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My cat has been ill for over a week and has not eaten. Yesterday as I sat with her, my hands on her delicate body, I could hear her purr and breathe in and out. As I focused on both my own breathing and hers, I realized that the breath unites us, and that the same prana that supports me also supports her. This realization dissolved my sense of separation and anxiety for her, and I rested in the feeling of this unity.
Pune, India
This verse touched me deeply. It articulates what I experienced when my father died.
It dawned on me at that time how similar the first and the last breaths are. I could see that there’s only a thin veil between life and death. The palpable silence that descended on me as my father departed "into Breath" was so profound that I didn’t want to move. I wanted to merge into silence.
This experience remained present and sustained me over the next weeks—with my breath serving as the immediate connection to the silence within.
It dawned on me at that time how similar the first and the last breaths are. I could see that there’s only a thin veil between life and death. The palpable silence that descended on me as my father departed "into Breath" was so profound that I didn’t want to move. I wanted to merge into silence.
This experience remained present and sustained me over the next weeks—with my breath serving as the immediate connection to the silence within.
Geelong, Australia
Recently, I read Swami Muktananda’s book I Am That and started using the Hamsa mantra in meditation. As a result—even though I have had breathing-related disorders for most of my life—my breathing has become more natural and relaxed. I now breathe effortlessly from my diaphragm where I had held fear from past injuries.
Reading this verse from the Taittiriyopanishad helped me understand how breathing with awareness helps my life flow easefully. When I meditate now, I will remember that my breath is a gift from God.
Reading this verse from the Taittiriyopanishad helped me understand how breathing with awareness helps my life flow easefully. When I meditate now, I will remember that my breath is a gift from God.
Connecticut, USA