Kundalini Yoga - 20

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MEDITATION AND INTUITION

 

This lesson is about HOW to practice Kundalini yoga and do the

meditations. It is applicable to all of the sets and meditations!

 

SURRENDER TO THE ZONE

 

The concept of surrender is fundamental to all religions and a goal

of all spiritual paths. The idea is that we release control, get our

mind trips out of the way and let the universe take charge.

Surrender recognizes that our limited perceptions of what we think we

want and need and how to satisfy our desires are limited, and that

cosmic forces are more intelligent and efficient in producing

results. Recognizing a force greater than ourselves, our optimal

strategy is to cooperate with It and learn how to participate as a co-

creator in the give and receive process. Actually being a co-creator

is a good deal. This means that we can consciously participate in

our own destiny, if we can master the art of working with universal

energies. Herein lies our challenge.

 

THE GOAL OF KUNDALINI YOGA

 

The goal of Kundalini yoga and all spiritual technologies is to

create a conscious connection with the Divine. Yoga means union.

The union is between our physical reality and god-consciousness,

universal energies and our soul. The practice of Kundalini yoga

removes our blocks and resistances, raises our energy to higher

frequencies and opens our awareness to expanded realities. If we

train ourselves to focus our attention on our goal of union, we can

facilitate our transformation. The goal of this lesson is to set out

guidelines on how we can train ourselves to pay attention to and hold

the experience of the infinite in our consciousness.

 

MASCULINE AND FEMININE TALENTS

 

Human development is dominated by learning how to be in control, take

action, initiate and be responsible for our lives. These masculine

talents are critical pieces of our maturation process. Basically we

learn what we have to do to get what we want. An infant cries to get

fed. As a young child we learn to ask for what we want. If our

direct requests are not fulfilled, we learn to manipulate others and

situations to get our needs satisfied. Later we learn to earn a

living and integrate the concept of exchange into our survival

strategies.

 

In the process of learning the masculine talents of asking, earning

and exchanging value to get our needs met, the feminine skills are

often neglected, undervalued and misunderstood. In a male-dominated

world, the feminine concept of surrender is often misinterpreted as

giving up and giving in. This is because we feel like victims of

unknown forces beyond our comprehension and known forces beyond our

control. The result is a sense of resignation, powerlessness and

even hopelessness.

 

Surrender, the ultimate feminine skill, requires letting go of

control at a very deep level, mentally, emotionally and physically.

Authentic surrender releases us from our limited thoughts and

produces an openness, which facilitates our connection with universal

forces. Inauthentic surrender creates more, instead of less,

resistance.

 

If we cultivate only the masculine " action " talents necessary to live

on planet Earth and do not cultivate the feminine " being " talents,

our actions are sabotaged by an ego-dominated mind and a needy,

helpless subconscious. Negative and counterproductive interpretations

of feminine concepts (trusting, letting go, relaxing) are the natural

result of not cultivating a relationship with our Soul, God or

universal energies and not having a direct experience of Spirit or

the Divine. Without a personal experience of what we are

surrendering to, surrender is impossible. There is a void in our

psyche, which by default is filled by fear. Fear prevents us from

trusting, letting go and surrendering.

 

If a male-dominated mindset pervades our being, it will also

determine how we carry out our spiritual practice. It is legitimate

to do yoga and meditate to achieve certain results. Specific

meditations and kriyas produce specific effects. However, we must

avoid turning our practice into a bargaining tool. If we do a

particular meditation to buy results, our prayers become begging

sessions to a bigger than life daddy version of God. If we observe

our mind and our thoughts, we can monitor our conscious and hidden

intentions.

 

By altering our attitude and our attention, we can shift our

relationship with universal forces from plea bargains to

participatory co-creation. It is actually pretty simple. To

cultivate this shift in consciousness, it is important to understand

the masculine and feminine aspects of spiritual practices and how to

appropriately integrate and utilize both.

 

Masculine talents include attention, focus, action and discipline.

The masculine is about doing and keeping up. Doing our daily Sadhana

and KY is the masculine aspect of our practice. The principle

masculine goal is to focus our mind on the infinite.

 

Feminine talents are relaxing, letting go, listening and

surrendering. Between each exercise we relax, allow the energy to

circulate and feel the sensations in our body. We are simply present

to what IS. The principle feminine goal is to cultivate an ongoing

relationship with the infinite in our body.

