| The Science of Respiration |
|
To breathe means to live. Not to breathe means to die. In fact, as long as a person breathes their life continues, but the minute the last breath ceases, then rigor mortis takes over. For thousands of years, the ascetics of the Asiatic, European, American and Mediterranean civilizations have seen in respiration the right way for the preservation of health and of the psychic control to obtain inner perfection.
As we have said, for many centuries in the different mystical and initiatic schools there has been handed down a science of respiration, which we find in ancient Egypt and in Islamic Sufism, in Hindu Yogi, in Chinese and Japanese Taoism, among the Essenes of the Dead Sea, the Therapeutics of Alexandria and the Christians of the desert, on Mount Athos and in the Medieval monasteries; from this, a science of respiration that Moses, Jacob, Buddha, Pythagoras, Patanjali and Christ knew, and which, in time, has led to observations of great importance about the biological function of air and of the vital energy contained in it; as well as the discovery of a methodical respiratory gymnastics to fight feelings of anxiety, fear, insecurity and anger - because the control and curbing of breathing, that is, the entry and exit of air from our lungs, allows the control of the emotions. The nervous person breathes poorly; who is angry and gripped by fear has short breath and accelerated respiration. All that is needed is to breathe slowly, progressively and deeply, to regain calm and serenity. Respiration is one of the most important functions of physiology and psychology. You can live without water for at least a week, there have been people who have lived without food for 40, 50 or more days, but without air you live only for a few minutes. The emotions have an influence on respiration, and, therefore, on the heart, blood circulation and the neuro-hormonal structure. Everyone knows that, for emotional reasons, it becomes difficult to breathe, remaining breathless or feeling heavy in the chest. The respiration of the normal person is generally arrhythmic, depending on the mental tension or external circumstances provoking anxiety. This irregularity produces instability and the dispersion of the consequent psychic fluidity. Modern psychosomatic medicine is aware of this, but, at present, has made little progress, dealing only with bronchial asthma and certain emotional components; however, it is possible to extend the research - to at least 100 types of respirations and as many emotional states. We speak from our own personal experience. The Pythagoreans and the Hippocratics have left interesting observations for a human improvement, and, therefore, gave great importance to respiratory gymnastics. The science of respiration, that is, the education of the pulmonary nervous system, is based on the observation that there is an interdependence between blood circulation, heart and breathing rhythm, directly influenced by the emotions and thoughts. It is well-known, as we have already noted, that, for emotional reasons, stemming from thoughts and concerns, we find it hard to breathe and remain breathless, the heart beats faster, even leading to a failure etc. A direct demonstration is the comparison between the breathing acts and the heartbeats per minute. Usually, the adult respiratory rate is about 15-20 acts per minute (each act consisting of an inhalation and an exhalation). At the same time, the heart alternatively contracts 70-72 times for a man and 80 for a woman. The arteries intermittently receive the blood which is transmitted from the heart; a finger placed on one of the arteries receives, at each dilation, an impulse called a pulse. In the final analysis, the lungs and the heart operate like two gears, one mounted on the other; so, each increase or decrease of the breathing rhythm coincides with an increase or decrease of the heart rhythm. So, respiration is the great balance-wheel of the organism, whose function is to re-establish the balance when it is disturbed. The frequencies vary according to age, sex and physiological condition. Heartbeats decrease in sleep, fasting and hibernation. excerpt from "ARCHEOSOPHICAL ASCETICS AND PREMISSES OF THE SCIENCE OF RESPIRATION" of the 13th Booklet |
