Breath Of life
Kavita Chhibber - December 22, 2005
Have you noticed that often when you are really engrossed in doing something you tend to hold your breath?
I have always been prone to bronchial infections as a child and even today if I fall sick its usually due to a cold. A few years ago I met a Professor, Dr Sudhanva Char who has been a certified yoga instructor for over 5 decades and his only desire is to spread the miracle of yoga for minimising the stress in our jetset lives
Apart from all the yoga postures he taught me and a group of my friends, the most important lesson was about breathing and how it is key to our well being. I have seen the days I don't do yoga and the deep breathing exercises, I tend to be sluggish and lethargic. On the busiest days, just 10-15 minutes of deep breathing keeps me going.
He was kind enough to write an article on breathing at my request. This is part 1.
I will post part 2 when I receive it from him.
Read it and tell me about your own experiences about the way you breathe.
"Breath is life: No breath, no life. It is as simple as two + two is four and so platitudinous.
Breath is so critical that in Vedic and yogic literature it is portrayed as prana or the life-force. There are interesting dialogues about breathing. For example, in the Bhagavad Gita in verse 4.29, Krishna advises Arjuna how breath management can help promote physical and mental health and lead to (spiritual) self-realization. In Brihadaranyaka Upanishad III, in the dialogue between Ygnavalkya and Asvala, you observe how simple air is elevated to the status of vital breath or udgatri and how “ it is the means to liberation, to complete liberation” from all sickness, physical and mental. Hathayoga Pradipika, a 15th century tome by a great Yogi, Svatmarama, swears that yogic faultless breathing prevents sickness and is also a panacea for all disease. He stresses that either we tame breath like you would break in a lion or a wild horse and achieve great benefits of “mind over matter,” or be overpowered by it. Unfortunately, most of us have chosen to be overpowered by it and are frequently sick.
The vital importance of proper breathing or pranayama, as it is called, makes it the key among the eight vital steps in asthanga-yoga. The meaning of the Sanskrit word prana is that which journeys well, in this case through all the cells of the body. Ayama is the management of the duration of the breath. So pranayama is the wise management of breathing in order to feed adequate oxygen to body cells, in particular to the neurons of the brain to pacify them and ensure healthier performance of the body parts.
In yoga, there are five main components of the body-mind multiplex, one of which is the pranamaya kosha or the sheath of prana. The five koshas are
a) annamaya kosha or the digestive system,
b) pranamaya kosha or the nano or cellular world living on oxygen, which is virtually the entire body
c) vignanamaya kosha or the objective and mathematical left brain that should desirably have a more crucial role to play in all decision making
d) manonmaya kosha or the emotional right brain and
e) anandamaya kosha or the world of divine bliss. This Kosha is also embedded in the human body.
The five different koshas or sheaths should be in harmony with each other for the human personality to blossom and flourish. As perceived in Yoga, breath is the link or the bridge between the mind and the body, integrating them into a systemic and organic whole. The autonomic nervous system is sustained by breathing. Much of the time this system is self-regulating. The parasympathetic nervous system is the animal autonomous intelligence programmed into the cells. However, in an emergency such as a threat to life or limb, the sympathetic nervous system kicks in and helps send a larger supply of oxygen to the blood and the cerebrospinal fluid. This life-saving performance is possible because of the amazing fitting together of the functions of the brain and the (cardio-vascular) respiratory apparatus. Deep and rhythmic breathing calms the mind and relaxes all creatures.
Normally, the longer the time taken to exhale, more also is the feeling of relaxation. There is also comparison of the body’s rate of breathing to the mileage on the car. More the breaths taken in any given period, shorter also is the years left in one’s life. For instance, arguably, a person that takes just 30 breaths (consisting of inhalation, holding, exhalation, and a short pause before going for the next round of inhalation) in an hour, under a ceteris paribus setting, would live longer than one that would take 60 breaths during the same time. More mileage on the speedometer means that the car has a shorter residual life.
Proper and correct breathing involves different ways and levels of three basic functions: Puraka or inhalation, Antara Kumbhaka or holding the breath inside the lungs, Bahya Kumbhaka or pausing after exhalation, and Rechaka or exhalation. Veteran yogis also can do kevala kumbhaka which is virtual suspension of breath for some length of time.
Breath is the vital force that delivers oxygen to the trillions of cells in the pranamaya kosha or the animal body. There is no food more nutritious than oxygen. It is energy. Oxygen is also a cleanser. It disinfects the body and sterilizes it too. Correct breathing, consisting of inhalation of oxygen and exhalation of carbon dioxide, can make all the difference between robust health and frequent sickness, a positive and upbeat outlook and cynical skepticism. In view of this axiomatic fact, almost everyone accepts that nourishing and wholesome breathing can renew life with every breath. However, because
breathing as a physiological activity is mechanical and self-governing, it is taken for granted. Consequently, a majority of people are unmindful of their own strenuous, erroneous and sickness-causing breathing.
Erroneous Breathing
This author, as a Yoga teacher, has observed hundreds of students of all ages and of both genders, breathing paradoxically. Paradoxical breathing occurs when inhalation of air is simultaneous with deflation of the abdomen and exhalation is synchronized with (mild) inflation of the abdomen. This is gross abuse of the respiratory apparatus. Such paradoxical breathing guarantees that body cells are not adequately oxygenated, that the body is weakened and longevity is compromised. Instead of energizing, it debilitates the body. Hence it is paradoxical. It should be the other way around: Inhalation and inflation of the abdomen should be concurrent. It should be followed up by synchronized exhalation and deflation of the abdomen.
