Взор - VZOR or 'LOOK' devise, as it's called in the English translations, was what gave Gagarin his best views of the Earth. It was really an optical orientation device that used reflective mirrors to orientate the craft using the Sun. The Vzor was mounted on the floor of the cabin. There was a central 'porthole' (that Gagarin sees the Earth through) and eight mirrored 'perisocpe' devices arranged in a circle around the center.

When the spacecraft was perfectly centered in respect to the horizon, all eight of the ports would be lit up. Alignment along the orbit was judged by getting lines on the main scope to be aligned with the landscape flowing by below". It could only be used in daylight to determine the spacecraft's movement. When Gagarin speaks about the Sun leaving the mirrors as he passes into night, its the 8 mirrors that surround the central porthole which he is talking about.

In addition to the Vzor device in the floor at his feet Gagarin also had 2 other portholes, one to his right and the other to the left of his head. See the Vostok diagram here.