Shadowing Practice: Do This For 1 Minute When You Feel Sleepy (Buddhist Study Hack) - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Why most of the students feel sleepy while they are studying.
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Now this has been a huge problem for all the students who are studying including myself.
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I still can remember
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when I was at school I used to fall asleep right after I get a book to my hand.
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Do you have the same experience?
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I think yes.
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Well today in this video I'm going to be sharing with you seven tips.
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you can practice to stay away from sleepiness while studying
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so the same thing happened to a monk who lived in
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the buddha's time he was struggling with meditation especially he was struggling with the sleepiness during meditation
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so the buddha gave him these seven advices and seven tips to practice to stay away from the sleepiness
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during the meditation but these tips can be applied to our studies as well
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so without any further ado let's dive into these tips tip number one change the perception
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Sometimes the reason for our sleepiness is not where we study or when we study, but what we study right sometimes the meditation
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that we are doing maybe the study the subject that we are studying is not wiping along with our mind
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At that time we feel boring and less interested.
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Once you feel boring, what is the normal reaction from your body?
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you feel sleepy right you feel the drowsiness within you
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that is why the buddha says change the perception once you feel sleepy while studying or meditating just
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change the perception change what you study for a little
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while let's say you're studying a subject
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and you feel boring okay you feel less interested so what do you have to do
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change it to something that you feel interesting.
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maybe a subject that you feel fun in studying maybe you enjoy
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that subject maybe it is your favorite subject maybe it is your favorite meditation okay once you do that
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What happens to you is you're doing something that is enjoyable and enthusiastic, you feel that enthusiasm within you,
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then your body and your mind becomes active.
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Okay, once your body and mind becomes active, what will happen?
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your mind will open to new things.
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okay so when you spend a little while in
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that enthusiastic activity maybe studying maybe meditating okay then you can come back to the same thing
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that you studied earlier and keep on studying because at
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that time we gave our mind a little jump start to
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be active tip number two memorize it the buddha says recall what you have studied
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and memorize it and examine it with your mind When you examine something with your mind, when you recall something from your mind,
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and you wisely reflect on it, what happens?
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Your mind becomes active.
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it okay because you you need that focus and you need
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that activeness in your mind to memorize it once you memorize it what will happen you stay away from
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that inactiveness or inactive state of your mind then it will help you to stay away from the sleepiness
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so what you have to do whenever you feel sleepy
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or drowsy just memorize one thing that you have learned or recall something that you have Now,
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reciting is one of the best ways to stay away from sleepiness during meditation and studying.
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Now, when you recite something or when you say something out loud, it activates your jaw muscles and your mouth.
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And also, when you recite something, you create those vibrations in your skull and it activates your brain.
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head okay and then it will be very easy for you to study
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and also when you recite something it gives that activeness to your body
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and then it will help you to stay away from the sleepiness.
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that is tip number three tip number four the buddha says pinch your ears
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and rub your limbs now when you pinch your ears
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and rub your limbs what happens is your muscles get a good blood circulation
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and your body becomes active once your body becomes active then
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your mind's mind becomes active then you will be less sleepy
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and you will you can stay away from sleepiness by doing this so these are
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from sleepiness tip number five the Buddha says get up from your seat
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and wash your eyes with cold water and look at the night sky
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if you're especially if you're studying at night maybe you're meditating at night If you feel sleepy, you can go outside and look at that night sky.
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Enjoy the nature, enjoy that breeze.
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okay once you stay in the nature for a little
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while you feel so much refreshed and then you can come back to studying
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and meditation and keep on doing it so nature can make our body
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so much and so much refreshed keep
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that in your mind tip number six the buddha says focus
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on the perception of light now most of the time when we are studying at night
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The reason for our sleepiness is the surrounding okay sometimes some students some people used to study in a dark room
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maybe in the darkness okay while having a little light on there Okay,
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the reason for our sleepiness can be the darkness around us because when the darkness surrounds us,
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we feel like sleeping because it stimulates our sleepiness.
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okay because we used to
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sleep in the darkness and then when there is darkness around us
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it's trigger it triggers our sleepiness so what the buddha says is just when you study
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Focus on something that is very bright.
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okay focus your mind on something that is very bright
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and think that you are studying imagine that you are studying in the daytime Okay,
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when you're studying, always try to study under a good light source.
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And also you can imagine to yourself
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that I am studying in the daytime okay when you imagine it
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and when you have that perception of light in your mind then you will feel less sleepy
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okay so that is the that is one thing
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that we can do to focus on the perception of light
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and we have come to the final and the seventh tip
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and that is the buddha says do walking meditation whenever you are meditating okay
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or when you are study if you feel sleepy if you feel drowsy just get up from Okay,
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focus on your bodily postures and bodily movements and go walk back
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and forth for a little
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while okay it will activate your body as well as it will activate your mind because we need a good focus
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to be mindful okay once the mind becomes mindful it activates our mind
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so that is one way that we can do we can stay away from sleepiness to do the walking meditation
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so okay so as students you all can do these things let's say you tried all of these seven tapes
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and none of them worked for you okay you still feel sleepy then what we can do the buddha says
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if none of them worked for you that means you really really need a sleep
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okay so that is why the buddha says then you can go to bed mindfully
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okay being mindful about the posture that you're going to sleep
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and you have to remember to yourself
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that right at this time okay maybe after one hour i'm going to wake up
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okay when you do that when you remember to yourself
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that the wake up time then it is very easy for you to wake up
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and also remember most of the time the students
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enjoy sleeping okay more than studying okay it is all about our priorities
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when we give the priority to study we can easily study
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when we give the priority in our mind to sleep more than study then you feel more
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and more sleepy so that is why it is all about what you give priority to
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okay so remember so
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if none of the those seven tips worked for you just have some rest
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and then go back to studies or meditating so these are the things
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that we can apply to our daily life to stay away from sleepiness during studying
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and also during meditating so apply these things and see what works for you Namo Buddhahaya.

