Sri Yantra Meditation

The Sri Yantra is a 12,000 year old symbol and is considered the mother of all Yantras. Yantras are geometrical designs based on the principles of sacred geometry and are used for meditation. Traditionally, such symbols are used to balance the left and right aspects of the brain, focus our minds or to focus on spiritual concepts to obtain spiritual benefit. The Sri Yantra is a mathematically precise design and based upon the Phi ratio, also known as the Golden Proportion.

Focusing on a geometric pattern during meditation can have a profound effect on the pineal gland in the brain, helping to strengthen and detoxify this vital organ.

The pineal gland is responsible for the production of melatonin (the sleep hormone), serratonin (the happy hormone) and is related to the third eye.

You can either print this Yantra or focus on the screens image.

You will also need a blank piece of white paper.

Position the yantra so its centre is at eye level and a comfortable distance away (approx 2ft). Sit with your spine straight. Breathe in and out slowly until your breath flows naturally.

Slowly move from taking in everything around you, and begin to narrow your gaze.

You can begin by focusing at the centre, and then try to take in the whole yantra from this central point. Allow your eyes to become acquainted with its entirety, receiving the overall image.

Now shift your gaze to the square at the outside edge of the yantra. The square represents the Earth element. This is the wall between the material world, the boundaries held up by negative emotion. Allow anger and fear to dissolve and release any attachment to the physical world.

Allow feelings of bitterness, resentment, jealously, irritation, or envy remain outside the walls, and now move towards the portals; the yantra’s four T shaped gates. Notice that they point toward the interior of the yantra, the inner spaces of life. They represent our earthly passage from the external and material to the internal and sacred. Stay there at the portals for a few moments. Then ever so gently, move deeper into the yantra.

Observe the 3 circles. The outer circle represents Manah (mind), the next one represents Buddhi (intelligence), and the innermost circle represents the Jeevatma (human soul). The significance is this: our wavering mind should apply its intelligence and find the ways to understand the soul. They are the cosmic rhythms – they have no beginning or end; the rhythm is both within you and outside of you.

Within the circles are 16 lotus petals. They open outwards representing the unfolding of our deepening understanding. Each petal relates to the 5 organs of perception ( tongue, skin, nose, eyes, ears) the 5 organs of action, (mouth, feet, hands, organ of excretion and organ of procreation), and the five elements ( earth, water, fire, air and space). The 16th petal represents the mind which processes and interprets the information from the sensory organs and the elements.

Our deeper layer of understanding is represented in the next layer of 8 lotus petals. These govern activity – speech, grasping, motion, excretion, enjoyment, revulsion, attraction, and self control.

As we move deeper into the final circle we find the set of triangles.

Nine interlinking triangles — four upward facing Shiva triangles, representing the male energy, movement, transformation the left side of the brain and the fire element. The five downward facing Shakti triangles, the feminine creative power, the womb of all creation the right side of the brain and the water element. They form 44 triangles including the central point or bindu. First focus on just the downward set of triangles and their representation and then shift your focus to the triangles that point upwards.

Finally let your gaze rest on the source, the centre of the Yantra. The Bindu. The flower of life – the merging of the white flower of Shiva and the red flower of Shakti. This represents pure consciousness and the original state of being.

This phase should take between 5 and 15 mins, depending on how long you wish your meditation to be.

Now shift your gaze to a plain white surface or a piece of plain white paper and allow the yantra to be recreated on the blank surface. Allow it to manifest and play out in front of your eyes, until it begins to fade.

When it does close your eyes and visualise the yantra through the third eye folding and unfolding behind your closed eyes.

The patterns of creativity represented by these primordial shapes express the fundamental forces of nature that flow through the universe and through you. When have completed both parts of the meditation, just sit and slowly let the energy of your experience ripple through your thoughts, your being, and your breath. Notice how you feel. Take a few slow deep breaths before allowing the breath to flow naturally.

Be calm and gentle for a while after you finish. Don’t rush to undertake practical tasks. Move slowly and smoothly as your re-engage with your day.