The Knowing Breath: A Theravada Buddhist's Path to Inner Peace and Wellness

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Are you ready to unlock the secrets of the breath and its path to self-discovery? Prepare to be captivated as we navigate the potent power of breath awareness and its profound impact on mental well-being; we delve into the enigma of mindfulness and stillness, unraveling the oft-used phrase 'letting go'. As we attune to the subtle dance of inhaling and exhaling, we begin to understand what 'letting go' truly means.

We further traverse the paradox of control and participation in relation to breathing. By actively observing our breath, we open the doorway to deeper understanding and freedom. Interestingly, we discuss that the only effort in breathing is when we exhale. Wondering how that works? Tune in and find out. We also touch upon surrendering to the breath, a metaphor for surrendering to the present moment - the embodiment of life itself.

In our final segment, we delve into the true essence of the term "Buddha" and the role of breath as a unifying force. We explore techniques for developing greater awareness of our breath and share insights on the transformative potential of breath awareness. We also discuss the power of prayer and how it can unlock numerous doors in our life when combined with breath awareness. 

Zaw's Article:
The Knowing Breath — Recovery Collective — Annapolis, MD (recoverycollectivemd.com)

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Zaw Maw — Recovery Collective — Annapolis, MD (recoverycollectivemd.com)
Luke DeBoy — Recovery Collective — Annapolis, MD (recoverycollectivemd.com)
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What's up, luke?

Speaker 1 (00:41):
Hey, zaw, things are good, and thanks for all of you
for tuning in and joining ourcollective community.
As always, like, comment, share, do all that good stuff.
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(01:02):
If you'd like to monetarilythank us, we, of course, will
welcome that too, as we now havea donate button.
Remember it's through ourcollective efforts that we can
uncover solutions to all thingsrelated to health and wellness.
So, zaw, and our busy lives,it's so easy to overlook the
significance of something assimple and fundamental as our

(01:23):
breath that the breath holdsincredible wisdom, serving as a
gateway to understanding thenature of our minds and finding
inner peace, well potentially soinspired by the teaching of
Buddhism.
Today's discussion revolvesaround the enlightening article
that you wrote, zaw how aboutthat.
So, zaw, you wrote an article orblog, whatever you want to call

(01:46):
it some time ago, and I thinkwe talked about doing this on a
podcast before and try to howarisen ways.
That it's obviously an awesometopic, but how do we simplify it
and make sense, not just forthe listeners, but me too?
You can check out all of Zaw'swriting on our website, the

(02:11):
Recovery Collective, and that'srecoverycollectivemdcom.
We'll share that in the episodelink, but, yeah, so what I want
to do, zaw, let's have you readit's about the breath and
breath awareness and we'll haveyou read two of the paragraphs.
I'll ask you some questionsabout it, we'll talk about it
and then we'll read the last twoparagraphs and have an awesome

(02:34):
episode about breath awareness.
How does that sound?

Speaker 2 (02:37):
Yeah, that sounds good.
It'll be interesting and funand I'm curious how it's going
to unfold, because I don't thinkwe've ever done it and also
it's a strange thing to read myown writing.
You know, writing is just likea different realm.
But I do want to say somedisclaimer about breath.
You know that first of all, mybackground is Teda Vada Buddhism

(03:00):
, the breath work.
They are yoga related breathwork and then the breathing.
I just wanted to mention thatthis has more to do with the
meditative practice,specifically Teda Vada practice,
and there is a concept of threecharacteristics of existence
impermanent, unsatisfactory andthe absence of self.

(03:20):
So that's the framework thatI'm looking at, although I do
have Buddhist background.
I'm not like technicallyadvanced or monastically
advanced, but I do have thebackbone, which I'm always going
to be a lifelong learner,student of, and Buddha deliver
this thing called Anapana SatiSutta, which is translated as

(03:40):
the mindfulness of the breathingdiscourse, and there are 16
steps in that very specific.
So that's my backbone and it'slike a ongoing, for the rest of
my life kind of learning.
That's my reference.
So I just wanted to clarifythat when I see about breathing,
it's not about fire breath orbox breathing or controlling the
breathing and you know allthese things, but it's more

(04:02):
about finding the true nature ofthe way things are through
breath.

