Let go and smile
People are generally claimed because we have tension in our neck and shoulders. Zen meditators often suggest gratitude for the Zen stick lightly passed over their shoulders to relieve tightness and stay alert. The lesser known region for the accumulation of stress is in the face and the powerful method of using a lighted smile during meditation can relieve mental tension and evoke balance and joy.
The enlightened smile is the one you see in serene statues and photographs of Buddha meditating, not the smiling, meditating one. The relaxation and euphoria released from the simple act of relaxing the face and subtly grinning is remarkable and a secret to ‘good’ meditation. It is important to relax the body and mind during meditation.
While we can use the Zen stick for our shoulders, it would be a little harder to relax facial muscles that way, except for the really hardcore ones. So we can use an illuminated smile to relax our face, settle our mind and activate joy and love. The use of the meditation smile melts away egoic tension etched into faces through the constant maintenance of a persona. In other words, by relaxing our facial muscles, we can drop all the masks and allow the face to finally be itself.
The illuminated smile facilitates an even state of mind, a calm equipment. When we add a small smile to this relaxed face, we both express and reflect the joy of meditation, the natural bliss that comes from relaxing and letting go.
Meditation should be a joy. Meditation can be a time of peace and tranquility, a refuge of deep serenity. Alone with the sense of one’s being, without fabricating anything or getting anywhere and can be incredibly relaxing and enjoyable; allowing the simplicity of being in the moment without effort or striving. This kind of meditation deserves to be adorned with an imperceptible smile.
The smile is the sign that everything is fine, everything is all good, even the bad things. That’s the power of the enlightened grin: right in the middle of life and all its complexities, you can sit down, relax and smile at everything. In that moment we can touch a peace within ourselves that is always available, despite the situation.
Now I’m not saying that just smiling will solve all your problems. I only share meditative secrets to help people find peace and happiness. Our body and mind work intimately together, so if you can relax the body and face, you can relax the mind and thoughts become easier.
At first it can be a case of ‘faking it until you make it’, but ultimately when you really relax and you can actually drop thoughts and find some space in your consciousness, you can radiate a warmth and friendliness that comes from an open and relaxed mind. Then your smile will be real and it will radiate with the heart and soul you connect with during mediation.
Written by Chad Foreman