5. The Causal Body and beyond

The Causal Body

The causal body is the plane one reaches in meditation when thoughts and emotions have calmed down. You are then, so to speak, in the position of the observer of all the forms. Another name for this observer is Soul.

This body is called Anandamaya Kosha in Hinduism philosophy, which means bliss body. However, getting into the causal body is not yet our goal; it is, so to speak, just a stopover on the way to our Higher (divine) Self, pure consciousness.

It is called the bliss body because a certain level of bliss is experienced when you enter this body because you are no longer influenced by constant thoughts and emotions. In it, however, all the seeds of our personality are stored in a 'sleeping state' (=not active) - including, of course, all unpleasant patterns.

The causal body is the level of 'I Am', of emptiness, of consciousness of space, in which all forms 'dance'. Ignorance or emptiness of knowledge is also attributed to it, with the resulting freedom - the freedom to know nothing.

But that doesn't mean that when you become aware of this body, all the knowledge that you have acquired so far is simply gone. No, of course it is still there, and you have access to it if you want. When you let yourself fall into the causal body, you perceive the forms that arise (sounds, smells,...), but you don't interpret them; you simply perceive without doing anything mentally to describe, define, or classify them.

I would like to mention here again that the classification of the bodies and the definition of various concepts can vary from teacher to teacher. 

The Higher Self

The goal is to experience our true, Higher, divine Self which is pure consciousness, supreme bliss, perfection, absolute peace, light & love, unity consciousness, and that lies beyond the causal body. So we gradually go out of identification with all the grosser bodies: first the physical, then the pranic, then the emotional, then the mental and now also the causal body. One could even refer to the Higher Self as a kind of body since it is also a manifestation of the Absolute, but I will simply refer to it here as the Higher Self. Instructions on how to reach the level of the Higher Self can be found in the meditation below.Graphics Buddha with Chakras

Sutra 1.24 “Ishvara is individually experienced divine consciousness, untouched by suffering, actions, results of actions, or desires.”
Sutra 1.25 “In him lies the seed of omniscience.” or “He is unsurpassed and the source of all knowledge."
Sutra 1.26 "Unlimited by time, he is, originally, the teacher of all teachers."
Sutra 4.31 “Freed from all veils and dirt, the relative knowledge of the mind becomes tiny compared to the infinite knowledge.”

The Absolute

Beyond the Higher Self, there is even another, deeper plane - The Absolute. The Absolute is the source of all forms of creation; it is the level at which everything is present in its unexpressed form as potential. 

The Spiritual Heart   

Besides the 'door' to the Higher Self, through which one can go by 'relaxing' into the consciousness behind the forms, there are other paths to get to the Higher Self, and one of them is through the Spiritual Heart. The Spiritual Heart is an energy center that lies at an even deeper level than the regular chakras. It has its origins in the mental body and is the deepest energy center of the body system. It is the interface through which all forms manifest. As already mentioned, you can see it like a door through which you ultimately come to the plane of The Absolute. It is located in the area of the heart chakra and is very small.

So one way 'back home' leads through this door in our center, and therefore we also focus our attention there in the following meditation in order to experience a balanced self-realization. If we only let our attention fall into the position of the observer of forms, it can easily happen that we lose connection to the world of forms, which is not our goal. By concentrating on the spiritual heart at the same time, we can also go deeper there, become more grounded even when entering the subtlest planes, and experience more love within ourselves. Love is found in the heart; it originally arises from the spiritual heart and only then flows to all other levels.

Graphics Heart Center

So far, there are relatively few teachers who point out this deepest center and teach about it. However, it is already mentioned in an Upanishad (a part of the Vedas):

'At the center of the body is the flawless lotus of the heart. This is the dwelling of the supreme being. Go there and experience supreme bliss.'

One of the teachers who mentioned the Spiritual Heart in his teachings was Ramana Maharshi - he referred to it as 'Hridaya'.
The teacher who especially makes the Spiritual Heart more known, is Lincoln Gergar with his YouTube channel ChannelHigherSelf.

Instruction for the Self-knowledge Meditation

This meditation consists of three stages:

Stage 1 (causal body):

1. Bring your attention to your heart center (and if it helps you, notice how it raises and gets lowered again as you breathe), and with each breath, go deeper into the love of the source that radiates from there.

2. When your thoughts have calmed down further, in addition, become aware of the consciousness that is observing everything that happens in your perception (=go into the position of the observer). You can also say to yourself internally, as a help, 'I am the consciousness in which all forms happen', as you move your attention into the position of this observer.

Congratulations, you are in the causal body now.

3. See that you become stable and get deeper and deeper in this state (of concentration on the Spiritual Heart, and the consciousness that perceives everything).

This is your “springboard state”, so to speak, from which you open yourself up to your Higher Self.Picture meditation seat

Stage 2 (Higher Self):

4. So when you have now achieved a certain stability in it, become aware that this state you are in now is perceived by something even deeper/higher. Open yourself up to this observer of the observer, and go back there with your attention. Reverse your attention and look at this observer of the observer. Then let more and more light (=your attention) shine on your true Self, and dive deeper and deeper into your Higher Self - your natural state of being.

It's a kind of 'opening up', 'letting go' that needs to be done here. Just experiment and see how you can best open yourself up to your Higher Self. The state of 'I Am' (Causal Body) thereby becomes more permeable to the even subtler plane of the Higher Self (I), and with practice, one can further advance this permeability. 

Stage 3 (ending the meditation):

5. Then slowly move your fingers and arms first. Gently massage your face and then the rest of your body to bring your attention back to the physical body.

6. Open your eyes, and take the state of consciousness you have entered into the rest of your day, and continue practicing there.

So our journey goes from identification with "I Am This" (physical, pranic, emotional and mental body), to "I Am" (I observe these bodies, Causal Body), to "I" (the observer of 'I Am ', the Higher Self), to "Beyond I" through letting go of even consciousness, and opening up to the Absolute.

You can also experiment with what feels better for you: first bringing attention to the heart center and then relaxing into the observer position, or vice versa.

Beginners simply practice the meditation from 2. Meditation - THE tool until they feel ready to go deeper, as described in this meditation above.

In the next section, I will give you detailed instructions about what you can do throughout the day to further open your consciousness: IV. Practice for the rest of the day