Breath Awareness: A Calming Practice

We have all seen idealized meditation images. She may be a young woman on a deserted beach, hands in a Mudra adapted to meditation, taking advantage of a sunset. Or maybe it is an image like the one at the top of this post – a person with a serene face, pearls of mala fingered in deep contemplation. It is true that meditation can be peaceful. But sometimes it is marked by cascade thoughts and memories, raw emotions and / or physical discomfort. It is important to remember that in the practice of mindfulness, this last experience does not mean that you are doing something wrong. These thoughts, memories, emotions and discomforts are simply what is present. They are, in a very real sense, what is in mind. But when these experiences become overwhelming, mindfulness has a solution: a practice of awareness of breathing designed to calm body and mind.

When I teach mindfulness courses, many new meditators doubt their ability to practice. They will say: “Whenever I sit down to meditate, my mind goes crazy. My thought is amplious more than ever.” To this, I tell them that they do not think more when they meditate; Rather, they observe what is happening in their minds for the first time. I explain that mindfulness is not to stop your thoughts. It’s about managing your thoughts skillfully.

We can be aware of process To think, instead of being caught in the content of our stories, our memories, our worries and our dramas. Mind consciousness of thought is in fact one of the four foundations of mindfulness. But sometimes we have to slow down the process so that we can be with the process of reflection with more equanimity. It is there that the practice of the consciousness of the breath that I am about to describe may be invaluable.

SOUCITITE Awareness of the rescue

During an 18 -day retirement at the Spirit Rock Meditation Center a few years ago, this breathing awareness technique helped me to sail on what I can only describe as a “solid memory dumping”. From the short hours of the morning one night, the memories started to flow, completely uncontrolled, at a pace that I did not think possible. The events of life I had not thought about for decades were crossing my conscience constantly, and at the speed of deformation. None of this was traumatic, but he became exhausting after a while.

After several hours of living this memory dump, I remembered an awareness practice of breathing that I thought I was able to slow down a little. It is a very simple practice that I had heard on an instruction CD by the author / professor of meditation insight Joseph Goldstein. After only a few minutes of practice, the whole quick shooting film slowed down and I felt a deep feeling of calm.

How to practice the soothing consciousness of breath

1. Gather your accessories: a meditation cushion and Zabuton. If you don’t have a zabuton, you can place your meditation cushion on a couple of yoga blankets folded for additional padding under your knees or ankles.
2. Relax in your sitting position and listen to your breathing. Notice where you feel your breathing most clearly – the nostrilles, the chest or the abdomen – and let your attention rest. Feel the breathing process, noting each inhalation and expiration.
3. Now, while you inspire, make a slight suggestion to calm the body and calm the mind. Do the same during your next expiration. When I practice this, I simply say to myself “calm” every time I inspire and “calm” every time I exhaus.
4. Feel your body / mind receive this suggestion with each inhalation and exhalation.
5. Practice this as long as you want. You can train for a few laps at the start of your meditation, or you can practice it for the duration.

This practice of breath awareness may seem too simple to be effective, but I found it an essential tool in my meditation toolbox. You can practice it at any time – when you feel impatient when you sit in a peak fire, when you are in the middle of a difficult situation, when you feel stress or anxiety, when you are awake at night, and of course, when your mind wanders during meditation. You can practice it at the beginning or at the end of your yoga practice. It is a particularly pleasant way to start your Savasana (final relaxation).

About Charlotte Bell

Charlotte Bell discovered yoga in 1982 and started teaching in 1986. Charlotte is the author of Mindful Yoga, Mindful Life: A Guide for Everyding Practice and Yoga for Meditators, both published by Rodmell Press. His third book is entitled Hip-Healthy Asana: The Yoga Pratitioner’s Guide to Protect of the Hips and Avoid Si Joint Pain (Shambhala Publications). She writes a monthly chronicle for Catalyst Magazine and is online Yoga U publisher. Charlotte is a founding member of the board of directors of Greentree Yoga, a non -profit organization that brings yoga to poorly served populations. Musician for life, Charlotte plays an oboe and an English horn in the Salt Lake Symphony and the Sextuant Folk Red rock Rondo, whose DVD won two Emmy Awards.