Context & Background

The insights provided in the video titled "Do This For 1 Minute When You Feel Sleepy (Buddhist Study Hack)" focus on combating sleepiness during study sessions and meditation. The speaker reflects on a common experience among students—feeling drowsy when engaging with material that seems uninteresting or monotonous. Drawing wisdom from Buddhist teachings, the speaker shares effective strategies that not only apply to studying but extend to overall mental alertness. These techniques emphasize the importance of engaging, active learning to enhance focus and retention, which is particularly useful for English learners seeking to improve their skills.

Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication

  • “Do you have the same experience?” – A relatable question to engage in conversation about shared experiences.
  • “Change the perception.” – An essential phrase that encourages a shift in mindset to overcome challenges.
  • “Once you feel boring…” – Identifying moments that may lead to disengagement, frequent in language learning.
  • “Your mind becomes active.” – A reminder that mental engagement can revitalize the learning experience.
  • “Memorize what you have studied.” – A direct call to action for active recall, vital for language acquisition.

Step-by-step Shadowing Guide

To effectively engage with the concepts from this video while learning English, follow this step-by-step shadowing guide using the shadowing technique. This method boosts listening skills, improves pronunciation, and enhances overall language fluency.

  1. Choose a Segment: Select a segment of the video lasting about 1-2 minutes. Focus on content that resonates with you, perhaps a specific tip shared by the speaker.
  2. Listen Actively: First, listen to the segment without interruption. Pay attention to the speaker’s tone, pace, and pronunciation. This initial exposure is crucial for familiarizing yourself with natural speech patterns.
  3. Repeat and Shadow: Now, utilize the shadow speech method. Play the segment again and attempt to speak along with the speaker, mimicking their intonation and rhythm. This is where the shadowspeaks method really shines, as you embody the speech patterns you're trying to learn.
  4. Review Your Pronunciation: After shadowing, record yourself mimicking the speaker. Listen to your recording and evaluate your pronunciation. Focus on clarity and fluency, aiming to identify areas for improvement.
  5. Incorporate New Phrases: Finally, integrate the phrases you’ve learned into your daily conversation. Make a point to include expressions like “change the perception” or “your mind becomes active” in discussions, which will reinforce your learning experience.

By practicing these steps regularly, you will not only conquer sleepiness during study but also significantly improve English pronunciation through the effective use of the shadowing technique. Embrace these tactics as you learn English with YouTube, and notice how much more engaged and alert you feel during your studies!

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

StructureIn the video
“Used to” used to + verb — a past habit or state that is no longer trueused to fall · used to study
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters nowhas been · have studied · have learned
Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around noware studying · are doing · you're studying
Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or predictionwill happen · will open · will help

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →