Steps for meditation

-notes from Bannanje Govindacharya's lecture

listen to complete lecture at - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HkEX-fbjnc

8 Steps

Yama - Negative Disciple 5 things that we need to renounce

Violence

Lies

Theft

Begging

Excess Indulgence in Sex

Niyama - Positive Discipline - that we need to practice and put into habit

Mind, Body,Environment - Cleanliness

Self Restraint - Fasting and Brahmacharya

Contentment

Constant Study of Shastras

Worshipping GOD

Asana

Sit on krishnajina,davali,kambali, last option - wooden plank to avoid influence of negative elements or bad vibrations on our body from ground.

Skin of Tiger brings complete detachment - Only Sannyasis use it

Skin of Deer - Best suitable

Davali , kambali - if deer skin not available

Wodden Plank - last option - Wodden plan blocks negatives vibrations but will not bring about postive vibrations , all the above 4 does both

Posture - Padmasana

Pranayama

Our mind which is always wandering . It should be turned around to focus or concentrate. To do so..

Body should be made to be stable (there should not be physical movement for body) - hence asana

Second Breathing should become stable -for which Pranayama should be done . Energy in body increases when we do prANAyAma

Stability of annamayakosha(body), pranamayakosha(breathing) will bring about Stability in manomayakosha(Mind)

DharaNa

Bringing back wandering mind to focus, this process of mind loosing track and bringing back to focus is dhAraNa. DharaNa comes from practice.

PratyAhara - Withdrawl from external world (Shabda,rasa,roopa,gandha) .

Dhyana - Cleansing the doshas that is attached to our soul

Samadhi - Experiencing the GOD from within