Kramamudra
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In the Kashmir Shaivism, Kramamudra is a gesture (mudra) in two phases (krama) realised at the level of Consciousness. It is only accessible for the one who has revealed his supreme self, Atman, and is aspiring to unite Atman with the Divine Supreme Self, Paramatman.
[edit] The practice
The practice of this mudra is described as an expansion of the Self, Atman, towards the extreme limits of the Universe, followed by a contraction of the Universe inside his Self.
In the first phase, the yogi enters his revealed self, Atman, then directs the spiritual light of his Self onto the universe. In the beginning he starts with his own body. His body under the light of his Self (the Uncreated Light) becomes absorbed and dissolved, the dual nature of his physical body is erased being replaced with a body of light. Then he extends the light of Atman onto the near objects, infusing them too with the non dual energy, erasing the differences and reverting them to the fundamental state. Then the yogi extends the light of his Self, Atman in all the directions as far as possible, feeling the Universe as being one with his heart.
This light of the Self is not just any interior light, it is the Supreme Light of the Consciousness, cit, the essence of Atman.
In the second phase the waves of Atmic light pervading the universe are retracted inside. They carry with them a wealth of new information, links with all the objects they touched and supreme bliss. Then the yogi meditates onto this bliss (ananda) and internalizes it inside his Self, Atman.
This is a complete cycle. In the beginning the kramamudra meditation is slow and formal, but after practice it becomes spontaneous and can be experienced even outside meditation, in everyday life.
[edit] The effects
The fundamental role of this mudra is to unite Atman with the Universe, amplifying the state of bliss to an exceptional degree. The intense bliss will induce the final dissolution of Atman in Paramatman, the yogi becoming one with Paramasiva (The Transcendent God). This is the end of the spiritual path.
In kramamudra everything is revealed. Nothing is left behind. The whole universe is swallowed by Atman, in a state of pure bliss. The universe is Paramasiva's body, and thus it is full of bliss (ananda) and consciousness (cit). As a cyclical movement full of bliss, kramamudra is very similar to the experience of making love, only it is a gesture of pure consciousness, beyond physical body and mind. The final stage of kramamudra is a superposition of both phases, in a state of perfect equality (samata). This is the state of the being liberated while alive (jivanmukta).
Mahamudra also induces a state of deep devotion (bhakti). This devotion is the last step on the spiritual path, only love being able to unite one's Supreme Self, Atman with God's Heart, Paramatman. Utpaladeva, the great bhakta yogi said: "Glory to Utpala's big celebration, the lotus which amuses itself by swinging, drunken with love"
