Path to Yoga

Can’t Stay Focused During Meditation? It’s Probably Not What You Think

2025-08-23T14:07:00.001+05:30

Losing focus during meditation is perfectly normal, especially when you’re just starting out with short sessions of 10 minutes or so.

But, if after months or years of practice with longer meditation sessions, you are still struggling with a distracted mind, you might be dealing with the same issue I was.

That’s right. For the longest time, I struggled with a distracted mind during meditation.

Although I knew how to attain a relaxed and calm state by observing my breath, after a few minutes, I just couldn’t stay focused anymore.

It will take me a while to realize I was elsewhere, thinking about random things, like the next project, a discussion with a friend, the pile of laundry waiting for me, and so on.

And it didn’t matter how many times I gently guided my mind back to the object of concentration. Over and over again, my mind would inevitably end up in another time and place.

Once in a while, I’d have a great session where I felt completely relaxed, calm, present, and focused. But to be honest, that was so rare. Most of the time, my mind was constantly distracted.

Of course, I tried all the recommended strategies: observing my thoughts as passing clouds, noticing the thoughts the moment they arose, and so on.

But although these strategies are very effective, they didn’t always work.

For the first couple of minutes, I could notice my thoughts. But a few moments later, I’d suddenly find myself in a completely different place again.

I used to feel pretty disappointed because after so much time practicing concentration exercises, my concentration had not improved at all. It seemed that my mind was not built to stay focused.

What do we need to stay focused?

It took me years to realize what was really going on. And no, it was not just lack of concentration.

While there are many reasons we might get distracted during meditation, in this particular case, the answer turned out to be surprisingly simple.

You see, to be able to focus for extended periods, we need not only a relaxed mind but also a fully alert and bright mind.

The mind needs to be so alert and bright that it feels like the sun, illuminating the entire consciousness from within.

When the mind is that alert and bright, it doesn’t matter how many thoughts come and go. It won’t get distracted.

That’s right. Distracting thoughts can’t take an alert, bright mind by surprise.

A bright mind shines on every thought the moment it arises, so it clearly notices it and then lets it go. It’s an effortless process since an alert mind can easily remain detached.

The exact opposite happens to a dull, fatigued mind.

A dull mind won’t notice the distracting thoughts until it’s too late. It’s constantly taken by surprise by all sorts of thoughts which pull the mind here and there like a marionette.

So this was the problem. I was often approaching my meditation sessions with a dull and fatigued mind.

And guess what. It doesn’t matter if you spend your entire life practicing concentration exercises. If the mind is dull and fatigued, it simply won’t be able to stay focused.

By the way, when I talk about fatigue, I don’t mean being so tired that you end up sleepy during meditation. That’s, of course, another obstacle.

I’m talking about a much more subtle kind of mental fatigue.

You might not feel sleepy, and you might be able to sit perfectly upright during the entire session, yet you can’t concentrate.

The fatigue is so subtle that you don’t notice it, and therefore, you aren’t aware of your lack of alertness.

The first step to improve concentration

So, to solve this problem, the first step is to develop awareness of the quality of our mind, moment by moment, during meditation.

Sounds easy, right?

Well, it’s not. Trying to notice a lack of mental clarity with a mind that lacks mental clarity is a challenge. But with regular practice, it gets easier.

Once we identify that this is the issue, the next step is to make lifestyle changes to ensure we’re well-rested before meditation.

Yep, that’s it.

To be able to remain fully alert, attentive, and relaxed throughout the entire session, you need a well-rested mind. It’s as simple as that.

Since I started prioritizing rest, my meditations have really improved. It’s so much easier to stay focused.

Not only that, but the more well-rested I am, the longer my meditations tend to be.

When I’m experiencing dullness, I might end the session around 50 minutes in, not knowing why I had to stop. But when I feel clear-headed, I can go beyond an hour without effort.

Of course, there are still many days when I lack concentration.

This is perfectly normal, even after years of practice. But now it happens a bit less often, and when it does happen, I know what I need to do to improve my next sessions.

How to cultivate a well-rested mind

So, how can we ensure the mind is well-rested before meditation?

Yes, having a good night’s sleep is the most important habit for feeling bright and alert during meditation. But there’s more to it.

Here are a few tips that can help us improve our sleep, mental clarity, and our overall health:

Exercise regularly: resistance training, HIIT, hatha yoga, outdoor sports. The more you move, the better.
Practice deep relaxation after yoga, and whenever needed.
Eat a proper diet that supports your body constitution and lifestyle.
Learn to breathe slowly and diaphragmatically.
Be mindful of how you use your mental and physical energy during the day. Take a nap if needed.
Practice mindful breathing for stress relief.
Have your last meal at least three hours before sleep. The earlier the better.
Avoid screens at least one hour before bed.
Avoid scrolling at all costs. Worst energy vampire ever.
Drink two to four glasses of water upon waking up, and stay hydrated throughout the day.
Have a bowel movement before your morning meditation.

I know. That last point might surprise you, but it’s very important, especially if you’re serious about meditation.

When my teachers run “advanced” meditation workshops, the first thing they often talk about is bowel movements. Lol.

“One thing the Western children don’t have is proper toilet training. I don’t know what kind of toilet training you give to your children. We start giving them that training right from the age of one, we teach them that the first thing they should do in the morning, the first thing upon getting up, is to have a bowel movement.

You can’t fully wake up without a bowel movement. You still have the previous night’s things which will rise like fumes into your head. That’s why so many heads are unclear. First thing in the morning is the bowel movement.”—Swami Veda Bharati

That’s why yogis recommend drinking two to four glasses of water upon waking. It not only hydrates the body, it also helps get things moving.

I hope you've found these suggestions useful. If you have other suggestions, please feel free to share them in the comments section below.

So next time you’re struggling to stay focused during meditation, remember that the problem might not be a lack of concentration.

Pay attention to your mental state instead. Is your mind clear, bright, and alert, or is it dull, cloudy, and heavy? Then, try to implement some of the strategies above.

Why Breath Meditation Doesn’t Always Calm You (and What to Do About It)

2025-08-21T18:13:00.002+05:30

Have you ever tried breath meditation motivated by the countless benefits people talk about, yet felt no calm at all? Maybe you practiced a mindful breathing technique for what seemed like an eternity, only to feel disappointed in the end.

To be honest, that has happened to me more often than I’d like to admit. Sometimes I’ve spent an entire hour watching my breath without ever feeling relaxed, calm, centered, or focused.

Why is that? Well, although books say “just watch your breath and you’ll relax,” in my experience, that’s definitely not the case. Something is missing in this instruction.

That missing piece, that key element, is having the intention to allow the breath to relax.

I know, it’s important not to control or do the breath in any way when doing a breath meditation practice. We have to watch the breath as a witness, as if we were observing someone else breathing.

But without having the intention to allow the breath to relax, we are still unconsciously doing the breath or manipulating the breath.

Our mental tensions, anxieties, inner conflicts, and so on are constantly affecting our breathing patterns. So even if we sit to watch the breath for an entire hour, those unconscious mental tensions are still influencing the breath.

This is what I’ve experienced and learned through my daily practice.

Whenever I notice I’m not able to enter a calm and relaxed state of mind, I pay even closer attention to the quality of my breath. And sure enough, it’s still tense and restricted.

So then I mentally remind myself, “Allow your breath to slow down. Allow your breath to relax.”

When I do that, almost immediately, my breath becomes deeper, longer, and softer. Only then do I start to experience a calmer, more relaxed state of mind that’s indispensable for the practice of meditation.

Of course, there are moments when no matter what I do, I’m not able to enter that deep state of relaxation and mental calmness.

That happened often during the last month.

I had to leave Sri Lanka after almost a year and a half. This meant I had to find a new home for three kittens I had rescued and adopted in May last year.

That wasn’t easy at all, logistically and emotionally.

Even though I’d mentally prepared myself for that moment, in the end, the attachment was strong. I wasn’t even able to complete the next lesson of my Beginner’s Online Sanskrit Course.

But that’s perfectly normal. Life challenges are always there to test us. At those times, it’s best to simply accept and surrender, while we keep up with our daily meditation practice.

Eventually, things will get back to normal, and we’ll be able to observe the breath in a more natural way.

But the point that I’m trying to make is that just watching your breath is not enough to enter a deep state of relaxation and calm.

You have to remind yourself to allow the breath to slow down, to become soft, soundless, deep, and continuous. Only then will you be able to enter a deep state of relaxation that leads to meditation.

If you need some guidance, you could try these concentration-based guided meditations that start with a simple mindful breathing technique.

And here are some related articles you might be interested in:

I hope you’ve found this article useful. Please feel free to share your experience in the comment section below.

How to Start Mastering Your Mind

2025-08-20T17:58:00.001+05:30

Wouldn’t it be great to be able to control your mind against unwanted thoughts and emotions, at will? Who wouldn’t want that? I know I would. Unfortunately, I’m nowhere close to being the master of my mind. And the reason is that I’ve been focusing on the wrong things. Let me explain.

I once participated in a life-purpose workshop. The guide asked us to visualize our future self, in old age, having become whomever we wanted to be. When asked, I said I saw myself as the master of my mind.

Another guy in the group said, “What? You want to be a Jedi?” I laughed.

His comment reminded me of that epic scene where Luke Skywalker tried to use the power of his mind to control the Force and lift his starfighter out of a swamp. That was awesome. Right?

It definitely was for me. That scene is deeply embedded in my childhood memory. Imagine having such mastery over your mind that you can even move objects at will.

But as cool as that scene was, mind control or mental mastery, for me, has to be more down-to-earth. More practical.

What truly inspires me are these words a teacher said to his disciple right in the middle of the battlefield, just before a war started.

He whose mind is not shaken by anxiety under afflictions nor by attachment to happiness under favorable circumstances, free from attraction, fear, and anger, neither excited by good nor disturbed by evil, is called a man of steady wisdom. —BG II.56-57

Can you imagine being able to control your mind and emotions so that you remain perfectly calm, content, and serene under all circumstances, no matter what?

That’s true self-mastery to me, and what brought me to the path of the Indian yogis.

But to be honest, after all these years of daily meditation practice and introspection, I don’t seem to be anywhere close to mastering my mind. Sometimes it even feels as if I’ve gone in the wrong direction. Lol.

It took me a long time to realize that I was approaching this completely wrong. I’d been fixated on the end result instead of focusing on what I can improve right now.

I’ve been daydreaming about mastering my mind like a real Jedi instead of taking the baby steps I could take day by day.

So, all I had to do was focus on improving only one very specific part of my mind—not everything at once. And do it on a regular basis. That’s what leads to steady progress.

Also, that mental aspect should be relatively easy to change, and any improvement should have a practical impact on my life; it should make a difference.

That’s why I’ve been working recently only on my stress and anxiety.

That’s it. Nothing else.

Why this?

Because it’s not my biggest issue, yet the anxiety I sometimes feel stops me from thinking clearly, being creative, and taking the right actions to reach my goals.

It makes me inefficient. Writing a simple post like this can take forever when I’m feeling anxious.

So managing my anxiety can have a significant positive impact on my life.

Luckily, since stress and anxiety are mainly the result of our interpretation of reality, the only thing I have to do is pay attention. That’s it.

I just pay attention to my state of being, moment to moment, and notice how I’m feeling. Is there tension? Is my breath deep or restricted? Am I feeling agitated? Am I rushing for no reason?

I then reflect on what exactly I’m anxious about and remind myself that it doesn’t serve me in any way. Instead, it makes achieving my goals harder.

I’ve been doing this for a couple of months now, and I can really feel a difference. I’m not rushing as much. I feel much calmer even when I haven’t finished an email, prepared a lesson for my Sanskrit course, or published a blog post.

And that calm allows me to be even more creative and efficient the next day.

I know, it’s a very small thing, but that’s exactly the point.

In my opinion, to become the master of our minds, we need consistent baby steps focused on improving only a small, specific area of the mind at a time. It should be relatively easy to change, and it should have a tangible impact on our lives.

What do you think? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome as a Yoga Teacher

2025-07-16T20:55:00.001+05:30

Have you ever felt like a fraud while teaching yoga? I have. Despite being well prepared, I struggled with self-doubt and felt inadequate. I didn’t even know this had a name: Imposter Syndrome. Luckily, the cure is surprisingly simple, although it took me forever to realize. Let me share my story.

It’s been three years since I stopped teaching yoga. Time flies, seriously. It feels like it was yesterday when I was giving those final online yoga classes from my little flat in Varkala, South India.

I stopped teaching because of my fibromyalgia. It’s something I’ve been dealing with for more than a decade already.

I don’t suffer unbearable pain like some people do. But it’s enough to make practicing asanas more of a struggle than a joyful experience.

At some point, I got tired of that struggle. On top of that, I had a couple of knee injuries from doing sports and surfing.

But I recently realized that there was probably another reason that pushed me to stop teaching.

Imposter syndrome.

That’s right. I always felt inadequate as a teacher teaching asanas, meditation, and pranayama. I felt as if I didn’t have enough knowledge and experience.

The truth is, I was overqualified as a teacher, even better prepared than many teachers out there.

I visited more than fifteen ashrams in India and completed several yoga teacher training courses both in the south and the north. I also had a consistent daily practice, not only of asanas but of meditation as well.

After my classes, I often received positive feedback, without even asking for it. But for some reason, I kept doubting myself.

This constant self-doubt didn’t allow me to be fully myself and enjoy my classes.

Surprisingly, the exact opposite happened when I decided to teach Sanskrit and create an online Sanskrit course for beginners.

I don’t have a Sanskrit degree. I haven’t done any formal studies in Sanskrit. I’m pretty much self-taught, and I’m still a beginner.

Yes, that’s right. I can’t understand everything I read. I can’t even have a conversation in Sanskrit. Yet, that didn’t stop me from deciding to teach it and to create an online course.

Although every other Sanskrit teacher out there is far better prepared than I am, I don’t feel like an impostor at all.

And the reason is simple.

I don’t believe I need to be an expert to be able to teach what I already know. I’m not promising something that I haven’t attained myself.

I’m simply offering what I know I can offer. I want to help complete beginners in Sanskrit reach my level faster than I did. And I know that I can do this really well, in a way no one else can.

This was the mindset I was missing when I was teaching yoga.

Back then, I always felt inadequate because I believed I needed to be pretty much a fully realized yogi to be able to teach.

As usual, the perfectionist in me was getting in the way

I believed I needed to have complete mastery over my body, breath, and mind to have the right to even talk about yoga.

But the truth is, like every other human being, I was still struggling with body pains, stiffness, anxiety, stress, depression, and so on.

I failed to see back then that I didn’t need to be a master to share what I already knew. I didn’t need to pretend to be someone else, or unconsciously expect to bring students to a level I hadn’t reached myself.

All I was supposed to do was simply share what I had learned and experienced through my self-studies and regular yoga practice. That’s all.

Maybe that’s something for you to think about, too.

If you are struggling with imposter syndrome, you can remind yourself that you don’t need to be perfect. Just focus on sharing what you already know. There are people out there who need exactly that. Your authenticity will attract them, and they’ll appreciate you for it.

How Keeping Your Word Builds Self-Confidence

2025-07-08T17:24:00.001+05:30

I once read a quote that has had a huge impact on my life. It was from a Zen Buddhism book I randomly picked up while visiting the library of a Buddhist monastery in Nepal.

I can’t remember the exact quote. That was way more than a decade ago! But it was something like this:

“If you can’t keep your small commitments in life, how can you expect to keep your big commitments?”

The teacher was giving a lesson to his disciple on integrity and willpower.

The idea is that if you want to accomplish great things or complete meaningful projects, you must practice integrity in even the smallest things.

For example, even if you made a small promise, like meeting your friends at a bar for a casual gathering, you have to show up and arrive at the time you said you would.

You have to keep your word no matter what. The more you do this, the more the power of your words strengthens.

I really took this to heart. Whenever I say I’ll do something, I know that I have no other option. I have to do it, no matter how insignificant it might be for myself or others.

I think this habit not only strengthens the power of your words but also helps you overcome self-doubt and fears.

Around July last year, I told a friend here in Sri Lanka that I was planning to start teaching beginners Sanskrit online. The moment I said that, I knew there was no turning back. I had to do it.

I even mentioned it to my cousin when she interviewed me for her podcast to talk about finding your life purpose.

To be honest, I was hesitant to start teaching Sanskrit. I procrastinated for a little while. Well, mostly because of the tropical heat in Sri Lanka.

But once my landlord installed an AC and I got the Wi-Fi all set up in my little rental here in the South, I knew I had no excuses. I had to start teaching Sanskrit online.

And so I did.

Then the idea for an online Sanskrit course came to my mind. Once I mentioned it to a few friends, I knew I had to do it.

And I started it.

Then, something unexpected happened. After I published those first few lessons, a wave of inner satisfaction and joy started to rise from within.

It’s not because I’m proud of what I’m creating, or because I know it will help others learn Sanskrit. That’s true, of course. But the satisfaction that I feel has a simpler explanation.

The reason is simply that I’m doing it. That’s it.

Regardless of all my doubts, fears, and insecurities, I’m still doing what I said I would do. I didn’t just talk about it. I took action.

Knowing this has given me a boost of self-confidence, inspiration, and motivation that keeps me moving forward. I feel now even more capable of starting and completing every other project I have in mind.

If you would like to apply this to your own life, here is my advice. Next time you commit to something or make a small promise, make sure you do it.

It doesn’t have to be perfect. Just doing what you said you’d do is more than enough.

The more you practice this, the stronger the power of your words becomes, and the more trust you build in yourself.

And if you are not sure you can keep a commitment, then don’t make it. This is important. You don’t have to say yes to everything. You also need to be honest and true to yourself.

Whenever I’m unsure I can keep my word, whether because I’m not that interested or I’ve got other commitments, I just say, “I can’t” or “Maybe. I’ll think about it.”

That might sound not very assertive, but that’s far better than watering down the power of my words by breaking them.

Oh, in case you are curious, the monastery where I read that book is Kopan monastery. A fantastic monastery in Boudhanath, Kathmandu.

How to Learn Sanskrit Fast

2025-06-16T10:05:00.006+05:30

Here is a quick tip to accelerate your learning of Sanskrit: focus on mastering pronouns. Here’s why.

Pronouns are high-frequency words and a key element in creating simple but meaningful sentences, which help you acquire the language naturally. You know, to say things like:

He goes to that temple
She lives in that city
It drinks her water
She sees him.
He eats it.

And because of the inflective nature of the language, pronouns carry a lot of meaning in just one word, which varies depending on the context.

In Sanskrit, all the previous sentences can be written using just one pronoun stem: tad.

So by mastering the use of pronouns, you can begin to deconstruct the meaning of a sentence even if you don’t know the entire vocabulary.

And since pronouns are high-frequency words, you’ll find them often in Sanskrit texts like the Bhagavad Gītā and the Yoga Sutras of Patañjali.

तस्य वाचकः प्रणवः ॥२७॥
tasya vācakaḥ praṇavaḥ
His name is the word Om

—Y.S. I.27

The word tasya ( a declension of the pronoun tad), meaning “his” or “its,” appears numerous times in both texts.

So, if you want to learn Sanskrit fast, my suggestion is that you start by learning the different declensions of the pronoun tad, which is used to talk about something/someone that is far from the speaker, or not present.

Then you can apply that same skill to master the use of the pronoun etad, which refers to something/someone close to the speaker.

Since the pronoun endings are the same, it’s as if you were multiplying your vocabulary of high-frequency words by simply adding the letter “e” before it.

And that same knowledge will also help you master the interrogative pronouns, which will, in turn, help you master the indefinite pronouns.

So you’ll be growing your high-frequency word vocabulary exponentially by mastering just one pronoun.

This is why, in my Beginner’s Online Sanskrit Course, we start learning pronouns right from Lesson 1.

In that lesson, with only two words, we’re already able to create meaningful sentences—an excellent way to start acquiring the language naturally.

In Lesson 5, we take it even further, diving deeper into the use of the pronouns tad and etad. You’ll be creating sentences like the ones above and even more.

So, if you are ready to start your Sanskrit journey, you can visit my Patreon and join the Yogi tier or above to get immediate access to my Beginner’s Online Sanskrit Course.

For more tips to accelerate your learning of Sanskrit, you can visit my other articles:

Struggling to Learn Sanskrit? This Seemingly Unrelated Story Can Help

2025-06-09T22:00:00.002+05:30

Are you struggling to learn Sanskrit? Let me tell you about my friend's struggles to learn the ukulele. Her journey perfectly illustrates how to learn Sanskrit more efficiently.

If you're a complete beginner learning Sanskrit, whether online or with a language teacher, this story will give you some valuable insights to speed up your progress.

My friend’s ukulele journey

A few months back, I met a friend who was trying to learn the ukulele. She said, “It’s really difficult,” and I replied, “Really?” with a suspicious tone.

So I asked her what she was doing to learn the ukulele.

She showed me some chord sheets. She was actually trying to learn to play by memorizing the chords from the chord sheets.

I was like, “What?!

I said, “Of course that’s difficult. That’s not the way to learn the ukulele, or any musical instrument!“

Seriously. Can you imagine trying to memorize all the different chord shapes just by reading them from a sheet? Where is the fun, the rhythm, the MUSIC?!

It couldn’t be more boring than that, right?

So I explained to her that the best way to learn the ukulele is by learning songs. That way, you learn not only the chord shapes but also rhythm, intonation, and so on. You know, music!

Of course, you won’t start by learning Metallica’s “Master of Puppets.” You have to start with something fun, but suited to your level.

So I showed her how to play a ridiculously easy song. That was “What’s Up” by 4 Non Blondes. A fun song with only three chords!

But then she couldn’t manage the strumming pattern.

So I said, “Don’t worry about it. Just strum the chord once, sing the verse, and move to the next chord.”

After just a few minutes, she had already memorized the three chords, and after going through the whole song a couple of times, she naturally started to change the strumming pattern.

And she was having so much fun in the process. She was actually playing music.

What about Sanskrit?

On my way back home, I started to think about how similar that is to learning Sanskrit. Oftentimes, traditional teachers ask you to memorize endless declension tables, conjugation tables, sandhi rules, and so on, right from the start.

Sure, it is helpful to memorize all these tables. But, is it efficient? Is it fun? Absolutely not!

Just like learning chords through songs, the best way to learn grammar is in context. That is, by reading and writing in Sanskrit. In other words, it’s better not to focus on grammar, but on actually using the language.

That’s why some people recommend chanting Sanskrit mantras and ślokas as a natural way to acquire the language.

The problem is that those are way too advanced, especially for a complete beginner, and even more so if you are not from India, like me.

It’s like trying to learn the ukulele with Metallica’s “Master of Puppets.” Even with a word-for-word translation, you’ll struggle to learn the vocabulary or understand the meaning.

Trust me. I’ve spent countless hours listening to Sanskrit mantras and memorizing sutras and shlokas, and acquired very little of the language like this, except for the script.

How to learn sanskrit as a beginner

You gotta start with something much more basic, meaning simple sentences you can actually understand.

