Well you may have noticed if you come here now and then that I have moved a couple of things about nothing major.

I thought I would add another video of the help part as we can all do a little more to help and as two of the videos just ask you to look out for things it doesn’t cost us out so go on give it a go ,the other video is asking for you to donate a few bob to a charity that feeds the World not to me I must say donate to your own place in your own town some of it was taken from 1985 when we all put a song together to make money to feed the starving in Africa rember it?  well I say  Africa it can be anywhere in the World small video but I like it so go on take a look I don’t charge lol

Ok  I guess that’s it back in work in the morning after a full wk off so see how I go when I get back to it so all the best be good

         And if you can’t be careful.

Mike

IT’S 40 years ago this month that the age of steam ended on British Railways.

After 130 years of continuous running, the embers flickered and died in August 1968, although, in truth, steam trains in Britain gradually began disappearing in the early 1960s, not long after Dr Richard Beeching wielded his famous axe, decimating the country’s railways at virtually one stroke.

But Lancashire remained the last outpost of steam and as diesels and electric locomotives took over, the area became a Mecca for steam enthusiasts – and Rochdale was virtually at its hub.

The Manchester to Leeds railway via Rochdale and the Calder Valley first opened for business on 4 July 1839.

The Summit Tunnel was not opened until 1841 so that section had to be bypassed by stage coaches!

Rochdale’s first station was near Moss Lane, although to get to the then unfinished station, passengers had to walk across the pub yard from the appropriately named Railway Inn.

According to author Jeffrey Wells in his book ‘An illustrated history of Rochdale’s Railways’, the station was greatly extended between the 1860s and 1870s and a new station on the current site opened for business in 1892.

It was state-of-the-art at the time, both in its architecture and layout.

For the next 30 years the station was served by taxis and trams (which it’s hoped will return in 2013) as well as trains – and it has undergone several changes since then.

But before steam came to an end in 1968, it was always a busy if somewhat gloomy place, with the glory days of steam reaching their peak in the 1950s when a typical summer’s day would see up to 200 departures and arrivals between 4.49am and midnight.

Rail enthusiast Richard Greenwood, who for many years kept a meticulous record of steam working in the Rochdale area, says that although the Calder Valley line went ‘all diesel’ in January 1962 (the Oldham Loop had been diesel operated from June 1958) the 2.08am service from York to Manchester Victoria alternated between steam and diesel and there were also summer excursions hauled by steam engines from Liverpool or Manchester via Rochdale to Scarborough and a Bradford to Llandudno and return train also ran through Rochdale.

Some steam services on the Rochdale to Bolton line, via Castleton and Bury, remained in the 1960s, although in April 1966 that section, too, was converted to all diesel traction.

Mr Greenwood records that Saturday 18 May saw the last scheduled steam-worked passenger train at Rochdale on the 2.08am York to Victoria mail, worked by Black Five No 45310, although some freight services were still operated by steam engines.

The last steam-worked cross-Pennine service was seen trundling past Summit West in the early hours of 28 June 1968 and the next day the last steam locomotive from Bolton Shed saw it at work as a pilot engine in Castleton.

July and August saw plenty of steam specials in the Rochdale area as enthusiasts took advantage of what they thought was the passing of a golden era.

Today, of course, there are many steam specials, both on preserved lines and main lines, but in August 1968 when steam drew its last breath, the future of steam-hauled trains looked very bleak indeed.

The last local steam train working through Rochdale was on 4 August 1968, a Railtour behind engine Nos 48476 and 73093, which ran from Thorpe’s Bridge via Shaw, Rochdale and Castleton to Bury.

In his journals, Mr Greenwood recalls that the train was two and a half hours late at Castleton – track labourers had gone for a long lunch in the pub thinking they had all the time in the world!

Another steam visitor to Rochdale in September in 1968, a month after the official demise of steam, was loco No 73050 on a special working from Newton Heath shed to Peterborough for preservation on the Nene Valley Railway.

