1. Master what is the
best time for cleaning?
The appropriate time is when the day's work is
over.
2. What is the aim of
cleaning and what do you do in this process?
It will help you in purging your mind
and will make you receptive of the efficacious
influence of our Great Master. In the evening
again sit in the same posture (as for meditation),
at least for half an hour and think that the complexities
the network of your previous thoughts and grossness
or solidity in your constitution are all melting
away or evaporating in the form of smoke, from
your back.
3. What is special about
the cleaning?
Spiritual training starts with inner cleaning
or the purification of "Chakras" which
is the most essential factor in spiritual advancement.
Thus the right type of training in spirituality
begins with the inner cleaning which if neglected
will lead to abuse of power acquired through yogic
means. While practicing these methods one should
not force his mind too much but only sit in a
natural way.
4. During cleaning I
had to sit for more than 45 mins to feel light
and relaxed and during the period I had to force
my attention in cleaning from the thoughts coming
continuously because of which I feel some times
a little headache also. I will be fine again after
10/15 mins of my cleaning.
Regarding cleaning do not bother too
much about the pain. However if you give yourself
a suggestion at the commencement of the cleaning
session that you will be getting up lighter after
the process you will not have the problem of headache.
Also do not try to be conscious of the specific
dirt or dross getting out of you. This will make
the cleaning session refreshing even as taking
a bath (which is after all cleaning) would give
you.
5. Due to the work schedules
I'm unable to maintain the fixed timings for my
evening cleaning, but if it is getting late I'm
doing before going to sleep and also doing for
short time before I start my morning meditation.
It is good practice to do cleaning before
going to sleep but please ensure that you do not
fall a victim of vital instincts. The best way
is to ensure that we meditate in a place other
than the bed.
6. I get lot of thoughts
during cleaning when I am unhappy only. Otherwise
I concentrate on the process.
Cleaning means we are purging out what
is not Divine in us. The thoughts and feelings
during cleaning may be good and also not so good.
Since our goal is freedom we have to get rid of
all samskaras.
7. Feeling light after
cleaning. Getting up with a suggestion that everything
got cleansed.
This means that you are off loading your
samskaras and that is good.
8. I am regular in my
cleanings; I am not getting a refreshed feeling
after the cleaning. It feels normal. Hence I am
not sure whether my cleaning process was effective
or not. I practice the smoke method.
The definitions of freshness or lightness
is a very subjective matter. If you do not get
crowded thoughts during meditations you can safely
assume that you are cleaning yourself well.
9. During cleaning I
find that some kind of heat is leaving me. After
cleaning I find that I am relaxed and less irritated.
Cleaning is an active process. So there
is no surprise that you feel heat. I hope that
is not inconvenient to you
10. I do cleaning regularly
in the evening time. Some times I feel lightness
after cleaning.
Lightness and freshness must always come
after cleaning even as it does after a bath.
11. Cleaning enables
me to get back to the state which I got after
morning meditation, after day's full of activity.
The evening cleaning does not restore
us back to the condition that was subsisting at
the end of the morning meditation. The cleaning
process when performed well leads us to a state
of purity and a feeling of lightness encouraging
us to proceed in sadhana with more vigour and
interest.
12. I do get thoughts
during cleaning. Must I prepare myself before
cleaning by reading books by Our Master.
Cleaning means we are trying to get rid
of our samskaras and naturally this will not be
happy and calm. Over several lives, apart from
this we collected so many impressions and all
of them need to be washed. Please do read our
literature on Cleaning.
13. I feel heavy at times
during cleaning. A firm resolve to be pure is
there.
Cleaning should leave us with the thought
of being light. If you attend to the cleaning
process in a natural way without strain you will
feel better.
14. During evening cleanings
I get absorbed.
Cleaning is an active process. On completion
of that we should feel light and relaxed. Absorption
during cleaning session may indicate that instead
of cleaning you are meditating.
15. Since last month
or so I have been following “Ocean of Bliss”
method for evening cleaning. Initially, when I
switched to this method, it was very effective
for me and I used to feel very clean after 30
minutes of cleaning. Now, once again I feel like
going back to “Smoke and Vapours method”.
I do not understand why there are such swings
in my mood in following the method.
It is wrong on your part to switch the
methods. Do not switch the methods of meditation
/cleaning without the consent of the trainer.
It can harm you.
16. Cleanings have been
ok with light to heavy activity in my back. Feel
light after the cleanings. I think that to contemplate
on the feelings after cleanings, I should leave
a gap of at least a couple of minutes between
my evening cleaning and 9 pm prayer
Ideally there should be a gap of few
hours. As woman you have your problems with children
and household work therefore try to make the best
possible adjustment leaving everything to the
will of the Master.
