Skip to main content

Meditation: Signs of Progress & How to identify a Real Vision from a False One

Hope that you have read my introductory post on Raja Yoga as being one of the four paths to Divinity  prescribed in Hinduism. In this post, I want to delve briefly into some basic aspects of meditation. [Note: I am not a follower or a devotee of Sri Paramahansa Yogananda but I find his teachings deeply inspiring on the spiritual path and I try to make a sincere attempt to study his teachings.]

Meditation: The Importance of Being Receptive

This is beautiful saying from Sri Paramahansa Yogananda: "The man who has the power of receptivity quickly grasps everything. People with no receptivity maybe exposed to the same experiences or information, yet not really see nor fully comprehend what is there. Your experiences bring wisdom according to the cup of your receptivity."

                                                                                [Image:Unsplash]

Guru Mayi Chidvilasananda, renowned among the Siddha Yoga practitioners, says: "There is no honeymoon phase in Sadhana. You don't receive the Guru's attention one day and lose it the next. Grace is abundant. It all depends on how much you expose your heart to grace, how much you hide your heart from grace. As long as your heart is completely open to the Guru and to all those who carry the flame of God in their hearts, as long as you are saturated with the longing to experience the Truth, you have absolutely nothing to fear."

Meditation: How to identify a real vision from a false one?

According to Sri Paramahansa Yogananda, you may see real visions and premature manifestations of imagery when you first undertake meditation. So, how can you know what is real and what is false when you are new to the practice of meditation?

Sri Paramahansa Yogananda indicates that it takes considerable effort, practice and sadhana to get real visions. So, if you start experiencing visions almost from day one of meditation, it is likely to be a false manifestation. Again, this is an experience that you have to analyze and judge, that is not for me to do. The reason that I am sharing this tip with you is so that you are aware of it while undertaking meditation.

To ensure that you are not prone to false imagery, there are two important tips to keep in mind while meditating as per Sri Paramahansa Yogananda's teachings:

1. Keep the eyes half-open and fixed firmly at the point between the eyebrows - that is the seat of concentration and super conscious perception.

2. During meditation, do not love or desire visions more than God. This simply means that do not push in your material or personal requests while you are undertaking meditation.

Meditation: Seven Signs of Progress

For those practising meditation, how will they know they are on the right track? 

The following are the seven signs of progress in meditation based on Sri Paramahansa Yogananda's writings:

1.  An increasing peacefulness during meditation.

2. A conscious inner experience of calmness in meditation metamphorsing into increasing bliss.

3. A deepening of one's understanding and finding answers to one's questions through the calm intuitive state of inner perception.

4. An increasing mental and physical efficiency in one's daily life.

5. Love for meditation and the desire to hold on to the peace and joy of the meditative state in preference to attraction to anything in the world.

6. An expanding consciousness of loving all with unconditional love that one feels towards one's dearest loved ones.

7. Actual contact with God, and worshipping God as ever new Bliss felt in meditation and in His omnipresent manifestation within and beyond all creation.

 I am a seeker who is learning on the go. I truly hope you found this post on meditation useful. If you are practicing meditation, have you had any visions, interesting experiences that you would like to share with like minded people here? I would also love to know any meditation tips that  you recommend based on your experiences.
Labels:

Comments

Asha said…
I practice meditation and deep breathing in my yoga class. They have profound impact on me.

For the past two months, i hav'nt practiced and it has had adverse effects on me. Lots of thoughts crisscross my mind and there is no clarity and it even leads to insomnia.

Now, i have discovered raja yoga. a person comes to our place to teach, Today is the 3rd day, let me see how it goes and will share it with you.
December 18, 2013 at 2:12 PM
Ajith said…
nice share esp reading the 10 points
check list from Yogananda.thanks for your effort in sharing this.
December 18, 2013 at 7:57 PM
Swapna Raghu Sanand said…
@Asha: Now that you are practicing Raja Yoga do share your thoughts with me as you progress and also share what the initial hurdles have been like and how you were able to overcome it. Would love to know more. Thanks for sharing your thoughts here.

