Ashtanga Yoga - the 8 fold path

Part 7 - Dhyana

Dhyana is the advanced stage of Dharana and is the 7th component of the Ashtanga yoga; it is a state of awareness that arises spontaneously. All the meditation techniques are intended to bring us to a state of Dhyana if they are practised regularly and diligently. Do not try too hard to control the mind, if you are trying to control it, you might control your thoughts only but not necessarily the mind itself. Most people do not know their mind, it is like what we can see of an iceberg: most of it is below the waterline and only a little bit is above and known to us.

There are different techniques that can help the state of Dhyana to arise. Most techniques encourage the meditator to control all activities of the mind, but this is exactly what might create a conflict in the mind. The Tantric philosophy (of which Yoga is the practical side) believes in “letting the mind be” for what it is and not to interfere, this philosophy advises to observe the mind and get to know it well.

In the book “Sure Ways to Self-Realization” written by Swami Satyananda Saraswati there is an interesting story (page 70) that compares the human mind to a wild horse:

“Befriending the mind:
Once upon a time there lived a king who had a most beautiful but rampantly wild horse. The beast could not be tamed. The king decreed that he would handsomely reward anyone who could subdue his stallion. Prompted by thoughts of wealth, many people came. Each man tried to match the horse with strength, but none was strong enough to overcome the animal by mere force. Even the mightiest were thrown of or injured. Some time passed till one day the king saw the horse meekly obeying a newcomer’s instructions. The king was amazed and demanded to know how this man had succeeded where so many others had failed. The horse tamer replied “Instead of fighting your stallion, I let him run freely to his heart’s content, following his own impulses. Eventually he became fatigued and submissive. It was then no problem to befriend your horse and gain command.”
It is the same with the mind. If we fight and wrestle with the mind, we will never achieve mastery over it. The method to adopt is similar to that of the horse tamer – let the mind follow its impulses and tendencies without restriction until it becomes ready and willing to accept your authority. Give the mind free rein. Do not suppress it, but merely watch and get to know it."

Dhyana is meditation; there is nothing more we can say about Dhyana then that it is worth the effort to attain it. If you have not yet experienced it yourself; explaining it in words will only cause confusion and misconception. However if you have experienced Dhyana then you know that words are not needed and cannot be used to explain it. It is like trying to explain to a blind person what colours look like.

PranaYoga - Yoga & Relaxation	Last Update: 6-11-2007