The Original Ajapa Japa
Swami Satyananda Saraswati
Talk and practices given at Cama Hall, Bombay, February 1963, originally printed in
YOGA, No. 1, Vol. 2, 1964.
The sadhana of ajapa japa is as old as the Upanishads. In some of the Yoga Upanishads
such as Yogashiksha, you will find certain passages and stanzas which declare that the
breath goes in with the sound of So and comes out with the sound of Ham. This is the
ajapa gayatri which the jiva continuously repeats.
Valmiki was initiated by Narada into Ulta Nama, which is this very ajapa. Even now
those who follow nirguna pantha sampradaya like Radaswami Pantha, Kabir Pantha etc.
practise ajapa japa. Many of the ancient sages practised ajapa japa. Gandhiji has also
written that the name should come from within the heart, and not only from the mouth.
When the name is uttered from the mouth, it is called japa; when it is uttered from the
heart, it is called ajapa. Gandhiji explained it in his own way.
Importance of the breath
Ajapa japa is a complete sadhana and through it one can have direct experience of
samadhi. In order to attain samadhi, in all the other yogic practices one has to have
complete control over the breath, the reason being that in samadhi the breath is suspended
and kumbhaka takes place spontaneously. However, in the practice of ajapa japa, due to
the continuity of breath and mantra, the breathing remains normal throughout, and even
in samadhi there is no change.
Apart from samadhi, there are certain practices in yoga where one becomes introvert and
at that time there is automatic suspension of the breath. The difficulty is that the aspirant
becomes extrovert after a short meditation if the lung capacity is not adequate. Many
sadhakas have this difficulty. In the practice of ajapa japa, however, this problem is
solved.
In the shastras it is said that one should practise anahata japa which never ends; it must
extend into infinity. However, we do not know any mantra as such. Therefore, we need a
method of repeating the mantra so that it does not end. This is achieved through the
practice of ajapa japa when the mantra is adjusted with the breathing process. Thus
awareness of the mantra continues throughout the practice without any break.
In ajapa japa there is a very efficient process of locating the awareness. Let me ask you at
this moment, where is your awareness? Think for a second about where you are; you do
not know where you are. Your awareness or consciousness is extroverted and dissipated,
so you cannot locate it. However, through a meditative practice it can be located at any
particular centre of your body. In the practice of ajapa japa, the consciousness is located
with the breath and mantra.
Ajapa japa is a complete practice in itself. Those who have read the Yoga Sutras of
Patanjali know that first of all one has to concentrate on a concrete object. When the
concentration on a concrete object is complete with open eyes, one must meditate on the
same object with closed eyes. This is concentration on a subtle object. One must
concentrate on the simple awareness of its presence. By practising ajapa japa both stages
of concentration can be achieved. Therefore, it is a complete practice in itself and through
it one can enter the spiritual realms, even without the help of a guru.
Balancing ida and pingala
In the practice of ajapa japa, the component of the breath is utilized to harmonize the
body and mind and awaken the spirit. In the shastras this is experienced in the following
way. There were two birds, one black and the other white. Both the birds were tied to a
peg with separate strings. They flew away for a short distance, but they had to return
again because they were tied. Thus they flew and returned many times. Finally they got
tired and slept peacefully near the peg.
The above illustration refers to ida and pingala. They are the two birds, as it were. The
breath flow in the right nostril corresponds to pingala or surya nadi, representing the vital
force, and the left nostril corresponds to ida or chandra nadi, representing the mental
force. The alternate functioning of ida and pingala takes one away from the inner
consciousness. So long as ida and pingala function alternately, samadhi cannot be
attained. It is only when the two birds, ida and pingala, are tied and retire to the centre,
i.e. the heart or the self, that sushumna awakens and the process of meditation takes place
spontaneously.
According to swara yoga, when both the nostrils flow equally, it indicates that sushumna
is flowing. At this time one should give up all worldly work and meditate. It is a common
experience that when sushumna is flowing, meditation is wonderful because there is
harmony in the entire system. When sushumna is not flowing, one does not achieve
concentration even with great effort. So it is important that ida and pingala should be
balanced in the process of meditation, thus making it possible for sushumna to function.
Conscious breathing
In ajapa japa the three important points are: deep breathing, relaxation and total
awareness. During the practice you must maintain complete and unceasing awareness of
what you are doing. Not a single breath should go unnoticed. There should be no
automatic breathing. You must have unceasing awareness of every ingoing and outgoing
breath. Automatic breathing goes on at night when you are asleep also; it is not ajapa
japa. You must consciously notice every ingoing and outgoing breath, like a watchman,
observe the continuous rhythm of the two breaths.
