Thogal Meditation

Thogal Meditation

From the First Nail "The Nail of Identifying the Universal Ground" of the Twenty-One Nails

Preliminary Practice for Thogal Meditation

First, sit with the five-point body posture if you can. Cross the legs, straighten the backbone, keep the hand in the equipoise gesture, bend the neck (back), and gaze strongly with the eyes open. Sit like this and relax. 

Next we need to catch the horse like wind. Relax and breathe slowly. Open your mouth a little bit but breathe slowly. When the breath is slow, the mind calms into it’s own state.

Bring your attention to your body as your body is still. Feel openness in your body. Now bring your attention to your heart. Feel the openness in the center of your heart. Feel that stillness. Rest in that stillness. Be that stillness. 

Now bring you attention to the five lights in the center of your heart like a pitched rainbow tent. The five lights are white light which is the source of primordial wisdom of emptiness, green light which is the source of primordial wisdom of equality, red light which is the source of primordial wisdom of individual discernment, blue light which is the source of primordial wisdom of thorough accomplishments, and yellow light which is the source of mirror-like primordial wisdom.

Rest in that rainbow light. Feel that luminosity. Rest in that luminosity. Be aware of the expansion at the base of the heart. Be aware of that empty space of rigpa. Feel that space. Rest in that space. Connect within that space. 

Within that connection, now move to the main practice of Thogal.

Main Practice of Thogal Meditation

There are three essential points. Do not blink your eyes. Keep the eyes open without fixating on the external object. Remain to have a free mind. Do not analyze external objects. Do not examine the internal mind. Do not follow the past or future. Cut the present chain of thoughts.

From the Six Lamps it says, “From the mind, don’t examine objects. The object does not occur to the mind. Keep that state continuously.”

[Gaze into a cloudless sky, or objectless sky blue image.]

[At the end of your session, rub your palms together to warm them, then place your palms over your closed eyes and relax. Then rub and massage your face.]