Steam Trains in the UK 1954/1956                                         Private Railways part 1                         

  The Enginemen Newton Heath sheds part two

The Enginemen of Newton Heath part one sat                         Part four of the end of Steam             

   BYGONE Days of Steam part two

The end of Steam part three                                              The Enginemen Newton Heath sheds  

This physical experience is merely a road trip and at this point in time you are not aware that you exist in other worlds, dimensions, and galaxies. This is what awakening to "oneness" truly means. Oneness is a reconnection with everything, allowing you to be free from your finite identity and given the ability to flow into any experience that you choose to have. Let go of your attachments and judgments so you can live your life with a sense of joy and passion. The freedom to experience life with a sense of knowing and the absence of preconditioned inhibitions is the path towards peace, enlightenment, and an expanded consciousness. Upon your awakening you will realize that the term, "I Am" is the only phrase that's necessary to describe who you are.

                                                                                                      Meditation

The term meditation refers to a variety of techniques or practices intended to focus or control attention. Most of them are rooted in Eastern religious or spiritual traditions. These techniques have been used by many different cultures throughout the world for thousands of years.

Today, many people use meditation outside of its traditional religious or cultural settings as a form of mind-body medicine. Many claims have been made about its value in promoting or improving health and wellness. Research on these claims, as well as on how meditation might work, is important for NCCAM and other components of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

                                                                                              Published by AHRQ; Funded by NCCAM

To help clarify the state of existing knowledge, NCCAM funded a systematic review of available scientific literature on meditation practices for health. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) published this review, which was carried out by investigators at the University of Alberta's AHRQ Evidence-based Practice Center. The report highlights strengths and limitations in existing meditation research. While the study found some evidence suggesting that meditation is associated with potentially beneficial health effects, it also found that "firm conclusions on the effects of meditation practices in healthcare cannot be drawn based on the available evidence. Future research on meditation practices must be more rigorous in the design and execution of studies and in the analysis and reporting of results."

Meditation

  MEDITATION INSTRUCTIONS

   Morning is an ideal time to meditate, yet any convenient regular time will do. Meditation should be practiced daily, in a place that is completely private, free from undue noise, and free from interruptions of any kind. It should be practiced for a set number of minutes each day, as follows:

First month of practice: 18 minutes per daily session

Thereafter: 24 minutes per daily session

Sit upright, with your spine relatively straight—on a bed, on the floor, on a cushion, or in a chair, whichever is most comfortable to you. If crossing your legs result in discomfort or stoppage of energy flow in the legs, try uncrossing and extending them, or otherwise altering your position.

   After becoming comfortable, close the eyes and relax, for a brief moment, seeking to calm your body and mind. Now allow the symbol of the Round Orange-Red Ball to come into your awareness. Do not try to re-create the Orange-Red Ball as if it were in front of you or near your forehead—do not “pretend to see” the Round Orange-Red Ball. Visualization is not the same as pretending to see. FEEL that you are the symbol. Do not “think about” the Round Orange-Red Ball. Visualization is not the same as thinking. Sense and become the Round Orange-Red Ball with your entire awareness.

   To begin to get a sense of the symbol, ask yourself: How does it feel to be that shape—to be the round surface of a ball? How does that color feel— how does it feel to be the color of orange-red? Sense the color and shape together. Become, with your consciousness, just this object. Be the Ball—visualize it with your entire being. If you sense and become in this way, you will begin to achieve a perfect completeness with the Round Orange-Red Ball. It will be as if it were there with you and in you, whole.

   Do not force it, simply allow yourself to become aware of it, and seek to effortlessly maintain your awareness upon the Round Orange-Red Ball. Thoughts of other things will probably arise in your mind, and when you become aware that your awareness has perhaps strayed to some mundane matter, instead of remaining on the Round Orange-Red Ball, simply notice that a thought or emotion has appeared, without placing any bias or judgment upon it. Do not pay any further attention to the thought or emotion, just allow it to drop away, and allow your sense of the Round Orange-Red Ball to re-emerge. It is important that you do not struggle to keep the mind on the Round Orange-Red Ball, but simply notice when a stray thought has appeared, drop the thought, and then allow your mind to come back gently and effortlessly to the Round Orange-Red Ball. Let the memorable feeling of peace and deep knowing that you will begin to acquire from maintaining your awareness upon the Round Orange-Red Ball inspire you to allow it to re-emerge effortlessly in your mind.

