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<susanrose>
WE NEED to relax now
Breathe together
Breathe together, and create a group mind
Breathing deep now.
Breathe in peace
Breathe out concerns
Breathing together
A Coming Together
A Group mind
All Seeking the unity of Spiritual Growth.
As we prepare to listen to others.
Breathe in.......Deep
From the deep well of the collective human spirit,
let divine WILL bring empowerment to EVERY soul,
and hope the heart of GAIA.
WE ARE READY
WE ARE ONE
WE WILL START.
Hello, I am Susan Rose and I work in Pittsburgh as a registered nurse.
My interest in breathing comes in part from my medical background,
and also my spiritual and personal experiences.
Over 18 years ago I took a Lamaze course that taught me breathing
patterns to help direct my attention away from the pain of childbirth.
I did them so well that I can remember the doctor had to tell me
to stop with the breathing already! You have to hold your breath
to push!
I did not want to push because I was afraid the pain
would overwhelm me when I stopped my breathing. Luckily,
my daughter seemed to have her own idea about how this whole
thing should happen and just about crawled out on her own...
with me pushing only as an afterthought to her forward thrusts.
I am telling you this humorous story to emphasize just how
useful breathing techniques are in controlling pain, anxiety and fear.
Someday I want to take a hypnosis course in order to help
those with office operative procedures <with minimal anesthetic >
breathe through the discomfort. I have often observed that people
coming into a doctor's office will have a higher blood pressure until
they are told to take a few deep breaths and sit a while
before checking the pressure.
I am not going to get into the physiologic rational behind
this process. What I want is to share with you what my curiosity has
discovered about what is so profound about breathing.
Breathing can be seen as a metaphor for teaching us
a lot about health, purpose and meaning and balance in life.
You know those posters I see popping up in the gift shops
across American? The ones that start out with:
All I ever really needed to know, I learned
In Kindergarten,
From My Cat,
From Star Trek etc.etc.
Well, I was thinking, after this discussion tonight
I bet we could write one that said:
All I ever really need to know, I learned from
BREATHING. It is so automatic, it is one of the
most taken for granted gifts of life.
At a molecular level, our inspirations and expirations
share the same elements with the plant life, animal life,
as well as our ancestors. The carbon dioxide we exhale
will help nourish a plant, which will in turn help return oxygen
that will help children in the future know even more their
interconnections with the web that is all life. We are one
with all on Gaia, and our breathing is the link.
Kevin Henry, a Pittsburgh area therapist whom I quoted
in his teaching in Mindfulness meditation stated:
"Everything in the world that is important, your breath
will teach you. There's coming, there's going.
There's taking nourishment in. There is letting what is not
needed go. There's the signal of this moment...Alive
I'm alive now...ahhh...nourishment in...ahhh...letting it go.
As long as we are alive our BREATH is there to be like an anchor.
It is also because it is not thinking, it will be something that is neutral.
Not something that makes us a zombie,
but something that in it's neutrality permits all the intelligence,
wisdom, and talents that we have accumulated in our years
of living to come forth to do whatever needs to be done
according to the requirements of the present moment.
Practice staying open and clear, awake and willing
to come back into the now....
The friendly attitude of just noticing where your attention went
noticing where the content went to, and coming back to your BREATHING
is to practice an attitude, a relationship with whatever comes up of:
OK your there,
you are a reality of thought or feeling to which my attention went.
No fight, non-judgmental. Open, clear, OK with that.
Let it go, come back to your BREATHING.
If you let yourself get caught up you will become anxious,
we will wear ourselves out and feel beaten up in the process
and it is not necessary.
In that opening, in that clearing we begin to see who we are.
Who is it that just sits here and BREATHES?
I love this practice, it sings to me. This is my life, my BREATH
Life breathing, right here in this body.
Life enjoying life, opening to life, deepening in the delight
of just being alive. The smallest thing rings with life."
End of Kevin's Quote..Thank you to him
Comments?
<miKron> I would like to make a connection between breath
and Courage to live in this world~!
breath is what focuses us to move our awareness in to the infinite Now
<tjmac> when the breath goes out during Reiki,
it feels like time stands still, and it is fire
or spirit.
<Jbb> I would love to share some thoughts on breath that were given by
Paramahansa Yogananda in his, 'Autobiography of a Yogi".
<susanrose> Sure. Go right ahead.
