Wicca for the solidarity practitioners

Wiccan lifestyle

Breathing In Divinity

In my constant search to live Wiccan all of the time, I found myself at a loss when it came to a certain period of time: being at work. Of all the things that allow me to express my Wiccan self, I couldn't figure out how to incorporate any of them into my work time. Oh sure, I could meditate during breaks or something like that but what about when I was just going about my daily tasks? I have been known to sing Wiccan songs and that does bring a great deal of satisfaction, but sometimes singing isn't really an option. So what then? What could I do to really express my Wiccan self that wouldn't cause any disturbance and, at the same time, really satisfy me?

Well, I could breathe.

The idea came to me after reading a chapter in Christopher Penczak's book The Gates of Witchcraft. The book is about finding different methods of entering into altered states of consciousness and one of the chapters deals with using regulated, patterned breathing in order to induce trance and achieve gnosis. One of the breathing patterns mentioned came out of Sufism and is used to channel the energies of the four Elements. After reading this I thought, "Why not use this for a whole ritual?" With this in mind, I created a specific pattern that evokes the casting of a Circle, calling the Quarters, and calling on the God and Goddess. Here's how it works:

1. Inhale slowly and deeply until you reach your lung's full capacity and then slowly exhale. While doing this, concentrate on the idea of the Circle being formed. Rather than the Circle being formed through gesture or word, it is being created through breath. The long, slow breath in and out is representational of the Circle without beginning or end.

2. Inhale for a count of four, hold for a count of four, and then exhale for a count of four. Concentrate on the Quarters being called while doing this. The counts of four represent, obviously, the four Quarters (or Elements, if you prefer).

3. Inhale for a count of two, hold for a count of two, and then exhale for a count of two. Concentrate on the essence of the God while doing this. The count of two represents the dual God (Oak King/Holly King, Lord of Life/Lord of Death).

4. Inhale for a count of three, hold for a count of three, and then exhale for a count of three. Concentrate on the essence of the Goddess while doing this. The count of three represents the Goddess as a triple goddess.

5. Breathe in and out normally while focusing on using your breath as the life-filled conduit between you and the divine.

Now, the counts for each breath that I use make sense to me but there's nothing (of course) to say that someone couldn't use a different breathing pattern. Do you want to create a pattern for each Quarter/Element? Do you have a particular deity that you work with who has a specific numerical correspondence that you want to incorporate? Any type of pattern can be used so long as it works for you; I have merely listed my method as a means of illustrating the concept.

The great thing about using sacred/intentional breathing is that it can be done anywhere: at home at the altar, during your morning commute, or while working on that spreadsheet that needs to be out before you go home. In addition, no one need know of what you are doing if that is a concern of yours. After all, everyone breathes! And if you have to do it anyway, why not color it with intention so that you can have one more way to live Wiccan every day.

Of late, I have been noticing how often people in our society are shirking responsibility. Rather than do something themselves, people have become entirely too prone to call on someone else to do the dirty work and thus risk the blame or other negative consequences. When someone is seen abusing a child, people do not usually step in between the child and the striking hand; they call the "authorities". These "authorities" are summoned for everything from animal abuse, deciding if someone's house should be condemned, hostage situations, cats stuck in trees, etc. Our society has come to treat the "authorities" as being all-powerful godlike figures that have unlimited resources, understanding, and wisdom. In truth, allowing others to deal with touchy situations (i.e. abortions, same-sex marriages, assisted suicide) is nothing more than allowing oneself to remain in the safety of inaction.