“Govinda Govinda Hari Hari



INNER PATH TO BLISS – THE ESSENCE OF IPSALU TANTRA

SCRIPT - “AWAKENING TO PRESENCE”

Bold = Activity approximate duration (suggested music)

Bold = Purpose/Essential Teachings or Experiences

Italics = Things to say, pretty close to verbatim

. . . = leave a gap, enough time for an experience

Regular = Directions or concepts, in your own words.

(in parens) = (Notes to facilitator. Not to be verbalized).

Set the Space Staff meets to align energies, bless and ground the space.

Checking in Have participants confirm their contact information. Get name tags.

Put on music to set mood 10-15 minutes ahead of start time (Rag Madhuvanti, Pt. 2) Greet participants.

Warm-up Movements 7 minutes (Rag Madhuvanti, Pt. 2). Get participants in their bodies, witnessing body sensation and movement. Intro: Tantra is staying present with whatever aspect of our humanness or divinity

is asking for expression in the moment, simply witnessing without judgment. When you are in the present,

your mind chatter ceases and you experience yourself as Divine Essence. We connect now with the body, this sacred gateway into the present. Say “hello” to your body – tapping, stroking, be aware of body sensations. Witness body movement as participants rise to feet, walk through room going in different directions, eyes down, first slowly, then gradually increase speed, faster, playful, chaotic (but mindful to avoid bumping into other bodies)

Sound Meditation 5 minutes. Still the mind, come present. Find your seat and come into a meditative posture. Strike a chime, bell, or gong. Let the tone ring out. With eyes closed follow the tone as it fades into silence. Repeat twice more. Take a deep breath in, exhale while gently opening your eyes. Notice feeling more present.

Greeting 5 mintues Lay the groundwork for the evening/weekend. Welcome to course, theme and purpose of class, schedule, orientation to venue.

Agreements 5 minutes. To create a safe, sacred container. (May want to have participants standing up – long time sitting during the next exercise). To create and maintain and safe and sacred space we have a few guidelines we ask you to honor. Ask for a show of hands for each guideline – if you agree; if you disagree

• No cell phones in the room

• Be on time in morning and after each break

• Keep confidential any personal sharing

• Take care of yourself, set and honor boundaries. i.e. modify exercises, sit on a chair if you need to. Don’t assume bodies are more available to you than normally. Honor each others’ boundaries and your own.

• Don’t leave without consulting staff, for other than bathroom break

• If you have a problem with someone, go only to that person, not to others

• Honor the divine in each other and yourself “Living the Namaste.” (i.e. letting go of judgment, recognizing each experience as a learning experience, even the uncomfortable ones).

• To be in support of each other to awaken! (Have participants turn to their partners and say, “I support you to awaken!”)

Introductions/Namaste. 15 minutes. Setting a spiritual tone, recognizing the Divine in ourselves by seeing it in others, practicing witness consciousness, listening to others with full presence. Namaste means “the god within me recognizes the god within you.” This is the traditional translation. In tantra we don’t go for separation. A more tantric interpretation “Namaste, we are one in the energy of the divine.” First time go-around: Each in turn says their name, group responds, “Namaste ______” pressing breastbone to stimulate heart energy. Group follows with 1 full breath in and out to acknowledge and feel; 2nd time – popcorn around the circle: Briefly describe what feelings and body sensations you are aware of within. Second time through the circle (popcorn style): each participant shares: “Briefly describe what you observe inside of yourself right now.” Ask for volunteer to begin. Then have that participant call out someone else’s name in the circle to go next (participants all have nametags). Encourage participants to listen with full presence.

Discussion: What is Tantra/Ipsalu Tantra? 25 minutes. Let participants experience the teacher being totally present with the one s/he is talking to. Suggestion for leading this discussion in a fun, interactive way that is different from the Level 1 What is Tantra? Discussion: Refer to handout “ABCs of Ipsalu Tantra. Make a card for each word (or phrase) on a 8.5” x 5.5” cue card or on card stock (can be simple – words written on a card with a felt marker or fancy – printed and laminated, Ipsalu Tantra with anahata logo on one side and word/phrase on the other). Distribute cards on the floor in the center of the circle. Depending upon the group size, each individual (or pair or triad) picks a card with a word/phrase that interests them (they don’t necessarily have to know what it means). Return to the large circle. Allow a couple moments for participants to reflect upon the meaning this word/phrase has for them. If participants are in dyads or triads, they discuss amongst themselves and come to a consensus. Each individual (or spokesperson for each pair or group) shares with the larger group. Each answer generates a brief response from facilitator, acknowledging and/or elaborating. If any important aspects of tantra/ipsalu tantra haven’t been mentioned, facilitator can fill those in. End with a brief description of Ipsalu (see the “What is Ipsalu Tantra?” handout for ideas, inspiration).