That’s why in my previous blog, How to Get Started with Sanskrit (a Blueprint), I recommended you start with a good reader and children’s stories like these:

They provide simplified stories, usually along with translations to help you understand and acquire the language.

The only problem is that most of these books require you to know the script used for Sanskrit, the Devanagari script.

Luckily, the script is very easy to learn. You can simply find an alphabet chart with the Roman transliteration and use it to start reading the language. You just need to match the Devanagari to the Roman characters.

It takes a bit of time, but it works. This is what I actually did while studying yoga sutras and Gita shlokas.

Want to skip the struggle?

But if you would rather waste no time and start acquiring the language as soon as possible, you can check my Beginner’s Online Sanskrit Course available to the Yogi tier on my Patreon.

In this course, you’ll acquire the script, vocabulary, and the structure of the language simultaneously by reading and writing simple sentences you can easily understand.

And we focus on the most common words and expressions first, instead of following the order of traditional grammar textbooks.

If you would like to know more, I suggest you watch the promo video and the introduction. That will give you a good feel for what this course is all about.

How to Get Started with Sanskrit (a Blueprint)

2024-09-23T14:54:00.010+05:30

When I began studying Sanskrit consistently about four years ago, I had no idea where to start or what the best approach was. I tried a few lessons here and there, but none of them aligned with my goals.

Traditional teachers want to teach you every single grammar rule before you start reading the scriptures as if you were a teenager with your entire life ahead of you!

That's why I decided to study on my own, and I don't regret it. However, I do wish I'd had a clear blueprint from the start—a simple overview of what’s really important and what isn’t. It could have saved me a lot of time and frustration.

So this is the overview that I wish I had. I’m not trying to cover every tiny detail, but rather to highlight the most important aspects of the language. This way, you’ll know where to focus your energy and how to get started effectively.

I hope this overview will also help to demystify the language.

Although it might seem complex and intimidating, Sanskrit is not an impossible language to learn. But it does require time and dedication, especially for non-native speakers of Indian languages, like myself.

Learning the script

Learning the Devanagari script, the most commonly used script to write Sanskrit, might already seem like a big challenge, but it is actually the easiest obstacle to overcome.

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः

Yes, the characters might seem quite strange at first, but seriously, the alphabet is straightforward.

Since Sanskrit is a phonetic language, each alphabet letter represents one sound and one sound only. These sounds never change. So once you’ve memorized the shapes and sounds of each letter, you’ll be able to write and read any text in Sanskrit perfectly—even if you don’t know the meaning!

That's way easier than English, where sounds vary a lot. For instance, compare the sounds of the following words: publish vs student, door vs book, bear vs beard vs heart. Did you notice how the vowel sounds change? It's crazy!

To learn the pronunciation of each Sanskrit letter, all you need to focus on is:

How much air you use for each sound.
Where the sound originates from in your throat and mouth.
Where your tongue is placed or when your lips touch.

That's why the alphabet letters are grouped in a chart based on how their sounds are made. This chart is a helpful reference for pronunciation and for applying sandhi rules (explained further below).

But it is not useful for learning the alphabet. Instead, the best way to learn the alphabet is by writing simple words and sentences.

In this way, not only does learning become fun, but you'll naturally learn the most useful and frequent letters first, while at the same time you start to grow your vocabulary.

By the way, if you need help with learning the script, you can check my Beginner's Online Sanskrit Course, which is available to my Patreon members.

Do you need Devanagari to learn Sanskrit?

Now, strictly speaking, you don't need to learn the Devanagari script to study Sanskrit. You can use the standard Romanization of Sanskrit, known as IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration), which uses diacritical marks to represent Sanskrit sounds with the Roman alphabet.

For example, here is the transliteration of the Sanskrit text I showed you above, which means “Om peace, peace, peace.”:

oṁ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ

—the underdots, overlines, overdots, and accents are known as diacritics

However, learning the Devanagari script will give you access to a much wider range of textbooks and other resources to continue learning or acquiring the language.

Besides, many transliterations of Sanskrit scriptures don't use IAST, so you won’t know how to pronounce the words correctly unless you know Devanagari.

Plus, Devanagari is the same script used for Hindi and Marathi, two of the most used languages in India.

In short, learning Devanagari is definitely a worthwhile investment of your time.

Once you’ve learned the script by practicing with words and sentences, the next step is to get an overview of the language’s structure so you can begin to make sense of it.

The Structure of the Sanskrit Language

To understand the structure of Sanskrit, you’ve gotta think a bit like Yoda:

“Powerful you have become. The dark side I sense in you.” – Yoda

Although in Sanskrit that would probably read more like:

“You powerful have become. In you the dark side I sense.”

That's because the standard sentence structure in Sanskrit is usually subject, object, and verb, like this:

rāma vanam gacchati—Rāma (subject) to the forest (object) goes (verb).

However, since the information about the function or role of each word is contained within its ending (rāma vanam gacchati)—as explained further below—the word order is very flexible.

So whether you say rāma vanam gacchati, vanam rāma gacchati, or gacchati rāma vanam, they all mean "Rāma goes to the forest."

When translating a Sanskrit sentence into English, it’s helpful to identify the verb first (usually placed at the end of the sentence), then look for the subject and object. You'll be able to distinguish them by their word endings.

Broadly speaking, adjectives or other modifying words will appear before the word they modify. Adjectives and participles will usually match the endings of the word they describe.

The importance of word endings

In English, we use prepositions to indicate the function of a particular word, like from the village, to the temple, on the table, in the house, the book of Rāma, with the friend, or for his wife.

In Sanskrit, all the functions expressed by English prepositions—such as 'from,' 'to,' 'on,' 'in,' 'at,' 'with,' 'by,' and 'for'—are expressed by the particular ending or suffix attached to the word.

Not only that but its grammatical role as subject or object, and its number (singular, dual, plural) are also encoded in these endings.

For instance, the -sya ending in the word narasya (“of the man”) tells us that it is singular and carries the sense of belonging to. In this example, “belonging to the man.” This sense or role that a word plays is known as its case ending or vibhakti.

This applies to nouns, pronouns, adjectives, numerals, and participles, which are known as nominals.

For verbs, the endings provide information about the person (I, you, he/she/it), number (singular, dual, plural), and the tense or mood of the verb.

For instance, the "ti" ending in the word gacchati (he/she/it goes) tells us that this is the 3rd person singular (he/she/it) present indicative form (goes) of the verb root gam.

So, one of the most important things in understanding Sanskrit is to pay close attention to word endings. By becoming familiar with these endings or suffixes, you'll be able to grasp the function or role of each word within a sentence.

For nouns, all the different endings are summarized in declension tables, which vary depending on the noun's gender and the final letter of its stem. For verbs, these are presented in conjugation tables.

You don't need to memorize these Sanskrit declension tables and conjugation tables. You only need to be familiar with them. You'll naturally learn the most important word declension progressively as you read texts you enjoy.

Luckily, there's a set of words that don't undergo any changes at all. These are called indeclinables. So, in Sanskrit, there are three main types of words: nominals, verbs, and indeclinables.

Rules for the combination of words

To allow the language to flow smoothly, when two words meet, they often undergo some sound changes at their meeting points or junctions. These changes are known as sandhi (literally, "junction" or "point of contact").

For example, the sentence saḥ aham (meaning "that I am") becomes so'ham after applying sandhi.

This is similar to English contractions like "didn't" vs. "did not," or French liaison, e.g., j'aime.

Although it's not mandatory, sandhi is used extensively in Sanskrit, and as you can see from the example above, it can alter word endings. So it is important to become familiar with sandhi rules.

Luckily, the rules are easy to understand. The challenge is that there are many of them. Again, the best way to learn them is progressively, as they appear in the texts you're reading.

Knowing sandhi rules is also important to distinguish compound words (which are also used extensively in Sanskrit) from regular words joined by sandhi.

As you can see in the example above, so'ham is not a single word. These are two separate words that appear together because of sandhi.

Expanding your vocabulary

Once you are able to read and write, and you have a basic understanding of the structure of the language, then all you have to do is continue expanding your vocabulary.

This is the key to understanding any text you read: vocabulary. Even without knowing sandhi rules, declension tables, conjugation tables, and so on, having a strong vocabulary opens the door to understanding the language.

For instance, one of the difficulties in understanding compound words is a lack of vocabulary. Without a solid vocabulary, it’s hard to tell where one word ends and the next begins in a compound.

Also, with a sufficiently extensive vocabulary, you could infer the meaning of a text even if you don't know any grammar.

That being said, being familiar with the declension and conjugation tables will make your life easier when trying to acquire vocabulary.

For example, the word narasya means “of the man,” and nareṇa means “by” or “with the man.”

Here’s the good news—you don’t need to memorize both words!

The stem of the word (without any case ending) is nara (man), and the endings sya and ena (which will be the same for other masculine words ending in -a) tell us the function of the word.

So you only need to know one word, the stem form, and be familiar with the different case endings.

By the way, since the case endings depend on the gender and the last letter of the stem, it's important that when you learn vocabulary you learn the stem word with its gender.

The challenge in learning vocabulary is that in Sanskrit there can be many words for the same object or person. On top of that, a single word can have multiple meanings.

This makes acquiring vocabulary a very time-consuming process.

That's why it is important to acquire the language by using resources or content that you enjoy with the help of translations or a tutor. In this way, you'll be able to stay motivated in the long run.

What is the best way to learn Sanskrit?

As all language experts suggest, the best way to learn a language is not by studying grammar. Instead, it's about acquiring the language naturally by exposing yourself to content that you understand and enjoy.

If you decide to study on your own, I would suggest you start with a good reader. A reader is a book designed to help you learn a language by providing simplified stories along with translations, vocabulary, and easy-to-follow grammatical explanations.

I would recommend:

The Sanskrit Language, An Introductory Grammar and Reader by Walter Harding Maurer
Assimil Le Sanskrit by Nalini Balbir (only available for French speakers)

You could also start by reading children's stories such as this book by Shubha Vengadakrishnan: Kathāgucchaḥ—Simple stories in Sanskrit with English translations.

Additionally, you can find numerous free resources on YouTube. Here is a good playlist of spoken Sanskrit lessons for children.

However, you will need to know Devanagari to use any of these books and resources.

No worries, you can easily learn the Devanagari script with my Beginner's Online Sanskrit Course. I suggest you start by watching the introduction, which is similar to this blog post.

You could also use this excellent free online resource to learn Sanskrit through stories. You can change the script to Roman if needed.

Another option is to learn Sanskrit while reading the texts or scriptures that you are truly interested in, even if they’re way above your level.

In that case, you’ll need a reliable word-for-word translation of the text and the support of a tutor who can break it down and explain it—just like a reader would.

I recommend a few word-for-word translations of the Bhagavad Gita in this article.

What about grammar?

Grammar is best learned in context, that is, learning grammar naturally as you progress reading texts. That's what a reader does. It will give you the grammatical explanations relevant to the text that you are reading, and no more than that.

The problem with a grammar book is that it is not immediately useful for whatever you want to learn the language for. Instead, it often overwhelms you with tons of rules and details that you might rarely put into practice.

Plus, you might end up thinking that knowing every grammar rule and technical term is essential to understanding a language. That’s why I believe a grammar book should mainly be used as a reference guide.

That said, I didn't use a reader to start my Sanskrit journey. I used a grammar instead, because at that time, that was the only resource that I could find. Besides, even the most basic children's stories were too difficult for me back then.

Studying grammar wasn't a waste of time, though.

By working through a grammar, I became my own tutor. So, while I may not have enough vocabulary to fully understand everything I read, I can now break down sentences and figure out the meanings on my own.

That's how I was able to create a word-for-word translation of the Sivananda Yoga prayers and the Ashtanga Yoga prayers.

But it took me a couple of years to get through those grammar books from start to finish and reach that point.

Even so, I still believe the best way to learn Sanskrit is by reading the texts you love with the help of a tutor. If that’s not an option, then using a reader and children’s stories is the next best thing.

However, if you find even the simplest reader or children’s stories too challenging, starting with a grammar textbook might be your best bet.

There’s only one grammar book I’d recommend for self-study, or rather, two:

Seriously, don’t waste your time on other grammar books. These two are the most accessible, comprehensible, and closest to what a reader would offer, especially if you are a complete beginner. You can always use other grammar books as reference guides or to complement your studies.

Summary

To sum up, once you've learned the script, the key to reading and understanding Sanskrit is building a vast vocabulary.

That being said, to be able to make sense of the words you encounter you should be able to distinguish nominals from verbs, and identify the function each word plays. You can achieve this by paying attention to word endings, that is, being familiar with the declension forms for nominals and conjugation forms for verbs.

Since sandhi rules affect word endings, familiarity with these rules will help you spot where sandhi has been applied. Knowing these sandhi rules will also help you to differentiate compound words from joined words due to sandhi.

The best way to learn all this is by acquiring the language progressively and naturally. Focus on engaging with content that interests you and suits your level, such as reading texts you enjoy, ideally with the guidance of a tutor or using translations.

Here are some other tips for learning Sanskrit efficiently:

If you need help learning the script or if you are looking for a tutor, feel free to reach out to me. You can also join the Yogi tier on my Patreon to get immediate access to my Beginner's Online Sanskrit Course.

Discovering Your Life Purpose

2024-08-19T16:40:00.005+05:30

In this article, my godchild and I talk about discovering our life purpose. More specifically, we discuss: how to define life purpose, questions to discover your life purpose, can your purpose in life change over time, and, how to ensure that we don't fail at fulfilling our life purpose.

A new podcast is born

A couple of months ago I received a call from Marce, my cousin and goddaughter who currently lives in Spain. She told me with excitement about her new project. She was about to start a new podcast series, and she wanted me to be part of one of her shows.

I felt hesitant right away. I'm kind of introverted and shy so appearing on a podcast is not something that I look forward to. That's why I've said no to other podcast hosts in the past. But how could I say no to my goddaughter, right?

Besides, this episode's topic is something that I've been working on throughout my entire adult life. I even wrote an article about it years ago in this blog.

So of course I said yes and joined her podcast series called “Enfoque Poderoso.” You can find this podcast show right here on Apple Podcast and Spotify. The show is in Spanish, but below you can find an English transcript of this episode.

Discovering My Purpose

Enfoque Poderoso: Descubriendo mi propósito

by Marce Pino

Marce: Hi everyone, I’m Marce Pino, and I’m so happy you’re here with me, listening to the fourth episode of Enfoque Poderoso. Thank you for being part of this journey.

Today, we’re going to talk about Discovering My Purpose, a huge topic for me and very special because I’ll be joined by Marco.

But since we’re in a comfortable and safe space, you’ll hear me affectionately call him Marquito. He’s been discovering and working on his life’s purpose over the years.

First of all, what we’re going to discuss is based on our experiences, what we’ve learned, and the path life has shown us. Before Marquito tells us a bit about himself and his journey, I want to share why I chose this topic.

It took me a long time to understand it, and now I can tell you that working with purpose, knowing those longings, letting yourself be guided by what your heart tells you, takes you down a different path that life has prepared for you, and it’s wonderful. But before, I was struggling to go in a different direction.

And in preparing for this episode, I thought about the following: Imagine that inside you, there’s another “you” ready to help you, and if we give it a name, it’s your inner power.

But to wake it up, you have to take the first step, which is to have a clear vision. And within that vision are your longings, your desires, what you expect from life, where you want to go. Ultimately, it’s about discovering what your life’s purpose is.

This topic might scare us a bit, or we might see it as too big because we might ask ourselves, “But what’s mine? I’m, I don’t know, X years old, and I still haven’t figured it out.” And I think we often live in a crisis of thought.

What do I mean? There are people who, for a long time—and I include myself here—might have asked themselves these questions: What’s my role in this life? What’s my purpose? Why am I here on this earth? What’s my mission?

And maybe some people are still asking themselves these questions. And there are others who might still be unable to answer them. But as you grow and start to wake up that inner self I was talking about, you understand that you are loved, and then you exist.

That is, I am loved, you are loved unconditionally. I’m not here by mistake, and I have a purpose to discover. In other words, how important it is to live with intensity, with goals, and in a way that aligns with them.

Knowing that each of us is unique and irreplaceable, and I love to say this—we all have a purpose. We are called to make the world better with our attitude, our being, our light. We’re full of gifts and talents.

But now, without further ado, it’s a great pleasure for me that Marquito is here sharing with me. So thank you so much for joining me and being a part of this podcast.

Marco: Thanks for inviting me to be part of your podcast.

Marce: I’d like you to tell us a little bit about yourself.

Marco: At the moment, I’m living on the south coast of Sri Lanka. It’s a wonderful country. In recent years, I’ve fallen in love with surfing, so now I try as much as possible to stay close to a beach where I can surf.

Marce: Okay, and tell me, what are you doing currently?

Marco: Right now, I’m working on a project related to Sanskrit, the ancient language of India that’s used in sacred texts like the Bhagavad Gita, which talks about the philosophy of yoga.

I’m preparing to teach Sanskrit online and create content related to Sanskrit.

Marce: I love that you’ve been creating content based on what you love to do for a long time. And now I think the Sanskrit topic is a huge challenge, but it will be great.

Now, in your own words, tell me, how would you define, or what does life’s purpose mean to you?

Marco: Well, to me, life’s purpose is simply the reason we’re here, the role we’re supposed to play in this human journey. And what is that role? In my opinion, it’s what our hearts tell us and what life puts in our path.

Marce: What you’re saying really resonates with me because, in the end, yes, the purpose is to understand that calling life gives us to fulfill in this earthly world. And as you said, what the heart says, every decision we make brings us closer to that purpose.

Another question I wanted to ask you is, do you think that life’s purpose changes according to age or the stage of life you’re in?

Marco: Yes, of course, I believe it can change depending on the stage of our life, and I think it’s possible to have more than one purpose.

For example, as I told you earlier, I recently had to take in three orphaned kittens. It wasn’t something I planned; I didn’t expect it at all—they just ended up in my hands, and now they’ve completely changed my routine.

But I feel that now one of my purposes is to give them a good life while they’re with me, even if it’s just for a few weeks.

Marce: What you said is so true. It’s possible that we don’t find our life’s purpose right away, or that it’s not the final one or just one. We can end up having small purposes in our lives.

We might stick with those small purposes, or they might even lead us to a bigger purpose. Because, in the end, our destiny isn’t completely determined. It can change direction. Like you told me, with the kittens that came knocking on your door—now you have some kittens, and that wasn’t part of the plan.

And I was remembering when we started the year, and I made my vision board again. And when I did it for the first time, my coach told me that I could have several purposes.

And that even the goals I set for the medium term could change depending on what I was going to experience or the decisions I was going to make. Because we evolve, we transform.

I mean, life takes us to other places, other times, and in the end, you say, it’s not the same thing I wanted before, they’re not the same interests, it’s not the same as what I had planned a couple of years ago, right?

And now, with what I told you, how can you steer your life toward that purpose you’ve discovered, that you’ve set, and I want to put this in quotes, “so as not to fail in the attempt?”

Marco: I think the question shouldn’t be how not to fail in the attempt. Quite the opposite, when we work on our purpose, we shouldn’t care about the final result, whether it’s success or failure. What matters is living our purpose day by day, regardless of the final outcome.

Of course, we must be clear about where we’re headed, what we want to achieve, but we must remember that our purpose is lived in the present moment, not in the future. What counts is what we do today. Our duty, our responsibility, is to do everything we can today to reach that goal.

The final result isn’t up to us.

For example, right now I’m working on these Sanskrit-related projects. I know exactly what I want to do, I have a lot of ideas in mind, but I have no idea if they’ll work. In fact, there are many reasons why they might fail.

The market for Sanskrit education is very niche. My knowledge of Sanskrit is still very, very basic, and there are many certified native teachers from India who have studied this language since childhood.

But none of that matters because the truth is I can’t stop thinking about bringing the ideas I have in mind to life. It’s something I’m passionate about.

And the only thing I can do today is simply take one more step in that direction.

Marce: Totally, and I completely agree with you. And I’m taking away these words:

“The final result isn’t up to us.”

Live in the present and take steps in that direction, which will ultimately lead us to where we want to go. And I don’t know if I’m wrong, but I also think that’s the way to live fully. What do I mean?

Finding meaning in everything we do in our day-to-day lives. Striving for what we want. And as you said, bringing those purposes to life, giving them form, regardless of the outcome or where life takes us.

Now, the most important question. Have you discovered your life’s purpose?

Marco: Yes, absolutely. As I said, I have several purposes, several reasons why I get out of bed every morning. They might change in the future, but I know that today, I’m doing what I need to do today.

Marce: I loved what you said, “Today, I’m doing what I need to do.” Because in the end, those goals or those reasons are what will lead you to that purpose, right, or that bigger purpose.

But, of course, when I say bigger purpose, I’m not talking about being someone famous, saving the world, or something like that, or turning it into a profession, like the best communicator, the best advertiser—I’m just throwing out examples.

But sometimes, it’s just a simple purpose, nothing more, that can be something like “being a source of love for others.” For me, that’s a top, wonderful, and grand purpose—a big responsibility.

Imagine that, “being a source of love for others.” Being a person who acts from love, who sees, observes, and offers love to others. Or even, as you said, giving a better life to those kittens while they’re with you. For me, sharing that is incredibly valuable.

And I’d like to ask you one more question before we wrap up. What tips or recommendations can you give us to help us find our life purpose?

Marco: Well, many years ago, I shared on my blog a series of questions to help us find our life purpose. These questions have helped me a lot. Whenever I feel doubtful or unsure about what I’m doing, they’ve given me clarity and confidence.

I suggest answering them in writing, in a journal. Ideally by hand, but digitally works too. The important thing is to take your time answering them according to what your heart tells you.

What would you do if you knew your success was guaranteed, if you were 100% sure you wouldn’t fail?
What would you do if you had complete financial freedom? Imagine that you’ve already had all your dream vacations and you have all the material possessions you’d like to have. So, what’s next? What would you do with your life?
If someone asked you, “What do you do for a living?” what answer would make you feel proud and excited?
What activities or hobbies make you feel so motivated, joyful, and satisfied with yourself that it’s hard to stop and do something else?
What would you do if you knew you were going to leave this world in the next three or six months? Would you keep doing what you’re doing today?
If you had the power to change anything in your life just by thinking about it, what would you change?

Marce: Thank you for sharing them.

Marco: Well, I hope you and your audience find this information useful. And thank you for asking me these questions that have made me reflect once again on my life purpose.

Marce: Listening to you, it occurred to me that I need to take it step by step. To awaken that desire, to know where I need to go, to understand what it is I truly want. I think it’s fantastic.

And with that, I’ll start wrapping up.

But after receiving all these questions, which to me have been a huge gift, I believe that we shouldn’t just wander through life out of curiosity, like when you’re just a tourist.

If you’ve found something that moves you, something that aligns with your essence, with your being, don’t keep just being curious—go after it. Put all your energy into it and let that guide your path.

As you said earlier, knowing you have a purpose that gets you up every day.

