Mindful Zen Breathing |
A Wellness Workshop

This summer, JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles invites you to pause, breathe, and discover Zen Kokyū, the art of mindful breathing. These small group workshops will be led by method founder and expert Yuki Shiina, bridging Eastern and Western wellness traditions and allowing participants to come away with a new technique to support mindfulness and health in their own daily lives. 

Zen Kokyū, or Zen breathing, encourages individuals to be more mindful of their breathing and serves as a tool to enhance health and wellbeing. This modern-day mindfulness practice is based on a breathing technique developed by revered Zen master Hakuin Ekaku in the 18th century, and is renowned for its ability to improve concentration, blood flow, and relaxation levels in practitioners. Through Zen Kokyū, the connection between body and mind is strengthened, fostering a heightened awareness of the body's inner workings and supporting wellness in many forms.

As part of an increased interest in mindfulness worldwide, Zen Kokyū has gained a global following for its simple yet powerful approach to cultivating inner peace and rebalancing the body to its natural state. Breathing exercises have been shown to aid circulation and general bodily health, and many past participants of Zen Kokyū report that it has helped alleviate issues like sleep disorders, headaches and other pains, intestinal issues, asthma, panic disorder, and PMS. As a practical tool you can bring into your daily life, Zen Kokyū is designed to return the body to its natural state, and participants may experience health benefits as well as a balanced state of mind.

In the midst of a busy and hot summer, this workshop will be a chance to refresh, recharge, and learn an entirely new way to connect with your breath that you can integrate into daily life. Open to experienced mindfulness practitioners and newcomers alike, JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles hopes to enhance the well-being of our community and foster a greater appreciation for the diversity of Japanese mindfulness traditions. 

Program Schedule

*Subject to change.

• Introduction (20 min.)
• Practice (60 min.)
• Q&A (15 min)

* Wear comfortable attire and refrain from consuming a substantial meal right before to the workshop. Additionally, avoid consuming alcohol both before and after the session.
** It is recommended to bring a thick bath towel to sit on during the session.
*** Both floor- and chair-seating options will be on offer during each session.

About the Instructor

Yuki Shiina is a breathing expert and founder of the Zen Kokyū and the Zen Breathing Method. The author of numerous books, and a representative of Tainai-Taiwa, Inc, she is also a breathing advisor, workshop leader, MC, and a natural rice farmer. Born in 1975, she graduated from Waseda University with a degree in philosophy.

Her life has been a remarkable journey of overcoming physical and mental challenges. After suffering from a 15-year-long ... Read more.

 illness, marked by persistent headaches since high school, she discovered breathing techniques from Edo-period texts. By integrating her personal experiences with the methods of Zen master Hakuin Ekaku, she developed the ZEN breathing method.

Her dedication to the Hakuin breathing method helped her recover from various physical ailments that conventional treatments—such as hospital visits, medication, acupuncture, chiropractic care, bodywork, and massage—could not alleviate. Remarkably, her health continued to improve as she aged.

With restored health, she expanded her focus beyond the ZEN Kokyu/Breathing Method to promote a healthy lifestyle and overall well-being. She is also involved in natural rice farming in Nagano, Japan. She purchased an old house in Ueda City, Nagano Prefecture, where she grows rice without fertilizers or pesticides with her students at Jinen Juku school.

She emphasizes that many people today overexert themselves trying to maintain their physical condition, often harming their health in the process. Through the ZEN Kokyu/Breathing Method, she teaches the importance of relaxing the body, maintaining a natural state, and reclaiming health. Her approach has garnered a global following, leading to invitations to teach in Greece, Germany, Austria, France, England, and many other countries. Most recently in 2023-2024, she held highly-acclaimed workshops at the Tokyo National Museum for seven months, introducing Japanese culture to over 1,000 foreign visitors. Through her work, she aims to help people reclaim their physical and mental health, fostering a more positive and joyful world.