrdayam - not the anahata chakra, which is one of the 7 lenses of

consciousness through which the all pervasive light passes) - the One Star.

 

"In the depth of my Heart, the Harimander (Temple of God) lives..." Yogi Bhajan

(from Adorned with Honor 1968)

 

The meditation mentioned here actually begins once the mind comes to rest, at

which point the mind is in a null point or equilibrium from which begins a

turning of the senses from outgoing to inward turning. When the mind is still

the fluctuations of the mind - the thinking principle, cease. This means that

the mechanism of attention to movement within the mind attaching the sense of

"I" from one object within consciousness to the next is suspended, and the

sensing awareness is drawn in to and by the seat of consciousness Itself, which

lights the body and mind like a Sun, behind which is the infinite light of

all-pervasive Being.

 

Meditation on the Heart actually means abiding in the Heart.

 

What happens with the light of "I" consciousness is that with each rising

thought, sensation, impression, the mechanism of attention goes out and binds

the thought and codifies it into the predominant sense of identity. This sense

of identity classifies the images appearing to and within the mind according to

past impressions ("takes"), so that we project a world of our own making, much

like the world we project in dreams, which is to say that in reality there is no

difference between the waking world we project and the dream world we also

project. This mechanism of attention is called judgment or opinion. In the

faith-mind by Sengtsan, "when thought is in bondage, the truth is hidden..."

 

But when the mind becomes still, the seer ("I" consciousness) in the Heart is

reflected purely in the mind, and a subtle inward pulling sensation is felt in

the Heart and the right vagus nerve that pulses with the impalpable sensation of

"I as I" - a reverberation that strikes a soundless cord within all the nerves

of the body, as the mind comes into a complete abeyance, almost like being

transfixed, by the radiance piercing from within and through the body

penetrating outwards without limit. No thoughts, nor a thinker, all concepts of

a doer of actions dissolving completely.

 

In ageless Kundalini Yoga practice as taught by Yogi Bhajan, this process and

transformation to transfiguration is brought about like a rising crescendo.

 

On the one hand there are the practices and meditations of applied awareness

that bring the mind to a minute and singular attention, as though one was

listening in the silence of night for the sound of a pin to drop (the experience

of pratyahar), while on the other hand practice and meditations converge to fill

every cell of the body with an electromagnetic resonant radiance above and

beyond the frequency of thoughts and impressions, like turning up the light in a

projector, such that images fade from the binding power of attention altogether

(the experience of Laya). The combination brings about the sudden impact of the

"I" consciousness or wakeful state, with what we have always called the

unconscious, which is the totality of being ever awake and aware to the

Universal infinite consciousness, which is also that Light which lights each of

us. We no longer project or superimpose an imagined world of impressions, we

abide in the "City of Brahman" (City of God), the "I am, I am" referred to by

Yogi Bhajan and the scriptures of all religions, without consideration to

projecting notions of "I am this and that" in the infinite field/light of

consciousness.

 

This "sudden impact" of the true identity (Sat Nam) is experienced like a

recollection of one's Self from a protracted amnesia. The idea of a subject "I"

to see a separate object, is relinquished altogether and meaningless and useless

to see and know.

 

The body fills with the light of single pervasive unconditioned, uncaused

awareness. This filling is called Kundalini, where the body responds like a

barometer to atmospheric pressure, like a thermometer to atmospheric heat, and

energy consciousness fills in from every quadrant of mind, body, soul and

beyond, until "Inside outside, everything is whole..." Yogi Bhajan (from Adorned

with Honor 1968) The apparent triple body becomes like a salt doll dropped into

the infinite ocean from which a thought may rise from Its depths: "I am the

Truth" - "Sat Nam."

 

Here below is an exposition on the subject taken from another list that focuses

on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, wherein the meaning of the Heart (Hrdaya) is

mentioned and compared with the similar text from the ancient Siva Sutra.

 

Pieter

 

--

 

-

<yogasutrasofpatanjali>

<yogasutrasofpatanjali>

Thursday, June 26, 2003 9:11 PM

[Yoga Sutras of Patanjali] Digest Number 125

Thu, 26 Jun 2003 02:38:48 -0000

 

"capanellius" <capanellius

YS III.34 -- When the Heart Blossoms

 

--

 

A few notes on Patanjali's YS (III.34) - comments welcome.

 

Everyone is familiar with the first sutra in Patanjali which some manuals

translate as:

 

(I.1) Now the instruction in "union" begins.

 

- where by the term "union" is meant "Yoga." When translated in this way, this

sutra has a natural conceptual connection with Siva Sutra (I.15) which reads:

 

"By fixing the mind in the heart, 'unification' results [i.e., of the individual

mind with Universal consciousness]."

 

In an exposition of this sutra, the scholar M. Dyczkowski quotes an earlier

Hindu work which says in part: "[The heart] is depicted as an inverted lotus

which turns upwards and blooms when the light of consciousness shines upon it,

is found in the City of Brahman. The Self (purusa) resides there . . ."

 

This Siva Sutra in turn is related back to another Patanjali Sutra which takes

up fixing the mind on the heart (hrdaya):

 

Yoga Sutra (III.34):

By practicing samyama on the heart [hrdaya], knowledge of the mind is acquired.

 

Bhasya of Vyasa: In the lotus like cavity [of the heart], being the temple City

of Brahman, is the seat of knowledge. By performing samyama in reference to

that, comes the power of knowing the mind (chitta).

 

The preceding two sutras can be interpreted to mean that by samyama on the

heart, the experience of unification results; meaning that in Patanjali this

relationship between the individual "chitta" to the universal "cit" might be

indirectly implied. In this sense, the "heart" stands for the innermost center

of the Self, not the physical location of the organ, nor the associated with

chakra

(anahata) normally connected to this organ. That there is a difference is

indicated by Vijnana Bhiksu in another place, when he makes the distinction

between a word, its meaning, and the concept as it is normally understood in

particular contexts.

 

But what is not clear is what level of samadhi (unification) the practitioner

has achieved by coming to the City of Brahman / Siva (perhaps more on that at a

later time) and brings us next to a sutra that is in the form of a question in

the Pararisika-Vivarana of Abhinavagupta:

 

Trika Sutra (2):

"O Lord of the gods (i.e. Siva-Sambhu) tell me about kauliki sakti who resides

in the heart (i.e. consciousness), the Sakti who is the source of all

manifestation .."

 

Further readings:

 

1992 Mark S. G. Dyczkowski, The Aphorisms of Siva, SUNY Press.

 

1989 Paul E. Muller-Ortega, The Triadic Heart of Siva, SUNY Press.

 

1988 Jaideva Singh, Paratrisika-Vivarana of Abhinavagupta, Motilal Banarsidass

Publishers.