Warmest greetings,
Beloved soul.
Let's take a journey inside ourselves together to understand and accept the truth about life.
Let's start with the breath.
Breathing is the key to understanding ourselves and the world around us.
Let's immerse ourselves in the technique of anapanasati,
Mindfulness of breathing.
Allow yourself to see the truth that lies at the core of our existence.
Find a comfortable,
Quiet place where you can sit on any surface,
Preferably semi-solid or solid,
It could be a chair,
Or you can sit in a half lotus or lotus position.
Allow yourself to set aside all worries and thoughts for this moment.
Immerse yourself in the world of your inner peace.
Close your eyes and let's begin our journey.
Firstly,
It's important to understand that mindfulness of breathing is not just about inhaling and exhaling air,
It's more of a way of internal self-observation,
Allowing us to see the deeper aspects of our existence.
It's about nurturing within ourselves the ability to be the observer,
Which we can then embody at any moment in our lives.
We live in a world where we strive for eternal happiness,
Eternal love,
And perpetual bliss,
But this is all illusion.
This meditation teaches us that true happiness lies within us,
Not beyond our consciousness.
Breathing is the most powerful tool for calming and achieving true inner harmony.
Not by being aware of our breath,
Allowing it to happen as it is,
Without distortion or alteration,
But simply observing the process,
The mind sharpens,
The mind calms.
Try to carefully and calmly observe your breathing.
Just notice the light touch of air on the skin under your nostrils.
Notice the subtle sensations that are happening there.
What do you feel?
It could be a pulsating,
Tingling,
Nagging sensation,
Or just cold,
Or warm,
Whatever.
Just be aware of it,
And be aware of it.
Now I can feel the warmth,
I'll watch how long it lasts.
Or now there's a pulsation,
I'll watch how long it lasts.
Keep observing,
Keep developing awareness without being distracted by any thoughts.
Just you and the breath,
Just inhaling and exhaling.
Connect all your attention to your nostrils.
Remain there throughout the entire meditation,
Observing how the clear inhalation occurs,
How the clear exhalation occurs.
Begin to notice your breath.
In this way,
Sharpening your mind,
Delve deeper,
Exploring the subtlest sensations of air touching the surface of the skin under the nostrils.
Take an even closer look.
What is happening there?
What sensations arise?
Vivaca is our understanding of the true nature of existence,
Our capacity to see the world as it truly is,
Rather than through the lens of our desires.
We often reside in maya,
The self-created illusion that we accept as reality.
And this illusion is the source of our distress.
When we begin to perceive and comprehend the true state of things,
We shift from maya to vivaca,
Where everything becomes transparent.
Subsequently,
Vairagya,
Our liberation from worldly attachments,
Emerges effortlessly because it is born from this newfound insight.
Pain is inevitable,
Suffering is optional.
Imagine life as a trek through a dense forest.
Every step can be fraught with difficulty if you're barefoot,
Feeling every sharp rock and thorn.
People long to walk comfortably through the forest and they are presented with a choice,
To put on shoes or not.
The decision is theirs to make.
Suffering is an inherent part of life,
Much like the rough terrain of a forest is to a barefoot walker.
But whether we experience pain is up to us.
Life can be likened to a journey through a dense forest,
Where the ground is littered with obstacles that can cause pain if faced without protection.
Individuals aim to navigate this terrain and they are faced with a choice,
To protect their feet with shoes or to continue barefoot.
The Buddha teaches that all of life is marked by suffering which is inescapable.
This truth can be confirmed through our own experiences with yoga or during extended periods of still meditation.
It is through these practices that we can truly grasp this wisdom.
If you walk through this forest with shoes on,
You are shielded from the pain of the rough ground beneath you.
But if you choose to go barefoot,
You will inevitably face the discomfort of the terrain.
You cannot enjoy the protection of shoes and the freedom of bare feet at the same time.
When you traverse the forest of life with the protection of understanding and detachment,
You can be free from suffering.
However,
If you seek to navigate it without preparation,
You must choose between the pain of bare feet or the safety of wearing shoes.
Many think that walking through the forest without shoes might bring them closer to nature or offer a more authentic experience,
Mistaking this for stability or a deeper connection.
But in reality,
The choice is stark.
Either you protect yourself and walk with ease,
Or you endure the unnecessary pain of every sharp stone and thistle.
This is the real conundrum.
Now do you understand why in yoga it is said that ignorance is the most serious sin?
Ignorance causes us to walk through life unprepared,
Leading to distress,
Which can spiral into illness and even greater suffering.
An ignorant person seeks certainty and aims to walk through the forest unharmed,
But there are only two practical outcomes.
Every attachment we cling to and every small desire we indulge in is like choosing to walk through the forest either with or without shoes,
Hoping for comfort or bracing for pain.
But remember,
Each time we opt for the comfort of shoes,
Each time we seek stability in something external,
We are actually choosing a path free from the unnecessary suffering of walking barefoot.
An ignorant person seeks stability,
Strives for the shore,
But there are only two possible scenarios there.
Every object we cling to and every little desire we fulfill is like some shore where we hope for rest and peace.
But remember that every time we strive for the shore,
Every time we try to find stability in the external world,
We actually increase our dissatisfaction.
Continue to observe your breath until the end of the audio session.
Only in this way will you develop true tranquility and true inner peace.
An old devotee of Shiva named Visoba was resting,
Placing his feet on the Lingamurti.
Samdev could not tolerate such blasphemy.
He approached the old man and asked,
What are you doing?
Have you lost your mind?
Why are you putting your feet on the Lord's Lingamurti?
Remove them immediately.
Then,
Visoba replied to him,
I am an old man.
Due to my weakness,
I cannot move my feet.
I would be very grateful to you if you help me remove them.
It would be very kind of you.
Namdevji agreed to help the old man remove his feet and tried to move them to another place.
But wherever Visoba's feet touched the ground,
A new lingam appeared under his feet.
Namdev tried to move the feet to another place,
But the lingam appeared again and again and the feet ended up on it.
In the end,
Namdev recognized Visoba as a teacher and asked him for enlightenment.
Gurudev,
Visoba Khechar gave Namdev such a revelation,
The existence of the Lord is in any form.
There is no place where God is not present.
Continue to observe your breath until the end of the audio session.
Only in this way will you develop true tranquility and true inner peace.
