Sutra 1.35: Focus on the Senses

Sutra 1.35: viṣayavatī vā pravr̥tti-rutpannā manasaḥ sthiti nibandhinī 

Focus on your senses

In Sutra 1.35 Patanjali gives us yet another technique to develop our ability to focus and like every other growth tool, it seems completely contradictory. Noting that one of the limbs of yoga is sensory withdrawal (pratyahara). It’s intriguing that in this sutra we are guided to focus specifically on our senses. It may be true that attachment to our sensory pleasures or displeasures causes much of our suffering, but it is also true that we are sensory beings and it is through these senses that we have our life experiences. Our direct experience is our first source of truth, so it would make sense then, that by refining these senses we will have more pure experiences, unadulterated by memories, desires, and biases.

What if by refining our taste, we ended up satiating our hunger rather than feeding our fear or our depression or our boredom? What if by refining our listening we strengthened our relationships because we were able to hear beyond words and into hearts? What if by refining our sight we began to see real life smiles instead of social media?

Our senses, while often lead us to chasing ghosts in the external world, also have the power to draw us into the depths of our internal worlds. If we can find moments to observe our reactions to whatever it is we are sensing, we have direct insight into our previously unobserved reactions. Not only can we learn about our tendencies and where they may have come from, we also have the opportunity to see the imperminence of the emotion that has bubbled up from seeing a billboard about abortion, or hearing the wedding song of your ex husband, or smelling Fritos that smell just like the paws of your bestest friend ever who recently passed (RIP Guster).

The senses may just be the subway to source itself.

Muchas Gracias dear reader,

As always, my intention is to be of inspiration for self-exploration. This is never me telling you how to feel or how things are or a claiming of anything, simply my own humble thoughts at this time, in my study and life. May you remember your light, your depth, and your freedom.

All my love,

Andrea Dawn