Learn Mindfulness Meditation
What you'll learn
- Understand how natural breathing without controlling the breath results in calmness
- Find stillness without the practice of any specific breathing technique
- Attain peace of mind by simply watching the normal breath
- Increase your understanding of mindfulness through this daily practice
- Develop awareness of mindfulness into alertness of meditation
- Learn how the calm breath can be used to loosen the grip of subtle desires
- Learn how to let go from this practice of mindfulness meditation
- Learn how to objectively observe and accept the reality of how things are
- Understand this starting step of mindfulness meditation as per the ancient Aham Graha practice from Vedanta philosophy
Requirements
- This course is designed for beginner students and advanced practitioners alike – no experience or prior knowledge is necessary to learn and practice this guided mindfulness meditation.
Description
Experience calmness of mind with this sitting practice of mindfulness meditation based on natural breathing. In this course you will learn how to meditate from a genuine Himalayan siddha monk, His Holiness Swami Vidyadhishananda. Overcome internal chatter and find inner peace as you sink into a calm state of mind effortlessly.
We will explore the relationship between a calm breath, our lifeforce energy (prana), and our own subtle desires, to begin to understand how to still the mind through mindfulness meditation. You will be given stepwise guided meditation practices that increase in duration to allow you to develop the practice and slowly build up to longer meditation sessions.
Beginner students will find the practice natural and innate, allowing them to tap into a calm state of being. Advanced practitioners will reconnect to the roots of mindfulness that are essential for advanced techniques and study.
This practice is traditionally known as Aham Graha – a contemplative mindfulness practice that first focuses on overcoming subtle desires related to worldliness that seize the heart. The first part of this Aham Graha contemplation is the mindfulness meditation practice related to attaining calmness by watching the natural breath. Higher steps of Aham Graha progressively build upon the energy of mindfulness attained through the initial sitting meditation practice.
This course offers learners both the guided meditation practice and its theory (philosophical basis) required to develop a daily mindfulness meditation practice. You will practice transcending the restlessness of the mind by breathing without the intentionality of control. The chapters lay the foundation for deeper practices of Aham Graha and prepare you for higher yoga of meditation.
The equanimous observance by the practitioner begins by watching the natural breath fully without the sense of agency arising from controlling the breath. Releasing the intentionality behind the act of control slowly allows the practitioner to imbibe the energy of mindfulness and accept things as they are without being reactive.
The separate guided meditation sessions of increasing duration progressively add elements that guide the practitioner along the path. It is advisable to start with the shorter duration and then try the longer sessions.
In the module Going deeper with your meditation you will find videos that explore the conceptual framework of the initial phases in Aham Graha reflective contemplation – a meditation of being, by letting go, loosening the shackles of the subtle desires, where there is emphasis on non-duality. Aham Graha contemplation develops understanding of what burdens the heart, how to experience inner peace, and how to become free from the sensations or recollections of pleasure and pain that hold us back from launching a deep meditation.
Benefits from Taking this Course
Calmness by simply watching the flow of natural breathing
Peace without occupying the mind on any particular breathing technique
Better awareness of your natural breath
A daily mindfulness meditation practice
Increasing your understanding of mindfulness
Learn how to let go through a sitting mindfulness practice
Discover why watching the breath without controlling allows for freedom from volitional impulse
Learn how the calm breathing can be used to loosen the grip of subtle desires
Understand the meaning of ancient Aham Graha self-observation process from Vedanta philosophy
Images used with permission: Himalaya photo in the course banner graphic (pink hue) is by Ashok Dilwali. Himalaya photo in the course preview video is by Harish Kapadia.
Who this course is for:
- Anyone wishing to experience inner peace
- Anyone wishing to conquer internal chatter
- Anyone wishing to learn how to let go
- Anyone who has an interest in mindfulness or meditation
- Anyone wishing to experience mental clarity
- Anyone wishing to explore meditation without the sense of agency involved in controlled breathing
- Beginner, intermediate level or well-practiced meditators alike
- Anyone willing to start with 20 minutes of sitting mindfulness practice
- Anyone wishing to understand how subtle desires grip and bring about distractions
- Anyone wishing to feel the energy of mindfulness
Instructor
- 4.5 Instructor Rating
- 290 Reviews
- 1,757 Students
- 1 Course
HH Swami Vidyadhishananda is a highly realized siddha monk who reveals to us a Himalayan tradition of higher yoga based on his tutelage within the Sanskrit heritage. He hails from lineages of meditation adepts from Himalaya who are known for their combination of rishi sagely scholarship and nātha yogic practices. Deep meditation on the Sanskrit verses of cardinal philosophies and monastic inquiry methods led to his profound realization. His Holiness teaches cardinal philosophies with exquisite clarity directly from the original Sanskrit literature.
He is among the very few scholars available in the West to be awarded the degree of Mahāmahopādhyāya (DLitt et Phil) by the President of the Association of Indian Universities and the Sanskrit scholars of Calcutta, India. The degree was conferred in recognition of his meditative interpretation, scholarly analysis, and ability to articulate the philosophical nuances of Sanskrit literature.
He has lectured around the world as an emissary of peace, bridging spiritual traditions and sharing the universal teachings of Sanskrit philosophy. As the President monk of the United States Nonprofit, Self Enquiry Life Fellowship (Hansavedas), India Nonprofit, Vedic Heritage Research Foundation (Vedanidhi), and Sri Paramanada Ashram Trust (consortium of five institutions in India with campuses of children’s accelerated learning schools) he is a guiding light to seekers and devotees.
Leadership Roles in USA & India
President, Self Enquiry Life Fellowship (Hansavedas), California, USA
President, Vedic Heritage Research Foundation (Vedanidhi), Varanasi, India
President, Sri Paramananda Ashram Trust (Consortium), Prayagraj, India
Swami Paramananda Ashram, Prayagraj
Swami Narottamananda Veda Vidyalaya (Veda Chanting School), Prayagraj
Sri Gangeshwar Sanskrit Vidyalaya (Sanskrit Language School), Prayagraj
Kapila Sangam Ashram, Amarkantak
Om Nivas Ashram, Haridwar
Vice President, Tripura Yogashram, Haridwar, India