Kavaca/Armour vs Possession

Hi Again,

This is part 2 of a discussion begun in the last blog on the practices of psychic protection.

Ok so we talked about psychic vampires. Now its time to talk about a much more serious problem. Possession. This occurs when vampirism reaches deep into someone's psychic body. It may occur over a long period or even quickly if the person is extremely vulnerable. This type of attack can occur through human or even non-human entities.

The easiest possessions to see are the ones that have occurred through people we know or have known. How do we know if these types of possessions have occurred? The person who possesses us occurs again and again in our consciousness, perhaps even after we have long left the relationship. We obsess on a lost love, we obsess on a broken friendship, we obsess on a long gone boss or relative. They may even still be in our lives. Do we have strange pains, symptoms, thoughts that might be connected with these people? It is important to examine all symptoms which might or might not be connected with these kind of people in order to see clearly where they stem from. Possession can continue to drain you dry even long, long after breaking from someone.

The harder possessions to see are those that occur through entities that we seemingly do not know. These may take the form of strange allergies, bodily or mental symptoms, pains, depression and other undesirable mental states. We may engage in activities which seem strange to us. To get at the root of some of these we may have to do some "detective" work to look back to times that we may have been vulnerable, to see how we may have left ourselves open to the external world in ways that it could easily enter.

Regardless of the source, there are means to clear these deeper level vampires. One of the most profound, that a good friend taught me is to use nature. Nature and the natural world is clear already. It isn't contaminated with reason, rationalism, conceptualism, objectivism. Spend some time in nature. ASK nature to clear, clean, and seal you. This is seemingly simple yet incredibly powerful. There are other techniques to use with nature but I have found this to be profound. Very profound. You have to really be open though. And you have to offer even a simple gift to nature in return.

Another method is to ask the divine, through whatever means you connect to do the same: to clear, clean, and seal you. This has to be done with pure faith and trust. Nothing that is not you can truly stand in the light of your own truth and this method will reveal that truth rapidly. Trust and be confident.

If you really need the heavy guns, there are mantras. Very powerful mantras. An even more powerful mantra of Durga is here (this can also be used in cases described in the previous blog):

Aim Hrim Klim Chamundaye Vicche

Use it only for protection and clearing. It is like a powerful explosion that burns out all impurities in your psychic body. It can be used similarly to the mantra given in the previous post. It is the Mother in her most protective, powerful aspect.

There are other mantras, even more sharp but these given, if used with pure faith have all the power you will most likely ever need.

See the fire explode inside you, burning out all that is not you. Let the fire of the Goddess clear and clean you thoroughly.

Let all holes be sealed and may your psychic shields be strong.

This can also be used for others as well as locations that are contaminated or tainted with bad juju.

A final word on protection. These practices become a hundred times stronger if you can actually feel them on the instrumental level. To truly feel the energy creating clearing and sealing is much more potent. This is one of the reasons for working with the yoga, as it brings us more clearly into this space.

May you all have strong boundaries and healthy relationships.

Kavaca/Armour vs the Psychic Vampires

"Mind vampires are real."

Dan Simmons, Introduction to 2009 edition of Carrion Comfort

I wanted to talk a little bit about a discussion we had in last weeks class. The topic of psychic vampirism and the relation of the tantric practice of kavaca or armour.

In our daily lives we oftentimes leave ourselves open and vulnerable to psychic attack or feeding by others.

Vampirism is a very old concept and it is one that is based very much in truth. Vampires are in fact real. Not so much blood sucking freaks that we kill with stakes but rather people (maybe even ourselves, do you know if you are one?) that feed off of the life energy of others.

It is important to recognize signs of psychic attack and feeding and know how to protect yourself.

I want to clarify that by using the term psychic vampire we are not casting judgement or condemnation on these individuals, because in fact I believe that most vampires do not know they are vampires. They have been conditioned through various means to seek satisfaction and energy through others, and most likely do not know they are doing it on a conscious level. So more than anything they deserve our compassion. Nevertheless, protection is important.

