INNER SILENCE
I would love to meet that one person that can sleep soundly every night without waking up in the middle of the night. I would ask them what they do during the day to avoid carrying deeply rooted insecurities and stress with them to bed at night.
Especially during busy weeks at work, I wake at 3am running through every scenario possible to resolve questions. Which - leads to less sleep and too much internal chit-chat. This is also called the “monkey mind”.
So how do I go about clearing my mind and stilling the inner chit-chat? I practice Antar Mouna.
Antar Mouna is the practice of “inner silence.” It is a yogic meditation technique that involves transforming and controlling the minds thought processes through self-awareness and withdrawal of the mind from objects of attention.
You become a spectator, a silent witness to all of the minds thoughts, it’s peculiarities, and absurdities. It is a practice to accept one’s self and all moods.
The 6 step method for practising Antar Mouna was was initially introduced by Swami Satyananda to a wide yoga public at end of the 60’s.
Awareness of external sense perception: Bringing attention to your breath, hearing and smelling without having any external impressions. You cease to be interested or disturbed by the environment around you.
Awareness and visualisation of the spontaneous thought process or thoughtless state: Watching your thoughts come and go without giving them any attention. Not associating yourself with the thoughts. Just allowing yourself to observe them.
Creating and disposing thoughts at will: Selecting an intentional thought that you create on your own, and working through resolving the thought without association. Releasing any related emotions that come up.
Awareness of spontaneous thoughts and disposal of thoughts at will: At this step you are still a witness of the thoughts and but not associating with them. At times, you may feel that the thoughts start disappearing but the pictures are still going by and that you are watching your mind.
Create a state of thoughtlessness: Mentally observing thoughts tends to lead to a thoughtless state. "Withdrawal of the senses” is called “pratyahara”.
Dhyana: An attention, thought, and reflective meditative state. You become one with the meditation.
As a beginner, it can be tough to get through the first few steps. Viewing yourself, your mind, but with practice, one can move onto a more advanced stage.
I know from my own experience that the moment you observe a quiet moment, it not only eradicates mental noise but also induces release of stress from the body.
If you are interested in finding out more about this meditation, book your complimentary first class online.
Stay true to yourself, see you on the mat.
Namasté
