Visual aid to Thoughtless awareness - your easy path to progress

Dear All,

There's an ancient tradition of the use of visual imagery to achieve meditative states. The photo provided at the meeting (shown above) fits into this tradition .  You don't have to make use of the photo to meditate, but if you do, here's why it can not only  make your path to achieving your thoughtless awareness much easier, but also help you with your progress.

In the tradition of the use of visual imagery for meditation, the  images are usually complex, abstract patterns such as the first image above. Perhaps the most complex development of this is in the Lama tradition of  Tibetan Buddhism. Incidentally, in Zen Buddhism, aural imagery, called koans eg. "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" is used to try and achieve a similar effect.

The three images shown above can be classified , as meditative aids, as 'complete but non-simple' , 'simple but non-complete' and 'simple and complete' .

The first image (Shri Yantra) is complete but non-simple because it is said to represent the universe of the totality of phenomenological experience. The meditation consists in progressively contemplating the layers in the image, starting from the border to a single point at the centre, which represents a kind of zero-point identification with the universe.

The second image (laughing baby) is simple but non-complete because it is easy  to relate to without the mental gymnastics required in the first image. It is also easy to internalise the obvious depiction of being in the moment, non-mind and joy. But it can't encompass the different life states you may be in at any point in time.

The  third image is simple and complete because it's easy to relate to and can encompass the different life states you may be in at any point in time. But the photo is enigmatic and only starts to 'work' when we can overcome the inherent 'great doubt' which it is natural to have about any 'strange concept'. Approach it with an open-mind.

The way I use the photo is to watch first the right-hand for a moment and then the left-hand. This usually centers me . I then watch for a moment the dot on Shri Mataji's forehead which makes my mental activity subside. I then close my eyes and keep my attention at the crown of head until I can feel the cool sensation of the kundalini energy. Every encounter with the photo becomes like a slow peeling away of the layers of ego and super-ego which keeps us away from reality.

Try it!

See you at group meditation tomorrow.

Regards