Today we'll be working with a profound poem that speaks to the wisdom contained within our breath.
Written by Donna Martin,
This piece reveals how our breath can be our greatest teacher,
Showing us truth about how we relate to life.
Through this meditation we'll explore the breath,
Not just as an automatic function but as a wise guide leading us to deeper understanding.
Find a comfortable position,
Either seated or laying down.
Allow your body to settle,
Making any final adjustments to feel at ease and supported.
Let your eyes gently close or maintain a soft downward gaze.
Take these few moments to arrive fully in your body,
Noticing the points of contact between your body and the surface supporting you.
Feel the weight of your body releasing downward with each exhale.
Simply observe your breath,
Just as it is.
Just notice how it moves in and out of your body with its own natural rhythm.
Feel the sensation of your breath at the nostrils.
Notice the slightly cooling air as it enters and the warmer air as it leaves.
Notice the movement of the chest and belly as they rise and fall with each breath cycle.
Observe how your breath creates a gentle dance in your body.
Now as you rest in the rhythm of your breath,
Listen to these words,
The conversation that the breath would like to have with you.
Observe me,
Says the breath,
And learn to live effortlessly in the present moment.
Feel me,
Says the breath,
And feel the ebb and flow of life.
Allow me,
Says the breath,
And I'll sustain and nourish you,
Filling you with energy and cleansing you of all the negative energy.
I'll nourish you of tension and fatigue.
Move with me,
Says the breath,
And I'll invite your soul to dance.
Make sounds with me and I shall teach your soul to sing.
Follow me,
Says the breath,
And I'll lead you out to the farthest reaches of the universe and inward to the deepest parts of your inner world.
Notice,
Says the breath,
That I'm as valuable to you coming or going,
That every part of my cycle is as necessary as another.
After I'm released,
I return again and again,
Even after a long pause,
Moments when nothing seems to happen.
Eventually I'm there.
Each time I come,
Says the breath,
I am a gift from life,
And yet you release me without regret,
Without suffering,
Without fear.
Notice how you take me in,
Invites the breath.
Is it with joy,
With gratitude?
Do you take me in fully?
Do you invite me into all the inner spaces of your home or carefully just inside the front door?
What places in you am I not allowed to nourish?
And notice,
Says the breath,
How you release me.
Do you hold me prisoner in closed up spaces in the body?
Is my release resisted?
Do you let me go reluctantly or easily?
Are my waves of breath as gentle as a quiet sea,
Softly smoothing sandy stretches of yourself,
Or urgent,
Anxious,
Choppy waves of a stormy sea?
Can you feel me as the link between your inner and outer worlds?
Do you feel me as life's exchange between the universe and you?
The universe breathes me into you,
You send me back to the universe.
I am the flow of life,
The breath between every single part and the whole.
Your attitude to me,
Says the breath,
Is your attitude to life.
Welcome me,
Embrace me fully.
Let me nourish you completely and then set me free.
Move with me,
Dance with me,
Sing with me,
Sigh with me,
Love me,
Trust me,
Don't try to control me.
I am the breath,
Life is the musician,
You are the flute.
And music,
Creativity depends on the breath.
Music depends on all of us.
You're not the creator,
Nor the creation.
We are all part of the process of creativity.
You,
Life and me,
The breath.
Take these next few moments to rest in silence with these words.
Let them ripple through your awareness as you continue to follow your breath's natural movement.
As we begin to draw this practice to a close,
Remember that your breath remains a constant teacher,
Available at any moment.
Let each breath remind you of the natural flow of life,
The continuous dance of receiving and releasing,
Of fullness and emptiness.
Begin to deepen your breath slightly,
Feeling the increased energy and presence it brings to your body.
Gently wiggle your fingers and your toes,
Inviting more movement into your body,
Maybe stretch in a way that feels good.
When you're ready,
Just slowly open your eyes.
Carrying with you the wisdom of the breath,
This ever-present teacher of life's most essential truths.
Take a moment to notice how you feel now,
Compared to when you began.
Perhaps there's a new appreciation for the simple,
Yet profound act of breathing.
Remember that this practice is always available to you,
Every breath an opportunity to return to presence,
To wisdom,
To life itself.
