Developing Focus Using Drishti in Yoga Practice

Transcript

foreign and my business name is Dion ferling Fern and this is a short video about trishtees so in yoga drishti's are Focus points so when we're in a pose we will focus on a point in the wall for example or it might be your toes could be the end of your nose it could be to where your fingertips are pointing it could be up to the sky so adrishti is really a way of focusing your mind and training your mind in a way to be present and it helps with a cultural ADHD type of distraction that a lot of us have we're bombarded with stimulation so it keeps the Mind from from being pulled left right and center with different thoughts different judgments different stimulation that's looking for our attention um it just helps us to have that peace and focus and serenity while we're doing a yoga practice um it can also help us be more mindful in in the present moment be more here and now and even though the gay the drishti is often um referred to as a physical Point um it really an internal Focus as well so it could be a focus on your breathing a focus on how your body feels and focus on your bandas or energy looks um so it's an internal focus of what's going on in your body in your mind and just keeping that awareness um in your body in yourself so does less um chaos chaos in the mind and less chatter in the mind and more of a diligent and disciplined present moment awareness so um it really helps as well with uh balance it can help with your balance in the pose as well and they recommend that when you're doing a drishti and focusing on University that you you visualize your gaze actually going through that point so for example if I was looking at a wall for um majority I'd nearly be matching my my eyes going through the wall like I'm actually going beyond that point and or if I'm looking to the sky I'm not like looking at a cloud going by I'm looking like upbeam beyond the clouds I'm really looking like directly up um so it's it's kind of an anchor in a way you can angry in in your balance it can anchor you in your mind so it's a form of meditation in a way like in another video I spoke about the eight limbs of yoga in Ashtanga and one of those lames with darana and it's linked to meditation and that Focus one pointed focus at one pointed Focus so you're just thinking of that one thing and staying focused staying concentrated in a can we and also um pratyahara was one of the branches of the eight limbs of yoga pradiahara is another um it's another part of the philosophy of yoga and it's closing off of the senses so closing the senses down shutting off the senses um and if you're in practice in drishti even though your eyes are open you're nearly blinkered in a way if you're shutting off everything else in the room you're not like looking at other people doing a pose you're not looking at a tree outside the window you're just totally focused on on what's going on in the pose and on that point so um it's a discipline in a way and it's shooting off your mind and from all those distractions that are constantly there and another element of drishti is that it can improve your eyesight so in many yoga books they will recommend that you don't wear glasses or lenses if you're practicing your dish T now depends on your eyesight because you know you might need your glasses on for balance but generally um you know it will actually improve your your eyesight and by practicing drishti and especially if you're working on a screen for a long time it can really help your your eyesight and you can help you um you can help the muscles in your eyes as well so um yeah drishti is to summarize drishti drishti is a focus point that you focus on while you're practicing yoga so it couldn't be a point on the wall it could be a point it could be your toes when you're bending forward and if you're in a warrior pose you might have your arms are stretched and you're looking to where your fingertips are are pointing so visualizing say laser beams coming out of your fingertips and wherever they would be pointing on the wall that's where your gaze is and your eyes are like really looking through the wall so it's a really um disciplined and focused yet gentle so it's a really it's a gentle gaze you're trying to reduce tension not and create more tension in your body and so you're keeping your gaze kind of soft in a way so you're not staring with open eyes keeping your gaze soft and soft disciplined and your forehead facial muscles quite soft as well jaw soft so you're trying to keep that um relaxed Focus going on and um I read a book recently it was Elder was hoaxely um Island it was called and in the book there are parrots in all the trees and they they repeatedly say here and now here and now and when I think of address D I think of here and now it just keeps bringing me back to Here and Now here and now like you're focusing totally in that moment um on that internal Focus so it's your breathing what's going on in your body where the tension is um and and focusing on that one point that you're looking at in that moment so it's back to mindfulness and Present Moment awareness so I hope that isn't too complicated and I'll leave it at it okay thanks for listening [Music]