ences, which change moment to moment. Your environ-
ment changes, your friends change, your employment
changes, your body changes, your feelings change, your
thoughts change. The only constant in life is perpetual
change. Dhyana is the cultivation of your awareness so
that in the midst of this unending change, you do not lose
your self in the objects of your experience. Although sit-
uations, circumstances, people, and things are ever
changing in your life, the aspect of you that is witnessing
these changes is the essence of your being—your soul.
The most direct way to cultivate this state of ever-
present witnessing awareness is through meditation,
during which you learn to observe the thoughts, feelings,
sensations, and sounds that arise in your awareness
without needing to react to them. As you develop this
skill in meditation, you are able to apply it in your
daily life. You learn to stay centered and awake to all
possibilities whenever a challenge arises, so that you are
able to choose the best course of action that will maximize
the chances that your intentions and desires will be ful-
filled.
The Eighth Branch of Yoga—
Samadhi
Samadhiis the state of being settled in pure, unbounded
awareness. Going beyond time and space, beyond past
and future, beyond individuality, Samadhi is tasting the
realm of eternity and infinity. This is your essential
nature. Immersing yourself in Samadhi on a regular basis
catalyzes the transformation of your internal reference
point from ego to spirit. You perform your actions in the
The Royal Path to Union 47