Sustaining and Deepening Meditation Utilizing Shum

In our daily Master Course Lesson. We just started over again for the umpteenth time.
We're about to start with Lesson One from "Merging With iva." !s you "an imagine
logi"ally# first lesson of "Merging With iva" would have something to do with merging
with iva. o this one's "alled$
%arasiva# Life's &ltimate 'oal
"(ever have there been so many people living on the planet wondering# 'What is the real
goal# the final purpose# of life)' *owever# man is blinded by his ignoran"e and his "on"ern
with the e+ternalities of the world. *e is "aught# enthralled# bound by ,arma. -he ultimate
reali.ations available are beyond his understanding and remain to him obs"ure# even
intelle"tually. Man's ultimate /uest# the final evolutionary frontier# is within man himself.
It is the -ruth spo,en by 0edi" rishis as the elf within man# attainable through "ontrol of
the mind and purifi"ation."
o# thin, the ,ey idea there is we're blinded by our "on"ern with the e+ternalities of the
world. *aving the world in it's proper pla"e in our mind is always a "hallenge# "ause the
world is people. !nd people have a way of "hallenging us sometimes. We have trouble
getting along with some people# we "ertainly don't li,e other people and unfortunately# so
many people mistreat us and they really shouldn't. o it's so easy to get bound up in our
"on"erns about the world in the form of other people. o# you ,now# I li,e as, when it
"omes to that# "hallenge someone and say$ "Well what does the world have to do in order
for you to be happy) 1ou ,now# what demands are you pla"ing on the world) What has to
happen) Who has to "hange before you'll be happy) Who has to treat you in a different
way) What has to be different before you'll be happy)" o# when you start to thin, about it
li,e that# you reali.e you ,now$ Maybe I "an be happy no matter what. 1ou ,now# it starts
to ma,e more sense# but# normally we don't thin, that way. We're very tied up in the
e+ternalities in our relationships with people and "ause they're this way we "an't be happy.
We "an only be happy if they'd go the other way. 2ut# you ,now it's not 'urudeva's
tea"hings# you ,now. We used to "ome into the temple every morning and say bihaishum
whi"h means "ontentment or happiness. It's a state of mind we "an "laim independent of
the e+ternalities of the world. 1ou ,now# that's as it says here$ "Control of the mind. -he
elf is within man attainable through "ontrol of the mind." o that's part of the "ontrol of
the mind is trying to be happy# no matter what and not loo,ing at our happiness as being
"onditioned upon something e+ternal to us. -here's no reason for it to be. 'urudeva said it
so simply$ "Life is meant to be lived joyously." It's not a "onditioned statement# it doesn't
say when everything is going the way we want it to. It doesn't say that. It says$ "Life is
meant to be lived joyously." o# the idea is# joy is within# happiness is within us# and if we
"an step ba", a bit from the e+ternalities of the mind we "an turn our awareness within
into the state that's always joyful# always happy and find it. Of "ourse# we have to be
realisti" when it "omes to li,e a major tragedy in our life3 we're not tal,ing about
something li,e that but# it's usually the small things that irritate us. It's not the big things.
o if a tragedy "omes along it's fine to be sad. 1ou ,now# it's part of life too# but# it's the
small things that we don't need to be sad about. We don't let them# we don't need to let
them get to us as they tend to. o we "an stay deta"hed from them and say$ Well that's the
way that person is# that's the way the world is# that's this# that's that and not mind if we get
mistreated. -hen we "an be happy through "ontrol of the mind.
"It is ,arma that ,eeps us from ,nowing of and rea"hing life's final goal# yet it is wrong to
even "all it a goal. It is what is ,nown by the ,nower to have always e+isted. It is not a
matter of be"oming the elf# but of reali.ing that you were never# but of reali.ing that you
never were not the elf. !nd what is that elf) It is %arasiva. It is 'od. -hat whi"h is
beyond the mind# beyond thought# feeling and emotion# beyond time# form and spa"e. -hat
is what all men are see,ing# loo,ing for# longing for. When ,arma is "ontrolled through
yoga and dharma well performed# and the energies are transmuted to their ultimate state#
the 0edi" -ruth of life dis"overed by the rishis so long ago be"omes obvious."
o# that's an important aspe"t of %arasiva# "reali.ing that you never were not the elf." Or#
said another way$ -he elf is there to be "laimed. !nd it doesn't relate to time# form and
spa"e so# there's nothing parti"ularly that you have to do to "laim it. It's just there but#
be"ause of the e+ternalities# our awareness is "aught up in the e+ternalities or e+ternali.ed.
