As its name implies, the Three Centers Meditation focuses on the three main energetic centers (or dantian in Chinese) of your body: the lower dantian at the abdomen, the middle dantian at the chest and the upper dantian between the eyebrows. Doing this meditation brings awareness to areas that may be causing imbalance in the body and helps you strengthen and align the centers.

Preparation

Find a quiet place with no interruptions. Be sure to wear loose, comfortable clothing. Light a candle, some incense, play some gentle music. Sit comfortably and become aware of your posture. Imagine someone is pulling straight up on a string attached to the top of your head. Does your spine feel aligned and open? Are your shoulders back and relaxed? Is your neck and head erect with your chin slightly tucked? You should feel as if you were a suit on a hanger.

The Meditation

Counting breaths: each section of the meditation has eight breaths.

Place the tip of your tongue just behind your front teeth and breathe through your nose. Place your hands on your abdomen and feel your breath. Is your abdomen moving easily out with each inhale and in with each exhale? Can you hear your breath? Is it deep and slow?

After eight breaths, move your hands slowly out to your sides, palms down. Your arms are relaxed and your hands feel as if they are floating on clouds. Continue to breathe slowly and easily as you imagine connecting with the Earth. Feel the energy of Earth flowing through your hands and feet or spine to the lower dantian and collecting there.

Slowly turn your palms upward. Imagine the energy of Heaven flowing through your hands and the top of your head to the lower dantian and collecting there. Bring your palms back to your abdomen and feel the collected energies circulating in your lower dantian.

Now, raise your arms slowly above your head until they meet palm to palm. Lower your joined hands to your forehead and place the base of your thumbs at your forehead. As you inhale, imagine positive energy flowing into the upper dantian. As you exhale, imagine all the negative energy is expelled.

Maintaining the same hand position, move your hands to your chest and bring the same positive energy to your middle dantian and release the negative energy.

Next, open your hands and place your thumb tips at your navel. Cross your hands below them to form a triangle. Again, bring positive energy to the dantian and release negative energy.

Now, imagine a beam of energy connecting the three dantians. Feel each of the centers in relation to the others. Are they aligned? Are any stronger or weaker? Use your senses to explore the dantians and how they relate to each other.

To close the meditation, move your hands, palms down, to your sides and bring them up in a circle over your head as you inhale, gathering earth energy. Continue the circle back down to your navel as you exhale, bringing the energy into yourself. Repeat this movement three times to settle the energy.

With practice and awareness, you'll find the centers beginning to harmonize. Don't force it. Doing the meditation is the healing process.