In Sanskrit, the word “trataka” means “steady gaze.” This simple yet powerful meditation opens dormant brain centers.
Trataka is a good remedy for stress, anxiety and insomnia. It is also useful for people with nearsightedness or low vision.
- Sit down, straighten your back. Set the candle at eye level at arm’s length in front of you. Close your eyes for a few minutes and calm your breath.
- Open your eyes and stare at the candle. Don’t move or blink. Try to relax your eye muscles. If your eyes are tired, close them gently, rest for 15-20 seconds. Continue looking at the candle.
- Notice the appearance of extraneous thoughts, but do not try to fight them, but calmly let them go.
- Try to look at the flame of a candle as if you are seeing it for the first time, discard all your thoughts about the candle, about fire, its properties. Try to see the flame as it is.
- Close your eyes for 2-3 minutes and contemplate the “imprint” of the candle fire on the retina. Try to keep it with your inner eye for as long as possible.
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How do you know if meditation is successful? At some point, all the surrounding objects and their outlines will disappear from the field of view, only the candle flame will remain. The first meditations cannot last more than 20 minutes. Gradually increase the number of cycles to five, 20 minutes each. Remove your goggles before practice. For those who suffer from insomnia, trataka should be done for 20 minutes before going to bed.
Attention! If you have poor eyesight, be careful not to overexert yourself. If your eyes start to water, close them and wait for the tears to dry. Do not overdo it: while it is hard for the eyes, do one cycle of exercises, as the muscles strengthen, increase the number of cycles.
There is another, more “advanced” version of trataka – antar-trataka, or inner meditation. It is performed without an external object – attention is concentrated on an internal object or point. This technique requires a very calm mind and body. It can be practiced only after the initial version has been fully mastered.