Meditations Instructions
Part 1
Hello fellow human being.
This page contains detailed description and practicing instructions to the
following meditations and exercises:
Shielding exercise
-- a very simple, yet powerful, shielding exercise.
Relaxation exercise
-- a very basic, yet an effective relaxation.
The Silence Meditation
-- which along The Aum Mantra Meditation are the Crest-Jewel of all
spiritual practices. If a person would choose to practice only one
meditation -- either one of these two is highly recommended.
Back to
Preface to Meditations in The Third Circle (TTC)
-- a brief introduction and description of the eight meditations and
exercises.
Shielding
"Surround self with the light of the Christ-consciousness - by thought, by
word of mouth, by impressing it upon self - also for protection."
Edgar Cayce
"160: One is one's own guardian. What other guardian could one have? With
oneself well disciplined one obtains a rare guardian indeed."
The Dhammapada
Foreword
This is an energetic and astral shielding. It may be helpful as a first
stage of every meditation, and it may be practiced in itself. Whenever one
may feel, or fear, an energy drain or an energetic attack, or psychic
intruding -- shielding may be helpful.
It is recommended to shield ourselves before we meditate. You can
shield yourself as often as you may feel a need to, even when not
meditating.
The shielding takes usually between few seconds and up to one minute, yet
-- it is up to you to determine the length of time you feel like doing it,
or you want to do it.
Instructions to shielding
Imagine an extension, a cord, or a root, coming out from the bottom end of
your spine. Imagine that this root is going deep down into the ground,
deeper and deeper, spreading shoots to the sides. The imagining may be
visual, or verbal (thinking it).
Feel, or imagine yourself being connected to Mother Earth. Think of Mother
earth and feel, or imagine, Her protecting you. This root keeps you
grounded and drains possible negative energies to the ground.
Imagine an egg-shaped balloon of semi-transparent golden-white light
engulfing you. A possible size of this imagined balloon may be about one
meter (three feet) in diameter to the sides, and about 2.5 to three meters
(seven to nine feet) in height. You may imagine it having any size that
appeals to you.
Feel, or imagine this balloon of light protecting you. Feel, or imagine,
that you are being protected -- open to love and light, to positive
energies, yet protected from any unwanted ones.
It is a good practice to add praying or asking for shielding and
protection before, or while, exercising this shielding.
PS
Please bear in mind that in the relative universe nothing is absolute,
thus there is no absolute protection and shielding. Ultimately, one's free
will and choices are the best protection one may have -- over time.
Nevertheless, this shielding exercise may be a good practice.
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Contents of the meditations page
Relaxation
"First, quiet the self mentally, internally, by
holding to those things which are eternal."
Edgar Cayce
Foreword:
This is a very basic and simple relaxation exercise, yet, quite an
effective one. Good to be practiced whenever one may be tensed, and at the
beginning of every meditation.
It is best being practiced sitting, eyes closed, though it may be
practiced at any posture and situation.
Instructions to relaxation
Take a deep breath, hold it for few seconds and exhale. Repeat it few
times. You may add asking or praying for relaxation. Feel, or imagine,
getting more and more relaxed. You may feel, or imagine, your limbs
getting relaxed one by one. You may start from your feet and going up
gradually, through your legs, torso, hands, neck, and up to your face and
head. Feel, or imagine, that your whole body is very calm and relaxed.
Usually it shouldn't take very long, may be about a minute, or few
minutes. If you may be very tensed, you can practice it for as long as you
feel like.
When being practiced while standing, or in a public place, you can just
take deep breath, hold it for few seconds and exhale. You may repeat it
few times.
Back to
Contents of the meditations page
The Silence Meditation
(56) "Neither by the practice of Yoga or of Sankhya philosophy, nor by
good works, nor by learning, does liberation come; but only through the
realization that Atman and Brahman are one -- in no other way.
(62) "A sickness is not cured by saying the word 'medicine' -- you must
take the medicine. Liberation does not come by merely saying the word
'Brahman' -- Brahman must be actually experienced.
(63) "Until you allow this apparent universe to dissolve from your
consciousness - until you have experienced Brahman - how can you find
liberation just by saying the word 'Brahman'? The result is merely a
noise.
(70) " ... Thus the wise man riches that highest state, in which
consciousness of subject and object is dissolved away and the infinite
unitary consciousness alone remains -- and he knows the bliss of Nirvana
while still living on earth."
