The Secret of Subtle Energy

By Keith Sherwood

Shanti explained that, during her evening meditation the night before, she’d seen the vague outlines of something dense that extended from her abdomen into the field surrounding her body.

‘You don’t mind if I ask you about it before we begin.’ Adhita could sense her concern and quickly responded to her request.

‘Ok, before I answer your question, I want to remind you that you’re an interdimensional being with a field of consciousness, energy, and etheric matter that interpenetrates your physical-material body.’ Shanti nodded agreeably. It was something they’d already talked about.

‘You also know that surrounding your energy field is an egg-shaped structure that extends up to twenty-six feet beyond your body. It’s called the aura. Now back to your question. To answer it, I will need a bit more information. The sediment you saw, was it piled in front of your body or was it floating in the auric field surrounding it?’

‘It was inside my body, but part of it extended into my aura.’ Adhita took a moment to collect his thoughts; then he said,

‘Ok, in that case, the sediment you saw must have been karmic baggage because only karmic baggage has the exact qualities you described.’ Shanti smiled with satisfaction, then reached for her bag, and pulled out a note pad.

‘I assume you’re going to help me get rid of it.’ Adhita nodded, then added, ‘I will at the end of our session.’

‘Ok, in that case, I have a several more questions about karmic baggage. But before we get to them, I want to ask you about something I’ve been wondering about. How come people don’t normally experience their energy field or recognize its importance?’

‘Unfortunately, most people don’t realize that they’re interdimensional beings and that the space inside their physical-material body is occupied by their subtle bodies and the organs that support them.’ Shanti looked at Adhita and frowned.

‘I know it’s getting a little complicated. But the truth is that you live and function in a multiverse of physical and non-physical dimensions. In the physical universe, you have a physical body, and in the non-physical universe, you have subtle bodies. Your subtle bodies as well as your nervous system serve as your vehicles of cognition, expression, and assimilation.’

‘Does that mean that my subtle bodies interpenetrate my physical body like a Russian doll?’

‘Not exactly. Unlike a Russian doll, all your non-physical bodies are the same size and shape as your physical body.’

‘Great. Now, if you don’t mind, I have something else I want to ask you; this time about energy.’ Adhita kept his eyes fixed on her while she continued.

‘When I saw the sediment in my field, it seemed to be floating in a medium which didn’t appear to have qualities – that’s the first thing. Then there’s this passage in a book I read recently. Do you mind if I read it to you?’ Adhita nodded in agreement.

‘Ok, good.’ Shanti reached down and took a book out of her bag. She opened it to where she’d marked the passage with a bookmark. ‘To a human being without sufficient understanding, karmic baggage can appear to have both positive and negative effects. But it’s important to note that even karmic baggage which appears positive can still cause contraction and restrict the free flow of energy, which is essential for the experience of sustained intimacy.’ Shanti sat back with a look of anticipation on her face.

Then she added, ‘It’s obvious from this passage and from what I observed in my field that there must be another kind of energy that doesn’t have qualities. But until last week, I was under the impression that all energy had qualities. So, now I’m confused.’ Adhita rubbed his chin. Then leaned forward and began to speak slowly.

‘In the physical universe, all energy has individual qualities. In the non-physical universe, there’s energy with qualities, too.’

‘Like karmic baggage.’

‘Exactly. But in the non-physical universe, there’s another type of energy that doesn’t have individual qualities.’

‘I gathered that from what I read. But I still don’t understand the difference.’

‘We’ll get to that in a moment. But first I want to explain why you’re more familiar with energy with individual qualities. It’s because your organs of perception can perceive it, in the physical world as light, heat etc., and you can sense it in your energy field when you feel anxious or depressed or when you can feel or see karmic baggage. But underlying the universe of energy with individual qualities is a vast universe of energy with universal qualities – and it’s that energy that animates all living beings. In fact, you wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for energy with universal qualities.’

‘You’re talking about the life force... aren’t you?’

