Cleaning your house, (including cleaning your closet) can help tidy your mind, says the Shin Buddhist Monk Shoukei Matsumoto, who is the author of the book A Monk’s Guide to a Clean House and Mind. Cleaning is a great practice which reminds you of the connection with the ground, the earth and the universe. According to Shoukei it’s very important to have some time to clear up your mind without thinking of difficult problems and issues, which means that cleaning gives you an opportunity to focus on the here and now while tidying up.

Cleaning is something many people want to outsource to someone, so why? Why should we do it ourselves? Well, do you outsource your practice of meditation? You can’t, right? We may refer to meditation as ‘Zen Meditation’, where you sit down comfortably on the floor, but if you can change your house chores into meditation, it will do great. When you clean your garden for example, right after you finish cleaning up the fallen leaves, new ones will fall right back onto the ground, meaning you will never complete the cleaning. No matter how hard you work you’ll never be perfect, which is ok.

To Japanese Buddhists, cleaning is not just cleaning, it’s known as Samu or work practice. And it offers the chance to meditate and be present in the midst of daily tasks, as well as decluttering your mind. Cleaning is a great lesson in core Buddhist principles Duhkha which is the idea that nothing is perfect. And Anitya is the fact that the world is ever-changing and impermanent.

Have you ever tried mindful cleaning? Autumn is approaching, so why don’t we all try to see cleaning as something positive? Tidy up that closet, prep it for fall.

Source: World Economic Forum

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