The Effect of Dharana or Concentrating the Mind : 7.





Likewise, we will find that in concentration an undercurrent of thought may be there, which is subconsciously working in a different direction. That is called distraction. Hence, in dharana, or concentration, a wholesale and thoroughgoing fixing of the attention will not be possible at the very outset. That takes place at a later stage. What happens at this point is that we undertake a kind of activity in the mind which, together with its endeavour to allow a continuous flow of thought on a particular point, tries at the same time to eliminate certain other thoughts which are adverse or derogatory to the issue on hand. When we want to think of ‘A’ in concentration, we also feel a necessity to eliminate all thoughts which are concerned with ‘B’, ‘C’ or ‘D’. We do not want ‘B’, ‘C’ or ‘D’ to interfere with the idea of ‘A’, which we are trying to entertain in our mind. Thus in dharana, or concentration, there is a double activity.


This is what is known in Sanskrit as vijatiya vritti nirodha and sajatiya vritti pravaha. Vijatiya vritti nirodha is the inhibition or the restricting of all those psychoses which are connected with things unrelated to the point of concentration, and sajatiya vritti pravaha is the allowing in of only those ideas or thoughts which are in consonance with the object of meditation. Both these activities are taking place simultaneously. On the one hand we do not allow certain things to enter, and on the other hand we allow certain things to enter – just as on a railway platform the ticket collector may be allowing in those people with tickets and not allowing in those people without tickets. He does both things at the same time – stops some and allows some. This process continues in the stage of what is known as dharana, or concentration. It is not merely this. Something else is happening there. We will be aware of ourselves, we will be aware of the object, we will be aware that we are thinking, and we will also be aware that there are things to be eliminated. So there are four factors, at least, involved at the point known as dharana: we do not want to think something, and we are aware of three things: ourselves, the process of thought, and the object that is to be concentrated upon.


Desa bandha means the tying of the mind to a particular point. What is this point, or desa? What is the point which we are trying to concentrate upon? This is a great subject by itself, on which volumes have been written. What are we going to think of? What are we going to meditate upon? What is the purpose behind meditation? If we answer these questions, we will also know what object to choose for concentration. Why are we concentrating the mind? What is the intention? What do we want to gain out of it? The purpose that is behind our effort in concentration will give us an idea as to what it is that we have to concentrate upon, because the act of concentration of the mind on an object is the effort of the mind to achieve idealisation, actualisation and realisation of that object. We want to get that thing and become one with that thing, if possible. That is the thing that we are concentrating upon. So, what is it that we want to achieve? On that we concentrate. The purpose of concentration of the mind is the achievement of a result. But first the result must be clear in the mind. What is it that we require? What consequence do we want to follow? On that we fix our attention. This ‘point’ that the sutra mentions has various meanings, according to our concept of a point.


Swami Krishnananda

To be continued  ...


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