The Art of Easy Joy

Concentration is a mental process of reducing diverse multilayered, multidimensional aspects of consciousness to a single point of awareness. The technical term for this is bindu and it is the development of this ability of the mind that gave the founder of Aikdo, Morihei Ueshiba near miraculous powers.

In a documentary film, ‘Divine Techniques’ he is well into his eighties yet beams with joy and easily defeats a dozen attackers with weapons and even demonstrates knocking someone over without even touching them.

Concentration is the seventh step of meditative practice and a special form of aware presence. It is through the development of one’s conscious awareness of flow, form and feel that life forces can be tapped and used to heal self or others.

By meditating using the Easy Joy technique, step by step continuously maintaining single-objectiveness of consciousness, uninterruptedly for increasingly prolonged periods of time, dwelling in one’s native (quiet mind) state produces a very deep state of concentration of mind and beingness - an ‘inner luminescence‘ (shine or glow) which can be focused on anything (inner or outer) revealing and heightening awareness in the area or subject field.

This state is produced solely by relaxing into a state of awareness traditionally known as the Witness or Observer. It is technically called Dhyana, and repeated prolonged Dhyana (concentration) deepens to the point where this ‘truth-exposing’ light literally shines out frrom your very beingness.

While this is simply presence, it is a form of present awareness and beingness which has been long lost and accounts for the enormous diversity of upsets, problems and other issues, physical and mental, presented in almost everyone’s life in one way or another. Indeed, in modern society attention can become so fixated aggravated by an absence of this inner-knowing that simply ‘being here’ has made its way on to the list of most commonly recognized illness today.

This inner awareness never lies to you and in fact cannot lie or be lied to and so could be called your soul-conscience. Its what you know in your heart to be true behind the masks we often wear.

Ultimately, this state of consciousness is coiled into bodiless and mind-transcendent supreme consciousness which is called asamprajnata samadhi. This is the eighth and final step of meditation and is called samprajnata samadhi. Most scholars simply call it samadhi or bliss and yogis occasionally call it kundalini-consciousness. This is Lord Shiva and is generally experienced as an electric, orgasmic or tingling sensation flowing over the mind and body.

In order to effectively achieve concentration you must first withdraw the senses.

This is most easily accomplished by simply closing your eyes and pulling your attention to the body and then inward to an awareness of inner and outer space.

The attention loops and coils in and generally the eyes rest slightly downward as when going to sleep but the attention is held looking forward and up at approximately 45 degrees and alertness of flows, forms and feelings is heightened. This form of mind-control is traditionally called Pratyahara and is just deliberate control of the senses extended beyond its normal functions. This is mind-expansion at work.

Here’s something I wrote about meditation for a recent student…

Dear Jocie,

Thanks for the recent input, I love it when others are interested as it sparks deep intuitive knowingness within me to manifest and man, oh man what a trip it can be. Just the contemplation of exactly how and where I know it, still brings tears to my eyes. I’d hardly have hoped for better although it sometimes still feels totally bizarre to me. It’s certainly original and far stranger than one would really believe.

As for meditating, there is so much to tell and so little time to do so; please do look at the site regularly, as who knows when I will get even the basics finished because of this fact. I do believe that the very best practices ‘you’ already know - being still, returning to noticing everything that is in your consciousness and especially where your attention is while being appreciative of precisely what you are looking at, being, conceiving etcetera.

Let your attention roam, especially over the body (remember the native state of universes is a flow-state.) When moving - flow and do so deliberately exactly as you decide. It won’t work if it’s a willy-nilly abandon that accomplishes exactly nothing of lasting benefit although at times it feels good.

Remember to remain aware of where your attention is and what it may be on as well as body position etc. Fluid motion is great, as it acts as a second (or 3rd, 4th…) focal point for your attention and so also help bring thinking to a dead end. This isn’t brain science it is simply that you can only focus on a few things at a time. It’s very sudden like walking off a cliff - no more attention left, I’m totally involved. Just know that being aware is not thinking, it is more spread out and fuzzily defined whereas thinking almost always follows a path and is defined however loosely.

