THE ARJUNA FACTOR

Focus and Perspective-October 2002

Arjuna, a noble prince of India, is the hero of many legends, not least of which is his role in the Bhagavad Gita, the pithy collection of verses that teaches us the essence of life on earth.

Two stories from Arjuna�s life exemplify our two ideas: focus and perspective.

What situations call for a clear focus? When do we need a wider perspective?

Prince Arjuna had four brothers. Yudhisthira and Bhima were older than him and Nakul and Sahadeva were younger. Collectively they were called the Paanch Pandavas : the five Pandavas. They lived with their cousins, the Kauravas. One day, their teacher, Acharya
Dronacharaya, showed the value of having the correct focus.

He showed the boys a bird on a tree and told them that they each had to try to hit the eye of the bird. When Yudhisthira came up with his bow and arrow, the teacher asked him,"What do you see?"
"Why, O Gurudev, I see you, the tree, my brothers, and the bird!"
"Please step aside, Yudhishthira, you are not ready to shoot your arrow."

When the perplexed Yudhishthira stepped aside, Duryodhana came up. On being asked the question, he gave an even more detailed description of the scene. What a shock to be told by the Acharya that he was not ready yet, to shoot his arrow! Bhima,Nakul and Sahdev had the same experience.

It was then Arjuna�s turn.
"What do you see, Arjuna?"
"Guruji, I see the eye of the bird."
"Don�t you see the tree, the sky, your brothers or me?"
"No, Guruji," said Arjuna with his eye on his target, "I see only
the eye of the bird."
"Well done, Arjuna! You are indeed ready to shoot at your
target."

Duryodhan's jealousy grew, when, as expected, that skilled archer got his mark. Dronacharaya was able to give his students a lesson on the value of a single-minded focus on a target, concentrating only on the task at hand, to the exclusion of all else.

What a wonder then, that at the field of battle many years later, when Arjuna had grown to a fine young warrior, it was his very focus that was questioned!

Through the exigencies of fate, Arjuna had to fight his cousins and relatives for his rightful place on the throne. Seeing his relatives arrayed in war opposite his army, Arjuna was beset by doubt. In his wisdom, he shared his doubts with his celestial charioteer, Lord Krishna. For it is wise to know when we need advice.

This gave rise to those remarkable verses known as the Bhagavad Gita. They described a perspective that Arjuna realized he had failed to take into account, and which had led to this war: the continued unrighteous behavior of those relatives that had caused disharmony and lawlessness in the land. Rather than focusing on his relationship to those in the opposing army, Lord Krishna gently and firmly helped Arjuna to enlarge his perspective in order to see the issued involved in the war. The result of Arjuna�s clarified perspective is well known- the war was fought, and the right way was established once again.

As we know from commentaries on the Gita, the stories are not mere historical or mythological chronicles, but expositions on our own lives, on the wars we fight in our day to day lives, on the goals we seek to accomplish.

So let�s re-state our original question: What do we accomplish with a clear-cut focus? What are the benefits of stepping back from a situation, and getting a wider perspective?

The answer seems obvious: get a wide perspective first, and then zero in on a target. When you know why you are fighting a war, you can decide which target to shoot at. When you know what you need to accomplish, you can decide what decision to take in a particular situation. But how do we know when we need a wider perspective?

The lesson to learn here is that we need to do this in a conscious, on-going way. When faced with a situation that disturbs us, confuses, or causes strong emotion, take it as a signal that it is time to first take a step back- a large step back. Get more information on the situation by talking to people, reading up, getting in touch with your own inner voice, and then the focus will become clear.

Our own awareness of our reactions is the key. Know thyself, as all ancient texts exhort us to do!

TECHNIQUE: CLEAR YOUR MIND TO GAIN PERSPECTIVE:

Take a deep breath in, and then a long breath out. Breathe out for as long as you can. This is a clearing breath. Take three clearing breaths in all.

Shut your eyes, and visualize a luminous star very far away. Light comes from the star towards you and enters through the top of your head [ the crown chakra]. As it gently flows in and through the center of your body, it clears out all thought, fear, negativity, doubt, pain, anger. It continues to flow as you experience calm and peace, and flows out through your feet, to the center of the earth, to be recycled.

Be clear and be calm.

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� AUG 2002 Meenakshi Suri

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