Day 17 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

The mind is heavily conditioned towards the material and physical world. The spotlight of your attention flows through the senses, through the power of action and into the world. In meditation you are learning to suspend this outward flow and refocus on your own being, your own sense of self. 

In meditation you are guided to stabilize the body by nourishing the different nerve plexuses and then synergizing heart and mind to open up the self-awareness. 

Let's come into our meditation. Thank you very much for listening.

Let's close our eyes, let's take a few deep breaths. Slowly in, slowly out. Let's open up our self awareness. Noticing the many dimensions of experience. Allow the body to relax, letting go of the stresses and tensions of your day.

And let's nourish the body, nourish the nervous system by breathing into the abdomen, recharging the nerve plexus there on the inhale. Push and stretch and expand the abdomen on the exhale and draw it close to your spine.

Use some muscular action to develop the muscles and to explore how the body relates to the breath. Recharge the vital power. If you feel to you can hold the breath a little on the inhale and exhale.

As you do this, ensure there's a gentle awareness at the root that it's alert and held so no energy is lost there.

Awareness of the root is critical for stabilizing the energy and building up the energy within the body.

And let's come into the chest, using your breathing to expand the chest all the way in, all the way out. The goal is emotional. Recharge that nerve plexus can become depleted from engaging with the world.

Use slow, steady breaths, completely fill, completely empty the lungs and focus on caring for your body, opening up the loving vibration to the body.

Now come into the head and the goal is to refresh the brain, to nourish the nervous system. So use your breathing.

Don't go too deep into the energy experience yet. Stay grounded with the body.

Open up your awareness to feel the body tuning into every single cell. Breathe into that headspace, but regulate the amount of air that's coming in. Make sure you don't overwhelm the space.

Recharge.

I can feel the energy building up there. So I'm going to use my exhale to push the energy down to the root to create that brow-root connection.

This is how you protect the nervous system from burning out from the energy. You need to move the energy towards the root and hold it there. The excess energy is moved into the body.

That's very good. Now open up the heart and the brow together. Come into the energy awareness with me.

Synchronize the heart and the brow. You can use a breathing action to do this. From the inhale, you go from the heart to that brow point. And on the exhale, from the brow to the heart to open up the central channel between the two.

You're seeking to balance the flow of energy that they're both in synergy, loving focus. And you hold these two in your awareness. What happens when you do?

Now, take a moment to notice your body, notice the senses.

Notice that you're holding them steady in a calm space and gently move away, going deeper into your being and they are still there waiting for you.

But move deep into the heart space. Move deep into the mind space. Gently away from the senses.

Give your attention to the I sense of I. I am. I exist. I am holding the heart. I am holding the mind.

Give your attention to that experience of identity. Did you know that "I" is empowered from the source?

It's held in the Divine. It's your connection back there.

Focus with me on that sense of self. You can use the heart or the brow wherever you feel stronger.

What is that sense of self?

Beyond the body, beyond the human senses. What is that experience of I?

Let's take a deep breath. All the way in, all the way out.

Gently guide the flow of energy down towards your gut, down towards your root.

Notice the overall condition of the body. Notice how your experience has changed just from holding yourself in that inner space, in that inner connection.

Breathe slowly and completely, reconnecting to each of the five senses, tuning into your physical body.

As we come close to the end of our meditation, I invite you to affirm in the mind:

I stay centered in the source of my being,

recognizing my identity. Beyond this body, beyond this world,

I open up to that experience.

Slowly coming back to the physical body, feeling the weight of the body resting in your seat, pulling yourself back to the body, alert and ready. And when the moment is right for you, you can gently open your eyes.

1. What are the ways in which the sense pull on your mind? 
2. What are some of the ways that you get captured by doing and acting in the world? 
3. How did it feel to let go of the senses, the actions, and reserve yourself inside? 
​

Day 16 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

Today I speak about working with the mind and particularly, the thoughts, in meditation. From my years of teaching meditation the #1 complaint I receive is that you can't stop thinking. In this session I help you to understand that this is not an obstacle. You are greater than the mind. 

In meditation you are guided to go to a deeper centre where thinking is no long an obstacle to meditation and you are able to experience beingness. 

​All right, let's come into a meditation posture, please. Thank you very much. I invite you to close your eyes.

Sit with your spine aligned. Relax the body. Relax the shoulders. Relax the abdomen and the chest. Relax your face. Take a few deep and complete breaths, becoming steady in yourself.

Open up to observe every dimension of being.

That means giving attention to your body, your vitality, your emotional space, the emotional landscape of your being. Observe the quality of listening. And of course, observe your mind, the content and the condition of your mind.

And strive to keep the consciousness, the awareness, as open as you can, observing every detail with great curiosity and alertness.

See what is held in your being and take a deep breath, repositioning into the sense of I, the identity: "I am experiencing."

You notice. You notice the many phenomena of experiencing, but give greater attention to that sense of self, the feeling of I, that feeling of beingness.

It's being supported from a deep spiritual place. Your "I" is empowered by the Source.

When you focus on that sense of self, there's a reconnection. There's a growing awareness that the Source is supporting you.

There's a growing awareness of your divinity.

This is beyond the mind. You don't need to think about it.

You're abiding in yourself, anchoring in the sense of I.

Notice that sense of I is unwavering.

It's holding your entire being, yet it doesn't seem touched by the mind, by the body, by the breath.

