Buddhism

Zazen And The Forgetting Of Self
Zazen is a most effectual means of destroying selfishness, th...

The World Is In The Making
Our assertion is far from assuming that life is now complete,...

Everything Is Living According To Zen
Everything alive has a strong innate tendency to preserve its...

The Parable Of A Drunkard
Now the question arises, If all human beings are endowed with...

Enlightenment Implies An Insight Into The Nature Of Self
We cannot pass over, however, this weighty problem without sa...

The Buddha Of Mercy
Milton says: "Virtue may be assailed, but never hurt; Sur...

There Is No Mortal Who Is Non-moral Or Purely Immoral
The same is the case with the third and the fourth class of p...

Zen And Supernatural Power
Yoga claims that various supernatural powers can be acquired ...

The Honest Poverty Of The Zen Monk And The Samurai
Secondly, the so-called honest poverty is a characteristic of...

Life Consists In Conflict
Life consists in conflict. So long as man remains a social a...

Life And Change
Transformation and change are the essential features of life;...

The Disciples Under The Sixth Patriarch
Some time after this the Sixth Patriarch settled himself down...

Do Thy Best And Leave The Rest To Providence
There is another point of view which enables us to enjoy life...

Pessimistic View Of The Ancient Hindus
In addition to this, the new theory of matter has entirely ov...

Zen Is Not Nihilistic
Zen judged from ancient Zen masters' aphorisms may seem, at t...

The Introduction Of The So-to School Of Zen
This school was started by Tsing-Yuen (Sei-gen), an emine...

Zazen Or The Sitting In Meditation
Habit comes out of practice, and forms character by degrees, ...

Idealism Is A Potent Medicine For Self-created Mental Disease
In so far as Buddhist idealism refers to the world of sense, ...

Man Is Both Good-natured And Bad-natured According To Yan Hiung Yo-yu
According to Yang Hiung and his followers, good is no less re...

The Parable Of The Monk And The Stupid Woman
The confused or unenlightened may be compared with a monk and...

The Breathing Exercise Of The Yogi

Breathing exercise is one of the practices of Yoga, and somewhat
similar in its method and end to those of Zen. We quote here
Yogi Ramacharaka to show how modern Yogis practise it: "(1) Stand or
sit erect. Breathing through the nostrils, inhale steadily, first
filling the lower part of the lungs, which is accomplished by
bringing into play the diaphragm, which, descending, exerts a gentle
pressure on the abdominal organs, pushing forward the front walls of
the abdomen. Then fill the middle part of the lungs, pushing out the
lower ribs, breastbone, and chest. Then fill the higher portion of
the lungs, protruding the upper chest, thus lifting the chest,
including the upper six or seven pairs of ribs. In the final
movement the lower part of the abdomen will be slightly drawn in,
which movement gives the lungs a support, and also helps to fill the
highest part of the lungs. At the first reading it may appear that
this breath consists of three distinct movements. This, however, is
not the correct idea. The inhalation is continuous, the entire chest
cavity from the lower diaphragm to the highest point of the chest in
the region of the collar-bone being expanded with a uniform movement.
Avoid a jerking series of inhalations, and strive to attain a
steady, continuous action. Practice will soon overcome the tendency
to divide the inhalation into three movements, and will result in a
uniform continuous breath. You will be able to complete the
inhalation in a couple of seconds after a little practice. (2)
Retain the breath a few seconds. (3) Exhale quite slowly, holding
the chest in a firm position, and drawing the abdomen in a little and
lifting it upward slowly as the air leaves the lungs. When the air
is entirely exhaled, relax the chest and abdomen. A little practice
will render this part of exercise easy, and the movement once
acquired will be afterwards performed almost automatically."

Hatha Yoga, pp. 112, 113.

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