Namaste and welcome back.
In a remote village at the foot of majestic mountain,
There lived a young and earnest seeker named Arvind.
Arvind had devoted his life to the pursuit of truth and the quest of self-realization.
He spent his days meditating in a tranquil groove,
Seeking to unlock the mysteries of existence.
One day,
While Arvind was in deep meditation,
He experienced a profound awakening.
It was as if a veil had been lifted,
Revealing a deep and profound truth.
In that moment,
He felt an overwhelming sense of unity with all of creation.
The mountains,
The trees,
The flowing rivers,
And the varied air he breathed,
All seemed to merge with his own being.
He realized that he was not separate from the world,
He was an integral part of it.
The boundary between the self and the universe had dissolved,
And he felt a profound and direct connection to the ultimate reality.
With his heart brimming with joy and insight,
Arvind returned to the village and shared his experience with the villagers.
He spoke of the direct realization he had attained,
The feeling of oneness with all of existence,
And the unity of the self and the universe.
The villagers were deeply moved by Arvind's words and felt a sense of awe and wonder.
They too yearned to experience this direct realization,
This profound connection with the ultimate reality.
Arvind continued to meditate and teach the villagers the path to direct realization.
He explained that this direct experience was not limited to a select few,
But was birthright of every living being.
It could be attained through self-inquiry,
Meditation,
And a profound understanding of teachings of Vedanta.
As time passed,
More and more villagers followed Arvind's teachings and embarked on their own journeys of self-discovery.
The village became a place of profound spiritual inquiry and the transformation was evident in the faces of the people who radiated a deep sense of contentment and inner peace.
The villagers realized that the direct realization of the unity of Atman and Brahman was not just a distant ideal,
But a living truth that could be experienced here and now.
They understood that the key to self-realization was to go beyond intellectual understanding and immerse themselves in direct experience.
The legacy of Arvind,
The young seeker who experienced direct realization,
Lived on in the hearts of the villagers.
Arvind's teachings inspired generations to come,
Reminding them that the lotus of self-realization could bloom in the heart of anyone willing to seek the ultimate truth.
And so,
In that remote village,
The lotus of direct realization continued to bloom,
Nourished by the waters of self-inquiry,
Meditation,
And the timeless wisdom of Vedanta.
This story illustrates the concept of Apruksha Anubhuti,
Direct realization in Vedanta philosophy.
It emphasizes the idea that individuals can experience the unity of Atman with Brahman through profound self-inquiry and meditation,
Leading to a direct and transformative connection with the ultimate reality.
With this,
Let's prepare to sleep.
Now,
Before we get started,
Just take a moment or two to get comfortable lying in your bed.
Make sure you are under the covers.
If you do fall asleep during this practice,
And even if you don't usually go to sleep on your back,
I would like you to begin the practice by lying flat.
Maybe your knee is slightly bent.
You can keep a small pillow under the back of your knees if you like.
Just lie flat on the bed,
In supine position.
Now gently close your eyes,
And start taking a few nice big deep breaths,
Breathing in and out through the nostrils only.
As you inhale,
Feel that whole body is getting healed,
And with exhalation,
Feel that all the cares,
Tensions,
And worries from the day are flowing out.
Let go of the deep breaths now,
Releasing any tension from your entire body.
It is not necessary to deliberately release tension in each part of the body.
Just develop the feeling of total relaxation.
Just enjoy that feeling of letting go,
Body is relaxed,
Sinking into the bed beneath you.
We are going to have a simple practice to wind down.
Just follow along with the voice and the instructions.
Try not to overanalyze or intellectualize the instructions.
Now gently shift your awareness to your surroundings.
Start to notice all the different sounds present here.
Without getting struck with any one particular sound,
Try to keep your awareness moving from sound to sound.
Observe one sound,
Notice it,
And then move to the next sound.
Observe this sound,
And then move to other sound.
Like this,
Keep your awareness moving from sound to sound.
Keep the awareness moving from sound to sound,
And try to find the most distant sound which you can hear.
Let go the sound awareness,
And feel your body from within.