So how do we know if we are the victim of such psychic feeding or attack? We examine how we feel around a person. How are we after we have spent some time with this person? Do we feel drained dry? Do we feel strange pains? Do we feel less energy? If so you may know a psychic vampire...

So how do we deal with such situations? Well remember one of the first rules of vampires: don't invite them in the door. They can't get in unless you invite them in. This is the most important form of protection. We should recognize our own boundaries and know who to let in and who not to. Our personal boundaries are key here. If this is done, if our boundaries are firm, the first layer of protection will keep them out.

So what do we do if we have already invited them in? There are several methods, which are rooted in the ancient tantric practice of kavaca or psychic armour.

It is important to sit with yourself and examine all of the places of vulnerability that you feel in your life that are connected with other people. There are many places that we open ourselves to others : sharing parts of ourselves with others that may be better kept private, extending ourselves too much socially, communicating too much through means like the internet or texting, acting in relationships more out of fear than genuine truth. In the above, the internet has become a very powerful potential place of vulnerability. We can shoot off emails quickly in modes of reaction rather than careful thought. We can expose ourselves to many at a time through broadcasting our lives through blogs or facebook. It is important to first see where you are vulnerable.

Once determining vulnerable spots, you have to "fill" in these spots. This can be as simple in the beginning as discontinuing certain patterns that have been used til now. Don't send off emails in anger. Don't broadcast yourself as much. Don't overextend yourself socially. The next layer of "filling" is through actually seeing protection in these holes. This can be done through visualization techniques. Fire, fierce deities or protectors, swords, knives, armor, any thing protective can be visualized guarding these holes. If you are not sure about the holes or can't psychically or physically feel them, use the 10 directions. Start in the east, then go south, west, north, southeast, southwest, northwest, northeast, down, and up. Visualize a shield of protection around yourself.

Mantra is the traditional tool of kavaca, utilized in addition to the above visualizations. Mantra is very powerful. One good mantra is the mantra of Durga, a fierce protector form of the Goddess. Say the following in all 10 directions or to seal the holes.

Om Hrim Dum Durga Devaye Svaha

Visualize fire in each of the directions or any of the other protective signs as you chant.

If you do this practice each day your armour will seal up and you will start to protect yourself from psychic feeding and attack. Remember to combine the practice with compassion. These mantras and practices are not meant to hurt others but only to seal your boundaries and protect yourself. Remember that those that feed on us really only deserve our compassion.

You may find that in extreme cases, you may have to exit a relationship altogether. It may not be possible to continue with a certain person if you find that you are only being drained dry. It is important to continue with these techniques even after exiting as sometimes the psychic hold is very strong, even after time and distance.

In addition, please remember the yama of asteya or non-stealing. Notice in your life where you steal energy from others. Do you take other's time without reciprocity? Do you steal others energy? It may not be immediately obvious. If you do notice that you might, try to pull back and learn to become more self contained, more self reliant. Learn to gain energy through positive means and try to heal relationships that may have been damaged through these faulty patterns.

Hope this helps.

Mudra of Great Joy

Surrender all of your limitations to the Mother.

It is only her play.

Give her all of your shame, fear, worry, anxiety, depression, contraction, inadequacy, doubt, tiredness, lack, guilt, mistakes, limitation.

It is only her play.

Shame is a dream. Fear is a dream. Worry is a dream. Anxiety is a dream. Depression is a dream. Contraction is a dream. Inadequacy is a dream. Doubt is a dream. Tiredness is a dream. Lack is a dream. Guilt is a dream. Mistakes are a dream. Limitation is a dream.

It is all only her play.

Step into Space. Let go into the River. Trust.

You are worthy. Inherit your birthright.

She will carry you.

You are expanding, all expansive. Brih.

Clarity and Space, ever expanding, all expansive. Brih.

The crow, dark as Kali and Krishna,

carries you into that infinite sky of space

on wings of Openness and Acceptance,

shouting its cry of Joy,

"Kha! Kha! Kha!"

