Mindful microhits meditation
Instead of staying with an object of meditation for any sustained period of time, another option is to intensely focus on one sensation for a brief period. Shinzen Young calls these “Mindful Microhits.”*
Shinzen specifically calls this type of short-interval meditation practice “Micro Practice.”
His instructions state:
“Micro Practice: Attention: All attention on technique. Duration: Under 10 minutes, i.e., you give yourself ‘microhits’ during the day; 30 seconds here, 3 minutes there (emphasis must be quality over quantity; if need be, use spoken labels to assure this).”* —Shinzen Young
While it might not seem like this would be effective, many studies support the effectiveness of even these small bursts of meditative practice. My cursory review of brief mindfulness abstracts from scientific research shows that as little as five minutes of mindfulness can have a positive impact and lessen suffering.**
Of all the techniques, this is the one most likely to spill over into the rest of your life. When you learn to attend fully to an experience in a short burst of concentration during your movement, you will naturally begin to do the same thing with experiences throughout your day.
YOUR TURN: MINDFUL MICROHITS
Begin your movement. Allow a body sensation to present itself to you. When it does, focus all of your attention on it completely. Relax around it, and allow it to move, change, or disappear altogether. Don’t chase it. Only notice what happens. Keep your awareness on it for as long as it remains, up to five minutes. After it has passed, allow your body to offer another sensation.
Repeat this process throughout your selected interval.
I have included more than twenty “Your Turn” exercises in the book Make Every Move a Meditation.
*Shinzen Young “An Outline of Practice” May 2014, updated August 2016.
** Nita Sweeney “Bibliography for ‘No Time to Meditate? Try a “Micro-hit” of Mindfulness.’ ”
This excerpt is from Make Every Move a Meditation by Nita Sweeney which is available now through Amazon and Mango Media.
