May the Focus be with you

July 8, 2015

“Always remember, your focus determines your reality.”
~ From Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace (1999)

“A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.”

This signature phrase from the opening of every Star Wars film, tells of a futuristic time and place in the distant past.  The language brings to mind a time period far removed from our own, an age that would make medieval times seem relatively recent.

Fans of the movies will recognize a striking similarity between Jedi Master Yoda and the strange figure drawn between the paragraphs in the image above.  However, this pointy-eared creature in monk’s robes is actually from a medieval manuscript created in southern France between the year 1300 and 1340.  Known as the “Smithfield Decretals”, the text and image were featured a few months ago on the British Library’s Medieval Manuscripts blog.

Yoda seems to be existing in multiple time periods at once.  I know the feeling.  For many of us, finding and maintaining an awareness of the “now” can be elusive.

With all of the information coming at us from numerous sources these days, it can be difficult to keep our minds and emotions from wandering between past events and future possibilities.  Amid the everyday chaos, how does one achieve and maintain mental and emotional equilibrium?

A useful technique for keeping your focus in the now is a yogic practice known as drishti.  Drishti is a Sanskrit word meaning “vision”, “sight”, “gaze” or “perception”.  In the context of yoga it refers to maintaining a fixed gaze on a single point.  For example, when in standing balance poses, such as mountain pose, or tree pose, I recommend that my students find a fixed point in the distance to softly focus on.  Gazing at a single, unmoving point helps one align oneself physically and mentally with its stability.

You don’t have to be a yogi to practice drishti.  Taking a few moments to find and maintain a soft focus on a single point, even for a few minutes, can help one find balance in the midst of a stressful and chaotic day.  Here’s how:

Stand with your feet about hips distance apart, arms at your sides, shoulders back and neck softly lifted.  Tuck in your abdominal muscles to support your back.  Alternatively, you could find a comfortable seated position, arms resting in your lap, sitting up straight with shoulders back and neck softly lifted.  Breathe slowly and deeply, in and out through the nose, if possible.

Find a fixed point in the distance in front of you to softly focus on.  This is your “now”.  Let everything else around this point blur. Do this for at least 3 minutes, whenever you feel scattered.

Once you master the technique of maintaining a soft gaze on a single point of focus, I recommend taking it outdoors.  Go to the park, the beach or even your backyard and stop to gaze at a leaf on a tree, a pebble on the ground or the single petal of a flower.  Practicing drishti in this way can be a path to seeing the Divine in all things, big or small, animate or inanimate.

Whether you are standing in the forest or sitting in your office, this simple exercise can become a tool for achieving both a real and metaphorical focus of vision.  In Star Wars: Episode IV – The Empire Strikes Back, Luke asks his teacher how he will know the good side from the bad.  Master Yoda replies:

“You will know when you are calm, at peace, passive.”

Whether we seek physical, mental, emotional, energetic or spiritual equilibrium, the present moment is always a good place to start – even if you are living a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.

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Fresh, ripe strawberries are plentiful now.  Freeze the extras to make Strawberry Basil Slushies anytime.

Strawberry Basil Slushies
This sophisticated slushy makes for a refreshing apéritif on a hot afternoon.

12 ounces frozen organic strawberries*
1/2 cup organic sugar
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves (loosely packed)
1 cup sparkling water

*This amount of frozen strawberries looks like 3 cups in the blender and a heaping 2 cups inside a measuring cup.

 

Place frozen strawberries in blender.  Sprinkle sugar on top and let sit for 5 minutes or so.  Add basil and sparkling water and blend until smooth (you may need to pulse, stop and stir a couple of times in the beginning).

Serves 2 to 4

 

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