In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali it says…
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Tat Pratisedhartham eka tattva bhyasah

“The practice of concentration on a single subject [or the use of one technique] is the best way to prevent the obstacles and their accompaniments.”
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Sri Swami Satchidananda translates this text and states….
“When you decide on one thing, stick to it whatever happens.  There’s no value in digging shallow wells in a hundred places.”

Oh this passage is highlighted, underlined, and dog-eared in my copy of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. They may as well have put arrows in the text and said “Yo!  Nicole!  This part is for you honey.”

I often make fun of my husband because he loves trivia.  The man can remember the most obscure facts.  He remembers actors’ names, sports statistics, and chemical formulas.  He absolutely cannot resist looking up the answer to a question once it’s out there and he consumes magazines, newspaper’s and books. 

The truth is that I am the same way.  Although the focus of my attention is on different topics, I am always reading about 3-4 things at the same time.  I have books and resources scattered all over my home.  I am half way through various wonderful intellectual pursuits.  I am very excited and passionate about many things but being centered and truly devoting my complete potential to one thing is extremely difficult.

I know many of you can relate.  The funny thing is that we often think we are victims of our fast-paced lives or the information super highway.  This may make it easier to indulge in an informational or experiential buffet but Patanjali was writing about this part of human nature hundreds of years ago.

Patanjali offers meditation as a method for increasing focus and training the mind to rest fully with one thought our pursuit.  To allow all the restlessness, fear, boredom, and self-doubt to play out and then dissipate.  What is left is our true nature.  This insight, even if disturbing, provides a clearer vision of what is really missing and, more importantly, what is already there.  What is already perfect and powerful about us. 

When you begin a meditation practice, many doubts will likely appear.  I often find myself waiting to see what will happen or I’m thinking about the spiritual “pay off” instead of observing the present moment.  The only way to move through this and to enjoy the stillness that meditation offers is to continue to meditate.  Even using the same technique over and over again for many weeks or months.

One of my past yoga teachers is from Jamaica.  She often told the story of her guru instructing her to meditate on a mango every morning for a month.  She sat and stared at that mango for 30 minutes every day.  She struggled and wiggled and felt ridiculous.  Then one day her mind ran out of distractions.  She saw the mango as an expression of the perfection of nature and felt a deeper connection with herself.  She also felt a sharper sense of what it meant to be truly present in one moment. 

That ability to be fully present can help us to work on tasks with our fullest attention and talent.  This is the kind of freedom that great (or not so great) artists feel when creating.  We can use this energy to create a masterpiece of our own lives.

For now I continue to struggle with my meditations.  I sometimes just want to eat the mango (so to speak).  I sometimes think that maybe an apple would be more appropriate or maybe a banana.  Just this awareness of my restlessness is the beginning of the mindfulness that meditation brings. 

Pantanjali encourages us to keep digging.  Dedicate yourself to the practice and move through the obstacles to your fullest potential.