<Jbb>
The science of Kriya Yoga, mentioned so often in these pages, became widely known in modem India through the instrumentality of Lahiri Mahasaya, my guru's guru. The Sansisit root of kriya is kri, to do, to act and react; the same- root is found in the word karma, the natural principle of cause and effect. Kriya Yoga is thus "union (yoga) with the Infinite through a certain action or rite (kriya)." A yogi who faithfully practices the technique is gradually freed from karma or the lawful chain of cause-effect equilibriums.
Kriya Yoga is a simple, psychophysiological method by which human blood is decarbonated and recharged with oxygen. The atoms of this extra oxygen are transmuted into life current to rejuvenate the brain and spinal centers. By stopping the accumulation of venous blood, the yogi is able to lessen or prevent the decay of tissues. The advanced yogi transmutes his cells into energy. Elijah, Jesus, Kabir, and other prophets were past masters in the practice of breath.
"The Kriya Yoga that I am giving to the world through you in this nineteenth century," Babaji told Lahiri Mahasaya, "is a revival of the same science that Krishna gave millenniums ago to Arjuna; and that was later known to Patanjali and Christ, and to St. John, St. Paul, and other disciples."
Kriya Yoga is twice referred to by Lord Krishna, India's greatest prophet, in the Bhagavad Gita. One stanza reads: "Offering the inhaling breath into the exhaling breath and offering the exhaling breath into the inhaling breath, the yogi neutralizes both breaths; thus he releases prana from the hean and brings life force under his control." The interpretation is: "The yogi arrests decay in the body by securing an additional supply of prana (life force) through quieting the action of the lungs and head; he also arrests mutations of growth in the body by control of apana (eliminating current). Thus neutralizing decay and growth, the yogi learns life-force control."
The Kriya Yogi mentally directs his life energy to revolve upward and downward, around the six spinal centers (medullary, cervical, dorsal, lumbar, sacral, and coccygeal plexuses), which correspond to the twelve astral signs of the zodiac, the symbolic Cosmic Man. One- half minute of revolution of energy around the sensitive spinal cord of man effects subtle progress in his evolution; that half-minute of Kriya equals one year of natural spiritual unfoldment.
The astral system of a human being, with six (twelve by polarity) inner constellations revolving around the sun of the omniscient spiritual eye, is interrelated with the physical sun and the twelve zodiacal signs. All men are thus affected by an inner and an outer universe. The ancient rishis discovered that man's eanhly and heavenly environment, in a series of twelve-year cycles, push him forward on his natural path. The scriptures aver that man requires a million years of normal, diseaseless evolution to perfect his human brain and cosmic consciousness.
One thousand kriyas practiced in 8 1/2 hours gives the yogi, in one day, the equivalent of one thousand years of natural evolution: 365,000 years of evolution in one year. In three years, a Kriya Yogi can thus accomplish by intelligent self-effort the same result that Nature brings to pass in a million years. The Kriya shortcut, of course, can be taken only by deeply developed yogis. With the guidance of a guru, such yogis have carefully prepared their body and brain to withstand the power generated by intensive practice.
The Kriya beginner employs his yogic technique only fourteen to twenty-four times, twice daily. A number of yogis achieve emancipation in six or twelve or twenty- four or forty-eight years. A yogi who dies before achieving full realization carries with him the good karma of his past Kriya effort; in his new life he is naturally pro-pelled toward his Infinite Goal.
The body of the average man is like a fifty-watt lamp, which cannot accommodate the billion watts of power roueed by an excessive practice of kriya Thnough gradual and regular increase of the simple and foolproof methods of kriya, man's body becomes astrally transformed day by day, and is finally fitted to express the infinite potentials of cosmic energy, which constitutes the first materially active expression of Spirit.
Kriya Yoga has nothing in common with the unscientific breathing exercises taught by a number of misguided zealots. Attempts to hold breath forcibly in the lungs are unnatural and decidedly unpleasant. kriya practice, on the other hand, is accompanied from the very beginning by feelings of peace and by soothing sensations of regenerative effect in the spine.
The ancient yogic technique converts the breath into mind-stuff. By spiritual advancement, one is able to cognize the breath as a mental concept, an act of mind: a dream breath.
Many illustrations could be given of the mathematical relationship between man's respiratory rate and the variations in his states of consciousness. A person whose attention is wholly engrossed, as in following some closely knit intellectual argument, or in attempting some delicate or difficult physical feat, automatically breathes very slowly. Fixity of attention depends on slow breathing; quick or uneven breaths are an inevitable accompaniment of harmful emotional states: fear, lust, anger The restless monkey breathes at the rate of 32 times a minute, in contrast to man's average of 18 times. The elephant, tortoise, snake, and other creatures noted for their longevity have a respiratory rate that is less than man's. The giant tortoise, for instance, which may attain the age of three hundred years, breathes only 4 times a minute.