In his ground-breaking work Anatomy of Hatha Yoga, David Coulter (2001) lists four lung volumes as distinct from lung capacities:
Tidal volume: the volume of 500 milliliters (=1 pint) of air that is inhaled and exhaled in a single breath
Inspiratory Reserve Volume of 3300 ml (= 3.5 quarts). This is the additional air that could be inhaled after the tidal breathing.
Expiratory Reserve Volume of 1000 ml ( = 2 pints) that could be exhaled in addition to the tidal exhalation and
Residual volume of 1200 ml that will remain in the lungs after maximum possible exhalation.
In dealing with lung capacities, David Coulter mentions four dimensions:
Vital Lung Capacity of about 4800 milliliters composed of the tidal volume (500 ml), inspiratory reserve volume of 3300 ml, and expiratory reserve volume of 1000 ml.
Total Lung Capacity of 6000 ml, consisting of a) above plus the residual volume
Inspiratory Capacity of 3800 consisting of tidal volume plus Inspiratory volume and
Functional Residual Capacity of 2200 ml consisting of residual volume (1200 ml) and the expiratory reserve volume (1000 ml)
While long and deep breathing is the best in terms of better oxygenation of cells, shallow breathing is the commonly observed harmful practice. In the clavicular or collar bone breathing, the collar bones are raised and so the top of the lungs get filled up. This helps fill up of the lungs with the largest possible amount of air. In thoracic breathing there is expansion of the ribcage in the chest, but it is still not satisfactory. This is because thoracic breathing may fill the middle and upper sectors in lungs, but may not be efficient for the lower section It is only deep breathing with inflation of the abdomen, or diaphragmatic breathing that guarantees efficient respiratory function.
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Posted by Kavita Chhibber at December 22, 2005 05:46 AM
Comments
Wow! I didn't know all this Kavita; great post! Very interesting on how breathing properly can give one a more wholesome balance, physically and mentally.
North
The same force which caused Big Bang in the universe then operates through all the systems down the line and is called prana of life-force by us for our levels.
This is this very force which is called soul. Four koshas or bodies are physical, emotional, intellectual and intelligent covering this soul or force through which it is to go to finally get its freedom or moksha or nirvana. The fifth kosha denotes the free stage of the soul.
In act it is going to be simple science soon. Four sheaths are the resultant of every system's going through four basic interactios in its whole life and the fifth sheath or kosha just denotes that it has now gone beyond all interactions and has merged indistinguishably again into its parnt system and through that into One.
Our breathing - or the above prana-force now we have - depends upon where we stand in relation to the whole evolution first of the universe and then of the human race and lastly of the individuals. We just cannot read an article about it and change it. Just be natural, your breathing technique is already as is required by you at this point in time of your evolution and will change naturally as you will evolve further. One can't make a child a young man of marriageable age before his time and one can't prevent a youth from behaving like a youth or from marrying when his time has come. As simple as that.
BTW, the universe from Big Bang to Big Crunch just takes one breath...lol.
Makes logical sense to me, Harb! Great read, thanks!
North
very beautiful share...in my opinion the link between breath, mind and kundalini should stand out as one of the greatest contributions of India to human civilization.Mind and Kundalini energies cannot be controlled but breath can and the interconnection leads to teh regulation of the other two.
your post was beautifuly written Harb, Thank you for that.
very beautiful share..in my opinion, the discovery of teh link between breath, mind and kundlini should rank very high amogst India's critical contributions to human consciousness..mind and kundlini cannot be controlled, but breath can and that enables teh regulation of teh other 2.
Can a person achieve experiencing the Kundalini without knowledge of it occuring? Meaning; is the Kundalini obtainable, without concious intent?
North
Dear Kavita; just a mention of importance to me. I wanted you to know; I absolutely became enveloped, and transported to a place and time of internal peace I'd never been before; when I'd heard you singing, with the stunning sitar performance on the CD on your website!
Just hearing the mini-clip makes me want to hear more, more, more! lol
Knowing now, that you also give a portion of it's proceeds to charity, is truly inspiring and admirable.
I just wanted to give you an open applause!
Please give my humble praises also; to your Sitar Master, and co-singing angelic voice on the CD!
North
north: breath regulation is known to have balanced psychic energies to people who have no knowledge of it.i perecive it as a physical rather than a psychological process.
north: breath regulation is known to have balanced psychic energies to people who have no knowledge of it.i perecive it as a physical rather than a psychological process.
north: breath regulation is known to have balanced psychic energies to people who have no knowledge of it.i perecive it as a physical rather than a psychological process.
Interesting, Sundar! Is this a possibility, as to why some severely handicap people; have astounding capabilities? Such as, some are protege's in music, or maths, etc.?
I'll look for an answer here later; I am 2 hours behind my schedule; from my being lazy here at intent, this morning; and I hear my son has claimed the shower room first now! lol
time to make ready, the crowded day. Have a great day Sundar, and everyone.
North
Thank you simon, sunder and north!
In fact there is no difference between the Kundalini shakti and the prana-force. Both are the same and both are basically that lot of the superforce of the Big Bang which has now come to become the lot of each one of us.
The swirling mass of the very very subtle matter at the beginning of the univere has now become what we call double helix or coiled up gene in science and kundli (kundli just means coiled)in religious language. It is there in each system in the same form. It is there at the center of the sun and the earth. From above we all look solid from within we all are swirling like the universe.
