Complete breath.
This is the third breath meditation in a series of four.
Following this will be the breath ratios.
However,
If you're just starting with these breath meditations,
You may want to start with breath inquiry followed by mindful breathing.
I recommend that if complete breath is new for you,
You take a position lying down where you're comfortable,
Maybe even supporting the knees and the head.
Not where we're going to fall asleep,
But where the spine is long and neutral.
If you've been practicing this technique for a bit,
Then I encourage you to try doing it seated.
You could even sit in a chair,
Put something underneath your sit bones to help to support your pelvis,
Or even take your back up against a wall.
Finding a position where you're not fighting your body.
Typically our breath is automatic and involuntary.
It's continuous and we don't have to think about it.
But in this way we only use about 20% of our breathing capability.
Oftentimes the mechanics of the default breath include chest breathing.
And chest breathing is too shallow to bring in maximum oxygen and it does not allow us to fully expel the lungs on exhale.
The chest muscles are considered accessory muscles in breathing.
The diaphragm is the main muscle of respiration,
But it's often underutilized.
When we maximize the role of the diaphragm in respiration,
Our breathing is fuller,
Longer,
And more powerful.
We increase our oxygen consumption and the ability to release carbon dioxide.
We are also in the present moment increasing conscious awareness as we do in a meditation practice.
We begin the complete breath with position one.
Place your hands on the abdomen with the tips of the fingers lightly touching near the navel center.
Breathe in a way that the abdomen fills and rises into your hands like a balloon,
Separating the index fingers on the inhalation.
Notice how on the inhale the fingers slightly part and on the exhale the fingers come back together.
Allow the breath to fill the sides and back of the body so that there's a full expansion in all directions.
As you exhale,
Feel the navel draw toward the front of the spine.
That's when the index fingers come back together.
Then release the gentle pull of the navel and allow the abdomen to float upward into the next inhale as if the inhale is answering the exhale.
Practice this breath for five to eight rounds so you feel more comfortable with it.
Breathing to the abdomen,
Particularly focusing on the exhalation,
Brings us into a deeper state of relaxation.
Notice if you feel calmer and more relaxed.
Then we'll move on to position two.
Move the hands out to the sides of the lower rib cages with the fingers pointing towards one another.
Lightly press the heels of the hands into the sides of the ribs.
As you inhale,
First fill the abdomen as you did in position one.
Then consciously expand the sides of the rib cages into your hands with the breath.
Notice how the ribs expand slightly outward and upward into the hands on the inhalation.
Allow the ribs to soften inward and downward on the exhalation.
Notice the movement of the abdomen as it flows into the movement of the ribs,
The muscles between the ribs.
As if we can't even differentiate these two positions.
One just flows into the next.
And continue breathing to the abdomen and the ribs for five to eight more rounds of breath.
Notice again how you feel.
Did you feel more physical movement in the body?
Is there any emotion that you're sensing?
And then we'll move on to position three.
Place the hands on the upper chest with the fingers softly fanned out under the collarbones.
Breathe into the hands by filling the chest with the inhalation.
Noticing the upward expansion into the hands.
Allow the chest and the heart to relax on the exhalation as the breath leaves the lungs.
The movement in this area may be less noticeable.
But continue to practice breathing into the chest.
And we'll go on to putting all three of these positions together.
Allow the mind to image the front of the body.
From the tailbone to the tongue.
As this fuller breath becomes more natural,
The three hand positions will flow one into the next.
For now you can either rest your hands at your sides or place your left hand on your heart center and your right hand on your navel center.
Feel the wave of breath move up the torso on inhalation and down on exhalation.
Or you may feel more comfortable emptying the breath from the chest to the abdomen or the abdomen to the chest.
See what feels more natural.
Allow the breath to fill from the tail to the tongue and empty in whatever way feels best for you.
You may get distracted occasionally by your own thoughts or even something outside of you.
It's okay.
Return to the breath.
Feeling the breath rise up through the body in all directions from bottom to top.
And leaving your body in any spontaneous way that feels most pleasant for you.
Stay in the unbroken stream of breathing.
Consider adding a color,
A sound,
A temperature,
Or any other image to keep the mind focused on the breath and the body relaxed.
You may even have a word or an intention,
A mantra that you repeat to yourself as you breathe in and out.
As you continue with this complete breath pattern,
Notice all four parts of the complete breath.
The inhalation as it rises up,
The space between the inhale and exhale,
The exhalation as it leaves your body,
And the space at the bottom of the exhalation,
The peaceful palms.
Please take five to eight more rounds of breath,
Enjoying the view inside of yourself.
