Secret of Concentration by Swami Sarvapriyananda (PART_1)

The secret of Concentration by Swami Sarvapriyananda 

Sri Ramakrishna

almost everybody would like to like to you know increase his or her power of concentration and

 there's actually a lot to be learned from our ancient scriptures especially the Gita and 

Patanjali yoga sutras 

so we'll take some learning from there this evening and 

also combine it with some advances which have been made in positive psychology over the last thirty twenty to thirty years, 

in fact, 

a lot of interesting research has been done in the field of positive psychology which I'll combine with our understanding of the teachings of Bhagavad-gita 

and Patanjali Yoga Sutras the primary questions which we will deal with this evening is 

what exactly is happening in the concentration 

and that which is of interest to all of us 

Sri Ramakrishna

whether you're students or teachers or a monk all of us we would like to know how we can use this understanding to improve our own concentration 

so let's go I'll be using a lot of positive psychology 

so let me tell you a little bit about 

what is this positive psychology 

what has happened in the last 20 years, or 

so is that there's a new branch of psychology which has become more 

and more popular across the world it is academic psychology it's not the kind of self as books you find in book shops across the world which are very popular sections you know you all go there to learn many things how to get rich in seven days or how to sleep better or 

how to lose weight or 

whatnot but it's not like that it is very rigorous academic psychology backed up by research 

and the person who is a pioneer in this field professor Seligman,

 he put it very beautifully you know he gave a talk on TED Talks I think some of you follow it te D Technology Entertainment Design Theory comm 

Sri Ramakrishna

TED Talks you can look him up Seligman on TED talks 

and he gave an introduction to positive psychology there

 and he started off 

so beautifully 

I cannot resist telling you that that the little story he said at the beginning of his talk he said that he was interviewed by CNN it's a story 

and actually did not happen he was interviewed by CNN 

and they asked him, 

professor Seligman, 

what is the state of psychology today but this is CNN 

so you cannot give a long the speech you have to give up a user's be very brief 

so this old professor,

 

he said okay how much time will you give me one a word 

so what is the state of psychology today he said well? 

what is to say good cut cut cut no no no this is not enough little more the explanation is required two words promised a Seligman? 

what is the state of psychology today? 

and he said not good taken effect yes now he said it is good now you're saying it is not good can you explain little more three words 

and promises Seligman 

what is the state of psychology today he said not good enough? 

and then he explains very beautifully mostly psychology has been concerned with illness mental illness disabilities how 

Sri Sarada Devi

I know schizophrenia paranoia 

 so many things about how to identify these illnesses 

and how to cure them

 and in that sense,

 it is good but not good in the sense that it has 

what does it has to give ordinary people like us we are not sick enough to go to a psychiatrist or to a mental hospital but how can it improve our lives psychology has not done much for that 

and therefore he says how can psychology become good enough

 and that's why he went for this positive psychology 

what is positive psychology its basic research into it is by basic research into human strengths, 

not just human illness 

and weaknesses but into human strengths happiness character 

and concentration also 

so one of the areas of positive psychology which we will use today is the concentration 

and the person who has worked in this area is that second name there 

 if you learn how to pronounce his name that's it that itself is an