Colour Within the Light
Let the gaze rest where light from sun or lamp dapples space with colour; there your own nature shines.
जहाँ सूर्य या दीप के तेज से आकाश रंग-बिरंगा हो, वहीं दृष्टि टिकाओ; वहीं अपना स्वरूप प्रकाशित होता है।
The conversation of Devi & Bhairava
A faithful retelling of the dialogue that frames this verse — the Goddess asks, and Bhairava answers with the teaching above. (The śloka is the scripture; the conversation dramatizes its meaning, in English and Hindi.)
Light moves me, Lord — sunbeams, lamp-glow, colour in the air. Can the eyes find you in such radiance?
प्रकाश मुझे भाव-विभोर करता है, नाथ — सूर्य-किरणें, दीप-आभा, हवा में रंग। क्या आँखें ऐसी आभा में आपको पा सकती हैं?
They can. Find a place where light scatters colour — sun through a prism or leaves, a flame, a lamp — and rest the gaze softly on that glowing, variegated colour, without analysing it.
पा सकती हैं। कोई स्थान खोजो जहाँ प्रकाश रंग बिखेरता हो — प्रिज़्म या पत्तों से छनकर आता सूर्य, एक लौ, एक दीपक — और दृष्टि को उस चमकते, रंग-बिरंगे रंग पर कोमलता से टिकाओ, उसका विश्लेषण किए बिना।
And as the gaze settles into the light?
और जैसे दृष्टि उस प्रकाश में ठहरती है?
Let seeing grow still and continuous. Light has always been the natural trigger for the self-luminous quality of awareness; held in this glowing colour, your own luminous nature begins to shine within it.
देखने को स्थिर और निरन्तर होने दो। प्रकाश सदा से चेतना के स्वयं-प्रकाश स्वभाव का स्वाभाविक उद्दीपक रहा है; इस चमकते रंग में टिकी दृष्टि के साथ, तुम्हारा अपना प्रकाशमान स्वरूप उसी में चमकने लगता है।
So the sunbeam and the one who sees it are one radiance?
तो सूर्य-किरण और जो उसे देखता है, दोनों एक ही आभा हैं?
One radiance. The coloured light is only a support; the real subject is the light of awareness it awakens. Gazing into that play of light, you recognise the same light as your own consciousness.
एक ही आभा। रंगीन प्रकाश केवल एक आधार है; असली विषय वह चेतना का प्रकाश है जिसे वह जगाता है। प्रकाश के उस खेल में निहारते हुए, तुम उसी प्रकाश को अपनी चेतना के रूप में पहचान लेती हो।
Why it works
Resting the gaze on space made luminous and colourful by sunlight or lamplight gives attention a radiant, contentless field. Light has long been the natural symbol — and trigger — for the self-luminous quality of awareness; held steadily in this glowing colour, the seer's own light (svātmarūpa) is recognised shining in and as the seen.
How to practice
- 1Find a place where light — sun through a prism or leaves, a lamp, a flame — scatters colour in the air or on a surface.
- 2Rest the gaze softly on that variegated, glowing colour.
- 3Do not analyse the colours; let seeing be still and continuous.
- 4As the gaze settles into the light, let your own luminous nature (svātmarūpa) shine forth within it.
The deeper story
In Trika the supreme is prakāśa — luminous light — together with vimarśa, its self-awareness. Gazing into coloured light, a play of prakāśa, the practitioner is led to recognise the same light as their own consciousness; the sunbeam and the seer are one radiance.
Terms in this technique
- tejas
- Light, brilliance, inner fire.
- cidākāśa
- The space of consciousness; the inner sky of awareness.
- ātman
- The true self; awareness as one’s own being.
Sources consulted
- Jaideva Singh, Vijñānabhairava: The Manual for Self-Realization (Motilal Banarsidass, 1979)
- Bettina Bäumer, Vijñâna Bhairava: The Practice of Centering Awareness (Indica Books, 2011)