Problem in my meditation practice

[FredFred]

I've come to a problem in my meditation practice, I wondered if some of you could help me overcome it.

So I'm there, watching my breath. When I inhale everything is fine. I can concentrate on the raising of my chest, on the cold air coming into my nose or even on the slight vibration of my nose hairs.

But things get confusing when I exhale. I can't feel the air going through my nose. I can't feel the cold air since it's hot, and for a reason I'm not completely sure about, it's like my hairs don't vibrate anymore... I often feel like I'm always looking for a focal point to put my concentration on when exhaling, which I can't find, and lose my concentration because of it.

Any ideas on what to do with this?

[Hellspeed]

Concentrate on Nirvana (meaning blowing out the breath). Exhale listening to the sound until you literally empty the lungs and let the body inhale automatically, you don't have to necessarily watch the inhale. There are various techniques per example: in how to make the sinuses have a high pitch Si note on exhaling (one hears this in the ears), but that is for advanced mastery or specific works. 

Letting go basically, in a nutshell, is all this: exhaling and letting the body inhale as if you went underwater and is something automatic. Don't cling to breath, let go of the breath. 

Use foam earplugs, it's easier, until one becomes so sensitive that he/she can hear own breathing and ear pitch sounds above environment. 

Edited October 4, 2018 by Hellspeed

[aurum]

@FredFred

I would say keep trying. The sensations are there, they might just be too subtle for you to notice at this point.

Alternatively, drop the breath as a object of meditation altogether. There’s nothing special about the breath, it just works really well because it’s a constant cyclical stimulus. But you could just as easily pick something else to concentrate on.

[Nahm]

I’ve seen and tried a lot of breath techniques and found the simplest to be most effective (specifically in terms of leaving thought); breathing from the stomach, keeping the focus on the expansion and retraction of the stomach (not the lungs) and not using the muscles, just being aware of the deeper and deeper relaxation. Relax specific muscles / areas head to toe, over and over, deeper and deeper. Notice all the way around the stomach / mid section, it takes a few minutes to fully let go and relax these muscles, and then the in breath relaxes the entire body, and the outbreath relaxes the entire body (each taking the relaxation deeper). You might notice the nuance of the out breathe easily relaxing the body, and the in breathe brings the slightest muscle tensing, after focusing on the stomach breathe for some time, the in breath will also begin to relax the entire body. This takes maybe 10 - 15 minutes (for complete body to have let go, and attention staying on stomach), and the body begins to disappear around the 20 minutes mark. Very important, notice the thoughts arising and attention trailing it, and simply return focus to the breath in the stomach. 

I tried the noticing the breath in other areas, like the throat, nose, etc, but found it was too much mental activity, to much concentration. The method I explained above is the best I’ve intuited for leaving the thought state, and becoming the emptiness / spaciousness.

It’s also doubly effective, in that after some time, breathing from the stomach becomes a natural go to, or reflex (instead of the lungs, which contributes to over thinking) and eventually you’re breathing from your stomach 24/7, an important practice re samadhi. Also, we are not actually alive, nor do we die, and the greatest facet of illusion imo, is our own breath. If this practice is done correctly, at least 40 minutes every morning (and preferably again in the afternoon), and you are not breathing, but rather, aware of the body / stomach naturally breathing, the breath will slow to about 1% of typical breathing (again, don’t try to do this, it will happen naturally). During this 1% phase, if you will, there is little to no thought activity, but again, don’t try not to think, this thought reduction happens effortlessly along with the 1% breath. Hopefully some of this is helpful and or even understandable. It does appear a little crazy now that I’m typing it out. It’s done wonders for me though. 

Also, really important, straight spine, head tilted slightly forward, and body balanced (notice a tendency when letting go, for the body to lean ever so slightly left or right, even “1 degree”  and adjust legs and feet to balance perfectly). When relaxing head to toe, feel the pull of gravity (connection of love) as all muscles / entire body sinks deeper and deeper. 

This is one meditation to try. No size fits all. 

[Cocolove]

When you breath out, feel energy going throughout your whole body

[FredFred]

@Hellspeed  I hadn't thought about the earplugs. Thank you for the recommendation

@Nahm  I'll make sure to try the technique!

[Nahm]

@FredFred Cool. Also, I use earplugs too. Forgot to mention that.     @Hellspeed??

And I sit in total blackness. Usually pantsless, lol, cause every pair of shorts and pants slides down the dang cushion. ?

[FredFred]

@Nahm  I sit in sweatpants, very comfortable