Really practice and develop your inner sight & feeling, notice sensations and energy movement in your space (body and mind); use deliberate control over specific body parts to iron out kinks and sore spots. Don’t push energy into the body by hard massage or stretching. Next time I’ll show you more about touch but for now you should gently shake it out. It is possible to be so loose that when your attention lands on your toe you can feel the energy in it flowing and walking around and even breathing can be better than a sexual orgasm. It is that tangible and electric.

Of course, it’s easiest start by actually touching the body part. Be gentle like a caress while being in the moment aware of sensations in and around you. The Dance of Shiva I showed you is the very best exercise I have ever experienced bar none. I would gladly pay for all that I HAD learned previously for just this one exercise done correctly. It is truly incredible but takes some practice and understanding of flows and pace etc. By the way, when you read these definitions on the web-site be sure to go look for examples of them in life. Words are great but this ‘explanation’ can be seen. It is the three dimensional jig-saw puzzle we call our lives right here right now.

Just as a reminder of the Dance of Shiva. Let your attention drop on your toe and respond by having it ‘dance’ its accompaniment to whatever you are listening to. It need not be a duplicate and is generally better if it is not unless you are doing so deliberately. Just become a part of the flow of sound tones like being a band member with your own instrument and contribution in rhythm with the tune of life. Be sure to split your attention so you can follow each note from each instrument and notice exactly where you are hearing it in the space in and around you. You’ll be amazed that even the body motions of the musicians can be ‘heard’ and if you pull you attention in to your eyes your can watch the particles floating in the fluid of inside of your eyeball. Of course nothing is necessary - remember easy joy!

One helpful point I can make about being deliberate is to practice ‘SOFTLY’ until it become second nature - like tying your shoe laces. Do this like teaching a small child you love, rather than get cross with yourself or worry about ‘how’ you are doing it. Then relax, sit back and start noticing just how deep your deliberateness really runs.

It is easiest to the Easy Joy meditation technique the ‘Dance of Shiva’ which involves deliberate motion but many techniques are available (even in Easy Joy). You intuit and decide which is most appropriate in the moment.

There are also meditative procedure for creativity, astral travel and even beyond to realms where a celestial rain of light literally pours down on you, but one step at a time.

It all starts with and amounts to deliberateness; starting with a deliberate quietness, so you can inspect what really life, consciousness et. al., really is and grow and learn from it.

I have said many times that I can sum up Easy Joy in a single syllable, and that one syllable doesn’t even amount to a word but it certainly communicates and ideas and that thought is - Shhhhhh! (both inside & outwardly)

Then you will have gained enough equilibrium to notice exactly where your attention is and deliberately turn off thinking by looking up and being spatially aware you’re your attention is deliberately split so that you are conscious in two or more directions simultaneously. If two doesn’t work three or four will usually; the highest is probably around seven. This will of course expand your awareness to encompass the entire body, head to toe; the mind; the space around you and there on out to the edges of eternity if you are travelling in that direction.

It is interesting to note that we tend to have horizontally oriented goals and purposes and seldom notice that when we feel that isn’t enough and start to seek real answers that the direction has shifted to the vertical, as if seeking heaven.

All our love,

Bob, Julie & family

First, close your eyes and allow your attention to collapse inward toward you. Be aware and feel your body right where you are. The trick is to be aware of the dimensions of your inner space, left - right - up - down - back -forward. Just be aware of here and now as it is flowing by you.

Most people have a fair sense of inner sight, look at whatever exists right there in front of you, if its dark, whether grey or black that is OK, just watch. Normally before long you will be conscious of a quality of inner luminescence to this inner space.

This is the light of conscious awareness i.e. knowing about knowing. It is your connection to the healing ministries of spirit and ultimately to Truth and to God. Most people easily see this light and energy and it responds to where their attention lays (or moves to), often creating patterns of pulsating lights and colours.

What you are looking at is the auric-field generated by a living presence, i.e. pure awareness. I’ll explain much more about this in later sections as there is no need to know or believe any of this… JUST DO IT!