The energy is moving in you, in your being. You can feel it with the breath.

But that sense of I is not fluctuating.

Notice that.

Can you feel that as you stay in this place? What's happening in the mind is of no consequence.

Whatever thoughts flow through the mind, it's not impeding you. It doesn't feel like an obstacle. You might be aware of it, or the thoughts may even seem very small. You can't make it out.

Notice this, that when you are not so absorbed in the mind, you feel bigger than the mind.

You feel bigger than the thinking. Pay attention to that.

Breathe into that feeling, the vastness of your being.

This is the freedom from the mind.

Now take a few deep breaths from the brow. Guide the flow of energy down to the root. From the root coming back up to the brow.

A long, slow and steady breath, opening up the central channel to the flow of energy.

Now refocus on the brow. Breathe deeply into the mind, into the brain.

We're holding an inner posture of non judgment.

No matter what thoughts arise, no matter what we observe, we remain neutral.

And we also need to come into that place of no expectation. That means you're not waiting for anything to happen. You don't need to.

You can just be.

Try to feel the fullness of being.

Your perfection is not in some future moment. It's here with you now, as part of you.

You are cultivating the intimacy with the present moment. Drop the past totally. Become fresh, new. Discovering yourself again. Open up to the expansiveness of the mind, not limiting it in any way. The spaciousness.

And as you breathe out, allow yourself to dissolve into that space.

Don't cling to the body. Don't cling to any experience. Allow yourself to go to become the spaciousness, the vastness.

Let's take a deep breath.

All the way in, all the way out. Guiding the flow of energy down the central channel. And again. In

and out. Grounding your energies towards the body. Again, in and out. And let's do some deep abdominal breathing. Tune into your senses. Feel your body.

As we come towards the end of our meditation, let's affirm strongly in the mind:

I stay centered in the source of my being, recognizing my power to master the mind.

Thank you very much. Coming all the way back. Tuning into the body, making yourself fully alert. When you feel ready, with a few gentle blinks, you can open the eyes.

1. What did you observe in this meditation? 
2. Describe the experience of the mind.

Day 15 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

In this practice we go deeper into appreciating how the mind works. In particular we are learning to look at the content - what you are thinking, and the condition - how you are thinking or the quality in the mind. 

This meditation highlights the energy process of strengthening the different areas of your being and how that influences the condition of the mind. 

Let me invite you to close your eyes, begin tuning in to that inner space instead of looking through the senses.

The senses are highly relaxing and come into your breathing, becoming skillful in your breathing as you have learned over the past few days.

Explore your breath, explore your body, opening up the awareness. Notice as many layers of your being as you can. Your body, vitality, emotions, thoughts, energy.

Open up that self observation, self awareness it and notice again the sense of self, that sense of "I", I am experiencing, I am breathing.

And move away from the experiencing and move closer to the sense of I, the consciousness that you are holding all experiences, enabling all experiences and breathe into that space. It's a deeper centering in observation, in witnessing.

And let's remember that I is held in the source. It's divinely supported.

How does this deep centering affect your mind?

Are you able to see the subtle shifts in your mind as you change your point of attention?

Let's keep the quality and the condition of the mind in our awareness as we explore.

As you breathe out and go all the way down the central channel to the root and gently strengthen that root chakra. Breathe out, you can give attention to the perineum. Breathe in and relax.

And just do this for a few breaths. As you strengthen the root, you are closing off any energy leakages in your body. We tend to lose energy from the downward flow from the root. So we need to seal off that loss.

We need to practice holding the energy, strengthen the root, hold the energy in that lower area.

Become aware of the sacral and do the same. Give it a little tension, hold the energy there and see how the awareness that the lower chakras is creating that body relationship, mind, body connection.

And let's come into the gut using deep abdominal breathing.

But please keep the root chakra held as you explore your gut, building up the energy in your system.

And really push the expansion of the abdomen as you breathe in.

When you breathe out intense the abdominal muscles draw it in towards the spine and you can hold a breath in the abdomen before gently releasing to bring more energy into the nervous system.

Now check in with your mind. Can you sense the subtle shifts in your mind as you energize the lower chakras?
If there are thoughts in your mind. That's okay, don't be attached.

Allow the thoughts to flow through without drawing too much of your attention.

In the right time, the mind will clear. Stay focused with the energy experience.

Now let's come into the chest. Come into the heart and use your breathing there to engage in emotional recharge.

Expand the chest as you breathe. Focus on that point at the center of the chest and seek to open the heart. Cultivating and uplifting heart space. Kindness, gentleness, acceptance, compassion and deep devotion to the inner self, that divine power supporting you.

Open up the heart space. Can you feel the support that the heart is giving to your mind? Observe how by stabilizing that emotional space, the mind is positively influenced.

Now, on the inhale, draw the energy up to that point between the eyebrows.

Breathe into the head, recharging the brain, the physical experience, and open up to the spaciousness of the inner space. Inner mind.

By letting go of thoughts as you breathe out, gently distance yourself from the thinking, opening up more to that subtle quality of mind.

By balancing the breathing, you create that subtle quality.

To go deeper into the Sattva, all you need to do is breathe into the central channel. From the brow, go down the central channel all the way to the root. From the root on the inhale, draw the energy upwards.

This will begin cleansing the Tamas, pacifying the Rajas, and cultivating the Sattva.