Speaker 1 (04:07):
Yeah, great setup, and this is titled Knowing
Breath and you can check all ofZhaal's reading.
Once again, we have blogsection, but you can also check
all his readings through hisabout us on the recovery
collective website as well.
So all yours all.

Speaker 2 (04:23):
So this is how it begins.
Breath is always a good placeto start when learning about the
nature of the mind.
Breathing is an interestingphenomena because it can easily
switch between there is the onewho is doing the breathing and
there is an activity ofbreathing without the one doing
it.
In other words, one can jump inand take charge of the

(04:46):
breathing in a way that he orshe wishes at any given moment,
or one can be busy doing otherdaily things and the breathing
takes care of his own thing anddoes all the work by itself to
sustain life.
Realistically speaking, however, if one were to be fully in
charge and where require toconsciously breathe every single

(05:08):
moment to stay alive, he or shewouldn't have time or attention
to do anything else during theday.
It is quite a serious anddemanding task to sustain life
after all.
Nevertheless, the subtlety ofthe mindfulness practice of
sitting in silence and instillness is that the practice
is not about taking full controlover the breathing, but only

(05:32):
knowing or being aware thatthere is an activity of
breathing going on at thepresent moment.
This awareness can provide uswith the anchor we need for
observing the mind.
The phrase letting go is usedtoo often these days, almost to
the point that we don't knowwhat it really means anymore, or

(05:55):
the phrase goes into one earand leaves out of the other ear
right away without having anysignificant effect on our way of
thinking.
It is either because we don'tactually know how to let go or
we just don't want to.
In any case, paying curiousattention to the breath can give
us a glimpse of what it feelslike to learn to let go.

(06:17):
While breathing in, do wenotice that there is a slightly
cool sensation at the tip of ournose?
And while breathing out, isthere a slightly warm sensation
at the tip of the nose that wefeel?
If and when we are trulypresent with these sensations,
we get a transient understandingof what it means to let go.

(06:40):
In a sense, our ability toobserve our breaths, even if
it's temporary, makes us to bein tune and question who it is
that is actually doing all thebreathing.
Without a question, we knowthat we are in charge when we
choose to pause our breathing.
We also know we are in chargewhen we choose to breathe in or

(07:04):
out, intentionally, long orshort, but when we just watch
the process of breathing andrest our attention on the
awareness of the breath.
We are letting go Because, in away, we're just letting the
breath breathe and we're justallowing the breathing to happen
naturally as it is.

Speaker 1 (07:27):
Thank you.
So that's the first half.
It's so compact, full of arelationship with the breath.
That's one of the things thatreally jumped out at me of just
how much we do it all the time,but I've never in your writing
style.
It's like, oh, you're gettingto know this relationship, this

(07:50):
awareness of this thing that wedo all the time.
But how come I've never lookedat my breath in this way, but
I'm glad that you have.
So let's talk about that.
You mentioned that the breathis related to the mind and I
know mindfulness can do that.

(08:11):
But can you expand on that alittle bit?
You really jumped in that earlyon in the article of how
there's a relationship withbreath in the mind.

Speaker 2 (08:22):
Yes, you're talking.
The word allow come to mind,because that's how I'm equating
or drawing the parallel betweenthe breathing and the mind,
because I cannot stop my mind.
It goes on anyway and it'snothing personal and same thing
with the breathing.
So that's the framework and theparallel that I'm drawing.

Speaker 1 (08:42):
So when you say that I might have thousands of
thoughts a day and I might notbe conscious of every thought
that I had, it can be just asfleeting as it is coming in
where some of my thoughts mightbe so intrusive and I
perseverate or obsess about thesame thing with the breath.

Speaker 2 (09:02):
Yes.

Speaker 1 (09:03):
Yeah, that's neat.
In your article you mentionedthat the breath can be seen as
an activity happening on its ownwithout anyone consciously
doing it.
Can you elaborate on the ideaof how it relates to our
understanding of the mind?

