Insight into Reality The Tantric Teachings of the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra

By Swami Nishchalananda Saraswati ISBN: 0-9544662-2-5

This book presents the teachings of the ancient text known as the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra, believed to have been written about one thousand years ago in Kashmir, in the Himalayan region of presentday north-western India and northern Pakistan. It has been written primarily as a practical manual and gives freelyrendered translations of one hundred and twelve traditional practices, called dharanas, which are still relevant to us in the present era. Fifty-eight new practices are also presented which are suitable in the context of our contemporary high-tech and high speed lives. These give us the opportunity of practising awareness even in our daily lives. The important message that the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra transmits is that we should try to be aware moment to moment in whatever situation we find ourselves in life. This awareness will help us bring a deeper quality to our lives. REVIEW.
This book is the latest major book by Swami Nishchalananda Saraswati and is a view of yoga and the spiritual paths but also included in it is the reasons and practices for today. Indeed it is without doubt a manual of practices for people to make them more aware in todays world and all that is happening, the good and the bad but most of all it shows us once again how to love and care, to feel well within ourselves and with that, to reach out to others. The teachings within this book are a guide to a much better spiritual well-being for us all, a road to a better understanding of what it means to be called a human being, and the yoga book of 2012. The author writes with his heart and his head, his words are meaningful, the practices within the book most people can do and there is great hope that those who follow the yogi path will gain much from the writings of Swami Nishchalananda. This is a book for today, to use and to gain peace within. Ronnie Carleton Walsall 2012

Preface

Iam privileged to write the preface to this valuable book which distils the essence of Swami Nishchalananda thought. More than any in his canon of wonderful writings on yoga, this book is imbued with his spirit. As you journey through it, you feel his unmistakable presence, guiding, suggesting, and instructing; but leaving you enough space to make your own discovery, in that manner so familiar to his many disciples and students. I feel that this may also be Swamijis most personal book, a true labour of love. This is no surprise, given his openly professed devotion to the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra as a manual for living. Swamiji lives the teachings, and encourages us to do likewise. The Vigyana Bhairava Tantra is a revealed and ancient text, but it retains a perennial freshness, and is perhaps more compellingly 1 relevant to the modern seeker in this busy world of the age of Kali . The text contains beautiful and profound teachings, and is by turns lyrical, metaphysical, tender, spiritual and pragmatic. In this it is quintessentially tantric, in that the sublime and the mundane are seamlessly interwoven. To quote Swamiji: Consciousness and the created universe are in an eternal embrace. Swamiji invites us to accept humbly the mysterious paradoxes in the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra, and indeed in all holy texts. One of these is a motif of the intrinsic emptiness of all phenomena; and yet, at the same time, Kashmir Shaivism asserts that the world is real. It is both unreal and real, depending on our perspective. We are here now in this moment and everything matters; and this moment and this experience, whatever it may be, can be a doorway to samadhi. The practices, or dharanas, of the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra take their bearing from this life-affirming assertion. The 112 dharanas cover a wide spectrum of subjects and circumstances for meditation, or perhaps more appropriately, for the practice of awareness. Some are simple and some are abstract. Some are clear and others are cryptic, and in need of elaboration. For many of us, some preparation, and a thorough grounding in yoga practice is necessary. We also have to learn to get out of our own way, and to cultivate a sense of spaciousness, and effortless effort! We have to formally practise, and yet abide more in the ambience of the practice. How is all this to be done, or indeed undone? This book is primarily a practical manual in which Swamiji offers very lucid and exhaustive guidance on all these questions, both as a teacher and practitioner. Even before we read the text, we are introduced to concepts such as consciousness, awareness and spaciousness. He also teaches us how to get in touch with the dwadashanta, so that we may go on to encounter the text with the spacious awareness of the heart. Crucially, Swamiji opens up the dharanas in an accessible way, while still remaining true to their spirit. Students and aspirants will be very grateful for the way in which he has creatively and intuitively underpinned many of the dharanas with numerous subtle and esoteric
1

According to tantra and Hinduism, the age of spiritual ignorance.

yoga practices. Again, to support the emphasis on sadhana, Swamiji also provides invaluable chapters on the subtle energy paradigm, supplementary traditional yoga practices, and an extensive glossary. There is more to savour: Swamijis translation of the divine dialogue and the dharanas is beautifully rendered and supported by a commentary of great insight and subtlety. In this, he draws on his understanding of quantum physics, his love of poets such as Blake and Rumi, and of course his profound knowledge of the yogic sciences. This generous and eclectic book has much to offer the modern yoga practitioner, seeker, or indeed those in this dispersed and hectic age who are seeking to cultivate awareness or to rediscover their centre. It also opens up a direct and accessible path to the eternal fount of wisdom that is the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra. May Swamiji, and all those who take up the dharanas, be blessed. Spandan (Michael McCann)