(composed spontaneously in the sky of space, waiting at the drive-through of Real Food Nation for breakfast burritos on the glorious morning of August 27, 2011)

Mudra

Of late I have been exploring much more in depth the realm of mudra. I am not talking so much of the common hand mudras or even the outer expressions of mudra which are seen as the traditional hatha mudras but the innermost aspect of mudra which gives rise to the previous.

It is unfortunate in some ways that so much emphasis is given to the outer aspects of mudra as the inner meaning can be very difficult to locate from here.

Mudra is the deepest tool within the traditional techniques of yoga to connect us all the way through the continuum of our being. And every mudra works slightly differently to emphasize a different aspect of our opening into fullness.

Shambhavi mudra begins like the stem and then opens into the flower of clarity.

Many of the mudras like the traditional bandhas, the Vajroli, and the Yoni mudra also work with the central nadi and act like a river leading to the opening of the mouth of the ocean.

The Pasa mudra, extremely powerful and simultaneously tricky, works with the desire and expands into bliss.

These mudras work in some way first with contraction or narrowing that expands later into vastness.

Other mudras like Khecari expand us directly into space.

Each mudra works with an aspect of our limitation and reveal the deeper face of what that limitation actually is.

Many in the beginning feel confused by these subtle techniques. It is important to know where to enter. The space of transition is very powerful as it is here that a deeper window opens up to us. This is why the traditional pranayama and khumbhaka (retention) have been given first in the texts, to teach us to enter these transitions. The bandhas are a good place to start. The simple transitions in our life are also powerful.

Mudra occurs itself as a transition. A transition from the objective rational world to the instrumental world of the sensory. The transition may also affect us in such a radical way that it drops us directly down to the subjective level or even below that to the radiance of our natural state. The instrumental and subjective layers of our being are vast continuums themselves and the mudra can help us cross this large landscape in a powerful mode of exploration.

When you begin to really explore this level of mudra it is like entering a river and trusting it to take you. You start to learn how to feel it out and it speaks to you, calling you, correcting you. It is dialing into the deepest core of your being and as you follow this river, many things around and in you change or transform. It is very organic.

There are other mudras, many, some of which I am only beginning to see. This world is vast. The instrumental layer of our being is vast. It is a landscape of great beauty. Navigating this landscape feels like swimming in a deep full ocean of incredible wonders.

The Nadis, Part 2

What is it that creates limitation and contraction of our receptive and expressive flows? The word used in sanskrit is dukha. Dukha I think has come to be much mis-understood in contemporary spiritual culture and I believe even among many of the ancients.

Dukha literally means "contracted space". Some traditions hold that dukha is a fundamental quality of existence. I don't subscribe to this view. Anyone with any sensitivity who has spent any amount of time in nature understands this on a deep level. One definition used for dukha oftentimes is "suffering". Is suffering a quality of existence itself? I think it is important to look deeper. If you really look, existence contains within it hardship. Some have it easier than others. But is this the same as suffering? Is this the same as contracted space? No. Hardship and suffering are different. We have all seen in our life how sometimes one has the most intense hardships and yet hardly suffers, while others living in the lap of luxury suffer the worst hells of their own imaginings. Hardship may be a quality of existence but suffering is not. Our natural world is filled with space, openness.

Dukha is a product of our own mind. Illusions take place there, for bad or good. The natural world is as it is, natural, open, spacious, vast. To enter this world we have to let go of that which contracts us. This is true Khecari, that powerful mudra which means "to go or to move in space".

Working with the nadis, we see where we are contracted, where we cling. What does it mean to let go into space? Does it mean we let go through external action, relinquishing our physical world? No. The relinquishment takes place on a deep mental, deep bodily level. We actually let go into the truth that is staring right at us. We are living and breathing right now in that space.

The world of sukha or "open space" is a vast one. Infinite potential. Bliss of our truth. And what is that truth? That everything is as it is. Things as they are are wondrous, beautiful, and reflect constantly to us the Light of who we are. Matter IS Spirit. Spirit IS Matter. There is no split. There is no contraction. Dukha is only like a dream.