September
2001
|
|
COMING
EVENTS
Healing With the Breath
of Life
ANDY CAPONIGRO
“The breath provides
direct access to the most powerful healing energies in the universe.”
THOUSANDS OF YEARS ago, great Indian yogis and Chinese sages developed powerful systems
of breath control which they used for mastering fear, healing illnesses, and attaining
the state of enlightenment. These days, increasing numbers of Westerners have also
begun to use breathing techniques to promote physical, mental, and spiritual healing.
Here in the West, the “science of breath” is still in its infancy. As a result, most
Westerners know relatively little about how or why breathing techniques can so profoundly
affect our body, mind, and spirit. However, the Eastern masters have known the answers
to these questions for thousands of years.
The systems of breath control developed by the Indian yogis and Chinese sages are
respectively known as Prana Yoga and Primordial Breathing. Originally developed as
paths to enlightenment, these powerful sciences of breath can initiate transformation
at all levels of being, because they tap directly into the cosmic forces that create
the universe. Buddha was the most famous of all Indian yogis who attained enlightenment
by meditating on the subtle inner movements of his breath. Meditation on the breath
was not only the chief discipline he used to attain his enlightenment, it was also
the source of his miraculous powers, and the single most important spiritual practice
he later passed on to his followers.
Breath holds the key to all healing
There is an old expression that says, “The doctor sets the bone, but Mother Nature
does the healing.” Mother Nature, the intelligent force that heals our minds and
bodies, is simply another name for Prana—the spiritual life force that dwells in
our breath. Prana spontaneously heals all sorts of injuries and illnesses without
the aid of doctors, medicines, or “external” help of any kind. However, there are
no physicians, medicines—nor any method of healing—that can cure even the slightest
health problem without the presence of Prana. Simply put: No breath, no life, no
healing.
You don’t have to be a highly skilled yogi or gifted psychic to heal yourself with
your breath. Anyone who studies the science of breath with discipline and regularity
can learn to access the breath’s healing energies. Learning to heal or alleviate
relatively minor problems such as headaches, muscular tensions, chronic pain, and
anxiety is remarkably easy to do. However, the more serious or deep-rooted an illness
is, the greater one’s mastery of breath must also be to effect significant degrees
of healing.
Pranic Energy Healing
Once we’ve learned how to use our breath for healing ourselves, we can then learn
to use it for healing other peoples’ diseases. I call this skill “Pranic Energy Healing,”
because it is based on the healer’s ability to transmit healing Prana (or Chi) into
another person’s system. A true pranic energy healer can also use his (or her) breath
to “vacuum” pain, fear, and tension from another person’s system —an invaluable tool
for working with chronic pain and lingering illnesses. The secret to this transfer
of healing energies is a meditative state of consciousness known as “entrainment”—a
state in which the “breath energies” of two individuals come into mutual states of
attunement.
Pranic energy healers have never been easy to find. They do pop up here and there,
especially in traditional societies. Some of the curanderos (folk healers) of Brazil
are known to use their breath in this way. The same is true of certain folk-healers
in India and China. Healing with the breath is an inborn talent in everyone. Since
accomplished teachers of this art have always been rare, most people who’ve learned
how to heal with their breath have intuitively developed this gift on their own.
Even without the help of an experienced teacher, anyone who wishes to learn how to
heal with their breath, can begin by studying breath-related practices such meditation
on breath, hatha yoga, t’ai chi, and qigong. These ancient disciplines embody effective
techniques for directing the flow of Prana (or Chi) throughout the mind and body.
The healing energies of spiritual life force can also be accessed by practicing any
of the time-honored spiritual disciplines, such as meditation, chanting, prayer,
and the repetition of divine names. However, the simplest and most direct way to
access the breath’s healing powers is through a knowledgeable control of breathing
techniques.
Buddha once said to his own son, “Always practice mindfulness of breathing, for when
that is maintained it brings great fruits and many blessings." The “fruits and
blessings” of which Buddha spoke are available to anyone willing to turn within and
meditate on the subtle movements of his (or her) breath in a knowledgeable and disciplined
way. The fruits and blessings that you personally gain from working with breathing
techniques will mostly depend on the strength of your commitment, and the amount
of quality time you spend in making this knowledge your own.
Andy Caponigro is a former concert guitarist who has been healing people with
the powers of the breath since the early 1970s. Internationally known as "a
master of breath," he has studied Pranic Energy Healing techniques in both the
United States and India. Besides his private sessions with clients, Caponigro also
teaches breathing techniques for self-healing in his Miracle of the Breath weekend
retreats. He will be conducting a healing retreat in Minneapolis, on Oct. 26, 27,
& 28 (7 p.m. on Friday through Sunday 4:30 p.m.). For more information, call
Mary McNellis at 651-439-0063.
Home | Wellness? | Writers Info | Subscribe | Links | Contact Us
P.O. Box 897
Stillwater, MN 55082
tel:
715-259-3385 or fax: 715-259-3386
email: info@tcwellness.com
©
2001 Twin Cities WELLNESS newspaper.
All rights reserved.
