By practicing Yoga we are aiming to observe and calm the mind in order to raise our awareness towards the true nature of our being: We are carried by the soul.
This meditation is called Man Suhavi Mudra Kriya. It is said that Buddha gave it to his students in order to calm their minds in a minimum time of three minutes. Why not trying it out yourself? In the worst case you invest three minutes, in the best case you earn an efficient tool to save your mind from spiraling out.
Before you start the practice, please tune in. By tuning in you connect yourself with the energy of all the Kundalini masters like choosing a frequency in the radio.
Tune In with the Adi Mantra:
Sit in easy pose, bring your palms together at the heart center. Apply a light pressure between your palms. Feel a firm pressure at the center of the sternum, where the hands touch your chest. The spine is long and straight. Eyes are closed. Chin is slightly tucked in. Connect to your breath for a while, before you chant. Take a deep breath in and chant ONG NAMO GURU DEV NAMO while you exhale. Adjust the length of the mantra according to your breath. Repeat the mantra at least three times in total.
ONG NAMO GURU DEV NAMO can be translated with: I bow to the creation, I bow to the teacher within.
After the Adi mantra above I recommend that you chant the Mangala Charan Mantra three times for protection (optional):
AAD GURAY NAMEH
JUGAD GURAY NAMEH
SAT GURAY NAMEH
SIRI GURU DEVEH NAMEH
English Translation:
I bow to the primal source of creation
I bow to the wisdom through the ages
I bow to the true source of creation, the true identity of self
I bow to the great, unseen wisdom
THE PRACTICE
This meditations magic works by using a clever combination of Breath, Mantra, Mudra and a Drishti (eye focus).
THE MUDRA
Let us start with the Mudra: A mudra is a position of the hands that locks or seals the energy, and guides energy flow and reflexes to the brain. Each area of the hand connects to a certain part of the body or brain, representing different emotions and behaviors.
The Mudra in this meditation is formed by the tips of the Saturn (middle) fingers and the thumbs touching, while the knuckles of the Jupiter (index) fingers touch as well. The Venus (ring) finger and the Mercury (pinkie) fingers are crawled towards the palms and do not touch each other. The Mudra is than placed on the height of the heart chakra, approximately 10-12cm away from the chest, the lower arms are parallel to the floor. Shoulders are relaxed.
DRISHTI - EYE FOCUS
The eye focus is on the tip of the nose. This Drishti as it is called, feels different for everybody, because of the unique characteristics of our faces. When not used to it, it can be irritating at first to concentrate on the tip of the nose, but every day it will be different. The eye focus on the tip of the nose controls the mind. When the optic nerve concentrates at the tip of the nose, the pineal gland and the frontal lobe of the brain are stimulated. Thus new energy pathways are created in the brain patterns.
THE MANTRA & THE BREATH
Take a deep breath in, hold the breath and mentally repeat the mantra of your choice for 11-21 times. Then exhale completely and mentally repeat the mantra again with the breath held out as many times as you did while holding the breath in. Continue in this breath pattern for the rest of the practice, for 3 minutes.
TO END THE MEDITATION
After three minutes. Take a deep breath in and exhale completely. Return to a natural way of breathing. Sit a short while with eyes closed and contemplate your mind free from any judgement.
PLEASE NOTE
Once you decide on a mantra and the amount of repetition stick with it throughout the same practice. Try not to overthink when you choose a mantra, instead let your intuition guide you. Make sure that you hold the breath without strain. The aim of this meditation is to calm down. For an easy start, choose 11 repetitions and a short mantra like SAT NAM, WAHE GURU or HAR HARAY, HAREE.
To end the practice please tune out.
Tune Out:
Sit in easy pose, bring your palms together at the heart center. Apply a light pressure between your palms. Feel a firm pressure at the center of the sternum, where the hands touch your chest. The spine is long and straight. Eyes are closed. Chin is slightly tucked in. Take a deep breath in and chant the whole mantra while you exhale. Adjust the length of the mantra according to your breath. Inhale deeply and chant while exhaling. The SAT is long, the NAM is short. Repeat the mantra three times.
SAT NAM can be translated as "True Identity". This mantra connects you to the infinite part of yourSELF - your soul.
If you have any questions about this meditation, I am happy to assist.
Sat Nam!
This meditation is courtesy of YB Teachings, LLC. It was originally taught by Yogi Bhajan.
The instructions and advice given on the blog and/or during classes are not a substitute for professional medical or psychological treatment of ailments. The information and exercises have been carefully considered and reviewed, however its application is at your own discretion and responsibility. As with all unsupervised practice your use of the instructions on this website is taken on your own risk. Results regarding benefits do vary according to physical differences, correctness and frequency of the practice. If you have an injury or illness and are in doubt as to whether yoga is suitable for you, please consult your doctor/health practitioner.
