Dharana is one pointed focus – something that you may be incapable of maintaining for an extended period of time. In this article, we’re going to explore the concept of dharana, how to foster it and how it can benefit you.

Let’s start with a demonstration:

Focus.

Stop what you’re doing and focus on me.

Read these words and allow all else to fade into the background.

Now, stop reading and keep all your attention on the point at the end of this sentence.

How long were you able to remain focussed on the point? Five minutes? A minute? Half a minute? Ten seconds? Two??

Many of you didn’t even attempt to focus on the point and this is what this article will explore.

What are the Eight Limbs of Yoga?

The eight limbs of yoga were enumerated by Sage Patanjali thousands of years ago. Of the eight, dharana is the sixth limb.

yama niyama–asana pranayama pratyahara dharana dhyana samadhayo-‘stavangani

|2.29| Patanjali Yoga Sutras

Restraint, observance, postures, regulation of breath, substitute food for the mind, ability of the mind to focus, meditation and higher states of consciousness are eight limbs of yoga.

The limbs of yoga develop together; similar to how pulling one leg of a chair results in the entire chair coming toward you, when you practice one limb of yoga, the other limbs begin to develop as well.

The power of self-effort

Life is an overwhelmingly limitless amusement park in which you can do whatever you want, whenever you want. The wonders of the world are there for you to discover, explore and enjoy. Truly your only limitation is your own mind.

If you didn’t unconsciously limit yourself, you’d be freer than a bird.

Now, that’s not to say that you should shrug off everything and disappear forever, but if you’ve desired something in your life and didn’t go after it because of this or that, know that this is because of a self-limiting belief that you consciously or unconsciously have.

Regardless of how much you’ve limited yourself, your mind enjoys to wander all over the place. There seems to be no power in the world that could make your mind settle down and be present with you throughout the day.

Except there is.

And that power is you and your own self-effort.

Yes, it will be difficult if you haven’t ever tried to reign in the mind before, but the reward is well worth the effort.

How to Reign in the Mind

A powerful option that cannot fail is a regular yoga practice.

Let’s do another demonstration. This time, give 100% of your effort and attention and notice how you feel afterwards.

Sit up nice and tall. Spine straight, relax the shoulders, chin parallel to the ground, eyes softly looking forward.

Take your attention to the base of your spine and begin to notice the movement of your breath.

Notice the gentle movement of the belly as you inhale and exhale. Is it the breath that moves the belly or the belly that moves the breath?

If the mind wanders, it’s okay, gently bring your attention back to your breath.

Lengthen your breath.

Notice that the longer your breath becomes, the more your body relaxes.

The more your body relaxes, the deeper your breath becomes.

Continue breathing.

Continue noticing the movement of the belly.

Notice as your shoulders melt down, away from your ears. Let the hips relax.

Close the eyes and continue for as long as you’d like.

It’s as easy as that.

Your breath is always in the present moment. It doesn’t matter where the mind gets caught up, your breath is always with you, right now.

Pranayama or breathing techniques, is the fourth limb of yoga and one of your most powerful and readily available tools to gently ease the mind away from its endless fancies.

Why you need dharana in your life

Have you ever tried to achieve something? Of course you have! Whether it was passing an exam, getting a job or even finding a good place to eat, you have to have some degree of dharana to achieve anything in life.

It takes effort to maintain dharana. If you get distracted every two seconds, you’d never make any progress. And the larger your goals are, the longer you need to sustain your focus. If your goals include becoming a successful lawyer or doctor, you’re going to have to keep that focus and resolve steady for many, many years.

And this effort naturally leads to effortlessness and ease.

The practice of yoga makes it easier to bring your mind back to centre and gradually develop dharana. And as you develop dharana, your asanas, pranayama and meditation become deeper and deeper. As mentioned above, as you practice one limb of yoga, the others develop as well.

What does developing dharana result in?

A calm mind – a mind in which there is no perturbation or unnecessary movement. Even if there is, you’re able to let it go and remain centred. In fact, this quality of mind will allow you to find deep rest.

It is effort that leads to effortlessness. For example, it takes effort to get into a yoga posture, but once there, the posture should be effortless. Like this, dharana leads to dhyana: effort leads to effortlessness.

Not only will you be able to focus for longer periods of time, you’ll also benefit from the opposite; you’ll be able to find deeper relaxation and be more refreshed and energized to do the things that you need to do. You’ll be more efficient in action and have more time for other aspects of your life.

I bet no one else told you that improved efficiency and more free time is a real, tangible benefit of yoga.

So what are you waiting for?