Dharana,
the sixth limb of the Yoga
philosopher Patanjali's
Ashtanga Yoga, literally
means 'immovable concentration
of the mind'. The essential
idea is to hold the concentration
or focus of attention in
one direction. This is not
the forced concentration
of, for example, solving
a difficult mathematics
problem; rather dharana
is a form of closer to the
state of mind, which could
be called receptive concentration.
In
practicing dharana, conditions
are created for the mind to
focus its attention in one
direction instead of radiating
out in a million different
directions. Deep contemplation
and reflection usually creates
the right conditions, and
the focus on a single chosen
point becomes more intense.
Concentrative meditative techniques
encourage one particular activity
of the mind, and the more
intense it becomes the more
the other preoccupation of
the mind cease to exist.
The
objective in dharana is to
steady the mind by focusing
its attention upon some stable
entity. Before retracting
his senses, on may practice
focusing attention on a single
inanimate object. After the
mind becomes prepared for
meditation, it is better able
to focus efficiently on one
subject or point of experience.
Now if the yogi chooses to
focus on the center (chakra)
of inner energy flow, he/she
can directly experience the
physical and mental blocks
and imbalances that remain
in his or her system. This
ability to concentrate depends
on excellent psychological
health and integration and
is not an escape from reality,
but rather a movement towards
the perception of the true
nature of the Self.
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