And if you're able to hold your body in that experience of guiding the flow of energy in the central channel, now begin using your whole body, breathing with each breath, feeling a subtle stretch through your entire body and guiding the breath, guiding the flow of energy to every single cell.

Tuning into your senses.

As we come to the end of our meditation, let's affirm in the mind:

I stay centered in the source of my being.

I cultivate Sattva, purity and balance in my and I seek to engage with my world from that place.

Now take one last deep breath. Pull yourself fully into the body. Alert, feeling the weight of the body.

Strengthen the root chakra, strengthen the gut. If you need to

pull yourself all the way back. When the moment is right, you can gently open the eyes.

1. What do you notice about the content of your mind?
2. What do you observe about the condition of your mind? 
3. From your meditation experience, how did the moving of the energy and breath influence the condition of the mind? 

Day 14 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

In this practice I share about a yogic concept of knots in the subtle energy body called Granthis. These three Granthis are called Brahma granthi - located at the root, Vishnu granthi - located at the heart, and Rudra granthi - located at the brow, deep inside the head. 

This meditation invites you to explore the locations of these granthis and to feel deep into your nervous system. 

All right, so let's get ready for our meditation. Thank you very much.

Please close your eyes. Align your posture. Relax the different parts of the body while keeping your spine aligned.

Bring your awareness into your breathing, seeking to balance the inhale and exhale.

But please stimulate your lungs. Breathe deeply, activating the physical body. As you breathe, open up your awareness, noticing the different levels of your experience.

The physical experience, the vital, the emotional, the mental, and the subtle energy. Become highly observant, highly sensitive, highly curious.

Wat is happening within you? 

And to center deeply in awareness, in consciousness, affirm the sense of "I," I am experiencing and move gently away from experiencing and move deeper into sense of "I," that I is rooted in the source, in your divinity.

Can you feel the beingness? Being means you are the container that's holding all these experiences, body, heart, mind and energy.

And that container that's holding the experiences, that's the consciousness and that's you.

Let's come into the central energy channel, becoming focused there, guiding the flow of energy. Slowly upwards with the inhale, slowly downwards with the exhale it.

Let's take our awareness to the root chakra, strengthening there using gentle muscular action there to identify the location and open up your awareness to feel the grunty, to search for that knot, that point, that bundle of nerves.

And use your breathing there to guide the flow of energy.

And you can hold a gentle intention to open up that space, to loosen the knot, to open it. But don't use too much will. Use relaxed will, allowing space for your own inner power to support you.

You don't need to make it happen, you are allowing it to happen.

And take a very wide view as you breathe there with the focus at the root of how does the body feel.

Now on the inhale, encourage the flow of energy up towards your heart along the central channel.

Use a few deep breaths, lifting the energy from the root to your heart.

And open up the chest, expanding the chest as you breathe and sit for that point, the grant, Vishnu, granti and the hearth. And then stabilize your attention, focusing at the heart.

Breathe gently through that point naturally, increasing the flow of energy into the nerve plexus and observing the effect.

Remember that you can't make anything happen, but you can enable and allow the process open up to allowing the inner energy to work at that point.


Now join me in drawing the energy upwards into the head. But as you do this, please keep an awareness of the root. And if you feel that headspace is not stable, is not strong, use some abdominal breathing.

There shouldn't be any lightheadedness. If there is, you need to do more grounding, more rooting in the body.

Breathe through the point of the brow and draw your attention deeper, as if the brow is moving into the head, searching for that point called Rudra Granthi.

And you will see by breathing into the head naturally, the airflow becomes a little constricted. Using ujjayi, that technique, ocean sounding breath comes naturally when you focus inside the head.

Breathe there and stay open to the process.

Now, as you breathe out, allow the flow of energy back down to your heart.

Let's center in the heart. From that heart space, open up to your body and use the whole body breathing, energizing the body with the higher vibrations of your heart, and staying centered in the heart, you can open up to the preparation for engaging with the world.

Let's learn to meet the world in our hearts.

Finally, I invite you to tune into our group of meditators.

Please acknowledge them in the inner space. You can just say, Namaskar. Mentally, my soul bows to you. I honor you.

All of our meditators together create a strong energy field that supports each individual coming to that spirit of gratitude towards them for their support, their presence.

Now, as we come close to the end of our meditation, let's strongly affirm in the mind:

I stay centered in the source of my being, that divine sense of I sense of self.

I meet and engage with my world from that place, place of infinite vitality, infinite love, infinite focus.

Thank you very much. Now take a deep breath and pull yourself all the way back to the body, back to the senses. Anchor yourself fully.

​Make sure you feel alert. Observe how the condition of the body has changed from your meditation. And when the moment is right for you, with a few gentle blinks, you can open the eyes.

1. Describe and reflect on your experience at each of the three Granthis - root, heart and brow. 
2. What do you think you need to do to work on your readiness for the knot to open?

Day 13 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

Today's practice deepens the understanding of how the heart energy centre can lead you deep into the freedom experience of the inner Self. 

If you follow this meditation and allow yourself to be carried there is the opportunity to experience freedom flowing through the heart into your experience. 

Let's come into our meditation posture.

Thank you very much. Let's close our eyes. Let's align the spine. Take a moment just to relax the body. Do what you need to do to bring a deeper state of ease into your posture.

Take a few deep breaths, becoming skillful in how you use your breathing. Remember to completely empty your lungs, completely fill your lungs.