Contents

Acknowledgements ......................................................... xvii Notes ................................................................... xix Preface ................................................................................ xxiii

Section 1

Introduction
1 General background to the text .......................... 5 An ancient text for the modern world ................ 5 Liberating the mind Bringing spaciousness to the anxious mind 6 The herd of subconscious pigs ...................... 7 Spaciousness in the Vigyana Bhairava ......... 8 The timeless setting ............................................ 9 Historical ............................................................ 14 Geographical ...................................................... 15 Dfinitions .......................................................... 17 Vigyana ........................................................... 17

Bhairava ......................................................... Tantra ............................................................. Vigyana Bhairava Tantra ............................... Essential teachings ...........................................

18 18 19 19

2 Key concepts and background to the practices 23 Dharanas: the practices .................................... 23 The one hundred and twelve dharanas ....... 24 Application in daily life ................................. 26 Consciousness .................................................. 27 Awareness .......................................................... 33 The practice of awareness ............................ 37 Awareness as a state of being ..................... 38 The seer cannot be the seen ........................ 39 A turnabout in our self-identification ........... 40 Revealing what we are .................................. 42 Tuning into the present moment of now ......... 43 Insight arises more in being than doing .. 45 Spaciousness ..................................................... 47 Spaciousness versus intellectual knowledge 48 The material universe is predominantly space 50 Space and spaciousness in the human being 52 Spaciousness: antidote to the ego .............. 54 Space, spaciousness and Awareness ......... 54 Spaciousness and energy ............................ 57 The nature of I .................................................. 60 Dwadashanta: the energy body ........................ 62 Bhuchari mudra the earth moving gesture 63 The meaning and implications of the dwadashanta 66 The significance of the dwadashanta in the practice of the dharanas .................... 67

Section 2 The original text with commentary 3 The heart-to-heart dialogue between Bhairava and Bhairavi (Verses 1 to 23) ............................ 77 The goddess Bhairavi asks fundamental questions The clarification of Bhairava ............................. 89 Bhairavi responds ........................................... 107

79

4 Practice: the one hundred and twelve dharanas (Verses 24 to 137) ............................................ 113 Preparation and starting point for practice of the dharanas 113 The bases of the dharanas ......................... 113 Different ways of practising the dharanas 114 Timings between the different stages of each dharanas 115 Bhairava explains the dharanas Dharana 1 Coming and going breath ........ 115 Dharana 2 Turning breath .......................... 119 Dharana 3 Spontaneous breath suspension 121 Dharana 4 Controlled breath retention ..... 123 Dharana 5 Ascent of energy ...................... 126 Dharana 6 Piercing the chakras ................ 130 Dharana 7 Twelve centres of energy ........ 133 Dharana 8 Rapid breathing and attention on the eyebrow centre 137 Dharana 9 Energy fields of the five senses 139 Dharana 10 Spaciousness in all situations 142 Dharana 11 Inside surface of the cranium 144 Dharana 12 The channel of Awareness .... 145 Dharana 13 Piercing the bindu .................. 146 Dharana 14 The subtle fire ......................... 148 Dharana 15 Nada yoga ............................... 150 Dharana 16 Stillness underlying the mantra OM 153 Dharana 17 Non-verbal repetition of a mantra 155 Dharana 18 Music ....................................... 156 Dharana 19 Bija mantra syllables .............. 157 Dharana 20 Spaciousness of the body in all directions 159 Dharana 21 Spaciousness above and below the body 161 Dharana 22 Spaciousness in the heart ..... 162 Dharana 23 Non-location of the body ....... 163 Dharana 24 Spacious nature of the different parts of the body 165 Dharana 25 Skin as a membrane ............... 167 Dharana 26 Heart lotus .............................. 168 Dharana 27 Dissolving the mind in the bioplasmic energy field 169 Dharana 28 Focusing on the bioplasmic energy field in daily life 170 Dharana 29 Fire of individual destruction 171 Dharana 30 Fire of universal destruction . 175