Speaker 2 (09:23):
Yeah, this is a difficult topic, but my
intention, as I mentioned to youbefore we start this recording,
is to simplify it, to make itmore practical.
So it's all about freedom.
It's all about being free ofunnecessary suffering.
So that's what observing thebreath carefully has afforded me

(09:46):
.
So when I say attaining orgetting to the mindset of this
is an activity that is happeningwith or without my permission.
That gives me so much freedom.
One quick, simplified examplewould be the fact that, let's
say, I'm talking to you, luke,and if I'm trying to control

(10:06):
everything that you're saying tome, that's too much work.
So I say something to you, luke, and I ask you a question and
before you say anything, I haveto control everything that you
say back to me.
That's just too much work.
Same thing with the mind andthe breath that it takes so much
pressure off when I just likeoh okay, I'm paying attention to
what my breath is doing, as ifI'm listening to you talking,

(10:28):
luke, and it just helps me tosee things as they are.
I hope that's helpful as asimplification, and that's what
I mean by watching it as anactivity, nothing personal.
It goes on as if I'm observingsomeone else doing their own
thing.

Speaker 1 (10:47):
How do you balance that?

Speaker 2 (10:48):
Good question.
Can you expand more on yourquestion?

Speaker 1 (10:54):
It's like the paradox of control, no control.
We can hold our breath, and Idon't mean to be morbid, but if
I hold my breath underwater andif I don't come up eventually,
my breath is going to go.
Nope, it's time for a breath.
There's this complete control,or really no control.

(11:21):
I can pay attention to it or Idon't.
It's going to happen, Like, howdo you find that balance?
It's something we do every day,so it just happens naturally in
one sense.
But this consciousness of thisbreath that you have, how do you
balance it?

Speaker 2 (11:40):
Yeah, that's a really good question.
It got me thinking too about myexperience as a Buddhist is
kind of colored for lack of abetter word because I've been
living here and then I haveinvolved with 12-step fellowship
and then learning about some ofthe teachers from the American
society of American Buddhism andstuff.

(12:02):
So yeah, my thinking is alwaysevolving.
But the thing about the wordbalance, as you were saying, is
that I'm at a point where it'snot about letting go and then
attaining full enlightenment,but it's more about
participation.
The thing about the breath toanswer your question about the
balance is that I canparticipate.

(12:24):
It's not like being passive andthen don't do anything about it
, but it's more about I can ask,I ask and I listen, kind of
like the 12 step version ofprayer and meditation, and I
find that to be kind of aplayful activity with the breath
and with the universe in a way.
There are also some teachingswhere you ask your mind that,

(12:48):
well, I breathe in, but what'sthe comfortable way of breathing
?
You ask and then you listen.
So is this long breathcomfortable or is the short
breath better for this moment,for my mind activity and for my
body right now?
And then it's more about likegive and take kind of thing.
So that, to me, is a balance.
It's an activity in the breathevery time, but our life is

(13:11):
different every time.
Asking my mind.
Well, I'm feeling anxious rightnow, so what's the good?
Breathing that I should do andthen letting the breath respond
to that?

Speaker 1 (13:21):
Once again, I just think of it as paradoxical, for
lack of a better word, that if Ipay attention to the sensations
of the breath, it can help mecultivate a sense of letting go.

Speaker 2 (13:34):
Yeah, that's the second paragraph that we were
reading, right, the idea ofletting go, observing the breath
being present with it.
So, yeah, that's entirelyrelated to the three
characteristics that I wasmentioning in the beginning the
impermanent nature of it.
That letting go is acceptingthat things are impermanent, and

(14:00):
that's what I mean by thebreath.
My inability to let go comesfrom the fact that things are
permanent.
I have this thing that willlive like this forever.
But the more we are carefulwith the detailed sensation of
the breath, the more we becomeaware that things are always
changing, even the in breath andthe out breath each time is so
different.
Things are always in flux.

(14:20):
So when I accept that, it givesme that ability to let go, not
to get fixed on a particularpoint.

Speaker 1 (14:28):
So it's as much as it is your letting go your breath
when it happens, your being withthe breath as it goes.
It's as much metaphoric,symbolic as it is real life
letting go.

Speaker 2 (14:46):
And to be more practical too, this is very
applicable to any kind ofnegative thoughts or anxiety,
depression, resentment, anyfeelings that comes up when I
become fully present with it,not in a way of like I'm so
tangled by it, but it's just thefact that, oh, this is

(15:06):
happening and it gives me thatability to let go, because I
prolong it by oh, let me justpretend that this is not
happening or this should not behappening, and I prolong it by
not accepting it.
I don't know if it's just myperception, but this
conversation is quite meditativein a way.

