In the old lessons sungazing was one of the techniques suggested to help open awareness to the spiritual eye. I remember it really helped me and within a short time I got the first look at the spiritual eye in its full glory. I regularly saw the spiritual eye after that. Over time, however I got sick and my practice of the techniques suffered and eventually the spiritual eye stopped becoming visible.
Years later, with health restored, and my practice stronger than ever, the spiritual eye doesn't appear in its full glory any longer. I see the tunnel to eternity regularly but not in the way it is portrayed and as I used to see it. I no longer practice sungazing, and when I checked the new lessons I noticed it is no longer a technique included. I imagine worry over how strong the sun now is to be the reason.
I'm tempted to return to sungazing in the first and last hour of the sun rising and setting but I'm also cautious. I'll speak to a monastic first though, and wonder if anyone else has persisted with this technique?
Yes I never gave up the technique. But when the Sun is out I’ve only been on the side where I can see the Sun setting in the west because I was on the East side of Lake Michigan and the east side of the Pacific Ocean. I have not been on the west side of any large body of water to any extent to be able to practice it from that vantage point. And the Sun is usually blocked in the Midwest U.S. by trees in the Midwest and mountains in the far west. Given the fact that in the original lessons it was recommended to practice Sun gazing only fifteen minutes in the morning or evening when the sun was setting and rising in presents quite a few limitations on when it is even possible. The golden hour itself is enough reason to get out and experience it.
You have brought up other topics here that are side effects of the Sun gazing techniques; one of them is changing the lessons and the other is getting advice from Mother Center. Both of them have issues involved that I am not sure about discussing. However if more is mentioned on these topics I will respond.
I confess that though I’ve had some experiences with the third eye 👁️ I do not see them as vivid as you have detailed. I believe i have seen the colors of the chakras more often and at other times the radiance of the outer glow of the third eye.
I remember once listening to a lecture of Brother Anandamoy and hearing him say that he had some spiritual experiences when he was younger and then they were not forthcoming. He said that then the work comes on ourselves. I do not know what his state of consciousness was later in life. But his explanation of spiritual experiences when first starting to make attempts at meditation and then the results later made an impression on me. I suppose it is because I also had some stirring experiences that later were subdued. He explained it as a sot if ‘come on’ of the divine to precipitate the work involved in dissolving the ego and our misconceptions that may need life times to resolve.
Should you move this topic to members only? To me the new lessons are more structured and a lot of thought has gone into how to better present the vast array of Master's knowledge. I went to a satsang with Brother Chidananda here in Australia on the weekend, first time a president has been here. The love was very tangible when he entered the room. The vibration was very high.
My thought on this is that we are asked not to reveal the various sacred techniques as in Kriya yoga and the Om technique. I think the Sun gazing routine is not a meditation technique that we need to hide 🙈 from the public and perhaps guests may become more interested in meditation if we discuss general meditation here without withholding it.
This brings up another point Web. In the old lessons we were given permission to even help other students with some of the basic techniques. This has all changed and there is a bit of what I see as secret cult like appearance to some of SRF. As you may know the Ananda society put the Autobiography free on the internet and my understanding is that SRF attempted to stop it with unsuccessful law suits.
I am not saying I know what is ethically correct but I sincerely appreciate Kriyananda’s efforts to have the Autobiography of a Yogi assessable on the internet as the Bible is. This is a topic I could elaborate on however I do not know that it is relevant at this point. Suffice it to say Paramahansa Yogananda was in the body and alive at the first printing of the lessons; how much revising would he have approved?
