Hello again and welcome back to my blog!
As the title suggests, today I wanted to offer you a meditation to eradicate that pesky ego that we all know so well.
Lately, I have been working through some blocks that have prevented me from living at my highest potential.
You know, when we make mistakes, especially the really big ones, when we look back and think “who the heck was that person?” Yeah, I know it all too well. The past three years have kind of been a repetition of the same story told in different ways.
Struggles through relationships, abuse, love addiction, and healing from past habits that had gotten to a point of chaos that resulted in hurting others.
I’m sure that we all have our stories, some more dark and deep cutting than others, but the point of the matter is that we all struggle through these mistakes and sometimes the ego likes to hold onto them and flash them back in our faces to keep us stuck in our old patterns and habits.
When that story comes back around again and you’re like “oh, not this again…”–kind of like a re-run of a bad sitcom from the 90’s? You know? The same one that always seems to be on TV when you flip it on?
Yeah. My ego has been flashing its crazy eyes at me for a while now and I think it’s high time that I started exercising myself to make sure I am able to recognise my ego and put it back in its place.
Which brings me to…
The points of this post was to talk about a meditation that I wanted to share with you from Kundalini yoga.
Just as a disclaimer, I am NOT a trained Kundalini teacher, but I think this is so important that I will share with you both my knowledge of it, and link another site to reference for more information. 🙂 Just in case I miss something.
Fire Breath:
I know, are we fiery dragons or…is this just a fancy way of saying FIRE PRANAYAMA.
As we know, breath practice is one of the Patanjali Sutras. Or if you didn’t know before, now you do.
Fire breath is essentially high vibrational quick yogic breaths. Good fast vibes = better energy.
To explain what yogic breath is like: When we inhale, we inhale all the way into our tummies, so you’ll feel your stomach puff up along with your chest cavity. When we exhale, the breath leaves almost like you’re squeezing a balloon of air and so your tummy becomes contracted, like you’re squeezing the air up and out.
To make this yogic breath FIRE, we speed up the inhale exhale.
There are two types of fast breathing in the Kapalabhati and Bhastrika practices which are like a forced exhale with passive inhale (kapalabhati) or forced inhale with a passive exhale (bhastrika); HOWEVER, for this specific meditation we will be using the first form of breath.
To accomplish kapalabhati, or “skull-shining breath”, breathe in through your nose to fill your lungs and abdomen with air, then push in your abdomen forcefully, letting the air come out your nose in one puff. Allow the air to refill your lungs without any effort. The only effort should be the sharp exhalation through the nose.
Repeat, repeat, repeat. (But practice because this is a more difficult kriya to get used to, please, if you get dizzy take a break and resume normal breath.)
The Posture:
To begin, sit in simple seat (legs crossed, nothing fancy, criss-cross applesauce, whatever you will).
Bring your hand to your neck and press your neck into your hand, to create a straight and strong neck posture (sitting up strong and powerful).
Take your fingers (not your thumbs) and press them into your finger pads (almost like you’re making a fist, but only bend your fingers to the place they leave your palm).
Bring your hands upward to a 60degree angle, your thumbs should be pointing upward in a powerfully strong arm hold–shoulders down along your back, sitting up tall.
Close your eyes and start your fire breath.
Continue with your eyes closed for as long as you feel necessary. This is your practice.
When finished, bring your arms down at your sides and place them in your lap, expanding your energetic field you’ve created around you. Take one last deep inhale and let it go.
When you’re ready, open your eyes to the room.
How did your energy shift? Do you feel different than when you started? What changed for you?
Let me know in the comments below some of the major shifts you’ve had from changing your perception about your ego. How has your meditation practice shifted your life?
If you’re new to meditation, how do you feel it will shift your life?
Sources:
https://www.yogajournal.com/meditation/gabrielle-bernsteins-ego-eradicator-kundalini-meditation-bust-blocks#gid=ci020756a6501725bd&pid=gabrielle-kundalini-meditation-blocks-1
https://chopra.com/articles/release-toxins-with-kapalabhati-breath
http://yogawithsubhash.com/2016/06/25/nadi-sanchalana-rapid-breathing/
Seoulful Yogi 