Dharana 31 Revealing reality through tattwa shuddhi Dharana 32 Gross and subtle levels of the breath 183 Dharana 33 Retracing the process of creation 184 Dharana 34 All-pervading Consciousness 188 Dharana 35 Neti neti: not this, not this ..... 190 Dharana 36 Spaciousness inside a bowl .. 193 Dharana 37 Spaciousness in nature ......... 194 Dharana 38 Spaciousness between two objects 196 Dharana 39 Spaciousness underlying an object 197 Dharana 40 The body and universe as Consciousness Dharana 41 Fusion of prana and apana .... 200 Dharana 42 Bliss is our fundamental nature 202 Dharana 43 Joy in laughter ........................ 204 Dharana 44 Ascent of energy .................... 206 Dharana 45 Sensitising the sexual organ during intercourse 208 Dharana 46 Extending the sexual fire ....... 210 Dharana 47 Sexual fantasy ........................ 211 Dharana 48 Delight in meeting old friends and relatives Dharana 49 Delight in eating and drinking 213 Dharana 50 Being absorbed in music and other aesthetic arts 216 Dharana 51 Being one with pleasure ........ 221 Dharana 52 State between wakefulness and sleep 222 Dharana 53 Gazing at a light source ......... 224 Dharana 54 Evocative power of mudra ..... 227 Dharana 55 Just sit and be still ................. 229 Dharana 56 Circle of spaciousness .......... 231 Dharana 57 Un-flickering concentration on an outer object 232 Dharana 58 Ajapa japa: integrating a mantra with the breath 234 Dharana 59 Weightlessness ...................... 236 Dharana 60 Meditative walking and swaying 237 Dharana 61 A cloudless summers day .... 240 Dharana 62 The open sky of your own being 241 Dharana 63 Beyond duality ....................... 243 Dharana 64 The dark night ........................ 246 Dharana 65 Darkness as Consciousness . 248 Dharana 66 Pratyahara: withdrawal from the senses Dharana 67 Recitation of the letter a ...... 252 Dharana 68 Repetition of letters with visarga 254

176

198

212

250

Dharana 69 Imagine yourself as the sky .. 256 Dharana 70 Concentration on pain ........... 258 Dharana 71 Meditation on no mind ........... 259 Dharana 72 The delusive nature of cosmic illusion 262 Dharana 73 Transmuting desires .............. 266 Dharana 74 Beyond desire and thoughts, what am I? 269 Dharana 75 Even desires and thoughts are expressions of essential being ................................................ 271 Dharana 76 Thoughts are deceptive and impersonal 274 Dharana 77 Rising above neurotic self-concern 277 Dharana 78 Being aware in emotional states 278 Dharana 79 The impermanent and illusory nature of the world 280 Dharana 80 Beyond pleasure and pain ..... 282 Dharana 81 Identification with all .............. 283 Dharana 82 The pot .................................... 285 Difference between the enlightened and the unenlightened 287 Dharana 83 Consciousness exists in all bodies 288 Dharana 84 Freeing the mind of all supports 291 Dharana 85 I am Consciousness ............... 293 Dharana 86 All things arise from Consciousness 295 Dharana 87 Dancing into ecstasy ............. 297 Dharana 88 Insight ..................................... 299 Dharana 89a Steady blink less gazing ...... 301 Dharana 89b The inner sound ................... 303 Dharana 90 Peering into a deep well ........ 305 Dharana 91 Everything is Reality .............. 306 Dharana 92 Every sensory perception is a revelation of Reality 308 Dharana 93 Being aware in intense situations 309 Dharana 94 Spaciousness in memories ... 313 Dharana 95 Introspective gazing ............... 314 Dharana 96 Catalytic presence of a sage . 315 Dharana 97 Virtual void .............................. 317 Dharana 98 Beyond purity and impurity ... 319 Dharana 99 Non-duality ............................. 322 Dharana 100 Equanimity ............................ 324 Dharana 101 Centred in likes and dislikes 327 Dharana 102 Contemplation on the ineffable 328 Dharana 103 Non-space which underlies space 330

Dharana 104 Dharana 105 Dharana 106 Dharana 107 Dharana 108 Dharana 109 Dharana 110 Dharana 111 Dharana 112

No support for the mind ...... 332 Repeating the mantra bhairava 333 Even ignorance is based on Intelligence 335 Eternal, omniscient and unsupported 338 Cosmic play .......................... 339 Consciousness is beyond form 342 Bondage and freedom are merely concepts 344 Going beyond sensory perception 346 The knower and the known are one 348