(15:28):
I feel like we're at this zonewhere, I don't know, maybe it's
the effect produced by talkingabout breathing.
You know, that is insightfuland kind of calming for me, I
guess.

Speaker 1 (15:41):
one more question on the concept of letting go.
It's often used but not alwaysfully understood, and we're
trying to articulate that rightnow.
How does this practice ofobserving the breath help us
gain a deeper understanding ofletting go and how does it
connect to finding a sense offreedom?

(16:02):
Because your acknowledgementand your explanation that you
just gave letting the breath goI hear a sense of freedom in
that.

Speaker 2 (16:14):
Yeah, I mean, you know it's more of a.
That's why I encourage peopleto meditate, even if you feel
like you are not good at it orwhatever.
It's just to start right away.
That's the best way becausewhen it comes to these practices
, it's more everything is allexperiential.
So otherwise we're just usingwords and all, like you know,

(16:37):
abstract.
But when you have theexperience of watching the
breath and being present with it, it becomes more substantial
and also experiential.
The concept that is equivalentto letting go is a thing about
surrendering.
That's also a pretty powerfulterm, you know surrendering.
So if we apply that tobreathing, how does it maybe

(17:00):
I'll ask this to the listenerthat when you surrender to the
activity of breathing, how doesit feel like surrendering to
your breath?
You're just allowing it becauselife is going to exist.
So that's what I mean by thefreedom, that's, surrendering to
the fact that I'm breathing.

Speaker 1 (17:21):
Can you talk very briefly before we started
recording, on what you learnedabout I don't know if it was in
your yoga practice or not aboutthe inhale of the breath.

Speaker 2 (17:35):
Yeah, I'm new to yoga , so I got a little too excited
about all these new things thatI'm learning about yoga, which
is that I just read it somewhereor maybe a yoga teacher
explained it to me that when wethink about the activity of
breathing, the effort that we'reputting in is only when we
breathe out, but when we breathein we're not actually breathing

(17:57):
in, we're just creating spacein the lungs for the air to come
in.
Because of the atmosphere,there's already a pressure,
that's air is ready to come in,I just have to allow it.
I'm actually putting moreeffort by not allowing it to
come in, so when I let go aircomes in, and the effort that
requires is to push it out.

Speaker 1 (18:19):
So my upbringing is like oh yes, so the ribcage and
the muscles are just opening upand then the atmospheric
pressure is going in.
It's so bizarre to think of itthat way, because I've always
assumed it like a suction ofsucking it in.
But no, we're not doing that.
It's kind of creating a cavityand the pressure goes in.

(18:41):
It's so wild to think of itthat way.

Speaker 2 (18:43):
Yeah, but I think, to be precise, I think we also
have that ability to do that too.

Speaker 1 (18:47):
Sure, we just breathe it all in.
Yeah, suck in air, literally.

Speaker 2 (18:52):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (18:53):
Interesting.
Well, why don't you read thelast two paragraphs of the
article you wrote on the knowingbreath?

Speaker 2 (19:03):
Yeah.
So the next part is that, as wealready know, even if it is
only in theory, there is freedomin letting go.
But how far are we willing tolet go?
How badly do we want to be free?
In a conventional sense,however, letting go implies a

(19:23):
feeling of a loss.
For example, we let go of amarriage and we lost it.
We let go of a house and thehouse is gone.
But in the grand scheme ofletting go, these examples are
just the tip of an iceberg.
The difference can be pointedout if we apply the letting go

(19:44):
idea to the process of breathinghere.
Quite obviously, when we let goof breathing, it's not like we
lose our breaths and we die.
It's not a loss, but it is nota gain either.
It just is Only breathing.
We do not lose anything, we'reonly letting it all happen the

(20:04):
way it is meant to be.
Wow, I went pretty far outthere.
I feel like I don't know ifpeople get it.
It is not the world's mostexciting thing for us to sit in
stillness and in silence.
Not only is it counterintuitive, but it also does sound quite
boring, doesn't it?
But as we anchor ourselves inthe awareness of breathing, we

(20:29):
get to know the true nature ofthe mind.
And as we get to know the truenature of the mind, we get to
let go and connect with theworld in a way we've never known
possible, because the truth ofour existence is embedded in
each moment of intuitiveawareness, and in that awareness

(20:49):
is where we truly know thepeace and happiness we deserve
and have been longing for.