17. Once I felt lying
in dirty water and am getting cleaned. On 29th,
felt brotherly feeling for other sadhakas.
It is very amusing to note that you think
of lying in dirty waters and get cleaned. Cleaning
means coming out of dirt. During cleaning sessions
whatever may be the method we should be ASSIDUOUSLY
BUSY WITH THE TASK OF CLEANING if we want to get
the results. Thoughts of others during cleaning
unless it is one of getting rid of attachments
have no place.
18. I am also observing
the effectiveness of process of cleaning on my
mind
The effect of cleaning is mostly in manas
and not buddhi. Try to recognise the difference.
19. During cleaning,
on certain occasions, noted very clearly that
certain very old memories (probably these didn't
surface in last 15/20 years) came to surface.
I was totally aghast on the recall of those and
prayed Master to clear off those from this life.
No prayer is due here. This is the way
through Bhog we get rid of the samskaras.
20. The journey that
I have started is long and I have to reach the
goal so I should not be attached to the conditions
that I am receiving from the Master. Otherwise,
during the sittings I have been feeling absorbed
with full awareness that I am absorbed.
You are perfectly right. We should never
bother about the conditions but only note if we
can. Expectation and anticipation of conditions
is a barrier itself in sadhana. This is dirt of
the Vijnanamaya Kosa and we should avoid this.
Do not make the suggestion that the journey is
long often, lest it becomes so. The goal is very
near and it is only cleaning that makes us feel
the proximity.
21. The most noticeable
was my condition during my move to a new home.
The first two weeks after the move were very frustrating
and disappointing. In the new house the motivation
for Sadhana was missing and most of the time it
looked like I am fulfilling mere formality and
the devotion and love was missing from the Sadhana.
There were disturbing and lower order thoughts
during meditation. However, I continued with my
Sadhana.
It is true when you change your residence
you should first clean the house and if we do
not do that the impressions of the persons who
were there earlier will affect us for some time.
22. After doing cleaning
for 15-20 minutes I feel fresh. Should I stop
cleaning at this point?
No. Cleaning must be done for full 40
minutes. Even though you may feel fresh after
15 minutes still you have to continue the cleaning
for the remaining time because some dirt may come
up for cleaning at the 39th minute too.
23. If I don’t
get involved in any activity during the day do
I have to attend to the evening cleaning process?
You must attend to cleaning even on those
days when we don’t get involved in any activity.
Generally, when we do any activity during a day,
we accumulate mala and this is cleaned. We start
with cleaning the mala. Then we go on to clean
vikshepa. Therefore, if we don’t do any
activity and haven’t accumulated any mala,
we still should do the cleaning process because
we can attend to the cleaning of vikshepa.
24. Clarification on
the Ocean Of Bliss Method
I had an interesting interaction with
a trainer regarding the ocean of bliss. This is
because the concept of ocean some how brings to
us the notion of water. But he said why should
only fluid be water. This made me the wiser for
it and I was able to explain to him much better.
Please think about the fluid state of Prana itself.
Prana is an ocean. It is in the ocean of Prana
that we all are living. It becomes easy for us
to explain that the ocean of bliss is passing
through us and removing the dirt. It is not just
16% of atmospheric air which is useful to us,
it is all cent percent of it when we think about
the ocean of bliss and if we can identify the
ocean of bliss as the nature of the Master, which
may need not only be Babuji Maharaj, which can
definitely include the Almighty. Nature of bliss
being that might of the Almighty himself and then
we are seated in it the waves of the ocean are
passing through us removing all the dirt and diseases.
Waves, if it gives you the idea of water again
we are getting into troubles. But if you can think
about a wave of air, the Prana that gets into
you and if that is the breath that you take is
that of the bliss that you are inhaling that what
you exhale through the entire process is your
dirt then it becomes an effective method of cleaning.
Here we are not changing the system. The concept
of the ocean of bliss is continued. Only thing
is we are putting our thoughts in it. The ocean
of bliss would mean the Nature that is there.
It is an expression of the Divine. Akasa, Vayu,
that vayu you take is what they said. We are going
to the akasa itself. The nature of Akasa is bliss.
The fifth knot is bliss. The tradition was talking
about the fourth knot. It was talking about the
air, vayu is the one that was used for Pranayama.
