The second lesson ever offered on breathwork was by my Jedi Teacher, Kharis Nightflyer. He called it the Calming Breath, and it was a Jedi variant of the four-fold breathing techniques in many yogic practices. It has since evolved a bit to better fit the Jedi Way, and it is the first bit of Breathwork that we will do here, now.
CALMING BREATH
This technique is pretty simple, and can be done at any time: sitting, standing, laying down, or moving. It is a type of deep belly breathing that is cyclic. This skill is important to learn, because this type of breathing is the basis for all forms of Jedi Breathwork. From a physical point of view, this is a bit tricky to learn if you have never done any types of deep belly breathing, because most people forget to breathe with their belly, and rather just rely on their upper rib cage for air. However, the first part of this exercise is to break that habit. Learning this is best done standing or laying down, so that the entire torso is straight. If seated, lean back to straighten and expand your torso.
Place your hands on your stomach, on each side of your navel. Breathing in through your nose, and out through your mouth, make the effort to only breathe from this part of your trunk, keeping your upper rib cage out of the action. You will find that you can breathe deeper this way, as it allows for a lot more expansion of the lungs. This is how we breathe while we sleep, and intentionally breathing this way may make your body feel lighter, and a little sleepy at first, but that is just a slight oxygen buzz from getting such a fuller breath.
The next step of this is to isolate the upper lungs by breathing with just the rib cage. Place your hands on your chest, just below your navel, and once again breathing in through the nose, and out through the mouth, keep your belly compressed, and only breathe with your ribs. This is how people naturally breathe when physically active. The upper lungs do not hold as much air, but they can process the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide quicker. This is why, once you relax from heavy exertion, often the upper chest will heave as you try to catch your breath.
Now, to learn to breathe properly. Place one hand on your stomach, just as the navel. Place the other hand on the upper rib cage. Breathe in through your nose, and out through your mouth. As you breathe in, count slowly to 4. For counts 1 and 2, draw breathe directly into your belly. For breathes 3 and 4, bring the air into your upper rib cage.
When you breathe out, do the same in reverse, and for twice as long. We’re going to an 8 count for the out breath, because the body can draw in breath better than it can expel breath in a normal breathing cycle. 1 through 4, you empty you rub cage, 5 through 8 you empty your belly.
Once you can do that, draw in for a 4 count, hold for 7 counts, then breathe out for 8 counts, and hold empty for 4 counts. The in breathe 7 count is to allow the body to exchange all of the oxygen and carbon dioxide that it can in the one breath. It also requires a stillness, which aids in the calming effect of this breathing technique. The out breath 4 count is to train the body to control its breathing, and to help mitigate the panic of not being able to take a deep breath. It also helps to mitigate the physical spasming of the diaphragm, in he case of an impact knocking the wind out of us.
With each breath, we cycle the Force in and out of us, scrubbing our blockages, and keeping a constant flow between the Internal Force and the Living Force.