Using breath to move energy

[TalkingHead]

If you use your breath to move energy... Do you use the in and out breath for different directions? Should you be consistent with this or can you vary?

For instance... If I am trying to raise my energy.. Should I only raise it on the out breath and hold it on the in or vice versa?

And the same for circulating energy... When bringing the energy down the front of the body does it make more sense to use the in breath or out breath?

Thanks,
Tom

[Korpo]

I use the breath with Robert's Full Body Storage Circuit - I raise up the back from my feet to crown on in breath, down the front from crown to sub-navel storage on out breath. Isn't that even in Robert's instructions? It works quite well.

I often use in energy work to "breathe into something" to become more aware of it, and "breathe something out" to let it go, and that works extremely well, too.

Take good care,
Oliver

[TalkingHead]

Thanks Oliver.. you're right. I also finally got around to reading "Energy Work" and I think using Robert's methods has already started to work more noticeably for me.

[wstein]

Generally, energy follows the breath. Breathe in to take in energy, and breathe out to release energy.

Doing both will circulate energy. This is useful for clearing and removing (internal) blocks.

[Aunt Clair]

If you use your breath to move energy... Do you use the in and out breath for different directions? Should you be consistent with this or can you vary?

For instance... If I am trying to raise my energy.. Should I only raise it on the out breath and hold it on the in or vice versa?

And the same for circulating energy... When bringing the energy down the front of the body does it make more sense to use the in breath or out breath?

Thanks,
Tom
I feel that yoga and taoist recirculation techniques teach a variety of ways in which the control of breath can make more effective energy intake and Bardon in IIH stresses breathing also . When I raise energy from the feet upward I hold the breath until I raise it to the shoulders and then exhale .I use a yoga technique called the maha bandha lock to push the energy up whcih feels like swallowing but in the reverse direction . The energy comes up strongly in a thick rope like a dragons' body of energy spiraling .
viewtopic.php?t=8257&highlight= (http://forums.astraldynamics.com/viewtopic.php?t=8257&highlight=)

[Korpo]

I personally dislike techniques that hold the breath. This may be a matter of personal preference or tolerance, but holding the breath feels forceful to me. The more relaxed and natural my breath gets, the more round and flowing, the better my results usually get.

Oliver

[CFTraveler]

I personally dislike techniques that hold the breath. This may be a matter of personal preference or tolerance, but holding the breath feels forceful to me. The more relaxed and natural my breath gets, the more round and flowing, the better my results usually get.

Oliver
I do too, but have never quite 'put my finger on' why.

[TalkingHead]

Thanks guys; Holding the breath is a litle uncomfortable for me too.. I'm going to have to play around with the techniques both ways.. And Aunt Clair: thanks for the link; I've seen your page of links before but had been meaning to follow up on it more.. So far its very helpful.

And just to clarify: you do the maha bandha lock during the out breath right?

[wstein]

I personally dislike techniques that hold the breath. This may be a matter of personal preference or tolerance, but holding the breath feels forceful to me. The more relaxed and natural my breath gets, the more round and flowing, the better my results usually get.
Oliver
I do too, but have never quite 'put my finger on' why. Its a subtle form of creating an energy block. Note the tension holding creates especially in the abdomen.

If an interruption in breathing is needed, try ceasing to breathe. It's kind of like neglecting to take the next breath (as opposed to actively stopping it). This can be done at any point in the breathing cycle but is easiest just after an exhale or inhale. If nothing else, it's more comfortable.

[monkbiker]

I've been working on separating my breathing from my energy raising. I've found that tying the two together makes them interdependent and I don't like that.
When I'm brushing or wrapping or bouncing energy balls around through my body I want to be able to change the speed and/or the amount of time I spend on each area, and when the energy movement is connected to my inhalations and exhalations it sometimes leads to a slight feeling of O2 / CO2 imbalance. When I'm conscious of my breathing rate my breathing rate becomes somewhat 'unnatural'.

I've been working on a different approach. I envision the energy outside my body as an endless sea of golden white light. This light "likes" me. I imagine and feel an energy gradient that is lower inside my body than outside, and so the energy that "likes" me and is outside "wants" to move into my body because there's "less" of it there than there is outside.

So I just let it in.

Yes, I still feel it flowing in more strongly on my inhalations and I feel it flowing out of me (carrying away all the 'bad stuff') on my exhalations, but I also concentrate on letting it flow in between breaths as well.

[Aunt Clair]

Thanks guys; Holding the breath is a litle uncomfortable for me too.. I'm going to have to play around with the techniques both ways.. And Aunt Clair: thanks for the link; I've seen your page of links before but had been meaning to follow up on it more.. So far its very helpful.

And just to clarify: you do the maha bandha lock during the out breath right?
No I mean use inhalation to draw in energy and then exhale before you draw in the last deep breath use the maha bandha lock to hold the bolus of energy drawn up . This is ancient . Pull up the pelvic floor, suck in the abdominal wall and push the energy upwards and towards the back of the heart . Passive breath as suggested by some is fine but it will not draw in strong copious amounts of prana as the control of breath will .

[Korpo]

Drawing in the abdomen on the out breath is called "Daoist Breathing" or "Reverse Breathing", too. It is said to energize the body. Holding up the Hui-Yin point (center of pelvic floor) is considered a booster.

I read the recommendation of doing normal abdominal breathing (or "Buddhist Breathing") for six months before switching to reverse breathing. Reverse breathing is employed by martial artists to increase muscle power, as it leads energy outwards into the muscles and tissues and deep inside towards the bone, while "normal" abdominal breathing leads energy inward and towards the organs of the torso. "Buddhist" breathing relaxes, "Daoist" breathing energises.

I thought "holding the breath" meant actually holding it. AFAIK there are Yogic breathing techniques that hold the breath fully, even for extended times. Also energy is coordinated with the breath and confined to certain body parts.

Oliver

[Martin]

Oliver, could you explain those techniques a little more clearly for someone who's biological english is not that great?
Especially since I practice Kung fu every week (and regular martial arts). It does really give me energy.

[Korpo]

"Reverse Abdominal Breathing" or "Daoist Breathing" pushes the "belly" out on exhale, and draws it in on inhale - the reverse of normal abdominal breathing. This strongly energises the muscles. You can observe a similar breathing pattern when trying to push something really heavy - the forceful, tense breath we employ to yield maximum power in pushing has the same characteristics.

IIRC the Daoist Breathing pushes energy from the channels/meridians into all the smaller vessels (Luo), outward toward the skin through the muscles, and inward towards the bone. Normal abdominal breathing draws energies into the torso and its organs and into the channels.

If you want to learn more details about both consult Dr Yang's "Qigong Meditation: Embryonic Breathing" or "Qigong Meditation: Small Circulation". His Qigong books for martial artists may have even more details on this - I cannot say.

Take good care,
Oliver