Harb
kavita,
that retention of breath is called Kumbhaka. it is born of an extra effort at concentration.
we experience kumbhaka when we do something we love. in fact this is the basis of bhakti cults...the experience of profound kumbhaka giving birth to the final absorption ( samadhi ) due to supreme love for the super soul.
harb,
evolution is possible in spiritual terms. for example yogananda's kriya yoga claims to speeden up the effects of a million births into experiences in one life , thus helping in speedier evolution of the soul.
these methods like yoga, pranayama, when practised dedicatedly lead to evolution much faster and it doesnt hurt in the spiritual realm.
Hi All,
I have been praticing Sudarshan kriya ( based on pranayama) by Sri Sri and that is the best thing that has happened in my life.
Breath cleanses both the body and mind.
Prabhakar
Hi All,
I have been praticing Sudarshan kriya ( based on pranayama) by Sri Sri and that is the best thing that has happened in my life.
Breath cleanses both the body and mind.
Prabhakar
A very enlightening and interesting piece on Yoga
Hi Kavita, I like the topic.I have had truble posting . so let us see if this goes through.
Hi Kavita, Pranayama is so good for us.I have been teaching my patients with asthma how to do the simple Anuloma Viloma, Brahmari,and Sitali. If they do it as I teach them they really start improving.I have been doing Pranayama for just a few years.It has made such a difference in my asthma and I can sing Bhajans better,can easily go to higher notes.Brahmari especially is good for singers.You are so right about proper abdominal breathing.
How are you? Have a very merry Christmas. Take care . God bless.
Hello everyone,
"
Paradoxical breathing occurs when inhalation of air is simultaneous with deflation of the abdomen and exhalation is synchronized with (mild) inflation of the abdomen. This is gross abuse of the respiratory apparatus. "
According to Qi Gong, this is how breathing should be done to achieve balance.
Balance is achieved when yin and yang are even.
The theory goes like this,
the upper half of the body is yang and lower part - yin.
Inhalation is yin energy and should be allowed to mix with the yang(upper part of the body) and stomach goes in a little AND
Exhalation is yang energy and should be allowed to mix with the yin (lower part of the body) and hence stomach goes out a little.
Can some one knowledgeable in Yoga and Qi Gong shed some light on this ?
As for me, I have changed myself to practice the Qi Gong style and feeling good.
After reading this, I am confused.
Thank you every one for your comments. Have been out all day and just got back.
Hari, I have asked Dr Char to look at all the responses here and perhaps he can answer your question. Personally I find bhastrika and pranayama to be very effective and I find the stomach going naturally out when I inhale and in when I exhale, so I presume that is the right way.
Geeta, I totally agree with you as I do with Prabhakar. Even though sudarshan Kriya is said to be different from bhastrika, I find them to be similar. I spent a couple of days talking to sri sri about it. He took us through an excellent meditation session. My interview with him will be appearing shortly.
Geeta, whenever I do pranayama and bhastrike regularly I can go on very little sleep and never fall ill..
I usually do yoga to an excellent cd by shiv kumar sharma-dhyana at day break..its a meditational cd and the sound of santoor is the most soothing sound you can hear..
I would love to hear about every one's experiments with yoga and breathing techniques.
On saturday I'm interviewing a reiki master. She has been asking me to study reiki with her for more than a year -she says she sees something in my aura that indicates a healer. Does any one know anything about auras?
North thank you for your kind thoughts, Harb very interesting analysis. Honey, Sundar, Simon and Ispita thank you, Aachi welcome back, your artwork is beautiful
If I remember correctly, Kavita; every being has an aura(enveloped in an emitted light;
the closer one is to their original, raw Self;
the more pure the light they emit;
often in hue's of blue, green, yellow; blue being associated with the Godliness.
A dark/black aura is contrued to mean: darkness, evil, troubling, etc.
Therefor; it is believed the colour of one's aura; signifies their Self.
Anyone else know of aura's? This is only what I remember, in point form.
North
If I remember correctly, Kavita; every being has an aura(enveloped in an emitted light;
the closer one is to their original, raw Self;
the more pure the light they emit;
often in hue's of blue, green, yellow; blue being associated with the Godliness.
A dark/black aura is construed to mean: darkness, evil, troubling, etc.
Therefor; it is believed the colour of one's aura; signifies their Self.
Anyone else know of aura's? This is only what I remember, in point form.
North
tx Harb for that insighful share...
north,
personally i feel aspects of raw genius can manifest due to a host of reasons...a continuum of past life legacies is quite common...in a lot of genius manifests especially from early childhood...a lot of traditional indian artforms like the classical dances and musics intrinsically dwell on breath regulatory aspects...i do interact with a lot of musicians and have invariably observed rather active throat chakras...has been the subject of some research amonst various quarters in India...
Kavita I love reading your posts. I think you are awesome. I would like to wish you and your family Happy Holidays. May there be peace on earth.
Esther.
Thank you North. Very interesting comment Sundar. There is also a very fascinating research going on in the ability of specific ragas to heal specific illnesses. I will try and write on that shortly.
Esther thank you very much for your sweet words. I wish you, your princess who keeps you awake to enjoy her antics and your family and every one on intentblog, all the love, luck and happiness for the remainder of this year and into 2006.
Hi Kavita,
Blessings and joy to you, and to all here at this special community of intent,
With love,
~ Kate
breathing, it's something I take for granted, but when I do not breathe 'properly' - I am very aware of it!
Hi Kavita,go in for Reiki initiation. It is great.I have read in books by psychics especially James Vanpraag, that healers have a green aura,pink aura means a very loving white spirit,and brown or dark gray means a very negative soul. He says as a five year old he saw a man in a store who had a really pronounced brown yucky aura, and the next morning his picture was on the front page of the news paper for murder. Some of my Reiki and Kolaimni friends claim to read auras.
