Focus Part 3: Beyond Time and Space

One of the few outward signs remaining in contemporary India, that comes from the ancient Siddhi Yoga Master’s teachings first shared millenniums ago; is the custom of painting three yellow lines across the forehead and placing a magenta dot between the eyebrows.

This is an outward sign of a profound unity of focus. “Spirit, Mind and Body are but One” is the affirmation repeated when scribing this ancient symbol on the forehead. It shows up in the Kriya Yoga movement as well. When all the soul, the thought, the feeling and the action of a person are headed in the same direction at the same time with specific intent, this is a “Kriya”.  To master an activity, one learns to bring all of oneself to the table.

When you aspire to truly master a musical instrument, learning to focus becomes a much more integral part of your practice. In a nutshell: to play music at a high level, all of you needs to show up… including your soul. This demands a level of focus that most people don’t experience, let alone integrate into their daily lives. With Tai Chi Gung, I’ve learned that even the soul can be taught to participate.

The unity of spirit, mind and body in music is so simple when it happens. Yet, it can be profoundly challenging to do at will. From one beat to the next, from one note to the next, from one measure to the next, you learn to sustain a thread of attention. If you’re wise, you don’t wait to bring the soul feeling in. I currently practice scales and arpeggios as a prayer.

Over time, you fill the beats, the sounds, the melodies with the soul energy even as you learn them. This brings music to life. It’s incredibly regenerative. One of the first signs you’re on the right track is that the rhythm of the song flows fluently. Another sign is that it’s much easier to play the tune faster.

Beginning musicians can learn to do this too. Step 3 in the Creative Music Method is the Jam. Why? When you improvise, you focus much less on “right or wrong” notes. You can discover how to let the music flow. But when you are playing someone else’s song, you have to sort out the rhythms, the notes, the phrasing first. All sorts of things stand in the way of feeling the fluency of movement in a piece.

Put another way, an accomplished musician is a master of “being present”. They spin the tread of sound through time with specific intent and often profound soul feeling as if it is just one thing, one long present moment. Time and space dissolve in a single focus.

Visit www.MusicInspiredByNature.com to hear samples.