"Embracing the Breath: Connection with the Superpower Within"

This week we have been diving deeper into the ways in which we can cultivate a beginner’s mind through the use of the breath, both in our formal and informal practice. When we bring a curious and kind attention to the actual felt sensation of the breath we can connect more fully with the body. While the breath is also an amazing internal resource that can help us to ground ourselves in those moments when we’re feeling off balance, agitated, nervous or unsettled, we tend not to be aware of the breath because of all of the doing we do throughout the day (and night).

For many of us, we are pulled in so many different directions at any given moment. In all of the running around and strategizing that we do, it is easy to understand how we become disconnected from the body. However, with a regular practice of mindfulness we can increasingly become aware of this tendency and with that awareness, we can intentionally direct our attention to the body and breath.

By resting attention on the breath, we can also learn a great deal about ourselves and how our thoughts often influence what and how we feel. To explore this for yourself, I invite you to take a moment to come into a posture that feels supportive and perhaps allow your eyes to gently close. Begin by directing your attention into the body and notice the body breathing. Wherever the breath is most easily noticed, whether it is the region of the nostrils, the chest or maybe the belly, just allow attention to rest there for a few cycles of breathing. When you are ready, slowly invite your eyes to float open and without judging your experience, notice how you are in the moment.

You may have noticed that at some point during even that very short practice, your mind wandered off. If so, know that you are not alone. Although it is completely natural for our minds to drift off, we are so conditioned to judge ourselves, not only in our formal meditation practice, but in our lives in general. In a sense, we are like our own kryptonite by the things we tell ourselves. For instance, you may have had thoughts during the meditation of, “I’m breathing too fast,” “My breath is too shallow,” or “I’m not a good meditator because I’m not breathing the right way.”

But, the good news is that there is no right or wrong way to breathe when being mindful and there is no particular way that you need to feel with mindfulness. It is a widely held misconception that we need to breathe a certain way, or if we breathe the “right” way, we will feel relaxed after meditation. When we notice our thoughts and tendency to control the breath or force ourselves to feel a particular way, we can simply note that and then begin again. With each unfolding breath, we just let the breath breathe itself and bring a kind, curious attention to what it actually feels like to be breathing moment to moment.

Inevitably, the mind will wander off again and again to perhaps your to-do list, a thought of the past or maybe worry of the future. But, each time you notice that, rather than giving yourself a hard time, you can instead practice having a beginner’s mind and just gently redirect attention back to each new breath with kindness and patience – noticing this breath, and this one, and this one. That is what strengthens our ability to be present and to cultivate a beginner’s mind. As best stated by Jon Kabat-Zinn, “We are only breathing now – the last breath is gone, the next one hasn’t come yet – it is always a matter of this one.”?

The next time you notice yourself becoming reactive or agitated, try inviting attention to come more fully into the body, specifically on the felt sense of each breath. With practice, we can deepen our awareness of the breath and appreciate what a gem the breath can be when we choose to show up for it. It really is a superpower from within and as long as we are alive, the breath is always here for us. It is simple and does not require a lot of effort. And yet, at the same time, it can be profound in so many ways and can make all the difference in what we are aware of and how we can nurture and more deeply support ourselves in the present moment. ?