Samyama feels very powerful to me. I would say that I have enough inner silence and stillness to practice it and benefit from it. That said, there are some subtleties of the practice that I would appreciate clarifying.
As I understand it, the sutra is gently introduced with a light intention and then released into silence. I let go of analyzing or trying to understand the meaning of the word. However, thoughts still arise on their own, such as “I just thought of the word love” or anticipatory thoughts about the next sutra.
My sense is that this is not a problem, since I am not attaching to these thoughts. In fact, resisting them would likely create more disturbance. Still, I wonder what the ideal approach is. Is samyama practiced in a completely silent mind into which the sutra is released, or is some natural movement of the mind acceptable as long as there is no attachment?
Interestingly, even though English is not my native language, I find that the sutras seem to work better in English than in my own language.
In Samyama practice it is only a prerequisite to have some inner silence.
The important thing is that samyama helps us to get into the habit of releasing thoughts into silence. This means that we can experience more inner silence during the day.
I wouldn’t worry too much about the extra thought forms , with regular practice your ability to abide in inner silence will expand in time. It’s good that you are doing samyama, even if it just helps set a habit of releasing thoughts into stillness.
As you have noticed, samyama is a very powerful practice. For me it is the thing that usuallly gets dropped for a while when I need to self pace because of overload symptoms.
To me it sounds like you’re doing Samyama correctly, and yes, you can have thoughts during Samyama. From lesson 150:
Once we have some inner silence, even just a little, we have the opportunity to begin to operate from that level of infinite potential in us. [Yogani]
I also took the original English versions of the sutras, even though English is not my native language (but I got used to thinking in English due to a scientific profession I had). And now, in retrospect, I believe it was a good choice not to translate the sutras to my mother tongue. Usually a single word in English translates into multiple words in another language that often have slightly different connotations, and it wouldn’t have been obvious in some cases which of those alternatives would have been picked by Yogani. Now, I got a better sense of what these sutras mean to me and so I’m more confident in translating them, but I don’t think it would help the efficiency of my Samyama practice to switch now.
Thanks for your replies!
Another thing I’d like to ask from those who have more experience with samyama is that do you experience the sutra fading gradually into silence or is it more like an instant disappearence?
Feels like this practice has many subtleties which are difficult to even translate to language as it’s so abstract. When I let go of the sutra, my experience is that it usually fades rather than disappears abruptly, leaving behind an energetic sensation or tension that gradually dissipates, after which silence takes over. The silence is evident although there might be those subtle thoughts flying by, which I mentioned in my first post.
@TensorTympani
Yes I agree about what you’re saying about the english versions. Most of my spiritual vocabulary is in english because most of the material I’ve studied over the years is in that language. Also not much of the terminology has been even translated to my language, or the meaning shifts subtly if so. An example being the word “Radiance”. There are words for it in my language, but none seem to capture the feel of the original english word.
I’d like to add that I’m not a beginner when it comes to spiritual practices and meditation. Earlier on, I practiced Spinal Breathing quite extensively and also meditated using a technique similar to Deep Meditation. At the same time, it’s true that I tend to get overly enthusiastic about new techniques and sometimes do too much too soon. That said, I would say I know my own system well enough to recognize the early signs of overload when they arise.
I do appreciate your advice, and I’ll take a more measured approach with this. Even so, I remain interested in hearing about others’ experiences with samyama, even if I’m not actively engaging in it right now.
I generally experience the sutra as fading but I have found that if I retain sharp focus and release it instantaneously without being dragged into fading with it, the effect is more powerful.
I too experience sutras as a fading into the ether, folllowed by deep silence. Samyama makes surrender a feeling in this yogi, which too, like a sutra, is observed and surrendered, akin to a prayer to a higher power or a better self.