Shankara
Vivekacudamani (The Crest Jewel of Discrimination)
"First, quiet the self mentally, internally, by holding to those things
which are eternal. People who by constant introspection through entering
into the silence, are able to bring to the surface of the activities of
the entity as a whole."
Edgar Cayce
Preface
The Silence Meditation, along The Aum Mantra Meditation, are the
Jewel-Crest of all spiritual practices. Specifying all their benefits will
take many pages.
In brief: they are the most effective and direct means to connect the
unbounded ocean of truth and wisdom lying inside the silent chambers of
our hearts. They are is a great aid in connecting our Higher Self and,
ultimately, our Supreme Self.
This meditation is relaxing and have numerous beneficial effects on our
body and mind, health, consciousness, clarity of thinking, energy level,
developing our intuition, widening our perspective and expanding our
boundaries.
The Silence Meditation may serve as a springboard to all other spiritual
practices and exercises. It is very natural, very easy to practice. It is
devoid of any connection to any teaching, tradition, dogma or religion.
TTC is an opening, not a teaching.
Connecting the ocean of silence inside gives momentum to all our actions,
facilitates and speeds up attaining all goals.
Ultimately, The Silence Meditation is a great aid in attaining
Self-realization, or enlightenment -- upon aspiring this supreme
attainment.
The Third Circle is not a
religion, nor is it connected to any particular religion and The Silence
Meditation is definitely in no conflict with any faith, religion,
tradition, or spiritual path. The inner silence cannot possibly conflict
any faith.
Foreword
It is recommended to begin meditation with shielding which serves as
protection, like the shielding exercise described above. Even better than
shielding is the Simple Breathing Exercise (Pranayama) presented above,
or, you may choose to precede The Silence Meditation with both Shielding
and Pranayama.
Like any other meditation, it is very good to start this one with a
relaxation, or, better still, with the Simple Pranayama exercise presented
above. You may choose the relaxation exercise described above, or any
other relaxation practice you are familiar with and comfortable with, or
The Simple Breathing Exercise (Pranayama) presented above, or any other
breathing exercise you are familiar with and comfortable with. After some
time, your body may get relaxed automatically upon starting to meditate.
When this is the case, there is no more a need to exercise relaxation
before meditation. Yet, even when relaxation is attained automatically
upon starting to meditate, the Breathing Exercise, or Pranayama, is highly
valuable.
It is recommended to pray or ask whatever one may want to attain in life
at the beginning of every meditation. One may add asking for protection
and shielding in this particular meditation.
It is very good to intend. Allow yourself few seconds to bring to your
mind your intentions in this meditation and in life. Bring to your mind
your highest ideal(s) or inspiration(s) or aspiration(s). Intending is a
great aid in itself, even outside meditation -- it helps opening energy
channels to and from the aimed goal.
At times, if you may feel very tired, moody, tensed, agitated, low
energies, irritated, impatient, drained out, spaced out, disconnected, the
mind is not clear, etc -- it is recommended to elevate your feeling, mood
or energies by the Body-Feeling Meditation described above.
If you may feel too impatient or moody to practice the Silence Meditation,
it may be good to calm down and get stabilized by practicing the
Body-Feeling Meditation for a while. After getting better, or getting
stabilized, one may resume practicing The Silence Meditation. That is, you
can start with the Body-Feeling Meditation until you calm down or get
stabilized, and then switch to The Silence Meditation in the same sitting.
At other times, when you may not calm down enough during the whole
sitting, all the exercise will be the Body-Feeling Meditation. It may take
a while to calm down, or get stabilized - a period of time - it's OK,
there is no point in forcing anything.
Regularity in practice is highly recommended, though it's better to
practice irregularly than not at all. The best will be twice a day,
morning and evening, for between 10 to 40 minutes each time. It's better
to determine the time beforehand, not to stop meditation because of any
feelings or thoughts that may arise during meditation. Marking the time
with an alarm clock may be jolting at times, so it's best to peep at your
watch when you think it may be time.
It is not recommended to meditate on one's own for more than 3 times a day
and for longer than an hour each time, or for longer than two hours a day
altogether. If ever you may feel getting disconnected from practical
avenues of life, if you may feel spaced out, it is a good practice to cut
down the time of practicing The Silence Meditation to no more than twice a
day, no more than 20 minutes each time. If after cutting down meditation
time you may still feel disconnected or spaced out, it is better still to
switch from practicing The Silence Meditation to practicing the
Body-Feeling Meditation instead. It is not recommended to stop meditating
altogether.