Talk: What is Presence? 5 minutes. What is presence? How to determine when you are or aren’t present;

-Presence is the state of quiet mind and of embodied awareness.

-Recall a time, even a brief moment in your life where you remember someone being totally present with you. How did that feel? Pretty wonderful likely. Wonderful because Presence is a gateway to experiencing all the things we deeply long for as human beings: connection, love, being seen, being heard, knowing our truth, feeling ecstasy, experiencing God. Love only exists in the moment; the soul resides only in the here and now. Being present to yourself and to another is one of the most profound expressions of our love. It is a gift (“The past is history; the future, a mystery. Now is a gift. That’s why we call it the ‘present’.”). How rare those moments of relational presence are!

-You can increase the percentage of time you are present vs. not-present by learning to distinguish between the two.

-How do you know if you aren’t present? Three ways: 1) monkey mind 2) judgment 3) disconnect from your physical body/sense perceptions. Elaborate: 1) If your mind is busy, you are not present. Thoughts relate to the past or future, but not the present. 2) If there is judgment, criticism, blame, comparison, etc. you are not present. The ego judges. Ego operates only in relation to the past or the future. Soul simply observes without anything needing to change. Soul exists only in the present 3) the body exists only in the present. If you are unaware of any of your physical senses (i.e. touch, taste, sound, smell, or sight) it is likely that you are not present. (Gestures enhance learning! Go over the three ways with participants again. Pair each concept with a gesture and say the words aloud: 1) “monkey mind” - scratch under armpits, monkey face and “oo oo ah ah ee ee ee” 2) “judgment.” Look of disapproval, stand with one fist on hip and the other hand index finger gesturing “tsk-tsk” 3) “unconscious of body” – arms out to the sides, perplexed look, look upwards and around to your right and then upwards around to your left and say “where is my body?”).

-By contrast, how do you know when you are present? 1) your mind is quiet 2) there is no judgment, only neutral, benevolent observation 3) you are aware of your physical body or are experiencing your senses.

[67 minutes]

IPSALU FORMULA

Please come to standing. As you experience the following series of tantric exercises, remain curious to the experience. Observe moments of presence or non-presence throughout.

Dance 7 minutes (Angels’ Waltz) Activate the body, come present through dancing - innocent, playful, childlike.

“Govinda Govinda Hari Hari.” Say those words with me, “Govinda Govinda Hari Hari.” “Govinda Govinda Hari Hari!” (This is) a mantra in praise of Govinda, also known as Krishna, in his child form (from ancient Hindu mythology). Govinda is the divine kid within each of us: playful, innocent, mischievous, completely and utterly adorable. Find a partner. Interlock elbows. Walk, skip or dance one way and then the other with your partner. Then find another little Govinda to dance and play with. Begin!

Guided Meditation: Gateway of the Inner Body (adapted from Eckhart Tolle) 4 minutes (El Hadra: The Mystik Dance) – comes on at end of the meditation. Still the mind, learn embodied awareness. Lie down comfortably on your back. Arms and legs somewhat apart and palms turned upward if that’s comfortable . . . . . . To connect with the essence of your being it is essential to inhabit your body - because the body is a powerful opening into presence. . . . . . Without moving your hand or touching anything, with your eyes closed, ask yourself, “is there anyway I can know whether my right hand is still there or not?” Notice what you experience. . . . Aware that you are inhabiting your hand, you now know what it means to inhabit the body. Now inhabit the left hand. . . . Feel both hands at the same time, holding your attention there effortlessly. . . As you continue to feel your hands, feel the inner aliveness in your feet . . . Feel legs, arms, pelvis, torso and head. Sense the aliveness throughout your whole body so it becomes a single field of energy. . . . . . . Notice being as present in your feet as you are in your head. The center of gravity of who you are is no longer just in the head. It is all over your body . . . There is no effort involved, no trying. Just feel yourself being rooted within, inhabiting the body and holding that feeling. . . . . . Continue to hold attention in the body as you listen to the music - being present within and without at the same time. Listen to the music with your whole body. (long pause – 1 minute of music)

