Mind Quietness - An Experiment!

[Xanth]

I have an experiment that I'd like everyone to try. If anyone would like to volunteer, you only have to do the following and report here via comment or on Facebook your results.

I was meditating on the train the other morning, during it I was attempting to observe my Mind Chatter as it was happening. I made a kind of discovery in regards to myself and how my mind chatter works in conjunction with my breathing.

I found that if I hold my breath, the "mind chatter" is expressed much slower in my mind. What I mean by this is that the chatter happens much slower (sometimes at a complete standstill) than if I was breathing normally. When I hold my breath, each word that occurs seems to have a long break in between and feels like each word is struggling to be said. Whereby if I'm just breathing normally the chatter happens at normal speaking speed with no struggling occurring.

I found this rather intriguing and wondered if everyone/anyone else is like this as well? Obviously, it's ineffective and useless to attempt to hold your breath for extended periods of time in an effort to meditate "mind-chatter-free", BUT, as a result of this, I was now attempting to keep the mind chatter at bay by focusing on the quietness that occurs between my breaths.

So give this experiment a quick try. Try to "observe" your mind chatter while you're breathing normally and when you're holding your breath and see if you notice a distinct difference between the speed of the two. As I said, for me the mind chatter was expressed significantly slower (sometimes completely stopped) while I was holding my breath.

Feel free to post your findings here, the comments section of my website or on facebook (you can find the link on my website).

http://unlimitedboundaries.ca/2012/04/07/mind-quietness-an-experiment/

[todd421757]

Xanth,

I tried the experiment as you suggested. It worked brilliantly. I think mind chatter is the biggest obstacle we have. 

[Xanth]

So holding your breath made it significantly easier to quiet the mind chatter? 
Or was it that the mind chatter kind of "auto stopped" or "auto slowed" while you held your breath?

[todd421757]

So holding your breath made it significantly easier to quiet the mind chatter?  
Or was it that the mind chatter kind of "auto stopped" or "auto slowed" while you held your breath?

The mind chatter auto stopped completely (a complete standstill) when I held my breath. It did it ever time I held it. I wonder why it works so well.

I wonder if the act of breathing and constant mind chatter is designed to keep us focused in the physical realm. By bypassing this, we can speed up the projection process.

The mind chatter came back every time I resumed my normal breathing. Xanth, I think you're on to something great with this. I will keep practicing.

I just made the following realization by looking into my OBE journal: I have had quite of few successful projections in the past that have came when I would hold my breath for a brief moment immediately when I got my projection signals (fan sound pitch change, vibrations, golden light, ringing tones in the head, etc.)

[Xanth]

My rational for this... which is just a guess.  LoL

When we "talk", we have to force air out of our lungs, over our vocal cords.
Perhaps we do this so often that we've just come to accept it as the nature of "speaking".

In which case, even in the voice in heads... we still require that air passing over the vocal cords?  I find it incredibly hard to talk in my mind to myself while I'm not breathing... it takes much more concentration and the sentence I am able to do comes out very broken.  IE: Each word has a significant pause between them.

I dunno, just thinking out loud here.

Any other volunteers with data regarding this?

[todd421757]

In which case, even in the voice in heads... we still require that air passing over the vocal cords?

That makes perfect sense.

I just tried speaking out loud while holding my breath. I couldn't do it. So, speaking internally could yield the same difficulty while holding the breath.

[Xanth]

Quite possibly.   

I had a thought about applying this to our meditation.
Basically, it requires you to slow your breathing down to as slow as you can get it without suffocating.  LoL

I remember reading a lot about meditation techniques where one aimed at slowing down their breathing.
I'm wondering now if this was the reason for it?

Thoughts?

[todd421757]

I remember reading a lot about meditation techniques where one aimed at slowing down their breathing.
I'm wondering now if this was the reason for it?

Thoughts?

I found a journal article that had a study done with control and test subjects in regards to breath suspension. Here is part of the abstract:

"Many TM (Transcendental Meditation technique) subjects report experience of a
completely quiescent mental state characterized by maintained awareness in the absence of
thought."

Here is the full study results of 40 subjects done by a PhD:

http://www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/content/44/2/133.full.pdf

[Xanth]

Very interesting find.

I'm just glancing it over, cause it's a lot to read.

Are they saying that the breathing reduction episodes happened by choice in an effort to induce the TM state easier or that the breathing reduction episodes were a result of the TM practice?  I haven't figured that out yet.

