01/11/2018
*Trataka :- sadhana for mind control and awakening.🌸*
_Swami Satyananda Saraswati_
The first step on the path of spirituality is to control the mind and make it useful.
The first sadhana of a sadhaka consists of understanding the mind, in knowing its direction and turning it upwards.
The sadhana of trataka will help you a great deal in understanding the mind and making its unseen powers active, so as to prepare you for self-realization.
The practice of trataka is independent in its own way and is meant for aspirants of higher categories. Trataka is a very powerful sadhana.
Gandhari had mastered trataka. Ramana Maharshi also practised trataka. Many sadhus in the mountains have practised this sadhana.
Trataka shows us that the eyes are the instruments by which the mind and the soul are reached.
Trataka is of two kinds: internal and external. Internal trataka is called dharana or concentration because in this practice the eyes are closed and the mind concentrated upon some subtle element within. External trataka means fixing the eyes on some object outside. Trataka on any object can be performed during the day or night. In this practice one has to take into account the object, the place and the time. What is the object on which the eyes are to be fixed? Where is the object to be placed? At what time should it be practised?
The word trataka means to gaze steadily. Trataka is gazing without blinking at an object placed directly in front of the eyes. At the time of practising trataka, the eyeballs should remain steady and the eyelids should not flicker. No object except the one on which trataka is to be performed should be seen, and the mind should not wander hither and thither but be merged in observation of the object.
The impression of the object falls on the optic nerves. The shadow of the object falls on the eyes and then on the retina. The optic nerves of the retina are connected by the sensory nerves with the brain. The brain has several centres which are connected with the optic nerves. These centres receive information through the optic nerves and send out commands. Many of these centres are asleep or inactive. Trataka does not merely increase the function of perception. Through the medium of perception, the centres of the brain which remain inactive in an ordinary person are awakened. Man is capable of becoming a superman if he is able to awaken and activate those glands and nerve centres which in the natural course of evolution are in an inactive state.
A number of yogis in the Himalayas perform penances and attain siddhis. What practices do they perform? They perform sadhanas through which they develop the inner centres of the body, thus their senses are fully developed. These things are not impossible; they are natural, rational and intelligible, and form part of human evolution Anyone who can devote the time can practise them under the guidance of a guru.
Trataka and sleep
Generally before going to bed people lie down and read a book. Why? By lying down on the bed, the optic nerves are pressed and this pressure makes the eyelids heavy. Due to heaviness the eyelids begin to close. The pressure on the optic nerves causes pressure on the brain too and therefore the instruments of the body, tired from the day’s activities, fall asleep in order to remove fatigue and refresh themselves with new energy.
The mind also goes within at the time of sleep, but it does not sleep. The mind which was active in the external world through the senses goes inside during sleep and sees the pictures of its inner experiences and impressions. This is also exactly what is experienced through the medium of trataka. The only difference is that the eyes remain open. There is no sleep, but all the tendencies are turned inward.
Power of the eyes
In daily life trataka has many uses related to the power of healing and clairvoyance. Trataka can be utilized for curing eye diseases, spiritual healing, acquiring knowledge of certain events, detection of thieves, murderers, etc., acquiring knowledge of the future, tracing lost individuals and so on. Clairvoyance is a mysterious faculty that can be developed by the practices of trataka. Yogis who have attained this state are able to see things with the eyes open or closed which a normal person is not able to see. Clairvoyance means psychic vision and such vision was given by Vyasa to Sanjaya. There are other great people who have developed this faculty through trataka. Ramana Maharshi had practised a sadhana related to it. C.W. Leadbeater of the Theosophical Society may also have acquired the power of clairvoyance by means of inner trataka.
Trataka plays an important role in yoga. Parvati practised shambhavi mudra, which forms an integral part if inner trataka. Trataka is practised even in hypnotism. The eyes possess the power to act as a reservoir of energy as well as a transmitter. Through the medium of the eyes, we are able to express many things. We are able to express sorrow, joy, anger, displeasure, cheerfulness, malice, etc. Through trataka we can acquire great power.
Methods of trataka
There are many methods of trataka which can be utilized by sadhakas according to choice and situation.
On a leaf: Take a large betel leaf. Prepare a collyrium (paste) with castor oil and make a black dot on the betel leaf. The dot should be the size of a pea or a little smaller. Fix this leaf onto cardboard. Place a light, a lamp or a candle behind you. Practise trataka on that dot in the morning and evening. Go on gazing at the dot continually for five or ten minutes without moving your eyelids. Do this for six months and then consult your guru.
Candle flame: Light a candle in the darkness and fix your eyes on the flame for five or ten minutes without blinking. Perform this practice in the morning and evening. There should be no break even for a day in this sadhana. It should continue as long as the eyes cannot fix themselves steadily on the flame. People with eye defects should practise this sadhana. Even children who suffer from eye defects should be encouraged to practise this technique.
Darkness: Sit by yourself in the dark and practise trataka on the darkness. The eyes should be open fully. Continue to see in the darkness without any light. Sit there daily and practise it steadily and firmly.
Blue sky: Sit in an open place or on a terrace at the end of the day and gaze at the blue sky without blinking. Try to feel that you have become like the sky or that the sky has come nearer to you. In due course the consciousness of the practitioner becomes so transformed that even though the object is in front of your eyes, you are not aware of it. The consciousness which separates the seer and the seen does not remain separate, but identifies with the object.
Photograph: Have a small photograph of your chosen deity. Take a sheet of blank paper, the size of a book, and cut out a circle two inches in diameter, so that there is a round open space in the paper. Now place the photo of your deity behind the paper, fixing it in such a manner that you can only see the face through the hole, and frame it under glass. During the day practise trataka on the photo. The photo should be straight in front of the eyes at a distance of one and a half feet. Try not to take your vision outside the round circle.
Havan: Perform havan daily and in the sacrificial fire put scented objects. When the fire has ignited and has burned steadily for some time, repeat a prayer to the fire god Jataveda and perform trataka on the flame. Try to think of the divine being in the flame while doing trataka.
Crystal: If you happen to have a crystal, practise trataka on it. This is an independent and important sadhana.
Shivalinga: Worship a shivalinga daily with great devotion.
