Our daily routine is dominated by a constant influx of data, which we process in search for information to help solve our problems or get our work done. Continuously, we evaluate whether this information holds value, meets our needs, or is simply irrelevant. Have you observed how merely glancing at our smartphones can disrupt our concentration?
It is not unusual to discover that the process of switching between thoughts goes automatically and seems very difficult to stop it. We have been all there, despite our best efforts, this continuous switching process seems unstoppable.
What is concentration?
Concentration is the ability to consciously keep your mind and attention on the subject, object or thought for a period of time, while excluding from the mind every other unrelated thought, ideas, feelings, and sensations.
Concentration is one of the primary skills required for creative thinking, for healing and for transformation. We must learn to concentrate all your thoughts on a subject of contemplation or an object in hand. Our concentration should become so absorbed, unmoved by external forces, as to suspend all the around distractions (we call this suspending our temporary personality).
We need to develop the skill of concentration to such a degree that nothing moves us from our self-improvement work. Our work requires, next to concentration, also the abilities of observation, visualisation and meditation.
Excercies
Numerous exercises are available to cultivate and refine the essential skill of concentration. Presented below are two straightforward exercises. Consistent repetition is key to achieving lasting results. Select one exercise and practice it daily for approximately two weeks.
Excercise 1
Close your eyes, breathe slowly and calmly. Begin counting backward from 49: 49, 48, 47… all the way down to 1. Inhale and decrease the count by 1 with each breath. If you lose track of the count, start again from 49. If losing track occurs frequently, consider starting from a lower number, such as 21. Conversely, if counting backward proceeds smoothly without losing track, you may gradually increase the starting number, perhaps to 105, for instance.
Excercise 2
This exercise is a variation on exercise 2. Visualise yourself on a white sandy beach, observing the gently rhythmic ebb and flow of the sea waves on the beach. Observe the details for a while, the sand grains, their different colours, see shell pieces between the sand, see the blue sea water. As you inhale, visualise using your etheric hand to write the number 49 in the sand, using your fingers or a tree branch. With each exhale, visualise the incoming wave washing away the number. As the water recedes, inhale again and proceed to write the next number, 48. Repeat this process for each subsequent number. All the way down to 1.
Do not push yourself too hard, but also do not make it too easy for yourself. Feel where your balance lays, and go with the sea waves.