 

The ascent up the chakras opens our experience of the infinite. This

is the masculine path. The descent down the chakras, which brings

spirit into physical form, is the feminine path.

 

EXPERIENCE THE INFINITE

 

The main purpose of raising the Kundalini and moving our energy from

the lower to the higher chakras is to give us an experience of the

infinite. The goal is to expand our awareness so that we have a

conscious experience of " what is, was and always will be, " often

referred to as God. This awareness is awakened in the upper chakras

by activating the pituitary and the pineal glands. The possibility

of experiencing the infinite is always there in each one of us. It

never goes away. We can resist this experience by being preoccupied

with and attached to the thoughts in our minds. Endless mental

chatter blocks our conscious connection with the infinite. However,

whenever we turn our senses inward, the infinite experience is

available.

 

The experience of the infinite has several basic manifestations.

 

(1) SOUND The most basic is the unstruck sound, the silent sound of

infinity. If we turn our listening inside, we hear it. This is the

Word. " In the beginning was the Word. " (2) SPACE. If we turn our

sight inward, we see an infinite space. Simply close your eyes and

look. (3) LIGHT If we concentrate at the third eye, we see a light

that can even fill our entire head, whole space and being. (4) SMELL

Some people even smell the fragrances of the universe.

 

Of course, all of these have many variations on a theme. But the

basic experiences are simple and repeatable. The goal of all

spiritual paths is to connect with one or more of these infinite

experiences and keep returning to them. As we increase our

attention, our awareness expands and we experience deeper and deeper

levels of connection with universal energies and their numerous

manifestations.

 

It is of critical importance to avoid the pitfall of consciously

searching for intriguing lights, sounds, visions, etc. Our goal is to

be a conscious, but passive, observer. The goal is not

entertainment. The goal is connection and peace. The simpler the

better. Don't try to get fancy or get attached to different colors

or visuals. We are in the masculine mode if we are trying to make

something happen. We have to train ourselves to distinguish between

searching for and trying to control (masculine) and simply being with

what IS (feminine). We want an experience that we can return to,

relax into, be comforted by and trust. The rest is a diversion and

distracts us from our goal of cultivating a relationship with

universal forces that we can merge with and surrender to.

 

CULTIVATING THE ZONE

 

I propose to call our experience of the infinite the Zone. The most

commonly used term, God, conjures up images of a big daddy. Our mind

gets hooked on pleasing and pleading to a paternal caretaker. The

Zone is a neutral place where we can go, be alone with ourselves and

with the universe. This more neutral concept activates less

preconceived ideas that interfere with our pure experience.

 

How do we do get into the Zone? How do we stop our minds'

manipulation and control trips? Stopping the mind comes at very

advanced stages of meditation. In fact, Yogi Bhajan says that the

mind always produces 1000 thoughts per wink of the eye. Stopping

that is out of my league. I like to approach the task from the

perspective of changing channels. Kundalini Yoga and meditation help

us change channels.

 

STOP SEARCHING AND DOING

 

The spiritual teacher Gangaji uses the following dictum to help

people to tune into the infinite:

 

" Stop searching for whatever you think you have to do to get whatever

you think you want. "

 

I like to use " Stop DOING whatever you think you have to do to get

whatever you think you want. "

 

Try it. When I actually took a few moments to stop whatever I was

doing to try to get what I thought I wanted, I could hear the

infinite sound. I realized that my mind was habitually in a

perpetual scan (maybe even scam) mode -- a state of searching and

trying to make something happen. This means that my mind is trying

to be in charge and not allowing space for the universe to act,

respond or at least cooperate. Energetically this translates into

not trusting the universe. It also reveals a deep level of

neediness. When we are always trying to get something by making

something happen, we are acting out of a sense of neediness that was

imprinted in our psyche in pre-verbal years. We are re-enacting our

childhood programming where we learned that if we do not take care of

ourselves we will not get our needs met.

 

When I asked my yoga class to " STOP doing whatever they thought they

were doing to get what they thought they wanted, " the whole room

became silent. This dictum short-circuits the mind. For a moment the

mind stops because it does not know what to do. At this moment, the

infinite channel is available to us. For a second, we seize a

glimpse of the infinite. This dictum also helps us identify what our

minds are doing and why they are doing it. Once identified, we can

choose to focus our mind in other ways. We can actually interact

with universal energies in a receptive, accepting and co-creative

manner.

