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The Fifth Mindfulness Training: Compassionate, Healthy Living
Aware that true happiness is rooted in peace, solidity, freedom, and compassion, we are determined not to accumulate wealth while millions are hungry and dying nor to take as the aim of our life fame, power, wealth, or sensual pleasure, which can bring much suffering and despair. We will practice looking deeply into how we nourish our body and mind with edible foods, sense impressions, volition, and consciousness. We are committed not to gamble or to use alcohol, drugs or any other products which bring toxins into our own and the collective body and consciousness such as certain websites, electronic games, music, TV programs, films, magazines, books and conversations. We will consume in a way that preserves compassion, wellbeing, and joy in our bodies and consciousness and in the collective body and consciousness of our families, our society, and the earth.
The Beauty of Using Less
In a world that constantly tells us we need more—more stuff, more productivity, more stimulation—the ancient Bön practice of essence extraction offers a radically different message: less can be enough. In fact, less can be liberating.
Essence extraction also called chulen (བྱུས་ལེན་), is a practice rooted in the Tibetan Bön tradition. At its heart, it is about receiving deep nourishment—not from food or media or even social validation—but from the subtle, living energy that flows through nature, breath, and awareness itself.
And in that sense, essence extraction isn’t just a spiritual technique—it’s a guide to a simpler, more essential way of living.
What Is Essence Extraction?
Traditionally, essence extraction is practiced by yogis in retreat, sometimes going without ordinary food for days or weeks. Instead of eating in the usual sense, they “take the essence” of herbs, mineral supplements, or natural elements. Through breath, mantra, and awareness, they draw in subtle energy to sustain the body and mind.
But beyond mere food, essence extraction is a deep teaching on how to live lightly—how to draw strength not from consuming more, but from connecting more deeply with what is already present.
In a modern context, we can practice essence extraction not by giving up food, but by stepping back from overconsumption in all its forms: digital, material, emotional. We learn to reconnect with the “essence” that truly nourishes— stillness, silence, spaciousness, and presence.
The Power of Using Less
There’s a quiet freedom in learning to use less. Fewer distractions mean more clarity. Fewer possessions mean more spaciousness. Less rushing means more presence. Less stimulation means deeper rest.
This is not about austerity or deprivation—it’s about returning to what’s essential. It’s about retraining the nervous system to find fulfillment in stillness rather than novelty. Think of essence extraction not as “stopping eating,” but as taking in what truly nourishes—physically, energetically, emotionally, and spiritually. It’s a radical shift from consumption to essence.
In the Bön view, we are not separate from the elements. Earth, water, fire, air, and space are not just “out there”—they are within us. Essence extraction teaches us to absorb their balance and brilliance directly, through our senses, breath, and attention.
When we pause to watch the sky, breathe with the wind, drink a cup of tea in mindfulness, touch the earth beneath us, or feel the warmth of sunlight—without trying to capture it or solidify the moment—we are practicing essence extraction. We are taking in essence. We are living more with less.
As Thich Nhat Hanh taught in the seventh mindfulness training, "We are determined to learn the art of mindful living by touching the wondrous, refreshing, and healing elements that are inside and around us, in all situations. In this way, we will be able to cultivate seeds of joy, peace, love, and understanding in ourselves, thus facilitating the work of transformation and healing in our consciousness. We are aware that real happiness depends primarily on our mental attitude and not on external conditions, and that we can live happily in the present moment simply by remembering that we already have more than enough conditions to be happy."
Essence Extraction as Daily Practice
You don’t need to be a yogi or live in a cave in the Himalayas to begin.
You can practice essence extraction at your desk, on a walk, or while holding a warm cup of tea.
Take three slow breaths while visualizing light entering your body.
Pause before eating, and feel gratitude for the elements that made your food.
Have a break for tea and do a short tea ceremony either with friends, or by yourself.
Touch the essence of food, by putting down all devices, screens, conversations, and distractions (external and internal) as you prepare foot and eat.
Leave your phone behind for 30 minutes and simply walk—eyes open, senses awake.
Sit in silence for five minutes and let your breath nourish you.
Reflect on what truly is the essence in this moment? What wholesome qualities are present right now that I can connect with?
Touch the wondrous, refreshing, and healing elements that are inside and around us, in all situations.
Live happily in the present moment simply by remembering that we already have more than enough conditions to be happy.