Speaker 1 (20:57):
The end Anything you'd like to expand on based on
what you just read.
You read yourself.

Speaker 2 (21:04):
I mean the power of the present moment essentially,
is what stood out to me fromthat reading and reflection
about just the fact that, yeah,like surrendering again,
surrendering to the breath, isalso surrendering to the present
moment.

Speaker 1 (21:23):
And accepting, surrendering and accepting.
You said you feel like you gota little out there with that
last piece.
When we lose our breath, we die.
It is not a loss, but it's nota gain either.
That's just pure acceptance.
That's what I read from that.
How symbolic is that foreverything in life.

Speaker 2 (21:47):
Yeah, sometimes, like when I meditate, I have these
visual of this.
You know, sometimes I havethese experience of being able
to look at me as an outsider.
So if I think about it, whenI'm breathing, it's like this
individual on this earth who isgiven this task to observe the
breathing.
It's like a gift already, butalso like a.

(22:10):
It's almost like a mystery,something that I.
But the cool thing aboutbreathing is that it's a very
ancient activity.
Right, if you think about it,it's been with us since the
beginning of life.
For any kind of animal or anybreathing animal.
You know, there's thatrespiration, taking and giving
back, renewing.

(22:30):
I have these images sometimes oflike, oh, this is a good task
that I am given, you know whichis available.
And there's that like peace andthe freedom when we observe it
that way that, oh, yeah, there'sthis breathing that I am
assigned to.
And I guess you know, in othertraditions of like, believing in

(22:51):
a creator of God, breathing isa very godly thing because it's
part of the creation.
So when you are in tune withthat creation, you're actually
in tune with the originalcreator of who you are.
That that's how I.
I'm not, you know, a Christianor anything but like.
That's a model that I think ofwhen I think about staying in
tune with the breath.

(23:11):
It's also staying in tune withGod, in a way, because this is
what's creating us in eachmoment.

Speaker 1 (23:17):
What do you think of the?
There's a few languages thatall have this parallel that the
Latin word for breath isspiritus or spirit.
The literal word for breath isspirit.
What are your?

Speaker 2 (23:32):
thoughts on that.
Yeah, there's also a term, lifeforce, which is also translated
in the yoga or Hindu, maybeeven Buddhism as well.
That, that wording of AnnaBanna Banna is Bali, I think,
but the yoga term is prana,p-r-a-n-a, pranayama, it's the

(23:55):
yoga practice of in and outbreath you know, so maybe that's
something equivalent to that ofspirit, because, yeah, breath
is energetic, like I'm allowingthe life force to come in, you
know.

Speaker 1 (24:11):
Well it's, I don't know your experience and you
talked about a little bit aboutwe lose our breaths when we die
and a lot of us has been by ourfamily members bedside during
their last breaths and it'squite a visible experience to
see someone go from conscious tosubconscious and their physical

(24:35):
body change and then theintensity of the breath that you
see a person taking, and thenpeople talk about the rattle
breath right before someone diesand so many people tell their
loved ones and they've acceptedit's okay, you can go, you can
move on now, whether it's God,heaven, afterlife or whatever

(24:58):
you want to believe, whetherit's religiously or spiritually
or personally.
And I can't help but to thinkof the intensity of the breath
of my grandmother during herlast breaths.
And then you know my dad andaunts and uncles.
It's okay to go, and as soon aswe leave, as soon as we leave,

(25:21):
we go.
Okay, you guys have visited andshe left, but it's just the why
that comes to my mind.
It's like, oh, we don't loseanything.
Yes, a physical being, aphysical person, but we're only
letting it all happen the way itis meant to be the breath was
there during the time it wasmeant to be and whether the

(25:43):
spirit moves on is just for me atruly an accepting, almost
comforting thing that, as sheexpires physically in this human
form, that maybe the spirit andthe breath went to where it
needs to be, and I accept it.

Speaker 2 (26:02):
Yeah, yeah, this is just me thinking out loud in
this moment and I haven't fullyprocessed it, but I'm going to
try to spell it out anyway whichis that the breath and the
consciousness.
No, I wasn't mean to be polite.
The breathing activity iscreating a soil or a ground for
the consciousness to come in.
I see that in reflection towhat I've experienced recently.

