Kanton soul-searching

**Miekuang** (乜況; *miēkuàng*) is a form of traditional Qiren meditation often carried out by monks. It is a process of shutting down the mind step by step, and the goal is to have a completely blank conscience by the end. Within this void, the monk can supposedly reach inside his soul and find important insights into his life, purpose and experiences.

## Etymology

The word 乜 (*miē*) translates as "soul" or "spirit", while the character 況 (*kuàng*) can be translated as "vision". This communicates the process of finding or envisioning one's soul that *miekuang* involves.

*Miekuang* is occasionally known by its more formal name, 七认乜况乪 (*qīrèn miēkuàng náng*), which literally means "the journey of Qiren soul envisionment". It is most commonly used by monks themselves, especially during rituals or ceremonies.

## Attire

It is traditional for a monk to wear a red cloak during *miekuang*, though yellow is usually worn by novices. It is also required that any form of shoe or sandal is removed, and that the cloak is worn over the head, therefore protecting the monk's body from outside interference. The environment must be a good temperature, fairly quiet and calm, most preferably near a source of running water.

The abbot or *hunsen* of a Qiren monastery should wear a white cloak, which symbolises the strength of his spirituality and higher ranking amongst others.

## Practice

It is customary for *miekuang* to be conducted either early in the morning (5am-8am) or very late at night (11pm-3am), as the body and mind are believed 'softened', and more receptive to stillness at these times. A type of *miekuang* known as 物乜况 *(wū miēkuàng*) is conducted only at night, and lasts for about five hours.

Before beginning the meditation, it is customary to drink a cup of water, as this is thought to cleanse the participant. It is also imperative that they are not touched until the meditation has been completed entirely.

The process of *miekuang* can be separated into seven parts; each must be fully completed before one can move onto the next stage.

* Firstly, the monk must sit with legs crossed, and hands clasped behind his back. This symbolises the physical body being 'left behind' during the meditation.
* Secondly, the monk must bow his head foreward and close his eyes so that his forehead is pointed in the direction of his feet. During this stage, he should also take several deep, calming breaths to prepare for the next step.
* Thirdly, the monk should attempt to focus on one singular sound he can hear. This could be a bird chirping, distant voices, or most usefully, his own breathing. The senses should be dulled somewhat, so that he can reach a deeper level of consciousness. Once this has been achieved, the monk should slump forward so that his forehead touches his crossed right leg.
* Fourth, the monk visualises a scene, memory or idea that brings peace and happiness into his heart. He should attempt to focus on the visualisation and at this point, should find himself becoming completely released of his physical senses.
* Fifth, the monk should fall into a kind of trance-like state in which is known as 乜菌 (*miē-jūn*). This state brings him closer to his own inner self. By this point, worded thoughts should have disappeared entirely, and replaced with visualisations only.
* Sixth, the monk should visualise himself reaching into the darkest corners of his being, pulling at the shadows of his inner self. This is called 乜邓 (*miē-dèng*).
* In the seventh and final stage, the monk will find his 乜垫 *(miē-diàn*) or soul expression which will give him clarity for an issue which may be on his conscious mind. Very soon he will awaken from his reverie, feeling as though he has been blessed with the deepest insight.