Source: Internet
Pratyahara
– The least understood concept. This is
the fifith anga of Ashtanga Yoga propounded by Maharishi Patanjali.
This acts
as the bridge between Bahiranga and Antaranga. The choice to tide over –
withdraw – from samshaya to asamshaya – attachment to detachment.
Disentangle from Indriyajaala and attain IndriyaJaya.
Senses to withdraw – 11 initially and slowly expanding to 18 and more senses.
11 senses = 5 Jnanendriya (hear, touch, see, taste, smell) + 5 karmendriya (vak – speech - voice, pani - grasping – hands, padhau – walking - legs, upastha – procreation - genitals, payu – excretory – anus/rectum) + chitta (Manas). These are connected to the 5 elements (Fire, air, space, earth and water) and their subtlety – Shabda(Sound), sparsha(feel), roopa(form), rasa(taste) and gandha(smell).
Spinal
centres – For humans, ashta chakra – first 5
same as animals – 6th chakra (Ajna) has the power to choose – Ajna –
pituitary. The neo cortex here is responsible for spatial reasoning – rise to
higher dimensions – different plane, sensory perception, divided into
Fore Brain
1. Frontal – front of the head - The frontal lobe is involved
in reasoning, motor control, emotion, and language. It contains the motor
cortex, which is involved in planning and coordinating movement; the prefrontal
cortex, which is responsible for higher-level cognitive functioning;
and Broca’s area, which is essential for language production.
Frontal
contains
a)
Thalamus –
sensory relay of the brain for all senses except smell
b)
Hypothalamus
– homeostatic functions – body temperature, appetite, blood pressure – also an
interface between nervous system and endocrine system
c)
Amygdala –
emotions and attaching emotional meaning to memories
d)
Hippocampus
– Learning and memory
2.
Parietal – behind
the frontal - The brain’s parietal lobe contains the somatosensory
cortex, which is essential for processing sensory information from across
the body, such as touch, temperature, and pain. The somatosensory cortex is
organized topographically, which means that spatial relationships that exist in
the body are maintained on the surface of the somatosensory cortex. For example, the portion of the cortex that
processes sensory information from the hand is adjacent to the portion that
processes information from the wrist.
3.
Occipital – back of
the head – connected with seeing - The occipital lobe contains
the primary visual cortex, which is responsible for interpreting incoming
visual information.
4. Temporal lobe – behind the temple – connected with hearing - The temporal lobe is associated with hearing, memory, emotion, and some aspects of language.
Mid Brain
The midbrain is comprised of structures located deep within the brain, between the forebrain and the hindbrain. The reticular formation is centered in the midbrain, but it actually extends up into the forebrain and down into the hindbrain. The reticular formation is important in regulating the sleep/wake cycle, arousal, alertness, and motor activity.
Hind Brain
The hindbrain is
located at the back of the head and looks like an extension of the spinal
cord.
It
contains
a)
The
medulla - The medulla controls the automatic processes of the
autonomic nervous system, such as breathing, blood pressure, and heart
rate.
b)
The
word pons literally means “bridge,” and as the name suggests,
the pons serves to connect the brain and spinal cord. It also is involved in
regulating brain activity during sleep. The medulla, pons, and midbrain
together are known as the brainstem.
c) The cerebellum (Latin for “little brain”) receives messages from muscles, tendons, joints, and structures in our ear to control balance, coordination, movement, and motor skills. The cerebellum is also thought to be an important area for processing some types of memories. In particular, procedural memory, or memory involved in learning and remembering how to perform tasks, is thought to be associated with the cerebellum.
The idea
is to move from being reactive to being responsive.
The
ability to respond comes from neo cortex – sense of responsibility.
Ajna
chakra – key to enable Pratyahara anga to practice the power of NOW.
Be a Master of senses – not a slave to them.
The Indriya Jaala in full play - Trap of senses – try to get out of it – Instead we end up playing hand in glove and get deeply entangled.
But at the
same time, the idea is not to become a Jada – idea is not to desensitize but
instead rise above senses – transcend the senses.
This is done by heightening the senses to its peak and then consciously choose to withdraw – That is, make it a habit to see only best, hear only best, then transcend that too – This is when vairagya happens.
One moves away from “My experience” to “An experience”. There is no more I saw, I heard, etc. – moving from outer experience to inner experience.
How to
practice Pratyahara?
1) Focus on Ajna chakra + shanmukhi mudra + Brahmari
Pranayam (naada) – keep going inwards till you reach the real self.
2) Prana Kriya - Focus mind on breath (prana) – The
prana at a subtle level is exactly the same in all living things and once focus
happens there, automatically merger happens.
Focus mind
on ajna chakra with awareness to breath to become a sensory master. While
inhaling and exhaling shift focus onto breath away from senses.
3) Shabda Kriya – Lie down – Go out little by little
till you hear the outermost sound and then slowly retrace deep within to sounds
inside you till you reach silence – The Anahata!! Hearing that silence of the
self is Bliss/Magic.
Note: It
is not about controlling or withdrawing senses but withdrawing the mind from
the senses. Moving from spinal cord tendency to react reflexively to a more
neo-cortex (pituitary) tendency to react reflectively.
Ability to
respond in an appropriate manner to sensory stimulation is Pratyahara. Not
desensitization but positive and high sensitization and going beyond –
transcending.
Key mantra
– OM – quietens limbic system.
Rest of
the senses includes – warmth, cold, pain, kinesis, balance, thirst, sympathy,
empathy, higher compassion, clairvoyance and transcend that too – Gross + inner
+ subtle + subtlest = total surrender to them and with their permission,
transcend them too. 😊
4) Samyama
Trayam Ekatra Samyamaha
Dharana, Dhyana, Samadhi are the Antaranga sadhana - tools when practised together are called Samyama.
In such
scenario, three transitions happen:
1) Nirodaha parinama – convergence of rising of deep
impressions
2) Samdhi Parinama – all pointedness subsides and
tendency to one-pointedness arises
3) Ekagratha Parinama – one-pointedness arises and subsides sequentially
A Yogi gets siddhis and knowledge and powers. Now body, prana and senses are purified with the first five angas. These three takes the mind to a different higher plane. On reaching this state, if a yogi practices Samyama, he attains some siddhis – he gets the pearls of knowledge of anything and everything just by diving deep inside.
However point to note, samyama of these 3 antarangas (Dharana, Dhyana, Samadhi) enables sabeeja Samadhi. For nirbeeja Samadhi, these become the bahiranga and dropping even the object becomes antaranga there.
Note – Samyama becomes Bahiranga Sadhana for Nirbeeja Samadhi.
Samyama
and siddhis: listing a few:
1) Samyama on Nabhi chakra leads one to the knowledge
of Body system
2) Samyama on pit of throat leads one to a state of no
hunger, no thirst
3) Samyama on Udana Vaayu helps one attain the siddhi
of levitation
4) Samyama on Samaana Vaayu helps enhance one’s
radiance/fire (example – Sati and self-immolation by aggravating the Samaana
vaayu)
5) Tajjayaat prajnalokaha – From mastery of samyama
comes light of awareness and insight.
6) Tasya Bhoomishu viniyogaha – Samyama may be applied in various spheres to derive its usefulness.
And most
important, when the yogi chooses the self itself for Samyama, that is you
become the object of your concentration, then the
Yogi
becomes the Atom,
Same Yogi becomes the Universe,
And He himself becomes the LIGHT!!
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