Kavita I like the fact that you interact with us and give us feedback. You are so lucky to be able to interview such interesting people.I like your posts a lot. Take care. God bless.Merry Christmas.
Thank you Kate. I think if any one wants to know the difference between good and bad breathing, just go outside and take a deep breath as much as you can fill your lungs and then exhale..and you know at once what a great feeling that is.
Geeta, I dont know how to read auras but I get vibes from people and many times I have had dreams that come true or blurted things out to people in places which have happened. Many of my friends teasingly call me the walking talking ultrasound machine as I have predicted the gender of their unborn child in the first trimester either by just looking at them or having had a dream.
I have always felt that all of us have been given the gift of intuition..some people call it sixth sense or gut instinct..but we all have it in some measure to guide us in making decisions. Many times we disregard that voice inside us and then look back in hindsight and say..I had that feeling this was going to happen..
we also absorb good and bad vibrations around us..for example some people we meet we bond instantly with when we have barely met them..something about them attracts us..strangers who we feel we've known forever, and then there are people known and unknown who make us feel uncomfortable even without uttering a word.
In some people this sixth sense is much more highly developed. I do however have a question about reiki..I have met several reiki masters and three of them have asked me repeatedly to be initiated..with two I got the sense that they were themselves unhappy people and I backed away because I felt when they have issues to resolve within themselves, how will they be able to teach me in a positive way. The third the brother of a good friend is awesome and I have known him for many years. He left a high paying job to become a reiki master and is based in London so obviously learning from him is not doable right now.
So the question id can a troubled man or woman still be a good reiki master/teacher?
I don't see why a troubled man/woman would not be a good Rieki Master?
Inherent human attributes does not pass on the enlightened.
Every person, has issues to contend with inside their minds. One can be a master as a teacher; yet still fail as a husband. See what I mean?
Troubles are not just OF the person themselve's but, often the people also around them; which give influence.
So, I would have to think; that a troubled person can still teach; it would then be a matter of the student; not absorbing the masters weakness's.
North
nice post north...in my understanding, offering healing is a critical part of the healer's healing process ...
Sundar; would it be critical that a patient of healing; believe in it fully; for it's capacity to be opened?
I mean, can a patient pretend to believe in say, Rieki; yet, still absorb the benefits from it? Or, is it beleiving-exclusive?
North
interesting thoughts North and Sundar; however would we equate it the same way for a sick teacher..say someone is down with the flu, or is mentally and emotionally exhausted..will their ability to teach be impaired?
I have always felt we react to situations based on our life's personal experience. My friend's brother in law, I'll call him X got divorced after 30 years..his wife Y went for counselling and left after 2 sessions..the counsellor herself a divorced woman was so full of resentment against her ex that she started convincing Y that her to be ex was a bad person and she must do this and that against him. These two people who had been married for 30 years were on amicable terms, and Y told X I'm not going back because the counsellor is inciting me against you.
So by the same token I wonder how do the energy levels work in a reiki master, if power and energy is depleted by personal sorrows and unresolved anger and resentment?
guess it would also depend on the technique in q, north...in a lot of spiritual healing, i have found very random patterms emerging...i have witnessed healing of people who have essentially not believed in the system perse..
more critical aspects, in my opinion, are the person's own intent to get well...it is that "need" which is met through healing processes...also, while some people may not identify, they come in with a genuine openness of experimental intent...which is by no means negative.generically, it is more difficult for "closed" people to receive healing...but ther sure are exceptions...my shares, needless to add, are in the context of my observances.
dear kavita,
i oerate with a fundamental perspective that "happy people create happy families and happy societies"...the macro cannot manifest in teh absence of the constituent micros...the whole world craves for joy and peace and harmony and so on...but fundamentally, there is conflcit at the individual level...an addressal at the individual micro level is a critical need for the larger manifest to occur...otherwise it is a classic case of mere addressal of symptoms...we tend to believe that events have the seeds of happiness..personally i feel it to be very far from the truth...happy individuals can create a happy marriage...marriage by itself does not have the capacity for or against...
most healers are themselves in some healing processes and most systems do demand a certain self evaluation and healing patterns of behaviour in the healers themselves eg. the way we deal with relationships...
i spoke from that perspective..
else, i do feel that more harm than good is being achieved more often than not by mechanisms of problem understanding and redressals...due to basic aberrations at the micro-level...the outer world is a manifest of our inner realms...the realm where intents occur...
Hi Kavita; good points! I must say; in my experience as a Teacher Assistant; I have seen some pretty abusive teacher-behaviour; flavoured with uncontrolled anger and frustrations directed at a student.
Also, just as disturbing is addiction trend-setting in certain settings. One male teacher was known for hitting the bar, right after school; stayed there until early evening. In morning; yelled and screamed at kids; by afternoon, even worse.
the teacher therefor; is teaching the student how NOT to behave; IF the student can see his abuse that way.
Hm, we are then back to your original question Kavita. lol
North
Kavita, Sundar; example with a question:
so in essence, if I am "afraid" to love; I will not BE loved; because the initial intent was nonlove from fear of it?
Hope I asked that right..