   Always remember that the Round Orange-Red Ball is YOU—it is not something “out there.” Have the entire sense of the Round Orange-Red Ball within your being. Be the Round Orange-Red Ball, and your practice will be perfect and effortless. Do not struggle in any way. You should feel tranquil and comfortable while meditating.

   Continue to meditate for the allotted time. You may slightly open your eyes to periodically check a clock or watch, to gauge the time while learning. After you have meditated for the allotted time, stop the practice and rest, lying down or sitting, for 3 or 4 minutes before opening the eyes and rising into activity. It is important to have this transition time, and not “shock” the awareness by returning to daily activity suddenly, after meditating.

   As you begin your practice of daily meditation, you should know that it is normal to have a period of days or weeks in which you will “get comfortable” with the practice, and perfect the technique of this method. At first, it is possible that this form of meditation will be unfamiliar to you, and you may also have a little difficulty in practicing it correctly. You will notice, however, that with a little practice it becomes easier and easier. After just a few weeks or a month, you will find it becoming “second nature” to you, and that you will naturally sink into a deep meditative state shortly after beginning your daily practice. Should you have any questions, or wish to be certain that you are practicing the Chios Meditation method correctly, be sure to seek Support through this website.

   It is possible that disturbances may occur as you learn. Bodily sensations, particularly distracting or even disconcerting thoughts or emotions, leaving the body, visions of spirits, or similar experiences may manifest. While to be expected occasionally, these do not matter and are not to be desired nor undesired. The ultimate goal of the meditation is to go beyond the surface disturbances. Merely “let them go,” and continue the practice without concern—just let whatever thoughts, emotions or experiences “come up” exist without either attempting to repress them or attach the awareness to them. Maintain your focus upon an effortless visualization of the Round Orange-Red Ball.

   It is not uncommon, for example, for recurrent thoughts or emotions to “come up” which bear relation to the inner issues of the meditator. If the meditator remains in the expanded spiritual awareness proper visualization practice upon this symbol will provide, these other thoughts and emotions which arise need not be identified with nor repressed, but simply noticed as the awareness is encouraged to effortlessly return to the Round Orange-Red Ball. The awareness will therefore not become “wrapped up” and identified in these thoughts, emotions and issues, and these distractions will eventually lose their influence upon the awareness. This is instrumental not merely for correct practice of the meditation but also to allow the meditation to properly contribute to the meditator’s healing and personal growth process. Leaving the body is also a common side-effect when meditation is begun, yet is similarly not to be encouraged nor given any concern. The meditator simply notices this has happened and then allows a grounded, in-the-body experience of the meditation to re-emerge. Whenever any such experiences arise, it is desirable to return to a grounded and in-the-body state. This form of meditation is intended to be a grounded practice. As you become more familiar with meditation, you will naturally remain in the body, and it is desirable to do so.

   As you advance in your practice and acquire the ability to quiet the mind and sink to deeper levels of awareness, your awareness of the symbol during meditation will become more subtle. There is not an overpowering awareness of, for example, the shape or color of the symbol. There is simply the very gentle, subtle awareness of the symbol, in its wholeness, from the finest level of awareness. As you work towards this finer level of meditation practice, you should just barely be able to tell that you are meditating on this particular symbol. As you practice, and begin to experience this finer awareness, you are penetrating nearer and nearer to the state of pure consciousness, and are progressing successfully towards the point where the highest benefits will accrue from your practice.

Suggestions For Successful Practice:

   To reap the full benefits of Chios Meditation, the following are highly recommended:

• Make it a habit, a daily practice that you follow regularly. For anyone wishing to enjoy maximal benefits from the practice of meditation—and for the healer, especially—regular daily practice of meditation is very important. A regular time and place are helpful for many. Approach it fresh each time, however. Make it a part of your routine, yet do not practice it routinely.
• Be careful to learn, and continue in, correct practice. Improper practice of meditation will not provide the benefits that might otherwise accrue, and may actually work against you. Seek Support if you have questions, at any time, regarding the method of correct practice.
• Have faith that you will experience the benefits. Expect positive results. Do not let doubt prevent you from the benefits and personal growth that the practice of meditation can provide.
• Free yourself from preconceptions of what meditation is, or what you will experience. Just do it. Do not think about or expect experiences that you have perhaps heard others speak of, or that you have read about in books (or even in this manual).  Although the process of expansion of awareness and personal growth has broad outlines applicable to all, realize that what you experience, in whatever form, is also an expression of your unique individual awareness and part of your unique spiritual path. Do not let ideas of “what should happen,” or “what meditation is supposed to be” color your inner learning, your inner experiences or your unique path of spiritual unfoldment.  You are a unique individual, and when your own experiences manifest, do not deny them.

