Why Wind Energy Training Is for Everyone
Based on everything we have learned so far, then, it seems that training in wind energy and attempting to balance the elements within the physical body is not something that only Buddhists should focus on. Western science and Buddhist philosophy agree that calm, relaxed breathing makes us healthier. Because the breath is such an excellent and abundant support for life and vitality for every being on the planet, everyone can benefit from training in the breath, working with the inhalation and exhalation.
THE POSITIVE RESULTS OF PRACTICE
One of the positive effects of wind energy training is that the number of times we need to breathe in one day lessens. We may notice this when we sit down to meditate often and become mindful of the breath; there will be gaps of time where we do not need to breathe. In the case of accomplished or realized practitioners who have trained in any style of breath practice from one of the traditions of Asia, including Qigong, Tai Chi, and Yantra Yoga, the number of breaths taken in one hour can become very few. The result of such practice is clarity and peace of mind, and unshakable physical health. Why is this?
Western medicine answers this question in part by noting that ill people need to breathe more often than healthy ones.25 However, this does not explain why breathing less often also benefits our mental and emotional health. The Tibetan tradition often uses metaphors to explain such complex or intuitive ideas, which can be difficult to understand through more direct means. In this case, if we compare the energy of the physical body to a body of water, then we can access the logic behind this statement.
Each time a gust of wind blows over the ocean, ripples and waves cause movement and agitation on the water’s surface. However, when the air is calm, so is the water. It is just so with the mind. The more often we breathe, the more agitated the energy of body and mind becomes. By breathing less frequently, we begin to achieve elemental harmony. This is exactly how it is, in the case of a great yogi—as the number of breaths in a minute, an hour, a day begins to lessen, the wind energy becomes increasingly stable and balanced. Feelings of extreme mental suffering become less and less over time, so much so that the potential exists for these feelings to completely disappear. This is one way of describing the experience of realization, which will be explored more in later chapters.
Additionally, from the point of view of the Tibetan Buddhist teachings, there are 424 classes of illness that can arise in the body. According to these teachings, because of the lessening of the number of breaths, the wind energy within the body becomes more stable, more even and relaxed, and this releases all classes of illnesses from the physical body as well.
Throughout history, the majority of the great yogis in the world, no matter what other practice they were training in, accompanied their practice with an aspect of wind energy training, or breath yoga. Although the specific techniques of breath yoga used by these yogis may have been different, they each had the common result of self-healing the body and mind and the achievement of longevity. Their lives imply that the qualities of physical and mental well-being are directly connected to wind energy training.
Of course, we may not all be able to attain the realization of a buddha or become a great sage in this lifetime, but wind energy training can still benefit us tremendously. Wind energy training not only results in extraordinary wisdom and realization, as described above, but it also results in ordinary worldly wisdom. When we have the qualities of calm and relaxation in body, speech, and mind, we are able to accomplish more, and with better-designed plans. We make clear and thoughtful decisions and have more harmonious relationships. We avoid doing things that are at odds with our personal goals and integrity, and do not sabotage our own growth. We avoid making impulsive decisions, or speaking impulsive words, ones we may regret later. When we lack chaos on the inside, the world outside reflects our sense of inner harmony.
If we train in wind energy, each of us has the ability both to discover a more joyful life here and now and, ultimately, to cultivate wisdom.
2
Working with Breath and Neurotic Mind
THE MIND’S FUNDAMENTAL nature is not neurotic and emotionally afflicted. It is of limitless kindness and compassion. However, because we have become so used to the experience of mental and emotional instability, we rarely catch a glimpse of this fundamental nature. In this chapter we will get a sense of how our habitual and unexamined patterns of thought are directly linked to our breathing, and drive our reactions in life, leading to happiness or unhappiness. We will also learn about how wind energy influences our state of mind moment by moment.
SELF-ATTACHMENT AND SELF-ACCEPTANCE
From the point of view of the general Buddhist teachings, the basis for neurotic mind, or the dualistic mind that is overpowered by emotions and thoughts, is self-attachment. It can also be called self-cherishing. We may feel that the word neurosis only applies to extreme emotions and thought patterns. However, from the point of view of Tibetan Buddhism, neurosis is any trace of self-attachment or afflictive emotion. Until we completely realize the nature of wisdom, we all possess neurotic mind.
True awareness of our own self-attachment and self-cherishing is elusive. We often do not feel like we love ourselves at all. In fact, many of us feel we do not even like ourselves. We may be inclined to self-deprecation, insecurity, and feeling that we are never good enough. However, feelings of insecurity and undervaluing ourselves like this can be self-attachment in disguise. In other words, they can cause us to turn inward and be focused on ourselves, rather than focusing on supporting others and the greater community. This lack of confidence and disparaging of ourselves can make us emotionally and spiritually unavailable; we become isolated and distant from our friends and family, failing to offer them support in their time of need.
Because these feelings are so prevalent within our culture, the idea of self-acceptance has come to the forefront of emotional and spiritual healing. And self-acceptance, when it is not self-attachment in disguise, is also an important part of the Buddhist teachings. Accepting ourselves for who and what we are right now helps us make changes in our lives; we can understand both our capabilities and our limitations and ultimately transcend them. We can let go of the past and focus on what we are doing right now. With an attitude of self-acceptance, we can forgive ourselves for mistakes made in the past and the part we played in those situations.
Often, we focus on “what is wrong with us,” but true self-acceptance is not just about accepting our shortcomings. All human beings possess many wonderful qualities as well. From the point of view of the Buddhist teachings, we all have the ability to be loving and compassionate. We all have the ability to change and improve on the qualities and abilities we have now. We are all worthy of the love and affection of others. This is part of our underlying nature, which the Buddhist teachings describe as “basic goodness.” This basically good nature is something that all beings possess simply as a result of being alive. The Buddhist teachings give the example that even terrifying, carnivorous animals such as lions and tigers are basically good, because they care for and would even give their lives for their offspring.
The Buddhist teachings also state that we all have what is called Buddha Nature. Buddha Nature is something that dwells within all of us: it is the mind’s potential to express wisdom. Wisdom here refers not only to the qualities of worldly intelligence and knowledge that make us adept and successful at dealing with life’s problems, but it also refers to a nondual, altruistic state of mind that is not limited in any way. Such a mental state is difficult to imagine because it is completely beyond our ordinary experience. But from the point of view of the Buddhist teachings, we do not need to do anything to possess this quality. Like basic goodness, Buddha Nature is something we have inside of us naturally, simply because we are alive.
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