Counting the Breath Meditation Practice

Counting the breath is an age-old meditation practice you will encounter in Yogic, Taoist and Buddhist traditions, and one that remains a mainstay of Zen Buddhism today. Monks entering Zen monasteries, or new students at Zen centers the world over, typically learn to count the breath as their introductory meditation practice.

Counting the Breath by the Numbers

Counting the breath is usually conducted in a cross-legged position on a meditation cushion (zafu) or while seated in meditation position in a chair. It can also be performed in standing mediation, which we’ll cover in a later post.

The technique entails either silently counting each inhalation, each exhalation—or both. This inner counting is nuanced by sustaining the vowel sound of the number throughout the full duration of a breath phase. In your mind, this would sound like wuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuune, twoooooooooooo, threeeeeeeeeeeeee . . . and so on, such that the numbers’ sounds become a kind of mantra. Conventionally, you count your breaths up to ten. then start all over again at one. If you lose count—or alarmingly find yourself at 23—you shrug it off, hit reset and simply begin again at one.

Ways of Counting to Enhance Concentration

Different counting schemes increase the challenge in maintaining concentration and mindfulness. Generally, you start with the simplest and progress over time as your concentration and awareness improve.

1. Count inhalations and exhalations separately

In the beginning, you count inhalations and exhalations in turn, such that after 5 breath cycles you will be at ten. On the first inhale you count one, on the exhale two, inhale three, exhale four . . . and so on. When you get to ten—or drift off and forget your count—simply start again, counting the next inhalation as one.

2. Count inhalations and exhalations similarly

A more challenging variation is to count the inhalation and exhalation with the same number. Inhale one, exhale one, inhale two, exhale two . . . and so on up to ten. When you get to ten, however, you reverse the process, counting backward down to one. Inhale ten, exhale ten. Inhale nine, exhale nine . . . and so on. This means that a complete cycle requires 20 counts, challenging your concentration doubly.

3. Count inhalations exclusively

The next variation involves counting inhalations only, remaining silent on each exhalation. This is more challenging in terms of concentration, since the quiet phase gives your mind an opening to slip away. Inhale on one, exhale in silence, inhale on two, exhale in silence . . . and so on.

4. Count exhalations exclusively

The next variation is to count exhalations only, remaining silent on the inhalations. For some reason, this is a little harder to maintain than counting inhalations only, a matter neuroscience might explain.

5. Count whole breath cycles

The final and most challenging variation is to count whole breaths, sustaining the sound of each number throughout the entire breath cycle. You count the inhalation and exhalation together as one—up to ten. Then reverse the process, counting your whole breath cycles from ten down to one. This is a practice you’d only undertake after you’ve been doing any of the aforementioned counting practices for six months or more.

Building Power in Your Hara

Counting the breath will in and of itself settle your mind; however, the practice is enhanced by focusing attention on what’s happening in your energetic center, the hara, located in your lower abdomen about two inches below your navel and two inches within. In Chinese medicine and Qigong, this is known as the lower dan tien. Think of it not so much as a point but as a region. The more you develop it, the larger it grows and the more it extends all the way to your back, sides and belly.

When you inhale, focus on drawing the breath down into this region. The more you breathe with your whole body, especially using the muscles surrounding the hara (diaphragm, rectus abdominus, transverse abdominus, obliques), the more this area becomes energized. In fact, the Qi energy in this region is spherical in shape and spinning. What you feel in your hara is the size and scope of this spinning. In Zen Buddhism, this energy is called joriki, or simply jo. When it grows strong, you might feel as if you’ve swallowed a warm iron ball or a glowing sunlamp. This pleasant feeling can stretch all the way back to your lower spine and kidneys, and its extent determines how centered and grounded you are in everyday life. A person with strong joriki is hard to knock off balance mentally or emotionally—no matter what’s going on around them.

The Untold Benefits of Counting the Breath Practice

There are so many benefits of counting the breath practice, it’s hard to list them all. For one thing, it’s exceptionally grounding and has the power to settle even the most scattered states of mind. The more time you invest in this practice, the less your mind will be inclined to spin off into needless thinking, problem solving, plan-making, fantasizing and free association.

With steady practice, counting the breath will also increase the duration of your breath cycles. Most North American adults breathe 8-to-12 times per minute on average. Counting the breath practice is likely to lower your breath rate into the 2-to-6 breaths-per-minute range. This slower rate is associated with deeper breathing and greater tidal volume, i.e., the amount of air you exchange with your surrounding environment. From a physiological standpoint, a higher tidal volume delivers more oxygen to your brain while expelling more carbon dioxide. Both enhance production of your brain’s “happy” neurochemicals (dopamine, serotonin) and promote samadhi, a meditative state of peace, calm and single-pointed focus.

Your Concentration Underpins Your Quality of Life

Counting the breath is an excellent barometer of your concentration. If you can count your breaths from one to ten, and then from ten down to one, without getting lost, your mind is well concentrated. The resulting improvement in mental focus and equanimity will naturally carry over into your everyday life. Indeed, this concentrated, aware mind-state known as samadhi or dhyāna, is not only a cardinal indicator of your quality of life, ease and balance but a catalyst for their continuity as well.