The rejuvenating effects of sleep are due to man's temporary unawareness of body and breathing.
<susanrose>
Some very good points, Jbb!
Most of us are not worried about our next breath.
It is automatically present. There is a deep trust in the truth that the
next breath will come. An in born testament of faith.
When we are asleep, we let our breathing take over.
We give our daily concerns to the angels and to God.
We give any illness we have up to the healing process,
and we breathe though it, no longer invested or worried
about the outcome, just trusting in the process .
We let go. How much more healing and joy we
can bring to our lives if only our waking hours were spent
in such faith! Try breathing through your problems.
I was recently at a channeling session where a woman was
channeling the Christ. The entity said, if you need help I will
breathe with you. Not that you do not have same connection
to the Father that I do, just that I have had more experience
BREATHING, so I will help you do it
Here are 2 quotes about breathing from a web page
of the Entity I saw:
http://home.earthlink.net/~jjeshua/
"Beloved one, we have spoken many times of the importance of the breath.
Take the step back for a moment to look upon your day. And as you gaze
at the activities of the day, at the responsibilities that tug upon the
sleeve, at the demands of the world and of the family, ask yourself,
"Have I taken the opportunity to breathe?" Take in this day, a time
out, so to speak. Come out of time and pause for the breath. You have
a saying that goes something like this - the pause that refreshes.
Great wisdom in these words. Take the pause that refreshes in-between
your daily activities, and breathe. Breathe deeply and fully. Refresh
the body, and more importantly the soul with the breath, your connection
to the Divine; and you will find a new bounce in your step, and a
renewed joy in your heart. So be it."
Second Quote:
"Beloved one, if you would know Home, breathe. Come unto the place of
the Heart and abide in the Heart. Call on me, for I am always Home.
Breathe with me right now, breathe in the golden white Light that you
are. For this is truly Who you are. You are a golden white ray of
Light, the energy of Light. Breathe in the golden white Light that you
are and take it deep within the cells of the body. Feel it energizing
every cell in the body. Breathe again, and connect with Home. You are Home, beloved one. Welcome home. So be it."
We know we have started this earthly existence when
we take our first breath. All in the delivery room wait
for the first sound of air passing over the baby's vocal cords,
and what a joy!
When we leave it is said we give up our last breath.
Breathing is what identifies us to all as being ALIVE.
To quote Genesis 2:7
"Then Lord God formed man out of the dust and ground
and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,
and man became a living being."
In the New Testament, John 20:22
Jesus appears to the apostles for the first time after resurrection.
What does the Christ do? He BREATHES on them.
"Peace be to you, As the Father has sent me, I send you.
When he said this, he breathed upon them and said to them,
"Receive the Holy Spirit".
So holy writings associate breath as a
gift from God, the gift of spirit and life.
So like God when gifts are given, they are given in
over abundance.
Kind of reminds me of the plant life that
grows in the cracks of my driveway. The Fertility and
life regenerating quality of nature. How thousands of
sperm are released, when only one is needed (smile).
Our breath is like that too.
Did you know much of the air that is taken into us
is not even used in the exchange
of oxygen and carbon dioxide?
Only at the very ends of the bronchial trees are the sacs of air
actually able to expel the waste and take in oxygen. Just like
the universe to supply more than we actually need.
So remember it is not wasteful to let go, expel, and take in
a brand new breath. It is only natural. Did you ever wonder why
CPR works to keep another alive even though it was your old
spent breath? It is the Divine telling us that turning loose our
old stuff can help save the lives of others who can find some
use for themselves in what we can't use.
There are just too much good stuff to take in in this physical world,
but we just can't really experience all of it.
Some of it has to be briefly held without reaping the full benefit,
and then let go.
You know what happens to people who try to
hold it all in, and not let go? They become pack rats, their houses
are cluttered, they can't let go of relationships that are no longer working.
Just like our breath teaches us... so what if you have to expel something,
it is perfectly OK to turn it loose before you get all the good stuff out of it!
Better you do that than blow up. When the little air sacs blow up with
too much air in them that is not able to be released it is a dis-ease
It is called emphysema.
Although we may breathe out longer than we breathe in,
the tidal volume of the air is normally equal.
