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by Jayaram V
Sit comfortably in a chair, in front of a table. Hold a pen in your
hand and a paper
before you, on the table. Now close your eyes,
holding the pen on the paper with a steady hand. Relax, taking a few
deep breaths. Keeping your eyes closed, think of some object, image or
an idea. Start concentrating on it fully. Do not let any thought or
movement interfere with your concentration. Whenever your mind is
distracted from the object of your concentration, even for a flitting
second, put a dot on the paper with your pen, with your eyes closed,
and bring your attention back to the object. Keep doing it for at
least five minutes. Then open your eyes, and see how many dots are
there on the paper. If you see a jumble of dots on the paper, then
this article is right for you, because it intends to teach how to
concentrate and how to remain focused amidst distractions.
Concentration means the ability to focus your attention consciously on
a particular object for a sustained period of time, without
being distracted by other things. In concentration we draw out our
minds to the objects of our meditation through our senses or through
our internal awareness. We establish with them an invisible mental
connection, which we try to sustain for longer periods of time, by
subduing our minds, controlling our senses and limiting their
movements. Most of us possess the ability to concentrate in
varying degrees. We see it among children and adults alike, when they
are absorbed in the things that interest them most, such as books,
movies, games, friends, film stars or TV programs. We love
doing what we like most, amidst distractions.
Except for a few unfortunate individuals who suffer from the
Attention Deficit Syndrome, most of us can exert our will power to pay
attention to things and events. However, in most people it is still a
limited ability, as their minds are not trained and disciplined to
stay focused. Only a few individual reach the heights of concentration,
where they can apply their minds consciously to anything that presents
itself to them in their field of observation, without struggle and no
particular aim. If we can achieve that rare ability, if we can
concentrate on anything
that arises in our field of experience, with deep awareness, without
struggle, even when we are least interested, we
become sensitive to our surroundings and to ourselves and in the
process develop a deep insight into our own lives and actions.
How can we develop concentration?
Before we begin discussing the subject, let it be clear that we do
not develop concentration, to acquire some material gain or achieve
some supernatural power but simply to be what we are or what we have
been in the core of our being, before delusion got us this far, and
let our minds and bodies ought to do what they are supposed to do when
we are in perfect alignment with ourselves and the world around
us.
1. Slow down. We live in a fast paced modern world, where every thing
seems to be moving in a great rush. Living in such a restless world
most of us have hardly any time left to pay attention to anything in
particular. There is nothing much we can do about the world or
the speed at which it moves because it is beyond our zone of
influence. However we can do something about the way we react to it or
interact with it. We can control the pace at which we live, slow down
our minds and pay attention to what has been going on in our immediate
environment.
2. Practice regularly. Practice concentration regularly and constantly no matter what the
circumstances are. Once you have created and accepted your schedule and
plan of action, stick with them by all means and stay on course.
3. Make provision for occasional failure. No practice really
goes uninterruptedly, especially when we have the propensity to waver
and falter along the way. So be prepared for occasional failures and
setbacks and make sure that they do not bog you down completely.
4. Make concentration a continuous process. Truly speaking, concentration
ought to be a way of life, in which you live every moment of your life with total awareness.
So bring concentration
to your daily life and apply it to every aspect of it. Use every
object and opportunity in your daily life to practice concentration,
be it some intangible quality, a person, feature, object, idea or thought.
5. Practice three dimensional concentration. Practice concentration
at three different levels: first on the physical or external features
of an object, next on its mental features or the qualities and values it represents and,
finally, on its
spiritual significance and underlying truth. Do it with
yourselves, using your body, mind and subtle bodies as objects of your
concentration.
6. Know the true value of concentration. Concentration
is not an end in itself but means to a much higher goal, which is
total awareness and knowledge of ourselves. In the Eightfold Yoga of
Patanjali, the practice of concentration (dharana)
comes after the withdrawal of the senses (pratyahara), which in turn
is preceded by ethical restraints (yama), five internal ethical
observances (niyama), physical exercises (asanas) and breath control (pranayama).