North
dear north,
the way i have seen it...
fear is a major inhibitor in our ability to manifest...i understand there are nearly 75 laws of karma...what we deeply resent and hate manifests...it is our deeper "conditioned" intents which come into play rather than those at our colloquial consciouness levels...most of our intents are mechanized outflows from our conditionalities...
we may "want" to express our love, but deep down there is an "inability"....some unseen inhibitor...as awareness increases, we become aware of patterns of conditioning which cripple our lives..and in that awareness lies our freedom from the situtaion in teh world of manifests..teh outer world is a reflection of our inner states...
I agree with what you've said North and Sundar-I think it would be wonderful if the healer could heal him/herself. A good friend of mine has been initiated into reiki but has not completed the prerequisites to teach. she recently moved to washington but told me how she improved her eyesight by giving herself reiki, and improved her fertility and after struggling to conceive did so with a couple of months of giving herself reiki..her cat is old and has joint pains and she started giving him reiki..soon he would automatically come to her when in pain and she could see obvious relief in the way he would start relaxing when she'd give him reiki.
well it will be interesting to study this system of alternative healing just as I've studied ayurveda.
Today I interviewed a chiropractor and it was interesting how yoga, meditation, acupressure and natural products are part of his treatment.
Dear Kavita, Sundar..
Sundar; so it may be possible/probable; that my disease's are an essence of my child-poverty? It was not until I was old enough to be aware of our lack; but, more of how were were treated because of being poor.
Being outcasted, perhaps caused a deep-seeded root of anger/hatred/frustration in me; I did not realize still existed within me? I thought, I'd made peace with it long ago.
My spine started to degenerate in late twenty's; by early 30's had seven of them. At the time; I was married, problems yes; but secure in it.
I could not understand it; and a specialist told me, it was the poor childhood; and weakened body and parts.
Perhaps, fear is the intent after all; as I feared being poor; the social-treatment in school, etc.
Hmm, lots of self-discovery, I must embark without haste on. thank you Sundar; and I just now; tried to email you; but, it returned.
Kavita; I know I can heal my present thoughts; how does one reveal hidden thoughts(the manifesting ones?)
So much to discover, in our own inner console!
North
strange the email shd bounce, north...an alternate email id is kanakadhara@sify.com.
it would help to go through our key relationships with parents, siblings, friends etc...significant events can be re-lived with the emotion...as we remember the events, the emotion keeps welling up within...the heaviness increases...just stay in that pain, no explanantions, no justifications, no projections..sometimes it may even last a few days...then in a moment, the cycle of suffering is completed and u momentarily transcend into a blissful state...suppressed hurts and other aspects are needed to be brought to the surface to enable its healing...
i have gone through this process..i know it works...
north: an indicator of completion of the cycle of suffering is our absolute inner comfort spaces vis-a-vis the persons in qs or even ourselves...forgiveness of self and others is a natural outcome, not a matter of any conscious effort..
Sundar, you mention that what we deeply hate and resent, is what we manifest, as an intent...
suffice to say; I can even more clearly see; how I have indeed created my own demise's then.
gosh, what a rude awakening of myself; but, I would rather be rudely awakened; than never awakened. lol
Yes, I can see it now; being born to extreme poverty; then always struggling in life for any comforts, even when married; then, to leave a long marriage; back to poverty.
By the Grace of All that IS; I have been coming Self-encircled.
Now, to find the why's I hate/resent being poor; beyond the obvious materialistic lack thereof!
Then, onward and forward, to better intentions; once I am free'd from fear/pain/suffering/sorrow/anger/hatred/resentment/frustration/doubt.
and yet, I still feel strong-faithed. Is it the faith; which has helped me come full circled? did I break a root of discontentment?
North
Dear Sundar; I jotted down your alternate email; the returned one does not state why; usually it does.
Hmm, I understand about pain supression. My family believes that by supressing it; was being strong. Oh, my goodness; how incorrect can a person direct their own ship? lol
Yes, Sundar; my family and all of our frailties; leaves bared roots of angers and resentments along the heavily-trodden road of our impoverished lives. Hunger and cold; can pit sibling against sibling. One parent of five, can pit sibling against sibling, for an ounce of affection, one to one. We have much to heal.
I have learned so much tonight; about my deeper wounds. I am unsure how to respond; i feel embarassed, and weak-beingness. vulnerable, perhaps is the term?
But, I hear a deep wound heal's best, to open airing?(smiles.)
North
dear north,
even as you see you are liberated ..awareness is freedom...all fo us have certain patterns operating in our lives...i myself, have had a pattern of "indifference" to wealth for a large part of my life...emerging from myriad sources..teh pattern has inhibited my ability to manifest weslth for myself, often going into near poverty situations...
i carried a deep resentment for mediocrity as i perceived it...saw very mediocre guys( in my opinion) make it big while i was struggling...there were deep rooted mindsets inhibiting me...i also resented my mom deeply, saw her as a loser after i lost my dad very early in life...when fundamental relationships are at stake,they inhibit our flowering in spiritual as well as material processes.
lot of ebergy is dissipated in tackling such resentments and hates...as a shield, one even sometimes starts glamourising our situations in a spiritual context..i saw poverty as a spiritual quality in the earlier part of my life..
when one experiences roadblocks in any situation, setting right of relationships goes a long way in healing the situation...accepatnce non-judgementally both of ourselves and others is teh key to relationships being set right...some of us are so harsh in our judgement of ourselves, we hate ourselves for being the persons we are...when we cant accept ourselves , we cant accept others...the seeds of love , to me, begin in our abilities to accept ourselves just the waay we are, seeing our helplessness vis-a-vis to the emergences of the people we are.circumstances and conditionings mould us...and the challenge is to transcend beyond them through healing and self-explorative processes..sometimes, during such explores physical problems actually increase in an act of "surfacing"..mich like ayurvedic or homeopathy systems of treatment..one has to trust the process and complete teh cycle...much of your physical condition is actually a transformation of your psychological sufferings..it is easier to handle physical suffering than psychological suffering...suffering perse within us is always a constant, manifesting ion various forms..
events do not cause the suffering, i have found it to be the other way round...the suffering within us manifests as the events of our lives.....one can only dissolve it through liberation...
hope the sharing helps you...
