Pratyahara Practice

(waves crashing) (speaking in foreign language) Now we go through tanmatra pratyahara practice, where we focus on the senses. Then we try to bring those senses, one by one, back to the mind field. This is very, very nice practice before doing the meditations, and very practical way to bring the senses to the mind field. Okay? Let's start first, try to find the seating posture.

I'm doing here Siddhasana, but you can also do the Swastikasana so that you cross the shins from the center, or Sukhasana so that you cross the ankles. Then we have the Swastikasana, left heel next to the hip and right heel in front of it, or toes between the calf muscle and the left foot toes between the right calf and thigh. Okay? Then hands either down or palms facing up. You can take the Jnana Mudra.

Then shift weight on the center of the buttock bone. That's marma called kanista kati marma, center of buttock bone pressing down energetically. Then use the center of the buttock bone as a base to lift the lower sternum up, which is the kanista uras marma. And from lower sternum, go to the back of the skull, so lift the back of the skull up towards the ceiling. And then focus, observing the breathing.

Breathe through nostrils. And as alambhana support here. We use purna ha jathara When you start, inhalation started from the perineum, breathe through the armpits, and exhale from the armpits back to the perineum. Inhale, dome of the diaphragm is moving up. Exhale, it's moving down.

Observe the breathing. Mind is focused on the breathing, and also bring your breathing into the mind. The first one is ghanda, so focus on your nostrils. Try to feel the movement of the air in your nostrils. From the nostrils, bring the focus to the sense of smell.

Try to bring the sense of smell to the mind field where it originates. And shift focus to jihva, tongue. The sense is taste, rasa. The element of the sense of taste is water, jala. Try to bring the sense of taste back to the mind field.

Experience the sense of taste in the mind. And then laksa, eyes. And ropa, sight, sense of seeing things. Focus on that. Light is the element, fire, agni.

Try to bring the sense of seeing to the mind field, see with your mind. Next is sparsa, sense of touch. Feel the skin, bhahirya saira. Element is vayu, air. Try to bring the sense of touch back into the mind field where it originates.

Feel in your mind. And then ears, karna. The sense of hearing, shabda. Try to bring the sense of hearing back to the mind field. Now focus on that mind field.

Then we go through all the senses in the mind field. First the skandas, sense of smell. Then rasa, sense of taste. Taste in your mind field. Experience the sense of taste.

Then ropa, sight, see in your mind field. Then sparsa, touch. Feel in your mind field. And last one is sabdha, sound. Hear in your mind field.

And every inhalation, compress your senses more tight in the mind field. Do it gentle way. Then I'm going to count three. When I say three, let your senses go back to the sense object. Let them roam free.

One, two, and three. Then no mantra, inhale. Anjali Mudra, press palms together. And exhale and inhale. OM.

OM. OM. A couple of times, in your mind, manas pranava. Thank you.