What this means is that concentration cannot be practiced in
isolation, but only as a part of much larger discipline in which we
learn to regulate not only our thoughts, actions, emotions and impulses
but also our physical, mental and spiritual energies and faculties for
experiencing higher states of consciousness, with self-realization or
the state of samadhi as the highest goal. A pure mind in a pure body,
guided by pure thoughts, emotions and intentions, is the ideal
condition, which is conducive to the practice of concentration.
6. Practice detachment. Our ancient sages
suggested pratyahara or withdrawal of the senses as a useful means in
the practice of concentration. Withdrawal of the senses means to
withhold the senses from the objects and interests to which they are
repeatedly drawn. When we are attached to things through our
senses, we develop certain desires, attitudes, beliefs and habits which interfere with
our normal thinking, perception and discrimination.
They render our minds a
medley of flitting thoughts, conflicting desires and destabilizing
emotions. Detachment, therefore, is the
key to the practice of concentration. With detachment we learn to
stabilize our minds and pay attention to our lives in their totality.
7. Live in the present. Concentration is not about achieving
something, but staying in the present and experiencing life for no
particular reason other than the experience itself. When we are
caught up in things of the past or the future, concentration becomes a chore.
But when we stay in the present moment, our act of concentration
automatically translates itself into an effortless process, in which there is no particular desire to do
something or to be something, but simply a state of being,
knowing and mindfulness. So practice concentration, remaining in the
present and staying with the moment, being aware that it is not an end
itself, but only a means to total
awareness.
8. Practice equanimity. When you are mentally very
stable, you ability to concentrate increases exponentially. A stable mind is
an
important asset in the practice of concentration, because it is
already in a state of collected awareness. A
restless mind, on the other hand, cannot focus on anything in particular
because it is scattered and divided. So cultivate equanimity by
controlling your thoughts, desires, impulses and senses as an
important step in the practice of concentration.
9. Control your senses. Our senses are responsible for our
attachments and desires, which in turn are responsible for our
mental instability. We can put
our senses to effective use in the practice of concentration mainly in
two ways. One is by controlling them and the other is by using them in
a selective manner. With the former we can concentrate on our inner
consciousness and with the latter we can concentrate on the external
reality. In both instances we will develop a deeper awareness to which
we are not otherwise capable.
10. Maintain a positive mental attitude. The practice of
concentration becomes meaningless if we do not have positive attitude
about it or if we do not expect positive outcome from it. Our positive
mental attitude helps us keep going in the face of setbacks and failures.
11. Suspend all judgment. Whether we are aware or not, we
spend most of our lives judging things and people, weighing them,
comparing them, forming opinions and conclusions about them and making
decisions about them depending upon such judgments. We judge almost
every thing and every one, ourselves as well as others. We even
keep judging how successful we are in our concentration. When we
judge, we go out of sync with our current reality because our judgments
can come only from the knowledge we accumulated in the past.
Therefore, we have to drop our judgmental nature consciously and
perseveringly, to perceive things clearly in their own light and
experience things as they are.
Conclusion
Concentration is the high mental beam with which you can pierce through
layers of consciousness, till you find the golden truths, hidden behind
the world of illusion, about yourself, about people and objects and
about your own reality. The epic
Mahabharata personifies the skill of concentration in the character of
Arjuna. It is also the quality which Dronacharya tried to teach to both
the Pandavas and the Kauravas. It was through concentration our
ancient rishis and sages were able experience transcendental
consciousness and obtain the grace of God. The ability to concentrate
is very important today, in a society where there are so many
distractions. It is an important prerequisite in spiritualism, where
the mind needs to be stabilized in itself so that it can transcend
itself someday.
It is equally important in our mundane lives, where using it we
can
know about people and situations and discern truth from falsehood. The practice of
concentration develops in us certain rare qualities such as perseverance, tenacity and
determination, without which it is difficult to achieve success in any
field.
Suggested Further Reading
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