Transition Points in Meditation

Posted on November 24, 2023 by George Boyd

Q: Are there discrete markers for mastery of meditation?

A: We can describe the initial transition states that mark the entrance into a new stage of meditation:

You are caught in the bubble of the Conscious mind and you have no awareness of anything outside of it.
You have your first awakening experience. You passively move your attention out of the Conscious mind, but this experience is not under your control. This occurs, for example, when you ingest a psychedelic drug, or you have a spontaneous astral projection experience.
You have an awakening experience that is under your control. You consciously collect your attention to achieve the state of mindfulness—you are fully present, aware, and inwardly alert. You become aware of your present time experience in the waking state of consciousness.
You first experience moving your attention along the thread of consciousness. You become aware of your experience at the focal points of the Conscious and Subconscious mind.
You have your first contact with your attentional principle. You awaken as your intentional consciousness.
You have your first contact with the Self at the core of the Metaconscious mind. You experience the activity of volition.
You have your first contact with your spirit. You activate your spirit’s love and devotion, and the conative principle that operates in the spirit, the wish.
You have your first conscious union with the Soul. You experience the operation of the transpersonal will.
You have your first experience of working on your personality with your attentional principle using a meditation technique.
You have your first experience of generating transformation at the level of the Soul and its associated vehicles of consciousness.
You have your first experience of making Light attunements with your attentional principle.
You have your first experience of being able to translate the Soul and lead the spirit into the channels of the Nada.

We can describe the steps of inner awakening:

Before people awaken, they are in stage (1). They are not aware of anything outside of the waking state of consciousness.

The Neophyte stage begins when people have an opening experience at stage (2). Those who do not retreat in terror when they have this experience move into the Aspirant or Seeker stage.

Many people have been introduced to stage (3), mindfulness, through popular magazines or yoga classes. They learn how to relax and collect their attention, and they become aware of their experience in the present time.

Stage (4) begins when you gain the ability to move your attention along the thread of consciousness and can contemplate the focal points of the Conscious mind—and later, the Subconscious mind. We teach this method in our Introduction to Meditation class.

Stages (5), (6), and (7), bring about awakening of the three immortal essences—attentional principle, spirit, and the Soul; (8) the Self, the integration center of the entire personality, and (9) confer the ability to do work on the personality and (10) in the Superconscious mind. We teach these techniques in our intermediate meditation classes, the in-person Mudrashram® Master Course in Meditation and the by-mail and online Accelerated Meditation Program.

We teach the technique to make attunements (11) in our Light Sittings, and in the Attunement Meditation workshop. Those who take Teacher Training One at the Form of the Disciple level of the Bridge Path learn to make many different attunements, both with the personality and also with the essences that dwell in the Superconscious mind.

Those that are empowered at the Mahatma stage of the Bridge Path gain the ability (12) to send the Light to translate the Soul and manifest the guide form to the attentional principle and the spirit. These abilities are gained when the advanced disciple takes Teacher Training Two.

We encourage you to become familiar with each of these transition points, and learn to master the proficiencies of each stage. Learning targeted meditations for stages (4) to (12) facilitates moving to the deeper states of contemplation beyond mindfulness—you are trained in these methods in our Introductory, Intermediate, and Advanced meditation classes.

Chats and Tatts Podcast is now live

Posted on November 24, 2023 by George Boyd

I did an interview on Chats and Tatts on October 18, 2023 with Aaron Della Vedova. This is now available on popular podcast channels and YouTube. You can listen to the show on the channels below.

Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/chats-tatts/id1664472316?i=1000635681250

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3Sv5o24E5RW7VjfUZapcnP?si=959j3oiiS-CwMEvlWjFxjw

Youtube: https://youtu.be/bb-EXJfEsng

A Functional Scale Revisited

Posted on November 16, 2023 by George Boyd

Q: At what level are people able to do spiritual work?