‘The life-force is the substrate that gave birth to consciousness, energy, and etheric matter. The primordial vibration that emerged from the life force took the form of universal feminine energy. Some people call it chi. Still others call it prana, shakti, and the kundalini-Sakti. Regardless of what people call it, they’re all talking about the same stuff, energy that leaves no mark on people when it interacts with their field, except to vitalize it. But that’s only part of the story. Everything essential within you that is composed of energy, including your personal field and your authentic mind, is composed of energy with universal qualities. And while there is a finite supply of energy with individual qualities, the supply of energy with universal qualities is infinite, which means you have infinite resources within you.’

‘That sounds great, but if I have infinite amount of energy within me, how come I’m not aware of it?’

‘You are aware of it – so is everyone else. You’re just not aware of its importance. Fortunately, there are times when it’s impossible to ignore the presence of life-affirming energy.’

‘Could you give me an example?’

‘Sure. You experience energy with universal qualities whenever you have a surge of vitality, creativity, or you have a full body orgasm. You also experience it during periods of deep meditation and lucid dreaming. These experiences are often accompanied by a profound sense of well-being or contentment which clearly indicates the presence energy with universal qualities.’ Shanti didn’t look convinced – and after giving Adhita a skeptical look, she said,

‘You’re telling me that everything within me that is authentic is composed of energy with universal qualities. But if I take inventory, I find only bones and body fluids, etc., and they all have qualities.’

‘You’re forgetting that you’re not simply a physical being. And it wasn’t your physical body I was talking about.

‘You have bodies of consciousness, energy, and etheric matter, and subtle organs that support them. Your bodies of consciousness are the foundation of your soul and spirit, but your authentic emotions and feelings emerge from your energetic bodies.'

‘If that’s true, then energy with universal qualities must be the source of pleasure, human love, intimacy and joy.’

‘Energy with universal qualities is the source of all four. In fact, if we could deconstruct human love, we’d find that it only emerges when energy with universal qualities is being reflected off the human heart.’

‘Do you mind if I ask you something else about unqualified energy?’

‘Energy was the topic I planned to cover today – so go ahead.’

‘Ok. If energy with universal qualities is reflected off the human heart, do people in love radiate it to one another?’

‘Shanti, people wouldn’t be able to share pleasure, love, intimacy, or joy with one another if they weren't able to radiate energy with universal qualities. It’s the reason why they’re able to overcome the influence of karmic baggage and develop close relationships.’

‘And the other energy... the stuff with qualities?’

‘That’s qualified energy. Unlike energy with universal qualities, it has distinct qualities.’

‘You mean like the sediment I saw in my abdomen?’

‘That’s right. The sediment is one example of qualified energy. But there is a larger field that contains the entire spectrum of qualified energy. It’s called the field of maya, or just maya.’

‘My yoga teacher talked about maya...’

‘Did she tell you that the energy within maya changes continuously, which means it isn’t real?’

Shanti’s eyes widened in surprise. But before she could say anything, Adhita declared,

‘I know it sounds strange that energy with individual qualities isn’t real. But the truth is even stranger because energy with universal qualities isn’t real either; it’s authentic because it’s the same in the beginning, the middle, and the end, but it’s not real.

‘Centuries ago, Yogic adepts recognized that the test of what is real isn’t determined simply by whether it changes or not. They recognized that only the original cause, which they called Purusha, is real because it’s the same in the beginning the middle and the end, and it’s the singularity from which everything in the multiverse emerged.’

‘What about the authentic mind, is it fake too?’

‘Our authentic mind and the subtle universe of consciousness, energy, and etheric matter can’t be real because, unlike Purusha, it doesn’t meet both criteria.

‘Qualified fields within maya aren’t real or authentic because they have individual qualities that evolve through time-space. According to Advaita Yoga, fields within maya share six qualities: they have no beginning; they’re terminated by jnana, (knowledge); they veil the truth and radiate individual qualities; they can’t be defined since they only have the appearance of reality; they evolve and involve but have no permanence, and they’re located both inside and outside the subtle field of sentient beings.

