Breathe In, Breathe Out

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Your Breath Holds A Key

“One in-breath alone is enough to set you free – from your regrets about the past, your worries about the future, and your projects in the present.
In that state of freedom, you will make better decisions.
Next time you have to make a decision, be sure to breathe in and out first.”
— Thich Nhat Hanh
 

We breathe. All day, all night.

Gratefully, we don't have to think about it. If it required our conscious thought, we'd all be dead by now, having let it lapse at least somewhere during a day of activity, racing to work, getting a cup of coffee, avoiding a traffic jam. Never mind trying to consciously breathe while we sleep.

Our breath is simply there, or we can choose to shine our awareness on it. As quoted above, our breath is a key to our awakening, a deeper awareness.

Precious Breath

Our breath is precious. It's the first thing that connects us to this earth at our birth. We can be born, but without the invisible cord of our breath that ties us to this earth, we won't be able to stay. 

When I first started working in Labor and Delivery, I felt sad when the newborns cried. That is, until I realized how deeply healthy it was when their lungs filled with air and they proclaimed their entrance onto this planet with a loud cry. My heart dropped to the floor when a delivery remained in frightening silence as we scrambled to save a little one.

I learned to love the cry of a newborn infant. Hearing it, I knew, at least for that moment, all was right with the world.

Remember To Breathe

As our lives march on, sometimes our breathing becomes shallow and tight. Sometimes we hold our breath.

While performing a medical procedure, we often tell our patients to breathe.

"Breathe, don't hold your breath."

Breathing with the discomfort carries us through the procedure.

Breathe in, breathe out – with awareness.

Follow your breath and let the breath set you free.

 

 

Imperfections As Part Of The Path

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Imperfections And Acceptance On The Path

 
“We must be willing to be completely ordinary people...,
which means accepting ourselves as we are without trying to become greater, purer, more spiritual, more insightful.
If we can accept our imperfections as they are, quite ordinarily, then we can use them as part of the path.
But if we try to get rid of our imperfections, then they will be enemies, obstacles on the road to our self-improvement.”
— Chögyam Trungpa
 

From the book The Myth of Freedom by Chögyam Trungpa.

Does the line “willing to be completely ordinary” make you cringe even just a little bit?

Competition In Everything

Being ordinary isn’t what we’re taught in our society. Competition reigns supreme in our outer world and that means you’ve got to be greater, better – no matter which game you're playing.

Run faster, leap higher, stay up later, have more projects than the other guy, and yes, shine brighter, be more enlightened, than your meditating neighbor. You'll find competition even in the "game" of meditation.

Naturally, we are all growing and striving to be the most authentic that we can be — and yes, we want to lessen or even eliminate our faults.

But, the first step is the acceptance of who we are?

Well, how could we begin without it?

Finding Acceptance Within Ourselves

On days when you are being particularly hard on yourself, the above quote is a nice reminder to be more gentle. Students of The Radiance Technique® (TRT®) can support themselves on the path with ongoing use of TRT® hands-on.

Use of TRT® supports us to be the observer. It’s like turning up the lights in a darkened room. With increased light, we’re able to see more clearly.

TRT® hands-on helps us to relax into a deeper awareness of ourselves.

 

Freedom On The Path

The fact that Chögym Trungpa chose the title The “Myth” of Freedom is a bit daring, don’t you think?

Isn’t that the dream of all meditators — to be free? Free from it all? And yet, many of our teachers remind us that the path of meditation is not an escape.

There’s no escape from ourselves.

What is freedom? Where is it? Is it inside or outside of us?

Open portals are all around us.

Step through the gateways that you find in your meditations.