And begin opening up the self awareness, noticing every dimension, every level of your being, and then open up into that space, acknowledging all of these experiences. Mind, heart, body energy is held in me.

I am the one experiencing and focus on that sense of I. That "I" is divine. It's empowered and rooted in the infinite consciousness. Recognize that you can affirm: "I am conscious. I am that consciousness itself."

And this helps you to center in a deeper way, as the witness, the observer of the experiences.

Open up your energy awareness and just scan. Scan the energy field by breathing up and down the central channel.

Where do you need to energize today? Become intuitive.

Do you need to create more groundedness? If so, then strengthen your root as you have learned.

Do you need to clear the mind and focus the mind? If so, energize the brain. Focus at the brow chakra point.

Do you need to work with the body to relax, nourish and strengthen the body? Then go into your gut and use deep abdominal breathing.

Open up to feel what you need and use your will to strengthen and energize. And once you have stabilized the energy system, come into your heart, breathing into the chest and then focusing at that point, at the center of the chest.

It's as though you're resting your mind in your heart, focusing and opening up to that emotional space, the emotional landscape of your being.

And as you breathe out, release the limitations, release the boundaries, letting go of the old emotions

as you breathe in, energizing and expanding the heart space.

If any old emotional patterns or memories arise, you may need to work with forgiveness, acceptance, non judgment, to release, examine it, examine it in a way of freedom. This cannot hold me.

I just need to release this to be more free. Feel empowered to clear the heart space. Feel empowered to open up the heart space to new possibilities, to a deeper dimension of loving.

Now observe the sense of I, the sense of self that resides in your heart. You are there.

Recognize that I as the source of power and open up to a relationship with that power.

Begin tentatively, as all relationships do. Just checking feeling, communicating. This is the inner communication. Become familiar with that sense of support and power and open up to the possibility of loving, of connecting, of merging there and breathe into the heart.

This is the opening up to the loving of oneself.

Now let's take a deep breath. All the way in, all the way out. I invite you to hold your body in a loving energy field, supporting the body, caring for the body,

and use your breathing to carry that vibration to every single cell.

Go all the way to the soles of the feet, tips of the fingers, crown of the head, through every joint, every bone, every muscle, every organization.

Tune into the senses, identify each of the five senses, breathe and feel, and begin tuning into the body, coming back to the body awareness.

As we come to the end of our meditation that's affirmed strongly in the mind, I stay centered in the source of my being.

I open up to loving, deep loving of my infinite self, the power that animates my life.

And I hold myself in balance, loving myself and the world.

Thank you very much. Please pull yourself all the way back, tuning into the weight of the body, coming back to the physical presence, fully alert, ready to engage with your day. And when you feel ready, with a few gentle blinks, opening the eyes.

1. What are the things that you separate yourself from because of negative emotions? Examine this in your
being. 

2. What are the things that you connect yourself with because of positive emotions? Are you doing so in a healthy, balanced, and wisdom? 

3. What can you do to open up to deeper loving of the Divinity within you? How can you practice this? 

Day 12 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

How does the heart support the spiritual journey? As it opens up to the light of the soul, the soul's desire begins to surface as a guiding intelligence. If you learn to tune into that intelligence and align with it you can lead a life of deep fulfillment. 

In this meditation you are invited to let go of the emotional baggage that limits the heart so that the soul intelligence that can surface to be explored. 

Please join me in meditation. Posture, in and out. Thank you very much for listening.

Let's close our eyes. Let's take a few deep breaths, opening up the awareness, meditative awareness, inner awareness, which requires gently stepping back from the senses and focusing inwardly.

Take a moment to observe the many levels of being, the many dimensions of your experience. That means observing your body, observing your level of vitality, observing the emotional landscape, the heart space, observing the inner quietness, the inner listening and sensitivity, and of course, observing your mind.

What's the condition and quality of your mind today?

And all of these experiences gets held in your being, consciousness being. It's held in you.

And as you breathe, try to relax into that beingness, the feeling of holding all of these diverse experiences where you can just observe an experience and observe the sense of I.

I am experiencing. I exist. And remember that sense of I. Your sense of self is divinely connected, is rooted in the source, divine space. Can you feel that inner connection?

Now join me in recharging the nerve plexus. Let's come into the abdomen. And those of you who are skilled in using the root chakra, use the root as well as you use deep abdominal breathing.

And remember, you can breathe there. And then when you feel ready, you can hold the breath there for a few seconds to recharge that very large nerve plexus in the gut. It. That's good.

When you feel ready on the inhale, draw the attention and the energy up into your chest and allow the expansion of the chest as you breathe, exploring the full capacity of the lungs.

As you breathe out, you're clearing that heart space, letting go of all the old emotions that you don't need. And you breathe in, you're energizing, recharging, nourishing that nerve plexus at the heart.

And some of you may be able to identify that point. At the center of the chest, there's a particular point where all the nerves meet, a kind of a knot at the heart. Brood through there, just energizing.

Now let's come to that point of the brow, energizing the brain and working with the mental field mind space, gently draw the breath, draw the energy through that point.

When you breathe out, clear your mind, opening up the space of the mind. When you breathe in, energize, nourish that space. And you do this until you actually feel the mind is opening up.

There's a feeling of inner expansion in the mind, clarity, alertness.

Now, coming to the central energy channel, and that requires going a little deeper into the energy system, fine tuning your awareness to locate the central channel and guiding the flow of energy in there.