A: We can conceive human functioning as an eleven-point scale:

-5 Gross physical dysfunction – Catatonia or paralysis, inability to use the body

-4 Etheric body dysfunction – Chronic debilitating illness, not having the energy to carry out the activities of living

-3 Mental dysfunction – Cognitive disorganization and delusion, deficits in intellectual ability

-2 Emotional dysfunction – mania and depression, inability to form normal human relationships

-1 Egoic dysfunction – Anxiety, personality disorders, inability to experience integral Self

0 Integral Self – Normal adult functioning, having the capacity to make congruent choices, to plan for the future, and to achieve one’s objectives

+1 Aspiration and idealism – Dedication of one’s life to a cause greater than oneself

+2 Creativity – Expression of the Soul’s gifts through the operation of the transpersonal will

+3 Altruism and service – Living a life of love and compassion, charity, and caring for others, which expresses the unconditional love of the Soul

+4 Inner awakening – As one awakens the three immortal principles—the attentional principle, the spirit, and the Soul—one gains the ability to work on the personality and to awaken and transform one’s spiritual potentials

+5 Thaumaturgy – This grants the ability to minister the Light, and to guide, teach, and initiate others—this expresses the Illumined Mind and the Divine Spirit

We can find common characteristics for those who operate at the levels that exist within the personality (-5 to 0) and those that transcend it (+1 to +5):

Physicians and mental health professionals assist people to get to level 0, where people can function optimally in their lives.

People who join causes—military, political, and religious—follow beliefs and perform behavior to dedicate themselves to something greater than themselves. These individuals operate at level +1.

Those that develop a gift that comes from their Superconscious mind—athletic, scientific, artistic, philosophical, metaphysical, or psychic—tap into their creative nexus at level +2.

Those who awaken as their attentional principle, spirit, and Soul are capable of working at level +4. This is where we begin our students in Mudrashram®. This is where one gains the ability to do spiritual work.

Those who become spiritual Masters or who work directly with spiritual Masters are able to engage in spiritual ministry at level +5.

We observe that people who operate in levels -5 to -1 typically have difficulty with adult functioning. If they try to transcend the Self—without working out their issues—through forays into spiritual levels +1 to +5, they experience difficulties maintaining their rationality and balance.

If they attempt this jump into the beyond before they have achieved the Integral Self stage, they often bring their emotional, cognitive, or egoic dysfunction with them. This yields distortion of spiritual concepts, belief in conspiracy theories, and fanatical behavior.

Before you can safely transcend the Self, it is important that you reach stable functioning as your Self—and are able to carry out the activities of adult functioning.

Those who dedicate themselves to an aspirational agenda at level +1—if they still have unfinished resolution of cognitive, emotional, and egoic issues—are more likely to succumb to demagogic and cultic manipulation, making them prone to believe in conspiracy theories and to adopt fanatical behavior.

We suggest that you study this eleven-point scale of functioning, and identify the factors that will allow you to stably move to higher levels of functioning and to ready yourself for conscious spiritual work.

Rays from the Soul

Posted on November 16, 2023 by George Boyd

Q: How does the Soul overshadow our life and personality?

A: The Soul has seven channels through which it interfaces with the personality and with the second, third, and fourth Poles of Being:

Ray to the Self – this appears as direction to the will
Ray to the ego – this takes the form of comforting and calming the ego’s worry, sadness, and fear
Ray to issues in the unconscious mind – this reprograms and works out karmic issues that affect personal and spiritual growth
Ray to the attentional principle – present in Initiates, this gives the ability to guide the attentional principle on the inner Planes and send the Light that the attentional principle can minister to others (Dhana). This operates on the fourth Pole of Being.
Ray to the present time on the Akashic Records Subplane – this injects the Soul’s intention into human life
Ray to the spirit – present in Initiates, this gives the ability to manifest a guide form to the spirit and teach it. This operates on the second Pole of Being.
Ray to the Kundalini – present in Initiates, this gives the ability to awaken the Kundalini in Self and others. This operates on the third Pole of Being.

As the Soul begins to awaken aspects of its Purpose, it begins to overshadow the Self and the ego. At a higher station on the Path, it can minister on the second, third, and fourth Poles of Being.

Typically, these abilities to interface with these different aspects dawn at discrete levels of the Soul’s spiritual evolutionary journey:

The Ray to the Self (1) usually awakens during the Third Planetary Initiation, but in a few rare individuals, it may occur as early as the First Mesoteric Initiation—in a more limited way than when it dawns in the Third Planetary Initiation.

