Air: Held By The Breath Of Life (Not Alone Series)

The air moving through your lungs right now has been circling this planet for over four billion years.

Scientists estimate that every breath you take contains molecules breathed by every human being who has ever lived.
Not just people you might recognise from history.
Every one of them.

And not just humans, every creature that has ever drawn breath on this earth.

The whales. The ancient forests. The first birds.

You have never breathed alone. Not once.

This meditation is an invitation to feel into that quiet, ancient companionship and return to your day knowing you are part of a family of living things that stretches back further than you can imagine.

This is the sixth meditation in the Not Alone series.

Not Alone is a series of short meditations to help you notice and feel into the ways you are already deeply connected.

Music: The Inner Calling by Music of Wisdom
Image: Original

Transcript

Let's arrive here together, Finding a position where your body feels supported and can genuinely rest. If there's a part of you that feels a little separate from things today, A little outside of life, Let it settle here with us. Take a full breath in through your nose, And let it out through your mouth a little longer than you normally would. Bring your awareness to your breath, The inhale, The exhale. Your body is breathing for you. Without any instruction, 20, 000 times each day, This air moving through your lungs right now has been circling this earth since time began. It has been breathed before by the great whales surfacing through dark water, By elephants moving slowly across ancient plains, By the butterfly drawing air through its body on a summer afternoon, By the forests that existed before any human walked among them, And by countless people across every age this world has known. This same air has kept alive people who have loved fiercely, Who have carried grief no one could see, Who have felt the depths that loneliness can bring, Who longed to be known and were not sure if they ever were. Right now, People all across this world are breathing this same air, Some in stillness, Some in sorrow, Some quietly hoping this breath might carry them a little further. Allow yourself to feel this, The air entering your lungs, Ancient, Circling, Alive. You are not alone. You are deeply connected. Right now, You are held by the same breath that has sustained all of life across all time. And as we take one final nourishing breath together, Return to your day as a part of this family of living things. Every shared breath, A reminder that you belong.