Hi Kavita,
Its great that you have highlighted Yoga and pranayama.It is the need of the hour and it vindicates my stand , which I have mentioned often on this blog that it is indeed the simple that is the most efficacious .
I began the study of Yoga about 25 yrs back more as a learning experience, because the institute in reference, beleved that Yoga was a communion between mind and body . Therfore, studying the sutras of Patanjali was an important pre-requisite. Holistic approach, as was followed by our ancients. I have been told that Yoga was a way of life, then, as normal and routine as perhaps arising and bathing. The day we begin to view it such, there will be a dramatic if not magical reversal of what we term as "modern day diseases".
Pranayama in my experience has cured people with blood pressure problems, cholestrol, diabetes, arthritis, stomach disordres the list is endless. The premise is simple. In yoga 99.99% diseases are termed to be psychosomatic, therfore what arises out of the mind can be controlled by the mind. Its a double edged sword, we only have to be initiated into making it our slave and working for us. So the yamas niyamas, which include yoga as widely believed denoted as mainly asanas and pranayamas is actually all encompassing. All the same even if Pranayamas are practised as a matter of daily exercise regimen . the results would be apparent. If it means anything, let me illustrate with my own example. My weight has been constant At 55 kgs for the last 20 yrs or so. I do not believe in dieting, since moderation comes naturally. Touch wood. I have never been to a doctor for anyhting major. I perhaps would not have mentioned this if you had met me personally. But like someone mentioned, the internet has this knack of letting out personal secrets. Honestly though, it was only to enthuse as many people as possible to adopt Yoga, pranayamas and its study as a way of life. I feel proud to be an Indian for its gift of Yoga, Ayurveda, Vedas to the world. Thousands of years and we are only discovering bit by bit the timeless truth expounded by our ancients validated for its veracity every day and counting.
beautiful share, kaveetaa.tx.
Dear Sundar, wow, you are making huge and clear impacts on me with your sharing! I am so grateful; because I hear more and more clicking of doors becoming unlocked, within the hollowed chambers of my echoing heart.
And yes, I'd come to believe; that the suffering of this life; was a lesson learned for spirituality sake; because after a while, that is all the rationalizing I could muster for it's existance.
wow, in 24 hours, you managed to clear my cluttered mind! lol How does one thank the One, which pass's them a lighted lamp? thank you, Sundar.
Dear Kavita; I admire your friend whom applies so many healing skills for the sake of the patient! This is commendable in today's healing-workings.
As Sundar has explained; we are each our own healer to such a great extent; as to change intent.
I feel weepy; with this newfound inner wound I have come to see; that was so obscured from my vison. Not weepy with feeling stupid; but, for at last, being awakened.
North
Well, the early morning hour here; commands my attention, reminding me tomorrow is another day.
I will take all this wisdom learned; and allow it to absorb into my thoughts tonight; maybe it will make it through the quiet time of the mind; and heal even more, or bring to surface into the light more, the wound; to which I target to heal.
More grateful than I can express, but, it's goodnight time for this girl; as my body reminds me; it requires sleep; of all things! lol
Namaste, pleasant slumber everyone!
North
Kavita,
Your Reiki query was valid . When I got initiated , in fact this was the very question I had asked The master. I cannot recall his exact explanation but something to the effect that we are initiated into being mere channels at this stage. To illustrate, just as the T.v signals are received by any make, model whether Plasma or wide screen, the recipient acts as a transmitter.
But yes, there is another side to it. There is an allied branch referred to as Hypno reiki. We have learnt to creatively visualise the result we so desire and while sending Reiki, normally visualise what we would like to hear about the healing or how the person is going to benefit. Believe me it works. Healing is a soothing experience for both involved. As aurora had ennumerated on the reiki thread, ther are certain pledges we take. Unless and untill, someone wishes to make it a ho-hum practise and reduce his own credibility in the process, Reiki works. As in other fields. I guess the level of intention and the personal positive vibrations would perhaps help. But that rings true even of let us say, blessings from parents or a Guru.
Sundar,
Thanks..I appreciate very much your efforts in helping North too. Healing and energising words.
I have found the yogic breathing exercises taught by the Art of Living foundation to have a tremendous impact on my health and energy. They include Pranayamas, Bhastrika, and the Sudarshan Kriya. Even when I'm having a really busy day if I can take a few minutes out for Kriya and meditation, I have so much more clarity and calmness, everything after that just goes smoothly and stress free. I had to discipline myself to get into the habit of doing the exercises everyday. So now if I miss even a single day I actually feel like I'm running low on oxygen. I've found it to be much easier to just experience it rather than trying to read and understand the importance of my breath.
Sunder,
Your followig conclusions are pure gold:
[as a shield, one even sometimes starts glamourising our situations in a spiritual context..]
This to what I so hatingly call "becoming goody goody..." This is sort of escapism...escapism from confronting our real, difficult situation, may that be on the poverty front or on any other front. I would be rather not-good than poor, not spiritual than poor, I should be first rich and then spiritual rather than the other way around...