We're loo,ing out instead of in and if our ,arma is not smooth and we're ,ind of going
through rough times all the time3 we're always putting out fires# we're always handling
emergen"ies. Our life is never sublime enough to loo, within. o 'urudeva gives us an
important ,ey here$ *ow do we "ontrol ,arma so that we're not always putting out fires#
we're not always handling emergen"ies) -hrough yoga and dharma well performed. o
that's the ,ey# you ,now. We need to do our duties in life well# understand what they are
and do them well. (ot negle"t them# not stray from virtue whi"h is also part of dharma.
(ot do things we shouldn't be"ause that really stirs up the mind. !nd through yoga#
meditation# learning to "ontrol our thoughts. 4egularly dis"iplining our mind. o# turning
within instead of "onstantly loo,ing without. o# when we learn to turn within regularly
and we're fulfilling our duties well in life and following virtue# what happens) -here's very
few fires to put out. -here's very few emergen"ies in our life. Our life is going smoothly and
therefore that means our ,arma is under "ontrol. 5oesn't mean we don't fa"e ,arma but# it
means it's "onstantly# it's not "onstantly upsetting us# "onstantly disturbing us# "onstantly
overwhelming us.
"-he goal is to reali.e 'od iva in *is absolute# or trans"endent# state# whi"h when reali.ed
is your own ultimate state 66 timeless# formless# spa"eless -ruth. -hat -ruth lies beyond the
thin,ing mind# beyond the feeling nature# beyond a"tion or any movement of the vrittis#
the waves of the mind. 2eing# seeing# this -ruth then gives the "orre"t perspe"tive# brings
the e+ternal realities into perspe"tive. -hey then are seen as true# they then are seen as
truly unrealities# yet not dis"arded as su"h."
o this has to do with a point of referen"e and it's# there's a number of writings on this in
the hum wor, I've been reading re"ently. o# loo,ed at in a simple way# when we're
"aught up in the e+ternalities of the mind3 we're out here and we're trying to loo, within
and it's really hard to loo, within# "ause our awareness is so e+ternali.ed. 1ou ,now# we
loo, within and it seems so far away# so distant# so small. o# the idea of the hum and the
basi" pra"ti"es of simshumbisi and all# is to turn it around so we're within# loo,ing out.
-hat's the idea. humif. We're within# not# we're not ne+t to the elf or anything# you ,now#
we're not that far in# but we're within loo,ing out. 'urudeva "alled that$ "2eing two thirds
within and one third in the e+ternal mind." o# that's the goal to have the point of referen"e
inside loo,ing out at the world. When we do that# then we don't rea"t as mu"h to things.
We reali.e that everything isn't wrong. We reali.e we "an't "hange everything you ,now# we
have a looser read about the world. We're not so "on"erned about# that's having an internal
point of referen"e. -his is even deeper# it's saying$ Ma,e your point of referen"e the elf.
"2eing# seeing this -ruth then gives the "orre"t perspe"tive# brings the e+ternal realities
into perspe"tive. -hen they are seen as truly unrealities yet not dis"arded as su"h."
o that's the idea that %arasiva doesn't "hange. It's a permanent truth. !nd form or maya66
the mind# is "onstantly "hanging and in it's deepest sense is unreal# "ause it's "overing up
that whi"h doesn't "hange# the truth. 2ut you don't want to treat it as unreal# be"ause# the
,armas that are "oming to it# to you from it# are very real. !nd the opportunities it provides
you for spiritual growth are very real. o# it's an interesting balan"e of perspe"tive. imple
way of understanding it is you ,now# if you're going to s"hool and you're "onstantly saying
s"hool is unreal# how mu"h are you going to learn) (ot very mu"h# right) 1ou're not ta,ing
it seriously. 1ou're not getting the benefit out of going to s"hool# if you're going to s"hool
and saying it's all unreal. 1ou have to ta,e it as real in order to learn from it and benefit
from it. o# that's why 'urudeva says it's "relative reality." It has a reality# but it's relative3
it's "onstantly "hanging# it's not a permanent truth.
"-his intimate e+perien"e must be e+perien"ed while in the physi"al body. One "omes ba",
and ba", again into flesh simply to reali.e %arasiva. (othing more. 1et# the elf# or
%arasiva# is an e+perien"e only after it has been e+perien"ed. 1et# it is not an e+perien"e at
all# but the only possible non e+perien"e# whi"h registers in its aftermath upon the mind of
man. %rior to that# it is a goal. !fter reali.ation# one thing is lost# the desire for the elf."
o# lot of ideas there. One is that it ta,es a physi"al body to reali.e the elf. Can't do it
without it. o# ma,e the most of it while you have one. Ma,e some spiritual progress
toward elf 4eali.ation. "1et# the elf# or %arasiva# is an e+perien"e only after it has been
e+perien"ed." 2ut# that's why we "all it a non e+perien"e. -he only possible non e+perien"e.