The use of a meditation CD is often helpful but the pace and tones must be exactly right (and these also change with time) and any music used should not be overly moving or emotional. (check out our selection for a choice of favourite CD’s)

The essence of the Easy Joy technique is to not get drawn into following thoughts, but to hold your attention gently. A very good example of this can be demonstrated with a meter long piece of stick. Hold it with both hands and swing it like a baseball bat or katana (Japanese sword); then change the tightness with which you are holding it and try swinging it again. You will quickly find that when held harder the tension extends up the arm and tightens the swing as well.

Be aware of your inner space and the mental form of your body, just as it is. Don’t get complicated here, its how your attention is held or allowed to expand and grow or contract, just as when you first sat down and closed you eyes. Feel whatever you feel and recognize it for what it is - whether thoughts, feelings, sensations or whatever. Pay special attention to your inner ‘sight‘; see and feel this inner space of your minds eye.

Now allow your attention (not your eyes) drift upward to notice the top of your head ~ feel where it is at.

The great majority of people readily notice that as their attention drifts upward that the brightness of the inner sight, often seen as a light or lights, increases and thinking stops. If it does not you simply have to focus your attention a little harder to actually feel your head. This is not something imaginary or believed in (if you think so touch the top of your head and then tell me it is all a belief)

Allow your awareness to encompass all of you. Feel it as if from just above your head, like a light cascading down to cover the entire body. Be aware of all the details you notice and are conscious of at any given moment, allowing them to flow right by you in full view (or whatever impression you get of them.)

This is easiest done at first by looking forward and UP at approximately a 45 degree angle. About 12mm forward is your skull. Your attention should rest at the top of your (inner) forehead a finger or two below the normal hair-line and is where most people sense an increase of inner luminescence which can literally light you up. Do not strain your eyes looking up, just be aware in that direction and as your attention continues to rest there, watch whatever patterns of energy appear.

Play with this exercise a bit, and notice any moment to moment differences, especially as your attention moves. RELAX and become centred in that space.

Now notice your breathing. Don’t do anything with it to start, just be aware of the direction, pace and quality of your breathing. When you are ready, fully centred and aware, as you breathe IN, stretch out the breath out at both ends of the IN & OUT breaths. you can pretty much ignore the in between, relax and don’t control that part but when you would normally stop breathing in (or out) continue to breath in that direction for a few more moments. See how slowly, gently and easily you can sustain and continue to breath in one direction.?

When you have taken in as much breath and vitality as you can without undue strain, gently breathe OUT and do the same at the end of the Out breath, noticing any tension in your body and deliberately letting it slump, allowing the tension to relax and sink out of the body. For the moment be a witness, an observer, be present to life flowing and unfolding - allow things to be however they are. Focus and centre yourself in the flow and sensations of the energies of being fully aware and alive.

As you continue to practice this technique you will start to feel tingling sensations, rushes and other energy phenomena, so be sure not to block these energies when they starts to rise in your consciousness and body. Allow yourself to fall into a daydream-like state of enjoyment. From here you can contemplate things and literally shine the light of your awareness on them to have them reveal things to you that will absolutely astound you, but more of that later.

The above must be accomplished first, before true withdrawal of the senses is even possible

Now that you have achieved some mastery with the above; where exactly is our attention to go to, if it is not on the senses?

Pranayama is far more than simply breath control, control of the attention and thoughts as well as other vital energies all must fall within your field of self-determinism.

Breath is a vital force and function to organic life; an external respiration as opposed to true respiration (internal cellular) which provides oxygen for the aerobic process of metabolism, breaking down food particles and the release energy in the form of ATP (adenosine triphosphate, a nucleotide molecule which can yield large amounts of energy used to drive many biological processes, including muscle contraction and the synthesis of complex molecules needed by the cell) , but there is far more to know about this than simply how to breathe.

There are many types of breath and breathing which modify states of consciousness; belly breathing or becoming-breath; releasing breath, cleansing breath, revitalizing breath, relaxing breath etc. The word probably has its origins from the Indo-European bhretos ~ burn.