We say no. We are moved further. We are saying
that we will go to the bliss state of the Master
which is percolating every where and we are going
to inhale that and then exhale our impurity. If
16% of oxygen can sustain life, 100% percent of
bliss I think should make us divine.
25. Some times I feel
that I brought away this soul from the Master
and contaminated it and it is my bounden duty
to return it back to the Master in the same purified
form I brought it from Him and I am trying my
level best to do it but not able to achieve this
object. (I do not know the differentiation between
the I and the soul.)
This is not the proper way of understanding.
True we spoiled ourselves and it is our creation
that stands in the way as Master puts it. Soul
is not an entity- it is a compound as Rev.Lalaji
for the first time clarified and this was expanded
further by our Master. Chit, buddhi, ahankar and
manas are the constituents. They are all kept
dirty by us by using them for other purposes than
the divine. Purification of our system is our
primary duty and this is done to some extent by
ourselves and to a large extent by the trainer.
26. During evening cleaning
I am feeling intense charge all through the body.
It stays for sometime after the end of it. I am
practicing Ocean of Bliss method.
That is perfectly alright.
27. I am very regular
& mostly feel light after it. But some days
after 20 minutes only a feeling of cleaning being
over is there though I sit for 30 minutes as asked
but the rest 10 minutes feel as if nothing more
is happening (could it be I am not sensitive enough
to feel further).
It is not a question of lack of sensitivity.
You should note that the feeling that your cleaning
process is over within 20 minutes is a by-product
of your sense of egoism. We have gathered for
several lives enormous dirt which have been classified
as mala, vikshepa and avarana. Please read literature
carefully and adopt so that you can help others
properly. I also do not understand how you can
make an action-oriented process of cleaning as
a passive one and feel that the work is over in
a short time.
28. There was lot of
excitement and curiosity, to know about the Astral
plane and Nature's work. This has reduced and
seeking help to come out of it.
Do you think you are not part of Nature
that you want to work on Nature? Any work that
you do to cleanse yourself is really helping the
world to that extent by reducing the dirt that
is accumulated.
29. Lot of thoughts are
there during cleaning. These days I find thoughts
are mostly not related to self.
The very nature of cleaning is such that
we will have thoughts getting purged out. Please
note no thoughts arise in us to which we do not
relate in some way or the other. They may not
relate to our personal lives meaning our personal
good or bad but they are regarding matters of
our interest/aspiration or goals that is invariably
linked with others.
30. After cleaning mostly
I feel calm and peaceful at heart. On few days
don’t find any difference in my state before
and after.
Watch a plant growing and how much change
you see moment by moment! Imperceptible progress
also is there. The need to clean will be there
so long as we live. We go on reducing our load
each day.
31. What is the idea
we should possess About Vacuum that we create
during cleaning or yielding.,
Once you form an idea about vacuum it
is no more a vacuum. Further why should you try
to form an idea of that? You experience what we
call blankness, nothingness, no thought condition,
or simple expansion etc., That is our real condition
- our difficulty in daily work is we think we
are something different from that Nothingness
we experience. If you remember that experience
consciously you will come to the conclusion that
all ideas, opinions, attitudes, aspirations etc.,
are relative and not absolute. This forms the
basis for tolerance, endurance, patience, fortitude,
gratefulness etc., Thus that experience becomes
Imperience and the cells in our body goes through
a paradigm shift.
32. Doing ocean of bliss
method but for sometime I was not doing in proper
way. Now that has got clarified and cleaning is
more effective. Doing every day for 20 minutes.
Immediately after cleaning I do the 9 P.M and
after that I do bedtime. Bedtime prayer I tend
to cry asking God to help and forgive, which actually
comes from deep inside me. But sometimes I just
tend do because I do it everyday.
It would be better there is a gap of
time between cleaning and prayer at 9 P.M. Repentance
is good but that should be something natural and
not as a routine.
33. For the last few
months I am observing a feeling of happiness during
the cleaning whereas previously I used to feel
boredom while doing the cleaning (I do smoke and
vapour method for cleaning).
Happiness is also a grossness of a variety.
We should feel light and refreshed and be in the
memory of the Master.
34. Of late after cleaning
I am feeling that I should apply even stronger
will to effect the cleaning better. But I have
not been able to do so the next day in spite of
the resolve.
Strong or light is a relative term. If
we tend to wash the clothes too strong there can
be damage to the same. This we know. Our system
makes us take steady and sure steps and the evening
cleaning is closely knit with morning B point
prayer, bed time prayer and satsanghs and of course
the individual sittings. We acquired the samskaras
over a long period of time and it takes time to
clear ourselves off the same and keeping in view
the Karma theory also it becomes easy to appreciate
the efficacy of the system.