 

KEEP IT SIMPLE

 

Cultivating and surrendering to the Zone is actually a simple process.

 

STEP ONE

 

Do a KY set or exercise. Stop after each exercise and listen, look

or sense inward. Turn your attention to the sensations in your body.

Continue until you can hear the infinite sound, see and be in your

inner space, see a light at your third eye or in any other way

perceive a sound, sight or sensation that is always there when you

turn your attention to it. Keep doing this. Over time you will have

a place to go to that feels secure, comfortable and peaceful.

Ideally we want to always be conscious of this place, feeling or

sound.

 

STEP TWO

 

Be aware of " What you are searching for or doing that you think is

going to get you what you think you want. " What we need to do here

is create an attitude shift. First we must identify what our mind is

doing. What is the intention of our mind? Are we trying to do

something to get something? This does not mean that we will stop

doing things. This means that we shift our intention and focus while

we are in action and in meditation. When we make this internal

shift, we operate without the mental resistance or control trips. We

can train ourselves to listen to the cosmic sound or relax into the

cosmic zone while we are carrying out our daily activities. Our

attitude and our projection automatically changes. Energetically we

join the universe instead of pushing against it.

 

STEP THREE

 

It is appropriate to have goals. It is not appropriate to be

obsessive about what we think we want or what we think will makes us

happy or successful. One clear statement, written or oral, is enough

to communicate with the universe. Repetition and compulsive

attention on what we want projects neediness and separates us from

the universal flow through control trips. Our thoughts get in the

way. We need to listen, not to talk. Specific requests also limit

our options. The possibilities available to us are infinitely

greater than our minds can conceive.

 

If we do have requests and prayers we can state our intention before

our meditation. But we must shift our attention to our energetic

experience during the meditation. We should use the concentration

power of our mind to focus on infinite experiences. While doing any

chanting meditation, chant to the sound, the space or the light.

Don't try to control what will happen. Do your best to be with what

is happening in the moment. Join the sound or the space. Merge with

it. Integrate your actions, voice and sensations into the cosmic

presence. Hold this experience in your body.

 

Through mental attention and physical sensation awareness, we

participate with the universe as co-creators. We collaborate. When

our attention is on infinite experiences, as we perceive them in our

own awareness, our energy integrates with universal energies. When

our attention is inward instead of outside ourselves, we attract

through our magnetism. This is a more efficient and productive way

of getting what we want and need.

 

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

 

Surrender has very practical applications in our daily life. When

you feel frustrated, need answers, can't seem to figure things out,

instead of resorting to more mental activity fueled by out of control

emotions, STOP, CONNECT, and SURRENDER TO THE ZONE. Insights, help

and peace are on their way. Your trusty intuition is ready to

assist, if you open the space for it to communicate with you.

 

I like to remember the dictum of Yogi Bhajan, " There is a pathway

through every problem. " We access the pathways by letting go. We are

in the habit of holding on very tightly. To really let go, we must

practice releasing the grip of both our minds and our bodies.

 

When we really stop talking to ourselves, our intuition becomes

available. Listening opens up our intuition. If we actually listen,

we can hear our inner voice. Unfortunately listening is a lost art.

If we really listened to other people, we would have more sincere and

intimate relationships. If we actually listened to ourselves, we

wouldn't need to ask for so much advice. If we listened to the

infinite sound, we would know God.

 

One common question concerns what to do when we get intuitive

messages during our meditations. Generally simply take note, let the

thoughts pass and stay connected. Sometimes we get information that

we do not want to forget. Instead of trying to remember the

information, I take notes. (I hav e written a lot of books this

way.) Then I go back to my space.

 

I like to go to sleep listening to the cosmic sound. At the end of

the day it feels good to surrender to the infinite, let go and let

God take care of me.

 

ENJOY

 

Surrender is one of the most comforting and pleasurable experiences

available to humans. We are freed from the chains of our minds. We

join the cosmic flow. We are truly happy. We experience the embrace

of universal love.

 

(by Gururattan Kaur Khalsa)