First Light
How First Light worksTuesday 27 October·
- Sunrise
- 07:55
- Quiet hour
- 06:19–07:07
- Brahma Muhurta
- Moon
- Waning gibbous
- Next full moon: Tue 24 Nov
Autumn
The quiet hour (Brahma Muhurta) is the traditional time for practice, just before sunrise.
एतयैव सविचारा निर्विचारा च सूक्ष्मविषया व्याख्याता
etayaiva savicārā nirvicārā ca sūkṣma-viṣayā vyākhyātā
In the same way, absorption with and without reflection on subtle objects is explained.
Yoga Sutras 1.44 · verse 44 of 196
Unfolding the thread
The same two levels apply to subtler things: the elements behind appearances, the qualities of mind, even the sense of self. First you reflect on them; then reflection falls away and only the subtle object remains. The practice goes inward in the same steps.
Try today
Instead of watching your breath, watch the feeling of being alive behind it. Start with thinking about it, then just sense it.
The Echo
The same truth, heard in another tradition
“We look at it, and we do not see it, and we name it 'the Equable.' We listen to it, and we do not hear it, and we name it 'the Inaudible.' We try to grasp it, and do not get hold of it, and we name it 'the Subtle.”
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