Meditation: Watch the Breath 7 minutes (El Hadra: The Mystik Dance). Still the mind, sustaining present time awareness. Become aware of your breath. . . Feel the flow of your breath in and out of your lungs. . . . Do not try to change the rhythm, the breathing is natural, automatic. . . you are not doing it, there is no effort. . . . Maintain awareness of your breath. Continue. . . complete awareness of your breath. . . . . . . Now feel the breath moving along the passage between the navel and the throat. . . on the inhalation it rises from the navel to the throat, on the exhalation it descends from the throat to the navel. . . . Be completely aware of the respiration, navel to throat, throat to navel. . . do not try to force the breath, just awareness. . . .Maintain your awareness and at the same time start counting your breaths backwards as follows: “27 breathing in; 27 breathing out; 26 breathing in; 26 breathing out,” and so on from 27 to 1. Count to yourself mentally as you follow the rise and fall of your breath from navel to throat and back again. . . . Total awareness of breathing and counting. . . . The breathing is slow and relaxed. . . please continue counting, remaining present throughout.

Aswini Mudra (simple version) 6 minutes (Kublai Tec). Activate shakti energy.

Drop your awareness to your pelvic floor. Begin to contract and relax the anal sphincter muscles, smoothly, rhythmically; isolating those muscles, as best you can, from the rest of the pelvic floor. . . Come to sitting. Continue with the contractions, about one pulse per second. Breathing is relaxed. . . . . .

Shakti-Shiva Mudra 3 minutes. Transmute sexual energy.

Come to standing, feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent, back straight.

- Inhale as you lift your hands up to your heart, elbows close in to the body. Feel you are drawing energy up from the earth.

- Exhale as you push the hands out fully in front of you. Giving the energy back to the world.

- Straighten the wrists, inhale as you raise your arms overhead, palms open to the heavens

- Exhale slowly as the arms come down in two large arcs, crossing at the third eye and at the sex. Feel the energy as it passes through the genitals.

Guide through twice more (using only key words this time to instruct), then have participants do twice more on their own. . . . . . . Relax your arms to your sides. Notice how your body feels, sensing your alive presence.

Puja 15 minutes (Mender of Hearts) – or other heartful music. Connecting energetically, developing relational presence, experience ability to see and to be seen, deepening capacity to receive.

Form two circles, one inside circle facing out and one outside circle facing in. Find a partner to stand in front of and hold hands (gender doesn’t matter). Release your hands.

1) Come to sitting back-to-back. Feel your partner’s breath. Expand your back into your partner’s as you inhale and feel your back draw back in on the exhale. Inhale through the nose. Exhale through the mouth. Synchronize your breathing to one another. Sense or imagine your breath flowing in and out through the center of your chest. As you inhale your heart expands; as you exhale, your heart softens. . . Now become aware of your partner’s energy. Connect with and feel your energy and your partner’s heart energy at the same time. . . . Take a deep breath in, exhale and very slowly draw apart from your partner. Turn around and help each other to standing, thanking them with a namaste bow. Everybody, take one step to the left to face a new partner. (repeat exercise twice more)

2) Greet this new partner by softly connecting through your eyes and sharing a namaste bow. Softly gaze into each other’s eyes. Looking beyond the physical eyes, see to your partner’s divine essence, the light shining within them . . . see their goodness, their beauty. . . . . . .Thank them with a namaste bow and step to the left (everyone). (repeat twice more)