(26:25):
You know I have to follow HIPAAprofessionally for my
interpretation, but I can stillshare it without breaking any
PHI personal health information.
I was helping a really bigfamily with their grandfather I
think.
He was in a car accident.
They were trying really hard tosustain his life, but his brain

(26:48):
was so damaged already thathe's gone.
But then there's a breathingmachine that is sustaining his
life, so he was still alive, buthis consciousness is gone.
So the family had to make adecision to unplug it.
So it's almost like amechanical thing he's still
breathing and he's still alive,but consciousness is gone.

(27:08):
So it just makes me think ofthat, because the other way
around, the breathing comes in,you're alive, and then it
creates a soil for theconsciousness to come, and then
the consciousness goes away andthen breathing still exists, but
it's just a mechanical thingfor him.
He's still alive, but thespirit is not there anymore.

Speaker 1 (27:28):
So when we lose the control of that, it's a
mechanical thing.
But then during meditation, itcan be mechanical or it can be a
higher level of consciousness.
Potentially You're making methink deep.
Another question or two for you.
Sitting in stillness andsilence may seem boring or even

(27:53):
counterintuitive to some.
How does anchoring ourselves inthe awareness of breathing help
us discover that true nature ofthe mind?

Speaker 2 (28:02):
Yeah, again, it is experiential.
I don't promote stillness andsilence, but if you feel moved
to do it, do it and you'll feelthe benefit.
But, like, sitting in stillnessand silence help me to remember

(28:29):
what is available.
And I think this nurse canrelate to that, because the
opposite is true.
Like when I'm busy, feelinganxious, worried, not having
enough time to get everythingdone that I'm supposed to be
doing, rushing, or I should besomewhere else already I'm late.
Whenever I'm in that moment Idon't feel anchor and the

(28:52):
stillness and the silence iswhat I crave for.
So like, for me, it's acontrast to a busy life.
So that's what I mean by theanchor that it is available and
it's my true nature that I canalways go back to.
And it's also the Sometimes Ithink of.

(29:15):
Just like with this podcast,right, we can put the recording
on and it will be capturing thesilence, but then we fill that
in with a voice, so there can bean hour-long recording without
no voice.
So it's like that with the daytwo, that when I'm sitting in
silence, it's that recordingthat is creating space, that is
always available and I'm justadding worries and anxieties to

(29:36):
it, which is by my choice.
So like it's like a background,a contrast to what we are
capable of and what we haveaccess to.
That's what I mean, yeah.

Speaker 1 (29:47):
Beautiful.
Well said, I guess I'll closewith this question.
In your article you mentionedthat through intuitive awareness
we can find peace and happinessthat we deserve and have been
longing for.
Can you elaborate on how thepractice of breath awareness can
lead to a deeper sense of peaceand happiness in our lives?

(30:07):
I think you kind of touchedupon that.
But for the new meditator, theone that has only had you know,
guided meditations and notreally really focused on all
things breath.
How can it lead to a deepersense of awareness, whether it's
pace and happiness or not?

Speaker 2 (30:29):
Yeah, I guess the term intuitive awareness is
interesting and we can unpackthat.
But what I was referencing tois pretty much the meaning of
the word Buddha.
There is a tradition, I'm notsure in Burmese tradition, but
in Thai forest tradition there'sa practice where you meditate
on the word Buddha, which is avariation of the word Buddha, so

(30:52):
you can just repeat that andBuddha means I mean it can mean
to the historical Buddha.
But the true meaning of Buddhais the one who knows the knowing
.
That's also why I titled it asthe knowing breath.
Is that it's the true?
I guess some Zen tradition orsome Mahayana or you know some
modern trans Buddhism referredto as a Buddha nature that is

(31:16):
within all of us, which is thatintuitive awareness you know.
So, like again, this isexperiential you know, so when
you get tapped into it almost Iguess the westernized equivalent
term is that God consciousnessin a way, that's what I mean by
that intuitive awareness wherepeace, heaven on the earth kind

(31:39):
of thing is right here in thismoment.

Speaker 1 (31:41):
When I get tapped into that intuitive awareness,
which is the knowing, the onewho knows, and sometimes tell my
clients our feet are Smartestwise, this body part, because
they always know where they'reat.
But maybe I should startincorporating the wisdom of the
breath and what that can tell us.

