Focus Level 47..................................................................................................................................100 Focus Level 48..................................................................................................................................101 The Elevator......................................................................................................................................102 Focus Level 49..................................................................................................................................103 Comments on the end of the Miranon Material................................................................................104 4 What are Focus Levels? During the Gateway course, participants who are listening to Monroe Institute meditations are introduced to focus levels. Level one is the current waking state of the meditator referred to in this document, as the "explorer." After a meditation, the explorer is returned to the same focus level where they started. Focus levels two through nine are not initially given any significance other than a stair step used to wade into a pool of water. The first level at which the explorer enters a different state of
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Focus Levels- Seven Resonant Colors Described by Miranon
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consciousness is focus level ten, described by Robert Monroe, Bob, as "mind awake, body asleep." Focus ten is the explorer's first experience of associating internal imagery with a change in brain frequency induced with the use of Monroe Sound Science. This is the core skill learned in Gateway, which is to be able to change the brain's frequency or mental state while maintaining an awakened mind so you can remember the experience. This skill opens the "gateway" to exploring a subjective and typically ineffable experience. The focus levels allow for a common language to express this meditative experience between explorers. These are the four pillars upon which Bob Monroe designed his courses: technology, language, methodology, and community. In each of these pillars the focus levels play an important role. • Monroe Sound Science technology uses “frequency following” to guide the brain. The technology trains the brain by listening to a sound frequency and correlating it with an internal image and a focus level. • The language used to express the experience uses a focus level as a point of reference for a type of experience associated with a specific frequency. In this way, an explorer can say, "I went to
focus ten," and another explorer can instantly know the general conditions of that mental state. • The methodology Bob developed over time is demonstrated in the many courses the Monroe Institute provides to hone in on specific skills needed to achieve the mental state of higher focus levels. The practical value of the methodology is that it can be taught in a course, and the meaning of the content is left to the explorer. Explorers are empowered and guided to have a personal experience. • Support staff, physical and virtual campuses, and explorers make up the community. This community aspect of the experience is critical to learning the skill required for a gateway experience. Often, the explorer will find it difficult to recall anything from their meditation. When a trainer or another explorer shares their experience, it can aid the explorer's recall of the meditation's events. The explorer then establishes a waking link to their memory and associates it with a focus level. Explorers are encouraged to write about their adventures, which aids memory retention. At focus levels fifteen through twenty-one, the explorer is introduced to the resonant colors described