The Ray to the ego (2) normally opens when the Soul enters the First Exoteric Initiation, where it gains the ability to invoke the Holy Spirit. Those in the Psychic Realm and Wisdom Plane can begin to make attunements with the ego through radiative healing modalities and using evocative meditation techniques and prayer, but this does not directly draw down the Holy Spirit, as those in the First Initiation are able to do.

The Ray to the issues in the unconscious mind (3) begins to activate when the Soul reaches the Dynamic Creation Subplane of the Abstract Mind Plane. This work with these issues is commonly done using techniques like tapping, hypnosis, affirmation, or process meditation.

The Ray to the attentional principle (4) dawns in the Mudrashram® tradition, once the Form of the Disciple is empowered on the Bridge Path. Those who are Initiates in other traditions may also give this attunement—Adept Masters, Yogi Preceptors, Cosmic Masters, certain Gurus on Supracosmic Paths, and Initiates on the Bridge Path can work on this fourth Pole of Being.

The Ray to the Wave of the Present Time (5) first appears when the Soul moves onto the Akashic Records Subplane, when the Soul’s intuitive and volitional streams begin to interface with human life. The ability to make this attunement is significantly enhanced as the Soul moves into the Dynamic Creation Subplane and the Universal Mind Subplane of the Abstract Mind Plane, and the Materialization and Dematerialization Subplane of the Psychic Realm.

The Ray to the spirit (6) arises in the Mudrashram® tradition, once the Form of the Disciple is empowered on the Bridge Path. Those who are Initiates in other traditions may also give this attunement—Light Masters of the Second Cosmic Initiation, Gurus of selected Supracosmic Paths, and Sat Gurus of the eight Transcendental Paths can minister to the spirit and guide it on the second Pole of Being.

The Ray to Kundalini (4) begins in the Mudrashram® tradition, once the Form of the Disciple is empowered on the Bridge Path. Those who are Initiates in other traditions may also give this attunement—Ascended Masters, Adept Masters, Yogi Preceptors, Cosmic Masters, Supracosmic Gurus, and Initiates on the Bridge Path can work on this third Pole of Being to raise this energy of awareness.

The emergence of these Rays grants you new abilities:

When the Ray to the Self starts to operate, the Soul can lead the personality to carry out its Soul Purpose.
Once the Ray to the ego is established, you can begin to self-soothe, to calm yourself down, and to pacify upsets.
Activation of the Ray to the unconscious mind allows you to work on the issues in your unconscious mind and resolve them.
Access to the Ray to the attentional principle lets you to act as a guide to the attention and the attentional principle on the inner Planes.
Turning on the Ray to the Wave of the Present Time enables you to manifest the Soul’s volition into your human life, and you can begin to design your life through the Soul’s guidance and direction.
Switching on the Ray to the spirit permits you to guide the spirit, as it opens the channels of the Nada.
Becoming empowered to awaken the Kundalini bestows on you the ability to open awareness into a spiritual essence—to a selected nucleus of identity or an ensouling entity—and to purify and animate your vehicles of consciousness of the Subconscious, Metaconscious, and Superconscious mind.

Realize that these Rays from the Soul do not all develop at the same time; they arise at different stages of the Path:

Someone in the Psychic Realm can utilize the Ray to the issues in the unconscious mind and the Ray to the Wave of the Present Time.
Those that reach the form of the Saint in the First Mesoteric Initiation add the ability to send the Ray to the ego.
Those that evolve into the Third Planetary Initiation additionally gain the ability to directly overshadow and guide the Self.
Those who rise to the state of Mastery in their spiritual traditions—depending on which spiritual Pole they operate—may gain the ability to make attunements with the attentional principle and/or the spirit, and/or raise the Kundalini into the nucleus of identity or ensouling entity that dwells on their Path.

We encourage you to study these seven different Rays that come from the ensouling entity, and notice which ones are currently active in you. Those who elect to embark on the Teaching Empowerment track in our spiritual tradition and become empowered can make attunements with all four Poles of Being—not only with the spirit, the vehicles of the Superconscious mind, and the attentional principle, but they can also directly minister to the ensouling entity on the first Pole of Being. We train and empower our advanced meditation students to do this in our Teacher Training One.

