The breath as leader - PRACTICE THIS!

The breath as leader - PRACTICE THIS!

The breath as leader - PRACTICE THIS!

Mindful Work, Rest & Play Practice 1 - The breath as your leader

Have you met your wise Self? What do you call the wise part of you? Inner teacher, wise guide, God, universal spirit, best advisor? When you’re desperate for help or need advice, who do you call for help? Desikachar said that the greatest gift of suffering is that it brings you to faith, to prayer, to seek wisdom.

When you notice overthinking, overwhelming critical thinking, low mood or you’re in a state, guide yourself to focus inward -  invite yourself to greet your breath as a great leader, the body as a wise teacher; breath and body as the most reliable sources of wisdom available to you.

To support turning down the inner critic & tuning into the inner wisdom, here is a simple practices to guide yourself or others - no need to have experience of yoga or meditation, to fix or correct, simply witness what is present with no judgment - as much as you can!

You can do this anywhere and nobody will be any the wiser - whether standing, sitting or lying down 

  • Bring your attention to your nostrils and focus on your breathing and the temperature of the breath as it comes in and out
  • Start to expand by lengthening each breath a little and feel where the body elasticates on the inhale and returns on the exhale
  • Take a long breath in through your nostrils and gradually lift your shoulders skywards
  • Take a long breath out as you gradually slide your shoulders earthbound – sigh out through your mouth or quietly through your nostrils
  • As you repeat, feel the shoulder movement as a natural result of the breath filling/lifting and emptying/dropping in the lungs
  • Make the exhale slower and longer than the inhale
  • As you exhale slower, start to notice where your body is connected to the ground and soften down a little
  • Move your attention away from your head, brain, face and senses and down to the earth connection
  • After a minute or so, shift your attention to your inahle
  • As you inhale, feel the lightness in the lungs lifting you up a little, buoyant, floating upwards above you
  • Follow this slightly amplified movement of the breath in the body
  • Come back to a natural breath without the need to deepen or control it in any way
  • Keep your attention on your connection with the ground and the space above you as you open your eyes
  • Trust the breath to continue to lead you from your body not your mind
  • Any time you notice the inner critic getting louder, use this practice to turn down the volume of the voice in your head that puts you down, judges your ability, keeps you small, limits and imprisons you from being the amazing radiant liberated being that you are
  • When you turn down the volume of the loud inner critic, who do you hear now?
  • Tune into your inner wisdom. In the depths of your body, mind and soul, there lives an inner guide who wants the best for you, who loves you unconditionally and is always there to lean on like a supportive best friend who gives the best advice and knows you better than anyone.

If you are interested to receive more practices like this and understand more about creating lasting change through yoga therapy, join our next free tasterHERE

or contact education@yogaunited,com