And let me tell you something, having a life purpose or even mini-purposes is the greatest act of love you can give yourself. It’s about knowing you’re responsible for what happens to you, and being aware of what you’re creating in your life. You create your own reality.

Honestly, I’m super happy. Thank you for joining me, for saying yes to this episode, for your humility, your kindness, and your sharing, which has been wonderful.

When I planned this episode, I thought, “Marquito has to be here,” because I know you’ve had a journey that has led you to discover several purposes. Everything you’ve gone through has brought you to where you are now, and I think that’s incredible.

Marco: Thank you.

Marce: And thank you to all of you for listening, because I know in some way my episodes will help at least one person, and I hope that person is you.

See you in the next episode. With love, Marce.

Don't forget to listen to the original show in Spanish on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and make sure you subscribe and leave a positive review. Thanks for supporting my goddaughter!

What is Vipassana Meditation? Goenka's 10-Day Course Explained

2024-07-01T08:20:00.003+05:30

Goenka's 10-Day Vipassana meditation course attracts people from all backgrounds who seek an immersive, intense, and potentially life-changing experience. Most people though, know very little about this meditation technique and the course structure before joining the course.

I know that was my case. That's why I've decided to try to explain, in layman’s terms, what is Vipassana meditation and what exactly you do during the 10-day Vipassana meditation course. So I hope that old and new students will find this article helpful.

It is based on my personal experience after completing two 10-day courses and also based on these two books “The Discourses Summaries of S.N. Goenka,” and “The Art of Living: Vipassana Meditation as Taught by S.N. Goenka,” by William Hart, a student of Goenka.

The first book summarizes the evening video lectures given by Goenka during the course, which explains the theory, meaning the Buddhist philosophical background behind the Vipassana technique. The second book is also based on the discourses plus additional articles written by Goenka.

If you are planning to join the 10-day course in the future or if you've already completed one course before I think it's a very good idea you read both books. They will help to refresh your memory and to deepen your understanding of Vipassana meditation.

But just to be clear, the meditation technique is not explained in the book. The technique is explained during the guided meditations throughout the 10 days. So the best way to learn the technique is to join a 10-day vipassana meditation course.

Of course, I will give you a good overview of the technique so that you know what exactly it is all about.

First I will talk about Vipassana and then I'll talk about the 10-day course structure. And, since I'm a student of the yoga tradition, I will also give you my own interpretation of how this technique works from a yoga philosophy perspective.

No, I won't talk here about the things I hated about the course. I already used my previous blog post to vent. Lol. So this one should be a more objective article.

What is Vipassana?

Vipassana is a word in Pali, the language used by the Buddha for his teachings. It is usually translated as deep insight or wisdom and it's a practice that is common to all Buddhist traditions. That includes the Theravada and Mahayana traditions.

In Mahayana Buddhism, such as Tibetan Buddhism or Zen Buddhism, Vipassana is a type of analytical meditation where you contemplate or reflect on the nature of reality to realize that things lack inherent and independent existence.

This is known as emptiness or suññatā (śūnyata in Sanskrit), one of the core teachings in Mahayana Buddhism. The Heart Sutra, my favorite teaching from Tibetan Buddhism, is a teaching on emptiness.

In the Theravada tradition, which is practiced mainly in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, Laos, and Cambodia, Vipassana is a sitting mindfulness meditation practice that focuses on the direct realization of impermanence right within ourselves.

The Buddhist monks I met in the forest monastery I visited in Sri Lanka belong to the Theravada tradition.

So in Mahayana Buddhism, the insight or wisdom referred to by Vipassana is the realization of emptiness and in Theravada Buddhism is the realization of impermanence.

The Vipassana meditation taught by Goenka is part of this Theravada tradition which focuses on impermanence.

I'm not familiar yet with how Goenka's teachings on Vipassana might differ from other Theravada traditions. So keep this in mind. Whatever I'll explain here about Vipassana is based exclusively on Goenka's teachings.

What is Vipassana Meditation

Vipassana meditation is a Buddhist meditation technique that focuses on mental purification and on the development of wisdom, that is, the realization of impermanence.

All this is attained by simply observing the body's sensations with perfect equanimity.

That's it.

You simply pay attention to the physical sensations in your body and that alone will purify your entire physico-mental structure leading you all the way to nibbāna, liberation, as long as you observe these sensations with perfect equanimity.

Ok, so let's break this up.

How could observing physical sensations purify the mind?

According to these teachings, whenever our senses come in contact with the external world we experience a sensation in the body. This also includes contact with mental objects such as thoughts, memories, ideas, emotions, and so on. They also come along with a physical sensation.

Because of past mental conditionings, we experience these sensations as pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral.

Then, as soon as we experience a body sensation we immediately react with craving if the sensation is pleasant, or aversion if the sensation is unpleasant. This happens so quickly that we are almost never aware of the sensation but only of the reaction.

These reactions of craving and aversion are what pollute the mind and the cause of suffering.

Every time we experience them they leave an impression in the mind, a saṅkhāra¹, which is like a seed that will sprout and create more reactions of craving and aversion whenever we are confronted with the same or similar situation.

But, if we observe these pleasant or unpleasant bodily sensations with equanimity, that is, without reacting with like or dislike, craving or aversion, we stop the formation of new mental impressions and the old ones gradually come up to the surface to be extinguished.

Testing Vipassana meditation

Perhaps it will make more sense if I give you a real-life example.

In my previous blog post, I told you that one of the things I hated about this course was Goenka's chanting in Pali, which he does at the beginning and end of every meditation session.

With every passing day I was feeling more and more irritated by his chanting, I was experiencing more and more aversion towards it. Not just with every passing day, but with every meditation session. The moment the chanting would start I would get so annoyed that I had to stop my meditation practice immediately.

Well, on Day 10, the last day of the course, during one of the morning meditation sessions a wise voice within told me that maybe I should put into practice what I was learning during the course.

So when the chanting started I simply observed my reactions without trying to judge the experience as negative or positive.

I observed how my body would become tense, how my breath would become a bit restricted. I observed my irritation, my annoyance, and the physical sensations that came with it without reacting.

Nothing happened at that moment, but to my surprise, during the next session when the chanting started, I didn't notice it.

It took me a few minutes to realize that the chanting had started, and when I finally became conscious of it, it didn't bother me at all. I felt completely indifferent towards it and continued the meditation as if it wasn't there.

This to me was mindblowing. Think about it. For nine days, in every single meditation session I would feel irritated, annoyed, and frustrated with this chanting, but then all of a sudden it didn't bother me anymore.

I broke the cycle of creating more and more aversion, by simply observing the sensations without reacting.

Ok, here is another example that you might find more relatable.

If someone insults us or offends us in some way, each one of us is going to have a different reaction. We might feel offended, angry, upset, intimidated, afraid, sad, and so on.

Whatever emotional reaction we might experience will come along with a body sensation like tightness, tension, heat, cold, tremble, goosebumps, and so on.

What these teachings tell us is that the body's sensations come first, and our reactions come after. We experience something, our unconscious mind judges it as positive or negative, and then we react with craving or aversion.

But if we become aware of these physical sensations with equanimity we break the cycle and stop having further reactions. In this way, we stop creating new mental impurities and allow the old impurities to be expressed and consumed.

How Vipassana meditation leads to wisdom

By this same process of observing the physical sensations, which lead to mental purification, we develop wisdom, the understanding of impermanence through direct personal experience.

That's because when we practice Vipassana we experience within ourselves the impermanent nature of reality as we observe the impermanent nature of sensations.

You know, all these bodily sensations are constantly changing, constantly arising and passing away throughout the practice. It doesn't matter if it is a gross sensation or a subtle sensation, a pleasant sensation or an unpleasant sensation, they are always changing.

Sometimes we feel pain, then the pain dissolves, then it comes back. Or we might experience a pleasant subtle sensation, then it dissolves, then it comes back.

Eventually even the idea of a permanent self, that is, the idea of who I think I am dissolves as there is nothing permanent in it. That is the wisdom of Vipassana.

How to practice Vipassana meditation

So how exactly do we practice Vipassana meditation?

We simply sit still in a comfortable meditative posture and then slowly we move the awareness through each body part, from head to toe and then from toe back to head. As we do this we try to notice any gross or subtle sensations in the body.

This is just like a body scan but we do this continuously throughout the meditation session observing the sensations with equanimity and objectivity. That is without reacting with feelings of craving or aversion, and without getting identified with the sensations. We simply observe at what is without reacting.

We make sure that we cover the entire body in a systematic way, and pay special attention to ”blind areas” to make sure we experience sensations everywhere.

The sensations we observe can be anything like the touch of the clothes against the body, perhaps a feeling of coldness or heat, perhaps there is pain or discomfort, itching, tingling, pulsation, and so on.

During the 10-day course, you will most certainly experience physical pain. Sitting for hours in a meditation posture is quite challenging. But it's also part of the mental purification as I mentioned in There is No Aim in Meditation (Lessons From My 2nd Vipassana Retreat).

Ānāpāna sati as a preparation for Vipassana meditation

But before we start with the practice of Vipassana we have to develop samatha, a calm, sharp, and concentrated mind. So the first three days of the course we practice only ānāpāna sati, awareness of the breath. With each session, we try to get the mind sharper and sharper by narrowing down the area of concentration.

First, we start by observing the natural breath and the sensations on the entire triangular area around the nose. By the third day, we have already narrowed down the awareness to focus only on the sensations at the nostrils, trying to feel the touch and temperature of the subtle natural breath.

Notice that although you do this progression in three days, that's 30 hours of practice. So if you do a one-hour meditation per day it would actually take 30 days until you start focusing only on the nostrils.

I would like to share something interesting here.

In the Himalayan Yoga Tradition, there is a practice called suṣumṇā application, where we focus our attention on a very specific area, a point right under the nostrils, the space above the upper lip.

When we focus our attention at this point for some time both nostrils will start to flow freely and evenly which leads to the activation of the central channel known in yoga as the suṣumnā nāḍī.

According to the yoga tradition, this is really important for meditation as it is only at this moment when the mind is in perfect balance, in perfect equilibrium so that it can actually enter the state of meditation.

Well, during the Vipassana meditation course, the old students, those who have done at least one retreat before, are instructed to narrow down their awareness even further to focus on the sensations at this same specific point.

Isn't that interesting?

The Structure of the 10-Day Vipassana Meditation Course

So as you already know, Vipassana meditation as taught by Goenka is taught in an intense 10-day meditation course, or retreat if you wish. It's intense because you sit in meditation for close to 10 hours per day while practicing noble silence for the entire 10 days.

Of course, you don't sit for 10 hours straight. That would be at another level.

The 10 hours are divided into eight meditation sessions during the day. Each session lasts at least one hour. Some are an hour and a half, and there are a couple of two-hour sessions during the day.

04:30 - 06:30 Meditation

06:30 - 07:00 Breakfast

07:00 - 08:00 Rest

08:00 - 09:00 Group Meditation

09:00 - 11:00 Meditation

11:00 - 11:30 Lunch

11:30 - 13:00 Rest

13:00 - 14:30 Meditation

14:30 - 15:30 Group Meditation

15:30 - 17:00 Meditation

17:00 - 18:00 Tea and Rest

18:00 - 19:00 Group Meditation

19:00 - 20:30 Discourse

20:30 - 21:00 Meditation

21:00 - 21:30 Questions

There is usually a 5 or 10-minute break between each session but there are three long breaks: after breakfast, after lunch, and during tea time. Normally you'll use this time to move your legs, to do your laundry, or to take a nap.

Oh yes, you don't get dinner but a light snack. If you are an old student, that means if you've done at least one 10-day meditation course before, you don't even get the snack.

Noble silence means that you avoid any form of communication. You can't even read or write. The only moments when you can talk are if you need to ask a question to the teacher, or if you want to complain to the volunteer staff because your mattress is too thin. Lol.

So from Day 1 to Day 3, we practice ānāpāna sati, awareness of the breath as preparation for Vipassana. From Day 4 to Day 9 we practice Vipassana meditation. And during the last day, Day 10, we do a loving-kindness meditation to develop love and compassion for all sentient beings.

All the instructions for the meditation techniques are given during the actual meditation sessions with audio recordings of previous guided meditations by Goenka himself.

And the theory, the Buddhist philosophy behind the meditation techniques, is covered in the evenings with prerecorded video lectures by Goenka as well. They are known as the evening discourses.

Although you get all the instructions for the course from the recorded guided meditations and evening discourses there is always a teacher guiding the course. He is there to support you or answer any questions you might have related to the practice.

Vipassana meditation as a form of prāṇāyāma

Ok, that was a brief summary of what this Vipassana retreat is all about, but now I would like to share a different perspective, another reason why I think Vipassana is a powerful tool for mental purification.

I like to think of Vipassana meditation as a form of prāṇāyāma. I know, you'll probably be in shock because of what I just said. You might even feel offended, but let me explain.

I actually talked about this in this blog post more than 12 years ago, after my first Vipassana retreat, and I still think this is the case.

First of all, prāṇāyāma is not a breathing exercise. Prāṇāyāma means expansion or control of prāṇa. The breath is simply a tool through which we learn to get in touch with this prāṇa. But, it's not the only way.

You see, if you ever read about the philosophy of prāṇa you probably remember the saying “Wherever the mind goes the prāṇa follows.” The idea is that wherever you fix your attention within the body the prāṇa starts to flow in that direction.

Well, that's exactly what we do in Vipassana meditation.

As we keep moving the awareness up and and down the body, paying attention to all the gross body sensations, eventually these sensations develop into subtle sensations, like tingling or a feeling of vibration.

In my opinion, these subtle sensations are nothing but the movement of prāṇa, and wherever in the body we are not able to perceive any sensation that's simply where there are energy blocks. These energy blocks are the different saṁskāras, habit patterns, traumas, and so on, stored in the body.

So by paying special attention to these “blind areas” in the body, as Goenka calls them, to make sure we experience sensations in the entire body, what we are actually doing is removing the energy blocks in the pranic body by using our attention.

And whenever we experience a free flow of subtle sensations in the body that's when the prāṇa is able to flow freely without any obstructions.

So Vipassana meditation purifies the mind by preventing the formation of new saṅkhāras of craving and aversion, by allowing the old saṅkhāras to be consumed, and by removing the energy blocks within the pranic body which are also saṅkhāras.

Ok, just to be clear again, that last part is not talked about in the Vipassana course. This is just my personal interpretation that I'm sharing with you. Feel free to disagree with me.

Of course, we need to approach the practice without any expectation or desire for any type of sensation, otherwise it wouldn't be Vipassana anymore. As Goenka says repeatedly during the course, there are no good or bad sensations. There are just sensations.

Ok, so I hope you found this informative and educative. Please feel free to share your thoughts and personal experiences in the comments below. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid Patreon member.

If you are interested in knowing more about my personal experiences during the course you can check my previous two blog posts:

And here are some articles from my first 10-day Vipassana meditation course which I did in 2011

¹The Sanskrit word for saṅkhāra (in Pali) is saṁskāra. The interpretation of this word in the Buddhist tradition and Hindu tradition can be somewhat different. The interpretation that I'm using in this article as “mental impressions” is based on the yoga and Vedanta traditions, which I'm more familiar with. But I think in the context of the Vipassana course, according to the way Goenka uses this word, it's not an incorrect interpretation. Feel free to add your thoughts in the comments below.

3 Things I Hated about Goenka's 10-Day Vipassana Meditation Course

2024-06-02T10:20:00.002+05:30

Goenka's 10-day Vipassana Meditation Course can be a life-changing experience. 10 hours of meditation per day is really powerful. But there were a few things I hated about the course, so much that I doubt I will ever try it again in the future.

Ok, the word hate is a bit too strong. Let's just say things that I didn't like or that I found irritating.

I did learn some important lessons during my second Vipassana course, which I completed recently in Tiruvanamalai, India. I even had some powerful meditation sessions during the first day. But I'm not sure that will be enough to motivate me to do this course again.

Now, before I talk about the things I didn't like, if you consider Goenka your teacher please don't take it personally. I'm not trying to be disrespectful. I just need to be honest about my experience. Before you leave any comment please make sure you read the article all the way till the end.

3 Things I didn't like about the 10-Day Vipassana Meditation Course

So let me start with the things that I didn't like about the course.

1. Is it really non-sectarian?

One of the things that bothers me the most is that Goenka keeps repeating throughout the course that this is a non-sectarian technique. Anybody can practice it regardless of their background.

But the truth is that this is a Buddhist meditation course.

Ok, let me be clear. I have no problem with it being a Buddhist course, I love Buddhist teachings. I have done multiple times Buddhist courses in Kathmandu and in Bodhgaya.

The issue that I have is that he insists this is a scientific non-sectarian technique when he is obviously promoting Buddhism.

All the evening discourses were actually dhamma lectures, Buddhist teachings. Throughout the guided meditations, we also get to hear Buddhist teachings, and every meditation starts and ends with his “beautiful” chanting in Pali which of course is more Buddhist teachings.

Yes, once you learn his Vipassana meditation technique you can go home and practice it without thinking of Buddhism. But there is no way to do this course and learn the so-called non-sectarian Vipassana technique without having to be involved in Buddhist teachings.

And, he is not promoting Buddhism in general but only his particular tradition and technique.

He talks of the Vipassana technique as if this was the only meditation technique Buddha gave, which was of course kept pure since the time of Buddha, more than 2000 years ago, only in his own country, Burma.

This to me is a huge red light. When someone claims to have the ultimate truth, the most authentic technique, you gotta be suspicious.

On top of that, in my opinion, he has a condescending attitude towards other traditions or religions, especially Hinduism. He mocks them but not in an obvious way. I guess with his gentle and friendly character it goes unnoticed.

He does say several times that all techniques are good. He has of course tried them all, but nothing is as transformative and life-changing as this Vipassana technique, according to him.

2. Goenka's Pali chanting

The second thing that I found really annoying during the course was his chanting. Now, this is perhaps very personal, you know, beauty is in the eye (or ear) of the beholder. I'm sure there are a lot of people who love his chanting and feel inspired by it. But for me, it was just irritating.

The curious thing is that I actually love chants from different spiritual traditions.

I absolutely love the Vedic mantras from India. I've also spent a lot of time around the Buddhist communities in Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Cambodia. So I am familiar with their Buddhist chants which are either in Pali, Sanskrit, or even Tibetan, and I love them.

But Goenka's chanting is really not my cup of tea. The actual chants are beautiful I believe but it's the way he chants them that hurt my ears.

Maybe it is his Pali pronunciation that I don't like (although I don't know anything about Pali). Or maybe it is because of the way he elongates the syllables. Or perhaps because it seems he is trying to do throat singing, but it doesn't really work. Or maybe it's my intuition trying to tell me something.

Whatever it is I just can't stand it.

Now I knew this even from my first Vipassana course in 2011. Even then I didn't like his chanting. But at that time I found it amusing. I would literally laugh about it (in silence of course. Lol).

This time it was just intolerable to me. I guess that's also because I wasn't able to sleep properly at night because of body pain, as I mentioned in my previous blog post. So I was more irritable perhaps.

3. The evening discourses

And the last thing that I didn't like about the course was the evening discourses.

OK, to be honest, the discourses are very engaging and they are packed with practical Buddhist teachings. Goenkaji is a great teacher, that's for sure.

But, at least in my perception, they were painfully long. You know, this is the end of the day. You probably feel exhausted after all the meditations you've done during the day, but Goenka keeps going and going. I found them unnecessarily long.

3 Things I liked about the 10-Day Vipassana Meditation Course

Fortunately, there were also a few things that I did like about the course.

1. Intense meditation like nowhere else

My absolute favorite thing about the course is having the opportunity to meditate 10 hours a day for 10 days. That's it.

To be honest I'm not so interested in the Vipassana technique but I don't think you can find many other courses or retreats that offer an experience like this. Besides, Goenka's Vipassana course is spread all over the world.

So I feel grateful that Goenka probably used his past business skills to create a sort of “Vipassana franchise,” that allows people in almost any part of the world to join one of these retreats and have the same experience regardless of the place.

2. Free course

Another thing that I really like about this course is that it is completely free. Well, not exactly free. It is donation-based.

This is a beautiful aspect of this course. The opportunity that you get to join one of these retreats is thanks to the contribution of others who have done retreats before you and of the volunteers who come to assist during the courses.

3. The Vipassana meditation technique

And I do like the vipassana meditation technique as taught by Goenka. I think it is a very powerful and complete technique for mental purification and developing equanimity.

I'll talk more about the technique in my next blog post, but if you've never tried any other meditation technique before, and if you are interested in Buddhist philosophy then this might be the only meditation practice you need.

Personally, I never joined this course to learn a new meditation technique or to learn about Buddhism. I already had my own meditation practice, even before I joined my first retreat in 2011.

The only reason why I joined this course was to have the opportunity to meditate for 10 hours a day for 10 days. That's it.

But of course, I do appreciate the opportunity to gain insights from other techniques that can actually enhance my own meditation practice.

So, what's the conclusion?

Now, although I have probably spent a lot more time talking about the things that I didn't like this doesn't mean that I believe the course is bad, or good. It is obviously a very personal experience.

The only thing that I can conclude after balancing the things that I hated vs the things that I loved, is simply that Goenka is not my teacher and, as I realized before while visiting Kopan monastery in Nepal, Buddhism is not my path.

I didn't write this blog post to condemn the course or to tell anyone not to try it. I just needed to vent a little, that's all. As a matter of fact, if you have any interest in meditation I think you should definitely try it. It can be a life-changing experience for some.

And this now brings me back to the question, will I really never try this course again?

Well, on the last day of the course, right after I left the meditation center, I was convinced I would never do it again. Seriously, the thought of listening to the same discourses and the chanting again completely put me off.

But now that it's been over a month after the course I feel just a little bit more open to the idea.

I might consider, at some point in the future, enduring once more Goenka's chanting and discourses only to have the opportunity to meditate for 10 hours a day for 10 days. That remarkable level of awareness that you can only experience in a retreat like this is priceless.

But here is the real lesson

I should also mention that on Day 10 this equanimity business, which I also talked about in my previous blog post, was finally starting to sink in.

During one of the meditation sessions, I had a flash of insight—“Maybe I should practice equanimity towards the irritation that I feel.”—Duh!

So, when Goenka's chanting started at the end of that meditation, I observed my emotional and physical reactions towards it. I noticed the irritation, the discomfort, the body tension, the changes in the breath, and so on, without adding more fuel to the fire. I simply observed.

Guess what happened then...

Well, nothing really. Nothing happened, at all. Lol.

But during the next meditation session, something quite surprising did happen.

After a few minutes into Goenka's chanting I realized that I had not noticed at all his chanting. I had been completely oblivious to it for several minutes. And when I finally became aware of it I didn't feel annoyed or irritated. I just didn't care.

For ten days I had been reacting to the chanting as soon as it would start. So I was making the same mistake I talked about in my previous blog post. Instead of equanimity, I was creating more mental impressions of aversion. Not surprisingly, my reactions were getting worse with each passing day.

Even the title of this blog post speaks volumes about my lack of equanimity. And that's the real lesson I want to convey with it.

