Reference: Inner Engineering (Content)
This paper presents the summary of Part one, chapter 5.1, from the book, INNER ENGINEERING By Sadhguru. The contents are from the first edition (2016) of this book published in the United States by Spiegel & Grau, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.
The summary of the original material (in black) is accompanied by brief comments (in color) based on the present understanding.
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Sadhana
“Don’t simply believe what you are reading. The only way to find out whether something is true or untrue is to experiment with it. Stop the internal debate and simply put it to the test. The yogic path is not a path of inherited belief; it is the path of experiment.
“Here’s a practical way to begin.
“When you have your next meal, do not talk to anyone around you for the first fifteen minutes. Just be in active conscious response to the food that you eat, the air that you breathe, the water that you drink.
“As I have said earlier, your entire system is responding anyway. Just become conscious of it. This apple, this carrot, this piece of bread—don’t take them lightly. If you do not eat for a couple of days, you won’t think about God. You will only think about food. This is what is nourishing you and making your life right now. This is the very substance of your body. Respond to food absolutely, with total attention.
“This fruit, this egg, this bread, this vegetable—they are all a part of life themselves, but they are willing to become you. Would you be willing to do this for anyone? You are not willing to lose your identity and merge into anyone. You are not even willing to surrender your little finger for someone else. Momentarily, you surrender just a little, usually when you need something. Your love affairs are the product of very calculated surrender. But food, which is a life unto itself, gives itself up completely to become a part of you.”
The instruction here is that you become conscious, in real time, of the food you eat, willingly merging into your body.
DRILL: Do japa using the name of the main item you ate in your last meal. Become conscious of that food item merging into your body. [See Note below.]
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“Later, without even uttering the sentence aloud, take the simple idea—“My responsibility is limitless; if I am willing, I can respond to everything”—into the entire day. Be conscious of it until the last moment before you fall asleep and remind yourself of it the first thing when you wake up.
“If you sustain this awareness of your limitless nature for just one full minute, you will achieve a tremendous transformation. A minute may seem very simple, but you will see it will take a certain level of application to arrive at this. Just one minute can elevate you to a different dimension of experience and function. Right now, your awareness is erratic: this moment you are aware and the next moment, you are gone. It is okay. Every hour, remind yourself. Experiment with this awareness, allow it to deepen and see what happens.
“Conscious response brings you to a profound and enduring state of connectedness with life—not as an idea or an emotion, but life as life is. In this willing, active involvement with life, you are embraced by it and that embrace takes you to the very source of creation.
“That is all it takes to touch the Creator—just willingness, nothing else.”
The instruction here is that you become willing to respond, in real time, to everything that appears in your environment.
DRILL: Pick up an item, or situation, from your environment that is grabbing your attention. Do japa: “I am willing to respond to _______ .” Do this until you feel you are willing to respond to that item, then move to another item.
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NOTE:
These drills are done in sitting position with the back straight upright, and the palms resting on the knees facing upwards. As you start the drill relax your body by taking three deep breaths and exhaling them slowly. Then, scan your body from toe to head, and head to toe, until any tenseness is minimized.
The drills are performed using japa (Sanskrit: जप), which is the meditative repetition of a mantra or a divine name. The mantra or name may be spoken softly, loud enough for the practitioner to hear it, or it may be recited silently within the practitioner’s mind. Each sitting for the drill should be at least 20 minutes long.
