Dhyana is an stage where one gain knowledge of the self.    In meditation we try and Quiet the mind  so that truth and clarity can be revealed through all the clutter of our minds.  In Dhyana we silence all thoughts in the mind and sit still in that complete silence.  At this stage the mind becomes clear and our inner truths are revealed.   We observe the process or the content of the mind.  Concepts that cannot be understood by words,  but must be experienced.  Only through experience can one truly understand a concepts and grasp its full potential,  this is especially true of Raja Yoga and the mastery of concentration. 

In Life we go through our events with all the clutter and chaos and are basically in a hypnotize state,  going through the motions of life.  Our thoughts becomes a trance in which we create fantasies and emotions and illusions about the world around us.   This is necessary for our survival.   Have you ever noticed that when something threatens your life  or frightens you, you becomes completely aware of everything that is going on, you are completely in the moment.   We attain a state of hightened awareness which is very different from our normal state.   In life we live in the past and the future creating fantasies and living memories.  With meditation we seek to exist in the present and just be as a body and mind allowing the spirit to evolve.  

This level of concentration takes us out of our fantasy and humbles us, allowing us to see our whole self, and if we so desire meet our shadow self.  Dhyana will break the concept of who you think you are, and introduce you to who you really are and awaken sides of your being that you might fear.  Remember, in the world of black magic the most dangers come from within and we must stay strong and fear not even ourselves.   In essence, Dhyana allows us to gain self knowledge and learn about ourselves in a profound way.   Dhyara is the gateway to enlightenment. If this is unclear do not worry, Dhyana is a hard concept to grasp and truly one can only grasp it when one has achieved it.   

 Happy meditations,

Priestess Akelta   

CO

Dharana is the stage where you begin to train the mind to focus on one singular object at a time.  It is where the mind learns to focus on one task, much like a highly concentrated laser beam.  There are some Laser beams that are so powerful that they can cut through metal.  A mind that is trained to focus can attain similar power.  When you learn to channel your thoughts your mind can become just as powerful as the laser and preform some amazing acts that most people would think impossible. 

Dharana is unbroken concentration.  The mind it trained to focus on one object and only that object for any amount of time.  Depending on your skill level will determine how long you can focus on the object for.  There are Yogis that have the ability to focus on objects for days without breaking their concentration. Imagine this;  You have a light bulb hooked up to a small energy source that will give out a certain amount of energy. It glows very brightly.  This is the mind focus, and concentrating on one source.  Now I want you to imagine that you connect another light bulb to the (series) circuit.  The lights dull a little but it is unnoticeable to most.  Now lets say you take 100 light bulbs and all attach them.  The lights will all dull as they all try to disperse the electricity between them.  No bulb has any real power to produce light and they are all dull.  This is exactly what happen to an unfocused mind.  The mind cannot complete the task because it is focusing on too much.  100 dull bulbs cannot light a room, but one bright one can.  It is the same with the mind. 

We have all experienced some level of unbroken concentration.  When you are engaged in an activity that really fascinates you and hours can go by in seconds because you are so absorbed in that activity.  Most people can attain this state when they are doing something that they enjoy.  The point of training the mind to focus is to that you can attain this state weather you enjoy the activity or not.  A good example of this unbroken concentration is extraordinary athletes.  The ones that go beyond the norm and preform things that are amazing. These athletes have a heightened sense of concentration and powerful minds that direct their will into their actions, allowing them to go beyond what most could do.  With the right training you can learn to focus your mind and apply it to all areas of your life.  Achieving Dharana is the way to do that. In Dharana we sit in a comfortable position and instead of turning all the senses inwards we direct them onto a singular object and remain focused solely on that object for a duration of time.  I often speak of the Dot exercise which is perfect for developing this skill.  Basically get a piece of paper and draw a dot on it the size of a dollar coin and place it on the wall then focus on it for 30 minutes three times a day.  This exercise is amazing for developing your focus. 

This Dot is a little different than the one I speak of but it demonstrates what I speak on well.  When you state are the Dot the black haze around it begins to disappear,  this is due to the fact that you mind is focused on the dot in the centre and begins to tune out all things around it.  That is the purpose of focusing on the Dot.  To focus on it solely and tune out all the black haze around you. When first learning to master this skill it will be frustrating.  The mind in the beginning is like a child and is easily distracted.  When you find your thoughts drifting away for complete focus on the object, simply take a deep breath in and re focus them on the object.  Remember that you goal is to focus your thoughts 100% on the object.  It takes practise to learn this skill, and dedication. You must also be patient with yourself and not allow the cloudiness of frustration prevent you from attaining your goal.  Keep your thoughts clear and your will strong. Resist the urge to focus on the vast amounts of objects and sounds that will be competing for your attention, remain focused on your goal. With a strong core, you can overcome all obstacles and nothing can harm you.  In Black magick training and strengthening your core is essential as you will find that with a strong core comes more effective spells, and abilities that you might have thought were impossible. 

As you Practise, this ability will becomes easier and easier and your energy will becomes stronger and able to hold this focus on anything that you do.  This skill will not just benefit you in black magick, but in all areas of your life,  you will see the world in a clarity that most will never see.  Daily tasks that were once hard and draining, will becomes easier and accomplished in less time.  When you start down the path to improve your focus, you are not just training yourself to be a better black magician, you are training your mind to function better and influence all areas of life.  Love your path, more then the endless thoughts of your mind. Happy FocusingPriestess Akelta.

