Consciousness Meditation

Meditating in Dyana Mudra

Consciousness Meditation, derived from the Vighyan Bhairava Tantra, is among the initial meditations that Shiva imparts to Shakti. Beyond being the first, the initial four techniques described by Shiva are simply variations focused on discovering your awareness in the gaps that arise as you observe your breath during the pauses between your inhalation and and exhalation.

Observing your breath and introducing mindfulness into your daily practice is fundamental not just in Indian, but in Buddhist and Taoist traditions as well.

The reason is that awareness is the key to everything, as awareness is self-illuminating.

You can lead your life consciously or unconsciously. The whole idea of meditation, however, is to make the unconscious conscious. Bringing awareness into everything is therefore a key aspect of any meditation practice.

Chaitanya ātmā, the very first Shiva Sutra, states that the soul, or the self, is pure conscious awareness. Consciousness is what permeates everything on this planet.

By practicing mindfulness and becoming aware of what is happening inside you, you awaken and transform the unconscious parts of yourself. For some, this may be sufficient to realize your true self. It therefore serves as a basic step and foundation of any meditation practice.

Hand postures vary and are beneficial depending on your physical constitution. Try them all and see which one centers you best.

Other hand gestures you can adopt apart from the one mentioned below:

Touch your thumb and index finger together, keep your elbows straight, and rest them on your knees with your palms facing upward.

Touch the index and thumb fingers of both hands together, keeping the other fingers clasped. Place your hands comfortably on your thighs while in the meditation posture. This mudra (hand gesture) brings your awareness out of your physical body.

Consciousness Meditation Technique:

🪷 Sitting still with the body, touch the thumb—the finger of the self—with the index finger—the finger of the planet Jupiter, which is the planet of Guru. In this meditation, your Self is connected with your inner guide and Guru.

🪷 Keep your attention in the middle of your eyebrows, at the third eye, to center your mind and become thoughtless.

🪷 Witness your breath, how it goes in and out.

🪷 Stop resisting the movement of your breath and just follow its natural rhythm. The harmony of the rhythm can cause thoughts to stop, leaving you as a still witness.

🪷 Observe the gap or interval that naturally occurs within the breath cycles.

Uses of the technique:

Primary use of this technique is to separate the witnessing consciousness from the movement of body and mind. It stills the mind, brings awareness to breathe and from that awareness Shiva asks that we see our true nature. See who is breathing!

~ Shiva Tejo