The Third Principle Of Natural Vision: Central Fixation (Or Central Clarity)

The first principle of Natural Vision is Relaxation. The second is Movement. The third is Central Fixation.

---

In previous posts, I brought up three principles of Natural Vision that Dr. Bates discovered and that Natural Vision teacher Thomas R. Quackenbush discussed in his book Relearning To See: Improve Your Eyesight Naturally! – Relaxation, Movement and Central Fixation. The first principle, Relaxation, is the foundation of clear Natural Vision. The second principle, Movement, is necessary for the eyes to remain relaxed while seeing. Now I’ll talk about the third principle of Natural Vision, Central Fixation.

Everything seems to be clear

You may think that when you have perfect eyesight, everything you see is equally clear. It can appear that way.

At first glance, as I look around my living room – the words on my computer screen, the miscellaneous odds and ends on my desk, the purple orchids on the coffee table, the blue-green couch – all look clear. And when I look outside through the sliding glass door – my cat Bella sleeping on the picnic table, the neighbor’s red tile-roofed home, the green palm trees, the blue sky filled with puffy white clouds – all look clear.

But is it?

At first it may seem that everything in your visual field looks equally clear to you, but surprisingly, to your eye, it’s not. Because of your eye’s anatomy, it is only possible to see clearly a tiny spot in the middle of your visual field, perhaps the size of your fingernail, or a green pea, or the period at the end of this sentence.

Yes, a first glance, everything I looked at in my living room and outside did seem to look equally clear. But, as I look a second time…

---

“The central fovea is the area of highest visual acuity or resolution, (sharpness of vision) because of its high concentration of cones. The main reason that you move your head and eyes while looking at something, such as the words of this sentence, is to place images of interest on your fovea. Rods are absent from the central fovea and macula and increase in numbers toward the periphery of the retina.”

– Gerard J. Tortora and Sandra Reynolds Grabowski

---

Central fixation

As a medical doctor, William H. Bates referred to the principle of seeing things more clearly with our central vision by it’s medical term, central fixation. As a non-medical vision educator, I prefer the term central clarity. Either way, this means that the eye naturally stops (or fixates) momentarily on the point of interest in order to see it clearly. This is plenty of time for the cones in the fovea centralis to instantly pick up the visual information. If we linger, if we fixate for too long and try to see better, it becomes a stare, and our vision blurs.

Central fixation is brief

The fixation in central fixation is only momentary. It involves looking at something of interest only for a split second and then moving on to look at something else of interest, and then something else, and something else. One interesting thing at a time. And not for very long.

“A medical dictionary says that fixation or visual fixation is the maintaining of the visual gaze on a single location. but this sounds like a stare, which doesn’t promote optimal eyesight. In fact, we do briefly fixate, else we would experience motion blur, but this fixation lasts only about 1/60th of a second.”

– Esther Joy van der Werf

---

Central fixation of the mind

Dr. Bates found that central fixation applies to the mind as well as the eye. And that central fixation of the mind is a natural process necessary for central fixation of the eye. Seeing clearly requires that one’s attention and interest be primarily on the thing one is looking at. Just as the eye can only fixate on (stop at) only one thing at a time, so too the mind can only fixate on (or think of) one thing at a time. Mental multi-tasking is not only unnatural, it’s impossible.

Although you may believe you can think clearly of many things at once, if you are thinking clearly, you must be thinking of one thing at a time, very quickly, one thing after the other.

And, although you may believe you are seeing clearly more than one thing at a time, if your are seeing clearly at all, you must be looking at one thing at a time, very briefly, one thing right after the other.

Natural Vision requires regaining brief and mobile central fixation of both the mind and the eyes.

Experience central fixation/central clarity

(For the following experience, if you are using your smartphone, it might work best to hold it horizontally when viewing the letters A, B and C.)

With glasses off and contacts removed, read this at a distance where it’s seen best. Smile and soften your face. Let your neck be free and mobile. Gently turn your head slowly and easily a little to the left and right, as if saying “no.” Blink your eyes gently. Allow your neck to remain free and your eyes relaxed and gently blinking.

Let’s take a look at the letters A, B, and C below. First, in your mind, think about the letter A. This activates central fixation or central clarity of your mind. You are thinking of one thing at a time. This is naturally relaxing. With your interest and attention on the letter A, your eyes will probably want to look at the letter A. Allow them to do so. Allow your eyes to follow your attention and look at the letter A. And, with your neck free, your head will probably want to follow. Allow your head to follow your eyes and face the letter A. Look briefly at the letter A.

