Steadying The Mind For Meditation

The mind is always processing everything we see as we take in stimulation through our senses. We rely on our sight for the majority of our information. But we cannot always believe what we see. There is always room for mininterpretation and lack of discrimination unsettles the mind. Have you ever noticed that when you focus your eyes on one point, the mind becomes still and quiet? Keeping the eyes steady is a yogic technique for doing just that, putting the mind in a state of right understanding, concentration and focus.

In the Bhagavad Gita, a famous ancient Hindu text, Krishna describes a still mind as a strong mind. He compares it to the water on a lake surface. When the mind is steady and controlled, it is like the still waters on the lake surface which becomes like a mirror and is able to clearly reflect the images of the surrounding environment.

In Ashtanga Yoga, there is a tool called "drishti", which means "vision, insight or intelligence". By fixing the eyes on something, whether it be external or internal, we gain a sense of inner equanimity and physical balance. Steady gazing helps us focus on what is happening energetically in the subtle realms of being, resulting in deeper wisdom.

The drishtis are:
1. Nasagra=the tip of the nose
2. Ajna=the third eye center located at the forehead about an inch in toward the skull
3. Nabi=the navel center
4. Hastagrai=gazing toward the hand
5. Padhayoragrai=gazing to the foot
6. Parsva=either gazing to the far right or left
7. Angustha Ma Dyai=gazing toward the thumb
8. Urdhva or Antara=gazing in an upward direction

Drishtis vary in direction to help one move energy in a specific direction. In downhill skiing or snowboarding, we are directed to the place our gaze goes to. If we look at the tree ahead, we will move straight toward that tree. We don't want to hit the tree so instead we must look at the path between the trees.

For example, in yoga postures, the gaze is directed to move energy through the body efficiently to avoid any sense of energetic leakage or drain. Most often, the gaze is directed in the direction of movement in the pose. For Instance, when the body is twisting, say to the right, then the gaze is also directed to the right. However, there are times when the opposite is true. In some backbends, the gaze will naturally move in the direction of the backbend. Table top position is a modified backbend but the drishti here is toward the nose. This helps move the energy of the pose from compressing the neck and wrinkling the brow by directing the flow of energy from the base of the back of the head toward the crown of the head and then toward the nose. Thus, it helps to elongate the back of the neck and reduces strain and creases in the forehead.

In balance postures, drishti helps the practitioner maintain balance by focusing the eyes on something just above the horizon level. When the eyes wander or look at something that is wavering, balance becomes difficult. If we cannot balance the physical body, the mind will experience feelings of frustrations and start moving into a negative thought pattern and inner dialogue. Keeping the eyes steady and focused, therefore steadies the body as well as the mind.

There is a Zen saying that says when one tries to steady the gaze to steady the mind, it is like trying to watch grass grow. We must be vigilent in our practice but this viligence must be balanced so there is no strain. It becomes an effortless act.

Drishti helps us to use our intellect on a more profound level by teaching us that we can not always trust what we see. We must learn to develop our other senses to understand in inner workings of self. This guides us on a deep inward journey to explore the intimate processes of ourselves. In turn, this leads us to understand the highest reason for turning the gaze inward on itself. The ultimate reason for drishti is to focus the mind inward even though the eyes may be opened and focused. In yoga, this inward gaze is directed to our Divine Self or to God. The mind becomes devoted to union of Oneness. This merging of the ego self with the Divine Self creates a transformation within that is the goal of yoga-to liberate the mind from suffering into freedom. It is the ultimate meditation.

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