“Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor.” ― Thích Nhất Hạnh, Stepping into Freedom: Rules of Monastic Practice for Novices

“Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts. Whenever your mind becomes scattered, use your breath as the means to take hold of your mind again.” ― Thích Nhất Hạnh, The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation

. To master our breath is to be in control of our bodies and minds. Each time we find ourselves dispersed and find it difficult to gain control of ourselves by different means, the method of watching the breath should always be used.” ― Thích Nhất Hạnh, The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation

The depth of the respiratory wave is another factor which varies with emotional states. Breathing becomes shallow when we are frightened or anxious. It deepens with relaxation, & pleasure.

 The inspiratory wave begins deep in the abdomen with a backward movement of the pelvis. This allows the belly to expand outward. The wave then moves upward as the rest of the body expands. The head moves very slightly forward to suck in the air while the nostrils dilate or the mouth opens. The expiratory wave begins in the upper part of the body and moves downward: the head drops back, the chest and abdomen collapse, and the pelvis rocks forward.Breathing easily and fully is one of the basic pleasures of being alive. The pleasure is clearly experienced at the end of expiration when the descending wave fills the pelvis with a delicious sensation. In adults this sensation has a sexual quality, though it does not induce any genital feeling. The slight backward and forward movements of the pelvis, similar to the sexual movements, add to the pleasure. Though the rhythm of breathing is pronounced in the pelvic area, it is at the same time experienced by the total body as a feeling of fluidity, softness, lightness and excitement.

Alexander Lowen, The Voice of the Body

The issue in meditation is not to be sinners by finding out within us what sin is, and then do something about it. This requires a great deal of sensitivity because all things are actually not what appear on the surface. That which appears to be actually immoral on the surface can actually be extremely moral and that which appears to be completely moral when looked at very deeply can be actually as immoral as it can get. Only you can create the way your inner-self can be twisted or purified.

-Bruce Frantzis.

The unexamined life is not worth living

- Socrates

Igniting the Flame of Self-Awareness

If you find it difficult to be aware, then experiment with writing down every thought and feeling that

arises throughout the day; write down your reactions of jealousy, envy, vanity, sensuality, the intentions

behind your words, and so on.Spend some time before breakfast in writing them down, which may

necessitate going to bed earlier and putting aside some social affair. If you write these things down

whenever you can, and in the evening before sleeping look over all that you have written during the day,

study and examine it without judgment, without condemnation, you will begin to discover the hidden

causes of your thoughts and feelings, desires and words.Now, the important thing in this is to study with

free intelligence what you have written down, and in studying it you will become aware of your own

state. In the flame of self-awareness, of self-knowledge, the causes of conflict are discovered and

consumed. You should continue to write down your thoughts and feelings, intentions and reactions, not

once or twice, but for a considerable number of days until you are able to be aware of them instantly.

Meditation is not only constant self-awareness, but constant abandonment of the self. Out of right

thinking there is meditation, from which there comes the tranquility of wisdom; and in that serenity the

highest is realized.Writing down what one thinks and feels, one's desires and reactions, brings about an

inward awareness, the cooperation of the unconscious with the conscious, and this in turn leads to

integration and understanding.

- J. Krishnamurti, The Book of Life

FOCUSED AND FEARLESS – EXTRACTS FROM THE BOK BY SHAILA CATHERINE

“Trust the capacity of the heart to be spacious enough to feel not only the things you like but also mental states that are difficult.**The challenge of difficult emotions is the impulse to avoid confronting them.**Denial is ultimately unconvincing, however.**Often when we try to remove ourselves from the feeling, just slightly, we discover that we are dwelling on the story of the emotion.**The story creates a slight separation from the direct feeling of the painful state.**For example, you might remember something hurtful that a friend said and rehearse various defensive responses during your meditation session.**Thinking removes your attention from what anger, disappointment, and betrayal actually feel like in this moment right now.**If you experience a repeating memory, it’s your opportunity to explore the feelings that underlie the story.**In a situation of highly charged emotions, you’ll find it helpful to gather the support of

stillness.**Bring awareness to the posture.

Bring awareness to the posture.

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If you are sitting, take a deep breath and stay sitting.

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If you are standing, take a deep breath and keep standing.

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Feel your feet on the floor.

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Sense the stability of your body.

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Scan your body and know the sensations you are feeling.

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Physical sensations serve as a tangible guide to the felt sense of the mental state.

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Are you experiencing contraction?

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Are specific areas of tension, quivering, shaking, pulling, or throbbing dominant?

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Locate the feeling in the body and let the attention rest in the embodied experience of

the emotion.

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Emotions are never static.

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Notice how they flow and change: intensifying, dissipating, or fluctuating within a

cluster of related sensations.

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Every time the mind reengages the storyline, disentangle yourself from the conceptual

level and return to the felt sense of the feeling.”

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Incredible insight.

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Grant yourself a moment of peace, and you will understand how foolishly you have scurried about. Learn to be silent, and you will notice that you have talked too much. Be kind, and you will realize that your judgment of others was too severe. —Ancient Chinese Proverb