Originally published on Yoganonymous, 2015
The breath prayer is a contemplative Christian practice dating back to the sixth century. After a period of stillness, being especially mindful of the breath, the practitioner simply notices the first 3-5 words that reveal themselves. Setting the intention of allowing the Divine to speak these words to you as you enter into the breath is what makes the practice special. The words of your breath prayer may change over time as the breath allows, or you may find that the 3-5 word prayer serves as an anchor prayer for your ongoing spiritual practices. Some examples of well-known breath prayers in the Christian tradition include: Holy Wisdom, guide me; Lord have mercy; Holy one, heal me. Eastern practitioner may notice similarities to the practice of meditation and mantra. I recently went on a retreat where one of my spiritual teachers invited us into the practice of breath prayer. I entered into the practice in a space of beginner’s mind; not anticipating, not expecting and spirit greeted me with a pleasant surprise. My breath prayer that revealed itself to me was literally about my breath! The breath dances… After contemplating the beauty of this phrase as a prayer for several more moments, the following poem flowed from my pen when I allowed the breath to dance through me: Breath is Life Dancing Through Me The breath dances The dance breathes I breathe with my dance I dance with my breath As I breathe I dance As I dance I breathe My breath allows for my dance My dance allows for my breath My breath is life dancing through me May my dance celebrate this life. A simple breath prayer, a simple poem, yet for me, powerful reminders. I am reminded in this practice of Gregory Macguire’s wisdom, conveyed in his book A Lion Among Men: “Remember to breathe. It is after all, the secret of life.”
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Your body is soft in all the right places
Divine light pouring through, renewing the earth with your very presence. Your body is soft in all the right places Giving comfort to a world hungry for healing feed the people with your grace embodied. Your body is soft in all the right places Holy mother rejoices at your sight, challenging any notions that you are anything but radiant. Your body is soft in all the right places A love note to the universe, a universe cherishing The very existence of you. The spoken words and movements vanish in time.
The images are the constant reminder of what was once part of the present. They stay in the mind as a sharp pain that asphyxiates the guts and drowns the illusions. Dear, save your interpretations. You, full of prejudices that only reflect your values and omissions. Take care of your tasks so that the naive does not have to pay for them later. Save your interpretations because contrary to what you think will be used as nourishing. If you would just watch ... you could feel the silence. The same silence that breaks the smallest of illusions. The same silence that shuts up because now only the images can scream. The images that reflect what is hidden wanting it to be exposed. The images that reflect what is silent because the words have been already vanished by time. |
Dr. Jamie MarichCurator of the Dancing Mindfulness expressive arts blog: a celebration of mindfully-inspired, multi-modal creativity Archives
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