Awaken Heaven On Earth

For Peace of Mind and Awareness of our Oneness with all things in God, in addition to being alive, joyful and grateful in the present moment, I recommend practicing Breath Awareness.  Many Spiritual Master Teachers teach Breath Awareness as a tool for Spiritual Awakening/Enlightenment.  One of my favorite’s is the beloved Zen Monk and World Renowned Peace Maker, Thich Nhat Hanh.  He has written many treasure troves, though one of his most highly acclaimed books is “The Miracle of Mindfulness.”  This is a great read for anyone interested in learning about Breath Awareness.  My book “Awaken Heaven on Earth” also highlights Breath Awareness as a universal Spiritual Enlightenment tool.  In short, choosing to focus on our breath continually throughout the day, gradually helps us to realize we are not our thoughts.  Just like we have fingers, yet we are not just fingers, we have thoughts though we are much more than our thoughts.  Learning to focus on our breath rather than our thoughts means thoughts will come and go - some wonderful thoughts, some not so wonderful - though we will not be controlled by our thoughts.  Rather we become a compassionate observer of our thoughts.  While focusing on our breath of life, we naturally become grounded and centered in ”Spirit” (i.e. Godly Energy and Consciousness).  Centered in the part of our beingness which is both Eternal and at One with All Life, we are aware of our “Higher-Self.”  Integrating our ego-minds into our Higher-Self, helps us to Awaken to our Oneness with God, and our Oneness with All Things in God.  Experiencing the bliss and peace of our Oneness with All Life is, in the language of my heart, Enlightenment.  In my opinion there are many different tools, spiritual practices, and religious/spiritual languages that all lead, in their own unique ways, to Enlightenment.  So while I do not believe Breath Awareness is the only secret to Enlightenment,  it is one of the tools I use daily to help me feel/experience my true Divine nature, my Oneness with God, and my Oneness with All Things in God.  To benefit from Breath Awareness, I suggest first making a commitment to stay aware of your breath continually throughout the day.  Next, come up with some kind of reminder system.  A friend of mine uses a blue ink pen to put little circles on each hand.  Everytime he notices the blue dots, he remembers to come back to his breath.  I used to use little yellow sticky notes on my car rear-view mirror and my computer screen, in addition to wearing a special bracelet which I told myself was my “just remember to breathe” symbol.  After a month of practicing Breath Awareness, I found myself truly alive in the present moment.  Worry thoughts about the future did not control me.  Regret thoughts about the past were observed compassionately, and forgiven.  Thoughts in general, whether wonderful or strange, rarely distracted me from an incredibly sweet feeling of peace, joy, and gratitude.  I hope all reading this are inspired to try Breath Awareness for at least a month, to begin to experience it’s Spiritual Awakening potential for beginners, or to experience how much it can enhance the spiritual practice of the more seasoned.  In my experience, many who have a spiritual practice only use Breath Awareness during Yoga and/or Meditation.  Master Teachers like Thich Nhat Hanh, however, recommend using it continually throughout the day.  Doing so has certainly been one of my key practices to living Heaven right here on Earth.  I also strongly recommend a daily meditation practice.  Learning to meditate is crucial to our spiritual evolution.  Please see my post on meditation, which goes hand in hand with Breath Awareness.  Thank you so much.  Lovingly and gratefully shared, Melissa   melissa@awakenheavenonearth.com