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I hope the next 27’ish breaths are the most nourishing of your day.
4 THOUGHTS
1. Breathing for a Generous and Purposeful Life
“Life is movement, and our breath keeps us going every minute of the day…To bring awareness to that, and to begin to harness that power of movement towards understanding who we are, why we are here, and what we should be doing to live a purposeful, generous, grateful life, is all part of the practice of pranayama.”
– Eddie Stern, Healing Through Breathing
How good is that? Here’s to bringing awareness to the life-giving gift of breathing so we can direct it toward “understanding who we are, why we are here, and what we should be doing to live a purposeful, generous, grateful life.” 🙏
2. Flourishing Under Stress
“But as stress researchers realize, full health is more than just the absence of disease. It means a dynamic harmony of body and mind which allows us to live at our full physical, emotional, and spiritual potential. ... Instead of trying simply to survive stress, we should aim at flourishing under it, making use of anything life brings.”
– Eknath Easwaran, Original Goodness
And happily, this is precisely what breathing and meditation do: help build our resilience so we can flourish under stress and make use of anything life brings 🙏
3. Four Reminders of the Breath’s Power for the Heart
1. “You know that our breathing is the inhaling and exhaling of air. The organ which serves for this is the lungs which lie round the heart. Thus breathing is a natural way to the heart.” - Nicephorus the Solitary
2. “If you would foster a calm spirit, first regulate your breathing; for when that is under control, the heart will be at peace.” — Kariba Ekken
3. “Happiness lies in your own heart. You only need to practice mindful breathing for a few seconds, and you'll be happy right away.” - Thich Nhat Hanh
4. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart, which is, of course, my diaphragm.” - Jill Miller
4. Increase Brain Power with this “Breathing Exercise”
“You can increase your brain power three to fivefold simply by laughing and having fun before working on a problem.”
– Doug Hall
👏👏👏
1 Quote
“Breath is the beginning, the end, and the tether between us all…It’s the wiring between all living organisms that proves we’re not separated or disconnected, but rather that we are being routed through the same network.””
1 Answer
Category: Ancient Breathing
Answer: This, a combination of two words, refers to the lengthening, expanding, or directing of the vital life force via controlled respiration.
…
(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)
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Question: What is pranayama?
In good breath,
Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”
P.S. imagine all the people 🎵
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Amazon Associate Disclosure
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* An asterisk by a quote indicates that I listened to this book on Audible. Therefore, the quotation might not be correct, but is my best attempt at reproducing the punctuation based on the narrator’s pace, tone, and pauses.