Reply #3: Start with the breath [View All]

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

seriously, getting folks breathing together actually works. A real-life example:

About 10 years ago, my husband was invited to an ecology conference. The activists were angry, all wanted to push forth their own agendas, and nothing was getting done. My husband asked the discussion leader to give him the first five minutes the next morning. He led the group (around 100 I believe) in a simple breathing practice. "Take a deep breath, let it out with a sigh. Do it again and vocalize it--Ahhh. Ok, do it again, this time add LA at the end-- Allah. That's Arabic for Unity, people." Changed the whole atmosphere, and the group was able to continue with their meeting with no anger--all were working together.

It does come down to the breath.