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breath is observing one's soul. One should not understand this phrase outside context, for that can create chaos. If the listener sticks only to the word, then the practitioner will stop at observing his breath alone. He will be able to make no further progress. He will never be able to reach the soul. I am not wrong when I say that observing one's breath is observing the soul. Breath is material but not physical. But is breath not the vital force? Where the breath is material or paryapti, there it is also the vital force. Of the ten vital forces, one is breath. How is breath not the soul? That which is the vital force is connected with the soul. If the context is not understood, it will be chaotic. If we, however, do not understand the context, then we should either not believe that the breath is connected with the soul or we should stop observing the breath. To stop observing the breath means to return without even entering the first door to meditation. The doors ahead remain closed. Further progress becomes impossible if we get stuck with the thought that the breath is the soul. We cannot take the next step and this becomes an impediment to progress.
Acharya Mahaprajna
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