by Bob Romero —
Bob Romero has been a diligent student of esoteric spiritual subjects and metaphysics for many years, with a life-long quest for answers. He has submitted new and original articles that focus on life lessons and experiences he wishes to share with our readers and the world.

We too often take the air we breathe for granted even though it is the one thing that we need most to live. In addition to keeping our physical body alive, the breath is also important for our mental, emotional, and spiritual bodies. When we’re overly excited, the first thing that we’re told to do is to take a deep breath and calm down. In yoga we concentrate on our breath when we begin our practice and use it with each pose. We start off by focusing on the breath for meditation whether it be guided, mindful or empty mind.
There are many breathing techniques that help us heal and be centered and grounded. Some simple ones are the 4-7-8 breathing, box breathing, and alternate nostril breathing. The 4-7-8 method is to breathe in for four seconds, hold it for seven seconds, and then release it for eight seconds. Then repeat that sequence for 7-10 times. The box breathing is to inhale for four seconds, hold it for four seconds, breathe out for four seconds, and wait four seconds before inhaling again and starting a new cycle. Repeat that for also for 7-10 cycles. The alternate nostril breathing is a yoga practice that uses the thumb and ring finger on your right hand. You start by closing your right nostril with your thumb and inhaling through your left nostril. Then close your left nostril with your ring finger and open your right nostril by moving your thumb off and breathing out your right nostril. Then inhale through your right nostril and then close it with your thumb and then open your left nostril by moving your ring finger off and breathing out your left nostril. That is one cycle. Do six more cycles for a total of seven. If you have not done any breathing exercises before, you will be surprised about much calmer and better you feel.

Sadhguru, a famous yogi, says that everything happens on a cellular level and so by giving thanks for the food that we eat and water that we drink, we are charging the food and liquid molecules with positive energy, and it rejuvenates the cells. I say that we take it a step farther and once in a while, give thanks for the air that we breathe so that it charges all of the air molecules with positive energy coming into your body. You can visualize all of the positive energy flowing throughout your whole body, and filling up not just your physical body, but your aura as well. This will make you feel good, and you’ll start to notice good things happening around you.
When I see the haze over the city or along the foothills, it troubles me what about what’s in store for the future for the air that we breathe. It’s plain to see that profits on air polluting energy have come before clean air. This breath that we’ve been given by Spirit started when God breathed life into Adam. We must cherish it, respect it, and give thanks for it, as the air that we breathe is a Divine resource that we need for all facets of our lives.