For this week’s meditation we turn to a wonderfully simple but also richly meaningful haiku by Matsuo Basho, the most famous poet of Japan’s Edo period from 1603 to 1868:
Year after year
… on the monkey’s face
a monkey face.
Ha, isn’t that great?
I promise this week’s exercise will keep you challenged and busy during the coming seven days.
Here are the “how to” details…
Take a long, slow deep breath.
Hold for a second.
Exhale slowly.
Repeat several times until you’re clear and still.
Now visual instead of the monkey’s face your own face. This might be tough at first. Think of looking at your face in the mirror. That should bring up an image or a thought pattern like an image. Either will work.
Once you have your face in mind, breathe it in and out for a few breaths.
Nice and slow breaths.
Nice and deep breaths.
Now instead of your face in the mirror, breathe in your face before you were born.
Hold for a second.
Exhale slowly and completely let go of your face before you were born.
Repeat breathing in your face before you were born and letting go of it until you feel a physical shiver of bliss.
Then repeat as long as you can stand the sheer joy of complete peace of mind, but don’t do it at work because you might get fired from your job.
Do not, repeat, do NOT try to understand this meditation intellectually because trying to do that might drive you insane.
Well, that wouldn’t happen but trying to understand it intellectually isn’t going to get you anywhere but to Frustration City.
Instead, just do it.
And then let go of your face before you were born.
Wow, that’s bliss and peace of mind.
Note: This is an extremely powerful meditation so it’s worth working with. Don’t try it with three wimpy breaths and then give up. Practice it every day.
Once you get it, kaboom, you’ll know you now have something for the rest of your life that is very, very special!
If you liked this meditation, I bet you’d find my free EarthRain meditation newsletter useful.