Once you are looking at the letter A, think about the letter C. This again activates central fixation or central clarity of you mind. With your attention on the letter C, your eyes will feel compelled to follow your attention and look at the letter C. Allow them to do so, and then allow your head to follow and turn toward the letter C as well. Look at the letter C only for a brief moment, then think about the letter B. You want to look at it, so go ahead, allow your eyes and head to follow what you want to look at, the letter B.

Then think of A again, let your eyes and head follow. Look briefly at the letter A. Continue this for a minute or so. Think of the letters A, B or C, each one in turn, one at a time, and allow your eyes and head to follow your thought of A, B or C, left and right, choose a letter, looking briefly at A, then C, then B, then A, then C, and so on. Continue to breathe and blink naturally, with your head, face, neck and shoulders soft and mobile.

What is more clear? What is less clear?

So, when looking at the letter A, does it look more clear than the letters B and C? And, when looking at the letter C, does it look more clear than the letters A or B? And, when looking at the letter B, do both A and C look less clear? In other words, does what you have your attention and eyes on look clearer than what you do not have your attention and eyes on? And, does what you do not have your attention and eyes on look less clear?

What you’re looking for is this: the thing you have your attention on and are looking at is seen better than all the things you are not looking at. Noticing this Central Clarity, of mind and eyes, is tapping into seeing naturally and effortlessly. This is your Natural Vision.

“In central fixation, one sees best the point regarded, while all other points are seen less clearly.”

– Dr. William H. Bates

Play with central fixation/central clarity

With your glasses off, hold your two index fingers up about 3 feet apart, at a distance in front of you where you can see them clearest. Think of your left finger, allow your eyes to follow and look at your left finger, allow your head to follow your eyes. Breathe. Blink. Head and neck free and mobile.

Now think of your right finger, allow your eyes to follow and look at your right finger, allow your head to follow your eyes. Continue breathing, blinking, and allowing your head and neck to remain free and mobile. Do this a few times, looking at your left finger, then right, then left.

When you are looking at your left finger, is it more clear than your right finger? Probably. And, maybe you can’t even see your right finger. Now, move your fingers a bit closer together, say 2 feet apart. Look at your right finger. Can you see it better than your left finger? Look at your left finger. Can you see it better than your right one? Keep gradually moving your fingers closer to each other, continuing to shift your attention, eyes and head from left to right finger. As they get closer, say to yourself, “This finger I’m looking at is clearer than the other finger I’m not looking at.” Do this until your fingers are touching.

When your fingers touch, still continue the process, looking at each finger saying, “This finger I’m looking at looks clearer than my other finger I’m not looking at.” And, while you’re looking at that finger, look for details in that finger. Look at the finger nails, look for creases, lines, hairs, you may even see your finger prints. Follow the lines, hairs and prints with curiosity and interest, for a brief moment, then look at the other finger and do the same.

“Any time you point out a detail, such as color, shape, or location, your… attention goes to it, and with it the eyes.”

– Orit Kruglanski

---

The recipe for Natural Vision

So, what are “relaxation”, “movement” and “central fixation.” You could think of them as ingredients in the recipe for Natural Vision? And, they are natural ingredients. They occur in nature and happen naturally. They come from nature and behave in a natural way. No tricks. No effort. No work. They are the real deal, not a poor imitation.

Unlike glasses, contacts or surgery, “relaxation,” “movement” and “central fixation” are not artificial. If glasses were a meal, they would be processed junk food, full of artificial this and that.

If Natural Vision were a meal, it would be made of real ingredients, real food, a real meal. And, a natural, wholesome, nutritional and delicious one!

Resources

• “Dorland’s Illustrated Medical Dictionary'” – 32nd edition by Elsevier Saunders
• “Introduction To The Human Body” – 5th edition by Gerard J. Tortora and Sandra Reynolds Grabowski
• “The Anatomy Coloring Book” – 2nd edition by Wynn Kapit and Lawrence M. Elson
• Play Your Way To Better Eyesight: A Parents Guide To Natural Eyesight Care And Improvement by Orit Kruglanski
• Optimal Eyesight: How To Restore And Retain Great Vision – by Esther Joy van der Werf