A Recipe to Develop Mindfulness

By Alaya Hughes

Ingredients:

• 8 oz plastic cup or small glass bowl

• Some water

• A dedicated person wanting to develop mindfulness

Directions:

Fill the 8 oz cup or bowl with water up to ¼ inch from the top and refill as necessary to keep it at that level. Place the cup or bowl in the palm of the hand and wrap the fingers up around the sides of the bowl. Now, start walking, making sure not to spill any water. This is most easily done using a soft-focus of one’s vision and attention while walking. Take this cup or bowl everywhere one goes to practice developing mindfulness. Be sure to refill the bowl when the water is spilled.

This is an excellent mindfulness tool in many ways:

First, there is an immediate response if one is not mindful…water spills making one aware of any slippage of attention.

Second, unlike many other mindfulness tools, there is only one way to cheat—allowing the water in the bowl to go below the ¼ inch mark. If this happens, it becomes very easy to carry the bowl without being mindful.

Third, there are so many things to learn about oneself and mindfulness. For example, one cannot rush and still carry the bowl without spilling. Hard-focusing on the bowl will also quickly create a very wet hand, and possibly wet clothes, and/or wet floors. There are many other possibilities for damp reminders just waiting to be discovered.

To take on this practice requires a wholehearted effort with the intention of truly learning mindfulness. One must willingly and gladly choose to persevere, even though the practice is not easy, and one may continually get wet for a while.

As one learns how to move through the environment carrying the mindfulness bowl without spilling any water, one finds that great concentration and connection with the environment is developed. As one becomes adept, there is also the added benefit of learning naturalness. Through wholehearted practice, one discovers that the best way to really consciously navigate through the environment is from Third Eye Vision. This comes about by placing one’s attention at the Third Eye, (the area above the eyes in the center of the forehead) and diffusing the vision. The result is a state of heightened awareness.

This highly recommended and beneficial practice, if done correctly, develops mindfulness, wholeheartedness, concentration, naturalness, humor, and Third Eye Vision. Such amazing benefits from one simple practice!

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