By Swami Harshananda
Agneyī-dhāraṇā literally means ‘fixing the mind on the fire principle’.
Conquest of self gives mastery over the whole world. Conquest of the mind leads to the conquest of the self. Works on yoga expound the techniques for controlling the mind.
The pañca-dhāraṇās, five kinds of fixing the mind on prescribed subtle principles, is one method described in the Gheranda Samhitā, a well-known work on Haṭhayoga.
The fire principle is situated at the navel, in the form of a red effulgent triangle. Its presiding deity is Rudra. Fixing the prāṇa along with the mind on this fire principle at the navel for a period of five gaṭis (i.e., 2 hours) is known as ‘agneyī-dhāraṇā.’
Through agneyī-dhāraṇā, the fear of death is destroyed.
References[edit]
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore