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Dharana 

 

 

         Dharana is making the mind one-pointed.  The focal point can be anything -- say, birdwing.  So you think ‘birdwing’.  Are you thinking the word, the concept, or are you actually placing the mind inside of an imagined birdwing? 

 

         It’s harder than it would seem.  Games can arise about which of the three or more you are doing.  Philosophical speculation can occur, about just what your approach should be, and why.  But at its peak, there is only the decided upon experience -- the word, the concept, the imagined presence -- whatever it be, there is only that.  Might not be right, but at least it’s one-pointed. 

 

         The quality of a dharana exercise, then, is a product of how much of the allotted time is spent in an actual one-pointed condition.  All else being equal, any personal best of duration and intensity is progress. 

 

 

 

 

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