And then [...much of your physical condition is actually a transformation of your psychological sufferings..it is easier to handle physical suffering than psychological suffering...suffering perse within us is always a constant, manifesting in various forms..]
How true...people can learn much from this.
Harb
Dear Sundar,
Your words are powerful and contain healing vibrations on many levels. Thank you.
Dear North,
You are one amazing woman! May I say, what a privilege it is, to see you sharing from the core of your being, and watch the energy of awareness manifest in you. Sundar is correct, in my opinion :) - to say that 'events' are not the 'real' culprit of our struggles.
I believe we keep ourself and others in 'debtors prison' and suffer greatly for this.
Beliefs are so strong and powerful, that to 'wake up' and get free of our conditioning, is nearly impossible to do. I know from experience :)
I know, from the core of my being, that 'awareness is freedom' as Sundar said. I know this.
This freedom is free from even your association with the body. At the highest level - and yet while we are in form, the body does need attention, and I know first hand, as my daughter has nearly died several times, to starvation. Her body has been so malnourished, I wondered, how she could make.
And yet, she lives. And when I am most present to her beingness, the unity of our connectedness goes beyond physicality, and even words. It's a lovely thing to be in someone's presence, no words to speak, just Present.
There is a way to step outside conditioning. It's the 'secret' I sometimes write about here. You are discovering the way, and Sundar's words are like the scissors that are cutting the tangled net away.
Now, to breathe deeply, and to rest in sleep for awhile.
Love to you,
~ Kate
North,
Dear, dear north. Your words have a compellingly honest touch to them. I understand and empathise. You are perhaps not alone but I hope you see that your verbalizing is in itself the beginning of the end of your suffering. Often we condemn, hate andsubsequently feel appeased. But what you are doing today is analyzing and understanding occurrences. Soon the process of forgiveness will begin and I am sure you will be astounded at what you gain while freeing yourself on by one of all the shackles. Remember in my mail to you I had promised healing. It comes in all forms and in the one best suited for you. Please be open to the events and give encouragement to all feelings of love and forgiveness that emanate. Do not question. Not even as to why should you forgive so and so after all that you have been through. Just flow along. You do not deserve to perpetuate your suffering therefore strike at the roots once and for all. Forgivenss and love cannot co-exist with suffering and impoverishment.Adopt the former and get relesed of the latter forever.. I will be sending you Healing reiki again
Kate.. Please read the above words.. You know when we communicate through the net, sometimes all we are able to register is pain and anguish.. My need to send healing then goes beyond names.. You are truly a woman of grit and sound thinking. Dear Kate, You are a winner and so is your beautiful daughter. Dont you see you have not given up your spirit to love and nurture, beyond all odds? Keep smiling and loving..All will be well..Blessings and love
Thank you every one for your thoughts and enlightening posts. Kaveetaa, your comment about yoga curing a lot of diseases is right on because I have seen that myself and experienced it with my own bronchial infections. I think its now a proven fact that most diseases are stress induced, and due to imbalance created.
Nisha, sudarshan kriya works very well and cleanses stress toxins from the blood stream. Here in the United states, in some prisons which held violent inmates, when they introduced sudarshan kriya, it decreased the level of aggression and incidences of violence. I remember some prisons in Hawaii being part of this experiment.
North I know you are a strong woman, and I love the way you handle so many of the tough times in your life-with humor. I know that mind of matter is manifested totally in you.
I wish there was some affordable yoga center close by where you live. I know you would benefit tremendously from it.
Kaveetaa, thanks for the information on reiki. It was invaluable. I think I have come to the conclusion that no knowledge ever goes waste if you have an open mind to receive it. Maybe it will be healing for the giver of the knowledge as well.
thank you all..time for a cup of tea to get the day started.
Still have some christmas shopping left.
I will try and continue the yoga thread, and maybe even get the chiropractor to talk about his work, because this branch of alternative medicine focuses so much on spinal health, like yoga.
thanks kavita
Dear Kate, Kaveeta, and all; you are all so encouraging; and gentle, with this old woman's presence among you; I thank you each, for this embrace.
Being aware; has kept me from drowning in the sea of doubt, fear; but, it does not protect me from anger, frustration and resentments, I thought I'd set free, long ago. So awareness can be in fact also limited, and growth-stunted; from confusions and mis-conceptions.
I have received the most precious, treasured gift this christmas, in the wisdom and knowledge I have found here from each of you! Thank you for seeing my strengths, courage and willing heart; and not just the issue's at hand; my secret christmas wish has been granted already. Virginia; there really is a Santa Claus(Hope.)
Of all the things, I have been pushing away; it has indeed, been forgiveness, and love. How blind, a worried mind can become; and how lost on the path, without light.
thank you, again and again; for wiping blindness from my eye's, and unlocking a door; slammed shut so very, very long ago.
Hmm,,, this really IS, the Season of Perpetual Hope, isn't it?(gentle smiles.)
North
Dear Kaveetaa,
You have moved me deeply, to see this in me, this way of going beyond all odds, to bring the essence and presence of myself, of my awarness of Wholeness - to the healing process for my daughter.
The love that transforms even the most distressing illnesses, and the 'miracle' of freedom from them, is - nearly impossible to convey in words! Though I try. :)
Healing words and practices do not go unrewarded. I have been witness to this. And even death of the physical form - is no failure to this Truth.
Thank you so much for lifting my Heart even higher on this chilly, winter morning, where the Sun shines without a hitch, and I am enjoying it's warmth streaming through my window. It's glorious.