INTRODUCTION

   Welcome to the study of Chios Meditation. Your decision to learn meditation is a good one. The method of meditation taught as part of the Chios system is an excellent all-around meditation method, and may provide many lifelong benefits to you. It is an important practice for the energy field healer as well, and leads to many of the abilities necessary in healing. In addition, after learning this basic meditation technique you can progress to the advanced exercises in the remainder of this site section—exercises in Self-Knowledge and Self-Realization that will accelerate your spiritual growth and foster the advanced abilities useful in healing work. Learning and practicing the Chios Meditation technique is the beginning and foundation of that beneficial process.

   Meditation is the practice of pure awareness. Underneath the manifold experiences, thoughts and actions in which we all engage in our day-to-day life lies a state of pure awareness—pure consciousness—which is the source of all that we are and all that we experience. This field of pure consciousness is also the source of many higher abilities in us which often lie unnoticed and undeveloped. Through the practice of meditation it is possible to come into greater conscious awareness of this deeper reality. Thereby, we do not merely come into greater awareness and understanding of the true nature of ourselves and everything we experience, but we also access many abilities within us that ordinarily lie hidden, through our gaining the ability to rest within and tap the latent powers contained in this state of pure consciousness. The goal of meditation is to cultivate a state of greater conscious connection to this larger spiritual reality, to the realm of pure consciousness, and meditation is perhaps the fundamental spiritual practice.

   The practice of meditation does not “take anything away” from our everyday life, but rather, enables us to become aware and act in a more truly complete manner—a manner which encompasses more of the greater reality in which we live. It also enables us, as we practice the art of energy field healing, to become more aware of the condition of the energy field of our patient, as well as more effective and powerful in our healing abilities, as we seek to perform healing treatment. Chios Meditation will give you the means to foster this deeper awareness and develop these higher conscious abilities, through your regular practice of a meditation technique that over time will allow you to develop and cultivate this awareness and these powers in yourself. It is important that you study the specific technique used in this meditation method (and in the advanced exercises that follow) carefully to be certain that, right from the beginning, you are performing the techniques correctly. Support is available, if you need it. This will ensure that as you progress you will have the potential to develop and enjoy the greater awareness and conscious abilities that lie within you, waiting to be discovered.

                                                                                                              THE PROCESS OF MEDITATION

   In everyday life, as each of us lives in our “normal” state of consciousness, our awareness is usually focused upon the particular thoughts, emotions or perceptions we experience on the surface level of reality, whether they are the experiences and perceptions we move through in our life in the outer world, or the thoughts and feelings that we have in our inner world. As we move through life, we perceive, think, act and feel with the assistance of our “thinking mind”—the active portion of our mind that deals with this surface level of reality, through the use of thoughts, feelings, interpretations of perceptions, and actions. Our awareness is usually identified with, preoccupied with and attached to, whichever of these particular activities we engage in through the use of this “thinking mind.” Although all these particular components of our life are important, when we remain identified with, and therefore limited to, these surface activities—these surface appearances of our deeper being—we are far less able to perceive and act from a more fundamental level of greater awareness. The tendency of our “thinking mind” to remain preoccupied with the particulars of life inhibits our ability to move to the level of pure consciousness that is actually the source of all these particular states of mind.

   In the practice of meditation we seek to free ourselves from this mental “chatter” in which our “thinking mind” engages, and instead seek connection to a deeper level of our being. We free ourselves from the surface level of the mind, and by doing so, we make it easier for ourselves to come into connection with a deeper spiritual reality. Meditation is a process by which we seek to re-condition our conscious awareness, so that we release our attachment to the surface level of reality and instead allow the awareness to gravitate towards a state of pure awareness, pure consciousness. As we meditate in the proper manner, the experience of  pure awareness itself moves more to the forefront, instead of a primary identification with the highly active surface level of the mind.

