Breathing Meditation To Stillness

This is a journey through breath and sound, to calm and stillness. It is recorded live in nature, with the sounds of a handpan and didgeridoo along with my voice guiding the meditation. You will also hear the sounds of nature in the background.

I recommend lying comfortably for this experience.

Transcript

Welcome to this meditation.

Today we are sat beneath a lovely sequoia tree next to a small stream on a sort of walkway through a nice public garden in Bournemouth,

England.

You'll likely hear the sounds of the birds,

Maybe some insects,

You may even be able to pick up on the stream,

The flow of the stream.

And occasionally you'll even hear the sound of humans,

Maybe even dogs as they pass by.

In this meditation we're going to be focusing on our breath,

Playing with the different paces with the goal of finding stillness at the end of it.

You will also hear the sounds of the didgeridoo and the handpan as well as my voice as I guide you through this.

So let's just bring your awareness to your breath,

Making sure you're in a comfortable position.

I would recommend laying,

But if you're comfortable,

Sat upright then do so.

Just make sure the spine is nice and straight and following your breath as it flows in and out of the nose,

No restriction on pace,

No guidance even.

Try and follow without control,

Noticing the pressure,

The pressure building as the breath comes in and noticing the pressure lessen and release on the exhale.

And what we'll do is we'll gently take control of the breath now and we're going to just one breath at a time and work your way to the full range of motion.

Don't rush there,

Keep it steady,

Keep it slow.

With every inhale drawing in just a touch more breath than you did on the previous one.

And with every exhale we push away a touch more breath than you did before.

No rush,

Just gently working to the full range of motion.

When I say full range,

Let's make sure the breath is being directed down to the belly first and when you feel like the belly is reaching its capacity then start to allow the torso,

The ribcage to expand.

Staying tuned into the pressure and the release,

You may notice the pressure build in the belly and then that pressure shift as the ribcage begins to expand,

As the breath becomes fuller.

And as you get closer to emptying the lungs on the exhale you may notice the need to just squeeze the abdominals just a touch,

Just to clear the lungs completely.

Now if we aren't already at the full range of motion,

Let's aim to be there in the next three or four breaths.

If you are already there,

Let there be subtle pauses at either end,

Even just for two seconds or so,

Just subtle short pauses,

All the way in through the nose,

Belly expands,

Ribcage expands,

Full capacity.

We hold here,

Recognising the pressure,

Waiting for the sound of the didgeridoo before you release the breath and allow it to flow.

Getting control of the breath again,

Bringing it back to the full range,

The slightly faster pace,

A little more intention now.

This time when you reach that full capacity,

When you feel that pressure,

Instead of releasing it from the nose,

We are going to sigh it from the mouth,

Draw the breath in through the nose,

Belly,

Ribcage,

Every bit of breath you can fit in,

Releasing with an audible sigh,

Then resting in the emptiness,

Drawing the breath back in and repeating,

So the breath comes in through the nose,

Sighs out of the mouth,

And this is where you rest with the lungs empty,

Experiencing that moment of emptiness,

That void,

And then drawing the breath back in.

Do not force yourself to hold the lungs empty,

Just allow for the hold,

And as soon as that desire becomes so strong you must breathe back in,

Then let it happen.

Stay with this flow,

In through the nose,

Full capacity,

Sighing from the mouth,

Resting in the emptiness.

Now letting that sigh express as you wish intuitively,

Maybe a different sort of sound comes through,

Maybe the vocal cords engage,

The throat chakra may even become active here,

Stimulation of the vagus nerve as we release with a sound.

Just a couple more like this,

And after your next exhale,

Allow the breath to flow straight away,

No need to hold,

But let it be effortless,

It does not need to be full range,

Let the breath flow in through the nose until you recognize you are pulling,

As soon as you spot that you are pulling the breath in,

Allow the breath to flow out,

And when you notice you are pushing the breath away,

Allow for it to flow in,

Find that sweet spot where the breath does all the work itself.

Notice how the body feels as you breathe with no effort,

How the mind responds,

Do not judge,

Just observe,

Just be aware.

Now we lengthen the breath again,

Adding a touch more intention and more power,

And this time when the lungs reach full capacity we blow the breath away,

Like we are blowing out a candle in the distance,

Pursing the lips and drawing out the exhale,

Letting the inhale come in with speed,

Maybe it only takes 4 seconds to draw the breath in,

Maybe even less,

But make sure the exhale is longer than the inhale here.

On the exhales we are clearing CO2,

Oxygenating the body,

This will create tingling,

Maybe some lightheadedness,

Do not worry,

It will pass,

You are safe to do this,

But if you do feel any discomfort you are not happy with,

Then settle into the slow effortless breath.