With love,
~ Kate
Hi Kavita,I have read in books written by Sylvia Brown that we write our blue prints before we decide to incarnate. Some of us write so many lessons to learn from and perfect our souls that we get unhappy.Unless a being is enlightened one has to work through the problems. On the other hand some of us have problems to work through due to past karma.
A true spiritual being should be calm, collected, and grounded. But if the person is in the middle of a crisis, the feathers may be ruffled.If I were taking a Reiki initiation I would do it from some one who was calm and collected.My teacher takes it very seriously, and fasts and meditates for 24 hours prior to initiating and attuning some one.
Have a MERRY CHRISTMAS.
Just to share some D.D. thoughts, in between precious breaths of time:
THE NORTH FOREST
The night is dark, as morning moves in for it's eventful promise of ascending light.
The moon quickens it's pace around the globe; offering spotlight to dancing stars, along the way.
Billions of twinkling stars in unison peek, through a whispy and clouded sky; to the beckoning of the sun and moon's dance at twilight, always right on time.
There is warmth in the room, and a humid taste of filtered smells from the day's cooking place; and a savoured moment, bless's my face; as an unwanted pang of hunger, finds its place.
Blankets strewn upon the bed, showing that someone tossed; deep slumbering, was lost.
As twilight exposes it's first hint of a dark, indigo blue; the birds sleep silent under another, passing moon.
By: DD Sonnenburg-6-5-05-3:43-am
Dear Kavita,
Thanks much. However, this is to technical for my simple mind. I read your post because my breath has been taken away, so now I am remembering to breath deeply, as a result of reading this very, very long post. Hey, thanks again! I have been sick a lot lately and it's been the head as always, so I think I will focus more on my breath. And I thought it was from a broken heart. How foolish of me!
Love,
Char
Char I smiled at your post..no need to worry about the technicalities and the length of the blog. Just remember to do one simple things for a few minutes..just go out in fresh air, take a long deep breath through your nose, hold it and slowly exhale..just that has amazing benefits for me!
North thanks that was beautiful
Thanks very much Geeta for your input. It makes a lot of sense not just for reiki but perhaps just the way we react to anything in life.
I have always felt that some how we instinctively know, if we heed our sixth sense what works for us..but often we don't pay attention to what our inner voice is telling us..
The same applies to teachers, spiritual masters or friends..some how we know who works for us and who doesn't. And at times when we overlook what isnt working, it leaves us uncomfortabke and stressed out.
Qi Ging (or chee gong) is an ancient Chinese technique and has its own ambience and virtues. Hari says he is confused on account of the breathing system he is picking up under Qi Gong after breathing as per Yoga.
It is possible that Qi Gong comes under the martial arts category and in the process of balancing Yin-Yang, Hari is asked to do some kind of paradoxical breathing, inflating the abdomen when exhaling and deflating it when inhaling. If there is an element of premeditated approach to breathing under this system, I am not aware of it. This is almost impossible for me to do, not just because of decades of yogic breathing practice, but more because of crucial anatomical facts:
The lungs are, to all intents and purposes, sophisticated air balloons and below them is the diaphragm, the main breathing muscle. For inhalation purposes the diaphragm goes down and the air pressure in the lungs is reduced. Outside air rushes in through the nose, trachea or the windpipe, and into the lungs. Simultaneously intercostal muscles pull up of the ribs enabling the lungs to enlarge to their capacity. Because the diaphragm goes down before or concurrently with inhalation, the abdomen inevitably has to come forward. This is all the more so in the case of the obese rather than the slim. If Hari is slim it may not be very obvious, but expand outward it must when he breaths in.
The reverse process sets in when Hari breaths out – the diaphragm relaxes and comes up and the lungs are pressured to force the air out. The lungs, like balloons without air, return to a smaller if not a slouchy position. The intercostals relax and the ribs go back to an earlier latent position.
It is my belief that Qi Gong would not go against the grain of the prakrute swabhava or natural behavior of the respiratory apparatus. After the holidays, I will revisit breathing and expand on the earlier document on breathing.
Sudhanva Char
{{{{Kavita}}}}
:-)
May the Breath of Spirit,
like vapours of scented perfume;
reach you in a warm embrace,
as Christmas Wishes are placed.
North
A gift such as these suggestions of proper breathing is priceless. Thank you from my heart.
Many times I have tried to regulate my breathing in the past. But a feeling of panic almost always overwhelmed me. My daughter has a book on yoga by Sue Luby and she does the morning and evening routines and I try at least to do at least the morning one. The other day I caught cold in my ribs and for a couple days was hurt. Finally, I tried the advice for breathing while walking one day. I wanted the nagging cramp in my back and chest to go away. And my equilibrium and ease came to me, to a spot where I can go again. What a gift to understand this....
Could it be that we teach what we need to learn?
[[[[Paradoxical breathing occurs when inhalation of air is simultaneous with deflation of the abdomen and exhalation is synchronized with (mild) inflation of the abdomen. This is gross abuse of the respiratory apparatus. "
According to Qi Gong, this is how breathing should be done to achieve balance.
Balance is achieved when yin and yang are even.]]]]
This is true -- these two "different" ways of breathing are also known as "Buddhist" and "Taoist" techniques. I have seen that sometimes the regular breathing (stomach expands on in-breath and contracts on out-breath) and sometimes the opposite is true. And given the Taoists' excellent track records over the years, I'd say it's rooted in a logical rationale for it.
:)
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hi kavita saw ur article it was real good as i am very wel aware about the gr8 benefits of yoga and breathing techniques i am happy that people r getting aware about it waiting to hear from u pompy12@yahoo.com