Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

Until we fully understand ourselves, we may have a feeling that we are not enough — not strong enough, not good enough, not whole enough within ourselves. This can lead us to turn outside ourselves for ways to manage this feeling of being inadequate or incomplete. We may look for leisure time, companionship, possessions or accomplishments in order to support ourselves.

As long as we sense a lack, we will need to respond to this need within ourselves with kindness, and deliberately cultivate our confidence and self-esteem. This work we can do right now, without needing to wait for deep insight into ourselves; all it requires is a shift in emphasis from getting things to cultivating the beauty of our juncture, our unique moment in time.

Day 20 – Begin the Day with Appreciation Exercise

No matter what the circumstances, everyone can begin the day with appreciation, learn and grow from the challenges that arise, and go to sleep at night with ease, feeling that they have been of benefit to themselves and others. Everyone can shine and share, discover new knowledge and a meaningful life.  

‘Everyone’ includes you.

Start now

May all beings be forever joined with happiness and causes of happiness,

May all beings be forever free from suffering and the causes of suffering,

May all beings never be separated from the bliss that is free of suffering,

Freed from the confusions of dualistic mind, released from bondage to hatred and desire,

May all beings dwell in the quiet joy of equanimity.

Traditional Buddhist Prayer

Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

As we allow a deep caring to permeate all of our actions, we realize the humble heart is the greatest heart of all.

Day 18 – Heart Gold Thread Exercise

This exercise balances the heart centre, increases mental and physical energy, builds strength and improves circulation and completion. In addition the exercise can help identify and transform psychological and physical blockages. At the end of the exercise, lie down on your back for ten minutes, continuing to amplify the sensations generated by the position until they spread beyond the body.

While performing the exercise, the memory of an emotion may enter your mind, perhaps sorrow, hurt or pain. Expand the feeling as much as you can, letting your mind and senses become one. Stay with the feeling until you penetrate it, releasing it, relaxing it into pure experience. A flash of energy (the energy of that memory) then enters the present and the pattern of the emotion melts away. Practiced regularly, this exercise brings a constant sense of union, a willingness to let feeling arise and expand. Then we can face pain, fear and tension directly, releasing them as they occur in daily life.

Instructions:

Stand well-balanced with your feet 6 inches (15cm) apart , you back straight , and your arms relaxed at your sides.

Slowly raise your arms, sideways to a little above shoulder-height, palms down, elbows slightly bent. Close your eyes and bring your awareness to your heart centre. Sense the heart pumping blood throughout your body; then expand your awareness, sending the heart centre’s energy through the your arms. Remember to breathe evenly through nose and mouth. Hold for 10 minutes. After 2 or 3 minutes, try to loosen the muscles above your shoulder joint make the position easier to hold.

After 10 minutes take 1 minute to lower your arms to your sides. Stand for a few minutes, expanding the sensations generated by this posture.

Breathe

Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

Each of us has a beautiful inner garden. 

Perhaps we only find ourselves there from time to time, in moments when there are no destractions and conflicts or problems, moments when we feel light and free and are transported to a place of peace and harmony.  Such moments come and go, so we need to learn to take advantage of the opportunities they offer without trying to hold on to them.  Like nature, the body and mind have their own rhythms and it is best to let them unfold in accord with their inner dynamic.  Then we will discover that we can effortlessly cultivate in ourselves the virtuous qualities we value most—love, joy, compassion, balance and wisdom.  Our mind, and also our spirit, are capable of this. We can embody such qualities, so that other people recognize them as well, sharing the benefits such treasures bring.  In this way, our heart and soul will stay vital and alive, and we will leave the desert of loneliness and despair far behind.

Day 17 – Flying Exercise

This exercise calms the restless flow of thoughts and generates feeling in the heart centre. To complete the exercise sit in the sitting posture for five minutes or more, continuing to sense the flow of energy, with breath, body and mind as one.

Instructions:

Stand well-balance with your feet about 4 inches (10cm) apart, your back straight and your arms relaxed at your sides. Slowly lift you arms relaxed at your sides. Slowly lift your arms away from your sides until they are directly overhead with the backs of the hands facing each other and the fingers straight. Close your eyes and feel the sensations of energy in your body. Relax your thighs and minimize any backward arching in your spine.

Slowly open your arms, increasing the distance between them in a balanced and equal way. Take 1 full minute to bring them all the way own to your sides.

Take another minute to move your arms up again. When your arms are overhead, stretch up slightly, keeping your legs relaxed. This stretch clears and settles the mind. Do the movement 9 times.

Remember to sit for 5 minutes or more afterward

Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

To understand who we are and what we are doing, we must understand the meaning of silence. Within silence there is a balance – mind and body become transparent, and we discover who we really are. When everything becomes simplified through silence all the tangles of our inner knots and problems gradually dissolve. True silence comes from within. It is not merely the absence of speech: it is pure, naturalness – absolutely calm, without fixation, without preparation. Nothing is required except, simply to be.

Day 16 – Light of Understanding Exercise

Sit comfortably and relax the body, letting all tenson drain away. Let your breath relax and mind become deeply silent and open fully, 360 degrees. Imagine mind suffused with a soft, clear light that touches everything, illuminating every dark corner. When anything arises—a perception or image, a thought or feeling—simply bring it together with the clear light of fully open mind. 

