Concentration (Continued)

Concentration is enabling the flow of electric signal related to an abstract thought in the same path deliberately for any length of time. Generating the same sensation continuously so that the senses experience the same thing for a period of time is Dhyana, when this path is engraved so deep that it draws all the energy creating a flow conscious enough to engulf the intellect with it and nothing else. Now we see that meditation dawns on us with the act or kriya of Dharana or concentration. This we do consciously until it is developed into a new habit. This is necessary to enable us to let go our previous habits or, the reason we are required to let go previous habits is very important if we are interested to progress in the field of spiritual development by freeing the consciousness. These previous habits where developed without any guidance to a goal, to describe this in another way we can say they were formed as per our likes and dislikes mainly pertaining to the pleasure of the senses, thus we can say that most of them are not created with perfection. In other words, we can safely say that most of our habits good or bad are really corrupted with interference of many things of normal life. This corruption is the reason that we are able to think of other things even when we are totally involved with a particular thing for example praying. Most of us have this problem of not being able to concentrate while praying. We could say that having 5 different sense organs and a consciousness that cannot stay put with any one of them is the main cause. Every prayer performed by any person, if done with full concentration will be answered; actually, there is nothing that manifests the prayer from outside except the flow of energy from inside. Observe this from watching children their uncorrupt want sincere to that level of purity, manifests all their desire, even their cry is a prayer; tell me who amongst us can ignore this power they have on us? Especially Mother Nature cannot ignore a child’s prayer, and we are all her children.

Concentration (Dharana) what we are reading here is related to keeping the consciousness on one single thing (subject / object or abstract thought) for a definite period of time. How this is done? We have ten continuous or intermittent sources of new information to the mind (5 senses organs and 5 organs of action. Yes there are others that are neither connected with the internal or external sources with respect to the mind / body and soul, we will deal with these in due time they are Madhyma, Pashanthi and Para, these ten are directly connected to all individuals related with the manifested universe) it is easy to still the information from the 5 organs of action and senses by “asana”, “prathyahara”, and “pranayama” as these actually deal with the gross senses. We slowly graduate from those external sources to deal with the stilling of the subtle essence of the sense organs; the method given in the text are tried and confirmed by millions, is by coming to a state of single point concentrated thought or feeling called “Dharana”.

Focusing our consciousness on the tip of the nose is one way, any other way known to the aspirant can be also used if they are comfortable with them (they are not going to be repeated here to ensure simplicity and clarity with the topic as we understanding) watch the flow of wind that enters and exit.

Why will this help? Or why is it the way we need to select? Air we breathe is the source of our existence this is engraved so strongly in the mind that we have a feeling that this air keeps us alive, and if we stop it consciously, we tend to feel suffocated. As a fetus in the womb of our mother we were alive as a part of her body, we did not need the external air to survive we used the mothers vital energy and breath to grow all the parts of our body. Before that, the consciousness was alive with out the body and vital air, so it must have sustained its self by just absorbing and expelling energy the only thing that is everywhere in the universe, thus it could go everywhere. Remember we lost the connection with the cosmic memory or unlimited cosmic awareness at the first breath. This first breath trapped or diverted the consciousness from the domain of unlimited ness to within the limits of the five sense organs and five organs of action when we entered this domain of limited cosmic awareness. Our effort in practice of yoga should be directed to wards this goal with body mind and spirit.

How will this help? Energy flows to the location or the point where the consciousness is focused (this causes limitation the most necessary element needed to survive in this manifested universe), thus the nerve ending of the tip of the nose being farther away from the brain, more energy is absorbed here and channeled to various parts of the body with out entering the brain and developing any specific thought, thus it helps in stilling thoughts, this is the delayed is what we are achieving by “pranyama” guided breathing technique. The time taken for it to compare things with these will definitely increase thus slowing of thoughts is achieved easily with less effort. Remember if the effort we are required to put is more then the effect is delayed as consciousness is now involved with something else namely the effort (this confirms that any other point will require more effort). The main goal of freeing the consciousness becomes difficult. Gradually this point becomes so sensitive that it achieves the capability to accomplish everything in life.

