Professional Documents
Culture Documents
This is the third in a series of short papers, partly based on theoretical ideas,
personal experiences and reflections from the author’s personal and spiritual
journals. This short paper will focus on the importance of breath awareness
and its ability to provide us with a secure base from which to journey into the
mystery of our consciousness.
This series of papers attempts to offer some ideas, concepts, practices and, at
times, challenging ideas from the wisdom traditions of the East and from the
author’s own Celtic Tradition. It does so in a spirit of humility and not in any
spirit of criticism of Western values and of the great Western contribution to
Universal Wisdom.
West V East?
As a Celt, I am only too aware of the great richness of Western Ideas. In fact
the renowned historian Kenneth Clark, commenting on the importance of
Celtic Christianity and its ‘gift’ to Western Civilisation, said;
© 2010 - Peter Creagh, Trainer, Supervisor and BACP Registered Counsellor UKRC securebase.doc
Personal Development Breath Awareness – A Secure Base
The Celtic Monks kept alive the spirit of learning and retained and reproduced
numerous copies of the great literature that was then being destroyed by the
waves of invaders who were pillaging and destroying much of the cultural
centres of Europe. Arguably, it was from this base that the ethos of learning
that the recovery of the intellectual and spiritual revival of Europe grew
between the 7th and 10th Centuries. Further details on the importance of our
Celtic Inheritance can be found in a series of five papers written by this
Author under the generic title ‘ Echoes of Creation’
What the West has to offer is its great love for, and respect of, learning. It
also offers its establishment of great centres of academic, scientific and
spiritual learning and its growing championship of the rights of the individual,
the importance of freedom and human rights, its development of democracy
and its remarkable contribution to the scientific and cultural inheritance of
our World. In short, the West has contributed significantly to the ‘human
banquet’ of Universal Wisdom. Other cultures and traditions have made
similar but different contributions.
However, arguably in recent centuries many in the West have either ignored
or downplayed the contributions of other cultures and may also have ‘drifted’
away from some of the West’s own roots and values. The renowned physicist
Albert Einstein, commenting on this ‘drift’ had this to say:
‘The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant.
We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift’
© 2010 - Peter Creagh, Trainer, Supervisor and BACP Registered Counsellor UKRC securebase.doc
Personal Development Breath Awareness – A Secure Base
In Paper 2 – Four Truths and Four Choices, the 1st Truth concerned
attachment and ‘real’ happiness. The attachment outlined by Buddhism is not
the same as the attachment referred to in Western Attachment Theory. What
Buddhism is trying to offer is a perspective on the dangers of ‘clinging’ to
things is a possessive manner. This ‘clinging’ can be to people, possessions,
habits, ideas, ideologies etc.
What Buddhism offers is its view of the value and importance of detachment,
one of its eight values for right living. It suggests that detachment brings real
joy rather than mere pleasure. This IS NOT an exclusive detachment that
prohibits normal and healthy relationships. It provides a sound basis for
genuine, authentic and empowering mutual relationships.
This is not a uniquely Eastern idea, after all, Freud reflected on the inherent
problems of the ‘pleasure principle’ and most of the masters and mystics of
the great spiritual traditions strongly advise us to develop the ability to
discern between mere pleasure, which is transient, and joy which is real and
of greater permanence. Now it is time to return to the issue of Personal
Growth and the place of breath awareness.
Breathe Awareness
© 2010 - Peter Creagh, Trainer, Supervisor and BACP Registered Counsellor UKRC securebase.doc
Personal Development Breath Awareness – A Secure Base
The whole area of the value and practice of breath awareness is universal.
Many cultures comment upon ii and have developed a series of useful
exercises. However, almost 3000 years ago , Hinduism developed and
recorded in great detail a system of Yoga. One of its 8 branches is the Practice
of Pranayama, breath control. This was also taken up and developed by
Buddhism.
The esteemed Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hanh compares breath to a bridge
that connects life to the consciousness. He suggests that this is a bridge that
also unites the body with our thoughts. Thus awareness and control of
breathing is an essential bridge or gateway into the practice of both
mindfulness and focusing.
© 2010 - Peter Creagh, Trainer, Supervisor and BACP Registered Counsellor UKRC securebase.doc
Personal Development Breath Awareness – A Secure Base
1. Our brain, although only about 2% of body mass, uses up almost 25%
of our oxygen intake
If we just concentrate on the SNS and PNS because these play a crucial role
in either increasing or controlling much of our unaware consciousness and
thus our tendency towards anxiety, fear, depression or calmness , relaxation ,
ease etc. The PNS and SNA are like two sides of a see-saw and our PNS,
properly stimulated can initiate a state of calm, tranquility and contemplative
insights.
It is now time to outline some points that can aid our practices of breath
awareness and some potential barriers.
© 2010 - Peter Creagh, Trainer, Supervisor and BACP Registered Counsellor UKRC securebase.doc
Personal Development Breath Awareness – A Secure Base
The following are some well tried and tested aids to developing the practice of
breath awareness. Further exercises will be suggested which will assist in the
practice and we will end this presentation with a basic 1st exercise in breath
awareness
b. If tense, then focus the attention on the lower part of the body
and particularly on the stomach and the diaphragm.
6. Finally, if at any time you find yourself getting too tense and 5b
above is not working, then just relax, stop focusing on your breath
for a few moments and then return to focusing on the in breath
© 2010 - Peter Creagh, Trainer, Supervisor and BACP Registered Counsellor UKRC securebase.doc
Personal Development Breath Awareness – A Secure Base
The following are some general points that are known to cause barriers or
blocks when we initially attempt to develop the practice of breath awareness.
3. The fact that the mind can begin to race around with a plethora of
thoughts, feelings, fantasies, etc and physical sensations
© 2010 - Peter Creagh, Trainer, Supervisor and BACP Registered Counsellor UKRC securebase.doc
Personal Development Breath Awareness – A Secure Base
Conclusions
However, there is the well known saying ‘ an ounce of practice is worth a ton
of theory’ and any focus on the area of breath awareness must and needs to
involve some practice. Therefore this note merely supports a practical session
that introduces some basic breath and relaxation exercises designed to raise
awareness and provide a sound basis for the areas of Universal Presence,
Transcendence and Mindfulness, all issues for future and further papers in this
series.
Finally, these notes are not ‘stand-alone’. They are designed to raise
awareness about the practice of breath awareness, its importance, its roots
and its potential uses in psychological interventions. It also complements a
seminar on this practice with time for experiential exercises, further input and
information and discussion.
.
Time for a series of basic Relaxation Exercises using our
Breath
© 2010 - Peter Creagh, Trainer, Supervisor and BACP Registered Counsellor UKRC securebase.doc