Faculty 1: Meditation
“It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.” -Buddha
Mantra
Jai!
Celebrate existence!
Jai (Ma) means victory. Jai is a feeling of redemption. It's both the heady elation of triumph and the sweet sigh of relief to follow. Curriculum AUM celebrates the magic and wonders of humankind to encourage The Secular Self to rejoice in being alive! A.pplied N.eo Y.ogic A.wareness or Anya plays the role of “MAA” (Inexhaustible Grace as the Divine Mother) who champions victory over Avidya of all kinds.
When habituated homeostasis seeps in the cracks and old patterns promise more of the same struggle, take a moment to simply notice the pattern and declare: JAI!. There’s no pressure to change it all at once – just arrive to celebrate the mystery of being in the questions. Pierce the calloused covers and project into the conditioned unconscious the potential of empowerment, realization and ultimately, liberation.
Need inspiration? Just listen to the song Across the Universe by the Beatle’s and dedicate the mantra: "Jai guru deva om" (Sanskrit: जय गुरुदेव ॐ) to the Wisdom (the inner guru) within.
Listen to Jai Mantra:
Mudra
Eastern Prayer Mudra
Eastern Prayer, often called Namaste or Anjali Mudra, joins hands as one at the heart center. Considered a sacred gesture of balance and composure, Namaste Mudra is also used as a greeting. It combines the calm of the Left and the stimulation of the Right and engages these opposites at a major feeling center (Anahata Chakra). With thumbs resting gently at the breastplate the felt sense awakens and a spirit of compassion expands with each breath. Practice Namaste Mudra to invoke a journey of paradoxical proportions!
In Practice:
Muse:
Feel the hands as the seers of the felt sense. Visualize the Tibetan paintings of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion. Envision the palm centers of the hands depicted as eyes. Before drawing an eye or hand, Tibetan artists create an intricate grid. This solid foundation organizes and frames the alignment and expression of the whole body. The slightest variations in the positioning of a finger can change the whole context of the figure. Be in the whole shape, reflect on the overall contour of seated meditation pose- but see/feel/hear/know IT from the perspective of the omnipotent hands.
- Set a timer for 2 minutes.
- Sit comfortably in an upright position.
- Place hands in Eastern Prayer Mudra: Join left and right hands together at the heart center. Seal the Heels, bases, stems and blades of each hand as one. Maintain a space about the size of a small pearl between the palm centers. Pressurize thumbs onto breastplate and position fingers to point northbound toward the sky while stretching elbows east and west.
- Without crushing the pearl, begin pushing the hands together with even more Soul-Force.
- Try to keep the unification of the hands, but now start to pull the elbows more east and west – lengthening the forearms in opposite directions and level with the floor.
- On the next 3 breaths, Exhale to push hands & Inhale to pull elbows.
- Bow the head to the hands take a moment to honor the goodness within.
- Take a deep breath in and hold at the fullness of the inspiration for 10 seconds. Then sigh, release the hands and place them on the inner knees.
- Take 20 seconds to notice the echo