   The proper practice of meditation therefore enables us to gain a better primary connection to the greater reality that is the real source of everything we experience. It is the primary connection to this greater reality that provides us the greater awareness, perceptual abilities and powers of consciousness that would ordinarily remain unavailable, should our awareness remain only in touch with the “surface level” of reality. Our awareness, freed from identification with the particular activities of the “thinking mind,” is able to expand into a greater awareness of reality. Our conscious awareness, free from the distractions and limitations that result from preoccupation with the surface level of reality, is also free to tap the powers in the field of pure consciousness that would otherwise remain unnoticed and undeveloped—to cultivate the conscious abilities that might ordinary remain undeveloped should an identification with the excessive activity of the surface level of the mind remain.

   To gain these potential benefits of meditation, by virtue of this reconditioning of the awareness, it is necessary to engage in regular practice—usually on a daily basis. Meditation does not provide all its benefits all at once, but over time, as the practice itself re-conditions the awareness of the meditator more towards the state of pure consciousness. In each daily meditation session, the conscious awareness of the meditator is encouraged, through the use of a certain technique, to free itself from the surface level of the “thinking mind” and instead come into greater contact with the field of pure consciousness. Achieving a state of pure awareness is therefore practiced, on a daily basis.

   When this is done, the ability to contact the state of pure awareness is present not only during each meditation session, but tends to “carry over” to our entire life experience. Our ability to move into a state of pure awareness during our meditation sessions does not become unavailable when we stop meditating—our ability to contact this state of pure consciousness manifests in, and tends to benefit our overall life. We acquire the ability to contact and act from this deeper awareness at other times, too, instead of being constantly bound by, and identified with, the surface level of the mind. It may also be called upon during times when such awareness and abilities are needed—during the practice of healing, for example. Because meditation brings us into closer connection with the spiritual source of life and health, the regular practice of meditation also tends to refine and enhance the functioning of the body, mind and spirit—to bring greater peace, effectiveness and harmony to all levels of the being.

   It is a release of identification with, and subsequent gradual quiescence of, this surface mental activity—the developed ability to access the field of pure consciousness underneath the “busy” surface level of the mind— that provides all these benefits. There are many forms of meditation, but to quiet the surface level of the mind such that greater awareness and greater abilities may become manifest is the goal of meditation in all its forms. Although the many different kinds of meditation employ various techniques to work towards this desirable goal, the overall process remains the same.

   Meditation, in one form, is often practiced with the use of a symbol. In this type of meditation practice, the technique employed to cultivate this greater connection to pure consciousness makes use of the symbol in a particular way, so as to effect this end. In the practice of meditation using a symbol, the awareness of the meditator is focused upon the symbol, instead of remaining identified with the many thoughts and emotions that might otherwise retain importance as the focus of awareness. The symbol provides a prop, a single object which is sensed in an effortless way, instead of the usual jumble of disorganized thoughts and emotions. The sensing of the symbol alone, in this way, assists in the settling of superfluous thoughts and emotions, stabilizing the descent to a level of pure consciousness. This is because the mind no longer feeds off its own activity, from one thought to the next. Stabilizing the awareness upon just the meditation symbol allows the activity of the surface level of the mind, the “thinking mind,” to “wind down,” to decrease in activity, slowly but surely.

   The symbol stabilizes and assists in the descent to deeper levels of awareness. As the meditator meditates, the thoughts and emotions that may arise while meditating are recognized to be merely distractions, and are therefore allowed to drop away as the meditator’s awareness comes back effortlessly to the symbol alone. As the meditator continues to meditate on the symbol, the “chatter” of the “thinking mind” winds down more and more, and the meditator settles to deeper and deeper levels of awareness. Although thoughts and emotions continue to arise in the mind as it “winds down,” the meditator does not identify with them, and so, gradually they become fewer and fewer. No particular attention is paid to the thoughts and emotions, they are simply noticed as distractions, as being observed as outside the focus of the meditation (the symbol), and allowed to drop away as the awareness is encouraged to return to just the symbol.

