BREATHING

Its important to remember...

Breath is the key to any altered state of awareness. It is your means of exchange with the world about you. You breathe the world in, you breathe it out. The process is natural. You do not have to think about breathing, for it is an involuntary action. In meditation you use breathing to screen out portions of  your world. As you exhale, you allow yourself  to sink down into your mind. On an average, we breathe 16  to 18 times  per minute.  When we become excited,  our  respiration increases.  When we use our minds, they decrease; and what happens naturally can also be controlled, although it must be remembered that breathing is a natural, easy, involuntary process which shouldn't be forced. In meditation the emphasis is on the gentle retraining of the breath, the rule of moderation applies.

• Take it a bit at a time. 
• Don't rush and try to master it all in a day.
• Like all good things, it takes time.
• It's ok if your mind wanders.
• It's ok to move about as needed.
• It's ok if you have days where it doesn't work.

Breathing, Meditation, Martial Art...

Learning to breathe slowly prevents you from remaining angry or annoyed. Deep inhalations-exhalations dissipates the emotion. We  cannot retain it when  the  body  relaxes.

Reducing your breathing rate is also the best preparation for mental activity. Just a few minutes devoted to slow, from the diaphragm breathing will acclimatise your body to the desirable thought-producing state. This is precisely what we do when we begin to meditate. 

We relax the body and use our breath to achieve the required state.  When the feet are properly positioned they force parts of the body into springlike tension. The abdomen is particularly affected. Asians cultures consider the abdomen the seat of the soul. It is the centre of balance, of action. The maintenance of balance in motion depends on breathing. 

Be straight with good posture, but maintain a relaxed state. This is important to keep your chi flowing. Breathe with the pit of the stomach, the soft belly; force it to the groin. Force the air down; force your feet if you're standing, or your seat, if you're  sitting,  right through the ground. 

Inhale always through the nose, mouth closed, it clears the mind. Exhale slowly through the mouth.

 It is  said that such deep breathing can  improve your agility, condition your abdominal muscles, improve your posture, digestion, and constitution. You can use this for therapeutic exercise, for nervous stomach, insomnia or general tenseness; with no possible harm even if you don't do it right.

Martial Arts, Breathing, Meditation. All inextricably linked. The dualism of yin and yang, passive and active, permeates Asian cultures.  This includes the two main aspects of breathing, inhale and exhale. The warrior attacks on the exhale, active. Man is vulnerable to attack when inhaling, passive. When you  attack, attack instantaneously with bounce and recoil, like a cracking of a whip, exhaling explosively through the mouth. Wild animals roar and primitive savages and infantry give battle cries when they attack. Warriors kiai or yell, when attacking, from the pit of the stomach.