Developing Concentration - 2

The mind can be fixed on any object in the beginning which is pleasant. It is very difficult to fix the mind in the beginning on an object which the mind dislikes.

At the initial stage of practice you can concentrate on the tick-tick sound of a watch, the flame of a candle or any other object which is pleasing to the mind. This is concrete concentration. 

Select any gross object that the mind likes such as pencil, apple, rose, chair, etc., and concentrate on it. The mind should be trained to concentrate on gross forms and objects in the beginning period of Sadhana and then gradually it can concentrate on subtle objects. Train the mind in concentrating on various objects gross and subtle and of various sizes big, medium and small. After a regular practice on these, the mind becomes fit for concentration on internal Chakras and abstract ideas.

Concentration on a chair really means getting full, detailed knowledge of the chair, its different parts, the particular wood out of which it is manufactured such as Devadaru, rose wood, etc., its workmanship, its durability, its cost price, the degree of comfort it gives for the back, arms, etc., whether the parts can be detached and fixed again, whether it is manufactured on modern lines and made bugproof, what sort of polish or varnish is used to make it durable, etc. When you concentrate on the chair, this sort of idea occupies your mind. Mind generally wanders wildly at random. When it thinks of one object, in a second it leaves that object and runs to another object like a monkey, then to a third object and so on.

It cannot stick to one point.

When you concentrate on a chair, do not allow any other thought of different objects. Again and again bring the mind that wanders to the object which is chair. When you meditate on a rose, think of rose and rose alone. When you think of a book, think all that is connected with the book and nothing outside it.

Devotees concentrate on the heart, Raja Yogins on Trikuti (the seat of the mind), Vedantins on the Absolute. Trikuti is the space between the eyebrows.You can also concentrate on the tip of the nose, the naval, or the Muladhara (below the last vertebra of the spinal column).

Sit on lotus-pose, Padmasana, with crossed legs. Fix the gaze on the tip of the nose. This is called nasal gaze. Do not make any strained effort. Gently look at the tip of the nose. Practise for one minute in the beginning. Gradually increase to 30 minutes or one hour. This practice steadies the mind. It develops the power of concentration. Even when you walk in the streets keep up this practice.

Sit on lotus-pose with crossed legs or in “perfected pose” (Siddhasana) in your meditation room and practise fixing the mind at the junction of the eyebrows gently for half a minute. Then gradually increase the period to half an hour. There must not be the least strain in this practice. This practice removes the restlessness of mind and develops concentration. This is known as the frontal gaze because the eyes are directed towards the frontal bone of the forehead. You can select either the nasal gaze or the frontal gaze according to your temperament and capacity.

If you want to increase your power of concentration you will have to reduce your worldly activities. You will have to observe the vow of silence every day for two hours or more.

Practise concentration till the mind is well established on the object of concentration. When the mind runs away from the object bring it back again.

Be slow and steady in concentration. By practice of concentration, you will become superhuman.

When concentration is deep and intense, the senses cannot operate. He who practices perfect concentration for three hours daily will have tremendous psychic powers. He will have a strong will-power.

You can see distant objects, hear distant voices, send messages to distant, parts, heal persons who are at a distance, and move about to a distant place in the twinkling of an eye. Believe in the power of the mind. If you have interest, attention, will-power, faith, you are bound to succeed.