The correct breathing can be developed with the method of Tohei Sensei.

In general the breath has a enormous effect on our life, not only on the physical body, but also on our mind.The ki breathing method of Sensei Tohei is a great tool to charge oneself. When we are stressed or worried our breath will be shorter. If we are able to breath deep and even it will be a true source of energy. The correct breathing can be developed with the method of Tohei Sensei. For this breathing exercise, we can sit in the traditional japanese seiza, or also on a chair. It is important to keep the upper body straight and we should keep the four general points always in mind: Keep one point (about 3fingers below the navel)

Relax completely

Keep the weight underside

Extend your ki

Exercise:

The breathing session always starts with a exhalation.While we exhale, we open the mouth and make the sound „Hah..“ The exhale last up to thirty to forty seconds, but in the beginning also 20 seconds are fine. Gradually the breathing naturally becomes longer. At the end of the exhalation, we slightly bend forward, in order to be able to breathe out the total volume of lungs. During the exhalation, we keep the „hah… Sound“. It is a controll for us, that the breath is even. Then we hold the breath for some seconds remaining in the same position.

In order to be able to relax completely, we have at this stage to keep „the one point“, otherwise we will breathe inn too fast and too short.

When we inhale, we breathe through the nose and we take in the air quietly and smoothly. The body still remains in the slightly bend forward position until the lungs are practically full. The inbreath takes about half of time of the outbreath. The inbreath should always be connected to „the one point“ as well. In order to be able to fill the lung capacity totally, we straighten the body at the time, when we think that we cannot breath inn anymore. By straightening the body, we will have some more capacity.

Then we hold the breath at „the one point“ for a short while before we start the breathing out again with the „hah… „ sound.

While we exhale, we extend our mind to the universe and our breath follow that intention long and even, still keeping „the one point“. While we breathe inn, we bring the universe back to our „one point“.

We can also do the following meditation:

To enlarge „the one point“ while we exhale… enlarge the point around us, like a large sphere and make that sphere bigger and bigger in a infinite way…. then while we inhale, we reduce the infinite big sphere back down to an infinite small point in our tantien. It is a good meditation to coordinate mind and body. You can do that for 15 – 20 Minutes every day.

http://www.walter-seeholzer.ch/tag/ki-breathing/

 

 

Koichi Tohei Sensei

Koichi Tohei (藤平光一 Tōhei Kōichi) (20 January 1920 – 19 May 2011)  was a 10th Dan aikidoka and founder of the Ki Society and its style of aikido, officially Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido (literally "aikido with mind and body unified"), but commonly known as Ki-Aikido.

Master Koichi Tohei was born in 1920 and grew up in Tochigi prefecture north of Tokyo.   In 1939, he met O-sensei and was introduced to Aikido.