इदं पुरे चित्तमचारि चारिकं, येनिच्छकं यत्थकामं यथासुखं।
तदज्जहं निग्गहेस्सामि योनिसो, हत्थिप्पभिन्नं विय अङ्कुसग्गहो॥
-This mind that wanders wherever it
wishes, wherever it desires, wherever it sees pleasure, I will first make
it steadfast.
I will train it thoroughly like a mahout
with a goad, trains a wild elephant.
My
Breath and I
Anapana
is the first step in the practice of Vipassana meditation.
Anapana means observation of natural, normal respiration, as it comes in and as
it goes out. It is an easy to learn, objective and scientific technique that
helps develop concentration of the mind.
Observation of the breath is the
ideal object for meditation because it is always available and it is completely
non-sectarian. Anapana is very different from techniques that are based on the
artificial regulation of breath. There are no rites or rituals involved in the
practice or presentation of Anapana.
Anapana provides a
tool to deal with the fears, anxieties and pressures across all age groups.
Besides helping to calm and concentrate the mind, Anapana help people to
understand themselves better and gives them an insight into the workings of
their own minds. Because of its simplicity, the technique is easy to understand
and practice.
Why Natural
Respiration?
The goal of Vipassana meditation
is not the concentration of the mind but to purify the mind completely, by
eradicating all mental impurities such as anger, hatred, passion, fear.
Vipassana is the analytical study of the mind and body (matter). To achieve
this, one must gain complete knowledge of the body, of the mind and of the
mental impurities at the experiential level, which is done with the help of respiration. Respiration
acts like a bridge between the conscious and the unconscious mind and between
voluntary and involuntary processes of the body.
The
first step of this technique is to develop awareness of the present reality.
Life can really be lived only in the present. When one observes respiration, one begins to understand the
nature of the mind. The mind is very fleeting, very fickle - this reality
becomes very clear. It never stays in the present, constantly tries to escape
into a past or future that is unattainable. The past moment is gone forever.
Even in return for all the wealth in the world, one cannot bring back that
moment. Similarly, one cannot live in the future. When the future becomes the
present, only then can one live in it. One has not learned how to live - one
has not learned the Art of living. By observing natural respiration, we slowly
train our mind to live in present.
Another reason for adopting
natural incoming and outgoing breath as the object of concentration is that the
rhythm of our respiration has an intimate natural connection with the
negativities of the mind. When the mind is polluted and overpowered by any
harmful negativity such as anger, fear, lust, envy or any other, we see that
the rhythm of our respiration naturally becomes rapid and gross. When these
negativities stop polluting the mind, the rhythm of respiration becomes slow
and subtle.
Observing the natural
breath is a universal practice. Breath is breath, not a Hindu breath, a Muslim
breath or a Christian breath. Thus, Anapana becomes universal.
