The Power of Concentration

The power of concentration was demonstrated many times by Hamid Bey (1896-1976). Hamid grew up in Egypt and spent a lot of his time as a teenager in a Coptic temple being taught how to meditate and calm his mind. In his later years, he spend most of his time trying to explain to the world that pain and fear could be overcome through the power of concentration.

Hamid could place his body at complete command of his mind and enter into a state of suspended animation. He was able to slow his heart rate and breathing to a pooint where they were virtually undetectable. Mr Bey gave lectures and demonstrations of his ability to concentrate by being buried alive for days and he would allow people to stick icepicks and long needles through his neck and other body parts without bleeding or feeling pain. He was once quoted as saying, "To accomplish the seemingly impossible physical feats which I have demonstrated hundreds of times, I make use of only one thing - concentration."

Concentration is the process of focusing the mind on something. For example, you might focus on breathing, a candle flame, a sound, a smell or thoughts. There are literally thousands of things you can use for practicing this technique. Concentration for 30 minutes or more takes patience and practice.

If you have never practiced the art of concentration you will probably find thoughts taking over your mind like a swarm of locusts invading a corn field. Before you know it, your concentration on your object of choice is gone and you are getting up to go do something "more" worthwhile. Some people are better at concentrating on images rather than tactile feelings. The object on which you focus can be perceived or imagined. It is the process of focusing that stills the mind and allows sensations to pain and discomfort to disappear. It's all the same to the mind, whether it is getting the stimulus from the eyes, the nose, the ears, the fingers, the tongue or the brain.

Next - Practicing Concentration