Ask yourself these questions this morning: What has been one of the hardest times in my life? How did I pull through it? How did I push through it? Is it happening right now? Then look outside at the sky. The dictionary will tell you that breath is an inhalation and exhalation from the lungs. This is true. This is a fact. The explanation is scientific and most human beings have an easy time understanding solid ideas. But, what about what we can't see? What does breath become when the thoughts in our head boggle our hearts and freeze up our bodies without us even realizing it? What then is the definition of breath? It is a reminder of where we are. It is a place to come home to. It is a sitting spot, a not moving, a listening to the parts of ourselves we cannot hear, except in silence, and it is in silence when the answers come.
Yoga is an interesting art. The first time I ever did yoga I didn't know what to expect. "Come to rest in a quiet place" my instructor said. What quiet place? I have a quiet place? Since when? "Feel your sit-bones beneath you" Ouch, my back hurts, this is so uncomfortable, why can't I stop talking inside my head? Am I going crazy? Maybe I should leave. "Take a deep breath"...and that was it right there. A deep breath. I don't think I'd taken a deep breath since I was eight years old. In fact, I believed that I had been holding my breath since then. How was I alive? "How simple" I thought, "a deep breath". After years of holding my breath, I discovered how hard breathing really is.
What responsibilities come with breathing? We have, most of all, a responsibility to ourselves. With that comes compassion for ourselves and when we have compassion for ourselves, we can be compassionate towards others. Tich Nat Hahn says "Peace is every step, the shining red sun in my heart." Today, wherever you are, stop what you're doing. Sit down for a moment. Take a deep breath. Then ask yourself, what you've been holding onto. Sometimes, releasing the breath is releasing negative energies. There is no mathematical definition for this. This is not something solid. This is a journey. This is a path with many roads.
