Think Indigenous: Native American Spirituality for a Modern World

by Doug Good Feather

THE BREATH OF LIFE METHOD—HOW TO QUICKLY ENERGIZE YOURSELF This practice will highly oxygenate your blood very quickly. Your eyes will need to be closed, so it’s important that you’re in a sitting position and able to hold on to something to steady yourself. When you’re done with the practice, don’t stand up right away. You may get dizzy and fall down. This practice can energize your whole physiology in less than a minute and its effect may last for an hour or more, so it’s important that we don’t practice this method too close to when we need to go to sleep. Close your eyes and allow your forehead, eyebrows, jaw, and shoulders to fully relax. Through your nose, fill your lungs with a slow and deep breath. When your lungs are full, hold your breath, and then open your mouth. Quickly inhale with a short powerful breath, and fill your lungs to their maximum capacity. This is called “filling the bellows.” Hold that breath for seven seconds, and then exhale quickly and forcefully. Repeat steps 1 through 4 four times, and then open your eyes ever so slightly and take a slow and deep breath—not focusing on anything in particular—just a soft, downward gaze as you feel your senses heighten, your energy rise, and your body come alive.