Information I gained from Swami Rama

I was asked to write this post a few days ago, but I was reluctant to do so. I will try to make this brief.

Swami Rama have been entering my psyche during my practice since late December 2022. I thought I was imagining things the first time this happened during a practice session while on vacation in St. Vincent. The more I think about it, I was inspired to approach the practice with increased aggression after reading some instructions Madhva provide in InVision 13. Last week, Swami Rama told me that I needed to visit Madhva--I informed Madhva about this and he provided the reason for the request.

I noted that I can only perceive Swami Rama’s instructions after I can easily move the infused breath through the lungs/chest area and properly penetrate the lower abdomen. A summary of the messages and instructions I received from him is as follows:

1. He complimented my effort since starting this process 4 and ½ years ago.
2. He especially likes that I am humble, and that I do not have any goals of accomplishing this or that during my practice aside from oxygenating the system.
3. He stressed the need to be humble and to approach each practice without a particular result in mind. He likes my personal mantra, which is, “there’s no ceiling for growth”.
4. He advised me to release the tendency to flex my abs when applying the stomach lock and performing the stomach pump. This is difficult for me due to many years in the gym working to strengthen my ab muscles.
5. He insisted that I perform the stomach pumps with as much aggression as I can muster and to focus down into the area being contracted. During one session, I was exhausted after several rounds of stomach pumps, but he insisted that I pull harder then told me to look down into the dark area and then said that I need to clear that out. He made fun of me calling me muscle man… “come on muscle man…you wanted a strong body so pull!”
6. He insists that I perform the breath infusion as aggressively as I could with each posture. He basically took over my sessions and gave specific instruction for each. The key is aggression while avoiding the tendency to contract the muscles--basically the same recommendations Madhva provided.
7. He explained that he left good information in his books. I have since gained a lot from listening to ‘Living with the Himalayan Masters’ which was recommended by Yogi Rishabha. It is interesting that Swami Rama told me to ask Yogi Rishabha about him.

I am sharing because I was told to do so, and I hope you gain something that helps to improve your practice. Jai Shri Krishna!