Vignana Bhairava Tantra - 40

Merge with the silence before and after sound

Yasya Kasyapi Varnasya Purvantavanubhavayet

Shoonyaya Shoonyabhootosau Shoonyakarah Puman Bhaveth

Whoever meditates on the silence before the chanting of a mantra or sound and the silence at the end of the mantra - such a person who meditates on the silence, stillness and void - becomes that which he meditates upon.

Just like sound which has vibrations of a particular wavelength and frequency, silence also has the highest frequency of vibrations. when the mind focusses on something for a while, it becomes that. In this method, the mind that focusses on the silence becomes the silence itself. - Swahilya Shambhavi. (Picture taken by Bina Aditya during the Dua at the Sufi Dar in Chennai - a place where God in every form is worshipped.)

Vignana Bhairava Tantra - 39

The Pranava Mantra

Pranavadi Samuccharat Plutante Shoonya Bhavanat
Shoonyaya Paraya Shakthya Shoonyatameti Bhairavi

Shiva addresses Parvati here as Bhairavi and describes the process of merging with the transcendental void by chanting the Pranava Mantra. The Pranava Mantra - Om - AUM - is called so because it contains Prana Shakti, the cosmic energy of the Universe. Chanting the Pranava Mantra with perfection is to take in the breath deeply, experiencing it at the navel and while exhaing - letting it with the sound of Om as 'A.....U.....M.....' in equal proportion. At the end of the chanting, there is a silence. The silence has always existed but there is a possibility of experiencing it better after a sound rises and falls. That silence and void is the Truth of one's being. - Swahilya Shambhavi.

Vignana Bhairava Tantra - 38

Anahata Naada

Anahate Patrakarne Bhagnashabde Sariddrute

Shabdabrahmani Nishnataha Param brahmadhigacchathi

Sound or Naada is classified as two types in classical music. One is Ahata Naada or sound that is created by playing on a musical instrument or by the human voice. The other is Anahata naada that is not created, but just exists in creation. This Tantra talks about listening to the unstruck sound that happens uninterruptedly like a flowing river. One who is able to withdraw into a silent space without and even from the noise of the mind within, becomes an adept in hearing this sound in the heart energy centre or the Anahata chakra. Listening to this sound absorbs one into the supreme Brahman consciousness. - Swahilya Shambhavi. (Photo: Guilia strumming at my veena when she came home, clicked by my friend Susan. Muthalaly)

Vignana Bhairava Tantra - 37

A subtle fire within

Dhamaantha Kshobhasambhoota Sukshmagni Tilakakritim

Bindum Shikante Hridaye Layante Dhyayato Layah

Once the agitations and shaking of the mind is over, there is a state of inner being that one arrives at. It is a tranquil experience of a point of light in the middle of the forehead, at a point behind the head in line with the forehead and in the heart. A subtle fire of energy shines on its own in these regions. Being with that energy of light takes you the closest to consciousness where one finally merges into. - Swahilya Shambhavi

(Pic. A lamp that floats in the Ganga at Rishikesh offered by a devotee. The fire that burns in the centre is symbolic of the subtle fire within, which eventually merges into consciousness - the river. (Swahilya)

Vignana Bhairava Tantra - 36

Shut the doors

Kararuddhadrigastrena bhroobhedaad dwararodhanaat
Drishte bindau kramalleene tan madhye paramas sthithihi

A meditation technique is described here to experience the supreme state. This should be learnt in person from a Master. It involves the closing of all the orifices of the face with the help of the 10 fingers. In a gradual manner, one realises the existence of the Supreme Consciousness in the form of a tiny dot. - Swahilya Shambhavi.

Awareness...

Through the spine

Madhyanadi Madya Samstha Bisasutrabha roopaya
Dhyanantar Vyomaya Devya Taya Devah Prakashate

Nadis are subtle channels of energy that flow through the body. They are not something tangible that one can touch and see, but it is perceptible to those with subtle vision and can nevertheless be experienced. This technique mentioned by Shiva says, one can realise the supreme being if they sit down in a relaxed manner with the spine erect and focus the attention on the Sushumna Nadi that runs from the tip of the spine to the top of the head like a slender fibre of the lotus stem. Energy or Kundalini Shakti, which is nothing but one's awareness, flows through this space which is an experience of the stillness and silence of Shiva. - Swahilya Shambhavi (swahilya.soulmate@gmail.com)

Meditate

The space in the head

Kalalantarmano nyasya tishtanmeelita lochanaha
Kramena manaso dardhyath lakshayet lakshyam uttamam
By fixing the attention in the space within the crown of the head, with eyes steady and closed, a stable concentration can take us to the goal of all goals - realising one's own self.
- Swahilya Shambhavi