Cause the e+perien"er is absent. Our awareness7 It dissolved# it went away. 8or you "an
only have an e+perien"e if you have an e+perien"er. *ave an e+perien"e or an e+perien"e.
o if the e+perien"er goes away there's no e+perien"e. o# it's the absen"e of the
e+perien"er or awareness that is another way of tal,ing about the 4eali.ation of %arasiva.
It's one of the beauties of the hum language# it fo"uses you on awareness. Of awareness
dissolving# it's a very simple "on"ept. Otherwise reali.ing 'od "an be very abstra"t. 1ou
,now what's it mean to reali.e 'od) 2ut to identify awareness and then for awareness to
dissolve3 it's a "lear intelle"tual "on"ept# its very well defined. 2ut# all you "an say is about#
what you "an des"ribe the before and the after# but# you "an't des"ribe the during. -hat's
what he's trying to say. "4egisters in its aftermath upon the mind of man." o you're not
sitting there saying$ "Oh# that's the elf" and you're saying$ "Oh that must have been the
elf" you ,now# it's the aftermath e+perien"e that registers upon the mind of man.
o# that's high6minded enough. It's going. o that relates to utra One.
"iva's followers strive for 'od 4eali.ation as the first and foremost goal of life. -hey learn
to dan"e with iva# live with iva# merge with iva. 5eep within# they dis"over their eternal#
immortal oneness with 'od."
2ut then there's utra -wo.
"iva's followers are ever mindful that life's purpose is to wholeheartedly serve 'od# 'ods
and guru and fulfill the four traditional *indu goals$ duty 9dharma:# wealth 9artha:# love
9,ama: and liberation 9mo,sha:."
o# that give a fuller pi"ture when you read that one be"ause# sometimes when you tal,
more about liberation you thin, you're supposed to abandon duties. !bandon dharma# but#
that's not what 'urudeva says. 1ou're supposed to fulfill dharma# fulfill your duties in life
having in mind the goal of reali.ing well is the ultimate goal. o fulfilling duties is
important.
o moving on# this is hum3 I found very interesting. (alif7 !nybody remember nalif)
(alif7
"(alif is holding# (alif is the holding of the inner vibration from one meditation to another.
8or instan"e# if you perform anif in the morning 9whi"h means being totally /uiet: it sets a
vibration whi"h you feel all through the day3 and we strengthen that vibration when
performing anif just before we go to sleep at night. -his holding of the inner memory# so to
spea,# or inner vibration# from one anif period to another is "alled nalif. It is a "hallenge in
itself# holding the inner awareness until our ne+t meditation# all through the day# holding
that inner thread so that we remain two6thirds within and only one6third in e+ternal
"ons"iousness."
o# one of the ideas here in nalif is# it points out something interesting. We may thin, that
what's important is the meditation. 1ou ,now# we meditate in the morning# we meditate at
night or# we meditate in the morning# we meditate the ne+t day. We're meditating
regularly. 2ut e/ually important is what happens between the meditations. If we "an
sustain nalif. o# you ,now# it's li,e we're doing two things at on"e on your "omputer.
1ou're doing one thing and then you put it in the ba",ground and you do something else in
the foreground# but what you put in the ba",ground is still going on. o that's li,e nalif.
1ou're meditating# when you "ome out# but your meditation doesn't go away3 it goes into
the ba",ground. It's still there# it's still alive# but it's in the ba",ground as things are on a
"omputer. It's not in the foreground. o to be"ome aware of it you have to deta"h from the
foreground and say$ "Oh yeah that's still going on in the ba",ground# I forgot I was running
that program." o# it's in the ba",ground whi"h means it's still going on# it's still
developing. o# said another way# it's still alive just waiting for you to "ome ba", to it and
pi", up where you left off. It's just sitting there waiting for you to "ome ba",.
o# I on"e as,ed 'urudeva# I said$ "'urudeva# I believe you "an "arry a meditation from
one life to the ne+t. 5oes that "ount as nalif)"
!nd he said$ "(o that's something different."
-hat's ,ind of a deeper ,nowledge. 2ut you a"tually "an. 1ou "an go to a "ertain point of
meditation in one life and then it's still there for you to find in another life. ubse/uent life#
pi", it up and develop it. 2ut it's not nalif.
o# if what happens between meditations is important# what are some guidelines) o# this
is the definition.
