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The
third step of preksha meditation is perception of breathing. Regulate your breathing;
make it slow, deep and rhythmic. Let the vibrations of each breath reach your
navel. Allow your abdominal muscles to expand during inhalation and contract during
exhalation.
Now concentrate your mind fully on your navel. Practice deep,
slow and rhythmic breathing, by allowing each breath to take the same time. Perceive
each inhalation and exhalation through the expansion and contraction of the abdominal
muscles accompanying each inhalation and exhalation respectively.
Continuing
the slow, deep and rhythmic breathing, now shift your attention from the navel
and focus it inside the nostrils at the junction of both the nostrils. Perceive
each incoming and outgoing breath. Remain fully aware of each and every breath.
Continuously practice slow, long and rhythmic breathing--inhale and exhale
each breath while remaining fully aware of it. Fully occupy your mind in perception
of breathing.
If you are distracted by any thought, do not try to stop
it forcefully, but also perceive it, and then again start perceiving your breath.
If the distraction is frequent, you may hold your breath for a few seconds without
causing any discomfort.
Maintain the continuity of the awareness of breathing.
Merely perceive it without like and dislike.
B. PERCEPTION
OF ALTERNATE BREATHING
In the practice of breathing through alternate
nostrils, you have to inhale through one nostril and exhale through the other,
then inhale through the same and exhale through the other.
Try to accomplish
the alternation by exercising your will-power. But in the beginning you may make
use of finger and thumb of the right hand by placing the right thumb against the
right nostril and the ring finger of the right hand against the left nostril and
resting the middle and index fingers on the forehead. Now, remove alternately
the thumb and ring finger for opening the path of breath through the right and
the left nostril respectively.
The third step of preksha meditation is
perception of breathing through alternate nostrils. Regulate your breathing; make
it slow, deep and rhythmic. Concentrate your mind inside your nostrils, practice
breathing through alternate nostrils. Inhale through the right nostril and exhale
through the left one. Now inhale through the left nostril and exhale through the
right one; this completes one cycle. Repeat the same exercise again and again
continuing the rhythmic breathing. Perceive each inhalation and exhalation by
concentrating the mind in alternate nostrils. Let your mind and breath go hand
in hand. No thinking, no memory of the past, no imagination of future. Simply
perceive.
Continuously the mind and breath should accompany each other.
While you are breathing in, let your attention follow the breath inside. While
you are breathing out, let your attention follow it outside.
Now, practice
the perception of breathing through alternate nostrils together with holding the
breath intermittently. Concentrate your mind inside the nostrils. Inhale through
the right nostril and hold the breath inside, exhale through the left nostril
and hold the breath outside; again inhale through the left nostril and hold the
breath inside and exhale through the right nostril and hold the breath outside.
In this way, practice holding of breath four times during one complete cycle.
Continuously remain aware of each exhalation and inhalation. You may hold the
breath only for a few seconds without causing any discomfort. Repeat the same
exercise for several rounds. Let the mind and breath go hand in hand.
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