Lose Yourself In The Breath (No Music)

We use the breath to meditate as a focus for our attention. We begin to find the rhythm and connection to everything as we breathe in and out. We breathe in the next moment of possibility and can breathe out anything and everything that we want to let go of. In fact, we have to let go in order to receive the next possibility... the next breath. We don't often notice, but as we breathe and put our attention deep into the breath, for a moment we lose our self.

Transcript

Immediately, A shift happens after we've been practicing for a while, That I sit or I lay down, I find my place. And it's almost as though a field is generated immediately or the nervous system Pavlovian-like starts to relax a little bit. All this is just worth noticing. The great power that we develop here is the power of noticing, Observing, Watching, With curiosity, How and what this thing is, This experience, This life, Without finding answers even, But opening to curiosity. So noticing the body, Noticing the tension, Notice where there's more or less tension, Acknowledging for a moment the amount of activity that the body, The body-mind is engaged in, Without and beyond our help or attention, Just happening. Blood's flowing, Heart beating, Lungs breathing, Cells dividing, Immune function happening, All these electrical impulses moving through the body, Different levels of frequency. We tune in deeper into it, Starting to feel the more subtle aspects of it, The lighter frequencies, Higher frequencies. Feeling that as energy and simply acknowledging being. And the great inhalation and exhalation of the breath that continues this being, This experience mediates our next moment. Noticing where the breath is, Noticing any restrictions, Getting a sense as we breathe, As we start to move the breath down to the belly and start to take slower and deeper breaths, Just how much tension there really is. That as we breathe, As we breathe in, Breathe out, As we fill and take deeper breaths in and out, And we start to loosen some tension that we're never really even aware of. So just allowing that breath to move down, Allowing the diaphragm to flex, Soften. Noticing the belly, Noticing where there's any difficulty receiving the breath deep down into the body. Can even envision the breath being anchored at the bottom of your torso, All the way down your lower back, Even further down to your hips. Bringing a breath in, Comes in through the nose or the mouth, Comes down and gets pulled and anchored and held very deeply in the body. Just breathing in, Breathing out. With each inhalation, Just bringing the breath in a little bit more, A little bit fuller, A little bit deeper. And then on the out breath, Just letting it go, Releasing it all. The out breath is a practice, Is a metaphor, Is a pathway to truly let go of anything that we're holding onto. And that in breath is the renewal, It's the bringing in of possibilities, The opening to the next moment, Is bringing in the energy, The chi of life into our being, Permeating our experience, Enlivening our structure. And the out breath just letting go again, Just releasing, Exchanging the gases with the rest of our environment. In this way, Recognizing that we are not separate, We are constantly in a pulsing interaction with all that is around us. In this way through the breath, Receiving, Giving, Receiving, Giving. As we breathe and put our attention deep into this breath, For a moment we can lose our attention to thought, Our attention to figuring it out, Our attention to solving problems, Which is really an attention to ourself, To our story, To our ego. So for every moment that we are, Attention is trained on the breath. We're deeply involved in the in breath or the out breath, The sound, The feeling. That moment, We, Our small self, Is not there anymore. Gone. Just for a moment, Until we pay attention to another thought. This way we have many, Many experiences of losing self, Losing the ego only to regain it. From its point of view, Always connected. It's always a linear connection. But the truth is something deeper. We have many moments of presence. We stay without ego, Without self, Without identity, Without thoughts. So breathing in more fully, Starting to get to the edges of that in breath, Starting to find the contours, The inner landscape of the breath. And on the out breath, Starting to really not just let it go, But push it out a little bit, Squeeze the body in, Squeeze the belly in, Pull it up as though you were squeezing the lungs, Getting out every bit of air. And as we really fulfill the space within us to the edge, And as we completely empty, Squeeze out, We can pause after each one. So when you're full with air, Just pause, Hold, And be, Notice, And let go. Same thing on the out breath, Just fully out squeezing, Leaving, Letting go of everything and holding that space. And as you do this on the in breath, Hold, Out breath, Hold, Start to notice the sensations, What it feels like to want to let go, Or what it feels like to want to receive the next moment with a little more urgency. And that there is no fully receiving the next moment without a real letting go. Make space. And with each hold, You can extend the hold just another second or two. Just being with and noticing the fullness. Of our physicality around breathing, Around being, Exchanging, Connecting. Noticing those moments where there's full connection, Full awareness of the breath. Not paying attention to thoughts, Ideas. That it's okay to lose ourselves. It's okay to go deeply inward, Connect with something more basic or fundamental. Simply being. And then just allowing yourself to let go of the breath. Let and notice the body breathe you. Happens automatically. Step back with the mind. Notice. Notice all that's happening automatically. Notice your ability to notice. Watch. And then returning to the breath, Taking three deep, Powerful breaths in and out. Really filling up and letting go. Bring your attention back to your body, Feeling your fingers and your toes. Gently opening your eyes. I'm taking this with you for the rest of your day.

Reviews

Love this meditation! No distracting background music & he knows how to speak calmly & softly without that weird whispering that others often do. Perfect for me.

What a wonderful meditation. I usually prefer more silence in meditation sessions, but here there isn’t anything I would remove from the guidance that I would trade for that silence. The guidance helped me focus on my breath, and release deeply. I really appreciate this session. Bookmarking it!

Very helpful for loosening of clinging to ego or our self construct. Many thanks 🙏