   The awareness of the meditator may drift from the symbol many times while meditating, especially at first, but by simply and effortlessly coming back to the symbol the practice is slowly but surely refined. Eventually the meditator will become adept at keeping the symbol alone in the awareness, and achieve a quiet mind. The meditator may then begin to have experiences of pure awareness, perhaps for just an instant at first, wherein a sense of perfect unity with the symbol is achieved. It is at this time that the awareness of the meditator may be said to have completely released its identification with the surface level of the mind, and to have begun to contact the state of pure consciousness. At this level of pure consciousness, the meditator, the object of meditation (the symbol), and the process of meditation become one. The symbol is also experienced in its essence, and particular conscious abilities may become available to the meditator—abilities which are contained in, and are part of, the field of pure consciousness, and which may also bear some relationship to the essence and inner power of the symbol. A deep sense of peace and knowing may also be felt.

                                                                                                              CHIOS MEDITATION TECHNIQUE

   The meditation technique you will learn is Chios Meditation, which employs a certain symbol, as well as instruction in the correct way to meditate using this symbol. The symbol used is called the Round Orange-Red Ball, and the correct manner of meditating on this symbol is referred to as visualization.

The Round Orange-Red Ball:

   The symbol used in Chios Meditation is the Round Orange-Red Ball. The Round Orange-Red Ball is not to be thought of as any particular object (in the external world), but an idealized object; that is, a single object in the awareness that is of this particular shape and color. It is an object with the shape of roundness, as one would sense the round surface shape of a ball, and the color of orange-redness, which is halfway between orange and red on the visual spectrum, combined into one single whole object of this sensed shape and color. It is not entirely solid, and is without the solidity of a completely solid object, and yet it is not hollow nor is the surface transparent either. Its round ball shape, and its orange-red color, are the focus of awareness.

   The Round Orange-Red Ball is not a symbol that has been chosen at random. It is a powerful, effective and complete meditation symbol that will serve for a lifetime of practice. This particular symbol has, inherent within it, the ability to place the meditator in conscious touch with the field of pure awareness, and in such a way as to release powerful abilities. It is an inner discovery and learning, a journey inward. It is an unbiased symbol, as well, and bears no connection to any particular religious or spiritual tradition or belief system. It is a powerful and versatile symbol that has, in addition, some advanced uses that you may encounter later, after learning the basis meditation technique.

   You may wish to have some idea of the origin of this symbol. It comes from a deeper spiritual awareness of nature and the source of life. It is also very old. The Round Orange-Red Ball is a symbol that corresponds to our Sun, not merely the physical sun but the spiritual Sun. This spiritual Sun represents the life force, and all that is contained in it, in an active and intelligent form—the force that has been instrumental in bringing life to the earth and that surrounds and supports all life on our world, including all of us. The Round Orange-Red Ball corresponds to this solar logos, this higher spiritual reality that makes life on our planet possible, and also has a holographic relationship to the spiritual source within each of us. It is the Sun that lies within each of us and in humanity as a whole. It speaks to a racial memory, a deep racial and historic understanding of this spiritual source of all life. It is part of humanity’s evolution, and is a rich and powerful meditation symbol for many reasons. Do not let your knowledge of the origin of this symbol interfere with your practice of it, however. When meditating on the symbol, do not ascribe any meaning to it; simply let the symbol itself occupy your awareness. The symbol itself connects to all you need to practice meditation powerfully and correctly. You do not need any mental understanding of it or of the process of meditation.

Correct Practice of Visualization:

   The Round Orange-Red Ball, by itself, is not sufficient to engage in effective and pure meditation practice. It is also necessary to meditate upon this symbol in the proper manner. This form of correct practice of Chios Meditation, the proper manner in which the symbol of the Round Orange-Red Ball is held in the awareness, is termed visualization.

   In Chios Meditation, the Round Orange-Red Ball is visualized, that is, sensed in the awareness in a certain way, and whenever stray thoughts or emotions appear, they are allowed to drop away as the awareness returns just to the Round Orange-Red Ball. To visualize the symbol, in the proper manner necessary for successful practice of this form of meditation, consists of becoming one with the symbol, instead of merely “thinking about” it in some way. This is necessary, so that the symbol may act to quiet the surface level of the “thinking mind,” instead of merely provide an additional surface phenomenon to the operation of the mind. Proper practice of visualization consists of establishing a unity, an identity with the Round Orange-Red Ball, and sensing it with the whole being, not just the mind. It is important to understand that you are not just “thinking about” the symbol, and that meditation is not a mental phenomenon.