So one more lesson is that of a balanced life in all things.
Sometimes we breathe in and out too shallowly though.
When that happens sometimes a yawn or sigh will help us
re-expand all the little sacks at the end of the tree that actually
transfers the oxygen to us.
I have noticed when counting
breaths in patients that men tend to breathe more from
the abdomen and women more from the chest.
Could it be because women for generations have been taught
to hold our stomachs in, bound up in corsets or girdles that we
are breathing from the top of our chest?
Most literature tells us that abdominal breathing is better since
it utilized more of the diaphragm muscles to move the air in and out.
So if you can't seem to master
the abdominal connection, then at least several times a day use the affirmation:
Thank you Universe, for the gift of BREATH.
And take several deep breaths in to refresh and renew.
Did you ever visit a hospital and notice those little blow
devices where the patient is to raise a ball to a certain level?
The reason why this is important is that when people spend a lot
of time in bed or are in pain or are depressed, they tend to breathe
too shallowly. I tell my patients to hug a pillow to brace themselves,
but take that deep breath every so often.
Shallow breathing is subconsciously telling your body that you are giving up
on this breathing business of life, and it is time to pack it in. Did you
ever hear of the grim saying that pneumonia is the "Best Friend of the
Elderly'? Well, lots of folks don't die from chronic disease or broken
hips or strokes, but they do die of pneumonia. Why? Because they
have separated themselves from the joy of breathing.
Here are some examples of exercises to reorient our
connection to this life force spirit.Simply to be present
to our breathing, using our inner attention to follow our inhalations
and exhalations as they take place by themselves.
Now, simply follow your breathing as you inhale and exhale. During
inhalation, sense the temperature and vibration of the air as it flows
through your nasal passages, throat, and trachea on its way into your
lungs. During exhalation, sense the air going up and out of your lungs
through your trachea, throat, and nose.
After at least five minutes, rub your
hands together several times, put them over your navel, and sense your
belly. How does your breathing respond to the warmth and energy from
your hands?
As you follow these movements of your breath, you may begin to
feel weightlessness, a floating and loss of your place in linear time and space.
Your hands may become warm, you may feel the rise of energy up your
spinal column. Stay with your breath. Ask that your moment be
blessed in the reality of a holy void. Alone, yet in unity with the
breath and heart beat of creation.
Alone yet experiencing the ONE.
Whole worthy. In out I am there.
You are there. I am you
You are me......dissolving into peace.
When you're almost ready to finish this breathing meditation, give
yourself a couple of minutes to sense the energy
being absorbed into the cells of your belly. Then bring your
attention back to the whole sensation of yourself just sitting.
Watch, sense, and feel until you are ready to stop.
Give thanks and share.
Community love Building Breath Kiss:
(you may want to try this at your next spiritual gathering_
<basil> sure
<Susanrose>
Form a circle, sing a song that has some emotion,
(a few suggestions... the Rose, Let there be peace on earth,
What the world needs now, That's what friends are for, In a distance etc.)
Then with a light instrumental background, the leader makes
eye contact, smiles at the person to the person on the right.
Blow your breath into the left hand of the person on your right.
Give them love/blessings
Receiver, curl up your fingers around it,
brings it to the heart,
open hand and lay it flat on the chest
Then with the right hand take the left hand
of the person sitting to your right
and repeat all the way around the circle.
When the breath returns to the leader,
an amen or so it is affirmed, and the circle
is open with hugs to follow!
Thank you for coming to #)Gaia*Friends(
and for being part of a noble desire of personal
and planetary awakening.
In parting I give you a final quote on the wind
that is your breath:
John 3:8
The wind blows where it will, and thou hearest its sound
but does not know where it comes from or where it goes.
So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.
May your wind blow in unity with Divine Will.
<tjmac> very good,
<Lightbird> lovely susanrose:}:} thankyou!
Kundai hands susan a small blue lightball for thank you gift :)
<miKron> indeed SusanRose ,to speak of breath is energy expanding ~!
tjmac showers Susan with love
<^puma^> blessings
<jali999> nite susan :)
<susanrose> I am honored you stayed up so late for this Kundai...
from the netherlands..
<Kundai> *fondness*
<susanrose> I was doing the breathing exercise last night
as I was typing the log, and I got a
very strong feeling of a presence come over me.
It felt wonderful. I was told that it was good for
me to be teaching these classes since it helped me learn so much,
and to continue. Good night all!