This first week is devoted to resting in the equanimity that is sensed when we focus only on the sensation of breath in the nostrils. Practice the following for a set period of time, say 5 minutes:
To start, sit down, close your eyes, and get still and quiet. Breathe normally. When you are able to sit still and quiet, focus all your attention on the sensation of breath that you can feel in the nostrils as you inhale and exhale.
Allow with equanimity, everything to be exactly as it is - allow all sensations, sensed from outside your body or inside, all thoughts, and all feelings to just be exactly as they are during the time period you've set for sitting. As each breath comes, focus on the sensation it creates in your nostrils, and allow all else to be exactly as it is.
Notice whatever there is to notice without doing something about it - without 'scratching the itch,' without engaging in self-talk, interpretation, story-making, wondering, etc. And if you find yourself already caught up in a thought, feeling or sensation, don't give it a second thought! Simply return your focus to sensation of the breath that is occurring right now. Notice that all sensations, feelings and thoughts rise up and eventually dissolve away. Notice that only awareness remains constant. Rest in the equanimity of that awareness. This is the practice for Week #1.
To start, sit down, close your eyes, and get still and quiet. Breathe normally. When you are able to sit still and quiet, focus all your attention on the sensation of breath that you can feel in the nostrils as you inhale and exhale.
Allow with equanimity, everything to be exactly as it is - allow all sensations, sensed from outside your body or inside, all thoughts, and all feelings to just be exactly as they are during the time period you've set for sitting. As each breath comes, focus on the sensation it creates in your nostrils, and allow all else to be exactly as it is.
Notice whatever there is to notice without doing something about it - without 'scratching the itch,' without engaging in self-talk, interpretation, story-making, wondering, etc. And if you find yourself already caught up in a thought, feeling or sensation, don't give it a second thought! Simply return your focus to sensation of the breath that is occurring right now. Notice that all sensations, feelings and thoughts rise up and eventually dissolve away. Notice that only awareness remains constant. Rest in the equanimity of that awareness. This is the practice for Week #1.
I notice that when I become aware of the breath, I am also immediately pulled into my suroundings and become simultaneaously aware of the environment, the materials, light, sound, temperature, feel, etc.
ReplyDeletefocusing on breath has been unusually difficult, but not impossible, for me this week due to a persistent strong cough and irritated throat.
ReplyDeletei often use focusing on breath as a TOOL to get to sleep at night, because i find that more thinking = less sleeping! this week, coughing at night has kept me awake a lot, but i am noticing that when i can focus only on breath, the coughing stops; and it starts up again when i again turn the focus of my attention to thought.
More sharing..
ReplyDeleteafter working out this morning and saying how good it feels, Diana (wife) asked if I thought it would make me less crabby - I have been observing of late that it could be I'm turning into a crabby old man at only 38 - to which I responded 'Yes, this plus my work with [awareness]'. Earlier this morning it felt as if awareness of the breath brought me to the center of balance or gravity, a place of rest, a stillness, whereas otherwise I was off in some other location or trajectory. To Diana's question, again the breath pulled me back to center, now reminding me of a river, and that my crabbiness comes from getting stuck in some story, like some eddy in a river bend, and awareness brings me back into the center of the flow, free from the stories that cause me to slow down and get mired in circles - motion without progress; no wonder crabbiness does arise from such eddies.
I was initially aware of sounds that disturb me( ie traffic noise and sounds I can't control) then after a few minutes they became insignificant background sounds. Again, I get to a place of serenity and peacefulness as I continue to focus on this one breath. 5 minutes goes fast.
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