(32:03):
You know, the feet can groundus, but, boy, that breath can
ground us too.
Is there any practical tips ortechniques that the listeners
can incorporate into their dailylives to develop a greater
awareness of the breath andcultivate a sense of letting go
Would you recommend for them?

Speaker 2 (32:23):
Yeah, in this moment, the thought that comes to mind
is a sense of belonging.
That which is where, like thepieces, sometimes so like, if
you practice breathing, you'rethe one who's breathing, but
it's also something universal.
That's also the beauty of thebreath is that it's the most
present thing that every livingbeings on this earth, right now,

(32:44):
in this moment Although we'rerecording it, but like whoever
is listening to later, thistruth is true that is an
activity that is happening aslong as we're alive, you know.
So it's a very uniting,practical Way of looking at my
existence, right, because thatotherness is gone when I am able

(33:05):
to bring my mindfulness to that, that, oh, this is an activity
that I'm doing and everybodyelse is doing, and it gives Me
that connection with otherliving beings in that way.

Speaker 1 (33:15):
I think there's a thousand different techniques,
but any that you you can want tothat you can share with us.
Yeah, just for awareness of thebreath.

Speaker 2 (33:24):
Yeah, paying attention, bringing your
awareness, just like it says inthe reading to about paying
attention to that cooling andthe warm sensation, breathing in
being aware of that coolsensation, breathing out being
aware of that warm sensation.

Speaker 1 (33:41):
Another one I learned from you.
I had a doing a group andstarted the group with a mindful
breathing technique and onegentleman, um Said luke.
I've never been able tomeditate my life.
I got the worst 80d, 80 hdYou've ever seen your life.
I can't sit still, let alone myleg shakes all the time.

(34:04):
So I just gave him a breathingtechniques technique where when
he did an inhale he focused onthe lower part of the lungs and
it filled up to the middle andnotice, when he inhaled from the
top, of his lung being full.
When he exhaled from the top ofthe lung and felt it to the
middle and Down to this deepestbronchial tubes at the very base

(34:26):
of his lungs and make this feltthe air escaping that and held
it and did it again lower,middle upper.
Just do that for 10 breaths, inand out, just lower, middle,
upper, upper, middle, lower andjust focus on those three Stages
of the inhale and exhale.
So we did that for a handful ofminutes and I certainly didn't

(34:47):
hear him scuffling or legshaking.
But afterwards, uh, as he wasjust being aware of his breath
and he uh, I worked in her drugand alcohol rehab facility at
the time and After I processedthat with the group and he
looked at me and he said, luke,I feel like I'm stoned.

(35:10):
But the way I took that and thegroup you know shared their
experiences and what theythought of his is he was able to
be aware and conscious of hisbreath and, as a result, it
sounded like his brain waves orhis it was racing mine Certainly
was Not as racing and it soundslike his stress levels went

(35:31):
down and he had some good um,you know neurotransmitters and
feel good chemicals release as asecondary result of just having
awareness of his breath.
And this was someone that saidthere's no way I'll be able to
quote unquote meditate or havebreath awareness.
And that was just a reallypowerful Story I'll never forget

(35:53):
in my life.
So when everyone says I can'tmeditate, I can't sit, still, I
said let's just try a technique.

Speaker 2 (36:00):
Yeah, that's your go-to example.

Speaker 1 (36:02):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (36:03):
I do have one concluding thought, uh, which is
, again, this is a fun part forme because I feel like I'm not
limited to Theda Vada Buddhism,although that's my background,
um, but like the thing withbecause, you know, I've been in
trust, a fellowship and, uh,living here and all these things
, the thing about prayer, youknow, because in the trust, that

(36:24):
God of your understanding right, and I do have that, and it's
been just really fun Because ifI really believe in the concept
of prayer, there is no shortageof that.
So if I don't, you know, theysay, if you don't have the
willingness, you can pray forwillingness.
And, uh, if you don't know howto pray for willingness, ask for
the instruction how to pray,like there is nothing that you
cannot pray about.
You know which which opens somany doors, so like to connect

(36:45):
that with the breathing, to thatagain, asking and paying
attention.
So, like, the thing aboutbreathing is that if I believe
in a higher power, upon a God ofmy understanding, I can
petition to that power, help mebring my attention, or in
equivalent terms in Buddhism,that Mine is an organ, mine is a

(37:07):
thing and I can even treat mymind as a friend.
So, hey, mine, can you giveattention to my breathing right
now, and then asking and thenlistening or paying attention to
what happens.
So it's a fun, fun, uh,exercise for people, um, who
believes in God or who are moreused to that kind of like prayer
and meditation, that like askyour mind to pray, attention, to

(37:29):
pay attention to your breathingand see what happens.

