2.26 Detaching Yourself From Your Conscious Mind
“The root of suffering is attachment.”
Buddha
DETACHMENT
Many people are looking for a fast way to find and pursue their life path. They want to listen to their heart but only if the message doesn’t affect their security in any way. They would like to learn more about the mysteries of life so that they can manifest more abundance, but they don’t want to give anything up in the process.
Attachment to things, people and desires hold most of us back from finding our true selves – from walking our own life path. Real abundance is able to come naturally into your life only when you are ready to release all attachments. All unnecessary things must be allowed to leave. Only then can you receive plentiful abundance.
This doesn’t mean that you must give everything up. If most of what you already have is allowed to stay, so be it. However, if many things leave and you start to get concerned, don’t worry. They ultimately will be replaced with something else of much greater value.
You must learn how to place yourself directly in the path of creation and let it guide you. To do so first requires that you turn off your conscious mind and the cravings of its imperfect desires. Then and only then will you be able to let the perfect knowledge of your Higher Self guide you and help you identify what ideally should be in your life. It will guide you through your internal voice of intuition.
THERE IS A NATURAL PROCESS AVAILABLE FOR MANIFESTING ANY DESIRE
Using only the voice of your conscious self, that of your rational and logical mind, you end up relying upon your belief system to guide the manifestation of things and conditions in your life. Most of us have faulty or incorrect beliefs and leading life from this base of experience can only result in generating inferior results – results that do not provide the satisfaction, the joy and the happiness that you desire. It you are already manifesting a perfect and satisfying life, you are very fortunate. Most of us, however, are not and would like to make substantial positive change.
You need to disengage your conscious mind – and let go of who you have become for awhile so you can learn to connect to a new source of guidance. You need to experience a whole new cycle of inner transformation – to connect with your divine center and let it help awaken you to a more expansive understanding of your role in the universe. To more fully awaken your inborn capabilities, you will need to lead your life from the guidance of this inner voice. Not the voice of your conscious mind, but one that is hidden deep underneath – the voice of intuition.
The only way to powerfully and directly become who you came here to become is to build a permanent connection with that inner voice of knowledge and let it guide you. You have already started the process to develop a profile of who you are and what areas of life you came here to work on. You examined the karmic residue from your past lives to determine what unresolved lessons need to be worked on in this lifetime. You determined where you would find your greatest joy and what would satisfy your heart’s desire. You don’t know exactly what it is you should be doing to become who you came here to become. And, even if you have found your path, you don’t know exactly how to proceed to pursue it.
No one outside of you can give you the answers to these questions. These answers only exist deep within you. You can achieve your highest joy, your greatest fulfillment by exercising your own free choice – the power of your free will. You just need the direction – the direction of the voice of your Higher Self.
Realize this. You are a powerful manifesting “machine.” By the free use of your powerful will, you can manifest almost anything that you desire, if you desire it enough. This fact has already been proven out in your own life as well as in the lives of so many others around you.
It is not the lack of your ability to manifest that becomes the problem. Rather, it is the lack of discrimination in choosing the right thing or things to manifest. Subconsciously, you know whether a particular desire is right for you or not. Many times you have manifested something thinking that it would yield a high level of happiness and satisfaction only to find that this happiness was fleeting, shallow or nonexistent.
There are really few choices that can be made that result in lasting fulfillment. Your conscious mind will not be able to help you select them, nor will the emotionally laden mind of your subconscious self.
There is only one place wherein you can discover the right choice and develop the right desires at any given time. This is the place occupied by your higher mind, your higher self, your divine center. It is the only source that knows what is right for you. It is the only evaluator that can look into your past, into your present and project into your future what you should have to be happy and to be whole.
To be able to listen to the voice of your higher self requires an openness and a level of detachment that you are probably not yet used to. Before you are able to maintain an ongoing connection with this voice, you need to learn a technique that will consistently and easily take you there.
You have allowed your intuitive voice to get buried ever since your early childhood when it played a prominent role in your life. Your conditioned conscious mind has taken over since then and has become your ever powerful evaluator and initiator of desire in your life. You have accumulated a large data base of beliefs and experiences that were originally processed by your conscious mind and stored within the memory and watched over by your subconscious mind.
