SECOND GROUP OF FOUR EXERCISES
- "Breathing in, I feel joyful. Breathing out, I feel joyful."
- "Breathing in, I feel happy. Breathing out, I feel happy."
- "Breathing in, I am aware of my mental formations. Breathing out, I am aware of my mental formations.”
- "Breathing in, I calm my mental formations. Breathing out, I calm my mental formations."
Commentary
The intent is to be aware of how slowing down enough to noticing each breath is related with the sensations in the body leading to pleasant feelings of the mind. Exercise 4 to 6 are especially meant to be aware of the association of slowing down to be aware of the breath with calm, serenity, joy and happiness. Exersizes 7 and 8 are about the content of the mind; there always is something in our mind if it is active or not sleeping.
Persistence in the practice of fully aware breathing leads the practitioner from mindfulness of the body to that of physical sensations and feelings of the mind.
Exercise 5: This exercise is meant to make the learner experience how a sense of joy appears as you become aware of breathing in and breathing out.
Exercise 6: This exercise is meant to make the learner experience how a feelings of happiness appear in the mind the awareness of breathing in and breathing out.
Exercise 7: Our mind is never totally free. It always has something in it. The content of the mind defines its state of being, its mode or its formulations. When we slow down and become aware of breathing in and breathing out, we also begin to notice that the content of our minds changes and the changes are at high speed in quick succession. The content of the mind defines its mode of existence or formation. In the absence of the awareness of the breath, we are also unaware of the changing modes or formulations of the mind. This exercise is meant to create an experience of the changing content of mind as we breathe in and out. We may have one thought in our mind as we breathe in and another when we breathe out.
Exercise 8: This exercise is meant to notice from our own experience how the speed at which the content of the mind reduces as we maintain the awareness of breathing in and breathing out. Experience that the formulations of the mind calm down as we breathe in and experience how the calm down as breathe out.