On Samadhi and Asthanga Yoga

09-06-2000, 11:01 AM

Beautifully put Jessica.

I like the following that you stated:

"The Light of Awareness has brought the understanding that ultimately all
experiences are of the mind. All of the samadhis, eventually lead to the
greatest samadhi, Sahaja samadhi, wherein one is taken beyond mind; where
there is no experiencer left; all experiences melting away, revealing
nothing ever really happened, no you, but rather the "you" is the space in
which all experiences arise. You are "God"."

Thanks for that gift Jessica.

Ramana Maharshi often pointed out the differences between Nirvikalpa Samadhi
and Sahaj Samadhi and these discussions can be found in the "Talks" or in
"Be As You Are" edited by David Godman.

We have had conversations on this topic several times before on
HarshaSatsangha. The remarkable depth of so many people here is always of
great beauty and wonder and we are grateful.

Love to all
Harsha

-----Original Message-----
From: Jessica [mailto:ellam-ondre@...]
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2000 1:28 PM
To: HarshaSatsangh (AT) egroups (DOT) com; Kundalini-Gateway@egroups
Subject: Re: [HarshaSatsangh] On Samadhi and Asthanga Yoga
Hello to Harsha, Horia and all,

Sharing in response to your post...from both my exposure to Robert Adams (a
self-realized devotee of Ramana Maharshi, who actually had an experience of
complete realization at the age of 14 - 4 years prior to meeting Ramana in
the flesh) and my own personal experience:

....when your concentration becomes one pointed, you go into a state of
Savikalpa Samadhi

....merging in consciousness for awhile, you taste the bliss of eternity. You
may become proficient in this samadhi; Nirvikalpa Samadhi, where you can do
feats like being buried alive and then being unburied and you're still
alive. You may make your heart stop beating, look as if you're dead, but you
have merged with Absolute Reality, but it doesn't last. You come back to the
world. This is as far as a person can go by themselves. It is only a rare
few who can go further by themselves. The average meditator has to find a
Satguru, one who has passed that stage, and the enlightened one may "give"
them Grace, that they may transcend that stage and go into

....Sahaja Samadhi, which is becoming normal again, but always in a state of
bliss, transcending the world, being in a permanent state of liberation and
yet back to functioning in the world. But deep inside you are not of this
world. You have become totally liberated. You have become Absolute Reality,
Pure Awareness, all-pervading and totally free.

However, all experiences are of a personal nature, and ultimately, the
greatest "samadhi" leads to the non-personal, nobody home; no individual
doership. In my own personal experience, (this is impossible to describe,
but I'll do the best I can) about 17 years ago, when I was not a meditator,
one day, while reading a book, ( nothing of significance) suddenly, my
breath was being sucked out of me. I have no idea how long this lasted.
Simultaneously, I felt an indescribable, almost unbearable Love and felt as
though my heart would burst. I felt connected to everybody and everything in
the entire Universe and beyond and in that instant there was a Knowing,
there was no time, only awareness.

Horia, in response to your question about the "signs", those would be of an
individual nature.

The Light of Awareness has brought the understanding that ultimately all
experiences are of the mind. All of the samadhis, eventually lead to the
greatest samadhi, Sahaja samadhi, wherein one is taken beyond mind; where
there is no experiencer left; all experiences melting away, revealing
nothing ever really happened, no you, but rather the "you" is the space in
which all experiences arise. You are "God".

Love to all,

jessica