Hari Om
~~~~~
Namaste
To suggest 'finding turya' infers it has been lost. This is not the case. Perhaps better word is to become aware of, or discover turya¹.
We have talked much about turya on HDF. I have listed some of the HDF posts below in the footnotes.
This turya is most delicate…. We drive past it daily and miss it. Where do we 'drive' past this? During the gaps, or sandhi some write saṃdhi संधि, the junction point or transition from one to the other.
For this post, it is the transition from waking consciousness to dream, or from dream to sleep, and or from sleep to waking. This gap or sandhi is a place where one travels each day but goes right by it, unnoticed. The same way you may drive in your town over-and-over again then one day you say, ' I never noticed that store there'. A familiar route of travel , yet missing something that is there again and again.
One can experience this gap, this saṃdhi via meditation techniques, albeit there are other methods also. I can mention them if there is interest yet for this post I thought of meditation as the area of consideration.
Though meditation, one settles down the mind… The notion is to experience sūkṣma gati. What is that ? Refined, subtle, awareness.
It is the subtle march or progression of awareness to finer and finer levels of being, or consciousness. As this march continues the body-system settles down, there is less and less heavy breathing. As the breath settles, so does the mind, as mind is yoked to the breath.
This settling of breath brings calmness not only to the body but to the mind. As if a pot of boiling water has its fire removed from it ,it begins to settle down, the bubbles are less and less, and the water in the pot calms down, like that, the mind calms as prāṇa becomes more refined.
What are we doing? We are setting up the conditions for this sandhi to be experienced. Note, not created, as it exists there. All we need to do it create this restfully alert condition for sandhi to be experienced.
Note the notion of restful alertness. The body is not asleep, but in a rested condition, and the mind is more refined, calm yet alert, not like sleep. A calm and peaceful condition.
I have been looking for another term for this state of awareness. I looked to Svami Laksmanjoo for assistance. He calls this unfoldment of sūkṣma gati, anusandhāna, ever-refreshed awareness.
If we look at the word anu+sandha+āna we have anu or orderly , methodically , one after another , repeatedly; sandhi we discussed; and āna is exhaling the breath through the nose or inhalation ~ breath inspired , breathing. This produces continually refreshed awareness.
Well how does one pursue this continually-refreshed awareness? Vijῆāna Bhairava tantra gives us the methods. This HDF set of posts outlines a few dharana ( a practice, contemplation, meditations) for one to consider: http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2323
Again utilizing the breath is simple and one gains results after a very short period. This is the method of prāṇāyām and is outlined in kārikā (sloka or sutra) 24 of Vijῆāna Bhairava tantra.
It is through this prāṇāyām method the breath becomes calm, some call this centering the breath and the mind. This centering, madya or standing between two, a neutral position, is called madhyamaṃ prāṇam - this is how Svami Laksmanjoo calls it. So as on practices, madhyamaṃ prāṇam becomes established and the ability to experience this sandhi unfolds. It is here where turya resides.
If you maintain your awareness at that point which is found between waking and sleeping, you will be focused on that supreme felicity which is the supreme bliss of God Consciousness ...Ślokāṣṭaka, translation by svami Laksmanjoo
pranams
Words Used and Reference HDF Posts
- turya तुर्य some write turiya तुरीय - the 4th.
- sūkṣma gati : sūkṣma सूक्ष्म acute , subtle , keen + gati गति manner or power of going, procession , march , passage , procedure , progress , movement
- Madhya मध्य - standing between two , impartial , neutral; being of a middle kind or size or quality
- anu+sandha+āna : anu अनु - each by each , orderly , methodically , one after another , repeatedly; saṃdhi संधि - is the junction point, transition from one to the other; āna आन - exhaling the breath through the nose.
- HDF posts on turya subject matter
The import of turya - http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1822
The summary of the import of turya - http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2050
Consciousness - http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1773
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