But as you do this, try to hold a heart awareness. Try to hold that point at the center of the axis and seek the depth of your heart. Don't be scared to open up your heart to allow the deeper power of the soul to shine through the heart.

As you do this, there's a feeling of immensity. The vast power of the heart begins to reveal surfaces in your experience.

And sometimes that can be a little scary because it's new and it's a, a tremendous power. Just hold yourself in the awareness of the soul power behind the heart space, the immensity of your heart.

It's a gentle awareness allowing it to reveal itself softly.

Now let's take a deep breath, and as you exhale, gently channel the flow of energy downwards and make sure to hold your body in this heart connection, loving the body, caring for the body, and staying centered in your heart.

Anchored there, you can open up your mind to your world, your friends, your family, coworkers, the different dimensions of your life that you explore. You can open up your heart to that, just bringing more loving energy, compassionate energy into your life, but from a place of strengthen, rooted in the source it.

Now let's begin tuning into the senses, observing the body and the condition of the body, how it has changed from your meditation and slowly bringing yourself back to the physical awareness and physical presence.

And let's affirm in the mind:

I stay centered in the source of my being, conscious of every level of my experience.

I open up to the deepest intelligence of my heart, in alignment with the soul.

Now tune into the weight of the body resting in the seat. Take a deep breath, pull yourself fully back. Alert the senses, alert the

1. What is it that your heart longs for? What is your deepest soul desire?

Day 11 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

The heart energy centre holds tremendous healing powers. As it is the located at the middle of the entire subtle energy body, the heart energy centre serves as bridge. It allows the higher vibrations of the upper chakras to inspire the earth bound experience. And it allows the lower chakras to transmute their vital energies into higher vibrations of love, intuition and spiritual perception. 

​In this meditation you are invited to explore how to energize the heart and open up to the healing powers it offers. 

I invite you to close your eyes, become conscious of your breathing. Open up to the inner space with me, with all of us in our meditation group, with the intention of becoming more loving, exploring and experiencing that power that we hold within us.

Open up the self awareness.

Don't become fixated on just one part of your being, like your mind or your body. Open up the awareness to be more conscious of all the different dimensions of being. The body, the vitality, the emotions, the listening, the mind, the energy.

Open up the awareness as wide as you can, just to perceive, to experience, to seek, to experience all that you are.

And join me in coming into that position of deep awareness of being. I am experiencing that feeling of I and remember that, that feeling of I, that sense that you exist. It's held in the divine.

It's empowered by the deep consciousness within you, infinite within you, eternal within you. Breathe into that place beingness without becoming so involved in any particular area of your being.

Just embrace the openness of the inner space and take a few deep breaths to explore it, making sure that your body is held in that space.

As you breathe out, let go of any tensions, any disruptions as you breathe in, bring balance and harmony. Clear up that inner space.

Now let's come into the central energy channel. Gently focus your mind and bring your attention into the central channel and work with the flow of energy there. Gentle inhale, guiding the flow of energy upwards.

Gentle exhale, guiding the flow of energy downwards, and seek to notice the effect at the many levels of being.

It has a strengthening effect on the body. It makes you feel more vital, alert. It opens up and integrates the heart with the energy system.

It empowers your listening and observing, and it focuses your mind.

Observe the power of this simple practice of the flow of energy up and down, how it expands and elevates the consciousness.

There is a saying yoga: "the one who lives and moves in the central energy channel has become free, is liberated."

So dwell there, abide there.

Learn to anchor in that central energy channel. Doesn't it feel satisfying?

Now let's strengthen the lower three chakras, the root, the sacral and the gut naval chakra. Bring your awareness there. When you breathe out,

gently tense the perineum to strengthen the root.

What you're doing is you're halting or arresting the loss of energy from the lower chakras when you squeeze the root. We can have energy leakages there, but by giving a little tension, a little holding, we seal off those energy leakages in the energy body and do the same for the sacral chakra.

And that requires engaging the pelvic floor and the muscles in the sacral area. When you breathe out, give it some tension, some strength.

When you breathe in. Invite the flow of energy upwards. Then you should feel that area becomes activated. It becomes warm.

You have a huge energy reserve in the root and sacral chakras. Can you feel that energy becoming awakened as you focus there on the inhale. Invite that flow of energy into the navel to recharge the gut. To awaken the vital power and use abdominal breathing.

Expand the abdomen and hold the abdomen. Hold the breath, feeling the flow of energy circulating into the gut.

When you breathe out, you're letting go of the air, but you're holding the energy in the abdomen. Do this for a few breaths. Holding the abdomen expanded. 

By doing this, you restore the nervous system. You restore that very large nerve plexus.

Now, on your next inhale, draw the energy up to your heart. But feel the support of the lower chakras. Feel the support is there, providing a foundation to the heart.

And in particular, open up your awareness to feel the connection between the sacral and the heart. It's a gentle drawing in and up of the energy to your heart.

Can you feel that connection?

Nourish the heart using the powerful regeneration of the sacral. It's a huge creative force.

And I can feel as my focus is on the heart, my hands become activated. There's a tingling in the palms, warmth in the palms. The hands are connected to the heart.

Now, holding the energy at that point, at the center of the chest. Hold the intention of unconditional loving.

Hold the intention of kindness, gentleness, loving oneself and the world, and staying centered in the heart. Open up that loving vibration to surround your body.