Seven Karmic Veils in the Planetary Realm

Posted on November 5, 2023 by George Boyd

Q: When karmic darkening occurs in the Subtle or Planetary Realm, does this darkening always appear in front of the Soul?

A: In cases where the ensouling entity is not moved down on its spiritual evolutionary track, karmic darkening in the Subtle and Planetary Realms commonly appears in front of the Soul Spark or Soul as a curtain of darkness that veils this ensouling entity. However, we also find this veil appearing at other levels:

The veil between the brain and the ego – this type of veil appears in those will intellectual deficits or dementia. This is a diminution of the capacity to reason and/or remember.
The veil between the ego and the conscience – this veil occurs in those who suppress the voice of the conscience, and act to achieve their desires—through any mean, fair or foul—regardless of the harmful effects on other people or the world around them. This veil is common in those who have antisocial and narcissistic personality disorders.
The veil over the Self – this veil arises in those who have experienced a severe trauma, and they can no longer know who they genuinely are. This loss of self leaves these individuals without the ability to discern their options, to set goals and make plans, to think objectively, and to know their values and what they stand for—they feel inauthentic and lost. Some of those with borderline personality disorder may experience this loss of self.
The veil over the thread of consciousness – this veil blocks attention from moving beyond a certain focal point on the thread of consciousness. Attention experiences an inner block or barrier that it cannot move beyond. This type of veil can stem from traumatic experiences associated with meditation or frightening or upsetting religious experiences. When this type of trauma exists, attentional movement beyond a certain level brings up emotions of fear, dread, or overwhelm.
The veil over the Moon Soul nucleus of identity – this veil is found in individuals who carry out adharmic or sinful actions in rebellion against their Soul Purpose or the Will of God. This is the type of sin that clergy of Judaism and Christianity seek to address through rites for absolution, repentance, and forgiveness of sins.
The veil over the thalamic center of the Soul’s essential vehicle – this veil may block the intuitive stream, the love stream, or the transpersonal will stream that flows out of the thalamic center of the Soul’s essential vehicle. Blockage of the intuitive stream hinders the ability to access the Soul’s intuition, wisdom, and guidance. Obstruction of the love stream may result in the inability to feel love for self and others. Inability to access the transpersonal will stream may hinder expression of the Soul’s genius and gifts through the personality, so that the individual can only express the talents of the Metaconscious mind.
The veil over the Soul – this is the most common type, which locks individuals in identity states separate from the Soul Spark or Soul. When this veil is dissolved, the Soul Spark or Souk is revealed behind this curtain of darkness—once this veil is removed, the ensouling entity can begin to move forward on its Path.

There are specific methods that may help you break up or move beyond these veils:

For (3), the veil over the Self, using the Centering Techniques—which we teach in our intermediate meditation courses, the in-person Mudrashram® Master Course in Meditation and the by-mail and online Accelerated Meditation Program—may allow some individuals to rediscover their Self, and work directly with the trauma that is creating the sense of separation.

For (4), the veil over the thread of consciousness, methods that explore trauma and release them—which we also teach in our intermediate classes—may assist some individuals to move through barriers on this attentional pathway. Learning Raja Yoga, moreover—also taught in our intermediate classes—also trains the attention to move beyond the sticking point.

For (6), the veil over the channels of the thalamic center of the Soul’s essential vehicle, the attunements given in the Mudrashram® Master Course in Meditation may aid some individuals in reopening and regaining a connection with the ensouling entity. The Jnana Yoga attunement re-activates the intuitive channel. The Agni Yoga attunement can permit some individuals to reconnect with the unconditional love of their Soul. The Kundalini Yoga attunement may enable some individuals to reconnect with the powers of their Superconscious mind, and be able to again express them.

For (7), the veil over the Soul, using the transformational mantra keyed to the cutting edge of spirituality that is revealed in our intermediate classes specifically burns away this veil when it is present, and allows the ensouling entity to move forward on its spiritual evolutionary track.

Some of these veils can be opened through specific meditation techniques and attunements. We encourage you to identify at which levels you might be experiencing these veils. Through studying what are the karmic issues encoded in the veil, you may find the means to begin to ameliorate its impact in your life—and with further inner work, you even can remove it completely.