ONCE you have arranged everything as recommended in the preceding chapters and have finished the 'talks with yourself ', look at the second hand of your watch or clock, fixing your sight attentively and exclusively on the tip of the coloured line moving round the dial.
Do not think of anything else, just dispassionately watch the end of the hand steadily and incessantly revolving. Do not look at, or think about the watch, itself, or about the figures passed over by the hand. At this moment you have no interest in the form, colour, make, etc. of the whole watch or its components, except the part you are watching so intently.
Your eyes dare not be distracted by anything, and nothing in the whole world exists for you now, except that moving coloured line. In particular, verbalization, i.e.
mental repeating of words, must cease during the exercise.
First, note exactly, by the same second hand, the time when you began to follow its movements. Then check the moment when your still rebellious mind was first distracted and forced you to forget to watch, and instead substituted a thought, word or some other kind of mental distraction for the exercise.
EXERCISE NO. I Red Pranayama
For the first two or three weeks, multiply the best time achieved in concentrating on
disobedient mind. You may slowly reach 45, 50 seconds etc. of perfect concentration.
As soon as the exercise is spoiled by an encroaching thought, you must begin again and yet again, until the period of your exercise expires. This rule is valid for all those that follow.
Anyway, in this first series of your study, repeat the some exercise for ten or fifteen minutes or more as previously decided, trying to reach the two-minute target of uninterrupted contemplation of the second hand's point.
Under no circumstances should another exercise be tried until you have finished with the first one. The only exception to this relates to a parallel exercise, which will now be explained.
As you have probably concluded for yourself, Exercise No. I is a kind of attack on your, as yet, untrained mind by the means of concentrating your sight.
EXERCISE NO. 1A
Red Pranayama
This is concentration on sound. It must be performed immediately after No. I, or at your second daily session if you have arranged for two per day. Take a simple, short sound, unconnected with any physical form. The best result is usually obtained with the word 'Om' which was mentioned in Chapter XV.
Carefully note the time by your watch and begin to repeat the word 'Om' mentally, or even whisper it if preferred. Your full attention should be exclusively directed to the sound inwardly heard. Apart from it, nothing dares to exist for you just now―only 'Om, Om, Om,' etc.
Once again, by means of the second hand, check your best effort, which is the length of time you can repeat 'Om' before your mind refuses to obey you and tricks you into another thought. Multiply that time by three, and this will be your subsequent target, as it was in Exercise No. 1.
You may gauge your true development in mental and will-power by observing your initial efforts in sight and sound concentration.
If on the first day your best uninterrupted performance is for approximately one minute, you are on very good terms with your mind, and you have the prospect of quite good results from this study. The shorter the times for your first attempts, the
discouraged. Some students I have known actually began from very insignificant results of only 20 seconds duration as their best effort for the first day.
Then, unexpectedly, for themselves, they shot ahead, passing others whose first tests had been twice as good. But in the case of these students, they had been told beforehand all that you have read in this chapter.
If it seems to be more comfortable, you may exclude one of the senses in the initial stages, the easier to overcome possible distractions, which because of your still weak will-power, may interfere with your efforts. So, when working with No. I you may close your ears with wax, a rubber plug, and so on, and with No. 1A you may shut your eyes if preferred, for the first weeks of practice.
There is an important condition to remember when engaged in this course of concentration and that is to stop and then forget all your former interest in occultism, if there has been any. Concentration does not permit of indulgence in any duplicity.
One-pointedness is its paramount rule. Also, as has already been stated, regular times for exercises are most important.
Exercises Nos. 1 and 1A must be continued until you are able to perform them faultlessly for five minutes. Then you may pass on to the next and more advanced ones.
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What can be of most help to you at this stage? Everything that strengthens your will. What can delay success? Everything that weakens your will-power. Recognizing this fully, try to adapt your life so that you will be in the best possible position while studying this course.
Unnecessary and harmful habits are the factors which interfere with the growth of your will-power. So, if a logically thinking and hence reasonable student possesses such things, he will declare war on these enemies and stop succumbing to them.
Do you smoke? Then you have an excellent opportunity to develop your inner strength by asking this injurious habit just which of you is boss? If you do not possess this particular habit, find another and dismiss it as ruthlessly as it formerly held sway over you.
I do not wish to imply, that without absolute freedom from all undesirable
contrary, you can certainly reach some positive results. But as with a champion runner or swimmer, he can only do his best under favourable conditions, i.e.
unburdened by unnecessary heavy garments, and wearing only shorts or swimming trunks. He will never be able to perform as well if attired in full street clothes.
If you do not conquer most of your negative habits, they will suck your inner strength like leeches.
Think about this, and make your own decision, for no one else can do it for you.
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Now I wish to give you another practical hint.
Since these exercises are not performed on the physical plane, we should strive to become as independent as possible from our physical counterpart. A useful little
‘trick’ follows:
(a) When you commence your daily exercises, first assume your normal 'asanic' position described in Chapter XV, i.e. sitting erect on a chair without any tension, and neck and spine in one direct line. Also, remember about the use of 'colours'.
(b) Take a little extra time and instead of working with your body immovable, try rhythmically bowing and raising the head, then bending it to left and to right. Finally, slowly turn it clockwise or as you wish. At the same time throughout, continue with your concentration exercises without any change or deviation, just as if your body was immobilized.
If your performance of exercises Nos. 1 and 1A has been good, you should only feel a slight difference, and they will continue undisturbed. This proves that the exercises do not belong to the physical plane, but go beyond the brain. If on the other hand you feel some uneasiness during this unaccustomed experience, then attack the obstacle, i.e. perform all exercises with the body in movement as described above, for as long as you feel the need for it, so that eventually you will feel no difference whether in movement or otherwise. Therefore, from now on, every exercise should be done along the lines of (a) and (b) above, except Nos. 9 and 9A.
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The final aim of the first elementary series of exercises is for ten minutes of
particular session. So that, if you are able to follow the second hand of your watch for ten minutes, limit the time of your exercise period to just these ten minutes, and do nothing more. The tension may still be too strong and the brain and nerves should be spared and treated reasonably.
Ten minutes of even this elementary concentration is already quite an achievement, and you will notice the difference for yourself.
But . . . it is only a beginning. Anyway, a good start is the forecast of a good finish. One of the surest signs of satisfactory progress, is the fact that one begins to like doing the exercises, and does not feel compelled to perform them as an unpleasant duty.
There is practically no limit to achievement made with love and good will.