Lie down and feel as if you are going to sleep. Breathe deeply like a person in deep sleep.
After a few days practice, your breathing will be completely relaxed, rhythmic and
proportionate. The normal rate of inhalation is 15 times in a minute, 900 times in an hour,
and 21,600 times in 24 hours. Thus a person who has perfected ajapa japa will do 21,600
rounds of japa per day, effortlessly.
As and when the concentration becomes deep, the breathing will become slower. Instead
of 15 breaths per minute, you will breathe 10. In the practice of ajapa japa you make the
breath as long and as deep as when you are snoring, but there is no audible sound. By
conscious breathing and prolonging the breath, longevity is increased.
Meditation posture
Now we come to the asana. You must sit in one steady posture throughout the practice of
ajapa japa. The body should not shake and the mind should not run here and there. It is
not physical mortification; it is sustained endurance. You take a pledge that you will sit in
one posture for 45 minutes every day and practise ajapa japa. One day you do it, but the
next day you lose patience, the third day you lose interest and the fourth day you forget
about the practice altogether. In order to have success, you must keep your resolve and
continue the practice with patience for a month or so at least.
SIX STAGES OF AJAPA JAPA
Before beginning the practice, sit in the meditation posture and relax yourself physically
and mentally for a few minutes. Make yourself as light and relaxed as possible. Put aside
all worries and problems. Feel calmness and serenity, peace and bliss.
If you are very tense, there is a method of relaxation through counting the breath. Count
one with the ingoing breath; count one with the outgoing breath; count two with the
ingoing breath; count two with the outgoing breath. Go on counting like this until you
reach five. On the count of five, be alert. Foster collective consciousness and undistracted
awareness. Feel that you are definitely counting five. Say to yourself mentally, ‘I am
aware of five with the ingoing breath and I am aware of five with the outgoing breath.’
Then go on counting until you come to ten. Again be alert, maintain the fullest awareness
that you are counting ten. Repeat this whole process two or three times.
Stage 1: Synchronizing Soham with the breath
Now start deep, rhythmic breathing. Intensify your awareness of the ingoing and
outgoing breath. The ingoing breath moves downward from the throat to the navel and
the outgoing breath moves upward from the navel to the throat. The breathing is not
automatic it is conscious, deep and relaxed. Do not produce any sound while breathing.
Feel the breath flowing in and out. Become aware of the movement of prana with the
breath.
Next synchronize the mantra Soham with the breath. The sound So joins with the ingoing
breath and the sound Ham joins with the outgoing breath. Maintain unceasing awareness
of the breath and mantra. Feel that you are introspecting upon Soham. There should be no
mental pause between So and Ham; there should be continuity. After Ham pause a little.
Breathe in with So and breathe out with Ham; this makes one round.
There should be continuous awareness of the ingoing and outgoing breath and Soham. If
you prefer, you can also adjust your personal mantra with the breathing process. If you
practise with Soham, you need not think of the literal meaning of this word at all. It is not
ahamgraha upasana. So is the introspective sound of the ingoing breath, while the
vibrations that are created by the outgoing breath sound like Ham. Soham merely
indicates the complete circuit of introspection upon the ingoing and outgoing breath.
After integrating the mantra with the breath for a few minutes, centralize your awareness
either at trikuti (the eyebrow centre) or at anahata chakra. Stop all thoughts; create a
mental vacuum. Whatever thoughts come to you, go on removing them. Think only of
shoonya. At the same time, continue conscious breathing in and out. After two or three
minutes resume the practice of ajapa japa. Practise this stage for one month. After
perfecting it, go on to the next stage.
Stage 2: Synchronizing Hamso with the breath
During the first stage of ajapa japa, you introspect upon So with the ingoing breath and
ham with the outgoing breath. Now in the second stage, reverse the process. Introspect
upon Ham while exhaling and upon So while inhaling. There should be no pause between
Ham and So. After Hamso there will be a short pause. Be conscious of Hamso
throughout. Ham is the introspective sound vibration of the outgoing prana and So of the
ingoing prana. The process of deep breathing, relaxation and total awareness will be the
same in this practice of Hamso as in the practice of Soham.