Please bear in mind, our viewpoint is that meditation is an aid to our
life -- we meditate in order to improve our life, we do not live in order
to meditate. Even when one aspires Self-realization, meditation is only a
tool, not an aim in itself -- it is a means, not the goal. It is not any
meditation which will make one Self-realized, it is the individual who may
do it, out of free choice and self-endeavor.
When short in time, even 3 or 5 minute is better than nothing. If
necessary, better in a park, your parked car, or any other public place
than not at all.
Better not to meditate on a full stomach. Better to take shower before,
rather than after meditation. In spite of those recommendations, better to
meditate anyhow than to skip meditation because one is with full stomach
etc. If you are very hungry, you may eat something light before
meditating, a fruit or so -- just to break the hunger.
It is not recommended to meditate late at night, for one may come out of
meditation very refreshed and awake and may have difficulty falling asleep
later. If one decides to meditate late at night, the best is to meditate
sitting in bed, and right at the end of meditation to lie down. Than, with
the relaxation attained in meditation, probably one will have no problem
falling asleep.
Prepare yourself not to be interrupted during meditation. Disconnect the
phone, notify the people you are living with, etc.
The aim and purpose of this meditation is to connect the silence within --
the inner silence which is actually your own Supreme Self. There is no
need to create this silence, it is already there, inside. All it takes is
connecting that which is inside us, our innermost silent being.
In TTC there are no set rules or
instructions as for the way to do it -- each may find for oneself the way
that works best for him/her. Below, few suggestions are given. Try them
and find out for yourself how to practice this meditation, the way that
works best for you.
Generally, this meditation is best practiced sitting comfortably with eyes
closed. It is recommended not to cross your legs and arms (unless you are
used to Eastern stile sitting and it is comfortable for you). It is
recommended that the back, neck and head would be straight, as long as
it's comfortable. If the head drops down during meditation, when you
notice, you may lift it up easily.
You can try any one of the suggestions given below, or any other way you
may find out. Better to try one way at a time. It's good to try one of the
suggestions number of times - for a while - until you'll become familiar
with it. In time you'll find out what works best for you.
Please remember that I'm available to answer any possible questions by
e-mail. I'll do my best to answer and clarify, as much as it can be done
verbally.
If you will find a way to connect the inner silence, other than the
suggestions below, please share by e-mail:
E-mail
Suggestions to connect the silence within
1.
Sit, eyes closed, quietly for a while. It is very good to practice
relaxation for a short while -- if you choose so.
Most probably thoughts will be there. Most probably you will notice some
silence, some quietness, alongside the thoughts. When you notice that
silence, that quietness, just dive into it, just be aware of it, just be
with it.
2.
Imagine a natural scenery where there is a lake. The lake is very
peaceful, quiet and silent. There are no waves and no motion in that lake.
Imagine yourself entering that lake and diving into the silence that is in
the lake. Just be with this silence, just be aware of it.
All imaginings may be visual or verbal; you may have a visual picture in
your mind, or you may say it silently -- think about it.
3.
Imagine that inside you there is a pool of infinite silence, a
conscious silence. It is motionless conscious silence. Conscious, yet
conscious of nothing in particular. Dive into that pool of silence, be
aware of that conscious silence, be with that conscious silence.
4.
Just sit as relaxed and as awake as you may be. Just be as relaxed and
as awake as you may be during the entire meditation.
5.
Try to find out for yourself how to do it, how to connect the silence
inside. You may use a combination of the above suggestions, or something
different altogether. If you'll find something different, please share it,
others may gain from it. Dive into this silence and just be with this
silence, just be aware of it.
General
Be with this silence regardless of whether there are any thoughts, or
there are no thoughts alongside it. That's all -- being with that silence,
being aware of this silence whenever you may notice it, to whatever degree
you may be with it or may be aware of it.
It is better not to force anything coming in and not to force anything
going away. The only thing recommended for you to initiate is coming back
to the silence, gently, naturally, comfortably and easily, whenever you
may find that your mind was drifting away from it. That is, bring your
attention back to this silence, just be with it, just be aware of it.
The most important thing to bear in mind is that the meditation would
better be practiced easily and naturally all along. Nothing should be
forced -- ever. There is but a little volitional directing of what happens
-- for most parts we just accept things as they come. We connect the
silence inside, or bring our attention to it, and then take things as they
come. It is so much easy and simple that it may take some time to get used
to its ease and simplicity.
