Meditation Practice

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II. Body Sensations

 

One must become aware of certain body sensations of which one is explicitly not

aware. To go around by yourself to become conscious of your toes, your feet,

your legs, your knees, your thighs, your buttocks, your waist, your stomach,

your chest, your shoulders, your fingers (starting from the tips), your

forearms, your elbow, your arms, your full back, then again your shoulders, your

neck, your chin, your lips, your nose, your cheeks, your ears, your eyes, your

forehead, your head, upper side of your head and backside of your head. Do not

dwell for more than two or three seconds on each part of your body. REPEAT it

again and again for five minutes. This act of yours brings a sense of

relaxedness. BIGGEST ENEMIES: Nervous tension, living too much in head i.e., to

remain conscious of the thinking and imagination and to remain conscious far too

little of the activities of the senses. It is a must to remain in the PRESENT

and not in past and future. One must master this technique of sense awareness.

One must learn to get out of the area of thinking and imagination and move into

the area from Head to Heart i.e., feeling, sensing, loving and intuiting where

contemplation takes birth, prayer becomes transforming power and a source of

delight and peace. A few of you may feel an increase in Tension. Note what part

of your body is tense and see exactly what the tension feels like. Become aware

of the fact you are tensing and note exactly how you are doing this. Note means

not to reflect but to feel and sense. You pick up no sensation. Why? Your

sensibility has been dead from so much living in head. Our skin is covered with

trillions (3 Powers of a million) of bio-chemical reactions-that we call

sensations and you are finding it hard to pick up even a few of them? You have

hardened yourself not to feel may be due to some emotional hurt or conflict that

you have long since forgotten. And your perception, your awareness, power of

concentration and attention are still gross and underdeveloped. It is as a means

for attaining relaxation and stillness. GET IN TOUCH WITH SENSATIONS AGAIN AND

AGAIN without naming limbs and organs as you sense. If you notice an urge to

move or to shift your posture or position-do not give into it. Do continue this

exercise for a few minutes. You will gradually feel a certain stillness in your

body. Go on with your AWARENESS exercise and leave taking care of stillness. If

you are distracted, get back to awareness of body sensations, moving from one to

another, until your body becomes still once again, your mind quietens, you are

able to sense again stillness that brings peace and a foretaste of contemplation

and of God. HOWEVER, DO NOT explicitly rest in the stillness. Because resting in

it can be relaxing and even delightful. BUT in it there is DANGER of mild trance

or mental blankness which is not good for contemplation. It is like a sort of

self-hypnosis that has nothing to do either with the sharpening of awareness or

with contemplation. IMPORTANT: DO NOT DELIBERATELY seek stillness or silence

within you and not EXPLICITLY REST in it when it occurs. BUT SEEK SHARPENING OF

AWARENESS. In moments, stillness becomes so powerful that all exercise and all

your efforts become impossible. Then it is no longer you who go in quest of

stillness. But stillness takes possession of you. THEN you may safely, and

profitably, let go of all effort and surrender to this overpowering stillness

within you.

 

to be continued...