Speaker 1 (37:32):
I think you explained it perfectly but expand on the
mind as an organ, so people canunderstand exactly what you mean
by that.
Yeah, so I'll use the sameexample.
Right, luke, right in front ofme.
I'm a large organ, yeah, andyou respond when I say things to
you because you are Ascentianbeing and you hear me and you

(37:55):
respond.

Speaker 2 (37:56):
So mine is like that too.
That um, it is an entity of hisown.
It has causes and conditionsFrom my childhood, growing up,
my beliefs, things that I'veseen input, output.
So there's already Uh an organthat's what I mean by organ,
that they are Uh mechanism inthere that just happens without

(38:16):
my permission.
So it is on its own in a way,and I can step out of it almost
like a friend or a trustedfriend.
I wanted to use that word.
After I've trained the mind, itbecomes like a trusted friend,
so I can interact with that Um,which is also like for some

(38:36):
people.
They even like when they forgetsomething.
They ask their mind.
Can you bring to my attentionthe thing that I forgot about.
You know or some people wouldask their mind that I need to
get up at five in the morningtomorrow.
Can you remind me?
It's almost like a computer.

Speaker 1 (38:52):
It's like your smartphone.
Yeah, yeah, so that's what Imean.
Yeah, well, as we wrap up.
So thank you for sharing aboutthis article that you wrote and
the knowing breath.
Is there anything else thatyou'd like to mention before we
Close?

Speaker 2 (39:07):
this up.
No, that's, that covers it all.
I hope, uh, yeah, I hope youpractice.
Whoever is listening sit andpay attention.

Speaker 1 (39:17):
Yeah, your mind can be an organ.
You can even tell thatsmartphone to Help you with your
daily routine of breathawareness.
Well, today we explored theprofound practice of breath
awareness and its transformativepotential.
As reflect on our conversation,we are reminded of the inherent
wisdom embedded within thebreath.

(39:39):
The breath serves as a powerfultool for self Exploration,
allowing us to observe theinterplay between conscious
control and the natural rhythmof our own breath.
Through the practice of breathawareness, we gain a glimpse of
what it means to let go.
By simply observing the breath,we surrender to its natural
flow, experiencing a profoundsense of freedom and connecting

(40:03):
with the present moment.
In the stillness and silence ofbreath awareness, we can even
tap into the true nature of ourminds.
Potentially, we encourage you,our listeners, to embark on your
own journey of breath awareness.
Take moments throughout yourday to anchor yourself in the
rhythm of your breath, to fullyexperience the sensations and

(40:23):
Presence that arise with eachinhale and exhale.
Allow the breath to be yourguide, leading you to a deeper
understanding of yourself andthe world around you.
Remember, the practice ofbreath awareness is a timeless
tool, always available to you.
Embrace the power of the breathas a getaway to inner peace,
clarity and mindfulness.

(40:45):
I like to express my gratitudeto you all for sharing the
wisdom and insights on thebreath, just like you do every
weekend in this podcast.
But Thanks for sharing yourreading today.
Thanks for allowing me to.
Your words have provided uswith a profound understanding of
the transformative potentialwithin each breath we take, and
If you want to read it again,I'll make sure I'll have a link

(41:05):
on there for you guys to checkit out.
And thank you, guys, thelisteners, for joining us on
this journey into the depths ofbreath.
If you found value in thisepisode, we invite you to share
it with others whom may benefitfrom the profound wisdom of
knowing breath.
Don't forget to subscribe toour podcast and leave us a
review, as your support andfeedback Seriously seriously

(41:27):
means a lot and can help uscontinue to explore Meaningful
topics and bringing you inspiredcontent.
If you're listening these last30 seconds, then you can spend
another minute or two for likingand commenting.
Sharing that mean a lot to us.
So until next time, may theknowing breath guide you to
replace presence, peace andself-discovery.
My name is Luke.

(41:48):
This is all.
See you next time, see you.