One evening in the depths of feelings of despair and almost existential pain because of an event that had happened in my life, and regarding which I did not feel like talking, on a whim I opened my laptop and typed in the question “how do you deal with unbearable emotional pain?”
A multitude of results cascaded onto the screen.
“Move your body and exercise,” recommended one. Others suggested seeking therapy or connecting with friends and loved ones. But I felt too depleted to follow any of this advice. Then, an answer came that resonated with me: “Breathe slowly to the count of four, hold the breath in to the count of four, and then breathe slowly out to the count of four.”
I breathed, “boxed breathing” as I later knew it to be called, about ten times.
With each troubled inhalation, my breath became smoother, and I slowly felt the tumultuous emotions that had been wreaking havoc with my mind and soul begin to extinguish themselves and become subdued.
On that dismal evening some 18 years ago, a new way of being radically different from my habitual scattered and reactive self opened up to me.
It was then that I found out about the liberating power of just breathing and pausing to stop your mind in its tracks, look your thoughts in the face, and then seize them like a bull by the horns and grapple with them. All of this is possible because you are calm as a result of the breathing exercises – far better than simply shoving those thoughts under the carpet and letting them fester and grow.
I had experienced the liberating power of mindfulness.
Mindfulness, in the words of its most well-known exponent, US professor emeritus of medicine and molecular scientist Jon Kabat-Zinn, is the “awareness that arises through paying attention, in the present moment, non-judgementally.”
And in this process, Kabat-Zinn says, breathing is the anchor upon which attention can rest, allowing one to slowly feel calmer and more grounded.
Slow breathing acts upon the vagus nerve, which in turn helps shift the nervous system from the primitive state of what is known as the “fight or flight” response to a more restful state. If faced by either an internal or external trigger, the very act of breathing slowly opens up a space in which one can make a choice about how to respond rather than being catapulted into uncontrollable reactivity.
It can be no coincidence that thousands of years ago the martial arts of China and Japan incorporated paced breathing and slow intentional movement as potent weapons and a fundamental platform upon which all combat is to be performed. Hence the grounded, slow, and powerful stance of the Japanese Suomo wrestler, and the controlled, elegant moves of the martial warriors, the Samurai, which follow breathing and hone attention on it as if it were an arrow.
The power of breathing and of slow movements is equally paramount in the discipline of yoga, specifically in its practice of pranayama: the deep, controlled breathing that accesses a person’s power of concentration and elevates it to new dimensions of awareness.
Today, research on the cutting edge of neurological science has validated the power of breathing and its ability to enhance awareness and self control. Mindfulness training, which focuses on an awareness of breathing and expands to an awareness of the external environment as well as of one’s own inner states, is fast becoming a mainstay of the training of professional athletes, special military forces, healthcare professionals, teachers, and even schoolchildren.
The positive impact of guiding a child how to be mindful of his or her breathing and body, and with this learning how to regulate his or her emotions, is acknowledged as an invaluable tool that can help children learn how to navigate life’s challenges.
Medical science and psychology are now beginning to acknowledge the brilliant insights into human physiology and the human mind that were attained by yogis, Sufis and mystics centuries ago. Increasingly, there is a realisation that it is how we feel from within, and consequently how we act, that reflects the world back to us like a mirror. Taking the time to pause and breathe before responding is invaluable.
Neuroscience is also validating practices honed in the yogic disciplines and ancient martial arts, such as the Chinese Tai Chi and Qigong, which affirm not only the importance of breathing but also how it should be synchronised with slow and intentional movements. One does not have to even practice these methods in order to access the benefits they can give.
Keeping a straight posture rather than slouching can have an immediately positive impact on one’s state of mind and thinking. Mindfulness can also expand to practically all activities, both mundane and enjoyable, from talking with friends and listening carefully before responding, to eating slowly and savouring the taste, texture, and even appearance of food. This is one of the best ways to teach mindfulness to small children.
It is not only the breathing and moving slowly that can help you to become more mindful and aware. What you pay attention to is also important. Feel a swirl of emotions and reactivity threatening to engulf you? Think of your feet touching the ground, and immediately you have found an anchor.
For me, a day spent mindfully will start with feeling calm from within. I remember to set the tone of the morning when I wake up by slowly breathing in and slowly breathing out again. I place my feet on the floor and repeat the mantra “it will be a wonderful day,” which it somehow magically turns out to be.
In the first two hours of the morning, I will not look at my smartphone or laptop, nor will I listen to music on Spotify. As I brew my morning coffee in the kitchen, I will listen instead to the soundscape of life around me that wafts up from the street below – people talking, birds chirping, cars honking, or, even, saws whirring.
Hearing these sounds makes me feel grounded because when you listen carefully to what is going on around you, and see what is in front of you, the incessant voices in your head become still. And when the challenges of life close in, I am no longer my hasty and impulsive self.
I stop and breathe, giving myself a moment to ask what I am feeling, and in which direction I want to take what is happening in front of me. I see myself as an elegant Samurai warrior, focused, grounded, and aware. I breathe in and then take aim with the arrow.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 25 July, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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