It took me only 100 hours of meditation and 10 days to learn the lesson. Well, better later than never, right?

So maybe this is another reason why I could try once more Goenka's Vipassana Meditation Course. It could be a great opportunity to practice my equanimity whenever I feel irritated by the things I hated about this course.

But I'm not making any plans. We shall see.

Update: By the way, I created a more condensed version of this article in a video format which you can watch below.

I hope you enjoy reading this article and that you got something out of it. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below. Thank you.

If you would like to know more about Vipassana meditation you can visit What is Vipassana Meditation? Goenka's 10-Day Course Explained. Don't worry, I don't complain at all in that blog post. Lol. It's an objective and informative article instead, or so I hope.

Oh and by the way, here are some articles from my first 10-day Vipassana meditation course which I did in 2011

There is No Aim in Meditation (Lessons From My 2nd Vipassana Retreat)

2024-05-25T20:15:00.008+05:30

Meditation hall at Dhamma Arunachala Meditation Center

I recently completed my second 10-day Vipassana meditation retreat (where you sit in silence and crossed-legged on the floor for 10 hours a day) and I gotta tell you, I was so glad when the course was over. I even started counting down the days from day five and told myself during the last few days that I would never do this course again.

Ironically, on day one, I had such good meditation sessions that I was already planning in my mind to do this course every year, or perhaps even twice a year. But everything changed starting day two. It became much tougher than my first Vipassana retreat.

One of the reasons, I guess, was because of my own ego and expectations. But luckily, in the end, I did learn a couple of very valuable lessons for my meditation practice, which I would love to share with you now.

I decided to join a Vipassana meditation course, again

The first time that I joined one of Goenka's Vipassana Meditation retreats was back in 2011 in Kathmandu, Nepal.

I had a great experience and I knew that I was going to do it again, but year after year I just kept postponing it. So it has taken me more than 12 years to have the courage to try it for the second time.

The thing is, although I had a great experience during my first course it was still a bit tough. So I was intimidated by the thought of sitting again for long hours enduring intense physical pain and other bizarre sensations.

But last March while I was in Varkala, in the South of India, after hearing different friends talking about their recent Vipassana experiences, I felt inspired and motivated, and something inside of me also told me that this was the right time.

So I signed up for the course, and a few days later I was already on my way.

I had to do a very long journey to reach the location of the course. I traveled 600 km, almost 15 hours by train, bus, and auto-rickshaw to reach the Vipassana meditation center in Tiruvanamalai, Dhamma Arunachala.

There couldn't be a better place to do a meditation retreat. Tiruvanamalai is a pilgrimage destination in India known for its temples, the Mount Arunachala, and the Ramana Maharshi ashram.

I arrived in Tiruvanamalai at 5:30 am. I couldn't go to the meditation center at that hour so I decided to go first to the Ramana Maharshi ashram.

I was looking forward anyway to doing my morning meditation practice in one of the meditation rooms on the back side of the ashram. This is one of my favorite places on earth to practice meditation. So powerful.

After a brief meditation, I searched for a restaurant to have breakfast and then I headed to Dhamma Arunachala, the Vipassana meditation center.

The center was about a 20-minute drive from the ashram, in an isolated area. It is simple but beautiful, with lots of trees and fantastic food served by volunteers.

My positive personal experience during day one

Surprisingly, as I mentioned before, pretty much as soon as we started the course, I had some pretty powerful meditation sessions. That was even before we started practicing the actual vipassana technique. We were doing only anapana, mindfulness of breathing.

It wasn't something transcendental or hallucinogenic like some people experience in Vipassana retreats, but it was exactly the experience that I was looking for, and the main reason why I had come to this retreat.

I actually had a similar experience during my first Vipassana retreat and during the one-month course at Kopan Monastery.

As soon as I sat down for the first morning meditation my breath became very subtle, almost imperceptible and my body became completely still, like a mountain.

It felt as if I had detached myself from my body, as if there was space between myself and my body so to make any movement I had to make a conscious effort to do so.

At the same time, I experienced this beautiful crystal clear state of mind. I was fully alert, calm, and present. It is hard to describe unless you have experienced something like this yourself.

You see the thing is that when you practice meditation regularly there is always something happening, there are always some sort of “obstacles” that get in the way of meditation.

Maybe you feel anxious, tired, agitated, distracted, the neighbor's dog starts barking, and so on and on. It's so rare to enjoy such a clear state of mind, at least in my personal experience.

But the real reason why this experience was so important to me was because I thought that this mental state was a requirement to practice meditation, at least that's what the books say. So I told myself, “Finally I can start to meditate.”

My challenges during the rest of the course

But anyway, everything changed from day two. Every single meditation from then on was a struggle for me.

There are eight meditation sessions during the day. Each session lasts at least one hour. Some are an hour and a half, and there are a couple of two-hour sessions during the day.

But I wasn't able to sit still throughout any of the one-hour sitting sessions.

Of course, you are not obliged to sit still during the entire session. You are encouraged to do so, but it's not mandatory. You can change your posture and take some rest if you need to.

But here is where my ego got in the way.

I really wanted to sit still for at least one hour because, in my daily meditation practice, I am used to sitting still for one hour, without any effort. And during my first retreat, twelve years ago, I was able to complete almost all the sessions without changing my posture. I was even able to sit still through one of the two-hour sessions.

But this time no matter what I couldn't complete more than 40 or 45 minutes, either because I was overcome by sleep or because I was struggling with intense body pain, mainly in my sitting bones.

But I kept trying and trying.

Whenever the pain would arise I would observe it with a calm and relaxed state of mind, knowing that it is impermanent. And as expected, oftentimes the pain would dissolve. But a few minutes later, it would come back, again and again, and each time with more intensity.

Eventually, it would become unbearable so I had to stop the meditation. But then when I would check the time I would realize in shock that there were still 20 or 15 minutes to go to complete just an hour. This happened in every single meditation session.

And so starting day three, maybe because I pushed it too much on day two, I was in constant pain, almost all day long. I couldn't even sleep properly at night. I would wake up every hour because of the pain in my legs. I'm sure the crazy thin mattress on the bed didn't help.

And since I couldn't have a good sleep at night then I would feel even more sleepy during the meditation sessions. I tried to take a couple of naps during the day to compensate but it didn't help much.

There is no aim in meditation

At some point, I went to see the teacher who was guiding the course. First I told him about my struggles with body pain and he simply said:

“Stop reacting towards the pain.”

Yep, that's it.

I then told him about my positive experience on day one. Since I thought this was a required preliminary stage for mediation, I asked him if this was a state that I should aim for in my meditation sessions. His answer was pretty straightforward and clear

“There is no aim in meditation!”

I know, that answer might sound pretty obvious to you, but don't you sometimes just forget about it?

It took me a while to realize that the wonderful experience I had the first day, was still just that, an experience, and an experience that I had become attached to. I was craving for it.

On the other side, I was having so much aversion towards the pain and the sleepiness that I was experiencing. I was feeling frustrated and disappointed with myself. So in a way, I was indeed reacting towards the pain.

The funny thing is the main purpose of this meditation course is to develop equanimity, to stop reacting to any positive or negative sensations with feelings of attachment or aversion.

So I was doing the complete opposite. Instead of equanimity, I was cultivating more and more attachment and aversion. Luckily in the end I started noticing my mistake.

You see, the moment that we sit to meditate with an aim in mind while reacting towards any negative experiences, we are not equanimous anymore. We have to accept every experience as it comes. Only then can we enter a meditative state.

I also used to think that in order to experience that calm, steady, and blissful state of mind during meditation you need to go through all the other days where you struggle with restless thoughts and so on. You can not just jump into meditation, you have to “pay your dues,” so to speak.

I still believe this is true, but now I see these other days not just as some uncomfortable event that you have to go through but actually as different stages in the meditation process. They are inseparable from meditation.

Keeping this in mind has helped me to finally be able to accept every single experience in meditation without judging it as good or bad, positive or negative. The sleepiness, the fatigue, the restlessness, the anxiety, the pain, that is all part of meditation. So there is no such thing as a good or bad meditation session. Duh.

Mental purification through meditation

Now I should also mention something that is perhaps not so obvious.

When you practice meditation (not only Vipassana) there is always some mental purification that happens gradually and imperceptibly.

But when you do an intense meditation retreat like this one, the mental purification process is accelerated. This means that you could have some very intense experiences, some enjoyable, some perhaps pretty uncomfortable.

Sleepiness, physical pain, strange body sensations, and sometimes even emotional pain or anguish, are all signs of this mental purification.

I knew this in advance, and we were reminded about it at the beginning of the course.

But besides this mental purification some of these experiences I believe could be because of the influence of the environment. Imagine meditating in a space where hundreds of people have been meditating countless hours year after year. Or it could also be simply because of the mind resisting the process.

For me is very interesting to notice that I had that positive experience as soon as we started the course, and it was only on day 10 that I was finally able to sit for one hour straight, and without effort. Maybe that was because I was finally able to find the right combination of cushions, right?

And that was the only day I was able to sleep at night without a break, almost until the bell rang at 4 am. And I woke up without feeling so much pain. So the thin mattress didn't really matter. Perhaps my unconscious mind was a bit relieved knowing that the course was almost over.

I have more to talk about yet

Anyway, realizing that there is no aim in meditation and that there is no such thing as a good or bad meditation session has had a very positive impact on my meditation practice.

Of course, I knew this at an intellectual level before. But now it's become part of my personal experience.

Also, besides the challenges that I experienced during the course, there were other reasons why I was counting the days from day five and why I told myself that I would never do this course again.

That was because of several things that I didn't like about the course. They were actually the same things that I didn't like during my first Vipassana meditation course but this time they felt a lot more irritating.

I will talk about these things and I will share with you my opinion about the Vipassana technique in my next blog post. So stay tuned. But if you would like to know more about the course and the technique you can visit the blog posts I published in 2011, everything is there:

I hope you enjoy reading about my experience and that you got something valuable out of it. Please feel free to share your thoughts with me in the comments section below.

I Started a NON-Gratitude Journal. It's Changed My Life

2024-02-19T07:15:00.003+05:30

I know, everybody recommends having some form of gratitude practice like for instance a gratitude journal. There are countless videos and blogs talking about it. There is even scientific research proving the mental and physical benefits of having a gratitude practice.

Yet, instead of writing a gratitude journal, I've decided to keep a non-gratitude journal. Instead of focusing on what I feel grateful about I've decided to focus on what I don't feel grateful about.

I know that might sound pretty strange and perhaps stupid, but believe it or not, this practice has had a very positive impact on my life.

Let me explain.

The problem with gratitude journals

There are a couple of issues that I have with a typical gratitude journal where you list the three or five things that you feel grateful for.

The first issue is what are you supposed to do in a moment of crisis, when you've been hit by one of life's blows? What would you do if you were in the middle of a breakdown? Do you think you'll be able to focus on the things that you feel grateful for?

Maybe you can, and if that's the case, well then this blog is probably not for you. But if you are anything like me, during a crisis, the last thing you'll be able to do is thinking about the things you feel grateful for.

What I'm trying to say is that when life is going smoothly then focusing on the good in your life is very easy. But when it really matters, when the burdens of life seem far too overwhelming then you'll be very lucky to be able to feel grateful about anything. Right?

And it doesn't even have to be a crisis. Even small life problems sometimes create a cascade of negative emotions that stay with us day and night without resolution. I'm sure you've experienced this.

But then if we try to ignore these emotional reactions and focus instead on the things that we are grateful for, wouldn't that be like sweeping dust under the carpet? Shouldn't we instead try to resolve what we are dealing with first?

And the second issue that I have with having a gratitude journal, is that having to think about what you are grateful for to feel good, in my opinion, is like training yourself to be happy only when you have things to feel happy about.

I know, there will always be things that we can feel grateful for but, personally, I want to train myself to be happy no matter what. I want to learn to be happy under any circumstances, in the good and in the bad.

So I want a tool that I can use not only when things are going well but especially in moments of crisis so that I can learn to cope better with the situation and remain present, calm, and balanced.

And the tool that I've found for this purpose is a non-gratitude journal (a.k.a. ingratitude journal, antigratitude journal, or ungrateful journal).

What is a non-gratitude journal?

So what exactly is a non-gratitude journal then?

Well, first a typical gratitude journal, or gratitude list is about noticing all the good in your life, saying thanks for it, and cultivating a positive emotional attitude toward what you do have instead of focusing on what you don't have.

Similarly, when I write a non-gratitude journal I list the things that I don't feel grateful for but then of course I don't just go on dwelling on my negative reactions cultivating more negative emotions, that would be crazy.

I do try to experience my emotions fully. That's a very important first step. But then I try to understand why I'm having the emotional reaction that I'm having.

So first I use my non-gratitude journal to identify what I'm not feeling grateful for and to express all the thoughts and emotions connected to all those things in my list. Then I use it to dig deeper so that I can figure out what thoughts are making me react in this way. And finally I try to realize if it is necessary to feel in this way or if there is an alternative.

And guess what, there is always an alternative. We do have the freedom to change the way we feel in any situation.

It's not very easy, but the answer lies in the uncovering of the unconscious thoughts that reside deep in our minds, our beliefs.

So the purpose of this non-gratitude journal is to discover the unconscious negative beliefs that are making us react in any particular way.

Our beliefs are sort of like the glasses through which we experience reality. Whatever situation I'm going through I will always interpret it through the filter of my beliefs. My personal experience of reality is defined by the beliefs I'm holding.

The good thing is that just by bringing to our conscious awareness the negative beliefs that are holding us back we can then let them go and replace them with more constructive or positive beliefs.

How to write a non-gratitude journal?

So in practice, how exactly do I write a non-gratitude journal? I guess you've been asking yourself that question.

First, in my daily journal, instead of asking myself what I am grateful about today, I literally ask what I am not grateful about today, or more simply what I'm not happy about today, what is it that is bothering me today?

Then I ask questions such as:

How does this make me feel?
What is it that I am thinking or believing about this situation that is making me feel this way?
Is it a fact or is it a belief?
How does feeling like this serve me?
Is it really necessary? Do I really need to feel this way?
What would happen if I didn't experience this negative emotion in this situation?
Is there any other way to interpret my current situation to change the way that I'm feeling?

And in this way, I keep asking and answering questions until I come across a belief that is holding me back.

By the end of my non-gratitude journal quite often I feel much better than when I started. Feelings of anxiety or sadness might be replaced with a sense of calm or joy. But of course, this is not always the case, and that's alright.

The important thing is to put in the time to work on yourself. Just knowing that you are dealing with your problems in a proactive way will already make you feel empowered. And eventually, if you keep digging, the answers will come.

Besides the mere act of unloading yourself from the problems that you are dealing with by putting them down on paper can give you mental relief by creating space and perspective. So just writing down what you are dealing with and how you feel about it can be very therapeutic.

Questioning methods for a non-gratitude journal

If you are still not sure about how to have this dialogue with yourself and you want some further guidance, I suggest you read the book The Option Method, Unlock Your Happiness with 5 Simple Questions by Bruce Di Marsico (Amazon Affiliate Link). It is very clear and easy to read.

When I first started with this type of self-inquiry I used the Option Method to ask questions. Nowadays I do it more freestyle. The questions change depending on the situation.

Sometimes the only thing I need to ask is what I'm not grateful about today, and then just by expressing myself freely in my journal the answers come, and my mindset changes.

You might also consider reading the book Loving What Is, Four Questions that Can Change Your Life, by Byron Katie (Amazon Affiliate Link).

This book talks about another self-inquiry method known as The Work.

Both of these methods use a set of questions that aim at uncovering whatever negative beliefs are holding us back. They are both very simple yet very powerful. But you gotta put in the time to do the work. This is definitely not a five-minute journal.

How my non-gratitude journal has changed my life

Now, luckily oftentimes when I ask myself, what I am not grateful about today I find nothing to complain about.

And here is the beauty of this.

When that happens, when I realize that I have nothing to complain about, that naturally gives me a sense of joy and gratitude, without any effort. Especially when the previous days I've been dealing with some issues but through my non-gratitude journal I've been able to change my beliefs or my perspective of the situation and now I have a very different emotional response.

The things that I wasn't grateful for now don't affect me anymore or I might actually feel more positive about them.

This to me is a life changer.

Imagine having the power to change our emotional response in front of any situation just by using a journal to change our unconscious beliefs.

A non-gratitude journal is about self-work

But again, this takes time. If you read my previous blog you know that my journals are at least three pages or 750 words long, and when I have to do self-work like this they can be more than 2000 words long.

Compare that to a couple of minutes that might take you to write the three things that you feel grateful for today. A non-gratitude journal is really about self-work and self-work takes time. But it's totally worth it in my opinion.

Because it's not just about feeling good. The point is that whenever we are having a negative emotional response we are simply not living life to the fullest and in the present moment. We are instead running away from the present.

So by paying attention to the things that we are not grateful for we have the opportunity to work on ourselves and change our perspective of the situation. And this I believe has had a much bigger impact on my life than simply writing a gratitude list.

That might not be so surprising though since Andrew Huberman already concluded in his podcast that gratitude lists are not a very effective.

But anyway, I'm not saying that you shouldn't keep a gratitude journal. It takes less than five minutes. There is no reason not to do it, but maybe at the same time, you can give this non-gratitude journal a try and see how it works in your life.

And if you do so please let me know what is your experience. Feel free to share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below. Thank you!

Is Journaling More Powerful Than Meditation?

2023-11-12T18:13:00.001+05:30

In 2016 I published this blog post: 10 Reasons Why You Should Start a Spiritual Journal Today. With time I have become even more convinced about the benefits of journaling, or rather the Morning Pages. But are they more powerful than meditation?

So I decided to create this video to share my personal experience and insights.

This is not a how-to guide though. Instead, the video itself is a form of meditation. I hope that by the time you finish watching it, you'll feel inspired to sit down with closed eyes, or that you feel compelled to start writing a daily journal right away.

But if you prefer reading, here is my story.

On the path to self-discovery

For more than a decade, meditation has been an integral part of my life. It is the first thing I do in the morning, every single day, without fail.

I aim for an hour sitting in silence. On some very rare occasions, I might reach 10 minutes extra, but usually, for some strange reason, I stop at around 53 minutes.

There are of course days where I barely make it to 20. And that's alright. Meditation is a never-ending journey, with its ups and downs.

No, I have not become enlightened. Not even close. I'm just a regular guy, perhaps 1% better than who I was when I began.

But at the same time, I don't know who I would be without meditation.

Would I still be here?

Hmmm, I'm not so sure.

But there is something else that I've learned on the path to self-discovery, something that seems in a way more powerful and practical.

Journaling.

Ok, to be honest, I don't use a notebook. I live a nomadic lifestyle so I can't accumulate notebooks that I can't store anywhere.

I use a digital journal instead. Besides, I'm able to catch my thoughts faster with a keyboard.

So every day I set myself to write at least 750 words. It doesn't matter what I might write about. I just need to reach 750 words to call it a day.

Why 750 words, you may ask?

It all started with this book a friend recommended, back in 2014. The Artist Way, by Julia Cameron.

I never finished the book, but I did learn the most important lesson that it had to offer me: The "Morning Pages," three handwritten pages, every. single. day. Nothing but a brain dump of everything and anything that is taking space in my mind.

It's a way to silence the inner critic, or the Censor, as Julia Cameron calls it, the number one obstacle that inhibits creativity and prevents us from living the life of our dreams.

So how do I write three pages in a digital format?

Well, I first estimated it should be around 300 words. Then I switched to 500. But later on, I discovered online that it should be 750 words.

I liked that number, so I stuck with it.

750 words, every single day. Ok, almost every day.

A dialogue with myself

With time, my journal has become my best friend, my guide, my counselor, my therapist. The best therapist I could ever find, available 24/7. And the only fee: a bit of my time.

Best deal ever, in my opinion.

I share with my journal everything. The good stuff and the bad stuff. Especially the bad stuff. My darkest secrets. My fears. My doubts.

My journal listens carefully to all my struggles, and without judgment, it answers all my questions.

“What can I do about this issue? How can I solve this problem? What should I do next? What is my purpose?”

I simply write down the first answer that comes to my mind. Usually, the first answer is the right answer.

You can see a real-life example of my journaling in action in this video I called, “Stop Delaying Happiness.”

So my journaling is simply a dialogue, a dialogue with myself.

This reminds me of a story from an ancient Indian scripture.

A sacred Indian story

A warrior, the greatest warrior of all times, standing in the middle of the battlefield, affected by grief and attachment, loses his composure.

He drops his bow and arrow, and collapses on his chariot, unable to fight.

So he asks for advice from his charioteer and wise friend.

And at that very moment, just before the battle began, a mystical dialogue took place, a dialogue that has been recounted and sung for thousands of years.

In this dialogue, the wise friend answers all his questions, clears all his doubts, shatters his confusion, and reveals to him secrets never told before.

Finally, with all this wisdom, the warrior regains his courage. He is now clear about what is his purpose and what needs to be done. With firm determination, he charges into battle.

The hidden meaning behind the story

Well, here is the lesson.

The ancient Indian yogis tell us that the warrior and his wise friend, are actually one and the same. The warrior was simply having a dialogue with himself, with his higher Self.

Even the Upaniṣads, the last book of the Vedas, happen in the same way. They are a dialogue between teacher and student, between incarnated soul and realized soul, between the self and the higher Self.

Upaniṣad—sitting down near. Who else can be more near to you than your Self?

And that's journaling to me, a dialogue that reveals the silent voice of my inner guide.

I ask questions, and He answers. I ask for guidance and He offers it. I ask for counsel and He responds.

I might not be able to listen sometimes, but He is always there, waiting for the right questions.

Any lessons I've learned, any wisdom I might have gained, have come through these dialogues with myself.

What about meditation?

But, what about meditation then?

Well, meditation is also a dialogue.

A silent dialogue.

A dialogue without words.

Let the mind slow down. Let the mind settle. Let the mind become silent, and dive within.

There is nothing else to do in meditation. Your higher self already knows all the questions and all the answers. You just need to be in its presence.

Is journaling more powerful than meditation?

Unfortunately, it's not as easy as it sounds. The mind sometimes refuses at all costs to stay calm, no matter what you do.

Journaling on the other side is more straightforward. You just need to sit down and write. That's it. And the results are usually quicker, more tangible, and practical.

So does this mean journaling is more powerful than meditation?

No, not at all.

Even a restless mind during meditation is a good sign. It is a natural event in the process of mental purification, a life-long process.

The benefits of journaling might be more tangible, but the benefits of meditation happen more behind the scenes.

I think we need both, the silence provided by meditation and the opportunity to express ourselves through journaling.

One is not better than the other. They complement each other instead.

Journaling clears the mind for meditation. Meditation calms you down and awakens your intuition for deeper insights through journaling.

At least, that's my experience.

Ultimately, both of them together, help us discover who we really are, at every level.

My 5-day Stay at a Buddhist Forest Monastery in Sri Lanka

2023-05-07T21:40:00.002+05:30

After five months in a popular surf destination in Sri Lanka, I decided to move into a remote Buddhist forest monastery to practice meditation. I had been dreaming about meditating in a cave for months, but I wasn't sure if the forest-dwelling monks would allow me to stay.

