Authentic Breathing® Resources LLC
Natural Breathing For Health, Well-Being, Longevity, and Self-Realization
Authentic Breathing® Resources LLCNatural Breathing For Health, Well-Being, Longevity, and Self-Realization
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The process of breathing is a living metaphor for understanding how to expand our narrow sense of ourselves and be present to the healing energies that are both in and around us. Every time we inhale we take in some 1022 atoms, including approximately one million of the same atoms of air inhaled by Lao Tzu, Buddha, Christ, and everyone else who has ever lived on this earth. Every time we exhale, we return these atoms to the atmosphere to be renewed for both present and future generations. Every time we inhale, we absorb oxygen expelled into the atmosphere as a waste product by the earth’s plant life. Every time we exhale, we expel carbon dioxide as a waste product into the atmosphere where it can eventually be absorbed by this same plant life. In nature, nothing is wasted. Our breath is a link in the cosmic ecology—in the conservation, transformation, and exchange of substances in nature’s complex metabolism. It connects our so-called inner world with the vast scale of the outer world—of the earth and its atmosphere, as well as of all organic life—through the perceptible alternation of yin and yang, of negative and positive, of emptying and filling. The process of breathing, if we can begin to understand it in relation to the whole of life, shows us the way to let go of the old and open to the new. It shows us the way to experience who and what we actually are. It shows us the way to wholeness and well-being. Some Personal HistoryIn my own case, breathing took on a special, historical significance for me long before I understood why. As a child I had a tremendous fascination with holding my breath. Lying in bed, I would often hold my breath for two minutes or so before finding myself gasping for air. As a young adult, the moment I started wearing suits I realized that I was troubled by the sensation of a tight collar or a tie around my neck. It was only later, when I was in my early thirties, that my mother told me I had been a breech baby, and that the doctors had fully expected me to come into the world dead, strangled by the umbilical cord wrapped tightly around my neck. Indeed, it was wrapped around my neck, but I was still able to breathe, still able to take in the precious nectar that we call air. It is obvious to me today, however, that my 30-hour struggle to reach light and take my first breath left deep impressions in my body and nervous system, and laid the foundation for some of the fundamental fears and insecurities that have often motivated my behavior as an adult. It is obvious to me today also that this deeply entrenched belief that only through persistence and struggle could I somehow find meaning and happiness in my life—a mode of behavior which served me well during birth, as well as during my childhood and teenage years—became an obstacle to my health and psychological growth as I grew older. All of this has become clearer as my breathing has begun to give up its restrictive hold on my sensory and emotional awareness, expanding into more of the whole of myself. The Need for Clarity and MindfulnessWhat is the relationship of our breath to our experience of ourselves and to real health and well-being? What is the relationship of our breath to our quest for self-knowledge and inner growth? To begin to answer these questions in a way that can have a long-lasting, beneficial impact on our lives, it is not enough to go to a weekend rebirthing or breathing intensive, or to simply start doing exercises from a magazine or book. Because of the intimate relationship between mind and body—the many subtle yet powerful ways they influence each other—any lasting, effective work with our breath requires clear mental knowledge of the mechanics of natural breathing and its relationship to our muscles, our emotions, and our thoughts. The clarity of this picture in our mind will help us become more conscious of our own individual patterns of breathing. It is through being “mindful” of these patterns that we will begin to sense and feel the various psychophysical forces acting on our breath from both the past and the present. And it is through the actual observation of these forces in our own bodies that we will begin to see how we use our breathing to buffer ourselves from physical and psychological experiences and memories too difficult or painful to confront. And, finally, it is through this entire process—the integration of mental clarity with sensory and emotional awareness—that we will begin to experience the extraordinary power of “natural breathing” and its ability to support the process of healing and wholeness in our lives. Copyright 1996-2005 by Dennis Lewis. This passage is from Chapter 1 of The Tao of Natural Breathing. Take a look at Dennis Lewis' book Free Your Breath, Free Your Life. This passage may not be copied or redistributed in any format for any commercial purpose.Learn about Dennis Lewis' three-CD audio program Natural Breathing, which contains much of the material in The Tao of Natural Breathing, along with material not found in the book--and listen to a free CD-quality excerpt.
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