The description of breathing here was perfect. I’ve always had trouble with my breathing, and thinking about a thread made it quiet, stable, and slow. Thank you.

regards,
lalitha sekar

“Sit with your back straight, and place the burning candle at eye level.”

Shouldn’t I place the candle at eye level first, or a close proximity thereof, and then sit with my back straight? Either that or, how close to, or far away from, the candle should I be sitting?

“Try to imagine a thread placed in front of our nose; you are breathing so quietly it will not move to and fro.”

When I was first trying this, I kept feeling like the imaginary thread was tickling my nose, and this tickle distracted me from my attempt at candle concentration meditation. The imagination certainly is a most powerful thing. Also, how exactly does one go about breathing quietly? Does this mean I should not be able to hear myself breathing? I’m a little bit afraid that if I cannot hear myself breathing, I might have an anxiety attack, which again would somewhat defeat the purpose of the candle concentration meditation, I would think. But, well, practice makes perfect, as the adage goes, so I will keep at it until my nose stops itching and I can breath if not more qui9etly then at least more easily so that the anxiety dies down.

“Gradually bring your attention to a tiny part of the candle flame, for example, the very tip of the flame.”

Does this mean that my eyes should move as slowly as my breathing should be quiet? How long should it take for my eyes to eventually fix on the tip of the flame? What should I do if I get lost in the flame on my when to the tip if the bringing of my attention to said tip is too, well, gradual?

“Try to feel that nothing else exists except you and the object you are focusing on.”

What happens to the thread? Does it just go away? I ask this because my nose is still itching at this point. But that might just be my nostril hairs. I wish they didn’t exist.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day, and similarly it will take time to rein in your mind.”

Is that spelled right? Don’t you mean that it will take time for Rome to “reign” in my mind?

“…you feel no separation between you and the
object….”

Now not only does my nose itch, but it’s beginning to get this burning sensation like my nostril hairs are on fire.

This is not as easy as it first seemed, but I am convinced with a bit of perseverance I can make this work in my favor. Eventually. Cheers for the tips.