These two basic bodily functions are of vital importance not only to meditation but to healing and our very existence depends on them. Breathing is obviously the most recognized as we all know that if we stop breathing for even a few minutes death is not far behind.

Breathing is far and away the most important biological function and beats drinking by a long shot and eating by miles and miles yet few of us actually learn how to breathe properly or pay much attention to breathing at all until the day we suddenly find it difficult. Smokers don’t even give it a second thought and continue to tie their pleasure centres to the inhalation of poisons. Only now is it even starting to be un-cool but the tobacco companies still have an ignorant public market place in most countries and are growing in third world and developing nations.

Our very culture exhales so many toxins daily into our air - that very stuff we are breathing for dear life. A lot of this is connected to ‘identities’ and the way these make us feel when we believe this is ‘who’ we are. Don’t let anyone fool you that they are smoking deliberately… they are trying to recapture the ‘feelings’ that they have subconsciously associated with smoking.

Interestingly, this isn’t too far removed from those who experience sudden insights that dramatically alter their perceptions of the world and then go about telling everyone about them even though they are largely in ‘mystery’ about what happened and have no way to recapture or reliably repeat the experience. Many who have had near death experiences or psychic phenomena occurring in their vicinity do exactly this. The difference is that believing is seldom likely to kill you unless you rub up against some lunatic who insists that you believe only what they do.

Breath (and life-energies) control is the 4th step of meditation and is traditionally called ‘pranayama‘ meaning deliberate control of the life force or prana. It is often called breath control but that is far from the whole truth of it, though an important part.

In Kriya and many other forms of yoga, students learn minute control of the musculature and breathing apparatus and can suspend both breath and the heart at will. Swami’s such as Hariharananda have been recorded to have totally ceased their body functions and to all intents appeared dead yet resumed them at will. The periods or intervals of time precluded simply holding your breath but this is a questionable ability taken to the extremes.

I will show you in Easy Joy the keys to breath control and suspension that are important to master. You needn’t even consider taking it this far. It is absolutely not necessary and I’m not quite sure what it is supposed to accomplish except confuse some doctors. It’s kind of like me ’shining’ on the inside and the sun coming out in response - the only person going to get a lesson out of it is me. Why bother? I already know where my own capabilities and limitations reside and continually work on aligning them to only the highest ideals. Yet even I miss the point sometimes until after the cat is out of the bag. One thing for certain, no 100% student-master relationship exists. We are all growing and learning especially those trying to lead. Oscar Wilde once said “Ambition is the last refuge of failure” and I certainly agree but we must be careful not to include our dreams within our terms of ambition.

Yoga is a union in harmony with the flow of existence as it is. We can easily learn to enter that flow and even handle its energies and direction and so design our own futures.

Pranayama is more than simply breath - it is breath endowed with living energy; breath instilled with life-forces in harmony. It is you entrained to the vibrancy of life itself and this can not be accomplished simply by breathing or controlling the length of our breath.

These are essential skills which must be acquires as well but the easiest way I know of is Easy Joy’s Mmmm-Ahhh! Breath and Mantras Chants and Songs as practiced on our Art of Easy Joy course.

Posture, by which is meant both pose & poise, is one of the key elements to achieving enlightenment and is tied tightly to our breathing and to the emotions we feel and experience moment to moment. The word posture has both noun and verb forms; the noun meaning ‘relative position of parts, especially the body or mind.‘

Posture also means the condition or state (of affairs, etcetera) one may find oneself in. As a verb it connotes ‘to dispose limbs of (person) in a particular way.’ This is often to reflect and attitude or stance toward others or their ideas, communications and other energetic flows and the intransitive form of the verb means to assume posture (literally or figuratively) especially for effect! Its roots are from the Latin positura ~ (ponere posit ~ place) + -ure ~ forming nouns - the result of an action or process (composure, enclosure et. al) and refers to function, state, rank, dignity, office (judicature, prefecture) collective body of agents (legislature) collective body of agents (legislature) that by which action is effected (closure, ligature); from Latin -ura.

