During concentration, attention is retained by an effort of will on the object of concentration. Partial or complete distraction of attention to thoughts or other sensations may occur. This should not be allowed. As soon as the distraction is fixed, attention also, by an effort of will, returns to the object of concentration. At first, for most practitioners, concentration of attention seems to be something almost impossible. thought distraction by deeply ingrained habit occurs all the time. The attitude is important here. It is worth remembering what you are doing and no matter how important the thoughts may seem, you should give yourself the installation: "I will think all this after practice, but now - only practice."
For the first months, and sometimes years, everyone encounters the resistance of an eternally distracted mind. There is a feeling that the flow of thoughts simply cannot be interrupted, and the intentional fixation of attention for a long period of time on the same object is impossible. In reality, concentration is difficult only for the mind, and it is done easily when consciousness penetrates into the realm of the mind making the final decisions.
The mind may want to turn the world around today, but the next day it may not even remember it. The mind is unstable, it is constantly rushing about, changing dozens of desires in a short period of time, therefore, the mind is responsible for all important decisions, especially those associated with changes in personality.
Over time, penetrating deeper and deeper into the nature of thought activity, you get used more and more to the state of continuous mindfulness. Attention and so it flows by itself continuously, it does not need to somehow develop and strengthen. The main task is to make attention subservient, to learn to direct your own potential in a unified direction. Swami Vivekananda, speaking of concentration, cited as an example the phenomenon of lightning, which occurs when many particles are concentrated in a single stream. A similar effect is provided by concentration of attention, due to which consciousness wakes up with a bright flash of insight.
As you progress in practice, concentration smoothly turns into spontaneous contemplation, that is, into real meditation. It is impossible to say objectively where concentration stops and meditation begins, because there is no clear boundary, and the transition from one state to another usually occurs smoothly. Spontaneous contemplation differs from concentration in the absence of volitional efforts. This happens when the mind perceives the nature of contemplation, and is penetrated by it. In meditation, the contemplation of an object is easy, without any effort.
The psyche, freed from thoughts during meditation, remains in its natural state. Such an experience is characterized by deep tranquility, blissful non-interference with the spontaneity of mental processes, lightness and freedom. As the mind calms down, bliss and delight grow. In yoga, this state is called savikalpa samadhi. Let your mind not be confused by overseas words - techniques are universal, and they do not depend on words. Each person is a pure consciousness in which life takes place.
To enter meditation, you should not suppress thoughts, you just need to leave them as they are. The mind reflexes for some time, and thoughts become less and less coherent. It doesn't matter what images appear in the mind, what language he speaks, in poetry, or prose, sings praises, or frightens - all this in meditation is left as it is, without interference, then over time the mind becomes completely silent.
A beginner practitioner can try to immediately enter meditation, bypassing concentration, if there is an appropriate attitude and tranquility. Effort and will, which can help in concentration, only interfere with meditation. In meditation, it is important to completely relax the body and mind while remaining alert. There is no need to remain vigilant by an effort of will; attention is always active anyway, therefore it is only necessary to stop making efforts without falling asleep - to allow attention to intuitively spontaneously pour out onto the object of perception.
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When efforts or efforts begin, vigilance is lost, because the ego - an active subject - turns on, and the consciousness is clouded by its activity, fills itself with its vibrations. With such efforts, the focus of perception slides from the subtle intuitive sphere of being associated with perception - to the coarser sphere of thought.
In fact, the state of absolute alertness is the goal of practice. This elusive state is pure "I" (Atman in the teachings of advaita, Purusha in yoga) without any characteristics. It can be conditionally characterized as an empty feeling of being.
When meditation is so deep that nothing remains except the object of contemplation, consciousness completely merges with the object and samadhi begins. At this time, there is only an object of contemplation, immersed in the pure existence of "I".
The object of meditation can be anything: any sensation, external form, or thought. Meditations on breathing, inner sound and light, chakras, mantras, etc. are popular. In my opinion, the best practice is still meditation without an object, which is relaxation in natural presence.
The next step is to divert attention from even the only remaining object of contemplation. It is believed that this step cannot be performed with any effort, since effort is the domain of the active agent. When consciousness is prepared, the step of diverting attention from any objects of perception occurs spontaneously, as a transition to an absolutely natural state of pure being outside of any objects. Such a state in yoga is called nirvikalpa samadhi, and in Buddhism it is a well-known nirvana.
Igor Satorin