35. On some days, there
is not the confident feeling that all the mala
has been cleaned. There is an expectation that
I should come clean at the end and this is interfering
with the cleaning itself.
This is the main point we should know.
Expecting the result takes away quite a lot of
energy and our work at hand suffers to that extent.
The logic of Nishkama Karma is this only. Desireless
action yields better results as in such a case
there is no draining of our resources. Read Master
on this topic. Further cleaning is a process that
we need to do for quite some time as we are attempting
to reduce our load of samskaras of the entire
past.
36. During evening cleaning
I am able to get the feeling of cleaning towards
the end. But on some days on next morning before
meditation I am forced to do 10 min of cleaning,
before point B. I am not sure why is this happening?
There is no necessity to resort to any
particular type of cleaning before doing morning
meditation which commences with meditation on
point B. If you feel that you are gross or have
any heavy feeling repeat the Prayer given to us
by the Master twice or thrice and that will take
care of the cleaning needs before meditation.
37. It also occurred
to me - I could do evening cleaning more than
one time in a day. I am not sure if I should or
should not.
This system is for moderation. If you
can attend to cleaning once in the day as advised
it is enough. However nothing prevents you to
remain in constant remembrance of the goal and
Master.
More on Cleaning
The importance of cleaning ourselves in the realms
of the mind and yonder is more important than
the physical cleaning which is necessary for good
health.
The period of 30-40 minutes is advised for cleaning.
If it is in excess there may be strain as this
is an active process of willing. I do think that
you are not getting to states of absorption. We
should get up from cleaning only when we feel
we are clean and it should not be a routine 30-40
mts affair. But what is required is firm determination
to be pure.
Cleaning process is not aimed at any specific
samskara and to expect to get rid off something
which you cling to consciously is not correct.
Please do read the article on cleaning in Bodhayanti
Parasparam. Not only negative feelings and thoughts
but even good feelings and thoughts have formed
their coat on our souls. So the purificatory includes
cleaning not only the negative samskaras but also
positive ones.
Cleaning is a very important aspect of this sadhana.
Please give more attention to it.
Cleaning is a very important and a new feature
of this system of meditation. Without proper cleaning
any amount of transmission does not yield good
results.
Cleaning is the most effective way to progress
- unless we get rid of our grossness and dross
transmission will not be able to do much even
as water flowing into the canals which are silted
do not take much water inside.
Dreams are source of getting rid off samskaras.
They reveal the nature of life we might have led
in this life and also in past lives.
Cleaning or purification of ourselves is the key
to progress.
Ocean of Bliss method
of cleaning
Let us think about the process of cleaning "Thou
art the ocean of Bliss, we are seated in it, the
waves of the ocean are passing through me, removing
all the dirt and disease." The first concept
or idea that should get established in our mind
is that Master is an ocean of Bliss. But our intellect
would question ‘Is it not that we were told
that Master is Void?' To stabilize our thought
on this and maintain itself becomes difficult.
The next idea that we are seated in it, raises
the question ‘How can that be?’ The
next idea that the waves are passing through us
raises the question ‘If I am seated the
waves can only pass over me, how can they pass
through us?’ So on the thought goes. With
this the idea itself becomes difficult to maintain,
but if the attitude that “Master has given
this technique and therefore let me accept and
follow” is there and ‘we start feeling
happiness, joy and bliss’. We can easily
practice this and come out of cleaning process
every day with the feeling we are lighter. That
at the end of cleaning we should feel light is
what Master told and that becomes possible. All
this is not supposed to be told but learnt by
practice.
Cleaning of atmosphere
Regarding the cleaning of the atmosphere and the
clarifications sought for, I understand it like
this. It is this pollution of materialism and
other such things as mentioned by the Master that
we have to attend to. Obviously we cannot attend
to this if we do not commit ourselves to that
work in the proper manner. Please do read carefully
the letters of the Master to my father (No. G
409/SRCM DT/-15"' July 1967) in which the
Master spells out that the person at the level
of Dhruva is required to attend to cleaning of
the atmosphere. It is one thing to know and another
to gain understanding and lastly and most importantly
the permission to do that work. If permission
to work as so and so in the field of spiritual
hierarchy is not there the work done also will
suffer to that extent. That is the reason why
permissions were sought by us to do the work before
it is entrusted. It is not automatic that a person
can practice, as a Surgeon can once he has passed
MS. It is necessary that he should develop the
competence to do it. This has been one of the
major casualties in the field of religion and
spirituality.
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