"(alif is generally held within the vibration of the ,aling,asim ,amshumalinga 9the fifth
"ha,ra:. It is possible in "ons"iousness into bivumbi,a# rehmtyenali# tyemavumna or
,ama,adiisareh 9the four higher "ha,ras: and not brea, the nalif# but getting into a
detailed dis"ussion or argument within rehnamtyevum# or being remorseful or reminis"ing
the past in a,aiilisimbi# would brea, the nalif3 it would then with some effort# have to be
reestablished. (alif is espe"ially ne"essary to those yogi tapasvins who hope to advan"e in
their raja yoga on the aiva path.
o this shows we "an't get tangled up with other people# or tangled up with ourselves in
"ons"iousness# or dwell too mu"h in the past even. ;ust thin,ing heavily about the past we
loose the nalif. Cause all the emotions "ome up. -hin, heavily about the past# you bring up
emotion and that "overs up your meditation. o# we need to be "areful to avoid those ,inds
of things# otherwise# we're not building the meditation. 1ou ,now it's li,e an analogy I
always use# this filling up a bathtub. 1our meditation is filling up a bathtub. !nd then if
you get into arguments during the day and "on"erns and those ,inds of emotional
"ongestions# it's li,e pulling out the plug and all the water goes out. o# it's obviously
"ounterprodu"tive# right) 8illing it up during one part of the day and emptying it during
the ne+t part of the day. 1ou're not# you're not building up. 1ou're not "ontinuing to fill it
up. o# that's why what happens between meditations is e/ually important as the
meditation itself. In order for the meditation to properly build# we "an't get into these
,inds of entanglements.
o this ne+t one is interesting. *as to do with iif. o niimf is the awareness we usually tal,
about but this one is deeper. "%ronoun"ed iif an important tantra taught during the
positive ,armas of a student. -he observation of one's awareness flowing or traveling from
one area of the higher mind to another. One may usually be only "ons"ious of niimf in its
flow then in deep meditations of iif and its flow. It is possible however# to be
simultaneously aware of iif uu niimf ea"h independent of one another and yet dependent
upon ea"h other."
'urudeva's bhashya$
"Iif is awareness traveling# flowing "onstantly in the fifth and fourth dimensions. &nless
one is totally aware# one is not at all "ons"ious of the happening but only "ons"ious of niimf
in its flow# then in deep meditation of iif and its flow. <o that's li,e noti"ing something
going on in the ba",ground.= -here are times when niimf "hanges pla"es with iif and the
"hange is unnoti"ed until afterwards. -his is when one begins to see intuitively that whi"h
is in the fourth and fifth dimensions. -his "ollage then is when we are "ompletely aware in
the fifth and fourth dimensions su"h as in mamsani or mambashum. When niimf is
flowing in daily life being aware of fifth# fourth# third and se"ond dimensions# iif is flowing
in the fifth and fourth independently. -his a""ounts for intuitive flashes.
"When a natye wor,s on a mamsani or mambashum the nalif vibration is iif "ontinuing
within the areas and neighboring areas of the mamsani or mambashum# while niimf is
totally aware in other areas. When the natye goes into the mamsani or mambashum# again
niimf "hanges pla"es with iif and a pla"e of seeing deeper into related areas than did o""ur
in the previous meditation."
o# that's interesting to thin, about. o# that's the inner side of nalif# leads to iif. o# the
bottom line is to loo, at what happens between meditations as important as the meditation
itself and not to get too e+ternali.ed3 parti"ularly# don't get into something argumentative
with someone else stirring up all that emotion or even dwelling e+"essively on the past will
brea, the meditation# to pla"e strong emotion.
o# 'urudeva's idea there is just thin, a few days in the future and a few days in the past
then# then you don't e+"essively bring up the past. I always avoid meeting someone who
tal,s a lot about the past be"ause it's something we don't do in the monastery and you
reali.e it's a different world then you're used to you ,now. It's li,e there's a movie going on
in their mind# they're telling you about it# it's dominating their mind. What happened so
many years ago and of "ourse they're enjoying tal,ing about it# but and nothing wrong with
that# but# if you're trying to ma,e progress in meditation you# you want to minimi.e that.
1ou don't want to tal, e+"essively about the past that's more than a few days old be"ause# it
lowers your "ons"iousness. >+ternali.ing.
-here# well# than, you very mu"h.
!um (amah ivaya
*ave a good wee,.
!um (amah ivaya# !um (amah ivaya