MIDL 14/36: Insight Meditation: Lengthening Out-Breath

In this meditation, Stephen Procter will guide you in the insight meditation skill of slowly releasing the out-breath through your nose, as if sighing, in order to experience deep mental relaxation as a basis for 'abandoning' participation with all experience. Extending the length of the out-breath slowly through your nose has the effect of relaxing the frontal lobes of brain creating the conditions for mindful non-participation. Support articles and instructions for this guided meditation can be found in the Free Online MIDL Insight Meditation Course by checking Stephens Procter's teacher profile.

Transcript

During this mindfulness training we'll develop the third MIDL softening door of extending the breath out through the nose in a slow gentle sigh.

This softening skill is used for deconditioning habitual defensive patterns of mind by removing the fuel provided to the thinking process by participation.

If you are currently experiencing anxiety please only do this mindfulness training with supervision from a trained professional.

Now start out by taking your meditation posture and closing your eyes over lightly.

Start to be aware of what it feels like just to be here.

Becoming aware of any sounds around you.

Just allowing the sounds to come into you.

Now slowly bringing your awareness into your body.

Becoming aware of any warmth or coolness within your body,

Holding them gently in mind.

Becoming aware of the touch of your hands.

And the pressure of your body as it rests on the chair or on the floor.

The experience of your whole body and just sitting here.

Now keeping the experience of just sitting here in mind,

See if you can notice any time your attention wanders away from it.

And did your attention wander?

Did any thinking arise within your mind?

Now we're going to do the same exercise but this time we're going to observe thinking.

Whenever you notice that your mind has started to think,

I'd like you to take a slow breath out through your nose to relax any effort you feel.

Now bringing your awareness to your body.

Keeping the experience of your body just sitting here in mind.

Keeping one hand gently within the other.

Start to become aware of the touch of your hands.

Any warmth or coolness or pressure.

Now relax your mental grip on your hands and allow your mind to wander.

See if you can notice when thinking begins.

Shhh.

Is there thinking within your mind?

If so,

Just take a gentle breath in and letting a slow breath out through your nose,

Relax the effort to think.

Bringing your awareness back into your body,

Just sitting here.

Becoming aware of the touch of your hands,

Any warmth or coolness or pressure,

Holding them gently in mind.

Now relax your mental grip on your hands and allow your mind to wander,

Allow your mind to think.

See if you can notice when thinking begins.

Is Tiff 6 table Is there thinking present within your mind?

If so,

Just take a gentle breath in and letting a slow breath out for your nose,

Relax the effort to think.

Now bringing awareness back into your body,

And just sitting here,

Present,

Now I'd like you to observe your mind.

How do you feel mentally at this time?

Is your awareness clear or dull?

Is your mind restless or settled?

Where can you experience breathing within your body?

Just relax and observe.

Is it in your chest or in your belly?

Without changing your breathing,

Just observe how deeply it goes.

Now we're going to take a deep breath in and out.

Now we're going to take some softening breaths.

Take a gentle breath in and letting a slow breath out for your nose,

Relax any mental effort you feel.

Slowly in and slowly out for your nose,

Mentally relax.

Slowly in,

Slowly out for your nose,

Relaxing even deeper.

And slowly in and slowly out,

Relax.

Slowly in and slowly out for your nose,

Relaxing even deeper.

Now bringing awareness back into your body,

And just sitting here,

Present,

Now I'd like you to observe how you feel mentally at this time after doing the softening breaths.

Is there any change in your mindfulness,

In your presence after doing this softening breathing?

Has awareness changed?

Has your state of mind changed?

Where can you experience your breathing within your body?

Relax,

Observe.

Is it in your chest or in your belly?

Without changing your breathing,

Just observe how deeply your breathing goes.

Now bringing awareness back into your body.

Present safe.

Now I'd like you to bring a memory to mind,

A memory of an unpleasant experience from your past,

Holding that memory gently in mind.

Notice when you hold this memory in mind,

Any changes that happen in the experience of your body.

Do you feel a tightening around the base of your throat,

In the top of your chest or stomach?

Know that this feeling in your body can't hurt you in any way,

It's just a reflection of your mind within your body,

A reflection of the past.

You may also notice an experience of unpleasantness,

A sense of unease.

Know that this also cannot hurt you in any way,

It's just a danger signal from your mind,

Holding this experience gently in mind.

Mindfully observe any changes within your body,

Changes within your breathing,

Changes within your state of mind.

Now we're going to experience the MIDL softening skill of extending the out-breath through the nose in a slow gentle sigh,

To relax our participation with this memory,

With this reaction within our body.

Taking a slow gentle breath in,

And letting a slow breath out through your nose,

Relax your participation in this memory,

Slowly in and slowly out through your nose,

Mentally sink and slowly in,

Slowly out,

Relaxing deeper and deeper,

Slowly in,

Slowly out,

Relaxing or mentally effort.

Your mind becomes still,

Relaxed,

Now as your breath goes out relax your eyelids,

Your eyes,

Allowing your eyelids to droop,

To become heavy,

Sinking,

Softening your forehead,

Allowing it to smooth out,

Move relaxed,

Noticing any mental tension behind your forehead,

And using slow gentle breaths out through your nose,

Slowing the breath out on the out-breath,

Soften relax any mental tension you feel,

Allowing yourself to mentally relax,

To mentally soften,

Release,

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Reviews

Wonderful guided meditation of training the attention using breathing and body awareness. Stephen has a very calm and clear voice.

It must be 14 years now that I am following I'm practicing these exercises. And yet, it feels like I am just getting started, like I am just beginning to figure things out. Perhaps it might be better said that I'm beginning how to unfigure things out.

Thank you for sharing so many wonderful gateways to softening into life Stephen. They help me so much every day. 🙏

Still using MIDL at least 3 times a week, it’s been years now, 5 or 6, I sit in a chair rather than crossed legs as I get older, my little fluffy sausage dog on my lap, snoring gently. Such a wonderful start to the day! 🙏🏼

Another great meditation, one I can see using often throughout the day as stuff comes up. Thank you for your work and for this course, it's changing my life!

For me, a powerful and instructive meditation.
Thank you as always Stephen for sharing your time and wisdom 🙏

A great practice for settling the unsettled mind and body. It is difficult to purposely bring unpleasant thoughts to mind but a few deep breaths and you'll find things calm and settle. Thank you Stephen. ☮️💖🙏

this was a powerful meditation. The softening practices feel so rich and build wonderfully off one another.

excellent! restful and rejuvenating 🙂
I will definitely be repeating this meditation regularly!