This brief meditation is based on an observance of Exodus chapter 6 verse 9 that notes that the Israelite slaves were short of breath.
It was once explained to me that the difference between excitement and anxiety is simply how deeply we breathe.
Our pupils dilate,
Our blood pressure rushes,
And in anxiety we take short,
Raspy breaths.
And if we're eager and calmly excited,
Our breath can be long and expansive.
So our exercise for the next minutes is simply to extend the breath.
To start from a natural breath,
Maybe a shallow breath of everyday grasping and running and working,
And to move over the course of this exercise to an elongated breath.
So begin for a few minutes just breathing where you are,
At whatever pace you find yourself before you started this meditation.
Let that be your baseline.
Take a quick note.
Is your breath shallow?
Rushed?
Aphazard?
Maybe you're already in a place of breathing deeply.
And now for a few minutes just note where your breath is when you find yourself.
Now for the next while,
We'll continue breathing.
At every few moments I'll ask you to breathe a little bit longer and a little bit deeper.
Moving out of a place of constriction and into a place of freedom.
Start from where you are.
Now find a little bit more freedom by breathing a little bit deeper and a little bit slower.
A little bit less constriction by slowing breath again.
Once more.
Make your breath even longer.
As you prepare to extend your breath further,
Just take note of any places that are tight or pinched or narrow.
Draw the breath into those spots too.
One last time.
Fill yourself with the slowest,
Longest,
Deepest breaths you can manage.
Continue breathing in the most expansive way you can find.
The next last- Launcher Continue on your own.