Traditional postural control is called ‘Asanas’ and is the third step of the eight steps of Astanga Yoga. There are many well known positions and postures?each with it’s own purpose. The most famous is probably the Lotus posture, however there are many others equally renowned, such as the Sun Salutation of Hatha yoga, and even the movements of Tai Chi; all are postures.

The Lotus posture is a still posture for stability while Tai Chi is flowing postures aimed at reasoning inner and outer tensions. Many of the martial arts also pay particular attention to how the body is held by the mind.

Ideally the mind has moved from deliberate conscious to deliberate unconscious. I know it sound backwards but skilled workers seldom think about their position and motion - they exist in it’s energy flow and move with it spontaneously in each moment. Nothing is pre-planned or rigid.

Practicing Yama (purification & control), Niyama (observances) Asanas, Pranayama, Pratyahara (sense withdrawal) and Dhyana (concentration) leads eventually to the final stage called Samadhi - complete equilibrium. This is often termed nirvana which is an aspect of it. Joy literally beams out of every pour of the body-mind complex.

If you’ve ever watched the Matrix, you’ll know exactly what I mean. At the end of the film, Neo has arisen from the dead and flies into and merges with the super-agent Smith; bulges course throughout the agents’ body, cracks beaming intense light begin to spread out over him and he shatters into thousands of pieces leaving only Neo left still standing there, breathing in and out as the universes fluxes bending with his breathing and to his will - this is precisely what Samadhi is like.

When you experience this level of relaxed concentration and deliberateness (control) you will know what I am talking about when I tell you that there are Walls of Fire between us and heaven and only when we have become pure of heart have we any chance at all of passing through them. This stuff goes straight into astral realms and believe me, this ground is littered with corpses and skeletons of those who mistook it for a playground. However relax because you will never encounter anything that you are not ready for, although I don’t promise that you’ll necessarily feel that way at the time, it is all worth every effort.

The reward is a certainty and joy that replaces all the junk we have been carrying around for millennia.

You will know when you have achieved perfect posture when you can sit comfortably for hours on end in meditation without being distracted by numbness, aches or pain of any kind - especially when you stop meditating. This is perfect poise and not quite as easy as it may sound and there are many who will believe their body is loose and relaxed while they still have considerable tension in the body.

The word poise come from the Latin pensum ~weight and means graceful and elegant bearing; composure; dignity of manner; and as a verb means to cause to be balanced, aligned, ready and prepared while the word pose means to present, contribute to, assume a position; from the Latin pausare ~ to pause, which replaced the Latin ponere ~ to place

Observances: Rules of Conduct ~ Niyama

• Purity (Saucha)
• Contentment (Santosha)
• Singing, chants & praises ~ (Kirtan)
• Austerities (Tapas)
• Study (Svadhyaya)
• Surrender to God (Ishvarapranidhana)
• Truth* (Satya) added here by Lord Shiva

According to the book ‘Laya Yoga‘ - Observance contains the following ten practices:

• Ascesis ~ Tapas, the practice of severe self-discipline
• Contentment ~ Santosha
• Faith ~ Astikya
• Charity ~ Dana
• Worship of God ~ Ishwara-pujana
• Spiritual Study ~ Siddhanta-shrawana
• Modesty ~ Hri
• Reflection ~ Mati
• Mantra Practice ~ Japa
• Vow ~ Wrata

Together the ten-fold abstentions and ten-fold observances were dedicated to the great yogi Dattatreya to his disciple Sangkriti (Darshan-opanishad, 1,.6 and 2.1)

Control & Purification, traditionally called Yama, is the first stage of meditation procedures. It is a set-up to put the individual on stable ground in order to make advancements along the spiritual path they have chosen. (Yes, all effective techniques use these in one guise or another.)

