Pikopiko

King’s instructions are deliberately minimal:

1. Notice your natural breathing. Become aware of your breath as it already is. It may shift on its own simply from being observed — that is fine. Do not control or deepen it forcefully; the point is gentle awareness, not a breathing exercise in the athletic sense.
2. Locate the two pikos. Bring awareness (and/or a light touch) to the crown of your head and to your navel. These are the two anchor points.
3. Breathe in — attention on the crown. As you inhale, put your attention on the top/crown of your head.
4. Breathe out — attention on the navel. As you exhale, move your attention down to your navel (lower abdomen).
5. Continue, gently, for as long as you like. Keep cycling attention crown-on-inhale, navel-on-exhale. A minute or two is enough to center; longer for meditation. King stresses it can be done anywhere, in any posture, eyes open or closed, still or moving. Common variations King teaches:

• Any two points. Though crown-and-navel is classic, King says you may choose any two points on or in the body (e.g. navel and toes, two palms, two points of tension) and breathe attention between them — useful for directing relaxation or “energy” to a specific area.
• Pikopiko to a place or person. Pick a point on your body and a point “out there” (a place, person, or goal) and breathe attention back and forth — King uses this for connection and blessing.
• As a finisher. Pikopiko is the standard way King closes other techniques (e.g. Dynamind) — a few crown-to-navel breaths to settle and integrate. (Sourcing note: the crown=navel wordplay, the inhale-crown/exhale-navel instruction, and the “any two points / anywhere, any posture” guidance are King’s documented teaching across Urban Shaman, Instant Healing, and huna.org. Phrasing here is faithful paraphrase.)

Serge Kahili King (b. 1934), Ph. D. in psychology, was adopted into and trained in the kupua (shaman) tradition of the Kahili family of Kauai, and also studied with African and Mongolian shamans.

He founded Aloha International and is the most widely read modern exponent of Huna. → (King, Serge Kahili). Pikopiko is the breath he treats as the gateway practice underlying his whole system; it appears in his foundational books Urban Shaman and Instant Healing and in dozens of his huna.org technique articles.

The word piko and breath-with-attention practices have older roots in Hawaiian healing and chant traditions; King codified this particular two-point form for general use.

Anapanasati / breath mindfulness (Buddhism) — sustained attention on the breath; pikopiko adds two moving anchor points.

• Coherent / slow breathing — the calming effect overlaps with paced ~5-6 breaths/min work.
• Microcosmic-orbit / energy-channel breathing (Taoist qigong) — circulating attention/“energy” along the body with the breath; structurally close to pikopiko’s two-point movement.
• Chakra/centre breathing — attention placed on body centres on the breath.
• Coué-style threshold work — pikopiko is often used to enter the receptive, relaxed state these practices share.

Forcing the breath. Pikopiko is natural breathing with attention — not deep-breathing or hyperventilation. Straining defeats it and can cause light-headedness.

• Gripping the attention too tightly. Let attention rest on each piko and move easily with the breath; effortful concentration tenses you up.
• Treating it as only a relaxation gimmick. King’s point is also connection and intention — use the two-point form to link to a goal, place, or area needing healing.
• Skipping it before bigger techniques. A few pikopiko breaths first make visualization, Dynamind, or grokking land better by settling the system.
• Expecting drama. The effect is quiet centering, not a rush. Consistency over a day beats one long session.