   It is also very important to understand that proper practice of this method requires that the meditator not “pretend to see” the symbol, as would be sensed with ordinary (visual) sensory perception. Like merely “thinking about” the meditation symbol, pretending to see the Round Orange-Red Ball will merely create a surface-level mental state, and not allow for stabilization and descent of the awareness to deeper levels. Both of these forms of incorrect practice have, intrinsic within them, a subject/object distinction, which is the modus operandi of the “thinking mind,” as it thinks within or perceives the ordinary surface level of reality.

   Becoming one with the symbol, so that the subject/object distinction disappears, is the essence of proper practice of visualization. This is the form of practice which serves to allow the “thinking mind” to wind down, and provide the resulting expansion of awareness that is desirable in meditation practice. It is important to understand that the term “visualization,” as used in this meditation method, is not the same as pretending to see a visual image, as with the physical eyes. It is necessary to let go of the idea of “seeing” as something that is only done with the physical eyes. This is a great step forward. Visualization is done with the mind’s eye. When you are “visualizing,” you are sensing with your entire consciousness, not merely with the mind or one physical sense. This is visualization, and distinctly so. It is a knowledge of the Round Orange-Red Ball which is not dependent on the visual sense. It is focusing the awareness upon the Round Orange-Red Ball using the entire consciousness. It is learning to “visualize” in an altogether new manner. You will acquire a feeling for what this means after some practice.

   If you find yourself “pretending to see” the symbol, you must release the visual part of your experience. Meditation is usually practiced with eyes closed, yet you could have your eyes open, seeing the objects around you, and still be visualizing the Round Orange-Red Ball. Some also think of this as “putting the symbol in the mind’s eye, or third eye,” as visualization is practiced with the aid of the forehead (third eye) chakra. If you find yourself “thinking about” the Round Orange-Red Ball, you must likewise release yourself from your “thinking mind” as it attempts to grasp it merely through the thinking process. It is not necessary to “think about” the Orange-Red Ball to sense it with the consciousness—all that is required is that you become the Orange-Red Ball, with your entire conscious awareness.

Potential Benefits of Chios Meditation:

Chios Meditation, when practiced correctly, may give the following benefits:

• A deeper sense of the true self beyond the ego, and deeper intuitive knowings. This may include a deeper knowledge of the nature of the individual self, in the form of a fundamental connection to pure consciousness within the individual self of the meditator, beneath the emotions, perceptions, mental ideas and preconceptions of self that exist at the surface level of the mind. Other knowledge pertaining to self may also be gained, such as insight into the life experience. The practice of meditation places the practitioner in closer touch with his or her inner conscious resources, and the regular meditator frequently enjoys an overall acceleration and refinement of spiritual growth.
• Enhanced sensitivity to all things, from which communication may result—such as the reception of impressions, guidance or thought communication (“telepathy”). All these various forms of communication are related, for all take place through the field of pure consciousness. The “thinking mind,” in its activity, serves as an obstruction and a filtering process, preventing the conscious awareness from effectively receiving such communication. Acquiring the ability to quiet the “thinking mind” and come into greater contact with the state of pure consciousness enhances the receptivity of the awareness to these various forms of communication.
• The ability to visualize, to “see” psychically, which has also been called “psychic sight,” “high sense perception,” “second sight,” and other names. This may include intuitive forms of “seeing,” in the mind’s eye, as well as experiences involving physical sight. These abilities come from a development of the abilities of the sixth chakra, as a result of the proper practice of visualization, and visions, various forms of “remote viewing,” precognition, and the ability to see the human aura are some examples of the receptive aspect of the visualization ability that results. Greater overall intuitive awareness, in whatever form it manifests, is commonly present.
• Later, after some practice, the ability to use your visualization ability in the sense of sending or directing energy (rather than receiving it, as with psychic sight). Various kinds of energy, color, light or qualities may be sent. This active visualization ability is also the result of regular practice of meditation. It  is particularly useful in healing work, where the ability to visualize in this way is a necessary prerequisite to proper performance of the many advanced healing techniques which require that energy, color and light be directed to certain locations in certain particular ways.
• Various other “supernormal” abilities, which will vary from person to person.