@Ajith: Good to hear that you found it useful. Thanks for dropping by.
December 30, 2013 at 1:06 PM
Post a Comment

Most Popular Posts

The Ugly Truth about Caste in Kerala

Many years ago, when I wrote this post on Kerala's caste system, I had not considered that people would start sending in abusive comments about one caste over the other. It baffles me that this is how Indians, all of us, continue to judge each other on account of caste differences.  [ READ: Guru Kripa: Powerful Lessons at the Lotus Feet ] My question is - why do you ABUSE any caste or community? I suggest that you read about the lives of great Masters and their stories - none of them judged anyone on the basis of caste.  You can read the life stories of Sri Adi Shankara Bhagawadpada, Tulsidas, Jnaneshwar, Namadev, Sri Aurobindo, Sri Ramakrishna, Swami Paramahansa Yogananda, Shirdi Sai Baba, and many more Gurus in Sanathana Dharma. NONE of them endorse these caste hierarchies in Bhakti Marga. Assuming that Guru Sampradaya does not appeal to your sensibilities, do read this  new book 'Ants among Elephants' written by Sujatha Gidla, who writes about herself as being born
180 comments
Read more

How do you light Deepam at home?

How do you light deepam at home? As a child, I loved watching the ritual of my grandmother lighting the deepam or the traditional lamp at home in the evenings. A sense of serenity accompanied her frail figure as she would carefully straighten every wick, dip it into the tiny puddle of oil and light the lamp. As my grandmother would read out the scriptures and chant the prayers, the fragrance of incense sticks and flowers added depth to the experience. In many Hindu homes nowadays, the lighting of the lamp (or the nilavilakku, as Malayalis refer to the traditional lamp in their homes) is not a regular practice. A lot of people have many questions around how to light deepam at home and which oil to use and so on. An important point to keep in mind - Maintain physical cleanliness and hygiene while lighting the lamp. Wear clean clothes while lighting the lamp. Frequently Asked Questions About Lighting Deepam at Home Collating most queries related to how to light the deepam at home, I'v
1 comment
Read more

Tumhari Sulu movie review: Vidya Balan makes you laugh, cry, croon and fall in love with 'Sulu'

I have always looked forward to watching Vidya Balan's films, which is why I watched her latest one, Tumhari Sulu, and decided to share this movie review. I read many reviews which bring in the feminist aspect of the narrative. I want to look at the little details of an ordinary life that are portrayed by Vidya Balan's extraordinary acting.   As ''Sulu'', Vidya Balan breathes life into the character of bubbly housewife, whose life revolves around her husband, son and of course, her favorite hobby of participating in all kinds of contests and winning them with a die-hard spirit.                                          [ Image: Vidya Balan's Facebook page ]                                Vidya Balan's mastery over details comes through in every scene - shooing off birds so that they don't put ''potty'' on her clothes, posing in front of the mirror with the kind of bag that working women use and pretending to be one, and eve
Post a Comment
Read more

7 Am Arivu (the Seventh Sense) - Why it is spiritually relevant

7 Am Arivu (the Seventh Sense) is a film that I was desperate to watch for two reasons. One, I am a Suriya fan and I had heard so much about his performance in this movie that I didn't want to settle for watching a CD of it and losing the actual cinematic experience. Second, I had read from various bloggers and their reviews that this film revolves around the story of Bodhidharman, a 16th century prince from Tamil Nadu who had mastered knowledge spanning multiple forms of art, and was sent to China to save the people from evil. Once he goes there, the transformation begins for himself and for the people there and he  goes on to become Damo, the father of Shaolin and Kung Fu and hypnotism and such other mystical yet spiritually relevant forms of mind mastery. 7 Am Arivu Goes Over the Top with the Dravidian Rhetoric In 7 Am Arivu, there has been a lot of controversy created by the fact that nearly every character eulogizes about the importance of being Tamil and yes, the Dravidi
9 comments
Read more

Vidyarambham: How and why Malayalis celebrate writing the words ''Harisree Ganapathaye Namaha"

For Malayalis, Vidyarambham is an auspicious day on which the elders and children mark the day by writing the sacred words, "Harisree Ganapathayeh Namaha." The observance of this ritual may differ from region to region, community to community and family to family. Whatever I share here is based on how vidyarambham is celebrated in my home.   [READ: What is Vidyarambham?] Vidyarambham: How Malayalis observe this sacred day In families where the children are gearing up to enter pre-school or play school and are not yet ready to join the formal schooling system, Vidyarambham marks an important occasion for an elder to introduce them to the world of "vidya" or "knowledge." The words ''Harisree Ganapathayeh Namaha" are written on the child's tongue by the grandparent, an elder or parent.                                        [Image credit: Travel Manorama Online ] Vidyarambham: Why it matters  An interesting aspect of Vidyarambha
4 comments
Read more