Memory of Sublime Yogic States

Yogeshwarananda communicated to me during a bhastrika breath infusion session, that even though Patanjali listed the three higher states of yoga as meditation under the term of samyama, still the occurrence of higher states during the practice of breath infusion deserves to be noted and contemplated by a yogi.

His idea is that during breath infusion, there are higher states which arise and which put the subtle body into higher dimensions for limited periods. These incidences he says are important and should be noticed and dwelled upon whereby the yogi does not think that he/she should rush through the breath infusion session but should stop frequently during the session to become absorbed in those high states which arise when the kundalini rises through the spine or when it darts anywhere else in the subtle body.

For doing this, the yogi must direct his sense of identity (ahamkara) and/or intellect (buddhi) in the experiences but there may be a blank gap in consciousness where he is unable to do this or where when he attempts to do it, he finds that his sense of identity and/or intellect is missing because it is not operative in that higher dimension to which he was transferred.

Sometimes during breath infusion one reaches such a high state of consciousness that one becomes 99% subjective and cannot experience anything objectively but one may have a residual awareness of a neutral bliss consciousness which abounds in the plane of existence one was transferred to. In this there may be no up or down, no left or right.

Due to the fact that the sense of identity and/or the intellect are missing, the yogi cannot make a mental notation, which means that he will have no memory and will carry only a faint idea of it which he cannot verbalize or describe. He finds that he cannot remember the state even though he does recall that it was special, specific and elevated.

To cause a memory register, a yogi may do the practice regularly so that the experience happens daily. Then after some time, it will be possible for him to be somewhat objective where his subjective consciousness becomes more and more evident to him. Then he can wave his sense of identity/intellect during those high experiences. This will cause a sublime memory register such that instead of the mind only retaining memories of the mundane and flashing that during meditation, it instead recalls the sublime states which he experienced and was submerged in during successful breath infusion sessions.