It is not easy to put your conscious mind and your subconscious experiences aside. In fact, these two powerful minds will not let you.You first need to learn how to disengage and neutralize them before you can build a conscious bridge to your higher mind, your real self.
If you resolve to truly become who you came here to become, if you desire to fulfill your true potential and if you would like to achieve total fulfillment, true joy and happiness during the balance of your lifetime, you have no other choice than to invest the time and effort required to build this bridge. You need to come face to face with your higher self on a regular daily basis, every day for the rest of your life. To do that, you need to commit the time required to learn how to connect and maintain that connection.
Without the commitment to spend daily time in direct contact with your higher self, you will not be able to sustain a permanent connection with it. If you don’t, your life will not be a seamless series of the fulfillment of desires that fully satisfy you and powerfully express your true nature. Instead, your life will consist of disconnected ups and downs, half desires and half truths that really don’t represent the real you or provide any real degree of lasting happiness and definitely little fulfillment.
HOW DO I CREATE PERMANENT CONTACT WITH MY INNER VOICE OF KNOWLEDGE, MY HIGHER SELF?
The only direct and consistent method is through meditation.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF MEDITATION?
The benefits or meditation have been carefully studied under controlled circumstances and numerous significant benefits have been discovered. Some of these benefits are as follows:
1. Deep, Conscious Relaxation – By observing changes in brain wave patterns and other physiological conditions, we now know that it is possible, through meditation, to experience conscious relaxation which is more complete than that experienced during the ordinary sleep state. You can experience complete rest while remaining “awake”, that is, while being totally conscious.
2. Stress Reduction – Because of deep relaxation, slowing of breathing pattern and activity of internal organs, emotions become settled and mental activity becomes refined. An examination of blood samples of meditators reveals a reduction of blood lactate levels, indicating a lessening of stress in the body. The harmful effects of hypertension have been widely reported, not the least of which can be elevated blood pressure, migraine headaches, and interference with normal functioning of glands and organs. Many meditators with a history of high blood pressure have been able to reduce blood pressure to a safe level by meditating on a regular schedule for the relaxation benefits alone.
3. Improved Concentration – Easy flowing of attention to the purpose at hand is concentration. During meditation our attention is naturally drawn inward, without interference from unwanted thoughts or emotional surges. After meditation we find it easier to concentrate upon projects and relationships and, in this way, we can be more productive and functional. Also, the conscious exercise of concentration during waking hours enables us to meditate more effectively.
4. More Orderly Thinking – When superconscious forces prevail during meditation, thought streams are ordered automatically. The chaos of conflicting thought streams, supported by emotions, ceases. After meditation, because of the relaxed awareness one experiences, thought processes tend to be harmoniously arranged and the interaction between left and right hemispheres of the brain is more balanced.
5. Strengthening of the Immune System – Stress, confusion, despair, anxiety, fear, loneliness all contribute to weakening of the immune system, the body’s defense against disease and deterioration. Conscious relaxation and superconscious experience, on the other hand, are conducive to strengthening the immune system. After meditation, the cultivation of optimism, hope, faith, and feelings of love, also exercises a healthy and nourishing influence on the immune system.
6. Slowing of the Aging Process – Examination of meditators indicates that persons who meditate on a regular schedule do not show signs of aging as fast as nonmeditators. Mental and emotional states are better, evidence of stress is minimal, and the immune system is healthier.
7. Improvement in the Quality of Life – To merely exist in space and time, or to cope with a seeming never-ending series of challenges, is not the real purpose of living. Because of general improvements in mental, emotional and physical health, and an improvement in feelings of self-value, meditators tend to enjoy life more, to have more wholesome and supportive relationships, and to have purpose and direction in their lives.
8. Increase in Intelligence – Our ability to discern, to draw correct conclusions and to perceive without error, is an indication of intelligence. When thoughts and feelings are confused, when self-defeating attitudes are maintained, our ability to exercise native intelligence is diminished. Superconscious influences experienced during and after meditation tend to increase awareness and harmonize thoughts and emotions. Self-defeating attitudes tend to be dissolved. The result is that most meditators experience an increase in intellectual abilities.