My stay in Arugam Bay

As usual, I had a great time in Arugam Bay, on the East Coast of Sri Lanka. My days would start with meditation, then surfing for two or three hours, and then the rest of the day I would be editing videos almost non-stop.

I was editing a four-video series of an adventure trip I did in India to discover a surf spot in Kolkata. You can watch the playlist right here.

I loved my daily routine. But by mid-October, the season was coming to an end. Shops and restaurants were closing, people were leaving and I couldn't surf anymore because of a knee injury.

Obviously, this was the perfect moment to change the routine and do something completely different.

So as soon as I finished editing all the videos I had on my to-do list, I packed my bags, called my tuk-tuk driver, and asked him to pick me up. It was time to finally make that dream a reality.

Would I be allowed to stay at the monastery?

The monastery is almost an hour away from Arugam Bay. It is in a very isolated and remote area, right at the edge of the Yala National Park. It is quite a ride to get there.

I don't know if I was going to be the first foreigner to stay at this place but no one around Arugam Bay seemed to know much about it.

My tuk-tuk driver was a bit worried. He kept asking, “Marco, did you call them? Do they have a room for you? Where will you stay?”

To be honest I had no idea.

A couple of months earlier, after a surf trip with some friends, we briefly stop by the monastery.

During that visit, we were very lucky to meet the head monk. He invited us inside the main hall to give us a talk on happiness. That was priceless. Such an unexpected moment.

After his talk, I asked him if it was possible to stay in the monastery. He simply said, “We have caves for serious and dedicated practitioners who want to meditate.”

But now that I wanted to go back, I had no way to contact him in advance, so I didn't know if I would be allowed to stay. Would I be considered a serious and dedicated meditation practitioner? Who knows.

So I had no other option. I had to go there and hope for the best.

What did he mean by a cave?

The monastery is located on the top of a rocky hill surrounded by a dense forest. My tuk-tuk driver dropped me at the base of the hill. From there I continued on foot.

As I was walking up to the monastery, with all my bags, I started to ask myself what type of accommodation I could find there. I had no idea what the monk meant by a cave.

Would there be a shower? A toilet? Do they have power? What about mosquito nets?

That was my main concern. I wouldn't be able to survive one night without mosquito nets.

In short, I didn't know anything about this place at all. I didn't even know if they would offer me food or not.

The monks had to call the abbot

Finally, after a hot fifteen minutes uphill walk, I reached the monastery. As soon as I saw a couple of monks, I asked right away if I could stay.

They were all a bit confused by my presence there. The head monk with whom I had talked before was not there, and the monk in charge didn't speak any English at all.

So I had to wait for a while until they reached the abbot by phone.

Luckily, about fifteen minutes later, they were ready to show me my kuti, my meditation cave. The abbot remembered the conversation we had two months earlier, so he authorized my stay.

My meditation cave was perfect

I was happily surprised when they showed me my kuti. It was perfect, a real meditation cave, but properly adapted for a stay. Small, clean, and most important, it had mosquito nets. And yes, there was also a bathroom outside and even a power outlet.

I couldn't wait to spend a few hours in my new kuti sitting quietly in meditation. But first I needed to get some lunch. I had not eaten anything the whole morning, and it was already midday.

The monks told me to walk all the way back down, to the base of the hill. I was supposed to find some lunch there.

I was again happily surprised.

The food was so good. One of the best Sri Lankan rice and curries I had ever had. A bit too spicy though.

The monastery's daily schedule

They have only two meals a day. Breakfast at 6:30 am and lunch at 11:30. That's why I had a very big lunch. I knew I would have to wait till the following morning for my next meal.

After lunch, I went back to my kuti for a brief meditation session.

Of course, I got sleepy almost right away. So I decided to then go for a walk.

As I was walking around I asked myself, “Where is everybody?!”

I was a bit intrigued by this monastery. After breakfast and lunch, all the monks would disappear. I had no idea where they would go.

There are no lectures or any activities in the monastery. The only program during the day was a daily puja at around 5 pm, in the main and only hall, but there was only one monk leading the ceremony. Nobody else would come.

I did enjoy the daily puja though. I was there every day without fail. It would start with some rituals, offerings to lord Buddha's statue, long prayers, and then we would sit quietly in meditation for at least forty-five minutes I think.

How the days would end

The puja would end around 6:45 pm. Right after I had to go straight back to my kuti. And that was pretty much the end of the day.

The monks told me to not go out at all because it is quite dangerous. There are leopards, wild bears, wild elephants, snakes, and who knows what else.

So I spent the evening doing some reading and sitting in meditation until I was ready to fall asleep.

I loved sleeping in my cave.

After turning the lights off I couldn't even see my hands. It was pitch black. And the only sounds I could hear were the sounds of the jungle. Amazing.

One night though, I got a bit scared. I heard some weird noises. It felt like a large animal was trying to break into my kuti. But by the time I got the courage to get up and check it out, it was gone. Fortunately.

It was a walking-in-nature retreat

The next morning after breakfast I was planning to do some reading but to my surprise, these two monks showed up at my kuti and invited me to go for a walk.

Of course, I said “YES!” right away.

They had been monks for already 10 years. They were so friendly and welcoming. We talked a lot about meditation and Buddhism during our walk.

That's when I heard for the first time the word ”arahant,” a person who has attained enlightenment. From the way my two monk friends talked about it, I realized that this is the highest ideal in their tradition.

They told me stories of these arahants, or realized masters, having mystic powers. It is said that they could fly through the forest.

“Why not?” I thought to myself.

And this is how this retreat, more than a quiet sitting meditation retreat, became a walking-in-nature retreat. The next five days I spent most of the day walking around this beautiful place.

I was delighted to walk in areas that I had never seen before, and even in areas that most visitors wouldn't have access to.

Of course. I would do two or three sitting meditation sessions in the evening and before breakfast. But the rest of the day I was mindful walking almost non-stop.

And what a place to do mindful walking.

Although the monastery is situated at the border of the National Park it feels as if it was right in the center.

The nature surrounding this place is incredible, the landscapes are breathtaking and the animals are abundant.

Every day this monk would tell me "Very danger, very danger. Don't go out at night."

Birthday is not a happy day

On another day another monk invited me for a walk. He wanted to show me a nearby lake.

As we were walking through the beautiful forest he reminded me that visitors are not allowed to walk in this area. The only reason I was allowed to be there was because I was with him.

I felt so fortunate. The landscape was mesmerizing.

Later during our walk, we realized that we were both the same age.

His birthday was on the 22nd of October. That was just a few days before, so I said right away “Happy Birthday!” But then I added, “You don't celebrate birthdays, right?”

He said,

“No no. We never celebrate. Any monks don't celebrate birthdays. Birthday is very sad [laughing]. We try stop birthday, again and again.”

I love his answer.

The reason why they have given up this material life and become monks is to escape the cycle of death and rebirth, to escape saṁsāra, and to attain nibbana, complete liberation. In other words, the idea is not to be reborn again

So for a monk, one's birthday is not a day to celebrate, it's not a happy day. Instead, it's a sad day.

Not just a monastery

As we continue to walk deep into the forest we passed by a couple of kutis. I was shocked to realize how isolated they were.

We were probably 20 minutes away from the main monastery area. There was nothing around. They were literally in the middle of nowhere.

I finally started to understand what was really going on here.

This is not just a monastery but a meditation cave retreat which have been used for centuries by Buddhist monks. Actually, it is believed that it was first used more than 2000 years ago.

All the monks who stay in this monastery, about ten monks perhaps, live in isolation in their own remote kutis, spread around the jungle. That's why they are called forest-dwelling monks. And the monasteries are known as forest monasteries.

The monks come to the main temple area only twice a day, for meal times, but the rest of the day they spent their time alone doing different forms of meditation, including of course mindful walks in nature.

But their main meditation practice is anapanasati, mindfulness of breathing, following the Theravada Buddhist tradition of Sri Lanka.

The highlight of my stay

After our walk, this same monk asked for my help. He needed to transfer data from his phone sim to another sim. So he invited me to come to his kuti the next day.

I was thrilled to have the opportunity to go to his kuti (something very rare I guess) and give him a hand.

All the technology that he had was a very old and basic Nokia-type of phone. But with my laptop, I could easily transfer all his mp3 recordings from one sim to another.

I think this was one of the highlights of my stay. His kuti was very deep into the jungle, and I got the opportunity to spend a couple of hours with him talking about Buddhism and meditation while helping him transfer his files.

Yes, it took two hours. It was a lot of data! He had gigabytes and gigabytes of nothing but dhamma talks, Buddhist lectures.

And his kuti was the most beautiful kuti I had seen. During the year and a half, he had been living there he made so many improvements to it although he knows that he won't stay there permanently.

He even made a beautiful sink with materials that he could easily find around. Not surprisingly, he was an interior designer before becoming a monk.

He also showed me a small book he had created while working on a previous monastery. It was a collection of brief stories, to spread the teachings of Buddha, with the most beautiful handmade illustrations.

He is a real artist. I'm sure if he would publish his little book, it would be a success.

On our way back to the main monastery area, I asked him if he walks that path during the night. He said,

“No, no. Because daytime we use the jungle, nighttime is animal's time.”

No, I won't become a monk

And so after five days, it was time to leave this paradise. This was probably one of the best things I've done in Sri Lanka since my first visit back in 2014.

Before leaving, the head monk told me that I could stay as long as I want. He even suggested that I could become a monk.

I am fascinated by the monk lifestyle, but I know that's not my path.

As soon as I was back in Arugam Bay I went to a shop where the owner owed me some money. When he refused to pay back the full amount, I lost all the peace and serenity I had gained at the monastery, in a second, and it was just a few rupees.

So yes, I have a lot of self-work to do still and the "real world" is my training ground. But I will definitely do other meditation retreats in the future. It is important for recharging the batteries I think.

Walking with Monks: My 5-day Buddhist Monastery Stay in Sri Lanka

I also made a vlog version of this story. The story is shorter, but it also includes things that are not mentioned here. I think the blog and vlog complement each other. If you are interested in watching it just tap on the thumbnail below.

How to reach the monastery

I purposely didn't mention the name of the monastery or its exact location. The monks treasure their isolation and I want to honor that. And no, I do not have any contact numbers.

But it is not difficult to find. You have plenty of information in this blog and in the vlog version. If you really want to go there you'll have to do the same thing I did. Consider it an adventure.

Theruwan Saranai. May the blessings of the three jewels (the Buddha, dharma, and sangha) be with you.

I have to thank all those who commented on my YouTube video explaining what Theruwan Saranai means. Thank you!

STOP Delaying Happiness: You can choose to be Happy TODAY

2022-07-04T17:00:00.000+05:30

Photo by Maksym Kaharlytskyi on Unsplash

A couple of years ago my friend Sophie, who is now a Buddhist nun, asked me in a text message, "How is your happiness going, Marco?"

I didn't answer anything because the truth is that at that moment I wasn't feeling very happy. As a matter of fact, I had not been feeling happy for a very long time. And the pandemic had made matters even worst, as you can imagine.

You can either continue reading the full story below or watch the video version instead, or both if you wish.

So every time she asked that question I was reminded of my situation. I was very aware of it but it was quite disappointing for me to acknowledge.

I've been studying the teaching of the Indian yogis for years, even decades perhaps, and they all have the same message:

“True happiness lies within.”

One of my favorite quotes says,

"Never seek happiness from any person, matter, or event. Seek it from within."

I know these teachings with the core of my being. I don't just blindly believe in them, I know them to be a fact. Yet, even with all that knowledge and countless hours of meditation, I still wasn't feeling very happy.

But a few months ago something started to change.

I started asking questions

As I was doing my daily journaling I asked myself:

“If I had the power to change absolutely anything in my life right now, what would I change?”

So I wrote down all the things that I wasn't happy about, the things that I wanted to change or improve in my life.

They were in all areas: relationships, health, finances, and spirituality.

Then after having that list down I asked myself:

“How would I feel if would actually attain all those things or if those changes would take place?”

So I closed my eyes and observing all those changes taking place in my life I imagined how I would feel: happy, joyful, relieved, fulfilled, satisfied, grateful, and so on.

I was unconsciously delaying my happiness

At this moment I realized something very obvious but at the same time very powerful.

As I was feeling all these positive emotions I realized that I do have the power to choose the way I want to feel.

I mean, there was nothing outside of myself that created those positive emotions. It was just my own mind.

And as I continued journaling I realized something even more important.

All this time I've been expecting those things in my life to change or improve to be able to feel happy, to feel fulfilled, or to feel good about myself.

In other words, I was unconsciously delaying my happiness until a future event that might or might never take place.

I'm sure you are very familiar with this. We do it all the time.

“I'll be happy when I find the perfect job, when I make a certain amount of money, when I can buy my dream home, when I find the perfect relationship, and so on.”

Right?

So, this was an important realization but I knew it wasn't enough. So I asked myself the next obvious question:

“Why on earth would I wait for those things to change to be happy? Why can't I just feel happy today?”

Will achieving my dreams make me truly happy?

As I wrote down all sorts of possible answers it finally became clear to me.

For the longest time, I had had this crazy idea that achieving my dreams, fulfilling my needs, or solving my problems would make me happy.

Now you might think, well that's not crazy, that's very reasonable. Who wouldn't be happy if they achieve their dreams or solve their problems? That's what everybody wants, right?

Well, that's exactly what I used to believe but, is it true? Is it a fact? or is it just a belief?

Will attaining our dreams, fulfilling our desires, or solving our problems truly make us happy?

Or is it possible that if we do attain everything that we desire we might realize in the end that we are still unhappy?

So I looked into my own past experiences. For instance in relationships.

I've had a few girlfriends in the past, and yes, of course, there were many happy moments in all of them, especially at the beginning. But there was also struggle, pain, and even heartbreaks in the end.

Yet somehow, after every breakup, I still had the belief that once I find a girlfriend I was going to be truly happy. I had created an ideal in my head, the illusion that everything will be perfect once I find the perfect relationship.

I'm not trying to be negative or pessimistic here. I know it is possible to have a happy harmonious relationship.

I'm just pointing out to the fact that sometimes we create this unreasonable expectation, this belief that once we attain that which we desire we will enjoy endless happiness as if things will never change and will always be perfect.

So we unconsciously add disproportionate value to something that isn't real but is just an ideal.

Besides, let's be honest. We all know that our desires are never ending. Even people who seem to have attained everything and are successful still have problems.

Ok, I know these thoughts are nothing new. You've probably heard about this countless times before, but I guess it was finally starting to make sense to me.

And it felt somehow liberating because if I'm aware that all those things that I wanted to attain or that I wanted to change, might not make me truly happy in the end, then I am free to feel happy today.

But I still had that question that you might also be asking yourself:

How the heck can I choose to be happy when I'm broke, when I'm sick, when I'm going through heartbreaks, when I'm alone, when I've failed at everything, and so on and on?

How the heck can I be happy when my life is not working at all? How can I be happy when everything seems to be going in the wrong direction?

I still didn't get it.

It's all about being present

Then, after contemplating this question for a little while, I wrote down in my journal:

Well, I have two options.

For instance, let's say I'm broke.

I can either choose to be broke and unhappy, or I can choose to be broke and happy. It's that simple.

I know I can't change being broke, at least not in the short term. That might be my reality, my present. But I can change in a fraction of a second the way that I feel about it. I have that power. We all have that power.

That led me to another very obvious but very important realization. So I wrote down.

“Ahhhh, it's all about being present. Duh!”

You see, the only way to be happy today, regardless of the good and the bad, is to learn to accept and welcome the present as it is.

This means that happiness is found only in the present moment, not in the past nor in the future.

In other words, to be present is to be happy, and to be happy is to be present.

I know this sounds cliche, and perhaps too simplistic. I mean, seriously, “How can I accept all the negative stuff going on in my life?” But if I feel I'm unable to accept my present then I can at least try to surrender to it.

Like I said before, I can always change the way I perceive or interpret things, but I can't change my present. That's not an option.

So if I want to be happy, I have no choice, I better just accept or surrender to whatever the present moment is bringing me.

The alternative would be to resist it, avoid it or run away from it. But that means that we will be moving into the past or the future, which will lead to even more unhappiness.

Which one would you choose?

Will I lose the motivation to improve my life or attain my dreams?

This was such a powerful exercise. Just by asking a few questions, I had already started to feel a change in me. I started to see things in a different way.

But I still had more questions.

If I am happy today and if I don't need to wait for things to change to be happy, then, how would I have the motivation to improve my life or to attain my dreams? Why would I even bother?

As I started answering that question I realized that the question itself was a revelation.

What that question was actually saying is that I believe that in order to pursue my dreams I need to be unhappy, unsatisfied, or unfulfilled. Or in other words, I was using unhappiness as a motivation to attain that which I want.

So then I asked myself again:

Is that really necessary? Do I need to be unhappy in order to pursue my dreams, or can I be happy while I go for my dreams?

The answer was pretty straightforward.

Happiness involves all sorts o positive emotions: joy, bliss, peace, fulfillment, satisfaction, gratitude, and so on.

When we are experiencing all these positive emotions we will naturally have more mental clarity, creativity, inspiration, and motivation to work on our dreams or to solve our problems.

On the other side unhappiness, sadness, depression, stress, anxiety, and fear makes us stupid.

It doesn't matter how hard we work, when we are unhappy we are not able to make the progress we want to make, we don't get the ideas that we need to get, we are jut not able to think clearly. Nothing seems to work at all.

It's all about the journey

So to allow myself to be present and happy today is clearly the best thing I can do to attain my dreams or to solve my problems.

And then, even if I fail at whatever I'm trying to accomplish, even if I never attain the things I want to attain, it wouldn't matter because I would have been present and happy throughout the entire journey.

You know, as the saying goes, “It's not the destination that matters but the journey.”

To put it in other words:

If I'm not present and happy today is useless to expect to be happy in the future. On the other side, if I am present and happy today whatever happens in the future is irrelevant cause I'm already happy.

I think if we could adopt this mindset everything would change.

Then the motivation to do the things we want to do would not be the end result, the expectation of some future happiness, but rather the desire to do what we love to do, what we are meant to do, or simply the desire to fulfill our purpose.

Am I the happiest person ever now?

So through this simple journaling exercise, I learned quite a few things about myself.

All this time I had been delaying my happiness, believing that something in the future would make me happy, while all I needed to do is to choose to be happy today by accepting the present as it is, as ugly or as beautiful as it might be.

You know, even if nothing was working out at the moment, and my whole world was collapsing around me, why would I choose on top of everything, to be unhappy? Why would I punish myself with unhappiness?

And what if I am never able to attain the things that I want to attain, or make the changes I hope to make? Should I just remain unhappy forever?

So allowing myself to be present and happy is always the best choice I can make.

Alright, that's great, but, has this made any difference? Am I the happiest person on the planet now?

Well, no of course I'm not but, I do feel good right now. And the interesting thing is that nothing has changed in my life. Everything is exactly the same as it was before.

I have no idea how I'm going to feel tomorrow, in a week, a month, or a year. But today, right now, I'm feeling pretty good.

I've been feeling so good that I had the inspiration and the motivation to create this new type of video that I had never tried before.

And the quote that I mentioned at the beginning now seems more realistic and accessible to me.

“Never seek happiness from any person, matter, or event. Seek it from within.”

You see, we are able to live in the present moment only when we feel contentment and satisfaction with who we are and what we have. And that is, in my opinion, to find happiness within.

Now full disclosure. This is not the only thing I've been doing. If you watched my previous YouTube video you know that I've been having the greatest time surfing here in India.

Surfing has definitely played a very important role in my overall happiness. But I do think this dialogue with myself has also had a very big influence.

Alright, that's all I wanted to share today. I hope this was helpful.

Oh and by the way, if you want to know how surfing can influence your level of happiness and well-being make sure you watch my previous YouTube video here.

The Actual Difference Between Mindfulness and Meditation

2022-04-03T11:04:00.001+05:30

Photo by Hans Vivek on Unsplash

What is the difference between mindfulness and meditation, you may ask?

I know, it can be confusing since we often hear the terms mindfulness, mindfulness meditation, mindfulness-based meditation, or just meditation used interchangeably.

But, are they really all the same? This is what I like to cover in this blog, starting with the definition of mindfulness and its benefits.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is simply to be fully aware of, and to accept, the present moment as it is. We do this by paying attention to, or by being mindful of, whatever is going on right at this moment; either within us or around us.

Mindfulness is not about body sensations, thoughts, or emotions but about being present. We use our body sensations, or our external or internal experiences, only to bring the mind to the present moment.

When we practice mindfulness we avoid reacting negatively or positively to whatever the present moment is bringing us. Without getting attached to it or without experiencing aversion towards it, we simply welcome it.

That's what I meant by “accepting the present moment, as it is.”

Like I wrote before in Releasing Physical or Emotional Pain (Free Guided Meditation), the moment we react to what is going on in the present we escape the present and move either to the past or the future. To be able to be present we have to welcome the present fully.

Even our emotional reactions can be the focus of our mindful awareness.

If we are experiencing a negative emotion that arises due to a particular situation, we simply observe that emotion without reacting to it, creating some space between us and the emotion.

To give you another definition, here is how Headspace defines mindfulness:

“Mindfulness is the quality of being present and fully engaged with whatever we’re doing at the moment — free from distraction or judgment, and aware of our thoughts and feelings without getting caught up in them.”

You'll often hear the words, “without judgment” or “non-judgementally” whenever someone is defining mindfulness.

This is just another way to express what I mentioned before. We avoid judging or interpreting the present as right or wrong, good or bad. We simply observe it and accept it as it comes.

And here is a beautiful definition given by Thich Nhat Hanh:

“Mindfulness is the energy that helps us recognize the conditions of happiness that are already present in our lives. You don’t have to wait ten years to experience this happiness. It is present in every moment of your daily life.”

This is probably my favorite definition because it doesn't use any jargon and instead, it focuses on the essence of mindfulness.

What is the benefit of mindfulness?

So, what is the benefit of mindfulness? Or why should we bother to try to be mindful and aware of the present moment?

This article published by the American Psychological Association lists several benefits such as reduced rumination, stress reduction, more satisfaction in relationships, better focus, improved working memory, and more. This other article from PositivePsycology lists 23 benefits!

I think it's alright to want to know about all these benefits. But this is all just information for the intellect. I rather keep it simple and focus on what really matters. In my opinion, the real reason why we should practice mindfulness is this:

True happiness is experienced only in the present, not in the past nor in the future.

Worry, stress, anxiety, depression, and so on happen only when we are thinking about the past or the future, or when we are judging, resisting, or trying to escape the present.

On the other side, when we become present we stop being disturbed by the constant chatter in our heads, our negative thinking, and the mental stories that we create constantly. Instead, there is just our own pure presence.

This pure presence is joy itself, it is happiness itself.

When we are present we rest in our own awareness. We become an observer, unaffected by the ups and downs of life. There is no resistance or struggle anymore. We simply are, and we flow with the moment.

