Thanissaro Bhikkhu on Refreshing Breathing

"You may need to close your eyes in the beginning, as you meditate, just to prevent distractions. But as you get more and more grounded in the breath, more absorbed in the breath, you not only keep your physical eyes open, you keep your mental eyes open as well. You see where the pleasure comes from, and you can see that it causes no harm to anyone. That allows the mind to open and be more sensitive to all kinds of areas that it used to desensitize itself to." ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Breathaholic"

"It’s good to remember that there’s another kind of pleasure, because we go for sensuality thinking that there’s no other escape from pain. But the Buddha says, there is another escape. It’s right here. We focus on the breath, we focus on the internal sense of the body, we’re aware of the different elements in the body, we learn how to bring them into balance. This can give rise to a very strong sense of pleasure, a very nourishing sense of pleasure that causes no harm." ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Sensuality"