Spirituality

Lean, Clean, Calm and Peaceful: An Intro to Cleaning Meditation

Meditation has numerous benefits, and almost every one of us has tried this at least once in our lifetime. On paper, meditation is relatively simple. All you gotta do is, sit down, shut your eyes, take deep breaths, and not engage in any thoughts that pass by. Easier said than done.

Forget about seeking inwards, connecting to ourselves, and taking our consciousness to a higher level is whole another thing. In this age of multitasking and constant distractions, it’s tough for many of us to sit down in one place, focusing our thoughts on our breathing, and hence, even though we try to meditate, we simply could not do this practice into a habit.

What can we do? Find methods that mimic the effects of meditation up to some extent. In a particular temple located in Japan, when the clock strikes seven-thirty in the morning, a selective group of men and women from different professions get together and begin their daily meditation routine. Their mode of meditation? Cleaning. In this blog, we will look at cleaning closely, as a form of meditation. 

How Did It All Begin?

Roots of zen meditations can be found in ancient Mahayana Buddhism originated in India about two thousand years ago. Zen is all about practicing self-restraint, meditation, rigorous insight, knowing the profound nature of things, and applying all of these in daily life for the benefit of others. One of the zen practices is called Soji.

Soji is a Japanese word, roughly translates to the practice of cleaning. But Soji is much more than just an art of cleaning. It’s a zen lifestyle, a way to cultivate our minds. This Soji is practiced every day by the Japanese monks living in a monastery.

Japanese monks start their day with cleaning. They sweep the floors of the temple, scrape the gardens, and polish the temple floor. Now, you might ask, how dirty are these temples, that these monks must polish the floors every day? They don’t do it because it’s messy or dusty; they do it to free themselves from attachments. They sweep to remove the worldly desires embedded deep within the subconscious.

Conversion:

Let’s face it. No one likes sweeping, dusting, washing, folding, and tidying things up these days. If it was possible, we would have outsourced every one of these things and enjoyed having coffee with friends. But, we have to do these things every day, no matter what. Then why don’t we learn to make it work to sharpen our minds? Have a look at how we can do that.

-Never rush into the chores. Give them ample time to experience what we are doing.

 -Set aside your email alert, Facebook notification, and unanswered WhatsApp message in a family group. Turn off your phone and be present in the current moment.

 -Focus on the task you are doing right now by paying attention to your breath and the movement of your muscles.

 -Observe the thoughts that pass by as you do the chore. Any thought irrelevant to the chore you are doing should be flushed away. In the beginning, this will be difficult, but don’t get discouraged. Try your best to focus on the task in your hand. By practice, you will be able to recognize the useless thoughts and how to expel them.

 – Keep the judgemental approach at bay. Keep your mind clear from the negative thoughts. And copy-paste the same principle to life itself.

Step by Step Guide:

-First, you must remember that you have chosen cleaning as a meditation tool, and you must use it as a tool. It won’t just be a physical cleaning; it will be subconscious cleansing. It will be a process to remove negativity, darkness, malice, and evil thoughts within you.

-You must be focused on the task. It’s about the process and not about the result. Let it be sweeping, mopping, cloth folding, or washing dishes; you must trust and concentrate on the process.

-Be aware of the surroundings. Beware of the things in your hand. If you are sweeping, notice how the broomstick feels in your hand. If you are washing dishes, notice how the sponge soaked in soap is giving you the sensation. If you are washing clothes, notice how the water feels as it runs down on your hand.  

-Begin the process by noticing the body movement. Try to feel how your hand is moving as you sweep the mop. Try to feel your back as you bend over the sink to wash the dishes. Try to feel your weight shifting along with the broomstick as you sweep the floor.

-As you begin to immerse yourself in the process, notice your breath filling into the lungs as you inhale and going out as you exhale. Stay focused, maintaining a steady pace of the repetitive motion you are doing. Find your rhythm, and try to tune the body movement with your breathing.

-As you are done with the particular chore, take a few deep breaths, contemplate on what you have achieved. Repeat, ‘I have swept the floor being present, and I have swept my mind.’ Congratulate yourself on a great job.

Benefits of transforming chores into mindfulness meditation:

-You do your chores better, and later on, with more speed and improved precision.

 -You use your precision muscles better, and you observe improvement in concentration.

 Even though you will be doing chores, you will manage to relax and clear your mind off the worries and emotional baggage over time.

 -Like meditation, when you practice mindfulness in cleaning and chores, you will notice an improved level of relaxation and inner peace.

 -Just like the Japanese monks, you will be able to clean your inner world along with the outer one.

Experiences play a vital role in our lives. Every experience is an exercise and a lesson that we can implement in life, even from the mundane tasks such as cleaning and washing. You can chant Mantra given by your Guru before cleaning. Practicing cleaning meditation will help you to explore the reasons behind the constant distractions. It will provide you with a chance to learn coping skills and techniques to refresh your mind.

Even though there is plenty of literature available on mindful cleaning meditation, it is highly recommended that one learn this under an expert’s supervision.

Everyone has unique spirituality, personality, and experiences. One solution cannot fit all, and therefore it is imperative to seek guidance from spiritual experts to get that unique technique best suitable for you. Consequently, we recommend you practice these methods mentioned above under the direction of the specialist, master, or a well-known Guru.

We hope this blog helped you to gain insight into mindful cleaning meditation.  

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