Meditation has many uses: it can calm the mind; it can increase focus; it may even increase brain cells. Here are two forms of meditation that don’t require you to sit on the floor, thinking of nothing.

I have been formally meditating for about two months now with a guided meditation group here in LA. On my first meeting, I learned that I’ve been informally meditating for about three years. Since I didn’t have any “training” in that time, I sometimes practice unconventional techniques.

I’m sure there are already many people around the world using these techniques, but I don’t know how to find them. If you know the disciplines that practice these techniques, please let me know!

Moving the Mind’s Eye

Difficulty: Easy

Background: There is a difference between the information we receive through our senses and the reality we perceive in our minds. Often these two are so closely linked together that we assume they are the same. This technique attempts to sever the connection between the two, so you become aware of the differences between the two.

How to Perform the Technique

• 1. Stand up and give yourself some room to walk a few paces.
• 2. Notice your surroundings. What is directly in front of you? What is off to the side?
• 3. Pick an object in front of you, but slightly to the side. You will look forward, but focus on this object through your peripheral vision.
• 4. Keeping your eyes pointed forward, slowly walk forward, keeping your focus on the object. As you get closer to the object, it should move from being in front of you to the side of you, until you pass it and it is no longer in your field of vision.

If you were able to keep your eyes forward the whole time, you should have noticed the object moving from having high clarity to very low clarity as it left your field of vision when you passed it. My mind is so used to the object of my focus being the object in the center of my field of vision that I get the sensation of my eyes moving as I walk by, even though I kept my eyes forward.

I have poor clarity in my peripheral vision. I can know that there is a book in the corner of my eye, but I am unable to read the pages. The clarity of that object is so poor that I cannot tell that it’s a book solely from my vision. Rather, my mind knows that it is a book and imagines the details that I cannot actually see. As I walk closer to the object and it moves from the center of my field of vision to the side, the object moves from being real to being more imaginary, until I pass the object and it is solely in my mind.

Multiple Consciousness

Difficulty: Intermediate

Background: Naruto is a popular anime ninja who is able to control the flow of his energy (chi / chakara) to do special techniques. One of the abilities that Naruto has is the ability to walk on water by concentrating his energy into his feet. In the beginning he had poor control, so he fell into the water. After a lot of training, Naruto eventually was able to unconsciously focus his energy into his feet, so that he walked on water without thinking about it.

I was wondering if I could gain this unconscious sensing of my body and flow of my energy, so I came up with this technique. The difficulty level is intermediate because the ability to focus your energy on a particular part of the body is a little difficult to explain and requires some intuition.

How to Perform This Technique

• 1. Focus on a particular part of your body until you feel your pulse. For me, the strongest places to find a pulse are either the neck or in the gut by the belly button. Although for this exercise, I’ve found the best place to focus is on the pulse on your head.
• 2. Once you discover a pulse, lock onto it until it becomes stable and requires less effort to feel it. If you lose concentration, you may notice you no longer sense the pulse and need to refocus.
• 3.While remaining conscious of the pulse you locked, begin focusing on another part of your body. Focusing on your head is ideal for this exercise because there are many pulses that are relatively easy to find in a concentrated area.
• 4. Continue adding more pulses. My record so far is consciously focusing on three at the same time. You’ll notice that they are firing at slightly different times as your blood passes through your body.

I usually perform this technique when I’m lying in my bed, getting ready to sleep. My blood circulation seems to be much better when I’m relaxed. For difficult places to sense, it’s usually helpful to begin with an area with a strong pulse and trace the flow of blood to the point you’re focusing on.

The more I practice this technique, the faster I’ve been able to identify my pulse and be conscious of my vascular system. I hope to one day feel the flow of my blood and energy move throughout my entire body simultaneously.