The BreatheBetter Project

From macrocosm to microcosm, if there is one common principle, it is of ebb and flow. Every moment, there is an expansion and contraction that underlies all creation (and transformation). In the human organism, the heart beats, contracting and relaxing; one muscle shortens while the other lengthens as we do a million different movements; and the intestines contract and relax to push the food forward, and assimilate nutrition. The dynamism of the organism is practically infinite. 

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The sustaining principle of this dynamism of life and consciousness is the flow of unconditioned breath. Across cultures, religions, and geographies, great healers, prophets, and saints have directed the human race towards the power of breath. In the last century, modern science has started to catch up, albeit reluctantly, and there is a long way to go. It is quite ironic that we are focusing so late on something that has been right under our noses...literally!

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Breathing is an innate, involuntary phenomenon. Additionally, it is the only involuntary phenomenon that can be controlled consciously. One can consider Breath as the bridge between the conscious and the unconscious, between control and surrender, between destiny and free-will. The first thing we do when we slip out into this world is take a deep breath in. The last thing we do before we pass on is sigh a breath out. Between this inspiration and expiration, our whole universe is contained.

 

Breathing is not something that we must learn. A child breathes perfectly. Their energy, their innocence, their curiosity, and their softness is a reflection of their breath, and in turn, these qualities are reflected in their breath. As we grow up, we learn. We are conditioned. Our memory and experiences become a filter through which we interact with the world. But there is one thing that most of us do not learn - it is not taught in any school or university. Parents cannot teach it because they themselves never learned it. It is the act of letting go. Not only at the level of the mind, but at the level of the body, right down to the individual cell. When we keep our experiences and at the same time are able to stick with our innocence, that is a real skill. And Breath is the means to hone that skill and achieve that particular end. 

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We say breathing is not to be learned, but to be un-learned: to release and decondition all the layers that were beneficial at some particular moment in the past, but are not needed now. To un-learn all those survival behaviours that protected us, but now restrict and constrict us. To put the past where it belongs, and be open to life Now. As our breath returns to its essential, unconditioned form, so does the life in us. For this, some work is required. A discipline must be established. This is the aim of The BreatheBetter Project.  

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