Preksha Dhyana Self Awareness by Relaxation

Author(s): Mahapragna Acharya
Publisher: Jain Vishva Bharati

Page 46

mouth, the teeth must be unclenched and the tongue becomes limp. Next come to the facial muscles which surround the lips, mouth, nostrils and the cheeks. Then relax each ear in turn and come to the eyes. Eyelids are gently closed over the eyeballs without pressing them. Each eye is meticulously relaxed in turn. Now move over to the forehead and temples. Finally relax the whole scalp from right to left and back to front, upto the top of head. Having gone over the whole body, from feet to head, the operation may be repeated, as in the meantime some muscles might have recontracted. This second round will be much quicker than the first, followed by a third if necessary. It should be remembered that the auto-suggestion is followed by an experience of relaxation in each portion of the body. The next stage is to recognize the stage of relaxation. Having remained completely motionless, the first sign of relaxation is the sensation of gravity. Do not fight against the force of gravity, let it pull at your trunk and limbs which become heavier and heavier. Let the shoulders sink down. When the whole body has become relaxed, there is an acute perception of the stage of relaxation which is no longer autosuggestion but a real experience. Once this stage is reached, the body is forgotten and the consciousness reveals its separate existence.
When the relaxation exercise is over, you have to recall the muscles and nerves to their normal state of working. Do this by allowing your Conscious Will to go over each part of the body from head to feet, breathing regularly and conscious
ly.
Duration
For relieving tension and fatigue, fifteen/twenty minutes of relaxation is sufficient. For a successful meditational session, no fixed duration can be prescribed. The practitioner has to look to his convenience and the purpose of the exercise. Sometimes it is necessary to continue the exercise for hours.
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