by Richard Moss MD: This is the third of a series of four short videos on the art of centering…
Each video gives you a specific practice, the rationale for how it works, and guidelines for when to use it. Enjoy this opportunity to enrich your practice.
The art of centering, which is the practice of coming back into the present moment, isn’t somethingyou just do with your head. It’s always something in which the body and the mind join together. Sothere’s no state of flow for the surfer, if they’re just watching a surfer movie. They have to be on thesurfboard. And same thing with a skier, or a dancer.
So just become aware of your breathing. Be aware of your breathing. Don’t change your breathing.It’s like you’re allowing the part of your mind to rest on your breath. Normal breathing.
The reason I have my hands in front of me is to let your hands, let your awareness, become fullypresent in your hands. For the sake of this video, I’m keeping my hands here. But your hands, ifyou’re at work, could be under your desk. And I’ll show you in a moment that you don’t even have touse your hands. You could just use two fingers.
As you’re breathing in, just gently stretch your hands apart. As you’re breathing out, press yourhands together. And notice that there’s a subtle change of sensation in your hands.
You could close your eyes. But again, closing our eyes in a centering practice is like saying, oh, I’mgoing to do something different than every day life, whereas what we want is to learn to center ineveryday life, anywhere.
So obviously, don’t be sitting with your hands doing what I’m doing right now in public. But first, getthe idea of it, breathing in, stretch the hands apart, feel the subtle change of sensation. Breathingout, press them together.
Focus on the sensation in your palms for a while, for four breaths, three breaths. And then switchyour focus. Focus on the sensation in the backs of your hands. But coordinate it with your breathing.
You’ll notice that you’re getting quiet. And if your eyes are open, even though they’re not focusing onanything, you’ll notice that there’s an ability to be taking in your whole environment. Your ears aretaking in the sounds.
And this subtle sensation of change in your hands, coordinated with your breathing, is the focus. Andyour mind is simultaneously open and spacious.
Now suppose you don’t want people to see you doing this. Just watch my fingers, breathing out,breathing in. Breathing out, breathing in. And I’m letting my awareness sink into my hands.
I’m feeling the space in here. I’m feeling the sensation on the inside of my thumb and the inside ofmy fingers and index finger. And there is subtle change of sensation, just with that movement,coordinated with the breathing.
And so this movement can become something you do, just with your arm draped down under thetable. And the conversation gets a little too disturbing, and you find yourself getting too engaged, toopulled in in a business meeting. Just sort of put your hand down, out of sight. Put your breathing out.Hands, fingers coming closer. Breathing in, stretching them apart. Three breaths. Four breaths.
And you will feel yourself quiet. And as the mind gets quiet, then your own deeper intelligence has anopportunity to step in. Your intuition clicks in. You see things clearer and you can respond in a moreappropriate way.
So this is another practice for centering. Sometimes you’ll feel almost like an energy moving in yourhand, or between your hands. We don’t really need that. All we need to notice is that subtle change ofsensation.
So again, this is something you just practice until it becomes an instant cue for lowering your arousallevel, less emotion, less agitation because of your thoughts.
It’s a good practice. I teach it to all my groups.