Raja Yoga has many valuable teachings that any magician can use to better their skills.  In Raja Yoga the mind is trained to be still and focused.  The clutter that once corroded the thoughts melts away to reveal a mind of stillness and clarity.  A mind that is in control and has no fear or distractions.  When you can attain this state with your own mind,  all spells will be easy and your world will become like putty in your hand.

There are five external aids of Yoga, but I would like to focus my attention on the internal aids.

Pratyahara is the stage I will talk about today,  it is the transition of the mind from foucsing on the external world, to the internal world.  It is in this stage that we learn to turn our attention inward, and focus our mind completly on our inner world.  This ability is very beneficial, for it allows us to observe our own mind and its working.  It is amazing what you can uncover about your self if you merely turn your attention inward and listen to what your mind, body and spirit are saying.

Due to all the distractions that go on around us it is amazing how many people do not even know of the inner world.  They are so caught up in life that they has never taken the time to stop and reflect upon themselves.  It is important for one to be able to step away from the outside would and journey inward to the internal self. Advanced Yoga Practitioners are able to turn off their senses to the outside world entiarly, so that the stimulus does not even reach their brain.  They reach a state where they are complelty focused on the inner self.  In the very advanced staged the Practitioner can even turn off the electric current that pulsates through the nerves and the involuntary muscles.  This is aided with the technique Pranayama (breath control).

I actually demonstrated this ability to a Biology class that I took in college.  We were measuring our heart rates and blood pressure using a clip that attached itself to our fingers.  The teacher was talking about heart rate and saying  that if the heart rate dropped below 40 Beats per minute that the person was in trouble.  So I put the machine on and focused inward using my breathing practises.  I managed to drop my heart rate to 35 beats per minute.  The teacher asked me if I did any meditation and I told her I did Raja Yoga.  She nodded and then informed the class that some people especially those who practise breathing and focus can control their heartrate using their mind.

By attaining Pratyahara we open our minds up to the intelligence of the universe and the power of our own minds.  It is important that once to start down this path to attain inner stillness and peace regularily. It keep your awareness in each moment and allows you to commit more of your brain to tasks you undertake in your daily life.  You will find that once your concentration improves you will get more done in less time and have more time for yourself. Pratyahara is a first step towards meditation and eventually the advanced pratices of Raja Yoga.  With practise and time you will learn to use the outer and inner awareness at the same time.  When this happens the world becomes clearer and you are able to focus on everything you do with clarity.

Happy Focusing

Priestess Akelta

P.S. Here is an article that will give you an idea of what can be attained with a focus mind.

http://www.dlshq.org/download/miracles.htm

I do the Dot three times a day for 30 minutes each time, meditate on the sigils of entities who aid me,  read every single book I can find.  I preform mantras, invocations, evocation or practise spells daily, and am completly devoted to my craft.  I have a daily routine of Magickal practises that are a major part of my life.  Magick is my passion and I enjoy seeing the results that all my efforts bring.

For those of you who do not know what the Dot is I will tell you.  The Dot is a concetration exercise where one sits and basically stares at a Dot on a peice of paper about the size of a dollar coin.  The magician can only think of the Dot and have complete focus on it.  It is great for developing a magickal gaze.

Single thought focus is a key to mastering black magic as without it you cannot hope to cast any of the more powerful and effective spells.  When preforming a ritual it is important to stay on topic and only focus on the ritual.  Believe me you can destroy a spell or ritual with the simple thought of  ”I wonder what is for dinner?”

If you are serious about mastering magick then you need to practise.  It is like any other skill, if you want to be a master  you need to put in the time and effort into developing your skills.

No one said it was going to be easy, and I will tell you it is not, the brain is STUBBORN and wants to play it’s own game.  It is up to you to harness it and control it.  Only then can you unlock the great power that it hides.

High Priestess

Happy Castings,

Priestess Akelta

Let me tell you a story of the amazing effects of Concentration.  My step dad is a man who knows how to concentrate he actually claims that it is his attributing feature.

My step dad has an unnatural powerfully ability to focus on anything that he puts his mind to.  He can read at an alarming speed, get work done in half that of the people he works with, and increse his strength and stamina.   All these things are minor compared to what he managed to achieve as a child.

He was at a lake with my grandfather and they were all swimming.  My Step dad was a small child so we was just wading where the water was shallow.  He noticed my Grandfather out in the water and had a desire to go and see his father.

He began to walk out towards his father and the water stayed at the depth which he started which was about an inch deep.  He managed to walk all the way out to his father, who was in the deep water.

When he got there his father gazed at him with a look of shock and amazement and asked  “how are you doing that, the water is over your head?”  At that point my step dad looked down and fell through the water.  My Grandfather had to grab him before he drowned.

I asked my Grandfather about this and he told me that is happened and that to this day he wonders how my step dad was able to pull off this miraculous event.

So how was my step dad able to accomplish walking on water.  It was all concentration.  He was so focused of going out in the water to see his father that he did not even realise the water went over his head.   All he was focused on was his father and getting to him.

The power of his own mind helped him get there.  He held such a strong image of getting to his father that nothing would come between him and that goal, not even deep water.  That is true magick!

There have been recorded events all over the world of people able to shape shift, turn themselves invisible, and walk on water.  Are they fakes? Or do we have the power to harness the forces of the universe and the spirit world to preform these miracles.

I believe so!  as I know one who has accomplished it.   Anyone can attain these goals with enough time and devotion.  The keys to unlocking this great power is Dedication, Practice and Focus.

The faster you learn to master your own mind the faster you will unlock your potential, don’t wait to long to start learning; )

Priestess Akelta.