Solo's PaB - 10 Breaths

This past Wednesday (12/10/2008) I started what I call “10 breaths”. This grew as a natural extension of the 9-second practice, and also acts naturally to integrate my “other” practice – shikan taza –  with PaB. The “standard” PaB 9-seconds is about 3 breaths, with 10 breaths then I pay more “time-tax”, for a greater result in my opinion, and run through a 10-breath cycle (about 45 seconds).

Every 15 minutes my Mindful Clock chimes, signaling me to do the following:

• Stop
  • Put down anything (first with the body, then with the mind)
  • Look away from the computer (or close it)
  • Stop what I am doing
    

• Body
  • Sit up straight
  • Shoulders down and relaxed
  • Head “held up by a string at the top”
  • Nose over belly button
  • Hands in Universal Mudra (or lap, or folded on desk / table
  • Eyes half-closed and down a bit
  • Legs uncrossed, as I’m usually sitting in a chair
  • Tongue relaxed (thanks, Dakini)
    

• Mind
  • Let go all discursive thought…just let go, like balloons released into the sky
  • If thoughts come, be aware of them and just watch them come, then watch them go
  • When a state of “no-thought” is attained, try to hold there without realizing any effort
    • Focus on being aware / present / Now
    • Hold it focused like a precious gem, aware yet not analyzing; JUST seeing, JUST hearing, JUST feeling
      

• Breathing
  • In and out through nose, just watching and counting the breath, do not control it, counting only on exhalations
    

• Re-entry
  • Smile
  • Gently re-engage
  • Maintain mindfulness
    

Benefits: Stress reduction, increased mindfulness throughout the day, focus, and equanimity. I was worried that I would “lose my chain of thought”, or focus, on the current task at hand when I started this, but have found that not to be the case at all (though I will postpone starting the 10 breaths for a moment or two to finish up some detailed mini-task that I may doing at the moment).