Like anything, we can look at the breath in a lot of different contexts.
From a physiological perspective, in our training, in our sleep, in meditation, from a developmental perspective, a mental/emotional perspective..
It seems never ending.
Where do we start?
How about simply with awareness. With watching?
For me, it was when I was either swimming in the ocean, surfing, or learning to spearfish. These all happened before I was 12. The context was simply to be aware. To take a breath. To notice the urgency to have to take another breath, but not be able to.
To stay calm.
So for me, this came through breath “holds,” or what’s called “Apnea.”
Now, the cool thing is, we don’t need to go spearfishing or free-diving to bring awareness to the breath if we don’t want to. We also can start at any time.
We can simply watch and be an observer. We can let go of any concepts that we may have heard: “holds,” “deep breathing” or “shallow breathing.”
We can forget everything.
Let’s simply start by sitting quietly, with the eyes closed, however is comfortable, with a timer set for 15 or 20 minutes and simply watch the breath.
Watch as an intrigued observer. What are you feeling?
Don’t study as the intellectual, watch as the child watches the clouds go past overhead.
Over time, we’ll start to see patterns. How we are “breathing,” or how the breath “feels” and how we “feel.”
We see (and feel) links between the breath and our “state.”
The awareness of the nature of the breath starts to give us hints of our state as a whole, both on the cushion and in daily life. As we become more aware of the state of our whole, our general awareness can also increase.
And so the cycle repeats.
So, while there may be many books, guidelines or tips on certain ways to breathe, many of these can create conflict in the mind (and thus negatively impact your breathing!).
Often, simply becoming the observer and seeing what the breath itself can teach you is the greatest place to start.
