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Ramakrishna Ananda

Meditation — The Good Will Witness

Want a sure-fire practice to enter higher consciousness?

Welcome to the doorway of Higher Consciousness!

While higher consciousness is occasionally approached in a way which bypasses the Good Will Witness stage, over ninety percent of seekers first enter higher consciousness through this natural maturation, this exaltation of their good will.

Growing on the Path, Meditation, Goodness

You may wish to study this technique and its method, pausing in your reading of the rest of this website until you’ve had several opportunities to practice the Good Will Witness. Please keep in mind as you develop this technique that no website or book can replace a qualified teacher and that you should only proceed, with any technique here, as far as comfort allows.

If you ever become uncomfortable, simply sit back, relax, and resume the practice again when you find it comfortable.

Also, if you are doing therapy with a psychologist or psychiatrist, ask his or her advice before doing any meditative practice. Many who are suffering mental/emotional illness benefit richly from meditation. But some others become too emotional or are haunted by memories.

Now, if you’ve striven to be more conscious from morning through night each day, and if you have become a thoughtful person with a heart and mind full of good will, you will find great delight in the following practice. This excellent method, which has helped numerous people, is merely a suggested way. You may have a better way to meditate which will bring about the results you are striving for.

Probably you will have greater success if you first read this whole Lesson before doing this method step by pleasant step.

Selecting Your Meditation Object

Stand and take a nice stretch.

Then sit comfortably with your spine straight. Do not do this meditation practice until three hours after a meal. It’s good to meditate before a meal or in the morning before work, or in the late afternoon after work, or in the evening. Be sure you are awake and aware as you do this. Falling asleep will not precipitate an experience of higher consciousness.

Now choose a meditation object. That is, something to meditate on. The meditation object can be a word, or a physical object that you will look at. It could be a mental picture that you can hold in your mind while your eyes are closed.

Your object could be a specific center in your body. For example, the point half an inch above where your eyebrows meet is an excellent place. It is called the third eye by most people who meditate there. Perhaps a better place for most seekers is called the heart center. Think of a point inside your spine directly back of the heart. As your concentration moves in the area of your forehead or heart center, it will become quite specific and one-pointed. You will soon be able to precisely focus on your chosen center. Try both centers and note which one is most comfortable for you, as well as easiest to focus upon. Then again, you may not choose to make either center your meditation object.

At first, you may wish to try various meditation objects. But remember never to force yourself to focus and remember that the object you select must be pleasing to your mind. Your meditation object needs to be relatively easy for you to think about; and you should be able to direct your feelings toward your meditation object, naturally and pleasantly.

Words used as your meditation object could be Love, Joy, Oneness. Also, you could choose to think of the name of one of the world’s great beings: Jesus Christ, Buddha, Ramakrishna, Moses, Krishna, or others.

Form or Formless

So, first select a meditation object. We are all somewhat differently wired and some people prefer to think about an object in front of them — a picture, a flower, a bowl, a candle flame. Others prefer to visualize in their minds the form of Jesus, Buddha, Ramakrishna, Virgin Mary, Sarada Devi, or perhaps one of the great saints or bodhisattvas (potential Buddhas who refuse to enter nirvana in order to serve suffering mankind). Some prefer to meditate on a triangle, a cross, or a circle or sphere which they visualize in the front of their minds.

Others prefer to think of formless, infinite expansiveness. However, focusing on the infinite is rather difficult to do. The human mind can hardly ever think beyond names, things, and shapes. But, meditation on the vast sky sometimes helps those who have the ability to think in a formless way. The sky could be considered an abstract meditation object.

Choose your meditation object, one that is vivid to you. Make it a color you prefer. Your meditation object needs to be as pleasing and interesting to your mind and emotions as possible.

Starting Your Meditation

Having selected your meditation object, put aside your thought of it for a moment. Take three to six deep, slow breaths — if you can comfortably do this. Your exhalation should be calming and pleasant. Feel as you bring air into your nostrils that you are imbibing a rare and very subtle wine.

Having done your deep breaths, sit calmly with a relaxed body and an attitude of good will. Now, briefly think of all the people you’ve made contact with today. Maintain an attitude of good will as you think of each person. Also consider, as you begin meditating, do you have good will for yourself, and for this practice? Or, are your resenting that you are sitting quietly in meditation as other activities come to mind? Are you resenting that you may ultimately achieve higher consciousness and have to change in some ways? (Yes, these are strange questions but some people are against themselves in most everything they undertake.)

Now, while holding the attitude that you are radiating good will out from yourself — perhaps from your heart center, perhaps from your third eye, perhaps from your chest and face in general — let the energy of your thoughtfulness, of your goodness, move outward from you. Enjoy a period of good will.

Direct You Good Will To Your Meditation Object

Encourage the good will to radiate outward in all directions — in front of and behind you, above and below you, right and left. Also, direct your good will to flow through you when you sense it well. Let good will fill your mind and chest, your whole body. Perhaps thoughts of things you don’t like about yourself float into your awareness. Let go of them. You can work on your shortcomings with greater insight after meditation. For the present, have good will for yourself as well as others.

At this point, the main phase of your meditation begins. Bring your meditation object, now, into your meditation — either the word or words you choose to say, or your heart center, your third eye, the picture before you, or the visualization in front of your mind. All you have to do is simply hold your meditation object in your awareness and direct your good will to it. Let your good will pervade the meditation object. Let good will saturate it. Fill your meditation object with the light of your love, with the light of your thoughtfulness.

