The Breath As Spirit, Inspiration & Path To Awakening

In many languages, the word breath is synonymous with spirit. Let's focus on the breath as the source of inspiration. It's a path to awakening from our normal, everyday experiences to something deeper, stiller, and more profoundly alive.

Transcript

We can bring ourselves into a deep state in order to awaken. Seems paradoxical. Flipping the idea of wake and sleep on its head. Let us bring ourselves deeper, Calmer, Quieter, Slower. Almost as though we're sleeping, But with attention and awareness. By doing so, We create the way of viewing, Of being that is actually more awake. And helps us with something about our experience. It's very different than the normal waking state, Normal everyday state where we're just constantly engaged in our thinking, Believing our thinking, Getting drawn into the stories, Activating the patterns and the traumas, And just going with the carnival of life without question. So turning ourselves inward into a meditative practice helps to reveal all of that as such. As a carnival. An amusement. We can pull back our attention, Drop back into awareness and experience something completely different. Something that's aware of all of that without being taken by all of that. We can do this all simply by working with the breath. The word for breath in many languages is the same as spirit. When we breathe in, We inspire ourselves. With the breath, We connect with this aspect of ourselves that some people call spirit, Which I think of simply as something that's not our normal, Physical, Dominant perception. We connect with something that exists in a more subtle realm, More subtle space around us with us, Within us. And that as we begin to connect with it, As we connect with it over time, Reveals itself as having always been there. And never going anywhere. Always working through us. Always always entering and exiting, Always coming in, Going out. With the rhythm of the breath, With the rhythm of our life. When we turn our attention to the breath. For these moments, We turn away from the thoughts. We turn away from the story, From the amusement. Everything that's being told to us in our mind that seems to be told to us by ourselves is no longer what's important. At least for now, No longer requires attention. And it can exist on its own. Thoughts can be there. They don't have to go away. We don't have to try to silence them. We can simply turn our attention from thought to the breath, To these deeper levels of being. And noticing as you begin, As you drop in, How much resistance there is. How the whole body-mind system tries to get you back to paying attention to the thoughts, To the story, To the carnival of life. Turn ways through the tension that exists, The tension in the body. Stops us from taking in a deeper breath from inspiring fully. That same tension keeps us from letting go fully. So as we breathe and we get the belly softening, Allowing the breath to drop down, We have to let go a little bit. Have to release a little bit. With every little release, With every little letting go, We drop in a little bit deeper and we connect a little bit more fully with this breath, With the spirit, With this energy of within us, This presence. With each breath in, Just allowing the softening of tension, The opening of our system, The welcoming can be very hard for us to really open, Allow ourselves to be that vulnerable. But here as we meditate, We can create the safe space to really put our guard down, Become vulnerable. Come in the breath. As you breathe in, Notice where the tension exists, Where the pushback is. Simply with your attention, Allow some of that to release, Some of that to let go. And also guiding the breath right to where there's tension, The breath itself, As it is opened, As it is allowed in, Can soften those tense areas. The resistance that happens, The tension is full of thoughts and emotions. So as we approach some of these tense areas, We can also get a set of more compelling thoughts or even an emotional wave. So we allow the emotion to come up and to rise and to fall. And we simply acknowledge the thoughts as being there and let them go on by. Putting a little thinking sticker on them, Just letting them go. And that's part of the story, Part of the carnival. Bringing the attention back in to the body, Back into the breath. These are the tricks of the ego. These are the way that the body-mind wants to protect us so we can give that system our gratitude, Recognize that system is trying to protect us. And in the safe space of the meditation, Allow ourselves to open to vulnerability, To bring in the breath to inspire. So noticing any tension in the upper part of your torso, Up into your neck. And even into your face, Just feel all the tension. Allow the breath as you breathe in to come in directionally towards the tension. As though it can just melt the tension away. As you breathe out, Just allowing that to release, Letting it go through the medium of the breath, Riding on that spirit right back out. No resistance. No need to protect, No need to fight, No need to close down in any way. Each moment finding a little bit more space for the breath to come in, For that spirit to come in. Filling our being with presence. Filling with each breath more of ourselves with ourself. Starting letting go more and more of the holding of the upset of the beliefs, The grievances, The fears. And beginning to bring the breath in slowly and fully, Trying to get a nice slow intake that begins to fully fill the belly and the chest. Getting fully out where you don't just let go, You actually push out breath by pulling in the abdomen, Pulling up the diaphragm. So now engaging the body to have fuller, Richer intakes, Inspiration, And then releasing fully, Exhaling, Releasing, Letting go. With each breath doing a little bit longer, A little bit fuller, Trying to get to the edges of where you can no longer take in a breath and on the out breath where you can't any longer breathe out, Squeezed it all out. Keeping the focus on the breath. Allowing this notion of breath as spirit, As connection, As presence to be held. Moving away from the thinking, Turning back or back inward, Taking that attention back inward. To find presence, To find being. Being is before thought, Before judgment, Before understanding. Always there, Always present, Always available. So the edge of each breath, The in breath and the out breath, You can now hold the breath for a few seconds. So a full, Slow, Gentle breath in that fills the belly, The chest, And holding. And releasing all the way out, Squeezing it all out and then holding. For a moment as though you're stopping time, That you're getting in between the pulsations of being. Pausing. Consist ofrie t You You Connecting with the presence With openness, Curiosity, Wonder, Awe You You You You You You You And letting go with the breath and just allowing yourself to be You You Please You You have any needs without any actions You You Allowing all the sensations just to be You You You And then bringing that breath back in nice and deep Releasing You three or four big full in breaths and out breaths You And then when you're ready connecting back with your body feeling your fingers toes Opening the eyes You bringing presence back into your day take it with you