Benefits of Mindfulness of Breathing

Sometimes, a little reflection supports our meditation.

The Buddha regarded mindfulness of breathing as an extraordinarily beneficial practice. He said he could not think of another meditation practice that offered so many diverse benefits to the practitioner.

While all these benefits listed below might not be relevant to just one person, we might each see something that is right for us.

• Training to stay focused on an object
  Mindfulness of breathing trains the mind to stay with an object. We cultivate calmness, steadiness, and continuity of attention

• Direct experience of impermanence
  As we observe the breath, we recognise that everything we experience arises, remains, and passes. The breath embodies impermanence, breath by breath.

• Bridge between mind and body
  Mindfulness of breathing forms a bridge between the heart-mind and body. We experience the two as intimately connected rather than separate domains.

• Relaxation and reduced stress
  Attentive breathing contributes to the relaxation of the whole body. Tension softens; stress diminishes.

• Reduction of unnecessary thinking
  Staying with the breath cuts through much repetitive, unhelpful thinking. Mental noise gradually decreases.

• Support for dealing with pain
  Mindfulness of breathing provides invaluable support when facing pain. Many women, for instance, use conscious breathing during childbirth to meet intense sensations with more balance and less fear.

• Awareness of interdependence with the world
  Every breath reminds us of our inseparable relationship with the environment. We draw the air element into the body; we release it back. We literally live in continuous exchange with the world.

• Enlivening the cells
  With breathing – especially in sustained practice or in aerobic activity – oxygen enters deeply into the cells, enlivening them. Sometimes, in stillness, we can feel the whole body as if it breathes, the cells lighting up with life.

• A reminder of non-clinging. Breath comes and goes. We cannot cling to a single breath. The same principle applies to all objects of attention. Clinging ends in suffering.

Sitting silently in St Alban’s Church at 18.15 for half an hour on a Tuesday evening and breathing with others is a good way to start! 

Read more about Meditation and Mindfulness