SKY Breath Meditation

So last weekend I attended a 3 day online seminar on SKY Breath Meditation. S-K-Y makes up the acronym for Sudarshan kriya yoga and is Sanskrit for ‘proper vision by purifying action. It was an enjoyable series of 3 hour classes teaching a sequence of breathing exercises that are specially designed to calm the nervous system and bring relaxed and alert focus to the mind.

Here’s a thought that was new to me:

Our breath changes as our emotions change – yes? For example, when anger rises our breathe becomes faster and more shallow, and when we are happy we breathe more deeply and more slowly. And so it follows that if we consciously change our breathing patterns then we can control our emotions. Hmmm…

For me the most exciting aspect of learning this practice is that it provides enhanced energy and peace at the same time – in the same breath. I guess I had somehow come to associate energy with busy action, and peace with non-action.

This experience of peaceful energy is growing in me and it makes me very happy. I have taken up the challenge of my instructor to do a 40-day challenge to practise SKY Breathe Meditation for 40 days straight. I am curious to see the changes in store for me.

Consider signing up for a course too. And let me know how it goes. Here’s the link to their website:

https://www.artofliving.org/ca-en/happiness-program