Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 45-minute teaching, John Landaw introduces foundational tantric meditation techniques from the Lam Rim (graduated path) framework. He begins with detailed visualization of the subtle body’s three main channels—the central channel and two flanking side channels—offering analytical and placement meditation approaches to establish their presence clearly. He then walks through the nine-round breathing practice step by step: three breaths through the left nostril into the right channel, three through the right into the left, and three through both nostrils into the central channel, with each exhalation seen as expelling impurities and obscurations. Finally, he introduces the seed syllable meditation at the navel chakra, where practitioners visualize a tiny red syllable as blazing heat and use gentle breathing to fan its intensity, progressively purifying the central channel. Suited for practitioners with some meditation background who are ready for structured tantric work.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 01 Meditation techniques.mp3
UUID: 5b2b0226-42c6-48c7-92c4-ebc452a635c8
Teacher: John Landaw
Collection: Lam Rim (John Landaw)
Date: 1984 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Words: ~2,215
Awesome. By the clean inspiration of all Buddhas and bodhisattvas, by the power of the Buddhas who fully completed their collection, both merit and wisdom, by the might of the inconceivable and pure, may all these objects thereby be transformed into the three jewels worthy of. Holy Buddha, you have the complete control over all realizations. you are the savior of every sentient being, the destroyer of evil and the maras. With only everlasting great love, for all beings in each and every existence.
You and your attendants, please be at this place. prostrations. Prayers before the teachings. Dedication. It arches up within the hollow body to the crown of the head, from which point it descends in a perfectly straight line down to just below the level of the navel.
This immaterial tube of light is located neither to the right nor to the left, but is in the very center of one’s hollow body. However, it is much closer to the back than it is to the front, located slightly in front of the spine. In diameter, it is the size of one’s little finger, though in beginning stages of meditation, it may be helpful to visualize it as wider than this, and then, once one’s concentration has developed well, it may be reduced in diameter. It is bluish on the outside and reddish on the inside. Immaterial, flexible, smooth, and most importantly, from the crown down through the navel, it is perfectly straight.
To establish the presence of this central channel within the hollow body, it is beneficial to sweep one’s gaze throughout its entire length, thereby becoming familiar with it. Thus, we can place our attention initially at the forehead and follow the central channel as it arches up to the top of the head. Then allow our attention to descend slowly from the crown, through the head, throat and chest regions, down through the back of the abdomen, until we arrive just below the level of the navel. And then let the attention rise from the bottom straight up to the crown. Then back down again and back up, sweeping our gaze from top to bottom back to the top again until we feel familiar with the straight length of the central channel.
Having done such analytical meditation several times, we should then try to picture the entire length of the central channel at once in one encompassing vision. And place our attention single pointedly upon its entire length. Should portions of this visualization become lost or grow vague, we may reestablish the presence of the central channel through the sweeping meditation once again, and then allow the mind to rest alertly upon its entire length. Having grown familiar with the central channel in this way, we now visualize the flanking right and left channels. These are narrower than the central channel being the diameter of a drinking straw, though initially they may be visualized as wider than this.
Both start within the nostrils and arch up until they flank the central channel at the level of the forehead. Then staying on either side, they arch up to the crown of the head, and then descend in perfectly straight lines to a distance slightly below the lower termination of the central channel below the navel. The right channel is reddish in color on the outside and also red on the inside, whereas the left is white on the outside and reddish on the inside. Like the central channel, these two hollow tubes of light are immaterial, flexible, and perfectly straight from the crown on downwards. They flank the central channel with no intervening space, and like the central channel, they are located more towards the back of the hollow body than they are to the front.
As before, the presence of these two flanking channels can be established by sweeping our gaze through their entire length, and then placing the mind single pointedly upon the overall vision. By alternating such as sweeping analytic type meditation With the overall vision held in placement meditation, the presence of the central and two flanking channels can be made clear and firm. However, in the beginning stages of meditation, we do not strive so much for pinpoint clarity as we do for an overall sense of the presence of these three major channels. Having established the presence of these three channels within the hollow body, we are now ready to begin the actual nine round breathing technique, and we begin by making the so called vajra fist with our right hand. This is done by placing the thumb at the base of the ring finger, and then folding all four fingers over the thumb, and concluding by extending the index finger pointing straight out.
The first three breaths will be taken in through the left nostril. So we begin by plugging the bottom of the right channel into the bottom of the left, and then placing the tip of the right index finger against the right nostril gently, with just enough pressure to close it, we take a long, smooth, slow breath in through the left nostril. As we breathe in quietly in this way, we should follow the breath as it arches up the left channel to the crown of the head, descends in a straight line to below the navel, arches up into the right channel, and collects there. We then hold our breath for as long as it is comfortable, retaining it in the right channel. Just before the retention of the breath becomes uncomfortable, we take our index finger, and with the nail side of it, close the entrance to the left nostril by pressing against the side of the nose, and then exhale a quiet, long, and smooth breath out of the right nostril, expelling with it all of the pollution, and impurities, and obscurations loosened by the retained breath.