Practice 20 minutes or more

Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

Encouragements, discouragements, neutral observations—all these messages may only be meaningless mind chatter, stirred up on the surface of mind by tension or anxiety. None of them, not even the interpretations and commentaries, can touch the inner essence of relaxation and invite the joy of experience to come out. They have nothing to do with relaxation or meditation; they cannot engage meditation directly, so they cannot analyze and judge the quality of your concentration. There is no need to respond to them follow their dialogues, or reflect on their significance. It is not important whether you are confused or not confused, or whether you have thoughts. As much as possible, let this entire stream of mental activity flow by without paying it any attention. Relax deeply; allow the body to be still and the mind to calm down. Then your senses can operate more clearly, and the feeling-tone can come out. Once you become familiar with how this works, you can tune in more closely to the field of perception itself. 

Day 15 – Stillness and Reflection Exercise

Try spending some time each day sitting quietly. Ten minutes of calm and silence a few times a day, perhaps thirty minutes in all can be very helpful.

For this short time, permit yourself to release your anxieties and obligations.

Simply be silent and look inward.

What stages are you going through now? Is there a clarity to this progression? Use this time to be still with yourself, to look clearly, and to set intention for your progress forward.

Practicing this stillness can help you tune your mind, your body, your speech, your energy, and your development. In this way, you will not need to look back over your life and wonder how drastic changes happened or you became the way that you are. 

You will not be a mystery to yourself.

Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

Kum Nye releases the pressures of obligations and commitments that accumulate in the course of our tightly scheduled, busy lives. It gives us the key to deep relaxation, and its basic principle is clear and straightforward: Loosen up!   Loosen up all areas of tension – in the body, in the senses, in the mind. Whatever feeling tone comes out, let it be. Stay quiet and calm and sink into the feeling. You may feel a  sense of opening, as if your heart were a lotus flower just beginning to blossom.

Day 14 – Surrendering to Calmness Exercise 

Imagine that you are completely empty, that inner space is free and unoccupied.

Imagine that gradually and gently the heart begins to open, like little bud of light expanding in space.

Take your time, breathing slowly, while working with this exercise.

Practice 15 minutes or more.

Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

Negativity is often based on frustration, but frustration itself can be transmuted. The key is whether mind and breath are functioning properly. When breath is not balanced, many thoughts and concepts arise, and this leads directly to frustration and negativity. So it is very important to become conscious of the breath.

When the breath is balanced, it is like an expansive lake with very still water. Left alone, the lake reflects the things around it very beautifully. But if we disturb the lake by throwing a rock into it, a clear and beautiful image can no longer form. Watching our breath, we can see whether it is still and balanced. If it is out of balance, then by watching with care we can discover what disturbs us.

Day 13 – Smile at the Sky Exercise

Relax

Be silent

Breathe

Now, walk outside and smile at the sky.

Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

Instead of relying on your good and valid reasons to explain your emotionality, just understand that you are not happy because your feelings are clouded. You feel uncertain: a dark, heavy feeling dominates your whole being. You are not open. But just as fast as a fish can move in water, you can instantly change to a happy attitude, a balanced attitude. Keep yourself there. Believe yourself. Be open to that positiveness. Even if the external conditions do not change right away, your whole inner situation can change at once. If you want to feel positive and have satisfaction, you can do it. Just be open and flexible. You have a choice. 

Day 12 – Touching Body Energy Exercise

This exercise relieves tension in the back of the neck, the spine and the back of the legs, and redistributes energy and feeling throughout the body. It is not recommended if you are pregnant or have had any back injuries. At the end of the exercise, sit quietly in the sitting posture for five to ten minutes expanding the sensations awakened by the movement.

Stand with your feet a comfortable distance apart, your back straight and your body balanced. Breathing softly through both nose and mouth, slowly raise your arms in front of you until the are overhead, with the palms facing forward.

Knees relaxed and straight but not locked, slowly and evenly arch forward from the waist, reaching out slightly with your arms. Your head, torso, and arms hold move together. Relax your neck muscles and release any tension in your chest, belly and lower energy centers. When your fingers approach the floor, stay down briefly, concentrating lightly on your back. Be very still. Slowly spread your fingers. Exhale fully, releasing tension from your belly so that the flow energy is not blocked.

Breathing evenly and gently, rise very slowly, keeping your head between your arms. Focus on your throat as you do so — you may feel a sense of opening there. When you reach upright position, bend backwards slightly. Keep your exhalations gentle and allow the front of your body to open, especially your belly, chest and throat.

Slowly straighten your neck and back, bringing your attention to the base of your skull. You may feel warmth there, or a general sense of connection and peace. Again bend forward as before, moving as gently and slowly as possible. Perform the exercise 3 or 9 times.

Develop the healing quality of the forward movement. Feel the opening of each vertebra. When you rise, move so slowly and imperceptibly that you can sense the subtle tensions in your body. Explore these tensions as fully as possible — only then can you release them. You may find an attitude or aspect of your self image within the tightness. As you move become one with your feelings, allow them to move, spreading their energy to every molecule of your body until only feeling remains.

Daily exercises for developing presence and relaxation

Today the notion of goodness is out of favor. There are few living examples of people who express basic goodness in their every action, and not may people understand how to use their work and livelihood as positive forces in the world. Yet the fundamentals of a kind heart and basic human strength and stability have not lost their potency. In the new world order that is presently emerging, where the old traditions hold little power, each of us can contribute to goodness by developing our own inner resources and enacting a positive way to be.

 Day 11 – The Power of Goodness Exercise

Do not focus on your limits and shortcomings. Instead, turn always to the good.

When you are tired or frustrated, say to yourself, “I dedicate my actions to the joy of others. I know that I have limits, but still I dedicate all my actions to their welfare, knowing that this has merit”.

From time to time encourage yourself to do more than you think possible.

Remind yourself that you can work toward the good, can accumulate merit and the power to act for the sake of all beings. Your influence can ripple out in all directions and you can make a difference in reality.