5 Concluding verses: the awakening (Verses 138 to 163) 353 Bhairava says .................................................. 353 The goddess Bhairavi asks further questions 356 Bhairava elucidates further ............................ 358 Bhairavi responds with understanding and joy 375 Section 3 Background philosophy and concepts 6 The tantric system of Kashmir Shaivism ....... 383 Tantra: an introduction ................................... 383 Definition ...................................................... 384 Respecting the body ................................... 386 The roots of tantra in Hinduism ................. 386 The practical philosophy of tantra ................. 388 Maya: the cosmic illusion ........................... 388 We do not need to renounce ...................... 390 Tantra says we can have our cake and eat it 390 Sacred sexuality: balancing the inner male and female Integrating the negative and the positive .. 392 Tantra is a science of awakening ............... 394 Living in paradox ......................................... 395 The bindu: point of creation ....................... 395 Tantric texts ................................................. 397 Shiva and Shakti .............................................. 397 Kashmir Shaivism ............................................ 401 Trika or trinity .............................................. 402 Self-recognition ........................................... 404 Bhairava and Bhairavi ..................................... 408 Bhairavi ........................................................ 409

390

Bhairava ....................................................... 412 The thirty-six tattwas ....................................... 413 Evolution: from a scientific and mystical perspective 413 The path of return ........................................ 415 Definition ...................................................... 415 Reality ........................................................... 416 Tantric cosmology ........................................... 416 The five most subtle tattwas ...................... 417 The process of cosmic illusion (maya) ...... 422 The beginning of individual existence ....... 425 The five senses: the means of perceiving the outside world 428 The five organs of action: the means of acting in the world 429 The five tanmatras: the five sensory fields of perception 430 The five maha bhutas: the primal formative energies of the material world ................................... 433 Validity of the tantric model of perception .... 436 Validity of the paradigm of thirty-six tattwas 438

7 Tantras energy map of human nature ........... 443 Pancha kosha: the five human energy fields 444 Anna-maya kosha: the physical body ....... 446 Prana-maya kosha: bioplasmic energy field 446 Mana-maya kosha: the individual mind ..... 447 Vigyana-maya kosha: the intuitive sheath 448 Ananda-maya kosha: the blissful sheath or causal body Accessing the koshas ................................. 450 The chakras: the energy centres .................... 451 Mooladhara chakra ...................................... 453 Swadhishthana chakra ................................ 455 Manipura chakra .......................................... 456 Anahata chakra ............................................ 458 Ananda kanda ........................................... 459 Vishuddhi chakra ......................................... 461 Lalana chakra ............................................ 462 Agya chakra ................................................. 463 Bhrumadhya .............................................. 466 Guru chakra ............................................... 467 Bindu: the transcendental point ................. 468

449

Sahasrara: the thousand-petalled lotus .... 472 The bindu is a reflection of the sahasrara . 474 Dharanas in relation to the chakras, bindu and sahasrara 475 Ida, pingala and sushumna ............................. 476 Ida and pingala: the symbol ....................... 476 The meaning of ida and pingala ................. 479 Polarity versus duality ................................ 482 Finding balance within the chakras ........... 483 Sushumna .................................................... 484 Ida, pingala and sushumna in the Vigyana Bhairava 484 Kundalini: the primal transformative energy Definition ...................................................... Qualities and function ................................. Microcosm and macrocosm ....................... Kundalini in the Vigyana Bhairava ............. Nada: the underlying cosmic vibration .......... Nada brahman ............................................. Definition ...................................................... Energy as the force of creation .................. Kal, bindu and nada .................................. Nada as sound ............................................. Nada yoga .................................................... Mantra yoga ................................................. Reference texts on nada and nada yoga ... Reference texts on mantra yoga ................ Nada and mantra yoga in the dharanas ..... Section 4 Supplementary practices 8 Selected yogic practices: traditional yoga practices which are used in some of the dharanas ....... 503 Asana (sitting postures) ............................. 503 Pranayama (breath control) ........................ 503 Mudra (symbolic gestures) ......................... 504 Relaxation practices .................................... 504 Meditation practices .................................... 504 Asana (sitting postures) Ardha padmasana (half lotus pose) ........... 504 Padmasana (lotus pose) ............................. 506 485 486 486 487 488 488 488 489 490 491 492 493 494 494 495 495

