Drishti — The Focused Gaze as a Gateway to Concentration
Drishti (focused gaze) is a practical tool for Pratyahara and Dharana — the use of a specific gazing point to stabilize and direct attention, thereby beginning the withdrawal from outward-scattered to inward-concentrated awareness.
While Patanjali mentions the eye specifically only in sutra 3.21 (in the context of siddhis), the use of Drishti as a practice technique is part of the broader Pratyahara-Dharana continuum: a fixed, soft gaze at a specific point (the tip of the nose, the eyebrow center, a candle flame, a divine image) simultaneously accomplishes two things. Externally, it reduces the field of sensory distraction — the eye not wandering means the mind not wandering. Internally, the act of maintaining a soft, unwavering gaze requires and generates the quality of Dharana (single-pointed attention) that it also practices. In Hatha Yoga, nine specific Drishtis are prescribed for different asanas: Nasagra (nose), Bhrumadhye (eyebrow center), Nabi (navel), Padayoragre (toes), Hastagre (hand), Parshva (side), Angustha (thumb), Urdhva (up), and Drishti (in front). Each gaze direction channels awareness and pranic energy toward specific areas of the body and mind, making the asana simultaneously a physical and meditative practice.
Where the gaze goes, the mind follows; where the mind goes, the prana follows.
The hatha yoga texts prescribe specific drishtis — nasagra drishti (gaze at the nose-tip) and bhrumadhya drishti (gaze at the eyebrow center) — as concentration aids, the same fixation points named as sites for samyama in the Vibhuti Pada.
Universal Wisdom