For all our 'doing' we'll always need feeding. And though the practice itself leads to nourishment, most of us will also always need (and gain) strength from the strength of others.
Here's simple, basic food from Thich Nhat Hahn. A 'first course' in a sacramental meal.
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First
Mindfulness Exercise: Mindful Breathing
The first
exercise is very simple, but the power, the result, can be very great. The
exercise is simply to identify the in-breath as in-breath and the out-breath as
out-breath. When you breathe in, you know that this is your in-breath. When you
breathe out, you are mindful that this is your out-breath.
Just
recognize: this is an in-breath, this is an out-breath. Very simple, very easy.
In order to recognize your in-breath as in-breath, you have to bring your mind
home to yourself. What is recognizing your in-breath is your mind, and the
object of your mind—the object of your mindfulness—is the in-breath.
Mindfulness is always mindful of something. When you drink your tea mindfully,
it’s called mindfulness of drinking. When you walk mindfully, it’s called
mindfulness of walking. And when you breathe mindfully, that is mindfulness of
breathing.
So the
object of your mindfulness is your breath, and you just focus your attention on
it. Breathing in, this is my in-breath. Breathing out, this is my out-breath.
When you do that, the mental discourse will stop. You don’t think anymore. You
don’t have to make an effort to stop your thinking; you bring your attention to
your in-breath and the mental discourse just stops. That is the miracle of the
practice. You don’t think of the past anymore. You don’t think of the future.
You don’t think of your projects, because you are focusing your attention, your
mindfulness, on your breath.
It gets even
better. You can enjoy your in-breath. The practice can be pleasant, joyful.
Someone who is dead cannot take any more in-breaths. But you are alive. You are
breathing in, and while breathing in, you know that you are alive. The
in-breath can be a celebration of the fact that you are alive, so it can be
very joyful. When you are joyful and happy, you don’t feel that you have to
make any effort at all. I am alive; I am breathing in. To be still alive is a
miracle. The greatest of all miracles is to be alive, and when you breathe in,
you touch that miracle. Therefore, your breathing can be a celebration of life.
An in-breath
may take three, four, five seconds, it depends. That’s time to be alive, time
to enjoy your breath. You don’t have to interfere with your breathing. If your
in-breath is short, allow it to be short. If your out-breath is long, let it be
long. Don’t try to force it. The practice is simple recognition of the
in-breath and the out-breath. That is good enough. It will have a powerful
effect.