9. Awakened Intuition – Intuition is our innate ability to know by knowing. It is the ability to perceive directly what is so about what is examined. When we experience a flash of insight, when we experience inner knowing, this is intuition. Through the use of intelligence and intuition it is possible to discern the inner side of nature, to subjectively experience reality at a finer and deeper level than is possible through sense perception alone.
10. More Self-Sufficiency and Freedom of Choice – As a result of being able to rest in the silence during meditation, and to experience “self-completeness,” one discovers that he is no longer as dependent upon externals as he perhaps once was. The meditator, then, experiences himself as a self-sufficient and self-reliant person and is therefore better able to make wise choices about how he will live his life and what he will do with his time, energies and talents. Many people, as the result of regular meditation, have been able to make very important choices, such as the choice to experience healing and live a productive life, rather than to play the role of victim and be defeated by illness or other circumstances.
11. Pronounced Creativity – A healthy human being is, by nature, a problem-solver and a goal-achiever. With the removal of inner restricting patterns and conditions, meditators discover a pronounced increase in creative abilities. They are able to flow with the rhythms of life more easily and accomplish useful purposes with relative ease.
12. Increase in Spiritual Awareness – As a result of correct meditation practice the meditator is able to experience his real nature as pure consciousness; he is not dependent upon mental activity, feelings, or relationships to add to his beingness. He comes to easily accept the fact that he is a unit of awareness and is able to more clearly understand the inner teachings of philosophers and seers. If he is religious, the meditator will find that his appreciation for spiritual instruction increases and his understanding rapidly improves. A more pronounced sense of unity-consciousness, harmony with the universe, naturally unfolds.
13. Freedom from Addictions of All Kinds – The addictive personality has emotional needs which he attempts to satisfy by using substances, behavior, or relationships which are often harmful and destructive. Even if such substances, behavior or relationships are not a health challenge, they still result in a diminishment of creativity, and they prevent a person from exploring a wider range of possibilities in life.
The symptoms of addiction may vary – overeating, undereating, unwise use of alcohol or drugs, the maintenance of non-useful relationships, self-defeating behavior of many kinds, and so on. The real problem is never “out there,” and it is good for a person with an addictive personality disorder to realize that he is not a victim. Every person has freedom of choice.
After meditating deeply on a regular schedule, many people find that they are able to choose wise behavior and renounce unwise behavior, without painful withdrawal symptoms or involvement in expensive and time-consuming programs. And, if one chooses to enroll in a special program for the purpose of education and emotional support, his progress will be much faster if he meditates correctly and is willing to assume responsibility for his choices.
MEDITATION TECHNIQUES
There are many methods of meditation – some are more useful than others. The most effective method that is used by the greatest number of people is the Transcendental Meditation Technique taught by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. His TM organization holds classes in most major cities across the United States. Their meditation technique involves utilizing a sound, or what is called a mantra, with the accompanying control of breath and an inner gaze.
This technique is so simple that it is a shame that the TM organization currently charges $1,000 to teach it. Because of its simplicity and it’s timeless usefulness it should be freely given away to anyone who desires to use it, and this is what I am doing here. In the following instructions, I will provide you with a mantra meditation technique similar if not identical to that which is taught in the TM program.
HOW TO MEDITATE
Select a Time and a Place for Meditation
You need to develop a specific time during each day when you will be able to do your daily meditation. It is best if you meditate twice each day, for at least twenty minutes each time, but if you can’t, at least one thirty minute session is needed to maintain the benefit of the momentum of your meditation.
Early morning is a good time for meditation since your thoughts will not yet have become involved with other matters. Evening is also good because the events of the day will have transpired by then. Meditation in the evening will also help to reduce any stress which might have accumulated during the day.
Because you will want to experience deep relaxation, it is best not to meditate after eating, as the digestive process will preclude the complete calming of your body.
Select a quiet place where you will not be disturbed for any reason. You will want to dedicate your total attention to this process. Just as regular sleeping, eating and working habits are conducive to function, regular meditation routine is conducive to success in meditation practice.
