Some practices are simple and straightforward: We practice yoga asana or we practice qigong or we practice mindfulness meditation. Others take a meandering path, dipping into a variety of awareness practices as we slip easily downstream.
Breathing With Heart is the second sort of practice. In this 30-minute session, we start out with a breathing practice designed to help cultivate balance and steadiness. Then we let go of shaping the breath and simply watch it as a form of meditation. And then - as often happens for me - the breath meditation awakens a quiet light in the heart and we find ourselves slipping toward lovingkindness meditation. That makes this session either a mutt of a practice, or perhaps just an improvisatory one!
My friends sometimes tell me that if I get tired of teaching yoga and meditation, I should go into business offering practices for insomnia, since sometimes my sessions put them right to sleep. Breathing With Heart, I think, would be a good one for such a project. I’ve left lots of quiet space nestled in between the words here. So if you find yourself up in the middle of the night and would like a little companionship until you drift off to sleep again, this one might do the trick.
My home website includes many more explorations and quite a few articles that dive into the power of cultivating deep and clear awareness in the world. This article shares some of my favorite meditation resources, and this one shares a few of my favorite breathing practices. If you’ve ever studied with me in person, you likely know them well.
And although subscribers to At Home in the World receive emails only when new practices are released, the website hosts dozens of guided practices that are available to you any time. And if you enjoy what you find and would like to support this programming, please consider subscribing as a paid member. (Visit the site and click the subscribe button or select “My Account” in the dropdown menu.) Thank you!
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