3) Greeting this new partner with the namaste and holding a soft eye gaze, begin to notice the qualities you enjoy about this person (i.e. graceful, radiant, delightful, solid, powerful)? You are breathing and gently noticing what you sense about who this person is at their core. It may be qualities that are very present now, or qualities that are emerging. Either way, you will express them in the present tense. Outside partner, you’ll have 30 seconds to share what you see and appreciate about your partner. Inside partner, simply receive. . . . Acknowledge each other with a namaste bow and outside person *only* step to the left. (Repeat the exercise twice more, with the outside person giving essence appreciation to the inside person. Partners have not yet reciprocated – this will come. Instead, inside person continues to receive from 2 more partners; outside person continues to express appreciation. After the outside person has expressed appreciation to their 3rd partner, instruct participants to SWITCH PLACES with their partner. Now outside person is on the inside; inside person is on the outside. Partners connect through soft eye contact, taking a few breaths together. Now the *new* outside person reciprocates by sharing essence appreciation for the partner who had just shared with them. Outside partner now steps to the RIGHT. They should be facing the 2nd person who gave them essence appreciation earlier. Outside partner steps again to the right, to face the 1st person who shared with them). End by having partners thank each other in whatever way feels appropriate.

Contact Dance 5 minutes (Soul Bossa Nova) – 2x. Play.

Remaining in the double circle format, direct *everyone* to step to the RIGHT to face a new partner. . . . Partners contact the pads of their index fingers together and keep them in contact the whole time as they dance to the music. Open the circle into the larger space. Instruct partners to pair with someone new (perhaps someone they haven’t yet worked with). New partners connect this time the backs of their hands together and dance . . . then perhaps with elbows interlocked, pinkies linking, hips touching, etc. Continue in this manner - each time participants connect with a new partner, they connect in a new way.

Share 5 minutes. Come back to your seats in the large circle. . . Notice where you are. Describe in 1 or 2 words how you are feeling right now in this moment. . . . Who would like to share about their experience? (i.e. any insights, discoveries, surprises, challenges). Invite one or two more shares.

[52 minutes]

BREAK – 15 minutes

Talk 5 minutes. Obstacles to presence, using Witness Consciousness to transcend those obstacles.

-If presence opens the window to so many wonderful experiences (i.e. pleasure, love, divinity), why then wouldn’t we be present all of the time?

-Two obstacles: One is ego. The other in our constantly chattering mind.

- Our name is like the receptacle or basket of mental content with which we identify: Experiences, opinions, who your parents think you are, what you look like, knowledge, people you know, cultural background, your sufferings. The content of this basket forms our ego, our limited identity. There is a need to have a name . . . because a child is born without any boundary, with no idea of who he is. It is a survival necessity. The baby has to be given a name and an idea of who he is. Of course, this idea comes from the outside: somebody says you are beautiful, somebody says you are intelligent. We gather these things into the basket that is our name. The day that we realize our identity is false, constructed from the outside, we start seeking for some way to enter into our own being; how to know exactly, really, existentially who we are. To find this requires digging deep into our own being. Layers and layers of false identity have to be broken. And before we can come to our center, we will have to pass through a very chaotic state. There is fear of this chaos. Will it ever end? Will we be engulfed by it? Because of the fear of that chaos, we avoid coming present to our inner being. Instead we go on clinging to our safe and familiar, limiting identity. But this is wasting our life.

-Another obstacle to presence is our constantly chattering mind. Eckhart Tolle writes in The Power of Now, “Not to be able to stop thinking is a dreadful affliction, but we don’t realize this because almost every body is suffering from it, so it is considered normal.” This incessant mental noise prevents you from connecting with that realm of inner stillness where your soul, your divine essence resides. The mind translates every existential thing into a word. You see a flower and you verbalize it; you see a man crossing the street and you verbalize it. These words create a barrier that comes between you and yourself, between you and your fellow man and woman, between you and nature, between you and God. This constant flow toward the transformation of things into words is a barrier. It is an obstacle to presence.

-The good news is that we can take steps to free ourselves from our mind right now by learning to be the Witness. As we learn to watch our thoughts, feelings, and sensations neutrally, without judgment, a new level of consciousness enters. We realize that all the things that truly matter - beauty, love, creativity, joy, inner peace – arise, not from the mind, but from the eternal now. As we become the witness, we can begin to feel a conscious presence – our deeper self – behind or underneath our thoughts, feelings, and sensations. Witness consciousness awakens us to presence and as we awaken to presence, we awaken to who we truly are. . . . Let’s practice. . .

