Consider the Body Limitless

1. What the Method Is

The core instruction is to “Consider the body limitless”. This involves a shift in perception from the body as a confined, weighted entity to an experience of boundlessness.

2. How It Is Done

While the direct instruction is brief, related practices and insights from the sources provide guidance on how to approach this state:

  • Focus on No-Thought Moments: The instruction directly associated with “Consider the body limitless” is to “Be aware of the moments of no-thought”. This implies that in the absence of mental activity and definition, the sense of physical limitation can dissolve.
  • Feeling Weightlessness: A closely related technique involves sitting comfortably, ideally with a straight spine, and actively feeling oneself becoming weightless. Practitioners are encouraged to go on “feeling, feeling, feeling” until they suddenly realize they are weightless. This realization signifies that one is no longer merely a body, as weight is a characteristic of the body, not of the true self, which is described as weightless.
  • Conceiving the Body as Infinite Space: The mind’s tendency is to define boundaries, but consciousness is inherently weightless and without boundaries. This practice involves recognizing that one’s body is not limited by the skin, but is part of the whole universe, suggesting an expansive, limitless nature.
  • Inner Observation and Detachment: By looking at one’s own body inwardly, one can become separated from it, realizing that the observer is distinct from the observed. This can be practiced by trying to feel the body’s sensations deeply (e.g., touch, coldness, warmth, breath movement) without labeling them mentally, which helps to develop a “feeling dimension” beyond mere intellectualization.
  • Self-Remembering: Continuously feeling “I am” without verbalizing it or creating thoughts around it, even during daily activities like walking, eating, or singing, can help in detaching from the body-mind identification. This practice helps one to realize the ever-living current or energy within.
3. Commentaries and Insights
  • Purpose of the Method: The ultimate goal of considering the body limitless is to destroy self-imposed limits and go beyond the mind, leading to a state of bodilessness. It aims to help individuals realize their true nature as omnipresent light. This is a technique of “unconditioning,” removing what society has imposed to reveal the original purity of mind.
  • Nature of Mind and Consciousness: The mind creates boundaries and definitions, which are essential for its functioning, but consciousness itself is weightless and boundless. The ordinary mind is described as a process of words and verbalization, which creates a false sense of reality and limits one’s true being. By transcending the mind, one steps into reality, which is existence itself, not words.
  • Breaking Identification: Humanity often identifies with the physical body and the mind, which is considered a false identity and the root of suffering. This identification leads to a feeling of being a “small ‘I’” or ego. When this identification is broken, the individual realizes their infinite power and becomes a master of gravity. This process is not about denying the body but accepting it as a “holy temple” and a “vehicle” for spiritual transformation.
  • Experience of Transformation: The experience can involve feeling a profound sense of lightness or weightlessness, where the heaviness associated with the body disappears. This can lead to an experience of “ecstasy,” meaning to “stand out” of the body, where for a moment, the mind (the bridge between self and body) is absent, and one is simply a witnessing presence. It reveals that the body is merely “clothing,” and the true self is distinct and cannot die.
  • Philosophical Context: Tantra, unlike moral teachings, does not present ideals but offers techniques for internal transformation. It asserts that the individual is their own ideal, and the path is one of self-discovery rather than imitation. The human consciousness is viewed as unpredictable and free, constantly new and unique. Tantra emphasizes that spiritual health (enlightenment) is attained when the mind, seen as a spiritual disease, is transcended.
  • Challenges and Warnings: Realizing oneself as boundless can be difficult because the human mind desires to be something definable and definite, fearing the nothingness or void that true boundlessness entails. The ego prefers difficulties and “arduous journeys” to feel fulfilled, thus simple techniques might lack appeal. The process can take time and requires persistent, authentic effort without expecting immediate results or giving in to the mind’s deceptions. One general warning applies to all powerful techniques: if anything feels unbearable or causes undue discomfort, it is advised not to continue with that specific method, as forcing oneself can create more problems than it solves.