Guided Meditation - Being Breathed
A guided meditation in the spirit and traditional format of Plum Village. If this is your first time experiencing one of my guided meditations, consider first visiting A Guide to the Guideds, which offers brief background and a few simple suggestions.
Photo by David W. Levin; Ecuador, 2024
An audio version of this guided meditation may be found below.
Breathe and you know that you are alive.
Breathe and you know that all is helping you.
Breathe and you know that you are the world.
Breathe and you know that the flower is breathing too.
Breathe for yourself and you breathe for the world.
Breathe in compassion and breathe out joy.
Breathe and be one with the air that you breathe.
Breathe and be one with the river that flows.
Breathe and be one with the earth you tread.
Breathe and be one with the fire that glows.
Breathe and you break the thought of birth and death.
Breathe and you see that impermanence is life.
Breathe for your joy to be steady and calm.
Breathe for your sorrow to flow away.
Breathe to renew every cell in your blood.
Breathe to renew the depths of consciousness.
Breathe and you dwell in the here and now.
Breathe and all you touch is new and real.
From the Thich Nhat Hanh, from the book Breathe! You Are Alive: The Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing
More of Thich Nhat Hanh’s teachings and writings may be found here.
Breathing in, I’m aware I am breathing in
Breathing out, I’m aware I am breathing out
Awareness…in…and out (invite the bell)
Breathing in, my body begins to relax
Breathing out, tensions begin to ease
Relaxing…easing (invite the bell)
Breathing in, I feel the physical sensations of air in motion
Breathing out, I feel the movement of my lungs
Feeling the air…feeling my lungs (invite the bell)
Breathing in, I sense the trillions of oxygen molecules that are flowing in
Breathing out, I sense them circulating, nourishing my whole body
Oxygen flowing in…nourishing (invite the bell)
Breathing in, I release my control of breathing in
Breathing out, I release my control of breathing out
Releasing control…in…out (invite the bell)
Breathing in, I notice my in-breath continues naturally
Breathing out, I notice my out-breath continues slowly
Naturally…slowly (invite the bell)
Breathing in, I perceive the universe exhaling into me
Breathing out, I perceive the universe inhaling from me
Exhaling into me…inhaling from me (invite the bell)
Breathing in, I treasure how air is freely offered
Breathing out, I see how air is graciously returned
Freely given…graciously returned (invite the bell)
Breathing in, I rest in the stillness that does the breathing
Breathing out, I feel at one with that stillness
Resting in stillness… at one with the stillness (invite the bell)
Breathing in, I know that I matter
Breathing out, I feel I can trust
I matter…I can trust (invite the bell)