Welcome back,
Friends.
Today's breathing practice is lovingly adapted from the radiant breath which I learned from my teachers at Agna Yoga College in Victoria,
BC.
Let's begin.
Come to lie down on your back in a constructive rest position with your knees bent and your feet flat.
Begin to notice the natural rhythm of your breath as you relax your body.
Feel free to close your eyes or gently gaze towards the ceiling,
Softening the space behind your eyes.
Place one hand on your chest,
Perhaps over your heart on the left side,
And one hand gently resting on your belly.
Allow your chest to become quiet,
And with every inhale,
Focus on moving your breath deeper and deeper toward your belly.
On your next inhale,
Notice the feeling of your belly expanding underneath your hand,
And as you exhale,
Feel your belly soften.
Continue to breathe this way for three more breaths.
Once your breath has dropped into your belly,
And your chest has become quiet,
Feel free to move both of your hands to your belly,
And continue to feel your breath.
When you're ready,
Begin to bring your awareness to Samanavayu.
You can find Samanavayu by placing three fingers below your navel.
Think of this as your center,
A swirling wind within the body from which the breath will expand from on the inhale,
And gather back into on the exhale.
On your next inhale,
Allow your breath to expand from Samana,
And as you exhale,
Welcome your breath back to your center,
Back to Samana,
Like you're welcoming an old friend.
Continue to breathe this way,
Inhaling from your center,
Exhaling back to your center,
For three more breaths.
Next,
Move your hands to the sides of your belly.
Your palms can rest on your ribs,
Or the backs of your hands,
Depending on what feels best for you and your shoulders.
On your next inhale,
Feel your breath expand out through the sides of your belly,
Into your hands,
And as you exhale,
Feel your sides relaxing,
Sinking back into your body.
Notice if one side of your body is expanding more than the other,
And try to find a sense of evenness between both sides.
Continue to breathe this way for three more breaths.
Next,
We'll bring our hands onto our low back,
With your palms facing down,
And the backs of your hands making contact with your lower back.
Feel free to bring your hands into a diamond shape,
With the fingertips touching,
And if this feels uncomfortable to have your hands underneath you,
Feel free to bring them to your sides,
Or your belly,
And just focus on the area of your low back.
On your next inhale,
Begin to notice your low back expanding to meet your hands or the floor.
On your exhale,
Feel your lower back relaxing back into your body.
We'll continue breathing this way for three more rounds of breath.
Feel free to bring both of your hands back onto your belly,
And begin to focus once again on the breath expanding from Samana Vayu,
Your center.
Notice the breath expanding on all sides of the belly,
As you inhale,
And as you exhale,
Notice your belly relaxing,
As you focus your breath coming back to your center.
As you continue to breathe,
Notice the front of your belly,
The sides of your belly,
And your low back,
All expanding from Samana Vayu,
Your center.
As you exhale,
Feel a gathering back in,
Back to your center,
Back to your Samana.
Become aware of a feeling of your breath expanding beyond the belly,
To the outer layers of your skin,
The tips of your body,
Fingers,
Toes,
The crown of your head.
The breath taking on a three-dimensional quality,
Moving outward,
Outward,
Outward from your center.
And as you exhale,
Moving inward,
Inward,
Inward,
Back to your center,
Back to Samana.
Continue this breath for ten more rounds.
Last breath,
Our radiant breath is fluid,
Long,
Smooth,
And infinite.
Thank you for joining me for this guided breathing exercise.
Until next time,
Friends,
Stay gentle.
