Breathing

Conscious Breathing

Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnam

(Submitted by The Art of Living Team)

Every morning, when we wake up, we have twenty-four brand-new hours to live. What a precious gift! We have the capacity to live in a way that these twenty-four hours will bring peace, joy, and happiness to ourselves and others.

The Lord of Dancers

Fritjof Capra, Austria

(Submitted by The Art of Living Team)

Five years ago, I had a beautiful experience. I was sitting by the ocean one late summer afternoon, watching the waves rolling in and feeling the rhythm of my breathing, when I suddenly became aware of my whole environment as being engaged in a gigantic cosmic dance.

The Sun

Rev Koichi Barrish, USA

(Submitted by the author)

Ueshiba Morihei O’Sensei, the great Shinto thinker and founder of the Art of Aikido said:

“Rise early in the morning to greet the Sun. Inhale and let yourself soar to the ends of the Universe; breath out and let the Cosmos inside. Next, breath up the fecundity and vibrance of Earth. Blend the breath of Earth and your own and become the breath of life itself. Your mind and body will be gladdened, depression and heartache will dissipate and you will be filled with light and gratitude.”

Breathe in, Breathe out

Judith Hurley Prosser, USA

(Submitted by the author)

Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Breathe in,
Draw up Earth’s Energy
Into your body.
Breathe out,
Pull down Universal Light
Into your body.
Breathe in,
Be grounded
In your body.
Breathe out,
Allow wisdom to
Fill your Being.
Breathe in
Life itself.
Breathe out
All things unnecessary.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.

Affirm life

Suheir Hammad, from Brooklyn, NY by way of Palestine

(Submitted by the author)

Anyone reading this is breathing, maybe hurting,
but breathing for sure.
and if there is any light to come, it will
shine from the eyes of those who look for peace and justice after
the rubble and the rhetoric are cleared and the phoenix has risen.

affirm life.
affirm life.
we got to carry each other now.
you are either with life, or against it.
affirm life.

Extracted from the poem 'First Writing Since', by Suheir Hammad.

HA, The Breath of Life

Wayne Kealohi Powell, Hawai'i

(Submitted by the author)

Ha is the original breath which our creator breathed to bring life to all of creation. In Hawaiian terms, the source of all creation is called Io.

Io used the Ha breath to breath life into all living things. The Ha was a great breath that contained all of the love of God; a breath that contained the supreme energy of God, and had the power to give life to things.