Hi A,
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Not to sound flippant, but I have recently come to appreciate that understanding the details with mental concepts can be an impediment to true understanding from the heart.
An ounce of practice is worth a ton of theory, is that what you mean? No disagreement from me, if it is. Lifting up the hood is not needed for successful practice.
Myself, I like to develop a clear accurate concept of what I am doing. It doesn't have to be overly detailed, just well rounded and complete enough to have a good understanding of what I am doing and what I am trying to accomplish. I like to grasp both the spirit and the letter of the law, if I can. And then when I practice, just enough theory for correct performance of the practice.
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The difference to me is that the words used in Samyama have a particular form or manifestation in our energy patterns which bring about particular results. Mantra is more a way to negate or replace existing undesirable forms with silence.
And I was thinking too, that mantra takes us into inner silence and samyama brings inner silence out of us, but colored by the sutra. What we bring with us out of deep meditation on the mantra is more pure inner silence. Yes?
I have always had a different perspective on and understanding of samyama and meditation before hooking up with AYP. Right now I am comparing and contrasting them and trying to reconcile and make sense out of the differences.
My concept of samyama up to now is that it results in becoming one with the object of samyama. That by combining the last 3 steps of yoga, you become one with that object and know it from the inside out, "true understanding with the heart" to use your words. You know the object of samyama from the inside out as if you were it.
So, there is significance to the words, "I am." According to Yogi Ramacharaka, it is a mental representation or statement of our essential nature, existence and being. So, as that is the significance of "I am” (according to him), by remembering the mantra without regard to its meaning (according to Yogani) and having faith that inner silence knows the significance of our words without our having to be concerned ourselves with it, it will have the same effect as a sutra in samyama. In other words, by following the mantra inward we come to understand our essential nature, inner silence, by becoming it. Maybe by becoming conscious of what we already are is a better way to say it.
He has a practice, which I have done from time to time, that I won’t try to say is similar or parallel, but rather, uses the same elements. Basically, you go into the silence as he puts it and repeat “I am”, but in this practice you do contemplate its significance and true meaning with the hopes of setting up vibrations in the mind (not the kind we talk about here at AYP) that are sympathetic to the actual reality of “I am” as a state of consciousness that will hopefully allow a quantum leap from conceptual understanding of the truth to actual experience or realization of the truth of ourselves. There is no consideration of the energetic effects of “I am” from the AYP point of view in his practice.
So two very different practices trying to achieve the same thing with the same elements but from opposite directions, perhaps.
Maybe any effectiveness of Ramacharaka’s practice is due to the inadvertent vibrational benefits of the repetition of “I am” on the nervous system.
Or AYP’s effectiveness is due to the inner silence’s recognition of the “I am “ sutra.
Or it is both.
Or AYP's effectiveness is due solely to the vibrational effects of the mantra.
But in AYP practice, the mantra is essentially a meaningless energy vibration that purifies our mind and nervous system and this desired effect is what is focused on.
That is my half developed reasoning on the subject. Not saying that it is right, just where my mind is right now in its conceptual evolution of this subject. Just playing around with it.
Having read the mantra construction lesson, well, it is interesting, at any rate, that the repetition of the mental representation of our essential nature purifies the spinal nerve when it is heard or felt with in us.
Oh well, interesting to me, anyways. What ever the case, direct experience derived from correct practice is what really matters, eh?
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The sutra helps to manifest our inner reality which is already there but which we are not yet fully aware of. Therefore our initial understanding of our internal dynamics becomes more clear and the block in our understanding of this reality is cleared out over time.
Because we are it. Because we understand it from the inside out. Is that what you are trying to convey?
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As we practice a sutra over time and by knowing our true nature better, we become more aligned with It and act out of love and service accordingly because it is what we are. Hence it becomes morally self-regulating.
I think I understand this, A.
You know, this forum is really great. I haven’t had any satsang for over 20 years, so it is great to have an outlet like this with a group of essentially like minded people where you can talk shop, and help each other to clarify understanding and strengthen practice. It is maybe even better than hanging out in Rishikesh with all the saints and sages and sadhus and sadhaks, and stuff. Maybe not. I don't know. Never been there.
What a great resource.
Thank you, A, for your perspective and explanation of mantra and its effects and samyama,
yb.