The consciousness that was always felt to be inside the brain in normal humans will now become away from the center of active and memory, creating a new center a subtle point a center of existence that we can mould as we want, the mind in the fetus was created with the interference of 5+5, 10 disturbances, thus it took on the characteristics of those organs and likings as we grew up and learnt things in the outside world. Thus, the name of this subtle chakra is “Accomplisher of all: - its subtle components are spread all over the body as Prana, “Sarva sidhipradaa” (the provider of all powers), Apana, “Sarva sampat pradaa” (the provider of all wealth), Samana, “Sarva priyankarii” (the provider of all liked things), Udana, “Sarva mangala kaarini” (the provider of all auspicious things), “Vyana, Sarva kaama pradaa” (the provider of all desire), Naga, “Sarva dukha vimochinii” (the dispeller of all sorrow), Kurma, “Sarva vighana nivaarinii” (the dispeller of all danger),, Krkkala, “Mrtyu prasaminii” (the dispeller of death),, Devadatta, “Sarva Sarvaanga sundarii” (the provider of all beauty), dhamanjaya, Sarva “Saubhaagyadaayinii” (the provider of good things).  All these vital airs formed from the breath inhaled, will be guided as per our desire and not as per the nature of things as we normally did till now. Consciousness will now be possible to be within our guidance. Yes, any thing we want to achieve will now be possible. Doing this when consciousness was shared with other sense organs, make it difficult as the concentration of vital energy will be less, thus effect will be proportionally reduced.

Now we can go deeper into the subtle realm by concentrating, that is focusing all the five powers of the mind (Icha or power of desire, chita Shakti or power of thought, Budhi Shakti or intellectual power, Kriya Shakti power of action, Ananda Shakti to experience or enjoy) to enable focusing our consciousness on anything or one thing for a definitely longer period of time in the internal sphere of body mind and spirit, this can be co-related with many similarities like convex lens bringing the all the rays of light that pass through it to a single point (the effect is intense heat, sufficient to burn things). The act, the desire, the thoughts, engulfs the intelligence by slowly understanding everything in minute detail  producing the experience or joy with purity, perfection and maturity of the order that is beyond the capability of forced effort of the will power; however highly developed it may be in humans if it was not trained in the path of yoga.

One way to come to this stage, as all individuals are doing is to try understanding everything in the subtle level  by reading in the gross level, listening to others experience (the path of knowledge, or the path of action or path of love bakthi {this means ALL THAT WE HAVE DEFINED OR OTHERS HAVE DEFINED FOR US. WE CAN DO THIS BY SELECTING ONE OF THE SENSES OR ALL simultaneously}), this is very laborious, the short cut is through internalizing our senses by detaching it from all external things and then all internal things. As all the senses are stilled keeping only mind active without any thoughts we have come to the first stage of dawning of meditation. This is difficult in the beginning mainly due to habits engraved in the mind by our actions in the past. One of the things we experience here is to fall asleep, some of us will be conscious enough to feel that we are loosing consciousness, if this happens do not feel bad or annoyed, and we will gradually learn to stay partially awake read yoga nidra in one of the previous article. The method adopted to transcend into the, “BEYOND MIND’S DOMAIN” is to understand dream stage and deep sleep state. All we are actually doing is paying attention to the dialogue inside the mind with partial alertness in dream stage and deep sleep state, until we master it and attain the ability to stay fully awake. Remember it is not the inner voice that is speaking to us as if we are separate. This is why we need to select inspirational dreams or thoughts to ensure that the body becomes relaxed, other wise the mind and intellect have to deal with other things that are not related with meditation. This tells us that it will take time for purification.  Perfection can come only with purity and repeating the same thing many times. Purity requires a well-defined procedure or mechanism to produce a particular intelligent pattern. Yoga practice is the defined procedure or mechanism that will guide the aspirant to the required purity and perfection without the interference of any other thing other than the goal. The proof of this can be seen by counting the number of enlightened persons in our community.

To Be continued