Shunya Yoga is an inner science for the expansion of consciousness and freedom from the causes of suffering. Through the use of asanas (physical postures), pranayam (breath control), mudras (seals), bandhas (locks), and kriyas (purification exercises), the first phase of Shunya Yoga involves purification of the mind and body as preparation for meditation. It is in meditation where the process beings of bringing the activity of the mind to a stillness. As the mind gradually becomes silent, ones awareness starts turning inwards from the conscious mind, to the subconscious mind, to the unconscious, to ones own original nature. Once the mind’s lake has become absolutely still, without even a ripple of thought stirring, then there arises a direct seeing into that which is beyond the mind which is the very source of one’s existence. It is this state of consciousness, of the finite merging with the infinite, which is the state of Yoga (“Union”).
During the inner journey of meditation, through remaining a witnessing awareness in the present moment as to whatever is arising in one’s experience, the meditator becomes more and more aware of one’s own psychological programming. It is only through watching the mind directly without prejudice, that one can begin to come to an understanding as to why the mind has become disturbed to begin with. Because man has been living out of unawareness, all of the causes of one’s sufferings have been born, they are self-created. And just as the individual himself has created the root causes, only the individual can dissolve the root causes through self knowledge which is like an eye seeing things as they are, or a clear reflecting mirror.
After coming to one`s enlightenment, the final phase of Shunya Yoga is to integrate one’s enlightenment in daily living, as there can be no freedom outside of life itself, nor can there be life outside of freedom. The path disappearing into the pathless, the method disappearing into the methodless, life becomes a spontaneous expression of one’s own naturalness which is in direct communion with the whole existence.
