I’ve had blissful fear, and certainly ecstatic rage. If you don’t think rage and ecstasy can mix, just watch Martin Luther King Jr.'s “I have a dream” speech. That’s a paradox right there. He called his movement of non-violent resistance “a marvelous new militancy”. Sometimes resistance is needed.
“Resist nothing” is not a working strategy. Sometimes we need to resist, and sometimes not. Same with letting go. “Let go of everything” is not realistic. Sometimes we need to hold onto things in life. It just depends on the scenario. But completely passive non-resistance is a recipe for apathy, atrophy, and nihilism. 
That’s why the optimal paradox is called active surrender in AYP. Hold on and let go. Resist and relax.
You can infuse your fear and anger with bliss. It’s a good concoction. A Molotov bliss cocktail.
Hi Anthem,
When I said that it was “hidden in plain sight”, that was a bit tongue-in-cheek. It is there from lesson 35 onwards, which is pretty early in the lessons, and then comes up regularly again throughout the lessons. In fact it is there from the beginning, in lessons 10 and 11, where Yogani talks about the aim of yoga being a divine union between our inner nature and our outer nature.
But I would agree that in many of the earlier lessons, the focus is on the cultivation of ecstasy and bliss, with the higher stages of the path only being mentioned occasionally. This is for a reason. When people begin spiritual practices, many would not understand the meaning of things like “unity” or “stillness in action”, or “divine love”, let alone be able to cultivate them. So we begin by cultivating ecstasy through pranayama and bliss through meditation, things that are understandable.
Then when we engage in practices, we begin to actually experience them for ourselves and we know what they are through that direct experience. The higher stages of the path, come about automatically through the merging of ecstasy and bliss. So there is actually little need to discuss the higher stages of the path, as they are a natural outcome of the initial stages. Only a few pointers here and there are necessary. In fact, in the later lessons, there are more than just a few pointers towards the higher stages. It is all described in great detail.
As Bodhi has pointed out, bliss and ecstasy are not the opposites of lower emotional states such as anger and fear. Ecstasy arises in the body as the process of purification of the energy channels advances, but it does not preclude the arising of any emotion. So ecstasy can be experienced at the same time as any possible emotion is being experienced. That may sound strange, but it is the way it is.
The same thing happens with bliss. Bliss is what arises when we begin to no longer identify with the ups and downs of the mind such as happiness and sorrow. That does not mean that thoughts no longer exist or emotions no longer exist for someone who is experiencing bliss. It means that we are no longer caught up in the process of identification with the phenomenal world. So bliss can also be experienced, along with any possible emotion, or any possible thought. We can experience fear, or pain, or anger and still be fundamentally established in a place of bliss. We are free to feel whatever we feel, but freedom becomes our fundamental nature. And the direct experience of freedom, is blissful.
So the cultivation of ecstatic bliss, through the practice of yoga, is not a running away from something, or an attempt to escape from, or get rid of some experience. It is a movement beyond all experiences, which is the beginning of the divine life.
In AYP practice, there isn’t a point where we abandon practices all together. If we do this, then we will tend to eventually stagnate and will no longer make any progress on the path. To progress further, we would then need to take up practices again, but by that point, a lot of time could have been wasted.
There is a kind of flywheel effect, where past practices, if done for a long time, will build up a momentum, and can carry us forwards for a while, even if we stop all spiritual practices. When this flywheel effect is operating, and if we have developed a reasonable degree of witness already, we can have the feeling that all we need to do is to remain present, or to be present with no resistance to what is arising, and so on, maintaining a kind of passive awareness, or mindfullness, or process of self-inquiry such as non-resistance, throughout the day. But even this effect will only last for a while, and eventually will lose it’s momentum.
It is basically getting the cart in front of the horse. It is spiritual practices, such as pranayama and meditation, which lead us to be able to engage in self-inquiry, and not the other way round. In other words, it is not only being here and now that is the by-product of non-resistance, but non-resistance is the by product of the direct cultivation of inner silence (samadhi). And it is the merging of that inner silence with ecstasy, which leads to divine love, unity and the fruits of the practice of yoga.
Rather than going through the process of flip-flopping, between spending years engaging in sitting practices followed by years engaging only in self-inquiry, which can become a cycle which spans decades, it is far better to maintain a constant practice, which includes regular daily sitting practices (and asana if desired), with self-inquiry going on at times during the day.
This will lead to far more rapid progress on the path over the long term.
Christi
The flywheel effect! Yes. 
All good Christi, we see some things differently. I see bliss and ecstasy as energy experiences on the “positive” spectrum of duality. I used anger and fear, not so much as being specific opposites but to give examples of the so called “negative” spectrum. Yes I agree things can arise concurrently. I see intense bliss being more aligned with newly found freedom and purification but that it evolves over time into a gentle general contentedness.
