Control of Sensation
At the end of a month of practice of the kind of physical exercises given in this chapter, though you can sit quietly, and the body has become lighter and brighter, so that you can get up like a cat in the morning, you may still find yourself troubled by outside things during concentration or meditation. Noises, for example, may divert you. In that case spare fifteen minutes a day for a month for practice on the following lines.
This is necessary because complete seclusion and quietude are not usually obtainable even for a short time. However fortunate you may be in your circumstances, you cannot escape entirely from light, sound and wind, and other interruptions. This, however, need not matter much, if you train your senses to ignore the records of the sense-organs. When we are deeply engrossed in a book we may be perfectly unaware that birds are singing outside and trees shaking and rustling in the wind, or that the fire is crackling on the hearth and the clock ticking on the mantel-shelf, though these sounds are actually entering the ear and moving the sense-organs. It is not that the ear does not respond to the sounds, but that the senses are turned away from the sense-organs.
So also the eyes may be open while we are in a “brown study”, and nothing is seen, though the retina contains the image of all things from which light-waves are proceeding to the eye. If the clock suddenly stops, the attention is at once attracted to inquire about the unexpected change; so also if a large cloud suddenly obscures the sun, or a fresh, damp wind strikes the nostrils or the skin. These things would not attract the senses if we were not maintaining within the mind at least a little consciousness of outward things and interest in them. The student must learn to ignore these outside things at will.
The practice is sometimes followed of withdrawing attention from the outer sounds and forms by listening to sounds and attending to lights and feelings within the body. Such sounds as are set up the by movement of air in the ear and other cavities, or by the circulation of the blood, or by other bodily phenomena, are unnoticed in the grosser sounds of life when we are attending to common affairs, but when we sit down silent and inattentive to outer impacts these more delicate impressions may be found in consciousness. These may be chosen as objects of concentration, and when they have displaced the outer sounds they may themselves be forgotten while the entire attention is being given to the object of concentration.
It is a difficult matter to turn the senses away from the sense-organs. Sit quietly and listen intently to the ticking of the clock. Then try not to hear it; first by an effort not to do so, and then by intent attention to something else. Again, try deliberately to confuse the sound by mixing it with others produced by your imagination and in the confusion lose sight of the original sound.
The best way to rid oneself of such interruptions is to select a place where as little interruption as possible can come, and then remove from the mind all expectancy or interest in outside changes. Consider, before beginning your practice of concentration, whether any physical phenomena concern you for the time being. Do you expect anyone to call you or interrupt you? Do you fear that someone may surprise you in what may seem to the ignorant a ridiculous occupation? Even if you do, it is better to avoid expectancy. Do not be constantly on the listen for someone’s coming. All such expectancy keeps the senses-vividly attentive to the slightest sound. In short, resolve that during the time of practice anything that may occur in the outer world does not concern you in the least, and that you will pay positively no attention to external matters. If there is an unusual sound, cease to wonder what was the cause of it or what it means. Cease to take interest in outward changes and they will soon drop out of consciousness.
Comments
Tell us what you're thinking...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!