Laya is not Samadhi

Sri Annamalai Swami

[A foreign woman came to see AS. While she was prostrating to him she seemed to become unconscious of her surroundings and she remained lying on the floor at his feet for about 10 minutes. This was not the first time that she had fallen into this state while in AS's presence. After watching her for some time, he shouted at her:]

You should not go into laya (a trance-like state) like this! It is becoming a habit with you. It may give you some kind of temporary happiness, but it is not a happiness that helps you spiritually. it is the same as sleep. Even worldly activities are better than this laya. Get out of this habit.

(Addressing the other people present) People occasionally went into states like this in front of Bhagavan. He never encouraged them, even the ones who appeared to be in a deep meditation.

I remember one occasion when Bhagavan noticed a man who had been sitting motionless in the hall for at least an hour, apparently in a deep meditation. Bhagavan was not fooled.

He called Kunju Swami and others who were present, 'Shout at him, shake him, and when he wakes up, take him on giri pradakshina. This is no better than sleep. This state is not good for him. He is just wasting his time sitting like this.'

Bhagavan warned us about this state, and he often cited stories of sadhus who had been stuck in this state for years. One of the most frequently told was a story about a sadhu who asked his disciple for a glass of water. While he was waiting for the man to return, he went into a deep laya state that persisted for many many years. He was in this state so long, his disciple died, the river changed its course and different rulers came and went.

When he first opened his eyes, his first comment was, 'Where is my glass of water?' Before he went into laya, this thought was uppermost in his mind, and decades later, this thought was still there.

Bhagavan's comment on this story was, "These states are not helpful. They are not samadhi."