Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Single-mided focus


“Where the hands go to present an action, there must go the eyes, where the eyes go, there must go the mind” - Kathakali quote.


            Yet one can move without looking. The blind still move their hands, though their eyes do not follow. Your mind… Is incredibly complex. An intricate web of information and memories, all stored and remembered beyond the reach of Psychologist and Biologists, no matter their endeavors to completely understand.
            “Where the eyes go, there must go the mind”
Perhaps, perhaps not – it all depends on the situation. However, ultimatums are rarely completely true.

            This quote embodies the principles of Kathakali Theater. Kathakali is based on movement, no words. The body is the tool, the main manner of communication, the base on which everything is built. With the immense precision of the body movements come precise extreme facial expressions, the eyes of the actors playing an important role. Hence, “there must go the eyes” – and in that train of thought, the mind – extremely focused on the task and actions at hand, will indeed follow.

            Put simply, one could claim the quote demonstrates single-minded focus of many humans – our eyes follow our movements, and our eyes often direct our mind, stimulated by what we glimpse of the world around us.

            When you point towards an object, your gaze will follow the trail that your fingers are indicating, and your mind will focus on whatever object may occupy the area demonstrated. For example, you point towards a friend, your gaze lands on that person, and your mind is stimulated to recall all the details of that person you have stored, your friend “status” and shared history.

            Your attention may be so focused on the person before you, so much so that you walk straight into a pole (I speak from experience here). This basically demonstrates the single-minded focus one gets, particularly during a performance. The way that you can get lost in the moment, and loose sight of the bigger picture. 

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