Don’t strain, don’t try too hard. Maintain your good will even if your concentration or your meditation object flies away at times. Maintain your good will and patiently continue gathering and focusing your good will on your meditation object. Enjoy this. Let your good will develop. It will become progressively stronger with regular practice. Let your applied good will flow easily and naturally into your meditation object, or person.

Now you know how to do it.

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#2 THE MYSTIC GAZE
A Classic Technique

This classic technique is one of the mystic’s greatest treasures.

It is designed to stimulate your mystical faculties and begin the process of spiritual awakening.

With the Mystic Gaze enjoy the developing sense of clarity, coordination and attunement with life in all you do.

  1. Sit calmly and relax your eyes
  2. Gaze slightly upwards 20-30 degrees
  3. Look into space 20 feet or more
  4. Gaze, don’t stare or strain your eyes
  5. Simply observe and appreciate your awareness of space
  6. Enjoy the dawning wholeness for several minutes
  7. Gear down and go about your day

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#7 EXPANSION THROUGH ATTITUDE AND GOOD WILL
Change Your Heart

Your practice of good will cultivates the heart’s truest, deepest feeling:  love.

These good will practices are a boon to mystical study.

The goal of good will practice is the change of the heart.

When your heart naturally and spontaneously radiates forth a palpable good will, then you are a changed person.

  1. Consciously direct your thoughts and feelings toward an attitude of good will
  2. Bring a person to mind
  3. Or place your awareness on a person closest to you
  4. Direct good will toward this person
  5. Feel free to add specific well-wishes like health, love, courage, etc.
  6. Allow your heart to expand, to change

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#6 EXPANSION LEVEL ONE
Quality of Life

Mystics break out of body bondage through numerous expansions of the heart — of the sense of self.

Your feeling of self-awareness imprisons or frees you.

Happily, you can do something powerfully liberating about the state of your heart and the quality of your life.

  1. Sit comfortably for 15 minutes
  2. Choose a person you know
  3. Imagine you’re walking in his/her shoes
  4. Feel you’re inside this person
  5. Say “If I were (name), I’d feel and think…”
  6. Have fun with it and let your heart expand

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#5 THE HEART AND ITS LIBERATION
Your Sense of Self

Mystics break out of mind and body bondage through expansions, expansions of consciousness.

Your “Heart” is your sense of self, your feeling about who you are.

Who are you as a distinct person from everyone else? This is your core individuality, your mystical heart.

  1. Focus on your mystic heart
  2. It is located in the right-central chest or inside the spine behind the heart
  3. Practice The Radiance or The Mist:
  4. Feel that your mystic heart…
  5. Radiates love, light and energy, or
  6. Generates a white mist flowing outward

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#4 THE MYSTIC BREATH
Your Window

Your breath is the key to the mystery of your life. The Mystic Breath is conscious use of this key.

Our individual natures will require different windows — different energy centers — from which to view the life force.

Allow the mystic breath to reveal your personal window.

  1. Stretch and then sit comfortably
  2. Take 5 to 7 deep breaths
  3. Focus on the center of your upper lip
  4. Witness the breath come and go
  5. Let your mind move to a natural center
  6. Watch your breath and the life force from this “window”

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#3 THE ASCENT
The Essence of Your Life

We begin meditation on the Infinite by focusing our awareness on Spirit, the life essence within us.

How can we do something so seemingly abstract? It’s easy. Spirit empowers your breath night and day.

Let the life force reveal itself to you. Sense the higher power which flows through you.

You’ll feel more alive.

  1. Stretch and relax your body
  2. Sit comfortably
  3. Take 5 to 7 deep breaths
  4. Focus on your nostril rims
  5. Witness the breath come and go
  6. Enjoy for 10 to 12 minutes
  7. Inhale deeply and stretch

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#0 THE MYSTIC SELF
Our True Nature

In the view of mystics, the major problem in life for most of us is ignorance of our true natures.

The Mysteries reveal many ways that you can actually contact your mystic self — and the Infinite Consciousness.

Do you, can you, contact your Mystic Self? Yes, indeed!

  1. Practice this anytime you like
  2. Probably your mind wanders quite often
  3. At times during the day, look at your mind and notice when it’s wandering
  4. Then, turn your attention to that part of your consciousness which observes that your mind is wandering
  5. That special overseeing awareness is part of your marvelous mystic self

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#1 MYSTIC AWAKENING
Benefits

Stimulate your mystical awakening.

When you wake up from a dream you realize you were only dreaming.

Consider too that this normal state of awareness in which you live may be a kind of sleep also.

As you do this technique you’ll find the world becomes more beautiful and enjoyable.

  1. Try this many times a day
  2. Whisper to yourself, “Wake up!”
  3. Mentally say, “Wake up!”
  4. Increase your attention, appreciation and feeling of love
  5. Just cheerfully exhort yourself
  6. Wake up!

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How to Succeed

As you may know, we do not charge for our courses. All Yoga World content is free and available to you with our blessings. However, we do have a simple, but important request that’s key to the transformations necessary to succeed on the path.

We ask you to commit two hours a week to selfless service. This service can be anything you choose ranging from helping a family member or neighbor to volunteering at a nonprofit organization.

I Commit to Serve

This commitment is solely between you and your inner self.

Why the Commitment?

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