To breathe in, you just breathe in. In this beautiful and lucid guide, Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh offers gentle anecdotes and practical exercises as a means of learning the skills of mindfulness-being awake and fully aware. The greatest of all miracles is to be alive, and when you breathe in, you touch that miracle. Mind Fuel Daily was founded to help readers find inspiration and purpose in every day. Mindful Breathing Exercises The Buddha offered very simple and effective methods of practice. So the third exercise is to become aware of your body. Real silence is the cessation of talking—of both the mouth and of the mind. Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh explains how mindfulness can reduce suffering, bring happiness, and enable compassion to be born in your heart. I am alive; I am breathing in. A few years back Thich Nhat Hanh began to develop gentle exercises … Breathing out, I am aware of my body.” I know my body is there. Another source of happiness is concentration. The same thing is true with walking mindfully. Mindfulness … Our body is there but our mind is elsewhere. Thich Nhat Hanh is a renowned Zen Buddhist Monk, teacher, poet, political activist, and founder of the Engaged Buddhist movement. The exercise is simply to identify the in-breath as in-breath and the out-breath as the out-breath. You don’t have to interfere with your breathing. When you drink your tea mindfully, it’s called mindfulness of drinking. Every step is peace. Concentration. Allow your breath to take place. Our mind may be caught in the past or in the future, in regrets, sorrow, fear, or uncertainty, and so our mind is not there. Mindfulness is a powerful approach to living fully in the present moment. The 16 Exercises of Mindful Breathing are at the heart of the teachings offered by Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village community. Below is an article by this great meditation teacher & author. (Thich Nhat Hanh Marche meditative 06) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. Our true home is not in the future. You have to be mindful of the tea, you have to be concentrated on it, so the tea can reveal its fragrance and wonder to you. Welcome to the online Mindfulness Bell, inspired by the teaching of Thich Nhat Hanh. You don’t have to make any effort during walking meditation, because it is enjoyable. In it Thich Nhat Hanh gives us 5 Mindfulness Meditation exercises … Breathing out, I know this is my out-breath. It is present in every moment of your daily life. No, you don’t have to make any effort. If you recognize that, you can make use of the red light. Who as a child didn’t blow on its soft puffball and watch... Hope is being able to see that there is a light despite all the darkness. Just recognize: this is an in-breath, this is an out-breath. When you do that, the mental discourse will stop. 4 Words To Help You Face Down Any Challenge, 5 Simple Thoughts on Personal Independence, The Art of Mindful Eating: A Path to Greater Health and Happiness, 3 Ways to Bring Calm During a Difficult Time, How To Stay Hopeful During These Difficult Times, Amazing Benefits of Having a Good Posture, Courage – Quotes on Living Exceptional Lives, from Lao Tzu, Pema Chodron, T.S. If you put the point of concentrated light on a piece of paper, it will burn. The author of more than forty books, he resides at Plum Village Monastery in the south of France. Anything can be the object of your meditation, and with the powerful energy of concentration, you can make a breakthrough and develop insight. If you meditate on a cloud, you can get insight into the nature of the cloud. If your in-breath lasts three or four seconds, then your mindfulness also lasts three or four seconds. You don’t think of the past anymore. You are fully alive. 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