Welcome,
Welcome,
Welcome and welcome back if you are returning.
Today is day 10 of Nalu Mind the Flow and it's kind of a special day today because as we are moving through this process we happen to be on the spring equinox.
So if you are attending in real time and participating in real time happy equinox to you and if you're listening to our recording then the equinox can serve as a great metaphor for the practice that we're learning from Nalu today.
So we've been following Nalu as they explore the learnings from their friends on their neighbor island and we've explored both sensing the breath through sound and touch and feeling.
We've also experienced how Nalu learned about taking control of the breath through deep breathing and box breathing.
And today Nalu,
Because it's the equinox and and this is sort of one of the flow patterns or wave patterns that they notice in the world that could be similar to one of the wave patterns or flow patterns that they notice in their body,
Nalu wants to explore more of a circular breathing.
So previously they'd practiced box breathing which consisted of counting,
Counting in for a count,
Holding for a count,
And exhaling for a count,
And holding for a count.
The circular breathing that they learn is very similar to this only the the corners of the box get rounded off in between the various phases of the breath.
So we'll we'll experiment with that in a minute following Nalu's lead.
So for for the beginning here go ahead and make sure you're in a comfortable position.
Make sure that you're seated lying back or if you're walking that you're finding yourself in a in a place where you can be safe and comfortable for a few minutes.
And then you might like to have your eyes open or closed for this.
You're welcome to participate in any way that you see fit.
Again,
As we take control of the breathing,
Your your body may react in different ways as you take conscious control of the breath.
So at any time if you feel uncomfortable or you're experiencing a sensation that you'd rather not experience,
Just let the breath return back to its normal in and out.
That happens all by itself.
So as we notice the waves moving in and the waves moving out on the shoreline and as we notice the changing of the seasons and the circular patterns that happen within our our universe,
We might like to observe those within the body.
And one way to do that is through circular breathing.
It can be a great help,
As we did on day one,
To place your hand on your belly at this point so you can feel your belly rising and falling.
That can be a great help.
Or you can also pay attention to the sound of the breath as it comes into and goes out from the body.
For the circular breath,
We're going to do the same thing we did previously with the box,
And we're going to add a little curvature at the top of the count.
So as we inhale for a count,
Just imagine that you're keeping the lungs open then as you quote-unquote hold the breath.
And then as you turn to start to exhale,
Imagine it's turning a corner and it's sort of a smooth edge rather than a tough box corner.
So okay,
Let's give it a shot.
I'm going to be doing counts of four,
And we'll be taking it nice and slow today because we've done this before.
So we're going to be inhaling for a count of four.
So go ahead and inhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
And then just kind of transfer to keeping the lungs open.
Two,
Three,
Four,
And then notice how it turns around as you exhale.
Two,
Three,
Four,
And kind of sits at the bottom keeping the lungs empty of air.
Two,
Three,
Four,
And then somehow it turns around and starts to inhale again.
Two,
Three,
Four,
And then it sort of holds at the top.
The lungs are open and just kind of hovering with the lungs filled.
Three,
Four,
And then just kind of exhaling very naturally.
Two,
Three,
Four,
And then just pausing as if in thought while the lungs are empty.
Two,
Three,
Four.
Wonderful,
Wonderful.
Letting the breath return back to normal is as fine right now and just observing how you feel.
Observing the sensation in your body and noticing how the breath returns back to its normal cadence.
Its normal breath might be coming in through the nose and out through the nose.
It might be coming in through the mouth and going out through the mouth or a combination of both.
And that's very natural at this time.
So just sitting back and easing into the natural feeling of the breath as it happens.
And we'll be back in just a minute to take one more circular breath.
Wonderful,
Wonderful.
Noticing the breathing as it happens naturally.
The air moves in and the air moves out almost on its own.
Just observing that happen for another breath or two here.
And then as you become ready,
We're going to take one more set of two or three circular breaths.
So go ahead and begin to inhale on the inhale on the inhale.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
And then notice how it just sort of holds the breath open,
Holding on the inhale.
Two,
Three,
Four.
And then it just turns around and starts to exhale.
Two,
Three,
Four.
And then it just holds the lungs empty on the bottom of the exhale for a count of one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
And then it begins to exhale again and increase the lung size.
Two,
Three,
Four.
And it holds open on the top.
The lungs are open and just pausing on the inhale.
Two,
Three,
Four.
And in a very easy way then beginning to exhale.
Two,
Three,
Four.
And then pausing at the bottom of the exhale and just holding the lungs empty.
Two,
Three,
Four.
Wonderful.
And then just letting the breath return back to normal at this point.
And just observing the breathing as it happens.
Our protagonist Nalu likes to use these breathing techniques when they are in situations where they just want to calm the mind and they want to perceive what's really going on around them in its natural state.
And so even quietly and to themselves,
Even when out in the open,
They can use this kind of breathing technique to calm the mind and ease the situations as they happen.
But for us just now,
We're just going to be observing the breath and watching the breath happen for a little bit longer,
Just settling back into a very natural rhythm of inhales and exhales.
And maybe noticing special attention on that shift.
Where does the shift happen between the inhale and the exhale?
And then where does the shift happen between the exhale and the inhale?
And then as we reach toward the end of day 10 for Nalu Mind the Flow,
I will welcome you back to the room.
Welcome you back to the sounds and the sensations that are being present.
Hopefully you're feeling alert and awake after having practiced this new technique and this new idea about how we might pay attention to the breath and and notice the wave pattern or the Nalu pattern or the flow pattern that also happens in nature and also happens in our lives.
So thank you for being here and hope to see you again.
