Dharana

Dharana means concentration, introspective focus and one-pointedness of mind. The root of word is dhṛ, which has a meaning of “to hold, maintain, keep”.

Dharana as the sixth limb of yoga, is holding one’s mind onto ainner state, subject or topic of one’s mind.The mind is fixed on a mantra, or one’s breath/navel/tip of tongue/any place, or an object one wants to observe, or a concept/idea in one’s mind. Fixing the mind means one-pointed focus, without drifting of mind, and without jumping from one topic to another.