Let's just have another 40 seconds or so,

In through the nose,

Blowing from the mouth,

Clearing with the exhale,

No pauses at either end,

Continuous flow in and out,

10 more seconds,

And then we will have our first extended breath hold,

In 3,

2,

1,

Let's draw the breath all the way in full expansion,

And releasing from the nose with power,

Empty the lungs completely and keep them empty,

Resting here,

No breath,

Now allowing the breath to flow effortless and silent,

Just like we did before,

Doesn't need to be full range,

Letting the breath leave when you notice you are pulling,

Letting it enter when you notice you are pushing,

Find that sweet spot where the breath does all the work,

And we are going to try a more energetic flow and rhythm of breath now,

And keep it to the nose,

The inhales and the exhales,

Going to be 3 parts in and 3 parts out,

You may feel the belly expand first,

Then the ribcage,

And that last part,

The top of the chest,

The collar bone,

Even the throat expanding,

And that third part of the breath,

And as the breath releases,

Notice the 3 different stages of pressure,

You can notice that on the inhale also,

And noticing the pressure release in 3 stages on the exhale,

Now I am going to set a pace for the first 30 seconds or so,

You can follow my pace or you can find your own,

Then I am going to play the dig,

And you can find whatever pace you want during that,

Fast or slow,

Just try and stay with the 3 parts,

And let's draw the breath all the way in,

And one smooth inhale,

And we release in 3,

Back in,

And stay with this flow,

3 parts in,

3 parts out,

And just another 10 seconds with this pace,

5,

4,

3,

2,

1,

Full inhalation,

Feel the expansion,

Hold it at the top,

The lungs completely full,

Is there any more room,

Try and fill it,

Hold it,

Hold it,

Hold it,

And we release from the nose,

Emptying the lungs,

Completely empty and rest,

Rest,

Let them stay empty,

And we aim for another 30 seconds on this hold,

If you want to breathe sooner and then do so,

Try without any effort,

Slow and gentle,

15 more seconds,

Soft,

With ease,

In and out of the nose,

And we use our awareness,

We send the awareness down to the base of the body,

Once the breath has settled,

If the breath is still kind of unsettled,

Just wait a moment,

Let the breath settle,

And then when the breath has settled,

We bring the awareness to the base,

To the feet,

To the toes,

The ankles,

And just recognize how they serve you,

And draw the breath in just a touch further,

Doesn't need to be full range,

But just a touch more than you were,

And as you release the breath,

Let the control you hold here go,

Let the tension release,

Let the feet,

The ankles,

The toes,

And melt,

Let them rest,

And the awareness travels higher,

The calves,

The shins,

The knees,

And we do the same here,

Applying just a touch of effort to draw the breath in,

And as the breath releases,

Let go of the calves,

The knees,

The shins,

Let them rest,

And the awareness comes higher,

The thighs,

The hips,

The glutes,

The groin,

This whole hip complex,

Recognize as they rest on the ground,

Feel the weight pressing down,

And give the weight away,

Give the weight to the ground beneath you,

Let yourself be held,

Allowing for this part of you to truly rest,

And we do the same with the torso,

The whole length of the spine,

The chest,

The abdominals,

Recognize how this part serves you,

Show some appreciation,

Some gratitude,

And apply a touch of effort to the inhale,

And as the breath leaves,

Let the torso just melt away,

Surrendering the control you hold here,

Send the awareness from the shoulders,

Through the biceps,

The triceps,

The elbows,

Forearms,

Down to the palms of the hands,

The wrists,

The fingertips,

The knuckles,

Serve you,

And give them a break,

As the breath drifts out of the nose,

Let the arms soften completely,

Let them rest,

Let them be,

The awareness comes to the neck,

Let it soften,

Knowing that the head is held,

The throat relaxed,

Let the jaw soften,

The tongue,

The subtleties of the face,

The lips,

The cheeks,

The nose,

The forehead,

The eyebrows,

The eyelids rest,

The eyes themselves,

And see if you can even relax that space that's just behind the eyes,

Not the space you are looking through,

But that space you are looking from,

And as the breath leaves,

Let the awareness follow,

Kind of like a lucid dream,

Your awareness travels out with the breath,

And it just floats above you,

Watching you in the stillness,

And the subtle movements of the belly,

As the breath flows by itself,

I hear in this state just absorb the sounds,

Observe the thoughts,

Any sensations,

Without judgment,

Just allow for the flow of all things,

Nothing needs to be stopped,

There is nothing to hold,

There's nothing to resist,

Just allow,

Just accept,

And just rest,

Now you can stay in this state as long as you like,

Or you can bring yourself back with me now,

If you choose to continue resting,

Just take my advice,

And when i say come back slow,

Let the breath be the first thing to begin to move,

If you're coming back with me now,

Then just gently lengthening your breath,

One breath at a time,

Let the lungs be the first point of movement,

And when the lungs are moving comfortably,

The belly and the ribcage are expanding,

And contracting,

Just intuitively let that movement flow to the rest of the body,

The fingers,

The toes,

The face,

And gradually let that movement expand,

It may feel good to reach overhead and stretch the arms,

You may want to roll onto your side and eventually roll into your front,

Maybe into a child's pose,

Move slow,

Move gentle,

Move however feels good,

Do not rush,

Take your time,

And thank you for joining us,

And i hope you feel rested and clear after this practice,

Take care.

Reviews

Amazing! The best breath practice I ever did. Thank you 🙏🏼

Thank you for your guidance through this wonderful journey!🌷

Thanks for taking me on a breathing journey from the California Redwoods to the British isles Sequoias. This was a great practice culminating into stillness. It helped me regain more strength from a bad flu I am just recovering from. I highly recommend your breathing guidance 🙏