Set the aspiration to consume all the positive wholesome qualities of life.
These small acts are revolutionary. They are how we return to the essence in a world of excess.
Essence Moments (Micro-Essence Extraction)
Take 1–5 minutes throughout the day to pause, turn inward, and “drink” from the essence of your surroundings.
As you inhale, visualize pure, luminous essence entering your body—like starlight, morning air, or any of the five elements (Earth, Air, Water, Fire, and Space). As you exhale, release tension, toxins, and mental clutter—like smoke or dust exiting the body.
Earth essence → Feel the solid support of the ground beneath you. Let stability and rootedness enter your body.
Water essence → Let a breeze, shower, or sip of water become a deep refreshment, entering as comforting peaceful awareness.
Fire essence → Feel warmth from sunlight warm your heart as a source of power, inspiration, and joy.
Air essence → Take three deep breaths, drawing in the lightness, freedom, flexibility and movement of air.
Space essence → Connect the spaciousness all around you to the spaciousness of your mind. Allow that vast open spaciousness to quiet any restlessness, agitation, or distracting thoughts. Rest nourished in the peacefulness of vast acceptance.
You can “extract the essence” from a tree, a sunset, a cup of tea, even a laugh with a child. What matters is that you pause and absorb it fully.
When to Do It
First thing in the morning to start fresh
During a nature walk or Volta
Anytime you feel depleted, anxious, or ungrounded
As a screen-break or midday reset.
Living Like Essence Matters
In modern life, we’re often overfed physically but undernourished spiritually. Essence extraction is a remembering: that the world is full of living nourishment, and that true presence itself can be food.
To live with less is not to live in lack—it’s to live from the inside out. Essence extraction reminds us that we are already connected, already whole, already resourced. So we can stop chasing. We can stop scrolling. We can stop filling the silence. And we can start listening—deeply—to what really feeds us. Because when we live from essence, life becomes simpler, lighter, and more spacious. And we remember that what we are truly hungry for was never far away.
Guided Meditation: Essence Extraction
Find a quiet space where you can sit or lie down comfortably. Let your body rest in a posture that feels grounded and relaxed. Let your hands fall easily into your lap or by your sides. Close your eyes or let your gaze soften.
Take three long, slow breaths… Inhaling through the nose… Exhaling gently through the mouth…Feel yourself arriving—not to do more, but to do less. To simply be here.
Gently place one hand on your belly or heart. And silently set an intention: “In this moment, I release the need to consume more. I return to the essence that is already here. May this breath, this stillness, this silence, this spacious presence—be enough.” Let those words echo softly in your awareness, like a stone settling into water.
Now imagine yourself in a wide open place in nature— perhaps a sunlit field, a quiet forest, or high in the mountains. You are surrounded by the five elements: Earth beneath you, Air moving around you, Sunlight above as Fire, Water flowing nearby, and Space all around.
With every breath, you begin to take in their essence.
Breathing in, feel the stability of earth entering your body.
Breathing out, release heaviness and dullness.
Breathing in, draw in the freshness of air and wind.
Breathing out, let go of over-stimulation and noise.
Breathing in, receive the warmth and joy of sunlight.
Breathing out, softening restlessness and overthinking.
Breathing in, sip the cool flow of water’s comforting ease.
Breathing out, release tension, letting it dissolve.
Breathing in, absorb the vastness of open space.
Breathing out, feel your mind become wide and spaciousness.
No need to force anything. Just let your body be fed—not by doing, but by receiving. Let the elements nourish your cells, your breath, your spirit. You are taking in the essence of life. And that is enough.
Now let go of all effort. Let your breath be natural. Let your mind rest like a leaf floating on still water. Nothing to add. Nothing to fix. Nothing to achieve. You are full. You are nourished. You are supported by the same forces that support the trees, the oceans, and the sky. Simply rest in this simplicity. Let life be as it is.
Slowly, slowly, bring awareness gently back to your body. Feel the weight of your body resting here. Feel the breath still moving. Feel the simplicity of being alive. Gently place your hands together or over your heart. “May I and all beings remember that I need less than I think. May I and all beings live from what truly nourishes. And may the peace I find here ripple out into my day, my choices, my relationships and the whole world.” When you’re ready, slowly open your eyes. Take your time to re-enter your space—grounded, clear, and full of essence.
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