Focus, Flow, and Let Go describes the three stages of yogic meditation as Kripalu Yoga teaches them. In Sanskrit, the three stages are dhāranā, dhyāna, and samādhi. In plain English, they move from effort, to a blend of effort and release, to release itself.
The three stages aren’t a ladder to climb up once and be done. Rather, they’re a way of noticing what’s happening in a given practice, and letting the practice shift as necessary. Some days you might have intense focus the whole time. Other days might feel like more of a flow. And if the conditions are right to get a taste of letting go, it might only last a brief moment before you find yourself right back at focus. All of this is the practice.
The Three Stages
Focus (dhāranā)
In concentration, you pick a point of attention and continually bring the mind back to it. The point could be the breath at the nostrils, the rise and fall of the belly, a sound, a mantra, or a sensation in a posture. When the mind wanders, whether it’s twice or two hundred times, you notice and return. Focus is willful practice. You choose it, again and again.
A byproduct of steady focus is a settling of the nervous system. The calm isn’t the long-term goal, though, it’s a temporary side effect. The work is the returning.
Flow (dhyāna)
Focus becomes flow when the effort of concentration starts to give way to a wider awareness. You’re still present with your anchor, but attention has softened enough to notice what else is here. You might notice sensations shifting, thoughts passing, or moods rising and fading. In this stage, you just watch the movement without chasing it.
Flow is a blend of will and surrender. You still hold intention, but you’re not gripping. If focus is holding a candle steady, flow is watching the flame move.
Let Go (samādhi)
Letting go is what happens when even the holding softens. In this stage, there is nothing to grasp, nothing to push away, and nothing to fix. The witness is still here, but the sense of separation from the process loosens. You allow what is.
This stage is sometimes described by what it isn’t. There is no grasping, manipulating, or judging. It can also be described by what it is: allowing, surrender, and letting things be.
Significance for Practice
The three stages give you a way to read where you are in a given sit or a given posture. When the mind is scattered, practice focus. When focus steadies and awareness starts to broaden, flow becomes available. Eventually letting go might arrive, but you cannot force the progression.
This is also how BRFWA deepens over time. Early on, breathing and relaxing take real effort, which is a kind of focus. Feeling and watching open a wider field, which is flow. Allowing, if it ever comes fully, is letting go.
Buddhist practice recognizes the same movement. The Pali Canon describes concentration (samādhi, using the word differently from the yoga tradition), sustained attention, and equanimity as stages that support each other. It’s a slightly different vocabulary that covers similar territory.