Connect your breath to your line…

Practice focus with this simple Line Meditation

If you have taken one of my classes, you will recall the emphasis I place on breathing with your tangling.  In class we find focus practicing with how the cadence of our breath relates to the pen and paper before us. 

Perhaps you are practicing The Zentangle Method from online resources or books, where this relationship of the focus-relaxation-breath and tangling is often missing, or glossed over in favor of lovely pictures and discussion about how to make beautiful art. 

Finding an activity to completely focus on is very beneficial. I find it allows me to forget my worries a little bit and gives my spinning thoughts a little rest.  It does not have to be a complicated task – but it might take a little practice.

Try this simple line meditation to see how you can use your pen as a tool to bring focus to your day. It is one of the simplest strokes you can do – just a line. It can be straightish or a little wobbly, the beauty is in the time and focus this practice can bring.

LINE MEDITATION HOW TO:

  • Create some shapes on your paper like the square outlines above
  • Take a deep breath in
  • Pick one shape and draw a line from top to bottom
  • Draw your line as you slowly exhale
  • Pause
  • Take a deep breath and move your pen to the top of the page again
  • Continue filling the spaces as you work, one line at a time
  • Focus on your pen and the paper
  • Draw your line as you slowly exhale

In a Line Meditation, there is no back and forth scribbling. You draw a line from the top of the page to the bottom.

If you scribble back and forth, you are activating a sort of aggravating action – think about other times when you scribble – you are frustrated, or you want to cross something out. Often your pressure is really hard with a scribble. This is not that.

This is a methodical way to practice with your pen and paper – to bring the focus to your page. Draw a line, then pick up your pen go back to the top, and begin again.

As you practice this cadence and focus you may be able to use this simple exercise to take a little breather and clear your head of swirling thoughts a bit.