Slow Hands

Sometimes the fastest way to speed things up is to slow down. Try this slow-motion hand meditation to clear your mind.

By Jonathan Foust, M.A.

Recently, I made a list of things I wanted to accomplish. It was much too long and ambitious—but I geared up to move on all fronts anyway. After some exasperation at the slow headway I was making, I sat down with a wise friend for some counsel. "It sounds like you want to get a lot of things done," he said.

"Absolutely," I replied. "But I'm frustrated at this pace."

After a long pause he replied, "If you really want to speed things up, you have to slow down first." Much as I wasn't ready for that bit of wisdom, once I tried slowing down, I realized he was right. By slowing down I became more relaxed and clear. I was able to trust my intuition and choose the best steps for the projects that truly resonated with my highest aspirations.

TAKE A BREAK
In our hyped-up and caffeinated culture, who doesn't want to do more faster? But you may also crave a break from your overstimulated mind and aspire to a calmer, more intuitive, and present state. It's easy to lose sight of your main purpose amid the distractions of a frenzied mind. Slowing down brings you back to the here and now.

Many meditation techniques use one point as an object of concentration. Whether it's the breath, a mantra, sensations, the thought of love, or awareness itself, the object of concentration can be a doorway to the moment. But sometimes this single focus is too subtle for the mind to track easily. If that's been your experience, you may find that slow-motion movement, which begins with attention to strong sensations in the body, to be a more tangible and satisfying focal point.

This process of gradually shifting your attention from the large movement of the asanas to the small movements of the breath is the essence of raja yoga. As you attend to the postures, you encounter and release deep-seated tensions. You also refine your awareness by concentrating on the subtlety of your breath and turning inward (pratyahara). From there you can move to increasingly subtler forms of mindfulness, from one-pointedness (dharana) to one-flowingness (dhyana) to absorption (samadhi).

A wonderful and accessible means of moving meditation involves concentrating on the slow movement of your hands. (See "Try Your Hand," end of article.)

FEEL THE FORCE
Any meditation practice quickly reveals how your mind is habitually consumed by thoughts of the future or past. Moments of awareness in the present are comparatively few, but slow-motion movement, because it captures your mind's attention, can draw you directly into experiencing the sensations of the present moment. This technique can pull your mind into one-pointed concentration forcefully, but it also has larger implications as you become more sensitive to the life force.

Many yogis believe that life force, or prana, runs your autonomic nervous system, animating your body and keeping all systems working at optimal levels. Usually, your mind submits to the healing presence of prana when you're sleeping, which is why a good night's sleep can be so restorative.

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