how important is breathing fir meditation?

[iamthat]

These claims are real, but obviously there are different ways to breathe - through both nostrils, through alternate nostrils, some methods might exhale through the mouth, etc. The practice of pranayama is ancient.

Peace

[inavalan]

Check this free 70 page pdf booklet:

The Hindu-Yogi Science of Breath by Yogi Ramacharaka
http://www.arfalpha.com/ScienceOfBre...ceOfBreath.pdf

Amazon reviews:
https://www.amazon.com/Hindu-Yogi-Sc...ustomerReviews


By the way did you really meant to call yourself "quite fox" or "quiet fox"?

[jonesboy]

Originally Posted by quitefox

let me put it this way
there re claims that breathing in for X secs
keeping your breath for Y secs
and breathing out for Z secs
will produce different results

are those claims real or foolish?

Depends on if it is within a tradition. Within a system of practices that builds upon itself.

If it is just some webpage, some dude saying this will bring you to whatever. Then that is a different story.

Again, all that is to mental for me. The first goal is silence, how can you do that with all that thinking...

Just my view.

[innerlight]

Originally Posted by quitefox

let me put it this way
there re claims that breathing in for X secs
keeping your breath for Y secs
and breathing out for Z secs
will produce different results

are those claims real or foolish?

What "results" are you asking about? That seems to be the question you are trying to ask. Perhaps if you can be clear on what you are asking to know about?

Does breathing in the way you ask have any benefits to a person? And any benefit to meditation? Slowing your breath like that helps the body relax, and helps to still the mind. Which is needed for any meditation practice really. Breathing like that can also help the mind shift from one state to the next. Such as going from Alpha, to Delta, to Beta. Doing so is what really helps the person with their meditation practice. To go deeper into it. Of course you will not spend an entire meditation doing that with your breathing. The typical usage of such breathing is usually about 3-4 times before you really start your meditation.

Now there are other reasons a person meditating will focus on the breath. And by focusing on the breath, I refer to just watching the breath. Watching the body breathe. That is used as like a focal point for the meditation. When a person is all over the place with thoughts, drawing your awareness to your breath can help bring your mind to stillness. And away from the monkey brain. It's never really helped me in my mediation, but many others love it.

Hope this helps you with your question.

[iamthat]

Innerlight refers to two different ways of using the breath in meditation.

One way is at the start of meditation, when we sit down and take some slow deep breaths to help calm the body and still the mind as preparation for going inwards in meditation.

The other way is actually using the breath as the object of our meditation. This is often taught to people when they begin to learn meditation, because the breath is always present and we can do it anywhere. Other methods (eg gazing at a candle flame) may not always be practical. But awareness of the breath is not just for those new to meditation. If we cannot keep the mind still when observing the breath then it doesn't matter what type of meditation we practice, the mind will be active.

There is also a third use of the breath in meditation, which involves breathing in a particular manner to produce particular results. I am thinking of eg kriya kundalini pranayama. This is not just ordinary inhaling and exhaling and focussing on the breath, nor is it just done at the start of the meditation process. Such breathing practices are the meditation process but it involves using specific techniques which have to be learned. Caution is advised when using such techniques because they can awaken energies which may be difficult to handle.

Peace.