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84. As the meditator gazes fixedly, in the inner sky, in front of the centre of the eyes following the technique as taught by an adept Guru, he pierces the gross creation by entering through what is variously termed “Âjnâ Chakra”, ‘Sushumnâ’, the Third Eye/Til, The Single Eye, The Tenth Door/Gate etc. From here begins the state or Zone of Turiya which starting from the Âjnâ Chakra extends up to the Realm of Quintessential Unstruck Melody or Pure Consciousness; the transcendental Supreme Being in His pure form lies beyond the Plane of Pure Consciousness. The realms/zones encountered by a practitioner of inner meditation beginning from the Âjnâ Chakra could be listed as i) Sahasrâr/ Sahastra-Dal-Kamal (Thousand-petalled Lotus) where Moon is sighted within, ii) Trikutî where the meditator visualises spotless Sun, iii) shûnya (Void), iv) Mahâshûnya (Greater Void), v) Bhanvar Gufâ (Spiralling or Whirling Cave) or Mahâkâran (Supra-causal or Equilibrial Primordial Nature), and vi) Satlok/ Sachkhand (True World) or Hiranyagarbha (Golden Womb) or Kaivalya/ Chetan Mandal (Zone of Pure Consciousness or Samashti Prâna (Universal Life Force). The Supreme Being is clearly visualised as the meditating Soul rises into the Sphere of Pure Consciousness though a very thin veil separating the Soul from the Supreme Soul still remains. Unity or identity or merger with the Supreme Being is attained only after even the last Realm that is, the Realm of Pure Consciousness is transcended. Thus is bhakti (meditation or worship) completed or perfected resulting into complete liberation or salvation.
96. Traditionally a jail or a prison in India has a large campus or premise having a number of cells in each of which is kept imprisoned a prisoner. Sants have likened this world to a jail wherein each body of a creature is a cell in which an individual soul is incarcerated. To break free of this jail is the liberation of the Soul. Sadguru Maharshi Mehî Paramhans would say, the Supreme Being has wonderfully designed His creation in that there is a very strong correlation between the outer world and our body. He would say that the level of the world we live and conduct in is the same as the level of the body we (the soul) inhabit. For instance, we currently live in the gross body, so we are aware of the gross body as well the gross world around us in which we conduct, and can travel from one place to another. If, by learning the needed tact, we can go beyond this gross body of ours into our astral body, we will become aware of the astral world around and be able to see or move through the same. Then again, moving this way, if we could cross over still further into the causal, supra-causal and Kaivalya/ conscious body, we would move into and be aware of the causal, supra-causal and conscious planes or spheres of Creation respectively. And, finally, if we transcend even the Kaivalya Sharîr (Conscious or Chetan Body) we would be absolutely free of all the bodies, of all the prisons and merge with the God to be one with Him. This would be total liberation or freedom from the prison. Those who attain this state are called “Jivanmukta” (liberated in life).
97. To move within or beyond the gross body one has to close both eyes and intently gaze, as taught by an accomplished Guru, in front in the dark void without letting the sight waver sideways or in any other direction. This is tantamount, says Maharshi Mehî Paramhans, to taking a firm position in the front and battling the restive & formidable foe that is, our own mind.
98. It is common experience of anyone who tries to meditate that the mind or attention keeps frequently slipping from the target – be it the chanting of a mantra, visualising internally the form of desired deity or Guru, or trying to focus one’s gaze in the front. A meditator has to be aware of the fidgety character of the monkey – mind and keep trying to apply it back, again & again every time it strays, to the desired target – this act or process is known as Pratyâhâr. Thus, in the initial stages of meditation it has to be a constant & conscious struggle against the restiveness of the mind. But once the mind begins to get a taste of the bliss that lies within, this task of counselling the mind becomes progressively easier as the mind itself, having tasted the joy, becomes eager to sink into that experience again & again and becomes our fondest friend.
99. This has reference to the Drishtii Yoga or the Yoga of Inner Light that consists in gazing intently in the inner dark void and trying to collect & focus the vision into a point. When that happens, the soul along with the mind pierces or enters through that Point-hole to move into the realm of resplendence. So, the Point Route here, in this verse, is a reference to the Sushumnâ/ Âjnâ Chakra/Third Eye/Single Eye/Tenth Door/Shiva Netra.
100. Beyond the formed creation or the Domain of Light lie the Zones of Sound as suggested by Maharshi Mehî Paramhans in a schematic sketch of Inner Cosmology. Beyond Trikutî, up to where the domain of Light extends, there lie a number of zones of Sound namely, shûnya (Void or what Sufi mystics call as Lahût), Mahâ shûnya (Greater Void or Hahût of Sufis), Bhanwar Gufâ (Spiralling or Whirling Cave or Hûtal Hût of Sufis) and the highest or loftiest realm of Kaivalya/Chetan Mandal or Hiranyagarbha (Zone of Pure Consciousness or Hût of Sufis). The sounds of zones lower than that of the Pure Consciousness or Kaivalya Mandal are broadly categorised as “Âhat Shabd (‘Âhat’ meaning ‘Struck’ and ‘shabd’ meaning ‘Sound/Word’)” (that is, Words or Sounds produced due to striking/collision/rubbing of more than one things) or also as “Anhad Nâd” (Words or Sounds countless or limitless in variety – ‘Anhad’ meaning limitless or countless and ‘Nâd’ meaning word/sound/vibration), while the Sound of the Kaivalya Mandal (Plane of Pure Consciousness) is only one and unique and is called Anâhat Shabd/Nâd (Unstruck Name or Word or Sound as it directly emanates from the One Only God) or Sâr Shabd (Quintessential Sound). The Quintessential Unstruck Sound, more popularly known as Aum/ Om, is directly and ever-connected to God and, hence, is capable of leading unto Him and liberate completely.