The practice
Sound a note that decays on its own — a plucked string, a struck bowl, a bell. Do not attend to the strike. Attend to the decay, and keep following it as it gets quieter, past the point where you are sure whether you can still hear it. Follow it until you are certain it has gone, then wait a little longer.
What it works on
The instruction to stay with a sound past the threshold of hearing is doing something specific: it forces attention to become finer than the object it started with. The uncertainty near the end is the useful part, not a failure of the practice.
Notes
- A singing bowl or a temple bell is ideal. A guitar string works. A phone speaker does not — digital decay cuts off.
- One note fully followed is worth more than a dozen struck impatiently.
Practise gently
Shoonyaka offers educational and contemplative material, not medical, psychological or religious authority. Nothing here diagnoses or treats any condition. Stop any practice that leaves you dizzy, frightened or unwell, and treat a strong reaction as a reason to rest rather than to push on.