You're generating a loving energy field. An aura of presence, of loving energy. Solidify it around your body. Strengthen it. Make sure it permeates the body, that it is powerful.

Take a deep breath into the chest. Allow the energy to expand and strengthen.

Now, increase the flow of energy in the heart.

Take it from the 80% you were giving to 100% by taking a deep breath, strengthening your will and expanding the power in the chest.

How does it feel to increase the energy field?

Now, from that 100% increase, use your inhale. Use your willpower. Let's go to 120. Project the energy into the space around you. Hold the body in that loving energy with the heart at the center.

Use your breathing to support the process. You need deep breaths to draw the energy from the root of the heart.

Let's go to 150%. Open up. Push yourself. Challenge yourself to open the heart further, to increase the flow.

Take one last deep breath. And as you exhale, release the pressure on your will. Gently allow the energy to flow down in the channel.

As you breathe out, relax. Observe the senses. Observe how the condition of your body and the space around you has changed, becomes sensitive to the heart. How does it feel, the emotional landscape?

Now we are slowly coming back, feeling the weight of the body. And let's affirm in the mind:

I stay centered in the source of my being.

I open my heart to unconditional loving of myself and my world.

Let my thoughts, words, actions be inspired from that place of unconditional loving.

Now, feeling the weight of the body coming back, fully notice each of the five senses.

Thank you very much. Coming back all the way. And when you feel ready, with a few gentle blinks, you can open the eyes.

1. What did you observe in the subtle energy space in this meditation?
2. What practice from this meditation was most striking that you want to practice and explore more? 
3. In what way would your life change if your stayed centred in your heart and engaged with the world from there?

Day 10 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

How can we engage with the world and attend to our spiritual process? The secret lies in the heart. When the heart chakra is strong and open we are able to engage with the world in service and love, AND attend to our own spiritual needs. 

This meditation shows a process of how to work with using the heart to balance the entire energy system and engage with the world from a deep centring within. 

Let's come into our meditation. Let me invite you to close your eyes, align your spine. Take a few slow, deep breaths and become more aware.

Observe the different layers of your experience. Notice the condition of the body, the experience in the body.

Notice the vitality. Open up to observe the emotional space. What emotion is dominant in this moment?

Observe the quality of your listening and the connection in the space.

Take a deep breath and observe your mind, the mental space, the many dimensions of your being. And where is it held?

It's held in your consciousness. You are aware of all of these different layers of experience.

Who is experiencing? I am.

I am experiencing.

And try to shift into that sense of "I," sense of identity, and see that you are holding this identity.

The deeper you go into that sense of I, the more you will feel your connection with the source, with that divine power that empowers you, that enables you.

Breathe into that feeling of I and notice what happens.

Let's come into the central energy channel, using each deep breath to guide the flow of energy. As you inhale, seek to guide the flow of energy upwards in the central channel. As you exhale, seek to guide the flow of energy downwards.

As you sustain your focus there, your energy awareness opens up it.

As you breathe out, go all the way down to the root, the base of the energy channel. Gently squeeze the perineum there. As you exhale, keep the perineum gently active. And then inhale, drawing up the energy.

And do this for a few breaths, focusing on the upward flow. But the root chakra must be highly conscious.

What happens as you focus on the root chakra and draw the energy upwards?

Can you feel the energy coming to your heart and gathering there? It naturally wants to flow towards the heart.

Build up the energy there in your chest by drawing from the root of it. And now holding the point to the center of the chest. Breathe it through that point.

You may feel a little tightness or heaviness. That's okay. Explore the expansion of the chest as you breathe.

Just notice how it feels to hold the energy at that point. And now on your next inhale, create a gentle flow towards the brow.

When you inhale, draw the energy up from the heart to the brow. When you exhale, allow the energy to flow down to the heart.

This builds the synergy between the brow and the heart, the mind and the heart.

Now gently bring the mind and the focus back to the heart and open up the energy there. Really seek to expand.

If you're sensitive, you will feel the brow chakra and the root chakra are still active, are still involved in the process.

Now the heart is leading, balancing the upper and lower areas of your being. Open up that heart energy field to surround your entire body, allowing that vibration to permeate the physical body, to permeate every cell.

And use your breathing to create waves of energy from the heart and seek to open up to the deepest energy quality of your heart.

Now gently bring into your mind some of the people from your life, circumstances of your life, friends and family, co workers, different avenues of your life that you explore.

But I want you to stay centered in your heart, making sure that you are holding your being.

You ground yourself in your own being and you gently extend your heart to these persons in your life. These other souls that you share your life with without losing the grounding of your heart. You're gently opening your heart to the world.

The heart allows you to find balance in serving the world and supporting yourself.

But always remember to stay grounded in your heart, in your own being. Don't give away your power to the world.

Engage with the world with compassion, kindness, gentleness, loving energy, but from a place of inner strength. And notice you're holding this in your heart.

Please take a few deep breaths exploring the expansion of the body. Breathing with the entire body.

Nourish your senses as you have learned to do. Energize them.

Breathe into the gut to nourish the nerve plexus, there to support your activity in the world.

And as we come to the end of our meditation, let's affirm strongly in the mind:

I stay centered in the source of my being.

I stay centered in the unconditional loving of my heart,

and I meet my world from that place.

