Message #31323

[Jitendra Hydonus]

I think you have experienced this at some point Steve...  Perhaps, while in the presence of Amma... or while practicing mantra...

?

Art thanks for taking an interest in this subject. To think and desire it’s experience and various states of higher consciousness is to strengthen its potential of manifestation in our present life. This is our potential at different times and places and we should keep it in our awareness as the constant goal of life. Whatever I may have experienced....it is good to keep in mind that God inspires us thru our friends and their higher experiences as well.

People have momentary experiences such as this .... but it is a matter of a true guru to be in a state of nirvikalpa samadhi which is to be in that state of samadhi continuously in contradistinction to savikalpa samadhi which is temporary and intermittent.

At various times in our life we practice and experience various states of consciousness that we can identify in Pantanjali’s 8 fold path. It is not just a one way journey to the top but we can also go back and address issues from other steps we may have overlooked or have not totally completed in our spiritual journey.

Art, I believe recently you have had experiences associated with;

5. Pratyahara

Pratyahara, the fifth limb, means withdrawal or sensory transcendence. It is during this stage that we make the conscious effort to draw our awareness away from the external world and outside stimuli. Keenly aware of, yet cultivating a detachment from, our senses, we direct our attention internally. The practice of pratyahara provides us with an opportunity to step back and take a look at ourselves. This withdrawal allows us to objectively observe our cravings: habits that are perhaps detrimental to our health and which likely interfere with our inner growth.

Dear Art and anyone else interested....

I want you to check out "Patanjali and His Eightfold Path of Yoga" on Spiritual Portal.  To view it, please click this link:

http://spiritualportal.net/index.php?topic=879.0

Thanks,
Steve Hydonus

https://www.yogajournal.com/practice/the-eight-limbs