_Sadhana_ means daily spiritual practice — not something you do when you have time, but the foundation upon which you build everything else. The best time to practice is first thing in the morning, ideally waking an hour before sunrise. At this hour the energy is quiet, as the world is still asleep. Settling into meditation during the 48 minutes surrounding sunrise lets you ride a moment when the energy is in transition — and your practice can have a far greater impact.
Start with five minutes. The mind will wander — that's what minds do. The practice is not emptying the mind but noticing when it has drifted and gently returning to the breath. Every return is a rep, and like any muscle, attention strengthens with use.
The word _zen_ traces back through the Chinese _chan_ to the Sanskrit _dhyāna_, meaning meditation or deep absorption. The ancient sages studied this state with extraordinary care, and the depth of their insight is something our modern mind can only begin to appreciate. See Patanjali's _Yoga Sutras_ if you'd like to go deeper.
The mind can rest on many different objects in meditation. We suggest starting with the breath, since it is a simple and direct link to your soul and to the universe — every breath is an exchange between your being and the greater oneness that holds it.
You can also choose another single point of focus to help the mind settle — a sound (mantra) or a form (yantra). In all, there are 112 techniques for focusing the mind, explored in the ancient text _Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra_.[^1]
The merit journal is a practice for reinforcing the virtues in our personality. It can be as simple as noting a smile you offered a stranger on the street or the time you spent truly listening to a friend's concern. By writing down the good you've done, you create a record to reflect upon — especially valuable in the moments before leaving the body at the end of life. Our character is the one thing we carry with us when we depart, so it is well worth the effort to reflect upon and cultivate it.
Almost every emotion has its time and place. Sometimes it is good to rest or to feel impatient, and anger can be necessary to provoke action. In general, though, we can soften the distorted forms of these emotions (emotion is energy in motion) and cultivate their positive counterparts instead. Balance is the aim.
To start, pick the one with the most impact, often anger. The goal is not to become perfect — it is to become less impulsive, more available, more unconditionally loving. Starting with yourself is key. Notice your thought patterns and how you speak to yourself. Do you scold yourself over a trivial mistake? How might you extend and deepen your patience toward yourself?
Sit quietly and replay the day. Notice any moment where you contracted — irritation, defensiveness, avoidance. Don't judge the reaction. Just see it. Tomorrow, you'll have another chance. If you like you can journal your reflections and over time you may see just by noticing them things have started to resolve.
After reviewing the key area you'd like to work on you can use auto-hypnosis to improve it.
**Energy practice** — yoga, tai chi, qigong, or simple stretching with breath awareness. This moves _prana_ (life force) through the channels of the body. Even ten minutes shifts the nervous system from fight-or-flight to rest-and-digest.
**Cardio and strength** — walking briskly, running, bodyweight exercises, lifting. The body evolved to move against resistance. Without it, the mind stagnates too. Cardio comes in two intensities, and both are necessary: low intensity (such as energy practice or gardening) and high intensity (such as running, cycling, swimming, or tennis). High intensity is anything that raises your heart rate and makes you sweat.
[^1]: The _Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra_, a 7th–8th century Kashmir Shaivism text, presents 112 dhāraṇās (meditation techniques) as a dialogue between Bhairava and the goddess Bhairavi, who together personify the interplay between consciousness and energy. [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vij%C3%B1%C4%81na_Bhairava_Tantra)
