FOCUS ON THE ETERNAL

Those who keep their consciousness focused on the One
(Eternal Principle) will find Eternal Sukha (sggs 1365).
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The SGGS (Sri Guru Granth Sahib) repeatedly emphasizes to focus on the Eternal Factor. Why? All our worldly experiences are changing. Whatever we see with our material eyes or taste with our material senses is changeful. Our material mind gets easily affected by these changing experiences of life ("likes and dislikes": pain and pleasure, failure and success, praise and insult etc.). On the other hand, the True Essence of all of us is Changeless amidst the changeful phenomenal world. Therefore, the Gurbani indicates if one wants to remain unaffected by the changing experiences of life, then he has to shift his focus from the changeful to the Changeless: from the temporary to the Eternal. The SGGS reiterates not to focus on the fleeting experiences arising purely from attraction to the worldly objects. The things we see (or experience) are at the level of the mind. The SGGS wants us to go beyond the mind.

But what is "focus" or "focusing"? Certainly, it's not sitting in a stork- or crane-like posture. Nor it's sitting in the forest or in a mountain-cave with half-closed eyes focused on the tip of the nose or the sky, while mind is running hither and thither - just going through the motion of focusing would be useless and counterproductive.

Rather it's a gentle and powerful process of developing greater Awareness — an exquisite and Insightful Listening to the small still voice within. Thus, focusing is essentially a mode of inward bodily attention that the restless minds of most of us are unaware of and untrained for. It's bringing about change, personal growth and creativity. Thus, it's a more than being in touch with one's feelings, thinking and body sensations. It's a particular way of paying attention to one's embodied experience of something beyond what evolution, culture and language have built. It's joining with the implicit. It's living in the eternity of the Now — dissolving all subject-object distinctions or transcending the realm of the mind (Haume).

What are benefits that flow from focusing? When performed with love, sincerity, willingness and commitment — without hypocrisy, faking, pretenses, selfishness, conceit, arrogance, desires (material or mystic) etc., it helps control the scattered mind (mental Purification or cleansing of the mind), brings understanding, calms the restless mind, increase the inner transformation, releases blockages of the mind, helps one to think more creatively about life's dilemmas (issues, problems and situations, etc.), helps one to go deeper and have greater peace and wisdom: a deeper sense of connection to one's True Being, helps one to be aware of the egoistic and negative tendencies in his mind, and so on. In nutshell, the real meditation (which is beyond the process of thinking), Self-Unfoldment and greater Awareness is the outcome of a focused mind. Those who are so focused, see the world verily as the part of their own True Self. Their Higher Wisdom clearly expresses in all their thoughts, words and actions.

Let's be realistic — what if one cannot focus all the time? Focusing all the time is not possible for everybody. As fingerprints or eye prints of two people are unique (although burning or plastic and reconstructive surgery may obliterate the finger patterns entirely but no criminal could circumvent the eye prints without blinding himself), similarly, the mental dispositions and temperaments of two persons are inimitable. So, what about those who cannot focus all the time? The Gurbani is very practical and universal. It's purpose is to reclaim all souls, not just few selected ones. Those for whom focusing all the time is not possible, the SGGS also urges spending extra time trying to do something good for others in the society (Nishakaam Sevaa or selfless service out of love and compassion, not out of selfish or ulterior motives). This way, everyone benefits.

But the key here is that Sevaa has to be performed without the involvement or intrusion of the false ego sense (Haume). The Selfless service or Sevaa so performed is Grace. It's relatively easier to read scriptures or sit in meditation, but much difficult to perform a real Sevaa because to do such Sevaa one must first surrender his false ego-sense. Just imagine if each one of us can perform such Nishakaam Sevaa, there will be better relationship between neighbors, spouses, coworkers, nations, religions, and so on!

In the final state — when all divisions created and sustained by the mind (Haume or false "I") are eliminated — one becomes one with what he focuses on. Then the mouse of the mind stops from scurrying around, and, as a result, one becomes spiritually silent.

— T. Singh
www.gurbani.org

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Updated on Wednesday, February 10, 2010 10:35 AM (PST)

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