Breathing is essential for life
Breathing is essential for life. This sounds painfully obvious but how much attention do we give this phenomenon that is fundamental to our existence?
Breathing is so primal and innate that its importance is often overlooked. Our breath gives us the energy necessary to power the human body. When we breathe we detoxify and improve the quality of our blood. Breathing aids immunity and digestion. If we did not breathe we could not live.
Breathing to calm and rewild your mind
By paying attention to our breath our minds become calmer and we become more centered. A centered mind is a wild mind. A mind that is alert and ready to make conscious decisions.
Most of us know this to be true, but how often do we put this into practice? How often when we are stressed or agitated do we just pause to observe our breath and re-center ourselves?
Breathing is a completely organic function and yet still sits within the realm of our control. It is for this reason that it can act as a path between the unconscious and the conscious mind. By turning our attention to our breathing we can turn our minds off autopilot. We can become centered and compose conscious actions.
Don’t try to breathe, just breathe!
The next time you are feeling frustrated or disconcerted pause for a second and simply observe the rhythm of your breathing. It will likely be fast and shallow, the opposite of relaxed and deep.
There is no need to try to change it, by simply observing it, your breathing will return to its natural pattern. You cannot tell a fish how to swim and you cannot tell a human how to breathe.
Is your breath happening of its own accord or are you controlling it? This mere observation is enough to activate your conscious mind.
Try breathing the next time your mind is racing
Living in the modern world can cause our minds to race. Multiple tasks and endless streams of information can be a burden. Paying attention to our breath is nature’s cure for a racing mind.
Often we react on autopilot and we don’t give ourselves time to react with a clear mind. Our stresses can be taken out on undeserving others. Paying attention to our breathing before we react can help to prevent this.
Next time you find yourself in a traffic jam, a confrontational conversation, or any other situation that causes your mind disturbance, before you react, try to pause and pay attention to your breath. When the mind is calm again the answer will organically present itself.
The Magical Art of Breathing
By turning our attention towards our breathing our posture will naturally improve. The tensions in the body will begin to release. Energy will begin to flow making us more alert. Our minds will become clear, relaxed and centered.
This is so simple and can be practiced at any point in the day. It becomes a tranquil experience like watching waves being pushed into shore and being pulled back again.
Rewild your mind! Observe your Breath!
