In kundalini yoga philosophy we have the concept of the three minds. The functional facets to the mind are the negative or protective mind, the positive or expansive mind and the neutral or meditative mind. The negative mind is reactive and protective. Its function is survival. It looks out for and guards against possible threat. The positive mind is constructive. It seeks pleasure and fulfilment. It takes risk and pursues opportunity. The neutral mind assesses the input from both the negative and positive minds. It judges their action without attachment in relation to the higher self.
When all three facets are in balance, we can utilise our mind to serve us. We find that life flows and opportunity comes to us. If out of balance we can find ourselves at the mercy of the ‘monkey mind’. This week my own mind has been behaving rather like a hyperactive child, clamouring for attention, running around in circles and generally propelling me out of the present moment and with a certain ferocity, back into patterns from the past or into anticipating permutations of an uncertain future.
So how do we navigate the challenges of the ‘monkey mind’? How do we cultivate mindfulness and bring our awareness back into the present moment? Well it’s quite simple. We practice. Every day. With any spiritual practice comes’ awareness and with awareness comes choice. If we consciously develop the neutral mind, we develop the capacity to choose to take the appropriate course of action. The course of action that will bring us back onto our path, whenever we take a little stumble!
Yogic philosophy teaches us that it takes the same energy to choose the neurotic path as it does to take the spiritual path. We have free will. We can choose to act in karma or dharma. Any problem that we might have in choosing is simply related to nature of the mind and attachment. So how do our choices manifest?
We can choose Karma. This is the law of cause and effect that applies to moral, mental and physical actions. Ego in its finite nature attaches and identifies with certain feelings, thoughts or objects. It creates a bias to a particular line of action. If we choose to act from the limited self then our actions must be completed or resolved at some point in the future, often with exhausting consequences! When the limited self or the ego chooses particular line of action it becomes easy to play out old patterns, blinded by duality and blinkered to the true nature of our reality, our earthly dramas become exhausting to sustain.
Or we can choose Dharma. Dharma is the path of life above the cycle of Karma. It’s where our actions align with the higher self, as we consciously choose to act, for the benefit of the whole, in flow, with the infinite universe. When thoughts and actions are filtered through the neutral mind, it becomes effortless to align our actions with the higher self. Cultivating the neutral mind however, requires a conscious input of effort. This is why choosing to do sadhana (daily spiritual practice) is essential.
So the wonderful thing is we always have a choice! We can choose to exhaust ourselves maintaining our negative patterns. Or we can choose to do a daily spiritual practice to consciously cultivate the neutral mind. When we act from the neutral mind we develop the capacity to take action that is aligned with the higher self, surrender the ego, step above the cycle of karma, walk the path of Dharma and fulfil our true limitless potential.
Come and join us this week as we practice two kriyas that bring focus to balancing the mind and cultivating the capacity of the meditative or neutral mind.
On Tuesday morning we practice a powerful kriya to master your domain. To master your domain you act from the centre of your being, your command centre, mentally you are able to hold and project a thought, an idea into reality. To do this we cultivate the action orientated qualities at the navel centre, expansion of the heart centre, and connection to the neutral or meditative mind. In the physical body we circulate blood from the core to the limbs and glands. This kriya gives you command in both mental and physical realms. With meditation this kriya gives you the spirit of a saint and fearlessness of a warrior!
On Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning we practice a gentle kriya that connects to the flow of life through balancing the protective and expansive minds and cultivating the meditative mind. We neutralise negative thoughts that may prevent us from making positive changes in our lives, freeing us take action in line with our limitless potential. This simple and powerful kriya connects us through posture and breath to our meditative mind. We physically work to increase flexibility within the spine to allow the kundalini energy to flow freely. This allows us move forward in life with clarity, compassion and purpose.
See you in class! love and light Yeli