Practicing Witness Consciousness. 6 minutes. Exercises witness consciousness, and teaches how to stay present and hold space for someone. Find a partner and sit facing one another. One partner asks the other, over and over again, “what is present,” “what’s happening in your body,” etc. Partner witnesses what thoughts, body sensations, and emotions are present and responds. After 2 minutes, change roles. Do a brief demo.

Closing 4 minutes. Standing circle, holding hands. Look around the circle, appreciating the forms of divinity that have shown up this weekend to help you awaken. . . The most important results from spiritual practice are the awakening of consciousness and remembering who you really are. Awakening to presence means awakening to your true nature, your Divine Magnificence, your innate essence as blissful joy. Awakening to Presence means learning to fully inhabit your body, courageously feeling all your feelings, embracing your sexuality, embracing your shadow, saying YES to life, and to whatever arises in the moment without judgment.

[30 minutes – with break time]

LUNCH BREAK – 90 minutes

Hand Massage 8 minutes (Flower Duet from the Opera Lakmé). Groups of three. One person receives as other partners massage one hand each. Rotate until each person has received. 2 minutes per person.

Talk: Osho Speaks about Witness Consciousness (“Watching”) 8 minutes. Learning to listen with a quiet mind. Osho was an Indian mystic and one of the greatest of modern tantrics. His teachings form a significant component of Ipsalu Tantra. Thousands of hours of recordings exist of Osho speaking. Before we listen to an excerpt of Osho speaking about Witness Consciousness, or the Art of Watching, it may be helpful to know a little more about Osho’s talks:

The way I talk is a little strange. No speaker in the world talks like me. Technically it is wrong; it takes almost double the time! But those speakers have a different purpose – my purpose is absolutely different from theirs. . . Speaking is really one of my devices for meditation . . . I speak not to give you a message, but to stop your mind functioning. My purpose is unique: I am using words just to create silent gaps. The words are not important so I can say anything contradictory, anything absurd, anything unrelated, because my purpose is just to create gaps. The words are secondary; the silences between those words are primary. This is simply a device to give you a glimpse of meditation. And once you know that it is possible for you, you have traveled far in the direction of your own being.

Get comfortable. Listen to the recording.

Meditation: Gibberish and Let-Go 25 minutes. The Gibberish and Let-Go meditation, created by Osho, helps us to break up the mind’s pattern of continuous verbalization. This active meditation is in 3 stages: “Gibberish” is to get rid of the active mind, “silence” to get rid of the inactive mind, and “ let-go” is to enter into the transcendental.”

In the first stage, “Gibberish,” begin to say nonsense sounds – any sounds or words, so long as they make no sense. Just speak any language that you don't know! (This means if you speak Japanese, you may not use Japanese, but if you don’t know German, you may use German). Allow yourself to express whatever needs to be expressed within you. Throw everything out. The mind thinks, always, in terms of words. Without suppressing your thoughts, you can throw them out. Let your body likewise be expressive. Parts two and three are silent. You will be guided through each of the sections.

Gibberish – 7 minutes

Moving In – 7 minutes

Let-Go – 7 minutes

Second Stage: Moving In. Be silent, close your eyes. Sit absolutely still and silent and relaxed, gathering your energy inwards, allowing yourself to fall into the deep silence and peacefulness that is at your center. Be aware, be totally in the present moment, witnessing whatever passes by – thoughts, feelings, body sensations, judgments.

Third Stage: Let-Go. Allow your body to fall back to the ground without any effort or control. Lying back continue witnessing, being aware that you are not the body nor the mind, that you are something separate from both.

Practicing Witness Consciousness 5 minutes (Sweet River). While participants are still lying down, assistants swiftly and gently place a piece of fruit in the hand of each participant. Notice in your hand a piece of fruit. Experience it with all your senses: notice its shape and color, smell its fragrance, hear the sounds it makes when you take a bite, feel its texture, taste its flavor.

Shoulder/foot massage 5 minutes (I Sense Your Presence). Assistants help create two standing lines, alternating male and female, as much as possible. Begin shoulder massage, reaching out to the person in front of you. Gently come to sitting with legs in a V-shape (make sure all participants are close enough when standing so that there are no gaps when they are sitting). Find the feet beside you and begin to massage. If it feels appropriate, participants may carefully lean back, resting against the partner behind them. Gentle forehead touching and hair stroking.

[51 minutes]

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