Thank you very much, everyone. Let's take one last deep breath. Pull yourself back fully into the body, feeling the weight of the body, coming back to a fully physical experience, but feeling how the inner space is open and alert.

When you feel ready, with a few gentle blinks, you can open your eyes.

1. What did you observe when you focused on the sense of "I," and used your breath there?
2. What was the experience like trying to draw the energy upwards from the root to the heart? 
3. Describe the experience of staying centred in your heart and meeting your world there. 

Day 9 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

In this session we continue the work with the Heart Chakra learning how to release deep and long held emotional patterns, to embrace a higher consciousness of freedom and unconditional loving in the heart. 

This meditation shows a process of how to work with forgiveness and acceptance to open up the heart. 

Please come into meditation posture. Align your spine. Take a few deep breaths and relax the body.

Join me in the inner space, that togetherness, where we are all supporting each other and where we can all receive support, receive exactly what we need from the divine inner space.

Become skillful in your breathing, controlling the flow of air in and out. And using that to open up your energy awareness.

By focusing on the central energy channel, even just by guiding the flow of energy in the central channel, you are beginning to loosen and release some of the karmic patterns, some of the limiting patterns in your being, just by breathing into the spine.

That's why when you do this practice of energizing the spine, you can feel the growing consciousness, the witnessing opens up. It's because you're letting go of patterns.

So breathe in. Guide the flow of energy up and down with each deep breath. And I encourage you to use the full capacity of your lungs for now. To really oxygenate and nourish the physical body and to nourish the nerve centers, it needs that physical breath.

Even as you work with the energy, relax in the inner space and come into that awareness of the sense of self, that sense of I am, I exist, I am experiencing. That sense of self is supported by the divine. That sense of self connects you to the source.

Trace that sense of self back to its root in your being.

Where does your breath arise? Where do your emotions come from? Where does every thought emanate from that? I sense of self in your being. "I am thinking, I am feeling, I am breathing, in this body." The "I" is the origin of. Observe that.

Now let's strengthen the gut by doing some abdominal breathing. Bringing strength into your experience, bringing willpower. 

And on the inhale, draw the energy up to the heart. Breathe into the chest. Feel the expansion of the ribcage, the floating of the clavicles, the opening up of the shoulders.

And focus on that point at the center of the chest, opening your awareness of the emotional space, the emotional landscape of your being.

And you can ask gently, using the mind: "how do I feel? What emotions am I carrying in my being, in my heart?"

Just open up, but hold strong that sense of witnessing observation. You are not so involved, you're just noticing what is there. And gently allow whatever limiting patterns of the heart need to be resolved. Allow it to surface without fear.

Become open to dealing with the emotional patterns. Not hiding, not suppressing, not avoiding. I want to feel what is in my heart.

Breathe as you focus there and come into a space of acceptance, forgiveness, I accept totally this experience, this emotion, this event in my life.

It has brought me growth, and now it will bring me freedom.

When I forgive, when I let go, open up to the posture of forgiveness, knowing that you are forgiving the ignorance, the darkness that we all fall into. Sometimes

I forgive myself and I forgive the other for our ignorance.

May we learn to live in the light. May we both become wiser.

May we discover the truth of our being and breathe through the point of the heart.

Stay with that strong desire to forgive, to come into deep acceptance.

Breathe into the heart, and if you find there is some resistance in the mind, the thinking enters. It's okay. When you breathe in, draw the energy up to the brow.

When you breathe out, release the flow of energy back to your heart, creating balance between mind and heart, and you're holding the intent. I forgive to be free, to release the karma of the situation from me and the other, develop that synergy, that harmony between mind and heart.

Hold them both in that posture of acceptance and forgiveness. I can feel in this space there is room to take another step.

Join me at the brow. On the inhale, lift the energy of the heart to the brow.

You're holding your heart in your mind and open up that mental space.

Come into deep posture of forgiveness: I can forgive all ignorance, knowing that it's a part of the learning process. I can forgive all darkness, knowing it's part of the journey to the light.

I forgive unconditionally without fear, knowing that all is divine, all is perfect, and all will be free.

I forgive the darkness and the shadows in all its form, in myself, in others, in the world. I forgive unconditionally that I may be free to love unconditionally without reservation.

And as you breathe out, allow the flow of energy down the channel, all the way down to the root, and hold your entire being in that posture of acceptance, in that posture of forgiveness, affirm that's the way you want to be, that's the way you want to live.

Rest in that inner posture.

Let's take a deep breath all the way in, all the way out, and begin using whole body breathing the ground fully in every cell of the body.

Open up to your senses. Open up your awareness to the world.

And as we come to the end of our meditation, let's affirm. In the mind, I stay centered in the source of my being, engaging with the world, in my higher consciousness of forgiveness and unconditional compassion.

That's what I choose for myself and for others.

Now pull yourself fully alert into the body, feeling the weight of the body, noticing the condition of the body and how it has changed from your meditation.

When the moment is right for you, with a few gentle blinks, you can open your eyes. Thank you very much.

1. Are you conscious of the emotional patterns that limit you? Attempt to describe some of these in a neutral way for your own self awareness. 

2. Write out and affirm what you want: to be free of the patterns, to forgive yourself and others, to accept and experience more loving within yourself. 

3. After meditation write about the process of the meditation and how you feel. 

Day 8 for the 21-Day Dhyana Sadhana, 21-Day Meditation Practice daily online retreat as we approach Divali 2024. 

