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The method of initiation into the spiritual life
has been stated in Sri Ramchandra's Rajayoga to
be transmission of the spiritual energy in order
to (1) give impetus to the seeking aspiration of
the abhyasi and (2) to bring about a change in
the very nature of the mind and its
modifications. The ordinary concept of
mind-control almost tries to put an end to the
modifications, and this is done by damming its
movements by will-force, or by abolishing it by
force of the will, so as to arrive at a blank
mental state. Both these are difficult because
both would entail the abolition of the mind
itself, which lives only by its modifications.
An alternative suggestion has been proposed, to
substitute good or desirable thoughts in the
place of evil thoughts, or cultivate assiduously
the contrary-point of view (prati-paksa bhavanam).
Even this is shown only to create a tension of
the mind; a mind divided against itself, and
there takes place an artificial dialectic.
More useful, perhaps, is the method by which one
gels beyond the mind itself to a condition where
the dialectic will not create a continuous
tension. In fact, in our modern terminology, the
yoga of mind-control cittavrtti-nirodha, is a
cold-war condition, a tension of the opposites
waiting for the tilting on one side or the
other. But if awareness is to be defined only as
the awareness of tension, then this is a
condition, which has to be transcended. One aims
at inner peace, and these methods do not help us
at all. But nirodha after all may not mean
checking the mental modifications but reversing
the process-instead of going outward, it is
helped to go inward and transcended its own
duality and dialectic. This cannot be done by
ones own efforts except under great crises or
shocks. It can be done with the help of the
transmission that reverses the movements of the
mind. The force or current of superconsciousness
introduced into the heart, which is the seat of
citta, reverses the trend of movement of the
citta towards the objects and imaginations of
the universe around. In fact the citta or
particularised manas moves in the orbit of
objects and sensory data, and the emotional
needs of the body and physiological needs too.
Thus there is hardly any moment when the mind,
as citta, is not in modification, taking the
shape of the objects and things it desires. The
transmission of the Guru at the heart reverses
this outward movement and we find that,
automatically, these modifications become more
and more infrequent Instead of a sense agitation
and activity there results calmness and
non-activity, and even contemplation or role of
passive witness ceases after a while. Peace is
the result. Mental modifications get removed and
mind becomes still because, it has being
reversed or taken back to its original Condition
from which it took rise.
Transmission is felt as a series of
vibrations-one's entire rhythm gets modified.
One seems to be tuned, to something higher and
more composing and harmonious. A new set of
vibrations seem to be set up in the body which
makes one feel happy, blissful and peaceful.
The ancients seem to have known this. But, as
in many other similar matters, the change from
one rhythm (chandas) to another sort of rhythm
(chandas) has been forgotten. It is however
mentioned in the Vedas. Transmission from
different levels of the Guru are done in order
.to change the level of the abhyasis
consciousness: they are also done in respect of
different points (chakras) so as to bring about
harmonious and natural ascent to higher levels.
Thus one finds a new rhythm oneself after
transmission, even from the very first day of
admission into the samstha (organisation of the
Mission).
This is to show that even thought is in the
form of vibrations, and can be shown to be of
this nature. Consciousness, too, is in the form
of subtle vibrations. This is an ancient
discovery of the tantrik and Vedic seers. This
can be fully seen in the works on Spanda
(Spandakarika). This is also seen in the
Ahir-budhnya samhita. It is true that this fact
is of capital importance in the Modification of
the citta, in fact, of any category, since
according to the Sri Ramchandra's Rajayoga the
whole creation has proceeded out of' the first
Impulse (Ksobha) which is considered to be of
the nature of the First Mind or thought. This
theory of course has to be accepted as a
hypothesis, or rather as working system.!(The
yoga system as such holds that prakrti or nature
is that which evolves from its subtlest
undifferentiated condition to its grossest
Physical and sensory condition. Nature is said
to be an independent entity and distinguished
from Purusa or consciousness-entity or soul.
Further according to it, Nature comprises the
three gunas (qualities) sattva, rajas and tamas.
The aim of Yoga is to increase the sattva and
diminish the other two. The diminishing, of
tamas and rajas is what is sought to be attained
through control of mental modifications. In Sri
Ramchandra's Rajayoga the concept of Nature is
accepted as the First Mind emerging from Kshobha
some how from the Zero, and it is this First
mind which has to be brought down to do the job
of return to it from the grossest physical, with
which it is, in a basic sense, one. The nature
of the soul is that it is one with the Zero, and
to that it returns helped by the First Mind's
force. Its individuality or manyness remains
till its absorption in the Zero, which happens
only when Kshobha is itself withdrawn. The rings
are formed by the First Mind around these souls
differentiate them from each other and with
independent circles or rings determined by each
in itself. This may be called the egoity, which
is earlier than the other formations called
buddhi (mind) and its other grosser forms, manas
and citta. In fact the use of buddhi and manas
interchangeably has lead to many serious
misunderstandings in Indian psychology)
Transmission has been tried by many yogis.
Some have given samadhi conditions. Some have
produced awakening of the Kundalini sakti. These
have helped these transmitters ton be considered
as being of the highest order of Realized souls.
But the truth was discovered by Sri Ramchandra
when he found that the real transmission-which
is a continuing act of transformation of the
rhythm of being from the gross to the subtlest -
is of a different order. The transmission must
be of the Highest and from the Highest, or the
Ultimate. Other kinds of transmission which
people do get, and perhaps feel, lead up to a
particular point, and then they do not lead one
further. The point that one has arrived at
becomes, for them, the Ultimate, and one is even
blinded in respect of the states above it.
