How to Breathe

A great place to get started is learning how to breathe.

As someone who relies on breathing on a pretty regular basis for survival this topic has always been of great importance to me. 

Improved breathing has been scientifically correlated with a range of physical and mental health benefits. Various breathing techniques have been identified with reduced depression, anxiety, pain, PTSD symptoms, chances of stroke and with increased focus, concentration, immunity, recovery time, energy levels and the list goes on extensively. Conveniently, since we literally have to breathe at all times anyway, we also have the ability to take this practice with us anywhere we go and which requires zero expense or equipment. 

As magico-spiritual practitioners we should all be interested in any technique which would help us to maintain our physical and mental health, but breathwork is truly the trifecta in that it also works on a spiritual level. But before we get too far down the rabbit hole of theory, let’s practice. 

Practitioners who are just starting out tend sometimes have the notion that meditation is all about sitting still and controlling your thoughts. If we address this practice purely on a cerebral level, as Westerners we are likely dooming ourselves to an uphill struggle. Contrary to the idea that you’re supposed to somehow ‘leave your body behind’ while in meditation, my own experience has been that meditation needs to be a full body experience coordinating the mind, body and breath. Before we worry about visuals, we have to learn to breathe.

We have a tendency to breathe upward through the shoulders rather than the proper way which is outward through the belly. The tummy should be relaxed and expand bottom to top on the inhalation. To practice this, lie flat in a comfortable place and rest both hands lightly on your belly. Many of us hold our bellies taut all day for fear of the dreaded muffin top- this is the time to let that belly go! 

Start a slow count of “4” in your head (1..2..3..4..1..2..3..4..). After you’ve given yourself a moment to relax, begin to sync your breathe so that you’re breathing in for four, out for four, and repeat. Start by breathing through your mouth and/or your nose, whichever is most comfortable to you. As you breathe, note how your inhalation should make your tummy and hands rise. This should feel like a natural and relaxed motion, a natural extension of filling the lungs from the bottom up, and not like you’re forcing the abdomen in way. 

Even though it will likely feel unnatural to be syncing your breath to the ‘beat’, try to adjust your counting such that the breaths feel relatively normal and relaxing to you. As you begin to feel more comfortable, try to slow the count down a little to settle your breathing into a more relaxed, meditative pace.

If you want you can stop your practice here and simply relax and breath for a time, or you can try a slightly more challenging technique: 

Experiment with alternating your breath so that you inhale through your nose and exhale noisily through the mouth. You can feel free to make a little pressured stream of air through your lips or try a breathy “haaaa” sound like you’re fogging a mirror. Feel those exhalations remove your tension. As you inhale, experiment with slightly contracting the muscles toward the back of your throat and nasal passages such that the air makes a slight “rushing noise” as you inhale and then keep those muscles contracted while you exhale. This cycle that you’re doing, the contracted inhalation through the nose and the breathy stream out the mouth, is called Ujjayi breathing, a Hatha yoga technique which is incredibly useful for almost every spiritual or magical practice I could name.

If you wish, from here you could certainly go into a variety of other visualizations and so forth, but if you’re starting out my suggestion is just to let your thoughts naturally do their thing while you continue to just cycle the breath and breathing properly. 

I’ll add here that typically lying down wouldn’t be my top position for a starter meditation exercise due to concerns about the practitioner falling asleep. In this instance I think the most useful way to connect with the belly and breath is to allow the body to relax to encourage the best possible breathing technique (just maybe don’t do this when you’re exhausted… or DO and maybe sleep great). This can of course absolutely be done kneeling, sitting, or standing, with the best positions for meditation purposes being that in which the body is upright with good posture and evenly balanced. If one is sitting on the floor put a bolster under your bum to help lift yourself into the correct posture. Chairs are ideally fairly rigid (like a dining chair) and without arms. Standing this technique can be done simply upright. 

For different effects, Ujjayi can also be done while practicing Yoga, giving massage/pranic work and so forth to keep the prana strong but balanced. Also great for keeping your cool during rough days at work and visits the in-laws. Simply learning to breathe properly, and the basic practice of being able to collect yourself into that state of composure and connection, will benefit your health and practice in myriad ways.