Siddhasana (male accomplished pose) ..... 507 Siddha yoni asana (female accomplished pose) 508 Sukhasana (easy pose) ............................... 510 Swastikasana (auspicious pose) ................ 511 Vajrasana (thunderbolt pose) ..................... 511 Veerasana (heros pose) ............................. 513 Pranayama (breath control) Bhramari pranayama (humming bee breath) 514 Kapalbhati pranayama (forehead cleansing breath) 516 Ujjayi pranayama (subtle breath) ............... 519 Mudras (symbolic gestures) Ashwini mudra (anal contraction) .............. 519 Bhrumadhya drishti (eyebrow centre gazing) 520 Khechari mudra (tongue lock) .................... 522 Naumukhi mudra (closing the nine gates) 523 Sahajoli mudra (vaginal-clitoral contraction) 526 Shanmukhi mudra (closing the seven gates) 527 Vajroli mudra (penis-urethra contraction) . 528 Bandhas (psycho-physiological locks) Jalandhara bandha (neck lock) .................. 529 Moola bandha (root lock) ............................ 532 Uddiyana bandha (abdominal lock) ........... 536 Relaxation practices Shavasana (corpse pose) ........................... 538 Yoga nidra (yogic sleep) ............................. 540 Meditation practices Ajapa japa (spontaneous repetition of mantra with the breath) 545 Antar mouna (inner silence) ....................... 551 Trataka (concentrated gazing) ................... 557 9 Practices for the present era: fifty-eight practices, or upayas .......................................................... 563

Appendices 1 The relationship between yoga and tantra .... 577

2 The different aspects of Shiva and Shakti ..... 582 3 The paradigm of perception according to tantra: a further explanation ....................................... 588 4 The different paths and practices of yoga indicated by the dharanas ............................................... 593 5 The thirty-six tattwas of tantric cosmology: in listed order ................................................... 597 Glossary (including index) .............................. 599 Select bibliography .......................................... 622

Swami Nishchalananda Saraswati

Profile Personal Details: Name: Peter Beamond Born: 1945 in Romford, Essex. Education: Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering from Brunel University. Yogic Training: Peter Beamond went to India in 1971 to study Yoga and Indian Philosophy at the Bihar School of Yoga under the guidance of a master, Paramahamsa Satyananda Saraswati. There he was initiated into Yoga and was given a spiritual name of Swami Nishchalananda Saraswati. For 6 years he underwent rigorous yogic training and practice. Teaching in India: He spent 7 years travelling around India, visiting different Yoga centres and teaching Yoga and Yoga-related subjects in the villages, towns and cities. He gave many professional courses in Indian companies. He returned to the UK in June 1985. He returned to Europe in 1985, having spent 14 years in India. Founding of Mandala Yoga Ashram: In 1986, he founded Mandala Yoga Ashram in Wales (U.K.), a charitable institution which gives residential seminars on all aspects of Yoga and spiritual sciences. Since establishing the Ashram, he has fulfilled the role of Director. Teaching:

He gives workshops/ seminars/ lectures on a wide range of Yoga related subjects including Kriya Yoga, Mantra Yoga, Raja Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Gyana Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Meditation, Yoga Therapy, Symbols, Pranayama, Tantra, Yoga Nidra, Lucid Dreaming, Mudra and many other Yoga related subjects. He has a profound and intuitive knowledge of the classical Yogic Texts and gives seminars on major texts including the Bhagavat Gita, Patanjali Yoga Sutra, Mandukya Upanishad, Katha Upanishad, Ishavasya Upanishad, Bhaja Govindam, Vigyana Bhairava Tantra and others. Publications: Whilst in India, he wrote a number of books on Yoga including Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha, Meditations from the Tantras, Sannyasa Tantra and A Systematic Course in the Ancient Tantric Techniques of Yoga and Kriya, the latter being an encyclopaedia of Yogic Science, with special emphasis on Kriya Yoga. For a number of years, he was the Editor of Yoga, the international monthly magazine of the Bihar School of Yoga. Over the years, after his return from India, he has written many articles on Yoga and Yoga-related subjects. Many of these have been published in Yoga magazines. Every year he edits the Ashram Newsletter (as well as writing many of the articles contained in it). He has produced a number of booklets for the Ashram on various Yoga subjects. Over the last eight years he has been written three major books: Mantra Yoga and Ashram Chants first published in 2003, followed by The Edge of Infinity which was published in 2006. His latest book is entitled Insight into Reality The Tantric Teachings of the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra, published in December 2011. FOR A COPY OR COPIES OF ANY OF HIS BOOKS PLEASE CONTACT;

Contact: Swami Nishchalananda Saraswati, Mandala Yoga Ashram, Pantypistyll, Llansadwrn, Llanwrda, Carmarthenshire, Wales, U.K. SA19 8NR. tel/ fax: (01558) 685358. E-mail: email@mandalayoga.freeserve.co.uk www.mandalayoga.net