Keeping a routine form of physical exercise such as jogging, weight lifting, bicycling and so forth are good way to keep the mind from thinking too much unnecessarily and for those in their golden years a leas strenuous forms of exercise like Tai Chi or Chigung, Yoga and long walks can achieve the same. This what some would call meditation in action where through mindfulness in the performance of one's activity, the mind can be made to focus into what is being done in the moment. Through the controlled breathing and focus on the physical actions that is being rendered one's mind becomes less dispersed and scattered as it normally does when there is nothing to keep it in focus. It is also an important way of getting to know your physical form better inside out when we are doing these exercises, a good place to begin on the journey towards self discovery. Any form of activity for that matter albeit in the rigorous martial arts training or preparing a dish if one is a chef, working in the garden or hauling out fishes from the ocean if one is a fisherman, one can bring the mind into close attention through one's awareness of breathing and inadvertently one's correct posture. In short each and every activity that one undertakes if performed with close attention or better yet complete awareness is meditation in action and the result is that one is drawn into the present state of consciousness; being in the here and now.
Keeping the mind in the present, not being mentally scattered into the past, the future, into thoughts of fear and anxiety, of worries of having not enough, worries for others as they face the pandemic, of loosing their source of income, of loosing their loved ones; our mind is our death trap, in short we will think our self to death if we are not aware of what is going on with our mental faculty. This is why sleep is crucial to our existence, not only the physical sleep but also the mental sleep. It is said only in deep sleep is the mind free from thoughts and is quiet and at peace. In our regular sleep the mind manifests itself through dreams and dreaming allows the mind free reign over what it manifests with no restraint except when the dream gets too intense and the dreamer feels threatened and immediately is woken up through its safety- survival instinct. Hence one cannot underestimate the importance of understanding the human mind, how it function and how to manage it towards positive performances rather than negative. Most of us take the thinking process to be of no consequences, taking the process for granted, something that is naturally so, nothing can be done about it. There are those who take it to be as important to understand the workings of the human mind as it is to understand the universe itself.
The key to managing the mind is in breathing. It is through breath control that one can make the mind behave as much according to our desire or intention than any other method. This is why in most tradition the art meditation is hinged upon breathing properly according to prescribed techniques and methods. In Yoga itself breath control is treated as a subject of its own known as Pranayama Yoga."
"Pranayama is the practice of breath regulation. It’s a main component of yoga, an exercise for physical and mental wellness. In Sanskrit, “prana” means life energy and “yama” means control.
The practice of pranayama involves breathing exercises and patterns. You purposely inhale, exhale, and hold your breath in a specific sequence.
In yoga, pranayama is used with other practices like physical postures (asanas) and meditation (dhyana). Together, these practices are responsible for the many benefits of yoga.
But pranayama has benefits of its own. These advantages are due to the therapeutic effects of breathing exercises and mindfulness."
I have cut and paste the above pertinent information for the benefit of those new to the subject of meditation and more information can be excess through the Internet or google links. I personally believe that there is nothing more significant than understanding the workings of the breath in the human form. Breathing is the most taken for granted action that is almost forgotten even taking place in our human consciousness and yet it is the very essence of our survival in this human form. Like the swinging door, we breath in it swings in, we breath out it swings out an if we stop breathing the doors closes for good. In any form of meditation and as a matter of fact in any form of physical activity we are reminded to pay attention to our breath. The breath is the bridge between the mundane and the divine in us, it is the connection between life and death. Ask an average man how often is he aware that he has been breathing all this while and chances are is that he is only aware when there is a pause in his breath due to some external interference, or an interruption of one form or another. On a normal day under normal circumstances and average individual would be oblivious to this most obvious physical action tht the body is constantly performing. Thus if I am asked what would be the most important physical aspect of meditation that one must concentrate on, I would have to say, to be mindful of your breath
David Lynch's video - Meditation,Creativity, Peace Documentary 16 country Tour, is a worthwhile video to watch for more understanding of Meditation.
#mindfulbreathing #pranayama #davidlynch
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