All other benefits mentioned in the articles above are simply side effects of living in the present moment.

But I would still like to mention a few other reasons why we should practice mindfulness.

For instance, since the mind is constantly distracted and scattered, worried, and in a hurry, we sometimes miss precious moments in our lives. Don't you think so?

With a calm and present mind, however, we become aware of things that we normally wouldn't become aware of. In this way, we become not only more present with ourselves but also with those around us.

And the more present we become the slower times moves.

Do you ever have the feeling that time is passing by too quick? I know I have. Sometimes it feels as if a whole year has passed by in just a few months!

But when we become truly present time actually slows down; or at least our experience of time does. This leads to a sense of inner joy and content that seems to come from nowhere.

With a calm and present mind, we can also experience more mental clarity and energy. This mental clarity and energy can be used to be more creative and productive, to live life more fully, or to go deeper into meditation.

With mindfulness, we also let go and detach from the things that give only temporary happiness, and focus on what really matters. The here and now.

What is mindfulness meditation?

We can be mindful of any external or internal experiences during our day. We can practice mindfulness while working out, while cooking, while doing the laundry, while commuting, or even while sitting at our desks doing our work.

All we have to do is to pay attention to what we are doing, what we are experiencing, or what we are feeling, without judging the experience.

But, because of our lack of practice and because of the nature of our distracted minds, it is not very easy to be mindful during our day-to-day activities. We might be able to do it only occasionally and for brief moments of time.

So instead of hoping that we might be able to be mindful during the day, we can choose to develop this skill consciously by practicing it regularly for a certain period of time.

This is mindfulness meditation, also called mindfulness-based meditation or simply meditation. Mindfulness meditation is what we do when we sit down specifically to practice and develop mindfulness.

It's that simple. There is nothing more to add to it.

I like how Andy Puddicombe, the founder of Headspace, describes it in his book The Headspace Guide to Meditation and Mindfulness

“Meditation is simply a technique to provide you with the optimum conditions for practicing the skill of mindfulness.”

“You can use it [mindfulness] in any situation and for any purpose, but the easiest place to learn the skill of mindfulness is during meditation.”

What is the difference between mindfulness and meditation?

So, in this case, the difference between mindfulness and meditation is that mindfulness is an attitude that we can apply to every moment of our daily lives. Meditation, on the other side, is that specific moment when we sit down to practice and develop the skill of mindfulness.

However, this applies only when comparing mindfulness to mindfulness-based meditation.

Although it is correct to say that mindfulness-based meditation is meditation, not all forms of meditation are mindfulness-based meditation.

Let me give you a few examples.

Loving-kindness meditation, also a Buddhist practice, has nothing to do with mindfulness. In this practice instead, we create a mental image that helps us develop and cultivate the feeling of loving-kindness to ourselves and to others.

Vedantic meditation has also nothing to do with being aware of the present. This is a contemplative practice where we try to change our perspective to see reality for what it really is and not for what we believe it to be.

Mantra meditation has little to do with being aware of the present moment. It does involve mindfulness at the initial stages. But the aim is to make the mind so one-pointed that it eventually becomes as if inactive. Without the disturbances created by the mind, we are then able to rest on our true selves. The present is not relevant anymore because we go beyond time, space and causation.

What is the difference between concentrative meditation and mindfulness-based meditation?

To make it easier let's focus on the most common meditation technique taught in the tradition of the Indian yogis. That is concentration-based meditation.

In concentration-based meditation, such as mantra meditation, we follow a systematic process to narrow down our awareness, focusing our attention fully on one particular object. As the concentration deepens we naturally fall into a state of meditation.

This particular object can be anything but it is usually the breath, an energy center in the body, a particular mantra, or a combination of all of these.

So, what is the difference between mindfulness meditation and concentrative meditation?

In mindfulness meditation the awareness is broad. We can even direct our awareness in all directions and use all our senses simultaneously, as long as we are paying attention to the present moment.

In concentration meditation, the awareness is narrowed down and made one-pointed. It is not mindfulness. It is concentration.

But in concentration-based meditation, such as mantra meditation, we do have to start with mindfulness. We start from our normal state of awareness, a broad awareness, and gradually narrow down that awareness until it becomes one-pointed.

Even if we are fully focused on our chosen object of concentration, in the background of our mind we are still practicing mindfulness.

On one level the object of concentration is occupying entirely our mind, on another level, we are paying attention to intruding thoughts, or mental impressions, that might arise and distract us from our meditation.

But that's for another discussion.

Conclusion

Mindfulness is to pay attention to the present moment, as it is. Mindfulness meditation is what we do when we sit down specifically to practice and develop the skill of mindfulness.

But although all forms of mindfulness meditation are meditation, not all forms of meditation can be called mindfulness meditation.

If we compare mindfulness meditation with concentrative meditation, then the difference is that in mindfulness the awareness is broad. In concentrative meditation the awareness is one-pointed.

The aim of mindfulness meditation is to be present. The aim of concentrative meditation is to go beyond time.

More about mindfulness

Here are some other articles I've published before related to mindfulness meditation. I'm sure you'll find interesting

You can also visit my free guided meditations library. And if you are interested, you can get access to the meditation scripts on my Patreon page.

I hope you'll find this blog informative and inspiring. If you like this type of content and if you like to be informed about my online yoga classes make sure you subscribe to my mailing list here.

Once you subscribe you'll be able to download my free meditation e-book. Thanks for your support!

The Secrets of the Soham (Haṁsa) Mantra: Its Meaning, Benefits and Purpose

2022-02-28T08:11:00.006+05:30

One of the most common types of meditations taught in India as part of the tradition of the Indian yogis is mantra meditation. And the most important universal mantra that anybody can use for meditation is the so'ham or haṁsa mantra.

What's significant about this mantra is that you don't need to receive any type of initiation to practice it. It belongs to you, to me, and to all of us. It is a powerful mantra and its meaning, purpose, and benefits are profound.

I've been practicing one of the variations of the so'ham mantra meditation since the beginning of my meditation journey. I've always been curious about learning more about this mantra and all of its variations.

So I decided to do some research and write this article to get a good overview and understanding of the so'ham and the haṁsa mantras. I'm happy to share what I've learned with you.

I've also created a free so'ham guided meditation and a so'ham + om guided meditation that you can use for your personal meditation practice.

What is the So'ham mantra?

So'ham (commonly spelled soham) is formed by the Sanskrit words saḥ, which means “He” or “That,” and aham, which means “I am.” Therefore, so'ham means “That I am,“ or “I am That.”

Saḥ सः and aham अहम् put together becomes so'ham सोऽहम् because of Sanskrit sandhi rules. The apostrophe represents the missing a.

—By the way, if you are interested in learning Sanskrit I suggest you read my article How to Get Started with Sanskrit (a Blueprint).

“That” or “He” refers to that which is beyond time, space, and causation: the absolute truth, ultimate reality, the higher Self, the supreme or cosmic consciousness, Brahman or God.

The so'ham mantra is considered a universal mantra. Anybody can use it regardless of their faith or belief system. That's because so'ham is said to be the natural sound of the breath. Just by attentively listening to the breath in meditation one can hear the two syllables with each breath.

“Soham, Soham, Soham is the mantra of the breath. This is not a religious mantra; this is the mantra of the breath. [...] When your mind focuses on the breath, spontaneously the breath starts singing Soham, Soham.” Pratyahara, Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati, Yogamag.net

“Sah means he, the supreme; aham means I, the individual soul. It is to remind yourself that I am that. The mantra is also the sound of the breath itself. So is the ingoing breath and ham is the outgoing breath.” Preparatory Practices, Yogamag.net

“Each breath produces a sound. If you listen very carefully you will hear the incoming breath as 'so' and the outgoing breath as 'ham'. Your breath is constantly singing the mantra 'soham, soham, soham'.” Breath of Life, Swami Satyananda Saraswati, Yogamag.net.

Although this is the most common mantra taught often by the Indian yogis, this doesn't mean that it is not important or powerful. In his book Concentration and Meditation, Swami Sivananda of Rishikesh equates the mantra so'ham with the om mantra. He says that meditation on so'ham is meditation on om.

“Soham is only OM. Delete the consonants S and H. You get OM. Soham is modified Pranava or OM. Some like 'Soham' better than 'OM.' Because they find it convenient and easy to associate it or mix it with the breath. Further there is no effort in doing Japa of this Mantra. If you simply concentrate on the breath, if you simply watch the breath, that is quite sufficient.” Meditation on Soham, Concentration and Meditation, Swami Sivananda.

Meditation with the so'ham mantra

Swami Satyananda Saraswati mentions in his talk, The Original Ajapa Japa, that some of the yoga Upanishads, such as the Yogashiksha Upanishad, declare that the breath goes in with the sound of so and goes out with the sound of ham.

Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri) in chapter 3 of his book Soham Yoga, The Yoga of the Self, gives a detailed list of all the Upanishads and other texts that makes reference to the so'ham mantra, synchronizing the sound of so with the inhalation and the sound of ham with the exhalation.

It is clear then that when using the so'ham mantra for meditation it is repeated mentally in synchronization with the breath, inhaling with the sound of so and exhaling with the sound of ham.

This mental repetition is called japa. In this mental japa there is no involvement of the lips, tongue or throat muscles. When the mental repetition becomes spontaneous and without any effort, it is called ajapa japa or simply the highest form of japa.

In the section below How to practice the so'ham (or haṁsa) mantra meditation, you'll find detailed instructions for using this mantra and also a couple of guided meditations.

What is the Haṁsa mantra?

So'ham can also be reversed, becoming 'hamso. Then it is usually named the haṁsa mantra.

My teacher, Swami Veda Bharati, mentions in his commentary on the Yoga Sutras, I.39, that the secrets of the haṁsa mantra are summarized from the Haṁsa Upanishad.

Haṁsa in Sanskrit means swan. The swan is a symbolic figure for the soul in Hinduism. Just like the swan, whose white feathers remain white even in dirty water, the soul is always ever pure regardless of the incarnated soul's human experience.

It is also said that the haṁsa, the swan, has the capacity to separate pure milk from a mixture of milk and water. This symbolizes the discriminatory capacity of a self-realized master who is able to separate or discriminate between what is real (the soul/atman/Brahman) and what is unreal (the material world).

In the glossary of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika by Swami Muktibodhananda is written:

“hamsah/hamso – psychic sound and mantra of the breath. ‘Hamsa’ literally means swan. The swan is considered to be important symbolically as it has the unique ability to separate pure milk and water. Similarly the mantra hamsah/hamso when it is realized, arouses the perception of reality or essence of creation.”

Another symbolic interpretation of the swan given by Paramahansa Yogananda in his commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, says:

“He who can glide like a swan in the waters of life without wetting the feathers of his faculties in a deep sea of attachment, who is not excited while riding on the sunny crests of the waves nor afraid while floating down the dark currents of evil happenings, has a wisdom ever poised, unwavering.”

Paramahansa (Parama-haṁsa) actually means Supreme Swan. Param: greatest, highest, supreme; and Haṁsa: swan.

This is a title given to self-realized masters that are considered to have reached that level of perfect discrimination such as Ramakrishna Paramahansa or Paramhansa Yogananda.

In the notes of Autobiography of a Yogi, when he received the title of Paramahansa Yogananda from his guru, we read:

“Literally, param, highest; hansa, swan. The hansa is represented in scriptural lore as the vehicle of Brahma, Supreme Spirit; as the symbol of discrimination, the white hansa swan is thought of as able to separate the true soma nectar from a mixture of milk and water. Ham-sa (pronounced hong-sau) are two sacred Sanskrit chant words possessing a vibratory connection with the incoming and outgoing breath. Aham-Sa is literally “I am He.””

Another rare but interesting symbolism is given by a teacher named Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath.

He says in this YouTube video that if we look at a cross-section of the brain we will see the lateral ventricles (and third ventricles) forming a swan-like shape, with its head pointing toward the back of the skull “as flying backward faster than light back to the future.”

From the documentary Wings to Freedom by Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath

He suggests that this is the seat of the soul, where the consciousness resides, and that the yogis in a deep state of meditation are able to see this swan-like shape.

It's a very compelling idea, however, as far as I can tell, that swan shape is only seen when looking at the coronal section of the brain at the level of the thalamus. That's a limited two-dimensional view, in my opinion. When looking at a tridimensional view of the brain's ventricles the swan is nowhere to be seen.

Meditation with the haṁsa mantra

When using the haṁsa mantra for the meditation, the ham sound is synchronized with the exhalation and the so (or sa) with the inhalation.

“When 'soham' is reversed, it becomes 'hamso'. This happens when you exhale first (ham) and then inhale (so), 'hamso, hamso, hamso'.” Breath of Life, Swami Satyananda Saraswati, Yogamag.net

That's the same as the so'ham meditation. The difference lies only in that the emphasis and starting point is the exhalation along with the ham sound.

This is the view of teachers that follow the yoga, Vedanta or the Upanishadic traditions, like Swami Sivananda and Swami Satyananda Saraswati.

However, teachers that follow Tantra or Shaivism, who most commonly use the haṁsa mantra, practice it in the opposite way.

According to Swami Muktananda, in his book, I Am That, The Science of Haṁsa from the Vijñāna Bhairava, ham is the natural sound of the inhalation and sa the natural sound of the exhalation.

That's the exact opposite of what Swami Satyananda says: “If you listen very carefully you will hear the incoming breath as 'so' and the outgoing breath as 'ham'.”

In his book, Swami Muktananda refers to the Vijñāna Bhairava first dhāraṇā (meditative practice in this context).

However, this dhāraṇā (verse 24 in the text) does not mention the haṁsa or so'ham mantra. It talks only about concentration on the prāṇa and apāna flow.

श्रीभैरव उवाच
ऊर्ध्वे प्राणो ह्यधो जीवो विसर्गात्मा परोच्चरेत् ।
उत्पत्तिद्वितयस्थाने भरणाद्भरिता स्थितिः ॥२४॥

śrībhairava uvāca
ūrdhve prāno hyadho jīvo visargātmā paroccaret
utpattidvitayasthāne bharaṇādbharitā sthitiḥ

Bhairava says:
Parā Devī or highest Śakti who is of the nature of visarga [creation] goes on expressing herself upward [ūrdhve] in the form of exhalation [prāṇa] and downward [hyadho] in the form of inhalation [apāna/jīvo]. By steady fixation of the mind at the two places of their origin there is the situation of plenitude.

It's interesting to note that in yoga prāṇa and apāna are translated as inhalation and exhalation but in the context of śaivism, these are translated as exhalation and inhalation.

There is another dhāraṇā or meditation practice that mentions explicitly the haṁsa mantra and which can be related to the first practice. That's dhāraṇā 155b. However, this dhāraṇā seems to be a later addition to the original text.

सकारेण बहिर्याति हकारेण विशेत् पुनः।
हंसहंसेत्यमुं मंत्रं जीवो जपति नित्यशः ॥१५५॥

sakāreṇa bahiryāti hakāreṇa viśet punaḥ
haṁsahaṁsetyamuṁ maṁtraṁ jīvo japati nityaśaḥ

The breath is exhaled [bahiryāti] with the sound sa [sakāreṇa] and then inhaled [viśet] with the sound ha [hakāreṇa]. Thus, the empirical individual always recites this mantra haṁsaḥ.

Both of these translations are taken from Vijñānabhairava or Divine Consciousness by Jaideva Singh. It's an easy-to-read book. It includes in the introduction a brief comparison between Patañjali's yoga system, Vedanta and Shaivism, and it also discusses in detail the haṁsa mantra.

Meditation with the Hong-Sau mantra

Much earlier than Swami Muktananda, Paramahansa Yogananda also talked about the haṁsa mantra. He introduced the Hong-Sau concentration technique to his students following the Self Realization Fellowship Lessons.

According to the lessons, Hong-Sau is the same haṁsa (haṁso) mantra.

I believe he chose to write it as Hong-Sau to make it easier for native English speakers to pronounce the mantra properly. Hong is pronounced as in song, and Sau as in saw.

This is the variation I practice, however, in my opinion, that does not sound exactly as haṁso. Based on my very basic Sanskrit, haṁso should be pronounced hanso (ṁ followed by s should sound as n, not as ng).

Similar to Swami Muktananda, Paramahansa Yogananda said that Hong (haṁ) is synchronized with the inhalation and the Sau (sa) with the exhalation. He says in the lessons:

“The adepts anciently found, by deep meditation, that the ingoing breath astrally vibrates as “Hong” and the outgoing breath astrally vibrates as “Sau.””

Further, in the lessons, he explains what is the difference between practicing the haṁsa mantra versus the so'ham mantra and why he encouraged his students to practice Hong-Sau.

He says that we start our practice from the ego, Hong (aham/haṁ/I am) and move towards consciousness, Sau (saḥ/He/That), I am That.

The so'ham consciousnesses, That I am (consciousness first, ego after), manifests automatically when one enters into samādhi.

He puts it in other words in his commentary on verse 65, chapter 18 of the Bhagavad Gita:

“In the initial state, the physical ego of the devotee is not yet destroyed. But when by yoga practice the aspirant becomes advanced enough to perceive in ecstasy the little Myself within himself, he can come out of that state and say, “So’ham: I have found the vast Cosmic Spirit reflected within me as the Soul, the little Myself, one and the same with the great Myself.””

Now, here is a contrasting explanation given by Swami Veda Bharati in a lecture back in 2013. In the Himalayan Yoga Tradition, the practice starts with so'ham and progresses into haṁsa.

“I’m going to say something and I’m going to leave you puzzled, and you can study it ten years from now. One of the purposes of breath practices the way we teach them [inhaling so, exhaling ham] is to change the So-ham into Hamsa mantra.

Swami Prayag asked me a question at one time: “There are two versions of that verse that occur in different Tantras and different texts. Some versions say, “sakāreṇa bahir yāti hakāreṇa viśet punaḥ.” Other versions say, “hakāreṇa bahir yāti sakāreṇa viśet punaḥ.”

Some versions say that with so the breath flows outwards and with ha it enters inwards. Other Tantra texts say the opposite: with the ha the breath flows outwards, and with the sa the breath flows inwards.

Our practice is to start with the hum with out-breath, and the so with the in-breath, but later, as you progress, the reverse will happen, and it will become the Hamsa mantra. You don’t have to make an effort for that. And there is a whole science to that.”

Are you puzzled now? Lol.

The purpose and benefits of the so'ham (or haṁsa) mantra

The mental repetition of the so'ham (or haṁsa) mantra in synchronization with the breath is an excellent tool to help us enter a deep state of relaxation and concentration, which is indispensable for the practice of meditation. It is also a constant reminder of our true nature which can lead us to perfect discrimination.

Paramahansa Yogananda gives a vast explanation of the purpose and benefits of this mantra (Hong-Sau) in his lessons. I strongly recommend you subscribe to the lessons if you would like to know more.

But in short, this mantra, in conjunction with breath awareness, helps to gradually slow down the breath and calm the heart until eventually, the breath ceases. This is what the sage Patanjali calls kevala kumbhaka, the natural cessation of the breath.

Although some teachers believe that kevala kumbhaka is attained by forcefully holding the breath, or by actively reducing the CO2 from the blood with different breathing exercises, this is not the approach taught by Paramahansa Yogananda, or by my teachers from the Himalayan Yoga Tradition.

The cessation of the breath happens naturally when practicing so'ham or haṁsa.

Yogananda explains that as the breath gets calmer and calmer, the metabolism slows down, the production of CO2 reduces and the heart activity diminishes. Eventually, there is no need to breathe anymore.

Additionally, as the breath slows down and the heart gets calmer and calmer, the prāṇa, or life force is withdrawn from the senses. This means that external stimulus does not distract us, so the attention can be directed inwards to go deeper and deeper into meditation.

So the practice of the so'ham (or haṁsa) mantra helps to first induce the state of pratyāhāra or sense withdrawal, allowing the mind to dive deep within without it being too distracted by sensations or thoughts. And in deeper stages, it leads to kevala kumbhaka, the complete cessation of the breath.

According to Paramahansa Yogananda, this is where meditation begins. That's why he calls the Hong-Sau technique a concentration technique and not a meditation technique.

Continued from the same lecture I quoted above, Swami Veda Bharati says about the effects of practicing the so'ham mantra:

“When you begin to experience and understand what I am saying about the five elements of the breath and your breath slows down [...]. So the breath slows down, and then it will happen that you will enter the path of sahaja.

So then the sahaja kumbhaka happens. It just happens. You don’t practice sahaja kumbhaka. It happens. The breath becomes soooooo subtle and it vanishes into ākāsha tattva. For a moment, it ceases.

When it ceases even for a few moments, when that happens, become absorbed in it. [...] So with your breath, that is your goal: to reach that sahaja kumbhaka or kevala kumbhaka, and then these things will happen – alright?”

Additionally, because of the effects this mantra has on the breath, both Paramhansa Yogananda and Swami Muktananda say that this is a form of prāṇāyāma.

“A true yogi is one who does this natural prāṇāyāma, uniting his incoming and outgoing breaths, with the syllables ham and saḥ, and performing this natural japa, ajapa-japa.” I Am That, The Science of Haṁsa from the Vijñāna Bhairava, Swami Muktananda.

Besides these physiological and mental benefits, the main purpose of the so'ham or haṁsa mantra is the realization of our true nature as That, the Supreme Consciousness or Pure Self.

“In the practice of haṁsa, the mantra takes place on its own, and the goal of the mantra is the Self. It is That which repeats it, it is That which is the goal, and it is That which is attained by repeating it. When the mantra, the repeater of the mantra, and the goal of the mantra become one and the same for you, you attain the fruit of the mantra.” I Am That, The Science of Haṁsa from the Vijñāna Bhairava, Swami Muktananda.

How to practice the so'ham (or haṁsa) mantra meditation

There are many different ways in which the so'ham or haṁso mantra can be incorporated into meditation. I suggest you read chapter 10, Ajapa Dharana, from the book Dharana Darshan by Swami Niranjanananda. It gives a vast variety of meditation practices with the so'ham and haṁso mantras.

But here are two simple guided meditations that I've shared on my InsightTimer page.

The first meditation, Guided Mantra Meditation (Soham), is only 15 minutes long and we focus on the so'ham mantra.

The second meditation, Guided Mantra Meditation — Soham & OM —, is 25 minutes long and includes both, so'ham and om mantra practices.

You can find the script of both of these meditations on my Patreon page with the hashtag #meditationscript. Thanks for your support! But some key points to consider are:

Sit in a comfortable and steady posture, keeping the back straight and upright. I suggest you read How to Sit for Meditation and Pranayama.
Gently close the eyes and direct the inner sight at the point between the two eyebrows.
Systematically relax the whole body.
Establish the natural flow of the breath, using diaphragmatic breathing. I suggest you read How to do Diaphragmatic Breathing: 7 Simple Exercises.
Then mentally repeat the mantra synchronizing it with the breath. It is very important that you do not force or change the breath when repeating the mantra. Simply allow the mantra to follow the natural rhythm of the breath.
Although at the beginning we are consciously mentally repeating the mantra, ideally we want to allow the mantra to repeat itself. We are simply listening to it, flowing with the breath.

