Learn how to become a connoisseur of your breathing. The more you can appreciate the breath, the easier it’s going to be to say No to sensual thinking, easier to say No to anger, lust, greed, jealousy, fear.

"When Ajaan Lee talks about the different kinds of breathing, the fascinating part about his instructions are the points he makes about dealing with the breath energies in the different parts of the body, which often causes us to overlook the fact that he spends a long time talking about how the breathing can be long in, long out; short in, short out, but there’s also long in, short out; and short in, long out. So learn how to become a connoisseur of the length of your breathing, or a connoisseur of its depth.

Take some time. Here we’ve got a whole hour. And there’s the part of the mind that says, “Well, let’s get through the whole hour and then we’ll go on to something else.” Don’t listen to that part of the mind. Say, “Let’s inhabit this hour. Let’s inhabit this moment,” and allow our awareness to settle back into the body and get a sense of what’s the right amount of pressure, the right amount of space to give to these sensations, allowing yourself to savor them. The more you can appreciate the breath, the easier it’s going to be to say No to sensual thinking, easier to say No to anger, lust, greed, jealousy, fear."

~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Get Attached to Jhana"

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