WTF is a Komboloi? (breath-work revisited)

Yeah…. I know this is supposed to be a BJJ blog. But breath-work/mindfulness/meditation, has been part of martial arts since the beginning of martial arts. So….. It’s totally related. Deal with it. 

In the last article article about breath control. In it…. I suggested using Mala Beads to count your breath during mindfulness or meditation. I made a statement in that article that every culture in the world had some form of it. Rosaries, Prayer Ropes, Tasbih,  etc….. And that sent me down a rabbit hole of looking at each culture's versions looking for universality. And, I did see a lot of similarities. 

But….. 

Then I found the Greek Komboloi. 

Komboloi are the Greek version of mindfulness/prayer beads. But….. unlike almost every other culture’s version…. They have always been entirely secular. They have no affiliation with any religious entity at all. This is appealing to me. I believe in the benefits of mindfulness without needing to attach magical properties to the practice. So…. It’s history fits my ethos. Just like the Mala beads from my article….. I use the beads for the functional purpose of counting breaths in my meditation practice. 

But…. The Komboloi have another really interesting feature.

The traditional version has a lot of extra cord in the design.

This allows the beads to be swung and “flipped”.

The best way to describe it is that it’s reminiscent of flipping a “butterfly” knife.

That was a thing I spent HOURS doing as a kid. So it spoke to me immediately. It felt natural as soon as I picked it up. I looked online and found people doing “tricks”, and interesting patterns with them. And I was captivated playing my homemade set of Komboloi. This led me to a really amazing discovery. This “time passing” aspect of the beads has cut my screen time way down. Apparently…… A large portion of my looking at a screen is just boredom. Mindless time passing. And given another option….. I apparently will take it. In the last few weeks I’ve had my Komboloi in my hand instead of my phone a HUGE percentage of time. Yes I’ll still use my phone when I actually want to connect. But mindless scrolling…. That has given way to playing the Komboloi.

Now….. All this is well and good. But…. You can’t use something you don’t have on you. And….. I really don’t like the feel of even more shit stuffed in my pocket. I had gotten used to the feel and look of Mala beads on my wrist. But really wanted the playable aspect of the Komboloi. Enter…..  Aroundsquare. 

I stumbled upon an amazing company called Aroundsquare. They make what they refer to as Skill Toys. All these different devices that can be played and mastered. They are very big in the “Begleri” community. The Begleri is the skill toy that developed from the Komboloi. People focused on the skillful play aspect and got away from counting the breath. This led to a single string with just a bead (or two) on the ends. Studying up on the Komboloi and it’s derivatives landed me at AO2. But they make more than just Begleri. They make loads of cool stuff. I’m testing a ton of their gear as we speak. But… I’m sticking to Komboloi in this article. 

I started talking to Matt Hiebert, AO2’s owner about making a “wearable” version of the Komboloi. And in a moment of synchronicity…. He showed me a prototype he had already been working on!!! A Mala/Komboloi “hybrid”. There’s a Lock bead where the “guru/priest” bead would be. 

This lets you cinch it up and wear them like a set of Mala beads. Or….. Slide it out and play it like a traditional Komboloi set.

This is the perfect combination of form and function.

He agreed to market test the idea and make a beta run to see if anyone is into it. Following his design, I rigged up a set on my own to test out. 

For me….. It’s perfect. Wearing it keeps my meditation practice in my mind and available 24/7. It also gives me a skill based mindfulness practice right at my fingertips that cuts my screen time down dramatically. And….. It looks badass to boot!!! Most of AO2’s gear is a super clean, minimalist, metal aesthetic. The pictured pair is Titanium. Their gear is ART! 

Anyway…. That’s it. My story of how I got into the Komboloi. And why you should too! If you’re interested in the wearable version…. Check out ao2worldwide.com and keep an eye out for their one of a kind komboloi design. They should be coming out soon.