Conclusion

I know, after reading this blog post you might have more questions than answers. Does the breath vibrate with so or with haṁ on the inhalation? Should I practice so'ham or haṁso? Is it haṁso, haṁsa or haṁsaḥ? Should I start with inhalation or exhalation?

No need to get confused. It all depends on which tradition you choose to follow.

If you have a teacher then follow what your teacher has taught you. If you don't have a teacher or don't feel attracted to the teachings of any particular guru, then choose the so'ham mantra, inhaling so and exhaling ham. You can follow the instructions and guided meditations I've shared above.

There are always going to be discrepancies or contradictions when comparing teachings from different gurus, schools, or traditions. This is why the masters always insist that we follow only one teacher, one path, and one sādhana (spiritual practice). In this way, we can avoid mental confusion.

What's important is that we keep in mind where all teachers or gurus agree. So'ham is the mantra of the breath. It is the same haṁsa mantra, and the realization of its meaning, That I am, I am That, is its ultimate purpose.

“Think always "Soham, Soham"; this is almost as good as liberation. Say it day and night; realisation will come as the result of this continuous cogitation. This absolute and continuous remembrance of the Lord is what is meant by Bhakti.” Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, Swami Vivekananda.

In short, either so'ham or haṁsa can be synchronized with the inhalation and exhalation, or the exhalation and inhalation. But the best is to choose one technique and stick to it.

If you like this type of content and if you like to be informed about my online yoga classes make sure you subscribe to my mailing list here. Once you subscribe you'll be able to download my free meditation e-book.

You can also join me on Patreon to support me in creating more awesome free content like this. Thanks for your support!

Additional resources

If you would like to know more, here are some additional resources that I didn't quote but that contain valuable information.

Radha's Spiritual Birth at the Sivananda Ashram in Rishikesh [True Story]

2021-10-24T20:02:00.006+05:30

Have you ever thought of visiting an ashram in India, such as the Sivananda Ashram in Rishikesh? Maybe you are searching for authentic spiritual experiences at the feet of a true guru. Well, before you embark on your spiritual journey let me tell you about this small book that will motivate you even more.

Not another book, please

Recently, a friend suggested that I read the same spiritual book she was reading.

Well, it wasn't just a suggestion. She actually insisted, over and over again that I start reading it, and promised I would love it.

I was hesitant cause I had just received two books I ordered on Amazon, and I have an endless list of books I want to read.

But I said, ”Alright, maybe I'll read it,” and downloaded the free sample on the Kindle app on my iPhone.

Every day she kept asking me though, ”Did you start reading it? Did you start reading it?”

So, of course, I started reading it. Lol.

It didn't take me long to realize that indeed I was going to love this book.

The book, Radha, Diary of a Woman's Search, is the diary of Sylvia Hellman, a German woman who immigrated to Canada in 1951 and later on, in 1955, traveled to India following the call of her guru.

She stayed for six months, from August 1955 until March 1956, with her guru Swami Sivananda at his ashram in Rishikesh, North India.

The book is based on the diary entries she wrote during that period.

It might sound like a brief period but her life was completely transformed in those six months. It was like a spiritual birth for her. When she came back to Canada she even started her own ashram, the Yasodhara Ashram.

If you are interested in the path of the Indian yogis and if at some point you are planning to visit an ashram in Rishikesh, or anywhere in India, or even Canada, then I think you will also love this book.

Letters from a disciple

My friend said that this book was similar to my two favorite books, Taming the Kundalini and Steps to Yoga.

I couldn't see how they would compare. These two books are letters written by a guru, Swami Satyananda, to a few of his close disciples. The letters contain profound teachings and detailed instructions on advanced yoga practices.

Radha's book, on the other side, is just a diary.

But as I started reading it I realized that my friend was right. These diaries are like letters written not only to herself but to all those who would eventually read them.

They include not only the reflections of a disciple, and her experiences living in an Indian ashram, but also the teachings that she was receiving from her guru Swami Sivananda.

And each diary entry is like a small story that is interesting and inspiring to read.

As I moved through the pages, I felt that the stories were getting more and more fascinating, gradually taking you deeper into your own spiritual journey.

Several times I said to myself, “Wow, that's unbelievable!” not because I couldn't believe what she wrote but because her experiences were so profound and mystic. You can see her spiritual destiny unfolding in front of her.

I tried to read just a few pages per day to prolong the pleasure.

Inevitably though, as I was approaching the end of the book I started feeling a bit sad. I didn't want it to end. I wanted to hear more of her experiences and to discover more about Swami Sivananda's true spiritual stature.

While I was reading the book it reminded me of that moment where I talked about Swami Sivananda in one of my travel vlogs, A Spiritual Trip to Varanasi. That's on minute 03:30.

Ashram life memories

It has been a very long time since I visited an ashram in India.

Reading Radha's diary brought me back to those special moments that I have lived at different ashrams. It helped me rediscover my spiritual yearning, faith, and devotion. It even brought some tears of joy and inspiration from time to time.

I have visited about fifteen ashrams in India, but nothing compares to her experience though. She had a great purpose.

Also, when I read about her living conditions I was shocked. I don't think I could have survived at Swami Sivananda's ashram at that time. I'm sure the conditions are much more comfortable today.

A spiritual treasure

This book has become another one of those spiritual treasures to me, a life-changing book. I would compare it not only to those books by Swami Satyananda Saraswati but also with my all-time favorite, Autobiography of a Yogi.

I was actually surprised to discover a connection with the guru lineage of Paramahansa Yogananda in Radha's diary.

As a side note, I would like to share what I read once in one of Swami Satyananda's books. That was during my stay at Bihar School of Yoga, in Munger, back in 2012.

I have no idea what the title of the book was but I think it was a transcription of different discourses given by Swami Satyananda.

Swami Satyananda said in that book that Swami Sivananda was initiated into Kriya Yoga by Babaji himself. Later own Swami Sivananda initiated Swami Satyananda.

When I read that I was like “Wow! Really?” The connections are everywhere.

Unbelievable but believable

One thing I love about Radha's book is that it is written by a westerner with an inquisitive and skeptical mind.

Very often, when I have read or heard stories of gurus, like Swami Sivananda, they seem embellished with too much enthusiasm and devotion that I find them hard to believe.

Her journal entries however are very down to earth. She talks about her own doubts, questions, fears, and frustrations on the spiritual path.

You can also notice that she didn't just believe in Swami Sivananda right away. It was a gradual process, although she had already had a mystical experience that brought her to India especially to meet him.

I also like that the book includes many photos of the moments she describes in her diaries. So when you read an incredible story and then see a photo you are like, “Wow, this really happened to her!”

I don't want to share any more details from the book. I won't even include any quotes like I've done with other book suggestions. It is so brief I think it is best you discover it by yourself.

If you ever decide to visit an ashram in Rishikesh, or anywhere around India, make sure you read this book first. It will give you a lot of inspiration for your journey. You can get it here from Amazon.com (affiliate link).

Don’t forget to also visit my top 10 Yoga Philosophy Books That Will Change Your Life for more book recommendations like this one. I’m sure you’ll find books that you never heard about before.

Be Present with Yourself (Free Guided Meditation)

2021-10-16T07:32:00.001+05:30

Photo by Luka Reedy on Unsplash

Our minds are often so agitated, dissipated, and distracted that we even forget we are here, breathing. Don't you think so? Well, in this guided meditation, we will take a moment to remember ourselves, to become fully present with ourselves like we never had before, experiencing a natural sense of calm and serenity.

Taking a dip into a lake of calm and serenity

Have you ever noticed that sometimes you get so involved with life and everything that needs to be done that you even forget you exist?

I know this happens to me, all the time.

I get so involved with my endless to-do list and my mundane worries that I forget I am here. Not only that, but it seems that I'm scattered into multiple places at the same time, and always on the past or the future.

It is only when I take a pause and sit for my meditation practice when I realize, “Oh yes, here I am.”

This moment of stillness and self-awareness can be so refreshing and nourishing. It's like taking a dip into a lake of calm and serenity that lies within ourselves. I do not know what would be of my life if I didn't take these daily breaks.

The segments of meditation as meditation

Taking a moment to detach yourself from the external distractions and bringing the awareness to the present moment is one of the steps of meditation.

The process of meditation can be divided into different steps or segments, and each one of these segments can become a meditation by itself.

For instance, taking the time to observe our meditation posture and how it affects our mental or emotional state can also be extended into a meditation. This would be a form of mindfulness meditation.

Withdrawing the mind from the external distractions, bringing it to the present moment it's also prelude to what is called pratyāhāra or sense withdrawal. We need to detach from the external environment to be able to withdraw the senses from the sense objects.

One way to do this is by becoming aware of our own presence. When we bring the awareness to our own self, we naturally detach from the external distractions and become present.

Seriously, if you've never tried this before you might become aware of your own presence like you never had before.

So this will be the emphasis on this guided meditation.

We will simply focus on detaching from the external world, collecting the scattered mind from every other time and every other place, and bringing the mind closer and closer to ourselves.

If you would like to give it a try then you can listen to it right here, Be Present With Yourself: Awareness Meditation.

By the way, if you would like to access the meditation script you could support me on Patreon. As one of my patrons you'll get access not only to my meditation scripts but also to my Zoom yoga classes archive, and more.

Releasing Physical or Emotional Pain (Free Guided Meditation)

2021-10-01T17:41:00.001+05:30

Photo by Fernando @cferdo on Unsplash

To release emotional pain such as depression, heartbreak, or despair, mindfulness meditation has proven to be extremely helpful. It can even work to alleviate physical pain. You can try it right now with this free guided meditation, or you can learn more about it in this blog.

Releasing physical or emotional pain

It is inevitable that at some point in our lives we will have to face painful or uncomfortable situations, either physically, mentally, or emotionally.

Our immediate response is usually to run away from the pain, to suppress it, or to control it in any way. We don't want to experience this pain at any cost.

But there is something very powerful about pain, something very profound that can teach us to appreciate it and even welcome it.

Physical or emotional pain is not experienced in the past or in the future. Pain is only experienced in the present moment.

Therefore, the more we try to move away from our depression, heartbreak, or even from our physical pain, the less present we become. The less present we become the more we suffer.

That's because happiness is not experienced by being in the past or the future but rather by being fully aware of the present moment.

So we can actually use whatever painful situation we might be going through, to become fully present. And we can do this by practicing acceptance and surrender in a mindfulness-based meditation session.

To practice acceptance doesn't mean that you want to experience pain. It simply means that you acknowledge its presence, that you recognize that the pain is there, right at this very moment.

Instead of reacting to the pain, or resisting it, you simply accept its existence.

It might still be difficult for us to be ready to accept our pain though. That's why we also practice surrender.

Knowing that right at this very moment we might not be able to change our situation, knowing that we might have to go through this experience for longer than we might want to, instead of resisting it or fight it we simply surrender to it.

Remember, it is impossible to live in the present moment as long as we try to avoid our emotional or physical pain. To be present we need to accept the present as it is.

Acceptance and surrender are actually the best we can do in these situations.

Whenever we resist any painful or uncomfortable situation, whenever we try to run away from pain, we consume our physical and mental energy.

However, acceptance and surrender don't require any effort. Instead, they give us the space and clarity that we might need to realize what we can do about our situation if needed.

Most importantly, by offering no resistance to our pain but rather observing it with this attitude of acceptance and surrender, we might discover that the pain dissolves by itself.

In other words, by welcoming our pain instead of running away from it, it's possible to release, let go or heal our emotional or physical pain. Or at the very least we can reduce the discomfort.

But make sure you don't expect this to happen, otherwise, it wouldn't be a mindfulness meditation anymore. Remember, we want to learn to accept the present as it is. Have zero expectations.

This is not just theoretical. I can assure you it works, I have tried this myself. But there is plenty of research being done on this subject.

According to this article published in Medical News Today, researchers have found that with only 30 minutes of mindfulness, people with no previous meditation experience, reported less physical pain and negative emotions.

So if you are willing to try this approach to help you release physical or emotional pain then please feel free to listen to this guided mindfulness meditation.

If someone you care about is dealing with a painful situation, they might also find it useful so feel free to share it with them as well.

I sincerely hope that this guided meditation will help alleviate any pain that you or your loved ones might be going through. You can listen to it as many times as you like.

Another approach for dealing with emotional pain, such as severe depression, is to transmute it into compassion. I talk about it in my previous blog Transforming Depression into Compassion (Guided Meditation).

Transforming Depression into Compassion (Guided Meditation)

2021-09-24T20:33:00.004+05:30

Photo by Anthony Tran on Unsplash

If you or someone you love is struggling with severe depression then this free guided meditation might help. It can be an intense meditation though, so use it mindfully and according to your needs. If you need to pause or even quit the meditation, please feel free to do that as well.

Meditation for Depression

Usually, the best thing we can do when dealing with severe emotional pain is simply to observe the pain, with an attitude of acceptance and surrender. This is a very effective form of mindfulness meditation. Emotions are too powerful to try to battle with them.

You can read more about this on my following blog, Releasing Physical or Emotional Pain (Free Guided Meditation).

But another thing we can do is to transform our emotional pain into love and compassion for others.

How can we do that?

We just need to realize that right at this very moment there are countless other human beings also struggling with depression, anxiety, and other forms of emotional pain.

So Instead of avoiding our emotional pain, we can use that same pain to connect with all those who suffer.

According to WHO, about 280 million people worldwide suffer from some form of depression. On top of that, today's pandemic has made matters even worst, with the imposed isolation and economical repercussions that we all have had to face.

So you can be certain that there are probably thousands of people around the world experiencing the same pain that you might be experiencing today.

Contemplating this can help us understand not only that we are not alone, but also that there are many others who need as much support as we might need.

That thought alone can move our attention away from our own pain and focus it instead on the welfare of others.

So if you or someone you love needs to hear this, please feel free to use or share this free guided meditation.

Of course, this is not a “cure” for depression. But you can consider it another tool from your toolbox to manage depression.

I hope it will help you to overcome the difficult times that you might be going through at the moment. Sending you my love and support.

If you like this type of content and if you like to be informed about my online classes make sure you subscribe to my mailing list here. Once you subscribe you'll be able to download my free meditation e-book. Thanks for your support!

How to STOP Thinking About Your Breathing

2021-08-22T15:40:00.003+05:30

Photo by Cooper Baumgartner on Unsplash

A not so common issue when we start pranayama, breathwork, or when we simply do mindful breathing during a yoga class, is that sometimes it seems that we forget how to breathe. This can feel very uncomfortable and preoccupying. So here are a few simple tips to stop thinking about the breath and to allow it to become natural again.

When breath awareness becomes an obsession

Some meditation or pranayama teachers recommend that we should try to be aware of the breath at all times. In my opinion, this is not very good advice, at least not for people who tend to struggle with anxiety.

I know, that might sound ironic since people start these practices to deal with anxiety and stress.

Well, it is important to focus on the breath when practicing meditation, yoga or when doing different breathing practices. But after the practice is completed it's best to forget about breath and let if flow naturally, otherwise you risk becoming obsessed with it.

Seriously, if you start watching your breath constantly, you might reach a point where you can't stop thinking about your breath.

When this happens, the breath does not feel natural anymore, but it seems to require our will to keep it going. It becomes mechanical.

That's because we are not just observing the breath but we are constantly thinking about the breath and doing the breath, even if we don't want to.

This can feel very uncomfortable and can be troublesome, especially for people dealing with anxiety, as it can generate more anxiety or even a panic attack.

This obsession over the breath can also be the result of an episode of stress. Or because of going too far with different pranayamas or breathwork techniques that might affect the breathing pattern.

Or it can happen from anything that makes you aware of the breathing process, like reading a book about breathing for instance.

Whenever I'm reading a book that has anything to do with breathing I become constantly aware of my breath, with every page I read, until I finish the book.

The same thing happened when I wrote the last two blog articles, which were related to diaphragmatic breathing.

Luckily, since I am very familiar with abdominal and diaphragmatic breathing, this does not become an issue for me anymore. Although I might be constantly aware of the breath, it does feel natural and free.

But in the past, a situation like this would make my breath feel mechanical and restricted, and I would become anxious and agitated. I just couldn't stop thinking about it.

This is how I came up with the tips I mention below. I have tried them all so I can assure you, they all work. By following one or more of these tips, my breath would return, with a bit of time, to its normal automatic flow.

How to stop thinking about breathing

If you are struggling with this, don't be alarmed. Stay calm. There is nothing to worry about. All you need to do is forget about the breath to allow it to resume its natural rhythm.

I know, the problem is that you can't forget about the breath. So here are a few simple things you can do to stop constantly thinking about your breath.

Go for a fast run, do HIIT or any physical exercise, with intensity. You will still be conscious of your breath during exercise, as the breathing rate increases. But after you finish your workout you will relax and forget about the breath. The breath will resume its natural rhythm without any effort then. I've tried this many times and it always works.
If you like singing then this is the best time to try your favorite tunes out loud. Don't be shy, it does help and it will also have a positive impact on your mood.
Focus on any engaging activity that you like, like playing a musical instrument, painting, cooking, gardening, and so on.
Have social interactions. Talking with friends live, or via video call, will easily help you forget about your breath and about your problems in general. Guaranteed. Text messaging doesn't count. You want to use your voice, and you want to see the other person's body language.
Watch a good movie. Maybe not a scary movie, or one with too much suspense. That could make things worse. Lol.
Practice a few rounds of kapalabhati, without any breath retention. This is a very effective way to allow the breath to resume its normal rhythm, especially when the issue was caused by a too intense pranayama practice. Been there, done that.
Practice belly breathing while laying on your back. Like I mention in my previous blog, this is an excellent antidote against anxiety. The breath will naturally relax in this posture. Just make sure you are not doing chest breathing.
Practice systematic relaxation while laying on your back. Here you don't think about the breath but rather focus on moving the awareness through each body part. You can try it right now with this free guided relaxation.
Learn diaphragmatic breathing. Once your diaphragmatic breathing is established, even if you keep watching your breath for a long time, it won't be a problem. It will always feel comfortable. The problem is when the breath doesn't feel comfortable. That's what makes us more anxious and agitated.

Conclusion: Stay calm

If you've been struggling with this issue then I hope this blog post will help you to breathe naturally and automatically again. But until that happens, please, DON'T WORRY. Stay calm. Live your life and I can assure you that the breath will eventually resume its natural flow.

The worst thing that you can do is to worry about it. The more you worry, the more obsessed about the breath you'll become. Don't even try to stop thinking about it. Just let it be. But following the tips I mentioned above will definitely help. Trust me.

How to do Diaphragmatic Breathing: 7 Simple Exercises [with Script in PDF]

2021-08-09T14:45:00.006+05:30

For most people, belly breathing is very easy to learn. Diaphragmatic breathing, on the other side, requires a bit more practice.

So in this blog, I'll share with you a sequence of simple breathing exercises that you can practice to do diaphragmatic breathing properly.

In my previous blog, I talked in detail about the differences between belly breathing and diaphragmatic breathing, and what their benefits are. I encourage you to read that article first so that you can clear any doubts you might have.

Meanwhile, just keep in mind that whenever I mention diaphragmatic breathing, I'm referring to thoraco-diaphragmatic breathing (or diaphragmatic ribcage breathing), and not just belly breathing.

How to do diaphragmatic breathing

The breathing sequence below is based primarily on what I've learned from my teachers at the Himalayan Yoga Tradition in India. It is the same sequence I use during my online pranayama classes. I've written it down as a script so that you can use it on your own.

I also created a free PDF with a Diaphragmatic Breathing Training Guide based on the script below.

I teach this sequence in a mindful and meditative way to learn not only how to engage the diaphragm properly, but also to induce a sense of calm and tranquility.

It takes about 30 minutes. The whole pranayama class takes 75 minutes.

If you would like to join my online yoga classes, you can also join my mailing list so that you can be notified of my weekly schedule.

Whenever you try this sequence on your own, make sure that you are breathing through the nose at all times. Nose breathing and diaphragmatic breathing go hand in hand.

Observing the breath in prone position

1. Lying down in makarāsana (crocodile pose)

Lie on the abdomen and keep the chest lifted by keeping the elbows bent, shoulder-distance apart, at a 45-degree angle from the armpits.
Rest the forehead on the forearms.
Keep the legs apart and relaxed, with the feet pointing outwards.
Relax the neck, shoulders, back muscles, hip joints, legs, ankles, and feet.
Allow the whole body to relax.
Feel the pressure of the abdomen against the floor while you observe the movement of the breath.
Notice how this pressure changes during inhalation and exhalation.
Then try to notice the movement of the side body and back body, expanding on the inhalation and contracting on the exhalation.
Do this for about 7 minutes

This posture, called makarasana or crocodile pose, is very important for developing the diaphragmatic breath.

By lying down on the abdomen, we simulate the intra-abdominal pressure (explained in my previous blog), which forces the breath to move to the side body and the back body.

Additionally, by keeping the chest lifted, this posture naturally prevents upper chest breathing.

Observing the breath in supine position

2. Lying down in shavāsana (corpse pose)

Now turn your body and lie down on your back.
Keep the legs about 30 degrees apart from each other.
Place the right hand on the belly and the left hand on the chest (the order of the hands is not important).
Keep the arms relaxed with the elbows resting on the mat.
Observe the natural breath by observing the right hand rising on the inhalation and falling back down on the exhalation.
At the same time, make sure there is no movement on the left hand. In other words, no movement on the chest.
Continue observing the natural breath for about 7 minutes.

When we lie down on our backs, we will naturally breathe only with the abdomen. So this becomes belly breathing and not diaphragmatic breathing. But it is still beneficial and important to practice.

This breathing exercise is both a form of breath awareness practice and a relaxation exercise. I recommend you try this at home whenever you are struggling with anxiety or stress.

I teach this simple breathing technique to induce a deep state of relaxation, to remove any fatigue, and as a transition before sitting up. This is all necessary for practicing pranayama.

To be able to actually practice diaphragmatic breathing when lying down on our backs, we would need to place a sandbag (or some other heavy object ) on the abdomen. The idea is to restrict the movement of the abdomen.

This is not very practical during online classes, so we simply focus on abdominal breathing.

3. Deep abdominal breathing

After a few minutes, while still lying down on our backs, we practice deep abdominal rhythmic breathing.

Breathe in to the count of five, allowing the belly to expand fully
Breathe out to the count of five, allowing the belly to relax completely
Breathe slowly and deeply using only the belly. Make sure there is no movement on the chest
Do this seven times.
After seven times, return to the natural breath

Deep abdominal and rhythmic breathing can help to remove irregularities from the breath. It can also help to enter an even deeper state of relaxation, especially after you return to the natural breath.

I recommend you try this breathing exercise whenever you are having trouble falling asleep. It works wonders.

Feel free to increase the count if that's more comfortable for you. You can also increase the number of repetitions if you wish.

4. Complete breath

Then we practice the complete breath.

