Remember You Are Breathing
To become aware that we are breathing while sitting in stillness may sound like a familiar practice. To become aware that we are breathing in the midst of activity and life is a radical act.
To do so with skill may mean letting go of technique and inviting a gentleness and simplicity, a kind of awakening to or remembering the fact that we are breathing, that our bodies are living, functioning expressions of nature, and that they are the only place in which we can become more aware and loving.
When we are deeply present, we may not need to direct our attention toward anything. We’re more learning to receive experience—to cultivate receptivity for things as they unfold.
On some level, this can be a tremendous relief because we can sense the truth that we are not responsible for making anything happen or making anything stop happening. There is a kind of effortlessness, ease, and surrender.
This doesn’t mean we don’t care about what happens or doesn’t happen in the future. It also doesn’t mean that we’re passive or that we don’t respond to what is happening now. It simply means we have an honest relationship with what’s happening now.
We know what’s happening, and we’re not arguing with or defending against the fact that it is. We’re not resisting the fact that it’s unfolding. This is a big shift in the mind. It makes a big difference. This is the art of meditation. How might this also relate to life?
The instruction to remember that we are breathing points to our unique process of cultivating awareness. We can wait for the right moment for that to happen, which may be a very individual thing. If/when we become aware of the sensation of breath, we can do so in a very non-demanding way. We can relate to it as a chance for little moments or glimpses of connection.
So we’re not focusing on the breath as a directive—we’re remembering it from time to time: its vividness, its texture, its rhythm, its changing nature. And we’re trusting that these glimpses direct us inward in a way that the body-heart-mind system can trust and relax into—which is necessary for any deep transformation to happen.
The ego wants to focus on the breath to make life different. Wisdom wants to experience the breath in its fullness—as it is. It wants an honest, loving relationship to life as it is. It wants the breath to help establish that relationship to life.
As Thich Nhat Hanh has written, "We practice not to attain enlightenment, but to live each moment of our life deeply, to live fully in the present moment."
Practice Suggestion: This week, just remember that you are breathing a few times a day. You may want to use a "touchstone"; for example, every time you go through a door, take a moment to remember that you are breathing.
What happens when you remember that you are breathing during the meeting? Before you check the news? Before you speak? While sipping a warm beverage? Sitting in traffic? Looking at art? Noticing the sky?
