The eightfold breath

The eightfold breath technique is one that is and has been used by many saints and sages. The most infamous of them is the buddha. It is a very simple technique with a deep impact. If one studies the human body academically they will come to find that breathing is integral to the functions of many parts of the body but one it affects the most is the nervous system. The breath and the nervous system are linked, when you breathe deep and slow it tells the nervous system to relax and move into the “rest” function. And when the breath is quickened, and short it tells the body to move into the “fight” function. 

So by this simple understanding, we can see that the breath is the main component of controlling the body. It also has a direct effect on the mind, in the same way, quicker breaths make the mind act more erratic, and slower longer breaths make the mind smooth and calm like the breath itself. So if our goal is to relax and deepen that relaxation for meditation then it is the breath we must master and work with as the chief means of directing this relaxation.

Another aspect of breathing is to breathe into the lower abdomen or the belly. In the vast world of Daoism and martial arts, this is called by many names. My personal Shifu ( teacher in kungfu) Rocky Mendiola called it “golden stove breathing”. This breath can generate heat in the body and the lower area of the body is where the vital energies of life are stored. 

Often we see people talking quick and taking short inhales which only fill the upper lungs. This is the breathing patterns of stress and anxiety. And breathing deep into the belly is the breathing of relaxation and rest. So when applying any breathwork the practitioner should take this into consideration and apply it to their breath work.

The eightfold breath technique:

1:Sitting in a nice relaxing posture, eyes closed focusing only on the breath forgetting all else.

Begin with taking several normal breaths in and out the nose, deep into the belly to prime yourself for breathwork.

2:Then once you are settled into breathing begin to lengthen your breath into slow, smooth, drawn-out inhales and exhales still breathing into the belly.

3:Then still using the above movements and modes above begin to breathe in for a slow count of eight. At the top of the inhale when you are full of breath, hold for a count of eight. Now when you hold it’s not like holding your breath underwater. It is just letting the breath rest at full, so it is more like a stop of inbreath. Then release the breath in a slow smooth drawn-out count of eight, ending withholding the breath out for a count of eight before starting the inhale and count all over again.

If worked with for a while you will begin to get a nice rhythmic flow of the eightfold breath, and this is what we are looking to achieve. Smooth long rhythmic breathing. Breathing in a rhythm is natural for the body and we are trying to give it a natural way to relax not force it. 

The recommended time for a good effect is thirty minutes. If done for an hour or longer it will have very deep effects on the body and mind. Anyone hoping to achieve good results in meditation, trance, self-hypnosis, or any other kind of mystical work should work to master this breathing technique. If mastered it will create a sort of switch in the consciousness and body to have an instant response. So, when you want to enter these deep states only a couple of minutes of this breathing, will trigger the desired effect.

Michael Phoenix Heart 2020