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Q. Does detaching the mind, truning it inwards, gradu- ally lead to greater concentration in meditation or does the sadhak also have some unique experience?
Ans. The direct experiencing that takes place in mo
-- ments of introversion, is not possible in a state of extraversion. Generally, a man cannot even imagine the great world of joy, the innumerable felicities within, because our acquaintance is limited merely to the outer world and its pleasant sensations. We do not know the inner world at all. The cause of this non-acquaintance with the inner world is the waves of attachment and aversion inundating our life. Until these settle down, there can be no inner experiencing. Acharya Pujyapad says:
A sadhak whose mind is not ruffled by the waves of attachment and aversion, can perceive the soul which is invisible to others.
Our consciousness is like a tranquil pond. If a small stone is thrown into a pond, it becomes rippled. Similarly our mind, affected by the waves of attachment and aversion, becomes wavering and unsteady. To maintain its tranquillity, the mind must turn inwards.
If we look at it from the physiological point of view, our body is a big factory. The outermost part of the body is the skin. While practising body-perception, one first gets hold of the vibrations on the surface. The vital current of meditation flows along the skin. The stirrings or electrical vibrations of the life-force felt all along the skin are because of it. After one has grasped those stirrings and vibrations, it becomes natural to experience at a deeper level the vibrations and sensations beneath the skin. To perceive these at a deeper and still deeper level--this constant experiencing is body-perception; it is also introspection.
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