Currently I am writing my first book on completion with body and I was searching for technique to transform the muscle memory. The search ended when I found a discourse by my Guru, Paramahamsa Nithyananda (fondly known as Swamiji) gave when he was expounding on Patanjali Yoga Sutras.
What is muscle memory?
Muscle-memory is that part in you which makes the decision to do any act spontaneously, and executes it within micro-milliseconds – even before you become aware of it! Swamiji explained that muscle-memory means your everyday actions and reactions. Your actions directly impact your muscles memory. Anything you do consciously again and again directly strengthens your muscles. So the more you age, the stronger you should become! That means you should become stronger and more intelligent as you age. The paradox is this is not happening because of the negative practice we create over time which strengthens the unconscious ideas in our inner space and weakens us. If you understand the science of practice (abhyasa), you will be stronger every moment and your muscles will be very strong!
The great siddha (perfected one) and enlightened yogi, Patanjali gives a powerful technique to be out of ignorance in Yoga Sutra 84, Chapter2, Verse33, it states “When disturbed by negative thoughts, opposed it with positive thoughts”. This powerful technique can raise us to the highest coherence. This is a process which not only we can practice the whole day continuously, it can also change our very muscle-memory. Each technique or method transforms some part of you. For example, if you practice yoga, your body will be transformed the way you want it. If you practice unclutching, your mind will be transformed. This technique by Patanjali is the only technique which can transform the muscle-memory.
Can you imagine if your muscle-memory goes unconsciously? It is such a dangerous thing because your day-to-day life becomes a living hell. The truth is you do not act the way you act because you are habituated to do so or you are trained to do so, or you have engraved memories. Actually, there is no specific reason why you act the way you act. There is only one thing you know: the moment the decision happens in you, so much energy is spontaneously released in your system such that without even a gap of a micro-millisecond, it is executed; it becomes action, it becomes reality. Some of you may find it difficult to understand and grasp. Unless you understand the source of this happening, it is practically impossible for you to alter it. That’s a really pathetic fate of a normal man.
As you practise pratipaksha bhavana, whenever a negative thought happens in you, without allowing the feeling that it should be immediately executed, you need to replace it with an alternative thought, and establish that new thought in you. Whenever negative thoughts which are against the purpose of your life happen in you, you just need to analyze, understand and take that thought to its logical conclusion. Create the opposite understanding, the right understanding of the purpose of your life, and raise the coherence of your system to its highest possibility.
For example, when a thought of violence arises in you, how do you use the technique of pratipaksha bhavana to get yourself back to non-violence space? All you need to do is remember, ‘Oh, I know violence will bring suffering and ignorance. I should not allow it!’ Patanjali is teaching us the ultimate reasoning – the applied science. If a great master of Patanjali’s caliber is coming down to teach us applied science, it means that this one process is so powerful that it can transform our complete being.
The word ‘confidence’ means the courage to live and execute the truths that you grasp intellectually. All you need is confidence in your understanding and execute that understanding very strongly. Creating the pratipaksha bhavana simply means creating thoughts contrary to the negative thought currents arising in you, and bringing yourself back to your center of resful awareness. It is not such a difficult job, but people are just too lazy to do it or even try. Be very clear, inability to create pratipaksha bhavana means inability to create the contrary thoughts to destroy negativity, which means allowing negativity to sprout in you. Once the negativity grabs you, your life is over! Your life is nothing but a living hell.
In essence, whenever the negativity enters your inner space to rob and destroy you, immediately bring the right understanding, the right attitude as your defense against the negativity. The timing is absolutely critical and you must respond immediately to your negativity. Nip it at the bud! Catch the thief at the right moment. If you miss the timing even once in creating the right thought current against the wrong thought current, you are caught! Catch the negativity the moment it enters your house. Pratipaksha bhavana is the ultimate reasoning. Namaste! 😀