Selfrealization and enlightenment is love-bliss

(2007)

Question: What should we do, when we experience bliss in meditation?

Jan: Enjoy it of course.

Q: Isn't that a trap?

J: It depends on how you relate to the enjoyment. If you identify with the enjoyer and get anchored in ego-gratification, then it is a trap. The sense of I am the owner of bliss, is of course a trap, but if on the other hand your notion is that you are being infused with divine grace, then it is not a trap. Just don't claim ownership of the bliss; receive it as a gift and enjoy.

Q: it still sounds as if one could get stuck there.

J: You should always try to go beyond ecstasy into peace without loosing the bliss. You will then go from ananda to paramananda, from bliss to lovebliss.

Q: How?

J: It takes years of experimenting. But basically, simple as it may sound, you need to be able to enjoy the bliss fully, then take a breath and let go. If you are immersed in enjoying the bliss, without any fear or reservation, then the letting go will automatically let the shakti pull you into paramananda. Remember this is where the shakti wants to take you, so once you reach ananda, then you are at the door of paramananda. So you should merge with the bliss and in the merging forget yourself. Then let go. If on the other hand you succumb to the ecstatic bliss as a supreme sensual gratification, then you will get stuck. because of the incredible delight of ecstatic bliss, this is of course a very possible error to commit.

Q: So what you call enjoying fully is the same as merging?

J: Exactly. You can't enjoy bliss fully if you are scared of it or overwhelmed or if you separate yourself from it by ego-trips like pride or greed or possessiveness. I know it is difficult in the beginning, but you need to be able to enter ecstasy and then regain your coolness. The only way you can reach supreme coolness is by transcending ecstasy, not by controlling it. Paramananda is supremely cool because there is no ego in it. It is just calm bliss and love.

Q: You distinguish between bliss and lovebliss. That gives the impression that love comes after bliss. I had the impression, that love came before.

J: I am talking about paramananda, which is a state, not a fleeting experience like ecstatic ananda. This state is both love and bliss at the same time. It is also called satchitananda, which means being-consciousness-bliss. It is the same as the supreme Self, called paramatman. Lovebliss has nothing to do with worldly love nor even with love of persons or objects as such, it is simply pure Being in and of itself. You can experience love without bliss and bliss without love. So you can't say one comes before the other. I know some claim bliss is higher than love because they maintain bliss belongs to chakras above the heart and love belongs to the heart, but that is not my experience at all. There is love all the way up, but it changes its quality and your understanding of it changes also. It is the same with bliss. You can call supreme joy bliss -- which is the common use of the term bliss. Or you can call ecstasy bliss or the merging in the Self bliss. So in a sense there is bliss all the way also.

Q: So are love and bliss separate aspects or expressions of the Self?

J: The Self is lovebliss. You can't distinguish the two at all. But remember it is totally at peace and totally detached. Also both are Shakti in its pure form, which is identical with Shiva in its pure form. Shiva is of course pure being -- and pure being, the Self, is not passive, it has a dynamic throb to it, it vibrates so to speak, and this vibrant throb is lovebliss which is Shakti. In Kashmir Shaivism it is also called Spanda.

Q: But everybody knows what love is. So few know what bliss is. Unless of course, people speak of bliss as supreme joy.

J: Very few know what love is also. Most people speak of infatuation and desire as love. Common love is dualistic, it has two poles: a desired object and a desirer who wants the object. Boy wants girl or vice versa. But in supreme love, you don't desire the loved object. Very few know this kind of love, just as very few know the kind of bliss that is paramananda. The interesting thing is, that if they knew only one, the other would soon follow. They are two sides of the same coin so to speak.

Q: So what should we do, if we experience one or the other in a high degree in our meditation? How do we move on to lovebliss?

J: When kundalini reaches the brain, lovebliss will be your natural state. It can be more or less intense depending on how much of kundalini has taken residence in the brain, but never the less it will be You, meaning you will realize the supreme Self as You. So in order to reach beyond love and bliss as a duality, you should work with kundalini in an effort to awaken and arouse it and bring it to the brain.

Q: Yes, but in meditation, when ecstasy comes, what then?

J: Never react to bliss as an object -- as something separate from you that you have the good fortune to experience. Remind yourself that it is The Self beginning to manifest in you and aim for blissful being beyond blissful ecstasy. Don't think about whether it is love or bliss or lovebliss, simply enjoy the bliss fully and let go into calm merging with it, then you will transcend the ecstasy and suddenly find yourself in total calmness, which is even more blissful. The transformation from ecstasy to peaceful paramananda is rather sudden, it is like a bubble that bursts. Meanwhile you may become filled with light and you may even merge into a supreme sky blue space of pure consciousness. Simply enjoy that and remind yourself it is the Self manifesting. It is not an experience that you are having, it is you true Self emerging, so enjoy it and merge with it.

Q: So when bliss suddenly comes, should we stay detached from it?

J: No, not at all. Merge with it. By enjoying it fully, you will naturally merge with it. Don't distance yourself from it by observing it or being detached or anything like that. Considering the bliss an experience to observe or be detached from is a very bad practice. It is your Self emerging, so merge with it, be totally engulfed by the bliss and it will suddenly become tranquil lovebliss.

Q: So we really can't do anything to get from bliss to lovebliss, except surrender?

J: Exactly. You have to surrender all the way. Surrender, surrender, surrender. You can't merge with bliss if you don't surrender to it. You can't surrender to it, if you distance yourself from it. You remove the distance by totally enjoying it. And enjoying totally means that there is nothing in your awareness but the bliss. And this means, that you should have no fear of it, no pride while experiencing it, no sense of causing it or owning it. When bliss arises, there should be only bliss in your awareness.

Q: But when I experience bliss, my heart races, my breath becomes fast, and my body tingles. All that is very distracting. Should I try to fight that and remain calm?

J: Don't fight any of all that. They are all good signs, called kriyas. Kriyas are spontaneous activities caused by the shakti itself. So what you should do is simply to be with what ever is going on and allow it to happen as it happens automatically. You can stop it, but that will most likely stop the bliss also. Remember, at this stage bliss causes agitation or ecstasy. Let the body and mind be excited, but still try to have nothing in your awareness but the bliss. Then suddenly the bubble of agitation will burst, you will feel a huge expansion and be in a state of calm lovebliss.

Q: So what if our kundalini is not awakened and rising?

J: Yes, once kundalini is awakened and rising, it is a very easy and enjoyable path. It is very automatic. The hard part is to get kundalini awakened and rising, so you will begin to get bliss into your system. In order to start this process, I have described a simple meditation and I also recommend shaktipat. If you do the described meditation with the firm conviction that kundalini really is rising, at least partially, you will soon get kundalini aroused and experience bliss. Then when the bliss comes, forget your meditation practice and merge with the bliss by enjoying it totally. Then when you come out of the bliss, immediately pick up your practice again. Don't try to figure out how you got there in an attempt to get there again. Remember the bliss is not of your doing, it is the Self revealing itself, it is an act of grace, a gift. So surrender to it, when it is there, and when it is not there, invite it by doing the simple kundalini meditation.