The practise is one of abstinence and observation. There are six basic practices in regular abstinence and observation consisting of:

Eternal Vows: Purification & Control (Yama)

1. Non-Violence (Ahimsa)
2. Truth (Satya)
3. Non-Stealing (Asteya)
4. Continence (Brahmacharya)
5. Non-Avariciousness (Aparigraha)
6. Vigilant Awareness* (added by Lord Shiva)

These have been expanded somewhat to ten, and also altered and explained slightly differently in Shyam Sundar Goswami’s Laya Yoga to the following:

1. Harmlessness: love of and for All (creations) ~ Ahinga
2. Truthfulness ~ Satya
3. Non-Theft ~ Asteya
4. Sexual Control ~ Brahmacharya
5. Mercy ~ Daya
6. Honesty ~ Arjawa
7. Forgiveness ~ Kshama
8. Firmness ~ Dhriti
9. Moderation in Eating ~ Mitahara
10. Cleanliness ~ Shoucha

Now, I’ll will show you just how easy Easy Joy really can be.

All the above becomes irrelevant when you are sitting still and quiet in Native State Consciousness, because all these factors are already being observed. That said, most people will require specific exercises and procedure to clear their spaces of the built-up deposits of past deeds (karma) and may require considerable work on their selves to resolve all these issues and dwell in a clean and shining natural space of pure awareness.

Native State is the natural, original state of conscious awareness; capable of knowing anything; a potentiality of total knowingness, it is a being who is not literally in contact with space, energy, matter, who is capable of creating and continuing to create their own universe or living in the physical universe able to create illusions perceivable by others at will.

A being who has returned to their native state is able to handle objects without physical or mechanical means and possess or have the potential to possess full recall of everything at will and have full power and ability.

This beingness feels no need of bodies or even the physical universe in order to keep him or herself and their friends interested in existence. They have total clarity as source and knowing cause of universes, thoughts and realities and exists in a no-game condition in regards them, having achieved the goal of life, which is far more than a return home ~ for futures await…

Bliss is a natural state of conscious being which naturally attends enlightenment ~ the influence of a divine blessing. In fact the Concise Oxford dictionary defines the word as perfect happiness and a state of spiritual blessedness; the word stems from the Germanic term blithz ~ blithe, joy.

Anyone with even a smattering of knowledge will recognize Samadhi as the final step in Patanjali’s original 8 steps of Raja Yoga which is also called the Eight Steps of Ashtanga Yoga by some. These which follow have been slightly modified by Lord Shiva specifically for Easy Joy.

1: Eternal Vows: Control & Purification (Yama)

• Non-Violence (Ahimsa)
• Truth (Satya)
• Non-Stealing (Asteya)
• Continence (Brahmacharya)
• Non-Avariciousness (Aparigraha)
• Vigilant Awareness* (added by Lord Shiva)

2: Observances: Rules of Conduct (Niyama)

• Purity (Saucha)
• Contentment (Santosha)
• Austerities (Tapas)
• Study (Svadhyaya)
• Surrender to God (Ishvarapranidhana)
• Truth* (Satya) added here by Lord Shiva

3: Positions (Asanas)

4: Vital Force (Pranayama)

• Control & management of all vital forces

5: Sense Abstraction (Pratyahara)

• Awareness ~ Not Being
• In & Out
• Getting out of the way
• Disassociation
• The Shift
• Reorder
• Ascension

6: Concentration (Dharana)

• Deliberate Conscious focus

7: Meditation (Dhyana)

8: Samadhi ~ Bliss Fields & States

Several specialized forms of consciousness exercises have also been added by Lord Shiva.

• Healing Presence ~ Attending
• Source ~ Not-Doing
• Awareness ON ~ Connecting
• Soma Field Contemplation
• Viewing Forms as Conscious Awareness ~ Self-Regulation
• Synchronicity
• Co-existence Process ~ Order
• Doubt & Out

In total 72 steps were given for Easy Joy to Bob Whitson by the Lord Shiva throughout August of 2004. Another 108 Steps of Easy Samadhi were then channelled over the next year or so, making 180 steps in total. New insights and clarifications are happening regularly however which are proving to be of great use on failed, stubborn and persistent issues we have met but it should be remembered that in most cases the basic meditation techniques taught in the Easy Joy initiation are more than enough and very effective.