In this session we begin the work with the Heart Chakra, the heart space and our emotional nature. 

This meditation shows a process of how to engage with the heart from a place of no expectation, non-judgement, letting go of the past patterns and embracing freshness and openness in the heart. 

So let's get ready for meditation now.

Thank you very much. Please join me in the inner space, taking a few deep breaths and centering yourself from a deep place of self observation, self awareness.

And as we engage in our meditation today, let's remember I am held in a divine place. I am held in a place supported by the source. I am not doing this alone. That spiritual power within me is with me.

As I open up to deeper experiences, as I open up to self transformation, I have support from the deeper part of myself and center in that place of support.

Breathe into there. Breathe into that feeling, into that awareness.

Let's focus at the point between the eyebrows. Breathe through that point to stabilize the mind, to clear the mind.

I've taught you how to energize the brain using your breathing. Use this

just to bring the thinking into a place of stability, to create deeper focus.

Breathe out the distractions, clearing the mental space. Breathe in to the peacefulness, the spaciousness, the boundlessness of your mind.

Don't be scared to open up the mind.

Embrace the possibilities of an open mind.

Now take a deep breath in. And as you breathe out, move the energy down, all the way down the body, to the root, to the base. And use your exhale to move the energy down. And gently squeeze the perineum. Activate the root to increase stability.

Do this for a few breaths, squeezing the root.

You're creating grounding, and you're anchoring the potential and possibilities of your mind in the physical, all the way through the energy axis.

Then you notice that brow connection to the root. Try to hold them both together. That gives a strong awareness of the central energy channel, that axis, and you can use your breathing along that channel.

On the inhale, observe the flow of energy upwards. On the exhale, observe the flow of energy downwards and concentrate your power into the central channel. Some masters of yoga call this magnetizing the spine.

As you stay with your focus on the central channel, your energy awareness opens up and you might begin feeling the different chakra points.

You might also notice that deepening observation coming into the posture of the witness.

Stay anchored to your breathing. It will help you to go deeper and seek to open up the observation, the witnessing. I am open to seeing more, to experiencing more within my being.

To open up that space of witnessing and seeing. We need to let go of the judgments.

We need to let go of the expectations, the likes and dislikes of the ego. Just want to see as clearly as we can, the most neutral space that we can and stay fully in the present. Our healing and transformation is not coming in the future. Don't look for it there.

It's coming now with this breath, with this moment. So you have to embrace it totally in the moment.

And the past cannot limit you or hold you. The past can inform you.

But drop all the patterns of the past, be free of it. Choose differently in this moment and choose my freedom beyond any past circumstances.

And embrace totally the present.

Bring your focus to that point at the center of the chest, or in the middle of the back, between the shoulder blades. Wherever you feel drawn to, breathe into the chest and use a few breaths. Really exploring the capacity of the lungs and energizing the nerve plexus.

That will give you more power to explore the heart space and bring the mind. Bring the attention from the brow down to rest in your heart. Giving permission to the heart to open, giving yourself permission to observe. What am I holding in my heart?

Let me observe that space.

Breathe into the chest. Breathe through that point and ascent of the chest.

You might feel some heaviness, perhaps some tension, or even some pain there. That's okay. Don't judge.

Observe. Breathe through the point. As you hold your awareness there.

As you breathe out, be willing to let go. Be willing to clear the space. As you breathe in, feel the depth, feel the vibrations of your heart.

When you breathe out, give yourself permission to let go of the old emotions, the old emotional patterns, all the emotions that do not serve you.

And as you breathe in, embrace the freshness of your heart, newness, the excitement of exploration and opening up the heart to higher possibilities.

That's what you truly want, isn't it? The freedom of the heart.

Stay with it. Stay with the breathing.

It doesn't have to unburden totally right away, but just look for a small measure of expansion, a small measure of new consciousness that shows you are going in the right direction.

If you begin feeling uncertain about the emotions there, take your awareness to your gut. Use two or three deep abdominal breaths to strengthen your resolve, to give yourself the courage and the willpower to work through the emotion.

You have the strength. Tap into it there, and when you feel stronger, come back into the heart.

How does it feel to center yourself in the heart? Notice the impact on your body and on your mind.

As you open the heart and you become more aware there, there's a deeper intelligence that surfaces. The soul can express its intelligence through your heart as a soul desire.

Observe what desire you hold deep in your heart space. What does your soul really want? And gently affirm it. Acknowledge it without judgment, without fear.


Let's take a deep breath. All the way in, all the way out. Ground yourself with the root chakra.

Open up your awareness to your entire body and use the whole body breathing, feeling the expansion of the body with each breath and allowing the energy to circulate freely through the entire body.

Take the time to energize your senses just by noticing and being attentive to each of the senses.

Now pull yourself all the way back into the body, feeling the weight of the body and mentally preparing for the activities of your day.

And as we come to the end of our meditation, let's affirm in the mind:

I stay centered in the source of my being.

I engage with my world with an open heart as I become the master of my emotions.

Thank you very much. Coming all the way back, fully alert and ready. And when the moment is right, gently opening the eyes.

1. What did I observe in meditation? What did I observe in the body? Heart? Mind? Energy?
2. What was striking in the meditation experience that I want to remember? 
3. What was challenging for me today? What can I do to work with that challenge? 

Feel free to ask your questions and post your reflection in the comments if you wish for some feedback.