Dharana 12 of 112 · verse 35

The Hollow of the Central Channel

Imagine a fine channel through the centre of the spine and attend to the space inside it.

00:00Ready

10 minutes. Seated upright, eyes closed.

Intermediate10 min

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The practice

Sit upright. Picture a channel running up the middle of the spine, no thicker than a thread. Now move your attention off the thread and into the space it encloses. It is the hollow you are attending to, not the wall around it. Stay with that inner space.

What it works on

The image of the thread exists only to give the emptiness a shape you can find. This is the first appearance of a move the text makes over and over: build a form, then attend to the space it defines rather than the form itself.

Notes

  • If the channel is hard to picture, feel for the line where the body would fold if it folded. Precision is not required.

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.