THE SUBTLE BODY

The Subtle body.

Sometimes in meditation and in life generally we feel rushed. There is a sense of anxiety, we just cannot settle properly. This is not actually all your fault! It’s the modern world we live in. We live in a world of speed, have it now, do it now, buy it now.

So we live in a consumer world of debt and anxiety.

Unfortunately this all has an effect on our subtle body. This consists of subtle channels, winds and energies. To keep this simple, the subtle body holds the residue of our feelings. This can be experienced as tension in the body, head, throat, heart or gut. If this goes on too long we get a dis-order, the wind could be in the wrong place. This could lead to a dis-ease.

What happens is, when meeting a situation or person, we might feel anxious, and the downward wind normally seated four finger widths below the navel, rises. And we get a bit,“hot under the collar!” There will be a tension in the body, the heart may pump faster. Watching a film or TV can have the same effect!

So this wind has to be brought down, by an extremely simple and gentle exercise.

One more point, traumas in childhood, can leave a effect on the subtle body, which contribute to our subtle fears later in life. This could also have a effect of our immune system, and our mental states.

The exercise:

Simply scan the body for any tensions, as you do so take a gentle breath, and mentally take this breath down to below the navel. Hold it there for a few seconds, and gentle release…leaving a portion of that breathe say10% at the navel. It’s that simple! No straining whatsoever.

It really does ground the mind and body. Try it for 10 minutes a day, and in any situation. I did this for six months doing 108 breaths per session…my ‘lung’ (pronounced Loong) was really up! My wife said, I was different person.

This is why the teachings have to be tailored to suit the modern world. In the old world they were more relaxed, maybe a little more sleepy. In the modern world we are very alert and very conscious. If one were to give eastern methods to a modern westerner, they’d go up the wall!

So we need to relax..and control our emotions…and be wise.

All the best,

Tony