[todd421757]

That is a good question.

I will be reading the study again in more detail Monday night, since I will be out of town for Easter. I read it too quickly the first time through.

[Contenteo]

Lol, whoa, yeah, my thinking slows way down, whoa.

I tried doing advanced math in this held breath state. It is significantly slower.

Interesting observation. You got my vote for verified.

You also have my vote for mildly freaky.

Keep that air flowing,
Contenteo

[Ssergiu]

My rational for this... which is just a guess.  LoL

When we "talk", we have to force air out of our lungs, over our vocal cords.
Perhaps we do this so often that we've just come to accept it as the nature of "speaking".

In which case, even in the voice in heads... we still require that air passing over the vocal cords?  I find it incredibly hard to talk in my mind to myself while I'm not breathing... it takes much more concentration and the sentence I am able to do comes out very broken.  IE: Each word has a significant pause between them.

I dunno, just thinking out loud here.

Any other volunteers with data regarding this?

Yep, this has worked to me too, as I've already told you. I also agree with what you're saying here. I sometimes have problems saying some words without breathing or changing my breath. I have tried to talk in my mind without influencing the breathing pattern, it's not that easy, or is it just me? lol

[dotster]

You might be interested in reading about Kumbhaka, it's the eastern approach to this concept. It really is pretty awesome how amazing just holding your breath can help you to concentrate. We do it naturally sometimes without even realizing it. When I first started driving I would catch myself holding my breath at random times and now I believe that it's because I was concentrating so intensely on what I was doing.

Our breathing patterns are changing constantly throughout the day depending not only on what we are doing but also what we are feeling. Another one of the most overlooked teachings of yoga is the connection between breath and how we connect with life. The next time you feel a strong emotion, whether it be happy, sad, angry, take a minute to notice how you are breathing and remember it. Later on try breathing the same way you were when you were feeling that emotion and you will find that emotion comes back to you quite easily. You probably already know that you breath differently depending on what emotion you feel, but few people ever actually connect the two. Yoga teaches that they are directly correlated. If you are feeling down just try breathing like you would if you were happy.

I seem to have gone off on a tangent, I'm sorry. As I was saying, I think you might be interested in researching kumbhaka and also the breathless state if you would like, I think you might find some connections.

[fin]

How would you describe Mind Chatter?

[Xanth]

How would you describe Mind Chatter?

The voice you hear in your head spouting seemingly randomness.
Your internal dialogue.

For example, if you read my post in your head.. that's your mind chatter/internal dialogue.

[fin]

In the meditation that my mom taught me there is a point where thoughts go away and breath becomes more refined almost as if breath has gone away. maybe your technique mimics or induces that state?

The way you've described mind chatter reminds me of the kind of thing that settles down while in meditation. For me when the noise subsides I transition to something deeper. 

[Stookie_]

So observing and controlling breath can be used as a method of concentrating awareness?

[Rudolph]

The voice you hear in your head spouting seemingly randomness.
Your internal dialogue.

For example, if you read my post in your head.. that's your mind chatter/internal dialogue.

Actually it might be more readily understood when phrased as a more personal thought exercise, e.g. -- if you are hearing your (own) last post in your head, rephrasing it, hearing imagined responses, re-rephrasing again, thinking about dinner, re-rephrasing again etc... *that* is mind chatter.

This breath/mind activity connection was something I noticed maybe 20 years ago after I had been meditating for a few years and at times my breathing would naturally slow way down. I began to notice the interim after exhaling and before starting the next inhale... a definite effect on mental activity.

This is noted clearly in Pranayama practice - the prana & manas (breath & mind) connection;

http://www.yogamag.net/archives/1997/ajan97/pranbran.shtml

The RAS is the trigger for other parts of the brain. Man is able to affect the RAS through the breath only. No other function of the autonomic nervous system can be controlled by conscious human activity. Control of the brain through the RAS by means of conscious breathing is a method by which other functions of the body may be controlled, for example, heart rate, blood pressure, digestion, excretion and absorption. Therefore, control of the subconscious is achieved through conscious activity of prana nigraha and then pranayama (7).

[linemile]

Well, small kitten wearing a frog hat, I too have noticed this before.

I feel almost as if that inhale & hold causes a feeling of "suspense", like in movies, when the character gasps and holds their breath when something dangerous is around the corner. Not really scary at all, though. It always makes me think of 'suspense' though. I just stop thinking, like my brain just waits for what's next. Huh.