After ajapa of Hamso for a few minutes, take your consciousness either to trikuti or
anahata chakra. There should be total awareness of the centre of meditation. Do not put
any pressure on the centre. Simply concentrate your mind there.
Practise this stage for one month and after mastering it, go on to the next stage.
Stage 3: The individual sounds of So and Ham
In the first stage you formulated your consciousness of the pattern of Soham. In the
second stage you reversed it to Hamso. Now introspection is neither upon Soham nor
Hamso, but upon the individual sound of So with the ingoing breath and ham with the
outgoing breath. After So there is a pause and again after Ham. Be aware of the two
individual sounds and do not unite them.
After practising this for a few minutes, create a mental vacuum. Centralize your
consciousness at the centre of meditation. After two or three minutes again resume the
practice of individual So and individual Ham. Practise this stage for one month and after
mastering it, go on to the next stage.
Stage 4: Merging of Soham and Hamso
Start rhythmic breathing. Breathe in and out with full awareness. As you breathe in, be
aware of the breath passing down to the navel. As you breathe out, be aware of the breath
passing up from the navel. Be aware of soundless, peaceful and relaxed breathing.
Now integrate the Soham mantra with the breath. In this stage the form of consciousness
is a continuity, So merging with Ham and Ham merging with So, making an endless
circle of Sohamsohamsohamso . . . Prolong the vibrations of So and join them with those
of Ham. There is no pause in the breath; inhalation follows exhalation and exhalation
follows inhalation. Thus alternately introspect on Soham or Hamso without any break.
Now stop this practice and empty your mind. Experience emptiness. Focus your
consciousness at the centre of meditation. Remove all thoughts. Again after some time
start the endless circle of Sohamsohamsohamso . . . At the end of the practice heighten
your awareness of peace and rest. Mentally feel anandam, paramam, sukhum, shantam
and mangalam.
Stage 5: Spinal passage rotation with kundalini visualization and Soham
Now we come to the practice of rotating the consciousness in the spinal cord, which is
more difficult and demands greater imagination. In this process there are two important
factors: annihilation of the external consciousness and expression of the calm and quiet
atman within.
First relax yourself mentally and psychically. Practise deep, rhythmic breathing. Now
become aware of the spinal passage and take the ingoing breath from ajna chakra at the
top of the spinal passage down to mooladhara chakra at the base. As the breath moves
down the spinal passage, try to feel it piercing each chakra in turn, but do not try to name
them or stop at any one.
Now retain your consciousness at mooladhara chakra for a few seconds while holding the
breath. Visualize the red inverted triangle and within it kundalini, the dormant
potentiality, which sleeps at the base of the spinal cord coiled up like a serpent with its
tail upward and its mouth downward. Meditate on kundalini for a few seconds, then
exhale from mooladhara back up to ajna, passing through each chakra junction.
After simple rotation of the breath and consciousness through the spinal passage and the
chakras, add the Soham mantra. While inhaling take the vibrations of So from ajna
chakra down to mooladhara, passing through each chakra in turn. At mooladhara retain
the breath and consciousness for a few seconds and meditate on the kundalini. Then
exhale with the mental vibrations of Ham back up through the spinal passage from
mooladhara to ajna. After exhaling with Ham, pause for a second or two at ajna. Just be
aware of yourself; do not create emptiness.
To sum up, with the ingoing breath and the vibrations of So, you descend the spinal
passage. At mooladhara you retain the breath consciousness and focus on kundalini for a
few seconds. Then while exhaling with the vibrations of Ham, you ascend the spinal
passage. After exhalation, pause at ajna and practise simple self-awareness. Thus the fifth
stage consists of rotating the breath and consciousness in the descending and ascending
passage of the spinal column with the vibrations of So and Ham.
In this practice the important things to be considered are rhythmic breathing, heightened
imagination, perfect and conscious mindfulness or awareness of what you are doing, and
complete relaxation. Rotation of the consciousness seems a little difficult in the
beginning because it requires great imagination, but with a little practice later on it
becomes quite real and easy.
This practice is very important, because if one can do it successfully, one will get peace,
serenity, good dreams and a change in mental outlook. It is said that the person whose
kundalini awakens gets peace first and knowledge next. This meditation should be
considered as successful if the practitioner gets peace and wisdom.
Stage 6: Soham with shanmukhi mudra
This practice is more difficult and requires greater imagination, patience and control over
the breathing process. First of all, practise shanmukhi mudra. Close your ears with the
thumbs. Close your eyes with the index fingers and lips with the ring and little fingers.