As soon as the exhalation has been completed in this way, return the index finger to the right nostril, closing it, and breathe in a second quiet, long, smooth in breath. With this in breath comes the white vibrant energy symbolic of the enlightened mind, and as this air enters the left channel, descends, and collects in the right channel, it loosens all of the various impurities, which are then expelled in a long, smooth, and slow exhalation as before, and then once again breathe in the enlightened energy through the left nostril, following it down until it enters from the bottom, the right channel, collecting in there once again, and loosening up remaining pollution and obstructions there. Then, after holding the breath up to but just before the point when it will become uncomfortable to hold the breath any longer, exhale gently in a long, smooth, slow exhalation for the third time. Then, with the nail of the index finger, still closing the left nostril, disengage the bottom of the left channel from the bottom of the right, and now, mentally insert the bottom of the right channel into the bottom of the left, and then breathe in the enlightening energy in a quiet, smooth, long controlled breath, In through the right nostril, arching up to the crown of the head, then down to the bottom of the right channel, up and into the left, where the breath collects, dislodging all of the impurities and obscurations collected there.
After holding the breath a while, close the right nostril with the index finger, and breathe out in a similarly long, smooth, quiet, controlled exhalation. Breathing out all of the impurities that evaporate and vanish completely once they leave the hollow body. In a similar fashion, breathe in once again through the right, and out through the left, and finally a third time in through the right, and out through the left. At the conclusion of the first six rounds of breathing, three times in through the left, and three times in through the right. We disengage the bottom of the two channels from each other, and insert both of them into the bottom of the central channel.
Placing our right hand back into the lap, we then take a long, smooth, and quiet breath in through both nostrils simultaneously. The white vibrant energy ascends both flanking channels, arching up to the top of the head, then descending straight down to below the level of the navel, and then entering the central channel from the bottom. While we hold this inhalation, we should feel that the breath we have just inhaled is loosening all of the obscurations blocking the inside of the central channel, and when we exhale, although the breath will actually leave through the nostrils, we visualize it instead as rising up the central channel, opening up blockages and restrictions within it, and finally dissolving into the upper reaches of this central channel. At the conclusion of this long, smooth, and controlled exhalation, we inhale through both nostrils simultaneously once again. Breathing in the white vibrant enlightened energy in through both channels, connecting to the bottom of the central channel, and collecting inside it.
Once again, the retained breath dislodges all accumulated negativity and obscurations, and when we breathe out, the breath dissolves into the upper reaches of the central channel, thereby removing all restrictions and obscurations. Finally, for a third time, we breathe in through both nostrils, retain the breath within the central channel, and breathe out. Thus completes one set of the nine round breathing, three times in through the left and out through the right, three times in through the right and out through the left, and three times in through both nostrils, watching the breath dissolve into the upper reaches of the central channel, loosening all restrictions, and opening up all blockages. By means of such nine round breathings, we progressively let go and expel all polluted energy, replacing it progressively with more and more of the surrounding white vibrant enlightened energy of the highly realized beings. All mental difficulties and physical problems should be seen as expelled with the out breath, and all good qualities and antidotes to the delusions should be seen as coming in with the in breath.
In this way, the impure winds are purified, and the mind is made stable, clear, strong, and alert. Once we have completed one set of the nine round breathing, we can proceed to another set, and continue this for as long as it remains comfortable. It is very beneficial to practice the various stages of the meditation described so far, for many days, weeks or months in a row. Concentrating on the hollow body, the placement of the central channel and the two flanking channels, and the nine round breathing technique itself. Proceeding in a step by step fashion, becoming familiar with one stage of the meditation before proceeding on to the next.
Eventually, when the mind and the body seem appropriate and serviceable, we can continue on to the seed syllable meditation. Having concluded a set of the nine round breathing, turn one’s attention to the central channel at the level of the navel or slightly below. Within the central channel, at the level of the navel, visualize the presence of the red seed syllable. This is as small as a sesame seed, is placed exactly within the center of the navel chakra, and is in the nature of fiery heat. To establish the presence of this seed syllable firmly, we can imagine that we are plucking a very hot ember from the midst of a blazing fire, and placing this ember within the navel chakra.
It is important to keep in mind that this ember, this blazing seed syllable in the nature of heat, is extremely tiny, and was within the central channel at the level of the navel towards the back of the hollow body. Then, when we breathe in gently through both nostrils, as we did at the end of the nine round breathing, we should feel that the long, smooth, slow inhalation entering the central channel from the two side channels, fans this seed syllable so that its heat increases. This inhalation should be seen as dissolving within the seed syllable itself, and we should place our concentration firmly within this red, fiery hot seed syllable at the level of the navel. For the remainder of the meditation, we should keep most of our attention focused as single pointedly as possible, upon this seed syllable at the navel. When we exhale, our attention remains mostly focused on the seed syllable, but with part of our attention, we see the heat from this seed syllable rise with the exhalation up the central channel, burning away all impurities and imperfections, and opening the central channel.
At the conclusion of the exhalation, we should inhale once again through both channels, and fan the seed syllable as before. In a slow, controlled and gentle fashion, we can breathe in this way seven times in succession, each time fanning the seed syllable till it becomes hotter and hotter, thereby opening the central channel more and more. At the conclusion of a maximum of seven consecutive such breaths, we should leave our mind focused within the seed syllable, experiencing the resulting clarity and bliss.