Thanissaro Bhikkhu's student went to visit a boy with Marfan Syndrome just out from a heart operation and no amount of medication could relieve the pain. She said "Breathe through your butt."

"I had a student one time who had Marfan syndrome. It’s a hereditary disease of the connective tissue, and people who have it tend to die about age 20 or 30. In addition to having the disease, and she was a co-founder of the National Marfan Foundation. She died around the age of 50 from a stroke. Before she died, she asked that I preside at her memorial service. So at the service, there was a combination of her Buddhist friends and her Marfan friends. At the beginning of the ceremony, I gave a guided meditation, like the guided meditation I’ve been giving to you. Afterwards, people gave eulogies. One woman talked about how her nephew had Marfan syndrome. When he was 13, he had to go in for a heart operation, and when he came out of the operation, no amount of medication could help relieve the pain. So my student went to visit this boy to see if she could help. She listened to his symptoms for a while and then she said, “Breathe through your butt.” The woman who was giving the eulogy then turned to me and said, “It worked. And now I know where she got that idea.” So, if nothing else, breathe through your butt."

~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Desires for the End of Desire: Skillful Determination on the Buddhist Path"


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