06:39

Why Do We Focus On Breathing When Meditating?

by Ven.Pomnyun Sunim

Rated
4.5
Type
talks
Activity
Meditation
Suitable for
Everyone
Plays
18

[With English interpretation]Ven. Pomnyun Sunim's answer to "Why do we focus on breathing when meditating”. A question is chosen from the weekly Sunday meditation with Ven. Pomnyun Sunim. Peace of mind is only one step away. Join Sunday Meditation and Live Dharma Talk with Ven. Pomnyun Sunim.

BreathingMeditationMindfulnessThoughtsSufferingAnxietyPeace Of MindFocused BreathingPresent Moment AwarenessThought ObservationSuffering ReductionFuture AnxietyDharma TalksMental Video LoopsSensory ExperiencesVirtual Reality Meditations

Transcript

Why do we focus on breathing when meditating?

If you are working to experience mindfulness,

Why shouldn't we be using our mind to solve our problems or make our lives better?

We think that in today's society,

It is more natural to see,

Hear,

And smell with our own eyes.

In today's society,

If we think that we see,

Hear,

And smell with our own eyes,

It is like playing a video or virtual reality.

When you are thinking,

It is analogous to living or reinterpreting reality into a virtual reality of your own.

If we can say that the actual objective reality is the sensations that come,

The signals that come through your senses,

Whether it is visual,

Smell,

Or a sense of hearing,

But thinking means that you are interpreting that into a kind of your own narrative in virtual reality.

For example,

If somebody criticizes me negatively and I feel bad about it,

What's that exchange is all for?

That sensation should go away,

That feeling.

However,

We tend to record that into a mental video and loop that video over and over again,

Although the actual incident is far long gone.

By looping that video,

We continue to suffer the same feeling that we got in the original incident.

Almost 90% of our suffering is caused by us insisting on looping the videos of the past.

In that sense,

That's why we suffer a lot more than animals.

Also,

There is another source of suffering for us is we think about the future and there is anxiety,

There is concern,

There is worry involved in thinking about the future.

In order to attain peace and get away from this suffering,

You have to be awake to here and now.

In other words,

Stop the thinking process and be just mindful awake to what's happening right now.

So what you are suggesting,

Thinking your way out of this problem,

When thinking itself is the source of the problem,

Is contradictory.

So,

What you are suggesting is to stop thinking.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

So,

What you are suggesting is to stop thinking.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

Stop thinking and be mindful of what's happening right now.

And try to stop the kind of constant thinking process that's occurring inside us.

And to do that,

We are using the focus on the breath to allow us to enable that.

And to do that,

We are using the focus on the breath to allow us to enable that.

And if we have to move,

As we move,

We observe how we move.

So,

All these are different tools and methods to really pause and seize your thought and allow yourself to be awake to here and now.

And if you can maintain your mindfulness to here and now,

And be awake to the objective reality of here and now,

Then you can stop and seize those thoughts.

And as we move,

We are moving to the next level.

And as the first step,

As a beginner,

If you could close your eyes and focus on the breath,

You'll realize that the only thing that's happening in the here and now is you breathing.

That's why we focus on the breath.

Meet your Teacher

Ven.Pomnyun SunimSeoul, South Korea

More from Ven.Pomnyun Sunim

Loading...

Related Meditations

Loading...

Related Teachers

Loading...
© 2025 Ven.Pomnyun Sunim. All rights reserved. All copyright in this work remains with the original creator. No part of this material may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

How can we help?

Sleep better
Reduce stress or anxiety
Meditation
Spirituality
Something else