   These abilities are developed over a period of months and years, and will vary from student to student. They may manifest not only while meditating, but in daily life as well.  It is a great advantage to develop the habit of engaging in the regular practice of meditation, at a daily time and place of one’s choosing, and persevering in the practice. This is the way that the maximum benefits will be gained.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        ADVANCED MEDITATION

   In your learning and practice of Chios Meditation you have probably developed some inner sense of self-awareness—a pure awareness beyond habitual identifications with the thoughts, feelings and perceptions of the surface level of the mind. Meditation is, in the beginning, a journey inward, and provides an inward awareness of self. Your awareness, at the beginning of a meditation practice, often begins to draw inward, and progresses inward.  After practicing meditation for some weeks or months, however, you may have also noticed, during your meditations, other moments where your awareness was focused outward, moments where, although you were sitting with eyes closed meditating, you were aware of your existence in the outer universe, perhaps with a sense of the sky or heavens above, of being in the universe.

   You may not have noticed it with your conscious mind, as yet, but there is a point where the inward awareness reverses itself, instantly, and moves outward, a moment of broadening or expansion.  This point is often reached more than once in each day's meditation period.   It is an instantaneous reversal in the focus of awareness, and there is often a sense of elation or euphoria at this point where the inward awareness expands.  This point is not a point in time or space, but it is a state of being. It is subtle, yet discernible with practice. This precise point of change in awareness is called the point of pure being.

   This is like a funnel, as if the meditation were a double funnel. The awareness draws inward, funnels inward to a point (inward awareness), and then instantly reverses outward again by passing through a "hole," a pinpoint or very small hole in the universe, and then funnels instantly outward again (outward awareness) into the universe. There is the experience, at this point, of a difference—it is a non-experience of either inward or outward awareness alone. It is an experience of the essence of reality—it is an experience of both inner and outer awareness and also of not either of these by themselves. It is an experience of an existence between two existences.

   This point is not an actual location, and the visual illustration given is only to assist in your understanding and awareness of this point, but at this point of pure being, where the focus of meditation is neither inward nor outward, the being of the meditator rests in a condition that transcends both the inner and the outer worlds, the duality of the inner and outward awareness. At this point there is a totality of being, it is a point where the being is pure. At the precise moment of achievement of this point, there is a unity with all creation, a coming to rest in pure consciousness itself.

   There is an important analogy to this point.  Because all particularized objects in manifestation are in some manner a recapitulation of the universal consciousness, we see patterns repeated in the physical and metaphysical worlds. A black hole, in space, is the direct analog of this meditative transition, and its singularity is a physical counterpart to the state of pure being. As in the singularity of a black hole in space, the usual rules of time and space do not apply at the point of pure being. This point, and whatever happens within it, is also beyond the concept of time. At this point, the human spirit, which is inherently unlimited in its nature, can potentially experience all possibilities, without limitation. There is great power at this point.

   Begin to gain an awareness of this point by incorporating the following exercise into your daily meditation:

During your daily practice of Chios Meditation, begin to become aware of the point of pure being.  Begin to notice the focus of your meditation at various times.  Is it inward or outward? If it has been inward, and then you notice an outward focus later, search your being, for just a brief moment, for the awareness you may have had, at some level, of this point. Note this easily, and then go on with the meditation.

   Perform this exercise during your daily practice of the meditation, seeking to gain awareness of the point.  It is likely you already have some awareness of this point at a deeper level of awareness. After having reached some conscious awareness of the point, it is desirable to gain the ability to slow the transition of awareness through this point, to maintain the awareness at the point of singularity, in the state of pure being itself.

Allow, during your meditation, your perception of this point to become more complete: allow yourself to become the point and possess a knowledge of it. Know yourself as the point and possess the point in your awareness allowing a persistence of it to prevail, during your meditation. Allow your deeper awareness of the point to imbue and carry over into daily life. See the point in everything that exists and become the awareness that you experienced within it.

   This is a profound and advanced exercise—proceed slowly and seek Support through the website if you feel you need it.

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