We take care of our body every day, we wash it, feed it, exercise, make it up and so on. But how often do we take care of our mind? We should do it twice daily, says Phra KK, meditation calms our monkey mind. Best time is in the early morning and in the evening, before sleeping. Start with a few minutes and then continuously increase over the weeks, to reach 30 minutes or more.
During the Retreat Yoga & Relax in Chiang Mai, Thailand, January 2020, we had the big chance to have Phra KK (pronounce Keykey), Monk at Wat Suan Dok, with us on several days to give us an introduction to Meditation. If you’re lucky enough you can attend some of his public teachings at Monk Chat in the temple Wat Suan Dok, Chiang Mai.
We welcomed him in our resort and started with a “traditional” sitting meditation in silence. Around us the burbling of the pond and chirping of the birds, our eyes are closed.
Preparation
We sit comfortably, with straight back, the focus goes to the breath. When thoughts appear, we observe them and let them go. And back to emptiness and to our breath. We can feel our belly opening with inhale and falling back with exhale. We can feel the air entering and leaving our nostrils. Inhale, exhale. We still our mind.
Dynamic Concentration Meditation
We then went over to what Phra KK calls Dynamic Concentration Meditation. You focus your mind on particular movements of your hands or legs and guide this movement through your voice.
1- Sitting position, 5 movements
Sitting position, comfortably installed even on the floor or on a chair, back straight, both hands on our thighs.
Slowly and mindfully you make the movements, split in five sequences. Each sequence is guided by your conscious thought and you speak it (or at least think it) while you move your hand.
Feel Phra KK’s vibrations during the execution of this meditation.
Things are, everything is, because of the mind. If you have no mind, I mean if you die now, nothing exists, does it? It’s your world, because this world is a world of perception, isn’t it? Enjoy all the world, because after you die, the world belongs to the others.
Phra Kovit Khemananda, Feb 1981
2- Sitting position, 14 movements
Attention, it’s getting a bit trickier now, the sequence is longer, 7 movements for each hand.
Still sitting position, back straight, hands on the thighs, eyes closed (once you know the sequences). The hands are moving slowly, each movement is accompanied by counting, 1 to 14.
See the full sequence demonstrated by Phra KK
3- Both hands simultaneously
And this is the trickiest one, as you have to move and coordinate both hands in same time. Try it! You count from 1 to 5.
Sitting position, back straight, both arms lifted, elbows bent, hands to fists with the index finger pointing upwards.
Watch the video and give it a try – you’re good for 2 minutes focussed meditation!
4- Walking Meditation
Standing position, straight, with hands straight along your body, eyes closed (if you don’t feel dizzy).
Slowly and mindfully you think, speak and execute the movement.
With the video you can follow the rhythm given by Phra KK.
First 5 minutes are instructions. The next 3 minutes are for preparation (hand position, body direction), followed by execution of the Walking Meditation from beginning and till U-turn.
It takes you 7 minutes to complete 7 steps.
7 minutes calmed mind, centered on your breath and limbs.