Is this your personal experience Christi or are you speaking from general theory?
Maybe it works for you like this Christi and that’s great. I’m not arguing for any particular recipe in case you are getting that impression. With non-resistance, it is a natural process, as resistance enters awareness, it let’s go on its own accord. I understand it’s not for everyone, though I think most can benefit from the message to accept what already is happening since resistance only makes things harder. To each their own on their chosen path, best of luck to you.
Hi Anthem,
In terms of noticing the flywheel effect, this is my own experience. Over the years I have watched others go through the cycle of switching between sitting practices and using self-inquiry as a stand alone practice.
Certainly accepting things the way they are, is a valid spiritual practice in it’s own right and a natural evolution of our being, as things progress on the path, especially once we reach the stage of dispassion. What I am saying is that if someone decides to make it their only practice, then it could be a slow evolution from there on, until they decide to take up pranayama and meditation again.
And yes, bliss is an ever evolving experience of reality rather than a static state. It evolves in intensity, but also changes in form, especially once divine love and unity come into play. One day we will have more words to describe these things, than we do now, as they become more a part of our common experience. So one day we will have words for things like “the bliss of freedom”, or “the bliss of unity”, or the “bliss of divine love”. There is almost always an initial and powerful sense of blissful rapture, that arises with the first glimpses of freedom, as you mention. But for this initial rapture to deepen into the higher forms of ananda, requires ongoing practices of a more serious nature than passive awareness or acceptance of things as they are. Even beyond the initial experiences of bliss that arise once we begin to taste freedom, there are deep-rooted mental formations which have to be purified, before the higher stages of the path can be reached. It is pranayama, meditation and samyama which clear out these deep-rooted mental formations (samskaras).
Everyone has to choose their own path of course and there is no “right way” for everyone. I can only let you know what my own experience has been.
Christi
Ahhh…yes! Bliss of divine love. 
It never stops- it’s soft but powerful.
Accepting what is scrumptious when bathing in the bliss of divine love. There is always room for more no matter how evolved a being may be.
I don’t see the world in quite the concrete way you are describing Christi. With beliefs in general, you tend to get what you are looking for. That’s totally fine, and you are of course entitled to them, but I would be cautious personally about applying them to others. It is a more fluid moving dynamic from my perspective and the rules that apply for some, don’t apply to all and at different stages on the path, different things are needed. There is a time where the approach of defined repeated practices can work and be extremely effective, the power of consistency can be enormous. There is also a time when that form can become counter productive and in fact slow progress or cause tremendous suffering. Anyone who has experienced overload can attest to that.
With regards to progress slowing with the ending of formal sitting practices, have you ever done this personally or are you going with what you think you see in others? When you are viewing others through the lens of belief, it can certainly impact observations, just ask any scientist.
I personally haven’t actively engaged in self inquiry for a few years now or done formal sitting practices in more and the result has been the opposite of what you describe. There is also a difference between a defined practice and what occurs naturally for someone in a given situation. Life will use whatever tool necessary for us to increase our awareness from my experience and lead us to what is needed when it is needed. This is not an approach for everyone had may not work well for anyone else, however, my experience has been that the relationship with life has intensified, there is no longer any ambiguity with that, so don’t really relate to what you are describing.
I see the world more in terms of what we imagine it to be. Our beliefs can hold structures in place, but as they dissolve, so do our limitations.
Hi Anthem,
Self pacing with practices should always be applied when necessary. That goes for everyone at every stage of the path. But that does not mean that we can simply drop practices when we feel like it, and expect to make the same progress as we were doing before.
In terms of understanding the process of human spiritual awakening, we can observe many people, over time, and build up a picture of how things work. As Yogani says, we all have the same subtle neurobiology. So in terms of science, we can observe how cause and effect work over time in relation to spiritual practices. So it becomes less about belief and more about observation.
When I use the term “self-inquiry”, I am using it in the broadest sense. So it would include practices such as the one you are describing, of accepting everything that arises without resistance. It is similar to another form of self inquiry, which is the practice of seeing everything as the divine. Both will lead to knowledge of the Self, if the practices are rooted in inner silence.
If what you are doing is working for you at the moment, then that is great. If you find at some point that it is not working as well as you would like, then it could be time to take up formal sitting practices again. Only you will know. And if that time comes, the practices will be there. It’s always your call. 
Christi
Hi Anthem,
I have a weird off topic view point. It’s about yogani’s post to you. He’s started using the word service in posts to you. I don’t know what that word means to you. ( My word is relax. Lol)
Hi lalow,
I think he means service, as in service to others, being helpful or having the innate desire to help others. Best to ask him directly though.
All the best!