VoidSensationDissolutionVerse 82intermediate
The Body Without Support
Seated or lying, contemplate the body as resting on nothing; as the mind thins, old tendencies fall away.
Source verse · Verse 82
आसने शयने स्थित्वा निराधारं विभावयन्। स्वदेहं मनसि क्षिणे क्षणात्क्षीणाशयो भवेत्॥
āsane śayane sthitvā nirādhāraṃ vibhāvayan | svadehaṃ manasi kṣiṇe kṣaṇāt kṣīṇāśayo bhavet
Seated or lying, contemplate the body as resting on nothing; as the mind thins, old tendencies fall away.
▶ Practice this technique10 / 20 min · eyes closed
How to practice
- 1Lie down or sit comfortably and let the body be completely at ease.
- 2Contemplate that the body rests on no support at all — floating, unsupported, in open space.
- 3Hold that "supportless body" steadily, releasing the felt weight and contact.
- 4As the contemplation deepens, the mind grows thin; let even the old habit-patterns (āśaya) dissolve in that openness.
Practice note. Especially good lying down or when very tired. The release of "being held up" lets both the body-sense and mental residues settle.
Terms in this technique
- śūnya
- Void, emptiness — not nothingness but open, contentless awareness.
- laya
- Dissolution, absorption; the merging of attention into its source.
- sākṣin
- The witness; awareness that observes without being touched.
Sources consulted
- Jaideva Singh, Vijñānabhairava: The Manual for Self-Realization (Motilal Banarsidass, 1979)
- Bettina Bäumer, Vijñâna Bhairava: The Practice of Centering Awareness (Indica Books, 2011)
- Swami Lakshmanjoo, Vijnana Bhairava: The Manual for Self Realization (Universal Shaiva Fellowship, 2007)