Samadhi becomes an end in itself, even as the
awakening of the Kundalini becomes an end in
itself. Similarly, the state of Vacuity of the
mental processes becomes a goal, and one ceases
to move forward.
It is also claimed that transmission can be
likened to the descent of the Grace of God or
the Supermind. Surely it looks very much like a
descent into the heart, but the transmission is
a deliberate conscious force offering of the
Prana (Pranahuti) into the heart for uplifting
the soul to the highest condition possible to
the soul. There are some who hold that
transmission can be likened to the solar force
which makes one go to the solar orb (Subodh sect
of Indonesia), but the level of the
consciousness to which this transmission leads
is very much lower than the Ultimate, though it
may appear to have cosmic awareness.
As it was well understood, each level has its
own happiness and the Ultimate happiness is
beyond all these. The science of transmission of
the spiritual consciousness has been known only
to adepts, and has been kept a secret, which
should not be divulged to any one who is not fit
for transmitting. The medium of transmission has
to be prepared carefully.
Sri Ram Chandra puts it clearly that one who
has not crossed or ascended to region far beyond
the level of the physical, psychically cannot be
entrusted with this task. Only those who have
reached a very high psychic level of subtlety,
and have been prepared for it, could transmit
that highest consciousness.
Usually the disciplines (tapasya) undertaken
by saints are for the Sake of reaching the level
of spiritual awareness-an awareness of the
astral condition of the individuals one comes
across and who seek transmission. Virtues such
as satya, ahimsa, aparigraha, asteya,
brahmacarya, sauca, dana, daya etc. And also
austerities such as observing vows and fasting,
reveals the training that is being given to the
sense and motor organs, and the mind itself, in
order to prepare one for the receipt of Divine
Grace or power.
In Sri Ramchandra's Rajayoga the entire
purification of the human organism, both in its
physical and its astral forms, is completed by
the transmission itself. The transmission of the
superconsciousness starts the whole process, and
prepares the individual for his becoming a
medium of that conscious-force.
The process of transformation is achieved by
bringing the grosser under the control and
rhythm of the higher and higher levels, but the
whole process seems to be done by the Highest
consciousness itself, and not by any subordinate
or penultimate consciousness, as is usually
supposed in the hierarchy of levels of
consciousness. In any case it is the highest
consciousness that works through the different
centres of the lower levels so as to bring about
the transformation. In transmission, the
Master's superconsciousness-force directed from
the centre, or the central region, is introduced
at the heart of the abhyasi or associate. This
makes the heart yearn towards its own central
region through all this is felt as peace,
peacefulness, santi, or bliss. The introduction
of the superconsciousness is a level for the
personal ascent, and makes for upward movement,
which takes place in the form of inverse
circular movement at the cakras or points. All
this is not, of course, fully felt at the
beginning, but it is however responded through
delight and seeking after the superconsciousness
which is high above, within itself.
It is also true that the Master's
superconsciousness not only is introduced at the
heart, but may be introduced at several other
points or cakras within the body, physical or
astral, and at each one of the centres there
occurs illuminations and peace of that centre.
As was remarked by one of our abhyasis, there is
no doubt that some of these feelings at the
heart are, physiologically considered,
reflexive, and not basically there. If we
consider the whole organism as being connected
in a harmonic way, it would follow that at each
point there is both the direct impulse-giving
experience and the reflexive experience or
change due to some other organ (head for
example) causing feelings at the heart. It is
also seen sometimes that transmission reveals
simultaneous experience at several points, both
in the pinda and the brahmanda.
All these only show that in Sri Ramchandra's
Rajayoga every care is being taken by the Master
to keep the physical body and heart in good,
sensitive, condition capable of ultimately
hearing and working for the Ultimate Consciences
itself. This is a unique phenomenon in the
history of Yoga.
The nature of manas has been understood in
the different abhyasas in different ways. For
example, has been held to be an organ of
synthesis or samkalpa of the sense and motor
sensations. It has been, in more general sense,
identified with the first impulse of the
Supreme, and all the degradations or grossening
conditions have been called manas. Thus buddhi
ahamkara and manas have all been said to denote
the separate functions of the original manas. In
fact another term also has been introduced
called citta, which may be an omnibus term
comprising all the functions. But the aim of
Yoga is said to be the nirodha, or control, of
the mental modifications-citta-vrtti-nirodha.
The Gita has indeed shown how very difficult it
is to control this citta. In fact the entire
life of sadhana was aimed at this controlling of
the mind and arriving at the silent condition.
The samadhi was said to be one such condition.
The state of amanaska is the greatest
achievement in Yoga. Manas being controlled,
stilled, or transcended, one is free from the
world of samsara or bondage, and free from the
struggle for freedom.
In Sri Ramchandra's Rajayoga the stilling of
the manas is achieved directly by the
introduction of the Prana of the Centre itself
by the Master. This introduction at the heart of
the abhyasi immediately brings about the calming
of the mind in its grossest form, and slowly
ascending it would bring about the state of
amanaska without passing through the samadhi of
the usual description that leads to the
condition of suspension of all normal
activities. This means that the psychic being,
when supported by the Master's transmission or
prana, does not need the manas and its
formations for supporting the gross body at all.
Usually the whole organism is considered to be a
product of the mind but this reveals that it is
not so. The Supracosmic Mind or Centre directly
runs the entire organism and it lives and moves
by that power of the Centre. One becomes
mindless at the very beginning.
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