Take a deep breath in and then close your nostrils with the middle fingers.
While holding the breath inside, rotate your consciousness in the spinal column. With the
vibrations of So descend from ajna to mooladhara, and with the vibrations of Ham ascend
from mooladhara to ajna. Then release the breath. During this brief period of rest,
practise self-awareness and mindfulness.
In the second part of the sixth stage, you need not practise shanmukhi mudra. Simply
inhale and retain the breath. During the period of retention, rotate your consciousness in
the spinal column. Descend from ajna to mooladhara; stay at mooladhara for a few
moments, then ascend to ajna and exhale. Rest and practise self-awareness in between
rounds.
The necessity of mindfulness
Throughout these practices of ajapa japa, the method of mindful concentration upon the
breath was propounded. The most important things in the practice of ajapa japa are
rhythmic breathing and mindfulness or total awareness. Throughout the process of
meditation, you must be mindful of every activity. While practising meditation, if you
forget that you are meditating, you will never have success.
While meditating there comes a state of tandra, drowsiness, and this is the trouble with
almost every aspirant who meditates. You go on thinking of a certain problem for fifteen
minutes or so. During this period when you are brooding over the problem, you are not
mindful that you are brooding. It is only when you finish the process of brooding that you
realize you were thinking about such and such a thing. This is not meditation.
In meditation, concentration is not as important as mindfulness. Therefore, I always
emphasize one point: be aware of what you are doing. Be conscious that you are
counting, be mindful that you are visualizing, breathing, etc. In short, be absolutely
awake and vigilant. You have to be conscious of every process of breathing. Mindfulness
should be unceasing and unobstructed. This is called unceasing continuity.
In meditation, if you count one, two three, four, your mind should not wander even for a
single second. Even if it wanders, let it do so, but be aware that it is wandering. If you
can concentrate, be aware that you are concentrating. It is the very nature of the mind to
wander and slip. You need not worry about this, but be aware of every tendency of the
mind.
Whenever your mind, your consciousness, your awareness dissipates, be alert. No mental
activity should go unnoticed. You should never be unmindful of the process of
concentration. This is the fundamental and the only point in meditation to be
remembered. If you fail to remember or understand this most important point, you will
never get success in meditation, even if you meditate for a century.
It is a psychological fact that when you want to control the mind, it will wander ruthlessly
and you will fail to control it. But if you quietly watch the mental activities, they will
immediately stop. Therefore, in all the practices of ajapa japa I have tried to impress upon
you this truth that instead of commanding the mind to stop forcibly, you should become
mindful of its every activity.
Complete system of mental training
This exposition of the method of ajapa japa being practical, not much has been said here
about the psychological significance of this kriya. However, it is not to be forgotten that
ajapa japa offers a permanent cure for all mental disorders and its therapeutic importance
can hardly be overemphasized. It also has a sacred significance which has been hinted at
in several cryptic and mystical formulas in our ancient literature. These and other
important aspects of ajapa japa can better be discussed and understood after one has
gained the experience of doing the japa practice.
Ajapa japa meditation helps one to withdraw the senses and awaken self-awareness. It
removes the impurities of the mind. A burning lamp cannot give full illumination if its
glass is covered in smoke. Only when the glass is cleaned will the lamp shine fully.
Similarly, the light or the power of the atman is within us, but it does not manifest itself
in our daily life because of the hindrances of the thought process, the vagaries,
dissipations and distractions of the mind.
There are different systems of meditation. The first group relates to the body, the second
to the mind (i.e. thinking of an idea), the third to the intellect and the fourth to the higher
consciousness. The light manifests itself when the physical consciousness, the mental
consciousness, the intellectual consciousness and, lastly, the personality itself are
eradicated totally.
So long as you do not transcend the body, the mind and the intellect, you will not attain
perfect serenity and peace. The practices of ajapa japa aim at achieving this end. In an
academic career one has to go through the primary, higher secondary, college and
university education, in order to obtain the highest degree. Even so, in meditation there
are four stages: relaxation, awareness, unification and transcendence. This has been
explained in the practices of ajapa japa.
Ajapa japa is a complete method of mental training. In order to attain success, you must
begin right from the first stage of meditation and gradually go to the last. Out of these six
practices, you can conveniently practise the first four stages at home every day without
difficulty. The fifth stage is a bit difficult in the sense that it requires greater power of
imagination and concentration. It will take you some time to master it, but once you do,
the sixth stage will also become much easier to practice.