Concentration

This document, "Concentration" by Virchand Raghavji Gandhi, is a collection of twelve lectures that delve into the Jain understanding and practice of concentration. Originally delivered in London in the spring of 1900, these lectures were later compiled and published by the Sharadaben Chimanbhai Educational Research Centre.

Here's a comprehensive summary of its key themes and concepts:

1. Introduction and Definition of Concentration:

• Steady Activity of the Mind: Concentration is defined as the "steady activity of the mind," explicitly excluding physical or vocal activity, inactivity, or passive states of mind.
• Liquid vs. Solid State: The mind's unsteady state is described as "liquid," and concentration is the transformation of this into a "solid" or crystallized state.
• Desirable vs. Undesirable Concentration: The desirability of concentration is determined by its alignment with the "life-object," which is the development of character.
  • Undesirable:
    • Focusing on sensual pleasure and avoiding the unpleasant.
    • Dwelling on physical pain.
    • Concentration that is injurious to oneself or others (e.g., criminal thoughts).
  • Desirable:
    • Philosophical concentration, aimed at understanding the universe and human nature.
    • Concentration upon the "self" (inner things), considered the most desirable.
• Free Will: Crucially, concentration must be instigated by the free will of the individual, distinguishing it from states like reverie, dream, or trance. The purpose and direction of mental activity must be self-determined.

2. Overcoming Mind-Wandering and Building Capital:

• Preventing Inflow: To concentrate, one must prevent the inflow of foreign thoughts and overcome mind-wandering.
• Time-tabling: Creating a timetable for activities is suggested as a remedy for mind-wandering, as it compartmentalizes thoughts and reduces their intrusion during designated concentration times.
• Thought Exercises: Practicing focused thought on a specific subject (like the character of a holy person) for a set duration, and gently bringing the mind back when it wanders, is recommended. Varying the order of analysis of qualities helps prevent automaticity.
• Capital for Concentration: The necessary "capital" for spiritual concentration includes:
  1. Right Belief: Not just religious belief, but right beliefs about people in everyday life. It is hindered by anger, pride, deceitfulness, and greed.
  2. Right Knowledge: More than mere book learning or hearsay, it's about consciousness and a relationship between the knower and the known. True knowledge causes a change in one's moral life.
  3. Right Action: Defined by whether it benefits the recipient with minimal harm to others.
  4. Self-control: The ability to enjoy and disengage from stimuli, rather than becoming habitually attached.

3. Methods of Concentration:

• Analytical: Breaking down a subject into its parts, uses, and sources. The danger here is abstraction, where the constituent parts are mistaken for the whole (e.g., chemical elements are not flesh).
• Synthetical: Discovering the relations a thing has with other things in the universe, leading to new knowledge.
• Three Stages of Consciousness for New Knowledge:
  1. Stasis: Initial, vague awareness of an object ('it is something').
  2. Analysis: Examining the object's components and aspects.
  3. Synthesis: Bringing the analyzed parts back together as a unit, understanding their interdependence, and then exploring their relationships with other objects in the universe.

4. Object of Concentration:

• Spiritual Advancement: The primary goal is spiritual advancement, achieved by eliminating injurious elements and assimilating good ones.
• Two Purposes:
  1. Increasing Knowledge: Scientifically developing one's understanding of the universe.
  2. Improving Life: Enhancing moral character and conduct.

5. Practical Hints and Conditions:

• Breathing: Emphasizes deep, regular breathing through the nostrils, with controlled retention and slow expiration. It draws a parallel between physiological breathing and spiritual "breathing" (expelling moral impurities, inhaling positive qualities like love and respect). Painful breathing exercises for psychic development are discouraged; right living leads to right breathing.
• Food: Argues for a vegetarian diet based on hygienic, moral, and spiritual considerations. It highlights that killing animals creates antagonistic vibrations, and flesh meat can carry these qualities. Vegetarian foods are presented as conducive to calmness, peace, and spiritual progress.
• Necessary Conditions for Perception:
  1. Earnest Desire: A yearning for the faculty, willing to incur cost.
  2. Appreciation of the Faculty: Valuing the faculty in oneself and others, not destroying it.
  3. Work: Actively pursuing the faculty.
• Right Way of Getting Knowledge: Knowledge is consciousness, not mere vibration. It involves perception, the desire to act, and the determination to act, all influenced by moral character. Prejudice hinders right perception.

6. Avadhi (Higher Knowledge):

• Manifestation of Latent Factors: Avadhi is the manifestation of latent spiritual faculties, requiring the removal of obscuring "clouds" (karmas).
• Direct Knowing: Unlike sensuous knowledge, Avadhi involves the immortal part of man knowing directly, without the need for physical senses.
• Karma and Avadhi: Understanding karma is crucial, as karmic obstructions prevent the manifestation of Avadhi.
• Preparation: Scientific preparation is needed to remove these karmas, involving the classification and understanding of various individual factors (beyond just physical, mental, moral, spiritual).

7. Concentration for Improving Conduct and Concentration Proper:

• Preparation: Both general (long-term cultivation of right belief, knowledge, action, self-control) and immediate preparation (a mind free from obstacles) are necessary.
• Obstacles to Conduct Improvement: Excitability, pride, deceitfulness, and greediness must be controlled.
• Specializing the Object: The object of concentration should be specific (e.g., benevolence), not diffuse.
• Three Stages of Meditation:
  1. Beginning: Collecting mental energies, grasping the subject's essence, visualizing exemplary figures.
  2. Middle (Meditation Proper): Exercising memory, understanding (analyzing the concept into parts), and will (finding strong motives and resolving to act). This involves deep introspection and creating specific, actionable resolutions.
  3. End: Synthesizing the resolutions, evolving new insights, and understanding the broader implications of the practice in relation to the world. The ultimate goal is a change in life.

8. Meditation or Spiritual Beings:

• Concentration on Holy Persons: A key Jain practice is to concentrate on the characteristics of holy individuals (teachers, liberated souls, instructors, students, etc.).
• Specific Application: This concentration must be applied specifically to oneself, imitating their virtues and lives.
• Moral Integration: Jain philosophy integrates creative forces with morals, advocating adaptation to the universe to work out negative forces and manifest dormant faculties, rather than focusing solely on external natural forces.

9. Nervousness:

• Definition: Nervousness is the involuntary leakage of vital or nervous force, where one cannot act according to their will.
• Causes: Depletion of strength, physical system imbalances, indulgence in bad habits.
• Remedy: Concentration is the opposite of nervousness and thus a direct remedy. Practicing concentration on ordinary activities can help regain control.
• Regularity: Regularity of life and avoiding dissipation of mind and body are essential for overcoming nervousness.

In essence, Virchand Gandhi's "Concentration" presents a profound and practical guide to the Jain approach to mental discipline. It emphasizes that concentration is not merely an intellectual exercise but a holistic practice aimed at spiritual development, character refinement, and the acquisition of true knowledge, rooted in ethical principles and a deep understanding of oneself and the universe.