Mindfulness of Breathing

Steps 1 and 2

The Anapana practice begins, appropriately, with two steps which involve knowing our in-breaths and out-breaths, the practice which gives it its name. The Pāli word āna means breathing in, or an in-breath, and apāna means breathing out, or an out-breath. When joined together these two words become ānāpāna, breathing in and out.

Steps 1 and 2 simply involve knowing each in- and out-breath. When we are aware of our breathing, there is no difficulty about that. We know each time we breathe in or out. So what these two steps ask for is that we bring awareness to our breathing, much as we did in Exercise 2

Here are the first two steps of Anapana practice.

1. When breathing in a deep breath one knows, “I'm breathing in a deep breath;”
when breathing out a deep breath one knows, “I'm breathing out a deep breath.”

2. When breathing in a shallow breath one knows, “I'm breathing in a shallow breath;”
when breathing out a shallow breath one knows, “I'm breathing out a shallow breath.”

Knowing the breath

It may sound obvious, but please notice that the only thing these two steps ask us to do is to know each in-breath and each out-breath, just the way it is. Whether it's a deep breath or a shallow breath doesn't matter. All we do is to know it, just the way it is.

These steps are not asking us to change the way we're breathing. These are not breathing exercises, but exercises in awareness, in knowing. We don't practice deep breathing or shallow breathing. We just breathe, and simply know each breath for what it is. Anapana practice begins with Mindfulness of Body, and knowing each breath is the way it introduces that.

Where do we know, or feel, each breath?

Some meditation practices ask us to be very precise in where we are aware of the breath. Should it be at the tip of the nostrils, in the nasal passages, in the rising and falling of the chest, in the tightening and relaxing of the diaphragm, or in some other sensation? Notice that Steps 1 and 2 of our text don't go into anything like that sort of detail. What these steps ask of us is very general, just that we know each in-breath and each out-breath. As you do that, you'll probably notice the pause between one breath and the next, like we did in Exercise 2.

This means you can know each breath wherever you like. You can feel it in any of these places, or in all of them. Since Step 3 will ask us to broaden our experience even further, you may like to feel the whole effect of each breath, in much of the upper body.

Knowing deep and shallow breaths

Why does the text cover awareness of breathing in two steps rather than one? The only advance these two steps make upon Exercise 2 is that we notice when our breathing is deep, and when it's shallow. The Pāli text uses two words more usually translated as "long" and "short". In English we don't usually talk about long breaths and short breaths. More usually we talk about deep and shallow breaths, or we might talk about rapid breathing and slow breathing.

Whatever words we use, the difference between each of these pairs is relative. We can only call one breath deep when we compare it with shallow breaths, we can only call one long when we compare it with short breaths, we can only call one rapid with we compare it with slow breaths. What's more, what I call a deep breath, and what you call a deep breath, may not be the same thing. It's up to us what we mean here.

So in addition to knowing when we breathe in and out, we must also be aware of the length, or depth, of each breath. When we first sit down to practise, especially if we have walked some distance, or even just gone upstairs to a quiet room, our breaths may be deeper at first, but after sitting still for some time, when our need for oxygen has reduced, our breath may become more shallow.

But don't try to make the breath either deep or shallow. Just know it for what it is. As you sit you may notice a regular pattern of breathing develop, but even then an occasional breath may break the pattern. If one breath is deeper, or more shallow, than others, simply notice that. Remember, this is an exercise in awareness.

Calming the body

These two steps represent two stages in a process of calming or stilling the body. It may take a little time to happen, and there's no exact point at which Step 2 becomes different from Step 1, but we can notice the change. As the body becomes more calm, our breathing becomes slower and more shallow. In fact, if we've already been sitting quietly for a time before we begin the practice, our breath will already be calm and slow. We'll find we've already reached Step 2.

We have to bring a more sensitive awareness to the slow, shallow breaths of Step 2. That prepares us for Step 3, which also calls for a sensitive awareness.

Knowing each in- and out-breath, summary

• Make a place and a time in which you can practise.
• Go and sit down, in a straight but comfortable and balanced position.
• Let your eyes close and begin to hear whatever sounds may come to your ears.
• Relax into Just Hearing, and when you become aware of your breathing too, practise Hearing and Breathing.
• Then notice whether your breath is deep or shallow. It may be easier to notice whether it's deeper than normal, more shallow than normal, or just normal.
• Continue to be aware of each breath, and of any sounds you hear, for as long as you like.
• Judge for yourself when "enough is enough".
• At that point, open your eyes, gently reconnect with your surroundings, yawn or stretch if you need to, and then move on unhurriedly into whatever life holds for you next.