It’s not like being a runner who has to pace himself. You give yourself fully to the breath right now, right now, and don’t have to worry about what you’re going to have left at the end of the hour.

"Just be right here, be aware right here, be comfortable right here, and the fullness of your awareness will develop over time without your having to plan ahead, without your having to pace yourself. Give yourself fully right now. If you give yourself fully right now and if it grows fuller in the course of time, fine. If not, you’ve done everything you can, so there’s no need to worry about it. You don’t have to ask yourself where you are in the grand arc of the hour. You don’t have to save yourself for the last lap. It’s not like being a runner who has to pace himself. You give yourself fully to the breath right now, right now, and don’t have to worry about what you’re going to have left at the end of the hour. The full-giving right now is what’s going to see you through the hour. So, as you’re meditating here, there’s just this one thing: this breath. That’s all you need to know."

~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Just This Breath"

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Breathe in a way that feels refreshing, soothing and comfortable to find a deep and lasting happiness

"So spend some time right here. Breathe in, breathe out, in a way that feels refreshing, that feels soothing, that feels comfortable — whatever the body needs right now, whatever the mind needs right now. Give it some good breathing. That way, you’ll be able to find the peace that comes when you’re not constantly being pulled into paying attention outside. And from that peace comes a deep and lasting happiness." ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Paying Attention Inside"
Read more

You can focus on the tip of the nose, the base of the throat, the middle of the chest, just above the navel — anyplace where you can clearly notice now the breath is coming in, now it’s going out. You breathe with a sense of refreshment.

"As we meditate, we’re trying to master a skill. In the beginning, the skill is the skill of concentration: getting the mind to stay with one object — like the breath. You think about the breath and then you notice when it’s coming in, when it’s going out, and you evaluate it: Is it comfortable? What kind of breathing would be comfortable right now? And you also evaluate your focus: Where’s a good place to focus? You can focus on the tip of the nose, the base of the throat, the middle of the chest, just above the navel — anyplace where you can clearly notice now the breath is coming in, now it’s going out. You breathe with a sense of refreshment." ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "The Skill of Happiness"
Read more

Cittass’ek’aggata, singleness of mind. Eka means one, agga is sometimes translated as ‘point,’ as in one-pointedness, but the word agga doesn’t really mean ‘point.’ It usually means the top of something, or it can also mean ‘gathering place’

"You’re aware of the breath in a way that gives rise to a feeling of pleasure. If you can’t get the whole body pleasant, you try to get at least part of the body pleasant. Find which part of the body responds to the way you breathe, is sensitive to the way you breathe. For a lot of people, it’s down around the sternum, or it could be in the throat, or some place in the middle of the head. But wherever you’re especially sensitive to how the breath feels, try to focus your attention there and ask yourself, “What kind of breathing would feel really good? What would nourish the sense of well-being at that spot?” As that spot gets comfortable, keep on breathing in a way that maintains the sense of comfort. Then let your awareness encompass the whole body, and see how the breath relates to the whole body. Wherever there’s a sense of ease, let it spread. There are two ways of doing this. One is just thinking of the sense of ease flowing out from that one spot, running along the blood ve...
Read more