When I am practising Hang-Sou technique,for first 2 to 3 minutes, my breathe becomes very slow and calm, but as I continue, the breathe becomes restless and I feel as if I need more oxygen, so that it becomes a little bit difficult to concentrate upon the breathe and follow the Hang-sau process. What should I do?
—deepak, india
Dear Deepak,
Thank you for the question. I am guessing that you have fairly recently started practicing with the Hong-Sau technique. I believe this difficulty will go away with a little more practice.
Yogananda said that there is an obstacle on the path called “false notion.” We have the false notion that we need a certain amount of breath. I believe that you are becoming a bit calm and relaxed in meditation, and then the mind “notices” that you are not breathing as you usually do, and it becomes agitated, thus making you need more breath.
How to deal with this? When you start feeling you need more breath, try repeating the measured breathing that you did at the beginning of your practice (the relaxation or preparation stage). This will help calm and interiorize you again. Then start again with the practice. Don’t worry if you need to repeat the measured breathing more than once.
Are you beginning your meditation with a prayer to God, or to Yogananda? We always begin our meditation praying to Heavenly Father, Divine Mother, Friend, Beloved God, and the masters of our path, including Yogananda. Ask Their blessings on your practice. Offer Them your love. This will also help to relax your mind.
Yogananda says that the way to overcome whatever false notion we have, is to practice the meditation to the best of our ability. Gradually, the mind will become more comfortable with stillness, and you will find the problem drops away. I believe this will work for you.
In divine friendship,
Anandi
