TLDW logo

Expansion, Contraction and the Breath Cycle ~ Shinzen Young

By Shinzen Young Teachings ~ expandcontract

Summary

## Key takeaways - **Detect Expansion-Contraction in Breath**: One has to really detect expansive contractive movement force in the breath; it's not just okay if you focus on the breath that's expansion and contraction, you have to detect those flavors in it. [00:07], [00:30] - **Extend Breath Practice to All Senses**: You don't want to only do it with the breath forever because the idea is you want to eventually be able to detect this in all sensory experiences all time but the breath is a representative of this. [00:35], [00:50] - **Volumetric Breath Expansion-Contraction**: You can just focus on the volumetric expansion on the in-breath and the volumetric collapse on the out-breath so that would be one way you're alternating is frantic attraction in the sense of literally space getting larger or smaller. [01:00], [01:20] - **Force-Based Reversal in Breathing**: When you breathe in the muscles contract and the linings of the bronchi and so forth sort of get filled with a tug inward so there's actually a contractive force that's detectable and when you breathe out that releases so there's an expansive force so that reverses. [01:25], [01:45] - **Advanced Dual Breath Dynamics**: If you want to get fancy you can volumetrically expand and force wise contract on the in-breath and reverse that on the out-breath so you have both on the in-breath both on the out-breath but the roles of father and mother get reversed. [02:00], [02:20] - **Sasaki Roshi's Role-Flipping Analogy**: Sasaki Roshi says when father finds mother's native village and mother finds father's native village then father turns into mother and mother turns into father and they flip roles and that's the only way that they can come back. [02:30], [02:50]

Topics Covered

  • How does breath reveal expansive and contractive forces?
  • Why reverse volumetric and force polarities in breathing?
  • What flips father and mother roles in breath practice?
  • How does breath training sensitize other senses?

Full Transcript

one has to really detect expansive contractive movement force it's not just okay if you focus on the breath that's

expansion and contraction you have to detect those flavors in it and I wouldn't that you don't want to only do it with the breath forever because the

idea is you want to eventually be able to detect this in all sensory experiences all time but the breath is a represent a representative of this

there's three ways you can do it you can just focus on the volumetric expansion on the m and the volumetric collapse on the out-breath so that would be one way

you're alternating is frantic attraction in the sense of literally space getting larger or smaller you can reverse it

though when you breathe in the muscles contract and the linings of the bronc

bronchi and so forth sort of get filled with a tug inward so I remember I always

say in pressure or space or etc etc or force right so when you breathe in there's actually a contractive force

that's detectable and when you breathe out that releases so there's an expansive force so that reverses that's the opposite polarity of the volumetric expansion and contraction so one way you

can work with the breath expansive contractive wise is in breath is volumetric expansion out-breath is volumetric contraction volumetric pardon

my geese week it just means with respect to how big something is okay how you would measure the volume okay or so you can expand on the in contract on the out

or force wise you can contract on the end and expand on the out or if you want to get fancy you can volumetrically

expand and force wise contract on the end and reverse that on the out so you have a both on the end both on the out

but the the roles of father and mother get reversed and Sasaki Roshi says when

father finds mother's native village and mother finds father's native village then father turns into mother and mother turns into father okay and they flip

roles and that's the only way that they can come back etc etc so well you've got you you know whichever one you to call the native village okay but

there's if you want to call the volumetric thing sort of like surface and then the other thing debt deep right so you your surface expands on the

in-breath the depths contract on the in-breath but then on the out-breath they flip rolls right the surface contracts but the out the inside the

muscles stretch so I that's probably part of what he's talking about but just a very small part what I find is that by

working with the breath that way which is readily available anybody can get almost anyone can get the volumetric expansion contraction

most people can detect the muscles you know doing the opposite I find that working that way with the breath sort of

sensitizes to the detection of similar phenomena in other sensory domains

Loading...

Loading video analysis...