By Dennis Lewis
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Acknowledgments ix Introduction 1 The Mystery of Ourselves 9 A Sense of Infinite Potential 13 Working with Your Breath Begins with Awareness 14 Check in on Your Breathing 15 Our Breath Connects Us with All of Life 17 Our Breath Connects Our Inner and Outer Worlds 18 The Freedom of Simple Presence 19 We Can Only Find Meaning and Happiness Now and Here 21 Learning to Live in the Present Moment 22 What Do You Really Want? 24 The Longing for Relationship 25 Following Your Inhalation and Exhalation 26 Being Inspired and Expired 27 The Importance of Breathing through Your Nose 28 Breathing and Walking 30 Carbon Dioxide Regulates Our Breathing 31 The World of Sensation 32 Densities of Sensation 34 Finding a Comfortable, Erect Sitting Posture 35 Going Deeper through the Sensation of Your Breath 37 Becoming Free from Your Automatic Thoughts and Emotional Reactions 38 Do Less and Listen More 38 Contradictory Motivations 40 Self-Sensing and the Breath 42 Breathing Inside the Sensation of Yourself 44 Following Your Breath into Silence 45 Sensing the Welcoming Presence 46 What Was Your Original Face? 47 Living with the Questions 48 Touching the Unknown in Ourselves 49 Looking toward the No-Thing that You Are 50 Noticing that You Often Hold Your Breath 51 Frequent Breath Holding Reveals a Fundamental Disharmony 52 Following Your Breath through the Transitions in Your Life 53 Your Body Has Many Breathing Spaces 54 Observing the Tension in Your Eyes, Face, and Throat 56 Becoming More Aware of Your Eyes 57 Relaxing Your Eyes 58 Becoming More Aware of Your Jaw and Throat 59 Relaxing Your Jaw and Throat 60 Awakening Your Center of Gravity in the Breathing Space of the Belly 62 Allowing Your Belly to Expand and Retract on Inhalation and Exhalation 63 Finding Your True Center of Gravity with the Earth’s Help 64 Feeling Your Weight Being Supported by the Earth 66 Tension in Your Pelvic Floor Muscles Impedes Your Connection to the Earth 67 Constrictions in Your Pelvic Floor Muscles Impede Your Breathing 69 Squatting to Become More Aware of Your Pelvic Muscles 70 Working with Your Perineum to Open up Your Breathing 71 Breathing from Your Pelvic Floor 72 Living in Front of Ourselves 74 Sensing Your Spine 76 Hug Yourself 77 Organic Relaxation 79 Awakening the Spine 80 Stretching, Breathing, and Opening from Your Core 82 The “Vitruvian Man” Position 83 The Smile of Compassion 85 Smile, Stretch, and Breathe 86 Negativity: A Rejection of What Is 88 The Childhood Breath 89 The Diaphragm: the Spiritual Muscle 91 How the Diaphragm Works 93 How Your Belly Impacts Your Diaphragm 94 Learning to Listen to the Functioning of the Diaphragm 96 Filling a Cup that Is Already Full 98 Exhaling Consciously 100 The Emptiness of Presence 101 Common Obstacles to Working with Your Breath 102 Releasing Constrictions and Increasing Energy in the Upper Chest and Spine 104 Being Lifted by the Breath of Presence 106 We Are Two-Natured Beings 108 The Conscious Body 110 Connecting Heaven and Earth 111 Awakening to Who You Already Are 114