On Cleaning

SPIRITUAL PRACTICES AND ATTITUDES FOR MODERN LIVING

In the third episode of the series, DAAJI answers some of the most common questions he receives about the Heartfulness practice of Cleaning. 

"We are programmed based upon our past impressions
such that all kinds of things can cause us to open and close.
If you pay attention, you will see it happen regularly throughout each day.”

— Michael Singer

I will start by sharing the results of a popular study done in 1954 and published in the Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science: The football fans of Dartmouth and Princeton were given a questionnaire after they watched a recording of a particularly rough game between their teams, as the researchers wanted to understand what the fans thought happened in the game. The results were so variable that the “game” was many different games. The fans had different versions of events, and each version was just as real to each person. Each fan had their own version of reality.

Since then, a large body of research has shown that we see the world through our own filters. Our attitudes, beliefs, and biases define our perception. All of us have this kind of conditioning. We have many blind spots, which stem from our likes and dislikes. They may seem harmless, but our likes and dislikes hijack our awareness. Most of the chatter going on in our minds is because of the constant stream of likes and dislikes.

Next time you are in a busy place, like a restaurant, a crowded street, or an airplane, try this experiment. Watch your thoughts as you observe people boarding the flight. Listen to the chatter of likes and dislikes as you observe their looks, what they wear, what they carry, how they talk, how they stow away their luggage, and so on. Most of us are unconsciously judging ourselves and others. With the Cleaning practice, we can move from judgment to acceptance to compassion to love.

For that journey to be successful, we need to remove the conditioned patterns within us. That conditioning is like channels formed by rainwater. When water flows over the same ground, it forms a channel. Over time, this channel widens and develops into a gushing river. Once the channel forms, that is the only path the water takes. Our likes and dislikes cause impressions that carve patterns of behavior in us. How we think, react, and what we like or dislike are all the result of these impressions. Yogis call these impressions samskaras.

What is being removed in the Heartfulness Cleaning practice?

The life that many of us lead is governed by those habits and patterns unfolding in front of us. The life we wish to lead will emerge once the impressions are cleaned.

So Heartfulness Cleaning is the way to remove the impressions—the impurities and complexities we accumulate on a daily basis. They are the emotional “charge” of our experiences, and the emotional residue that lingers from our past and our memories. Over time, impressions become fixed as tendencies, causing us to become habitual in our reactions and behavior. They prevent us from being free.

With the daily Cleaning practice, we become lighter day by day. When we clean the impressions, we remove the filters that distort our perception. These impressions settle in all the layers of the subconscious, where they cover the soul. They separate us from the center of our being. As this network becomes denser, it resembles layers like geological sedimentation. And like archaeology, they become a record of our past. The Cleaning process removes the layers, so we are free to design our own destiny.

The deeper result is that the practice of Cleaning creates space inside the heart, and this space automatically attracts Transmission. This is one of the reasons for the three introductory sessions with a trainer on commencing the Heartfulness practices. In those initial sessions, the trainer removes impurities and complexities from your system, creating more lightness within. Over time, you will experience greater vacuity and lightness, which will in turn direct the flow of divine energy toward you to a greater extent.

Do I need to recall all the happenings of the day before throwing them out?

A unique aspect of Cleaning is that we don’t focus on what is being removed. Recalling daily events will only deepen their impact. We don’t need to relive the past by bringing it into our awareness. Instead, we offer a non-judgmental affirmation that all impurities and complexities are being removed. It’s a refreshing dip in the waters of purity and love, and we emerge rejuvenated.

When should I practice Cleaning?

As Cleaning removes the accumulated impressions of the day, it is best done in the evening, after you have finished the majority of the day’s work. It is like taking a shower to wash off the day’s dirt, but this time for the mind.

Cleaning requires alertness, so it is best not to put it off until bedtime, when you are too sleepy to clean properly. Another reason not to postpone Cleaning is that it creates such freshness in us that if you do it too close to bedtime you may be too alert to sleep. Also, with the better state acquired after cleaning, your interactions with family members will witness many refined changes.

You can also do “spot” Cleaning at any time during the day, as needed. If you spill ketchup on your shirt in the morning, do you wait till the evening to clean it? Similarly, if something destabilizes you during the day, take a few minutes and wash away its effect right then and there. Spot Cleaning may be done sitting, standing, or walking, with eyes open or closed, depending on circumstances. Make the subtle suggestion to yourself that the impression is leaving from the back, restoring the heart and mind to its normal balanced condition. Then you will not have to carry around the heavy burden of that stain on your consciousness for the entire day.

The Cleaning process removes the layers, 
so we are free to design our own destiny.

Suppose I miss the Cleaning routine in the evening, what can I do?

If you miss the chance to complete the Cleaning in the evening, you can do it just before going to bed. If you are too tired then, do the Cleaning before your Meditation in the morning.

Is it possible to clean away certain ailments?

For ailments, it is recommended that you try the Heartfulness Relaxation. At the end of the process, revisit the affected organ and allow the energy from Mother Earth to flow there. Spend more time with that organ, and if necessary you can gently touch the same with your hands and allow the energy to comfort the organ or the region.

Also, during Cleaning, you may make the additional suggestion, “In addition to all impurities and complexities, I am also being relieved of this troubling ailment.” Of course, this is not a substitute for regular health intervention by medical professionals.

Make the subtle suggestion to yourself 
that the impression is leaving from the back, 
restoring the heart and mind to
 its normal balanced condition.