‘The elements of the human mind that participate in the field of maya include both the ‘I’ and the ego, which supports the ‘I’ and serves as its point of focus in the phenomenal universe. The ‘I’ can’t be real or authentic because it’s a construct that evolves through time-space. The ego can’t be real or authentic because it’s composed of karmic baggage, and the projections of people and non-physical beings.’

‘I’m a little dense today. Could you explain what you mean when you say everything with individual qualities changes?’

‘That’s easy. Your physical body is a good example. It has individual qualities. And as it ages, it changes. Nothing like that can happen to unqualified energy because it doesn’t have individual qualities.’

‘So, if someone remained centered in energy with universal qualities, what would happen to them?’

‘Their physical body would change as it got older, so would the fields within their karmic baggage – they would change too. But if they stayed centered in their energetic bodies and the unqualified energy that nourishes them, they wouldn’t change and wouldn’t react to energetic fields emerging from the field of maya.’

Shanti leaned back in her seat and nodded with satisfaction. After a moment’s hesitation, she added,

‘Do you mind if I ask you another quick question?’

‘Go ahead!’

‘If the authentic Shanti never changes and the authentic Shanti never becomes better or worse, then it would naturally follow that the authentic Shanti must be perfect the way she is.’

‘That’s true in principle. But not in practice because Shanti can’t remain centered in energy with universal qualities... So, Shanti has a problem.’

‘... because of karmic baggage?’ Adhita nodded in agreement.

‘Karmic baggage prevents her from radiating unqualified energy freely.’

‘... which means that Shanti can say bye-bye to pleasure, love, intimacy, and joy.’

‘Not necessarily. You must remember that, even if you’re blocked, you don’t lose pleasure, love, intimacy, or joy. They’re all still there. What you lose is access.’ Adhita got up and walked to his desk. Then he turned to Shanti and said,

‘In the time we have left, I’d like you to perform a simple technique that will release the karmic baggage in your abdomen and enhance the flow of unqualified energy through your energy field.’

Shanti Learns to Release Karmic Baggage

Adhita gave Shanti a reassuring nod. Then said,

‘In this exercise, you will center yourself in your authentic mind. Then you will use the power of universal feminine energy to release the karmic baggage in your abdomen. To begin the exercise, sit in a comfortable position with your back straight. Then close your eyes and breathe deeply through your nose for two to three minutes.’ Adhita gave Shanti time to relax. Then he leaned forward and said,

‘When you’re ready to continue, count backward from five to one visualizing and repeating in words, not thoughts, each number three times.’ When Shanti was finished, Adhita instructed her to count backward from ten to one and to feel herself going deeper on each descending number. After a short pause, Adhita instructed Shanti to assert, ‘It’s my intent to center myself in my authentic mind.’ Adhita waited a few moments; then he instructed Shanti to assert, “It’s my intent to turn my organs of perception inward on the level of my authentic mind.’ Shanti followed Adhita’s instructions and almost immediately became aware of a large cavity inside her body space. A few moments later, she saw the sediment in her abdomen once again. Adhita gave Shanti time to experience the shift, then told her to assert, ‘It’s my intent to surround the karmic baggage I have in mind with a prana box.’ A few moments later, he told her to assert, ‘It’s my intent to fill the prana box with universal feminine energy.’ Shanti followed Adhita’s instructions and immediately experienced a dramatic change. The sediment disappeared along with the unpleasant energy that radiated from it. Adhita gave Shanti ten minutes to enjoy the experience. Then he instructed her to count from one to five and to bring herself out of the healing meditation. As soon as Shanti opened her eyes, she asked him,

‘Did I release the karmic baggage in the prana box?’

‘Can you feel it any longer?’

‘No, it’s not there.’

‘That’s because two things can’t occupy the same space at the same time, and energy with universal qualities is more powerful than energy with individual qualities. So, when you filled your prana box with universal feminine energy, you released the karmic baggage.’ Shanti smiled enthusiastically. Then she said,

‘I’ve really beginning to enjoy this work.’

The End