The Meditation Technique
Loosen any tight articles of clothing so you will be able to fully relax. Sit upright in a comfortable chair, poised and balanced, with your head erect. The ideal meditation posture is one in which you can sit for the duration of the session without having to unnecessarily move your body.
Close your eyes and be still for a few moments. Inhale and exhale a few times, rather deeply, but do not overdo it. Let the breathing pattern then become regulated on it’s own, making no effort to control it.
As you start meditating, enter into the process that is occurring easily and naturally, without any effort and without any anxiety for quick results.
The Inner Gaze
You need to develop an inner gaze (while your eyes are closed) which is directed to the space between your eyebrows. As your inner sight fixes it’s attention on this space, let your gaze continue outward into the distance. Select a point in the distance of your inner space and gaze at it, without strain. Steady gazing contributes to allowing you to accomplish single-pointed concentration. It is important to maintain this gaze at all times while you meditate. Remember, your eyes will be looking upward at all times as though you are looking at an object that is in the line of sight between your eyes and the middle of your eyebrows.
The Mantra
You will now begin to coordinate your breathing with a word or phrase that floats within your mind but is not physically vocalized. This word, or mantra, is not important in terms of meaning, but rather is a focusing device. Consequently, the choice of the word should be based upon the ease of use (for you) and it’s natural propensity for the mental sound process being used during meditation. If a word is physically difficult to say, it will probably conjure up images of your lips pursing or may trigger a memory of the strain that might be required for its use. Any word or phrase that is based exclusively on vowel sounds will provide your best mantra.
There are two mantras that I would recommend you consider using. The first you should use for a while until you are totally comfortable with it. Then you can experiment with the second and see which you might prefer for your long term practice. Both words or phrases will be split into two parts.One part will be used on the inhale of breath and the other will be used on the exhale of breath. In this manner, you will have a focus both during inhale and exhale.
The first mantra you should consider using is ah – ha. The ah is repeated mentally during each inhale of breath and the ha is repeated mentally during each exhale of breath.
The second is the mystical syllable OM. OM should be mentally pronounced as ohmmmm and broken into two parts, Oh and Mmmm. (the O is pronounced comparatively short and the M long – prolonged without a break). The Oh is repeated mentally during each inhale of breath and the Mmmm is repeated mentally during each exhale of breath.
When repeating your mantra during meditation, do not articulate it, but rather repeat it mentally. Don’t mentally affirm the word, but rather “listen” to the word in your mind. Let the word float in your mind, naturally on it’s own.
This attractive inner mental sound will fascinate your attention and keep you more easily focused. Eventually, as you become more internalized, conscious listening to the word will give way to the experience of clear awareness and deep peace. Should you drop out of the state of clear awareness just resume listening to the word, letting it float in your mind every time you exhale, until the clear state is again experienced.
Breathing
There are two cycles involved in your breathing, your inhalation and your exhalation. No meditational benefit is derived during inhalation. The ego is disentangling itself from the body during meditation and the “feeling of self” in the core of the heart is moving on to the wordless, thoughtless state of concentration of your mantra. This state is possible only at the time of exhalation and not at the time of inhalation.`
In exhalation and retention of breath, the nerves of the body get relaxed and the mind gets into a sort of vacant, inactive state which is not possible at the time of inhalation. To practice this method, the breath should be exhaled with prolonged and appropriate effort. The whole body and the chest should be kept still and inhalation and exhalation should be done by the movement of abdominal muscles, not your chest muscles. When this is practiced assiduously for some time, a happy feeling or feeling of lightness spreads all over the body. Further practice is to be continued with this feeling, and when that is mastered, retention need not be practiced after each exhalation, but at intervals, which will not tire you excessively. When you are more advanced in this practice, it might be easier to have retention after each exhalation.
Your goal is to arrive at a unification of exhalation and retention so that the two can be achieved in the same process, and no separate effort has to made for each. At the time of exhalation the entire volume of internal air need not be ejected. When some air remains, the exhalation should be reduced and passed on to retention. Carefully mastering this, it should be watched that both the body and the mind remain still and in a vacant state, especially at the time of natural inhalation in a none too fast manner. Through this type of breathing, a disturbed mind can be easily anchored to a particular place internally and become settled without any fluctuation leading to the state of concentration called Samadhi.
