Empty Bowl Meditation cultivates a cooler, unstructured, calmer, and more open-minded practice.
Start sitting comfortably and quietly in a cross-legged posture, palms up and open on your knees, like empty bowls.
Relax your fingers as if you are holding a bowl in each hand. Open the mouth slightly, and allow the tongue to touch the roof of the mouth, right behind the front teeth.
After a few minutes, bring your awareness to your inhalations. Notice how the breath seems cool and energizing as it moves from the throat to the lungs, to the diaphragm, and to the naval area, where you have another imaginary bowl. The breath will come to a natural stop here with a momentary hold, “Kumbhaka.” This is where the body pulls the life force, “Prana,” from the breath.
Do not hold your breath. Once it has come to its peak, your body will naturally release it. Notice how the breath might seem warmer as it moves upward from the imaginary bowl behind the naval to the diaphragm, lungs, and throat and out through the nose to the imaginary bowls in your hands.
Start this practice with 5 minutes each morning, and work up to 10. You may also practice this meditation in a prone position.
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