When the intellect comes still. Next the emotions will comes still. Then the imagination, intuition and all mind stuff comes still. All the subtle voices come still. The Higher Will shines through and it, too, becomes still. Finally Awareness itself comes still as you falls away into the Silence of the Abyss and only You are left knowing that you has reached the pinnacle of its meditation.
Until then, know that you are making progress when:
- You are becoming increasingly intimate with the void of Silence.
- You are able to observe yourself with ever-increasing clarity.
- You feel good, satisfied, lighter, confident, more at ease and clear when the meditation session has ended.
- Body tension has subsided; muscles are relaxed, heart rate is lowered, stomach and bowels are calm, breathing is normal.
- Mind stress has been temporarily forgotten. Thoughts are more easily identifiable and a feeling of readiness to deal with the mundane remains.
- Your own personal goal for the meditation, of which there are many, has been achieved, or is identifiable as closer to being achieved. Only you can answer this.
- Mid to long-term identifiable markers of successful meditation will also manifest as improved overall health, including a strengthened immune system and general improvements from the decreased inflammation that often occurs with stress.
- Senses are heightened. When the mind noise gets quiet, you become more viscerally aware through the 5 body senses and several of the psychic.
- Heat is generated. Energy rises. You come to understand that energies are something that can be interacted with and begin to identify several forms of energy and your own potential in the interaction.
- Sub-conscious information is accessed via imagery, word or intuition. The successful meditation will allow you to examine that practically, analytically.
- Near-bliss. The closer you get to the silence the more calmly-blissful the feeling until you are completely merged into the void.
- Inspiration. Similar to #7, the mind has been given room to breathe, akin to the sleep environment, the sub-conscious/conscious relationship may become a more cooperative joint venture providing sudden flashes of real and useful insight.
…is a Saiva Tantrika, Gyana Yogi and founder of Uma Maheshwara Yoga & Ayurveda. David has an MA in Semiotics, lives in Japan with his family and works as a coach in L & D, devoting his time to developing science-based tools and programs that help people reach the fullest potential of the human condition.