Breathe in to the count of eight.
Start with the belly up till the count of five, and then continue with the chest till the count of eight.
Allow the chest to expand fully so that you can inhale to your full lung capacity
Breathe out to the count of eight, allowing the lungs to empty completely.
Do this five times.
After five times, return to the natural breath

The idea of this exercise is to gain control and become familiar with the difference between belly breathing and chest breathing.

It also helps to energize the body before we sit up, after several minutes of lying on our backs.

Observing the breath in sitting position

After observing the breath for several minutes in a prone and in a supine position, we move to a sitting posture.

This is where many people have difficulties.

In my experience, although most people will be able to easily practice diaphragmatic breathing when lying down on the belly or on the back, the moment they sit up, they immediately start breathing with the chest.

I have seen this even among advanced yoga practitioners.

The reason, I believe, is because of a lack of practice sitting crossed-legged on the floor, and also because of not knowing how to sit with the back straight and upright. That's why I always encourage my students to sit on a chair if needed.

You can visit my previous blog How to Sit for Meditation and Pranayama [with a Straight Back] to get some suggestions for finding a comfortable posture.

If we struggle with the sitting posture, it will create tension in the body and, therefore, tension in the breath. This discomfort is also going to force us to breathe with the chest.

Whatever sitting posture we use, it should feel so steady and comfortable that it allows the body to relax completely without losing alignment. This will allow the breath to move freely in the abdominal area.

Besides this, we also need to make sure the breath feels very relaxed, soft, effortless, and spacious. It should be silent, continuous, and at all times through the nostrils.

Having this in mind, this is what we do when sitting up.

5. Right hand on the upper abdomen. Left hand on the chest

Sit comfortably with the back straight and upright.
Keep the head, neck, and spine in alignment.
Maintain the natural curvature of the spine, keeping the lower abdomen slightly in.
Place the right hand on the upper abdomen and the left hand on the chest (the order of the hands is not important).
Observe the natural breath.
Notice how the belly pushes the right hand out during the inhalation.
Notice how the belly moves back in during the exhalation.
Make sure there is no movement on the left hand or the upper chest.
Make sure there is no movement on the shoulders.
Do this for about two minutes.

In this exercise, we could be doing either belly breathing or diaphragmatic breathing. That's why it is important to sit properly, keeping the lower abdomen in, to make sure we are actually breathing diaphragmatically.

Our main focus here, though, is on making sure that there is no movement on the upper chest. The next exercise will ensure we fully engage the diaphragm.

6. Left hand behind on the mid back

After a couple of minutes, move the left hand behind, to the mid-back. So the right hand is on the upper abdomen and the back of the left hand on the mid-back.
Notice how the mid-back expands during the inhalation, pushing the left hand out.
Notice how the mid-back contracts during the exhalation, allowing the hand to move back in.
Try to feel both the upper abdomen and the mid-back, expanding and contracting with each breath.
Make sure there is no tension on the back and no movement on the spine.
Do this for about two minutes.

This is the most difficult step, but it is also the most important. It is here where we actually feel the three-dimensional movement that characterizes the diaphragmatic breath.

If you feel no movement in the mid-back, you just need to bring your full awareness to this area and imagine that you are breathing in and out through it.

Eventually, you will start feeling the mid-back expanding and contracting.

7. Hands on the lower ribs

Now place your hands on the lower ribs, just above the waist.
Feel the breath moving deeply into the bottom part of the lungs.
Notice how the lower ribs expand on the inhalation.
Notice how the lower ribs contract on the exhalation.
Make sure there is no movement on the upper chest and shoulders.
Do this for about two minutes.

Here we are ensuring that the movement is in all three dimensions, not only the upper abdomen and back body, but also the side body.

After this, you can relax your arms down, placing your hands on the thighs or knees, and continue observing the breath for as long as you wish.

Conclusion

If you practice these breathing exercises regularly, you will certainly experience the many benefits of diaphragmatic breathing.

You will also understand, based on your own personal experience, the differences between belly breathing and diaphragmatic breathing.

Like I mentioned in my previous blog, diaphragmatic breathing is the foundation for meditation and pranayama. That's why I always start my pranayama classes with this sequence.

But not only that. Diaphragmatic breathing is also crucial for mental and physical health, and even for physical performance. So anybody can benefit from learning how to breathe diaphragmatically.

If you would like to join my online classes, you can subscribe to my mailing list here to be notified of my weekly schedule. Once you subscribe, you'll be able to download my free meditation e-book.

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Belly Breathing vs. Diaphragmatic Breathing: What is the Difference?

2021-08-01T19:30:00.002+05:30

Although belly breathing is usually equated to diaphragmatic breathing, offering a long list of benefits, there are some limitations to it that are rarely known. Belly breathing can actually be detrimental in some aspects and it does not necessarily engage the diaphragm to its full extent.

Diaphragmatic breathing, on the other side, is not only the foundation for meditation and pranayama practices but is also crucial for our mental and physical health and even for physical performance. So let's discover what is the difference between belly breathing and diaphragmatic breathing and which one is best.

The benefits of diaphragmatic breathing

I think it is a bit misleading to talk about the benefits of diaphragmatic breathing as if this was some sort of therapy or a new way to breathe. Diaphragmatic breathing is simply the natural way to breathe.

What we actually do when we learn how to breathe using the diaphragm is that we unlearn erroneous and unhealthy breathing habits.

By unlearning these unhealthy breathing habits we remove the cause of innumerable issues that affect our mental and physical health.

That being clarified, once our diaphragmatic breathing is established we can experience innumerable benefits.

This study published by NCBI suggests that diaphragmatic breathing increases sustain attention, reduces negative emotions, and reduces cortisol levels.

Some other websites such as Healthline, Medical News Today, Cleveland Clinic, and Physiopedia, suggest a long list of benefits.

reduced stress and anxiety
induces a state of relaxation
lower heart rate and blood pressure
better able to cope with post-traumatic stress disorder
better able to handle stressful situations
improved sleep
improved blood circulation
improves the stability of core muscles
slows down the breathing rate

Although all these websites talk only about belly breathing when they mention diaphragmatic breathing, with a couple of exceptions I think all these benefits can be attributed to both types of breathing. I will discuss this more in detail below.

Unhealthy breathing habits

We all know how to breathe diaphragmatically from the moment when we are born. Unfortunately, with time, stress, life challenges, and traumatic events start affecting our breathing patterns.

We might start breathing through our mouths, erratically, rapidly, and shallowly. We will talk about this in a future blog.

Other unhealthy breathings habits that we develop are related to the muscles and body parts we engage during the breathing process. These are usually labeled clavicular breathing, chest breathing, and paradoxical breathing.

These forms of breathing affect our nervous system making us more susceptible to anxiety and stress. They shorten our lifespan. They affect our immune system, causing inflammation. They affect the quality of sleep. They affect our mental clarity and physical performance and so much more.

Luckily, with a bit of practice, by learning how to engage the diaphragm properly using belly breathing and diaphragmatic breathing, we can reverse all these negative effects.

What is clavicular breathing

You'll know that you are doing clavicular breathing when you notice the shoulders moving up and down with each breath.

It's the most inefficient and harmful way to breathe. It uses only the top part of the lungs and it forces us to increase our breathing rate. It provides little oxygenation and creates tension in the neck and shoulders.

I think clavicular breathing should be avoided at all costs, even while exercising. That's why I disagree with this passage from Science of Breath: a Practical Guide (It's still an excellent book though. I would recommend you to read it).

“The third type of inhalation, clavicular, is only significant when the maximum amount of air is needed, for example, during vigorous exercise. [...] Clavicular breathing only comes into play when the body’s oxygen demands are great.”

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I'm not a professional athlete but in my experience, if you breathe through your nose and diaphragmatically there is NEVER the need to engage the clavicular region for breathing.

Even if I train to my peak intensity, for instance when running uphill as fast as I can or when doing numerous burpees, I never have to use clavicular breathing and/or mouth breathing.

If you feel the need to breathe lifting the clavicles or through your mouth when exercising, that means that you are not using the diaphragm properly and that you have gone way beyond your capacity.

In that case, I think it is better to reduce the intensity of your workout.

But if you are using diaphragmatic breathing from the beginning of your workout, your capacity will be increased and you will NOT feel the need for clavicular breathing at all.

Believe me, there is plenty of space for oxygen in the bottom part of the lungs.

The only moment that I can think of when it is necessary to use clavicular breathing is when practicing the complete breath (full yogic breathing), or when training for apnea.

When practicing yogic breathing the idea is to keep the elasticity of the lungs by filling them up to their full capacity, from time to time.

Divers on the other side, need to maximize their full lung capacity. So they need to breathe into every corner of their lungs to increase the amount of air they can breathe and hold.

And since it takes time to fill up the lungs completely to reach the clavicular region, these breathing exercises are usually performed slowly and always starting from bottom to top.

So if you engage the clavicular region for breathing when working out, this means not only that you are breathing too fast, but that you have started with chest breathing instead of diaphragmatic breathing.

What is chest breathing and paradoxical breathing

In chest breathing, also called thoracic breathing, the upper chest lifts and drops with each breath. It usually goes hand in hand with paradoxical breathing.

For the chest to expand and lift during the inhalation the belly must move in, and for the chest to relax during the exhalation the belly must move out. This movement of the belly is called paradoxical breathing as it is the opposite of what the natural movement should be.

Chest breathing stimulates the stress response. It is perhaps a necessary way to breathe when we need to “fight or flight” to escape a life-threatening situation. But it is unnecessary at every other time.

Breathing with the chest repeatedly and long term is taxing for our nervous system which will lead to health issues, and it's also an inefficient way to breathe.

“Chest breathing fills the middle and upper portion of the lungs with air but is not as efficient with the lower portion. When the body is upright, however, most of the blood is in the lower, gravity-dependent areas, so air is not mixed as thoroughly with blood if breathing is done by expanding the ribs.

Chest breathing also requires more work to accomplish the same blood/gas mixing than does slow, deep, diaphragmatic breathing. Since more work is required, more oxygen is needed, resulting in one’s taking more frequent breaths. Finally, more blood needs to circulate through the lungs, requiring more work from the heart.”

––Swami Rama, Rudolph Ballentine, Alan Hymes. Science of Breath: A Practical Guide.

Patrick McKeown, in his book The Oxygen Advantage, says:

“The fast upper-chest breathing of people who chronically hyperventilate does not take advantage of the lower parts of the lungs, limiting the amount of oxygen that can be transferred to the blood and resulting in a greater loss of CO2. Not only this, but upper-chest breathing activates the fight-or-flight response, which raises stress levels and produces even heavier breathing.”––Patrick McKeown. The Oxygen Advantage.

Now, I do think it is perfectly fine to engage the chest when we do intense physical exercise since the demand for oxygen and expulsion of CO2 increases.

But in my opinion, this should happen only after the diaphragmatic movement is complete.

In other words, the breath should always start at the bottom part of the lungs by engaging the diaphragm properly. When you do this you'll notice that you'll rarely need to engage the chest, and if you do it will only be a partial activation.

It is also natural to engage the rib cage while assuming different body postures, for instance when practicing hatha yoga.

You can test this out.

Lift the arms sideways with straight elbows on an inhalation until you bring the palms of the hands together above the head. You will notice that this movement will naturally engage the whole ribcage, and that is perfectly fine.

One of the purposes of yoga postures is to mobilize and expand the ribcage, and therefore the lungs so that we are able to take deeper breaths.

The problem with chest breathing and clavicular breathing is when they are performed unconsciously, continuously, and for a long period of time.

The difference between belly and diaphragmatic breathing

Although all major medical sites such Healthline, Medical News Today, Cleveland Clinic, Mayoclinic, and Harvard Medical School equate diaphragmatic breathing to belly breathing, I'll make a distinction between them in this blog.

The reason is that, contrary to what this Medical News Today article says, in belly breathing the lungs are not filled more efficiently since the side and back body are not properly activated.

In other words, the difference between belly breathing and diaphragmatic breathing is that diaphragmatic breathing allows for even deeper breaths than belly breathing by engaging the side and back body.

This will be made more clear once you read the diaphragmatic breathing section below.

I learned about this difference for the first time from my teachers at the Himalayan Yoga Tradition in India. This distinction is rarely made even in the most popular yoga books though.

Author H. David Coulter does make a distinction in his book Anatomy of Hatha Yoga (Amazon.com).

Sometimes he refers to belly breathing as abdomino-diaphragmatic breathing, and diaphragmatic breathing as thoraco-diaphragmatic breathing. This is because both forms of breathing do engage the diaphragm, although differently.

Iyengar Yoga teacher, Roger Cole, in this article published in Yoga Journal, calls them diaphragmatic belly breathing and diaphragmatic ribcage breathing.

“But if performed properly, it [diaphragmatic rib cage breathing] is calming and much more powerful for strengthening the diaphragm, deepening the inhalation, stretching the lungs, and more effectively aerating all parts of the lungs.”

For simplicity, just like my teachers, in this blog I'll refer to them as belly breathing and diaphragmatic breathing. Now, let's explore in detail what are the characteristics of each of these two forms of breathing.

What is belly or abdominal breathing

In belly breathing, also called abdominal breathing, the belly moves in and out with each breath while the chest and shoulders remain relaxed and still.

On the exhalation, as the diaphragm relaxes assuming its dome-like shape, the abdomen moves in.

On the inhalation, as the diaphragm descends pushing down the abdominal organs, the abdomen moves out.

This is a very good form of breathing and a huge step forward from chest breathing and clavicular breathing.

It easily induces a state of relaxation as it stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, and therefore the relaxation response, massaging the vagus nerve.

“By utilizing the natural benefits of abdominal breathing you will improve the quality of your blood flow, increase delivery of oxygen to working muscles, and reduce the symptoms of anxiety associated with overbreathing.”––Patrick McKeown, The Oxygen Advantage

This is why belly or abdominal breathing is an excellent antidote to anxiety and stress. And the best of all is that it is very easy to practice. You can do it while laying down on your back or while sitting on a chair.

If you want to test how it works you could try this free guided meditation where we focus on belly breathing for stress and anxiety relief.

Belly breathing is also a much more efficient way to breathe compared to chest or clavicular breathing since it uses the lower portion of the lungs.

“Abdominal breathing is more efficient simply because of the shape of the lungs. Since they are narrow at the top and wider at the bottom, the amount of blood flow in the lower lobes of the lungs is greater than in the upper lobes.”––Patrick McKeown. The Oxygen Advantage.

That being said, there are some limitations to belly breathing.

The limitations of belly breathing

Mental Dullness

In my opinion, one of the issues with belly breathing is that although it is deeply relaxing it is also conducive to falling asleep.

Well, this is great if that's what you are trying to do.

Whenever I'm having trouble falling asleep I practice abdominal breathing for a couple of minutes while laying down on my bed. It works wonders.

But if the work you do requires concentration and mental clarity, belly breathing might not be the best way to breathe.

This is especially the case when practicing meditation or pranayama. You don't want to fall asleep during your practice but rather remain fully alert and awake.

I definitely agree with what Gregor Maehle says in his book Pranayama the Breath of Yoga:

“However, during pranayama and meditation it [exclusive abdominal breathing] is not helpful, as it makes the mind too tamasic – dull and torpid. It keeps the prana low down in the abdomen, whereas the yogi seeks to transport prana up to the higher energy centres (chakras).”

David Coulter in Anatomy of Hatha Yoga says

“Abdominal breathing, or abdomino-diaphragmatic breathing, brings your attention to the lower abdomen. If you sit with it for a while in meditation you will be relaxed, but your attention will be drawn to the pelvis and the base of the torso. It is a good technique for beginners, but in the long run it results in a depressed, overly relaxed sensation.”

This is why the sitting posture is really important when practicing meditation and pranayama. To be able to engage properly the diaphragm it is necessary to keep the spine straight and upright.

You can read more about the importance of the posture in my previous blogs:

Physical weakness

Another issue that I find with too much belly breathing is that you lose the activation of the lower abdomen. If the lower abdomen is constantly relaxed this could have negative consequences on your health.

For instance, if you make a physical effort to lift a heavy object, while you keep the lower abdomen relaxed, it might lead to injuries like a hernia or a slipped disc. On top of that, you will have less strength to do this physical effort.

Gregor Maehle says

“Exclusive abdominal breathing weakens your abdominal muscles, which are important stabilizers of the spine. It also makes your abdominal organs distend, your belly protrude and your thorax become rigid; worst of all, it makes your mind tamasic (inert, dull, heavy).”––Gregor Maehle. Pranayama The Breath of Yoga.

This is why one of the benefits all these medical sites suggest as “improves stability of core muscles” does not apply to belly breathing. It only applies to diaphragmatic breathing as described below.

Writing this reminds me that some people avoid belly breathing because they fear it will make them fat.

No, belly breathing won't make you fat. But if the abdomen is constantly fully relaxed it might give that appearance. In my opinion, a protruding abdomen can be a sign of physical weakness and instability.

This is not the case with diaphragmatic breathing though.

What is diaphragmatic breathing

In diaphragmatic breathing the upper abdomen, the lower ribs (side body), and the mid-back expand and contract with each breath. This is a three-dimensional movement, in contrast with abdominal breathing where only the belly expands and contracts.

Since the diaphragm is attached not only to the sternum and lower ribs but also to the spine, when we breathe using this three-dimensional movement, the lower lobs of the lungs are also expanded in all directions.

This is a much more efficient way to breathe, even better than abdominal breathing since we use fully the lower lobs of the lungs.

The lower lobs of the lungs is the larger part of the lungs, especially towards the back body, and is where there is more concentration of blood due to gravity. So there is better oxygenation when we breathe diaphragmatically.

This is why I mentioned before that diaphragmatic breathing allows for even deeper breaths than belly breathing.

You can test this by yourself.

Once you start engaging the diaphragm properly to create this three-dimensional movement, you will notice that your breath becomes deeper, longer, and slower without having to engage the chest. Each breath will feel even more satisfying and joyful.

This three-dimensional movement is achieved by a slight activation of the lower abdomen.

Here is a very interesting passage from the book Letters from the Yoga Masters by Marion McConnell related to having a controlled abdomen when practicing pranayama.

“Hari learned from Swami Kuvalayananda that in order to acquire the most oxygen value from your breathing, you must have a controlled abdomen. It may seem that a relaxed, protracted abdomen during inhalation would permit the diaphragm to descend lower and result in a greater expansion of the rib cage and intake of oxygen.

However, after numerous experiments measuring pressure changes in pranayama, Swami Kuvalayananda and his fellow scientists at Kaivalyadhama Ashram found that “one is able to inhale larger quantities of oxygen when the abdomen is kept controlled than when the abdomen is kept protracted.””

Further, she writes.

“They found that although the diaphragm descends lower with the protracted abdomen, the ribs also become depressed, thus limiting the advantage gained by the lower descent of the diaphragm. The scientists at Kaivalyadhama Ashram recommended this controlled abdomen in all pranayamas except ones like kapalabhati and bhastrika, in which the abdominal muscles are required for the quick, successive exhalations.”

The discussion in this passage makes reference to the practice of the complete breath (full yogic breathing) where the yogi fills up the lung to its maximum capacity. But this ”controlled abdomen“ is necessary also when inhaling only to a comfortable and natural capacity.

This engagement of the abdomen makes diaphragmatic breathing a bit more active than abdominal breathing yet at the same time relaxing. This is necessary for meditation and pranayama to be able to remain fully alert and conscious during the whole practice.

In my experience, when we practice meditation, or in our day-to-day life, this activation of the lower abdomen is effortless. There is no tension at all. It happens naturally as you bring the awareness to your back body and lower ribs, making sure you are breathing into those places.

Diaphragmatic breathing and physical exercise

When doing physical exercise or when practicing yoga postures, the activation of the abdomen is more deliberate and conscious. This engagement of the abdomen creates something called Intra Abdominal Pressure.

This pressure gives stability to the spine and it also helps to generate strength. The more physical effort you make the more you want to increase the intra abdominal pressure.

Pavel Tsatsouline, an authority on strength training, talks in his book The Naked Warrior about power breathing, a type of breathing that maximizes the intra-abdominal pressure in order to amplify physical strength.

“As long as the contents of your stomach are compressed—you are power breathing.”

“Whenever you exert yourself, always start tensing in your lower abdomen. Then send that tension outward to be amplified by the tension of the muscles closer and closer to the periphery.”

“Think of your brain as a CD player. Think of your muscles as the speakers. Where do you think the amplifier is? In your stomach. Special receptors measure the intra abdominal pressure and act as the “volume control knob.” When the IAP bottoms out, the tension in all your muscles drops off.”

“On the other hand, when the internal pressure goes up, your nervous system gets more excited and the nerve cells supplying your muscles become superconductors of the commands from your brain. So, by cranking up the IAP volume knob, you will automatically get noticeably stronger —in every muscle in your body and with any exercise!”

Diaphragmatic breathing and Uddiyana Bandha

This Intra Abdominal Pressure is going to sound very familiar to those who practice ashtanga vinyasa yoga.

In this yoga method, the practitioner is advised to keep the lower abdomen engaged throughout the practice. This engagement of the abdomen is called here uddiyana bandha.

By keeping the abdomen in, combining it with the lift of the pelvic floor, we protect and provide stability to the spine, prevent hernias and generate strength. At the same time we are able to take deeper breaths and remain calm, and centered.

Although I've heard some teachers saying that we should breathe with the chest in Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, I believe this is completely incorrect. The last thing that we want to do when we practice yoga is to breathe with the chest (upper chest).

Besides, there is no need at all to breathe with the chest if you are using the diaphragm properly.

By keeping the lower abdomen engaged this simply allows for the expansion and contraction of the upper abdomen, mid-back, and lower ribs, which is nothing but the effect of the full diaphragmatic movement.

Even if we fully engage the abdomen, as we require more control and strength, we can still feel the expansion of the lower ribs and back body.

When we breathe in this way, using the bottom part of the lungs, there is no need to engage the upper chest. You only need to engage the upper chest if you want to take a complete breath. But that's not necessary at all when practicing yoga.

By the way, in classical hatha yoga, the same term uddiyana bandha refers to a different technique where we firmly suck the abdomen in after a complete exhalation. It should not be confused with the technique mentioned here.

Conclusion: Diaphragmatic Breathing vs Belly Breathing.

Both belly breathing and diaphragmatic breathing provide innumerable benefits for our mental and physical health.

Belly breathing is easy to learn, so it is ideal for beginners and people who are accustomed to chest or clavicular breathing.

Diaphragmatic breathing, on the other side, requires some practice. However, it provides even more benefits than belly breathing since it utilizes fully the bottom part of the lungs.

This is why diaphragmatic breathing is ideal for mental clarity, core stability, endurance, and physical strength.

How to practice diaphragmatic breathing

In my next blog, I will share with you a sequence of simple breathing exercises that you can use to learn how to breathe using the diaphragm properly.

I teach this sequence online via Zoom, in a mindful and meditative way, to learn not only how to breathe properly but also to induce a sense of calm and tranquility.

If you would like to join my online classes you can sign up to my mailing list here so that you can be notified of my weekly schedule. Once you sign up you'll also be able to download my free meditation e-book.

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.