Now,
We begin body scan.
I will name a body part,
You just become aware of that body part.
Feel it,
And then just move to the next body part which is named.
Become aware of the right hand,
Right hand thumb,
Fingers of right hand,
Whole right hand,
Whole right arm,
Right shoulder,
Right side of the chest,
Waist,
Hip,
Whole right leg,
Right foot,
The toes,
Now left hand,
Left hand thumb,
Fingers of the left hand,
Whole left hand,
Whole left arm,
Left shoulder,
Left side of the chest,
Waist,
Hip,
Whole left leg,
The left foot,
The toes,
Feel the both legs together,
The buttocks,
Stomach,
Chest,
Back,
Shoulder blades,
Arms,
The neck,
The head,
Forehead,
Eyes,
Nose,
Right cheek,
Left cheek,
Mouth,
Lips,
Chin,
The whole face,
The whole head,
The whole neck,
The whole back,
The whole body,
The whole body,
The whole body,
Again we will go through the whole body,
This time a little more slower and in detail,
Starting with the right hand thumb,
First finger,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Little finger,
Fingers and thumb together,
Palm of the hand,
Back of the hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper part of the right arm,
Right shoulder,
Right armpit,
Right side of the torso,
Right side waist,
Hip,
Right thigh,
Kneecap,
Calf muscle,
Ankle,
Heel,
Sole of the foot,
Big toe,
Second toe,
Third,
Fourth,
Fifth,
The whole right side of the body,
From toes to the fingers,
Fingers to the toes,
The whole right side of the body,
Now go to the left hand,
Become aware of the left hand thumb,
First finger of left hand,
Second finger,
Third finger,
Little finger,
Fingers and thumb together,
Palm of the hand,
Back side of the hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper part of the arm,
Left shoulder,
Left armpit,
Left side of the torso,
Left side waist,
Thigh,
Kneecap,
Calf muscle,
Ankle,
Left foot heel,
Sole of the foot,
Big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth,
Whole left foot,
The whole left side of the body,
From toes to the fingers,
Fingers to the toes,
The whole left side of the body,
Now to the back,
Become aware of the lower back,
The right buttock,
And the left buttock,
Middle back,
Upper back,
Right shoulder blade,
Left shoulder blade,
Back of the neck,
Back of the head,
The whole back side together,
Now go to the top of the head,
The crown of the head,
Forehead,
Both sides of the head,
Right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
The space between two eyebrows,
Right eyelid,
Left eyelid,
Right eye,
Left eye,
Right ear,
Left ear,
Right side cheek,
Left side cheek,
Bridge of the nostrils,
Right nostril,
Left nostril,
Upper lip,
Upper jaw,
Tongue,
Lower jaw,
Lower lip,
Chin,
Throat,
Right collarbone,
Left collarbone,
Chest,
Right part of the chest,
Middle part of the chest,
Left part of the chest,
Upper part of the belly,
Middle part of the belly,
The navel area,
Lower part of the belly,
The whole of the right leg,
The whole of the left leg,
Both legs together,
The whole of the right arm,
The whole of the left arm,
Both arms together,
The whole of the back,
Buttocks,
Spine,
Shoulder blades,
The whole of the front,
Abdomen,
Chest,
The whole of the back and front together,
The whole of the head,
The whole body,
The whole body,
The whole body,
Become aware of your breath now,
Just feel the flow of your breath,
In and out through the body,
The breathing is natural,
Automatic,
We are not trying to change the rhythm of the breath,
We are not doing it,
Just witnessing the breath,
Maintain the awareness of breath,
Total awareness of breath,
Now,
Keeping the awareness on the breath,
Start mentally counting down your breath from 54,
As the breath comes in,
Count 54,
As it flows out,
54,
Breathe in 53,
Breathe out 53,
Like this,
Continue,
Not trying to fall asleep,
Just counting down the breath,
And knowing that,
It really doesn't matter too much,
When the sleep comes,
As you lie there in this way,
Both the body and the mind,
Are getting all the rest,
That they need,
If you lose track of the countdown,
Come back to 54 and start over.
