Patanjali Yoga Sutra: Day 06

DAY 06: STEADINESS IN SAMADHI

1. Nature shakes once in a while but our senses shake everyday. Human senses are shaky every day. When senses are shaky this it is unable to behold the lord within.This disturbs the peace. Like when nature is steady there is peace, when senses are steady it is peace.
2. Meditation can happen when there is harmony in nature and when there is harmony in senses.
3. Observe that while doing mediation, our eye balls, breath, prana should be steady. When senses are steady, the soul - the being inside - also becomes steady. Senses are the bridge between object (outside) and self (inside). When senses think that pleasure will come from the objects, senses shake and become tired. And then they become unable to perceive and experience the joy.
4. Mind would be far more peaceful without the eyes. Greatest distraction in the steadiness of senses is due to eyes. The eyes that bring you light also brings you darkness when they shake. Same is true with other senses … hearing, smell, touch.
5. When the senses get steady, the prana inside also becomes steady. All those moments when you are feeling low, observe and you will find that your prana is shaky. Samadhi is steadiness of prana.
6. Don't panic, just observe, be with that; this will help in getting back the steadiness of prana in few moment. This brings you to the space where you are hollow and empty. This is being centered.
7. Become like a crystal; when you are doing something just immerse in it but as soon as that thing is over, you should be free from traces of it. When you are with senses, you are so immersed in the senses. And when you are with the sense objects you become the object completely.
8. In samadhi you do stay physically but as if you don’t exist.


9. There are two types of Samadhi:
1. Sabeej Samadhi: Samadhi that you experience through activity. This is experience while doing some activity. You look at mountain, sun or moon and things remind you of consciousness. That very moment Samadhi happens. Steadiness is the divinity; steadiness is the strength; steadiness is dispassion. When body is steady, eyes are still, mind also becomes steady and you will find that your prana is also steady. This is when the time stops, death stops to exist; immortality begins. Before the time swallows you, you wake up and you swallow the time. Samadhi is the refrigeration of your life; samadhi is the secret of youthfulness, bubbling enthusiasm.
• When you have awareness that is expanded you tend to got to sleep (the deep relaxation takes you to sleep) and when you have sharpness of awareness (extreme alertness) you tend to become uptight. So the state, you are totally relaxed and at the same time also have sharpness of awareness (combination of relaxation / expansion and sharpness of awareness / intelligence) that is Sabeej Samadhi. Your senses become very clear. You become sensitive to other's feeling. And when you become sensitive, nature becomes sensitive to you; nature listens to you.
• How to achieve this: the five 'vritis' (that we have discusses earlier: proof, wrong knowledge, fantasy, sleep and latent impressions) are subdued.
• Consciousness, senses and object of senses  - all three are in harmony, that is Samadhi. When the ears, the sound and the source from where sound is coming - that is Samadhi.
• But when we see something, we don't just stay immersed in it; other things start coming to our mind - we see it through the memory. Seeing things through comparison is no samadhi. When
• Which holds (mind/soul), through which it holds (senses) and the objects (that is held), when all three are in harmony - it is samadhi. And when this happens, though you are engaged still you are not feverish, you are steady. Steadiness despite of being engaged in sensory objects is samadhi.
• If a few thoughts are coming but not disturbing the steadiness, this is Savitarka Samadhi. This is subtle variation of Sabeej Samadhi. There are subtle thoughts or discussion but they don't disturb the harmony.


2. Nirvichara / Nirvitarka Samadhi: When you are not aware of anything, you know you are ('I AM') but you don't know what you are, who you are, where you are.
• More and more experience of the thoughtless state of mind brings grace of the divine in life; grace of the soul gets manifested; spiritual awakening / blossoming happens. The knowledge that comes from depth of your being/soul is intuitive, flawless, beyond time, steady, benevolent. This is different from what you have heard or read or what we guess. The impression of such state of consciousness can wipe out all other impressions that are useless & unnecessary. You become hollow and empty.


10. The forgiveness should be such that people whom you are forgiving doesn't even that he/she has done some mistake. People should not be made to feel guilty of the mistakes, if guilt comes this is no forgiveness. Guilt itself is punishment. Forgive other without making others feel guilty. Knowledge awakes you, takes you to the pedestal where you don't see the world (the chit chat, the trivial events of the world).
11. There are different states of samadhi. The path is long but every step is complete in itself. The goal is not somewhere after long time. You are not aiming for a goal after some time. The goal is in every moment still path is very long.
12. Be enthusiastic and patient. This is a golden path where you are enthusiastic but not feverish; you are patient but at the same time you are not lethargic.
13. Those who are enthusiastic are not patient and those who are patient are not enthusiastic.
14. We cannot say that we want samadhi today. We can not get samadhi in hurry. This is not possible. We have to take the middle path; patience with dynamism. And there lies the challenge. You should be enthusiastic still should not be hurried. This is like remembering something. You cannot remember in hurry. The more hurry you do the longer it will take to remember.