6 0 S p i r i t ua l i t y S t u d i e s 8 - 2 Fa l l 2 0 2 2 Here ends the song of nādānusandhāna, the key to the gates of śambhavi mudrā. To achieve this stage of dhyāna (meditation) the following skills and practical knowledge are required: 1. The 16 supports of the moon with its knowledge extracted through practical experience. 2. Yoginicharananyasavidhim, the invocation of Śakti through the placement of sound with touch. 3. Knowledge of the cakras. 4. Knowledge of the 16 nādīs, “the channels of sound”. 5. The required āsanas for the uttering of AUM HAMSA. These are simha, bhadrā, goraksa, bhaga, and kandā. The singing must be done while sitting in kandāsana and the sound of AUM HAMSA must rise from the mūlācakra, without the aid of tongue, teeth, throat, or lips. The singing of the song should not last more than 30 minutes. From there one rises to nrtta, “pure dance”, as it is hinted in the beginning verse, then returning to the floor into siddhāsana and continue with the song through silent repetition, until it begins to resonate within the innermost part of the right ear. It is at this point that one must tune into the right ear and cease doing the japa. The most difficult task is to tune into the point and listen, so that one can hear the sounds that make up the mantra dissolve into an atomic grain of sound, which will be very distinct and in constant change. This will carry one through the transitions between the four states of nādānusandhāna described above. Each one is marked by its own distinctive sound and content. Those practitioners who have mastered vajrolī, kapali, śakticalani, and khecarī mudras, will have a lighter journey than those who have not, since mastery of these four mudras brings the advantage of “spontaneous suspension of breath” (kēvalakumbhaka), the moment they assume their seat in siddhāsana. Reflecting on these requirements and stages one can see that meditation is not the easy path to tread, as so many deluded people of this present age believe.
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