When the body is under tension,
one of the first things often said is:
Breathe.
Slow your breath.
Breathe into your belly.
Take a deeper breath.
Sometimes it helps.
And sometimes breath becomes another task.
The body is already holding enough.
It holds the eyes.
It holds the jaw.
It holds the neck.
It holds the chest.
It holds the whole situation together.
And now it is supposed to hold the right breath as well.
In such a moment,
the body may not know:
How should I breathe?
But the body knows
how it is organized.
Breath is not pushed into the body.
Breath enters where there is room for it.
The pelvis is present,
but as if it were empty.
The sitting bones are in contact,
but they are not taking the weight.
The feet are on the floor,
but they are not part of the axis.
The chest has no support
and holds on behalf of the whole organism.
Breath stays high
because that is where the body is holding stability.
When weight returns down into the pelvis,
breath does not need another instruction.
The seat becomes more real.
The feet receive weight.
The pelvis widens into bearing.
The chest stops carrying the whole presence.
The eyes no longer need to monitor the space.
The jaw softens,
no longer holding a prepared answer.
Breath changes by itself.
Without effort.
The body settles into itself.
Breath stops being a technique.
It becomes part of the organism again.