Our experience is that it is not possible to be fully connected to the
silence, without any thoughts, all the time. Whenever you may find that
your attention have drifted away and you are immersed in thoughts -- very
gently, easily, comfortably and naturally come back to the silence inside,
bring your attention to the silence, just be with it. All this is better
done without resisting thought, without trying to stop it, without wishing
that thoughts would not be there. Thoughts are no barrier for being with
the inner silence.
Better not to try pushing thoughts away, not to resist thoughts, not to
wish that thoughts would not be there, not to control or contrive
anything. Better to accept anything and everything that comes in this
meditation as it comes. The only volitional act on your part is, whenever
you may find that you were immersed in thoughts, or that your attention
may have drifted away -- very gently, easily and naturally come back to
the silence inside, bring your attention to the silence, just be with it.
If thoughts persists, it's OK, do not try to push them away, do not try to
stop them, do not wish that they will not be there. By thoughts it is
meant also notions, images, sounds, colors, feelings -- anything other
than the silence.
As for The Silence Meditation -- easy does it. Effort, trying,
manipulating, controlling or contriving, are not likely to help connecting
the silence. The less volition one is using -- the better. It is not our
doing that creates connection to the inner silence -- it is non-doing that
does it. This meditation is basically aiming at, intending to, connect the
inner silence, directing our attention towards this aim -- and then not
doing anything volitional, just being with what's there.
The Silence Meditation is a meditation of
non-doing, rather than a meditation of doing.
There is no such thing as a successful or unsuccessful meditation. All
there is the practice, preferred regularly. The results of meditation
are accumulated over time, over weeks, months and years. The results of
meditating would better not be judged by one session, only over time. Some
results are very subtle and may be noticed only after being accumulated
over time. At times we may have overwhelming experiences in meditation.
The fact that an experience is overwhelming does not say anything about
its quality or value.
It is better to meditate innocently, not to look for any specific results,
not to anticipate anything. Whatever results may be there, they will come
in due course, of their own accord. Better to let nature and consciousness
work without manipulations on our part. Our volition may be directed
towards regularity in practice; better let the invincible force of the
inner silence and of nature take care of the results.
As some of us may be habituated to a sophisticated way of life, it may
take some time and practice to get the innocence desired for practicing
The Silence Meditation. Please bear in mind -- there are ways and means to
actively create a desired reality for ourselves in our lives.
TTC contains such means -- though it's
outside the scope of this file. As for The Silence Meditation -- innocence
does it. That is, best is to exercise our volition in regularity of
practice; as for the results -- best let the cosmic laws and forces take
care of it.
In time you may find increased intuition, or communication with your
Higher Self. Eventually Self-realization may be attained (if sincerely and
intently aspired and if proper starting position, or Karma, is there). You
may find many things in you and in your life being improved, yet, better
not to expect and not to anticipate any specific result at any specific
time. Innocence assists this meditation more than any other attitude.
At times you may receive guidance from your Higher Self in meditations. At
times thoughts in meditation are just the working of the mind. It is not
recommended to automatically take everything that comes to mind in
meditation to be a guidance from your Higher Self. If you think that
something that came up in meditation may be a guidance -- better check it
outside meditation with your common sense and with your intuition, or your
inner feeling. As a rule, intuition, or inner feeling, is the best guide
one may have. Intuition is a major way in which our Higher Self
communicates with our conscious mind and intuition works outside of
mediation as well.
It is recommended not to come out of meditation because of any tension,
irritation, agitation, restlessness or any peculiar thought that may come
up during meditation. It isn't recommended to stop meditation because of a
feeling, or a thought, which may come up during meditation, indicating
that it's better to stop now the meditation. The best is to meditate for
the duration decided beforehand.
If a tension or irritation may occur during meditation, it is better to
remain sitting with eyes closed, but to switch from The Aum Mantra
Meditation to The Body-Feeling Mediation, described above, until that
tension or irritation subsides. Once it have subsided, you can switch back
to The Aum Mantra Meditation. Even if there may be a period of time that
all your meditations will be Body-Feeling ones -- it's OK. There is no
point in forcing anything, better to accept one's condition -- whatever
that condition may be. As for thoughts in meditation, peculiar ones or
ordinary ones -- better to evaluate them outside of meditation.
Back to
Contents of the meditations page
May your own Light and Love guide you.
